He stepped down from his horse, and the others gathered around him. Ethan examined him closely. Except for himself, Clarke was the largest man there. He had thick black hair, cut in a rough fashion about even with the lobes of his ears. His eyes were surprisingly large but squinted often as he talked. His aquiline nose and somewhat protruding chin gave an impression of strength to a short upper lip and a soft-looking mouth. He had prominent, yellowed teeth, and the upper ones were constantly in view when he spoke. As the situation was explained to the newcomers, it seemed to Ethan that Clarke was excessively presumptuous in his position as leader, not acknowledging the voices of the other men until he had finished his long and somewhat convoluted statements. At times he struggled for the right word, and the man next to Ethan whispered, “He can’t read and write, but he’s smart as hell.”

When a few of the men began expressing their views, Clarke listened for about five minutes and then held up his hand to demand silence. He summarized, “Well, now we all know about the Whites, the Sheralls, and others—the killin’s and scalpin’s of their women and children, and the burnin’ of their houses and barns. We’re dealin’ with a bunch of cowards, who are despised by their own people. The only ones worse are the militiamen sent here by the governor, who messed in their pants and ran when they heard the sound of the first bow twang.”

There was soft laughter, and Elijah waited for it to subside.

“It’s fallen on us to handle this mess, and we’re gwine to clean it up. Big Elk and his men believe they are safe until they’re ready to strike us again, and have set up camp about twenty miles across the river. Mr. Moses, who trades with the Cherokees, is with us and says he knows right where they are.”

He pointed to a small and obviously nervous man near him.

“I reckon everybody brought enough to eat, and powder and shot to last us awhile. It might be important for us to know how to reload in a hurry. Also, you need a knife for close fightin’, and I see some of you have a tomahawk. We ain’t going to turn back until we find them and finish our business.”

These comments were unnecessary, but no one objected. Most of the men were avid hunters and habitually carried a hunting knife and a musket or long rifle whenever they donned a hat and coat to leave their own cabin. On horseback and in the woods, a weapon was in their hands, and some even contrived ingenious ways to secure their gun across plow stock handles in the field. This permitted them to respond quickly if an enemy appeared or if they saw a deer, bear, or turkey within shooting range.