kids. But that was only because
Eli figured it would happen eventually, maybe after Raoul got control of
the estate.

Well, once he had the estate, he comforted himself, he could see that
Clarissa and their two out-of-wedlock boys were well taken care of.

It galled Raoul to be so dependent on a man like Eli, to be--he hated to
admit it to himself--afraid of him. A heap depended on Eli's playing his
part today in helping him get control of the estate. Today, Eli would be
leading the Smith County boys, ones who'd been at the Rock River last
June. Having been offered a good day's pay, they would do a little more
Indian fighting.

Raoul felt as if he were going to burst. He couldn't stand this waiting,
while the priest droned on in singsong Latin at the linen-covered table
that had been set up as an altar before the fireplace. Let the fight
begin, for God's sake.

_Indians are all cowards at heart. When I take over here, Pierre's
precious little red bastard will slink away, like Black Hawk did last
summer._

A chill spread across Raoul's back as he asked himself: What if Auguste
doesn't slink away? He might try to rally the servants and some of the
townspeople to fight for him.

They wouldn't fight for a mongrel bastard. People hated Indians. Look
how many men rushed down to the Rock River to fight Black Hawk.

But many people had loved Pierre. This hall was filled, and there were
more people outside who couldn't get in because there wasn't room. All
of them paying their last respects to Pierre. And they knew that Pierre
wanted Auguste to take his place. Would any of them fight to see that
Pierre's will was done?

He felt colder still as he considered the odds. Just about every man in
Smith County had his own rifle or pistol. And Raoul and the men he'd
recruited for today were far outnumbered. He wished he had hired more
men. But too many and the secret would be out, and then Auguste would be
ready for him.

Raoul tried to calm himself. Everyone in Smith County might be armed, he
reasoned, but not everyone wanted to use their weapons. A lot of men
wouldn't fight unless their backs were to the wall. It was the ones who
were willing to fight who got to give orders to the rest. The men Raoul
had picked, Eli and Hodge and the rest of them, were born fighters.

There'd be those who would condemn him, he thought, for seizing the land
the very day of his brother's funeral. It was indecent, he admitted to
himself. But