In His Shadow by Linda

The Cross family Home

Judson sat at the desk that had been his father. He still wasn't sure that he knew what he was going to do now. He wanted to be back on the Vast Explorer, but there were new responsibilities now that his father was gone. There was Mac and Gabe, he had to think about. What would they do Judson thought.

"I don't know what I'm going to do, but I need some coffee," said Judson walking to the kitchen. He had just taking a cup from the cabinet when he heard his mom's voice.

"Judson, sit down and let me get it for you," replied his mom as she poured coffee into the cup.

"Where is everybody?" asked Judson picking up the cup.

"Connor, left your friends to go down to the harbor. He said you wanted to put the Vast Explore in to dry docked. Your friends went to get some of their things. Annie is upstairs with Jensen, who is packing to go back to school," said Judson mom.

"Jensen can't be leaving so soon. I haven't had a chance to talk to her, except when she first got here. Is she in her room?" asked Judson getting up from the table.

"Yes she is," replied his mom as Judson left the kitchen.

Judson walked across the room and up the stairs to Jensen's room. He saw Annie coming down the hallway toward him.

"Annie, why is Jensen leaving? She just got here," stated Judson looking at Annie.

"In the last days, you have been so busy that you hardly payed any attention to her. She understand that you had a lot on your mind, but she wanted to tell you what she was doing in school," replied Annie.

"Is she in her room?" asked Judson.

"Yes," said Annie who watched Judson going into the room.

"Jensen, your mom says that you're going to school?" asked Judson looking at Jensen.

"Yes I am," replied Jensen putting some clothes in a suitcase.

"Can we talked?" asked Judson.

"Dad, I know you have a lot to do and I understand. I have some things to do," replied Jensen.

"Jensen, I don't want you to think that I don't care. I do and what your doing is important to me," said Judson.

"Dad, school is out for the summer in two weeks and I'll be back then. We can talk then. Right now I have to finish and catch my plane for New York," said Jensen hugging her dad.

"Just remember that I love you," said Judson hugging his daughter.

"Jensen, are you ready," yelled her mom.

"Yes, I'm coming now." Jensen yelled back.

"I have your luggage, I'll carry it down," replied her dad picking up the luggage and going out the door.

"If we don't hurry, your going to miss your plane," replied her mom.

"It's my fault, I was talking to her," said Judson giving Jensen a kiss on the cheek.

Just as Jensen started out of the door. Connor drove up.

"Here let me take that sis," said Connor putting the luggage in the car.

"Connor, you have to keep your promise that you made. You can't tell mom or dad what I'm going to be doing. If you do they will try and stop me. I want to show dad that I can be an archaeologist too, just like him," pleaded Jensen.

"I promise, but if he ask me or if something happens to you," replied Connor closing the car door and going back to the house.

Mac and Gabe stood in the living room as Judson closed the door after Connor came back to the house.

"Judson, we need to talk to you. You're trying to decided what to do. It became pretty obvious to us when Connor talked to harbor master about putting the Vast Explorer into dry dock for a while," said Mac.

Judson, what she's trying to say is that we have decided to go home for a while. I called my dad told him that I would be home," said Gabe.

"My mom was happy when I told her that I would be home. If anything happens and you need us, just call okay," replied Mac.

"Thanks, I wasn't sure how to explain this to you. The Cross jet will fly you home," said Judson hugging Mac and Gabe.

"Connor, can you take them to the jet and make sure that the pilot knows where to fly to. Gabe is lives in upper New York and Mac's family lives in Israel," said Judson as they left with Connor.

Judson walked back into the kitchen and poured another cup of coffee and then he turned and went to the den, where his mom was sitting at his dad's desk.

"Mom, I have made the decision to stay here. I can still do all the exploring I want to do right here," said Judson sitting the cup down on the desk.

"Judson, if your doing it for me, you don't have to. My sister is coming to live with me and I have the museum to take care," replied his mom.

"Annie asked me to stay home, till I got roaming fever again. I have missed the kids growing up. I can still explore things, but I'll do it from here," said Judson.

"I know that your dad had just received some information about a new project. I thought that it was on the desk. I know he was reading it, before the accident. He even called his associates about it and they were going to work with him on it," said Judson's mom looking through the desk.

"Did dad put it some place so it wouldn't get lost or misplaced?" asked Judson looking around the room.

"He would of put it in a drawer, so that way he would know where to look when he wanted it. The desk, he has drawer that he kept locked," said his mom.

"Where would he keep the key?" asked Judson picking up the picture of his mom.

"You have the key in your hand. Take the back off the picture. It's in there," said Judson's mom as Judson took the key out of the frame.

Judson walked over to the desk, pulling on each draw till he found the one that wouldn't open. He put the key in the lock and turned it till he heard it click. Then he pulled open and removed the file from the draw.

"I'll leave so you can read it," said his mom as Judson sat down at the desk.

He opened the file and stared to read the papers one by one. He couldn't believe what he was reading. With the information that he had, he knew why Dr's Hill and Leonard were involved. Dad would of need Mo for her expertise in recreating the faces. Why had dad been sent this, there had to be a reason, but he didn't know. I need to talk to someone about this. The only I can talk to is Mark. Let's hope he knows something said Judson out loud as he dialed Mark's number. Judson looked at each piece of paper, while waiting for Mark to answer his phone. Finally his answering machine answered the phone. Judson left a message for Mark to call him back. I need more coffee thought Judson noticed the paper with a name on it. He picked it up and started for the kitchen.

"Mom, do you know why dad wrote this name down?" Judson asked pouring more coffee in the cup.

"I don't know anything about the name. I only knew about the file, it came in the mail address to your dad. He did tell me that he had been offered the job. I just assumed that it was his next project," said his mom, just as Judson turned around to see Annie standing in the door.

"I can tell you everything that you want to know, but I don't know whose name that is or why Jack was so interested in," replied Annie as she turned and walked back to the den.

"When did dad get the file? Judson asked.

"The file came about six months ago. At first he wouldn't even look at it. He put in a drawer and ignored it. Then a couple months ago, this letter came in the mail, inside the letter was a letter with the name Jacob Matthews. He sat there looking at the name and then he took the file out of the drawer and started reading it. After he was done he called me and asked me if I would do some research on what was in file. He gave me the file, but he wouldn't tell me why he was so interested in the name Jacob Matthews," said Annie.

"I read the file and I can't believe dad would agree to this, but you said that this name is what made him decided to do it. There's something else that doesn't make sense, why was dad so interested in something that he knew about. This file is about the battle of Little Big Horn. Why did he want you to research this?" asked Judson.

"It wasn't so much the battle, but the men who died that day. My research is in the file. Do you want so more coffee, I'll go get you some," said Annie as Judson looked at some more of the papers.

Judson went through the papers till he found the list of names of those who died that day. He looked at each name till he saw the name Jacob Matthews. He was one of the men who died that day, but who sent his name to dad and why? Judson asked himself.

"Annie, what did dad have you do research on?" asked Judson looking at Annie.

"He wanted me to find out everything that there was on Jacob Matthews. I have tried to find everything I could on the man. I wrote vital statistics in every state and asked for a birth certificate. I didn't get anything answers back. So I called the branch of the army and asked for the military records for Matthews. What they sent came from the war dept archives. They gave me information about Matthews. He enlisted in the union army around 1861. He was reported to be twenty at the time of enlistment. In case of death he listed a Mary Evans Matthews as his wife and two sons," said Annie as she heard the front door open and Connor talking to someone.

"Connor who are you talking to?" asked Judson.

"I'm talking to Gabe," replied Connor coming into the den.

"I thought you were taking Gabe to the jet?" asked Judson.

"The plane is in for maintenance, it will be a couple of days before it's ready to fly," replied Connor.

"Gabe, do you think you can find anything on a person? I need you to find information on a Jacob Matthews. I can tell you that he joined the union army in 1861," replied Judson.

"It shouldn't take me too long," replied Gabe.

"Do you have everything you need?" asked Judson.

"If I don't, I can get it," said Gabe as Annie picked up the ringing phone.

"Judson, the phone is for you, it's Mark," said Annie handing the phone to Judson.

"Thanks for calling me back. I tried to call your office, but you weren't there," said Judson walking out of the room.

"I haven't been in my office for several weeks now. I have been on assignment with other agents We are trying to prevent an uprising, so to speak between the Indians here and descendants of the men of the 7th calvary," said Mark.

"Are you serious about what you're saying?" asked Judson with a surprised look on his face.

"I'm serious," said Mark.

"This whole thing started about six months ago, when some of the families came to the cemetery looking for a certain soldier. They couldn't even find where he was buried. When some other families had that same problem, they contacted a government agency and they put them in contact with the agency who is responsible for the cemetery. They told the families that they had no records of who is buried where," replied Mark.

"That may explain why I'm calling. Dad received a file, with information on the cemetery there. Several of the families wanted to hire him to excavate the graves and identify the remains," said Judson.

"I was afraid of that. I have talked to some of the families and they told me that they were going to hire someone, but I didn't know it was your dad," replied Mark.

"I read the file that he was sent. He had wrote notes, so I also read those. He was going to do it. He had already contacted some of his associates for them to make arrangements to meet him there. One of the notes he wrote to himself, he gave an estimate of one year to do it," said Judson.

"One of the things that we have to worry about, is that the tribal chiefs have warned us that some of the younger members of the tribe don't like the idea of what these families want to do," said Mark.

"Have you had any problems?" asked Judson.

"There have been some minor problems, but nothing I can't handle," replied Mark.

"Thanks Mark, I just needed to know what dad was going to do," said Judson hanging up the phone.

Judson walked back into the den, where Connor and Gabe were looking at the screen on the computer.

"Are you sure?" asked Connor.

"Yes, I checked it twice," replied Gabe.

"Do you have anything, Gabe, on this Matthews?" asked Judson.

"I printed a copy out for you," replied Gabe handing the paper to Judson.

"This is the Matthews family tree. It says that Jacob Married Mary Evans and they had two sons, Thomas and James. This says that Thomas married Louise Adams and James married Martha Gilbert. This part makes sense as Thomas and Louise had two daughters and one son. The oldest daughter married Ben Cross and had one son and a daughter. Their son Matthew married Margaret Stone, they had three children. One a son named Thomas Cross, who had a son named Jack Cross, my dad. Now I know why they sent that file to my dad and why they made a point of say something about Jacob Matthews. Dad must of figured it out that Jacob Matthews was his great-grandfather.

"You want to know everything that has to do with this man. It shouldn't take very long," replied Gabe sitting down with his laptop.

***

The Cross family home

It's late at night and everyone has gone to bed except Judson, who can't seem to get what he read out of his head.

"Judson, you need to come to bed," said Annie walking into the room.

"I know, but I just kept thinking about that file and what Gabe found. I have questions and no answers," replied Judson

"I wish I could answer those questions for you, but I don't know the answers. Your mom may know them. You could ask her in the morning," replied Annie.

"Guess I should go to bed. There's nothing I can do now," said Judson taking Annie's hand.

***

An airport in Bismarck

Jensen got off the plane with several of her classmates from school. After getting their luggage, they walked to where a group of people were waiting.

"Are you the archaeological class?" asked the man.

"Yes. Are you one of the men from the Cross museum?" asked the older man.

"Yes, I'm Dr Hill, his second in charge of the dig. I'm sorry to say that Dr Cross died in an accident. Before going to Mexico, he called me and said that the museum would fund this expedition should anything happen," replied Dr. Hill.

"Is this truem Jensen?" asked the teacher.

"Yes, but my grandfather was hoping my dad would become interested in it and decided to join," replied Jensen.

"Dr. Cross left all the information on this for his son Judson to read. You will be working with Dr. Cross's associates and some of them were with him for over twenty years," said Dr. Hill.

"Jensen, what are you doing here? Does your dad know that you're here?" asked Mo standing next to Jensen.

"No, he thinks that I went back to school, but he's going to be mad when he finds out that I lied to him," replied Jensen.

"Why did you want to come here?" Mo asked.

"It started during spring break. I decide to go to my grandparent for a visit and I learned that my mom was going to be there. When I got there grandpa had already received the file from this group. He let me read it and then he told me that he believed that he had found someone that had runaway when he was fourteen and they never heard from him again. Grandpa said that the name sounded familiar. When I went back to school after the break, I started looking for any information on the name. Two weeks later I found the information I needed. I called my grandpa and told him that Jacob Matthews was a relative of his. That's when he told me that he had learned that Matthews was his great-grandpa. From the sound of his voice I knew he was going to take the offer that had been made to him," said Jensen.

"He called them and told them that he would do it. Then he contacted us to get everything. He said that he would meet us there, but after the accident I had just assumed that we wouldn't be involved now, but then Dr. Hill called and said that we were going to still do the job," replied Mo.

"That's why I came, I had to show dad that this is what I want to do," said Jensen.

"Does anyone know you're here?" asked Mo.

"Connor knows I'm here, but I had to make him promise not to say anything," replied Jensen.

"I need for you all to know that you will be staying at a hotel that's close to where you will be working. A bus will take you and bring you to the site every day. If you have any questions or any problems, you can come to one us and we'll be glad to help you. The bus is here and ready to take you to the hotel," said Hill.

***

That afternoon at the Cross home

Nancy stopped what she was doing to answer the phone.

"Hello, yes Judson is here. Mark is that you?" asked Nancy.

"Yes, I need to talk to Judson," said Mark.

"I'll get him for you," said Nancy laying the phone down.

"Judson, the phone is for," yelled Nancy up the stairs.

"I'm coming, who is it?" asked Judson coming down the stairs.

"It's Mark," replied Nancy handing the phone to Judson.

"Mark, it's Judson," replied Judson.

"I don't know how to tell you this, but to come right out and tell you," said Mark with a sad tone in his voice.

"What's wrong?" asked Judson.

"Judson, Jensen has been kidnapped and so have the other students that were with her," said Mark.

"That's not possible, Jensen left to go back to school. I'll call you right back Mark," replied Judson hanging up the phone and walking over to the stairs.

"Connor, get down here," yelled Judson as he heard the footsteps on the floor.

"What's the matter dad?" asked Connor.

"I need the truth, do you know what your sister is doing? I know that she didn't go back to school did she?" asked Judson.

"Yes, but she asked me not to tell you where she was going," said Connor.

"I need to know where she went. That was Mark on the phone. Jensen and the other students have been kidnapped. Mark doesn't know who is responsible, but he has an idea," replied Judson.

"She was going to South Dakota and help with the excavating at the cemetery. You were going to help grandpa, but she wanted to show you what she had learned. She wants to be like you and do what you do," replied Connor.

"What I do I consider dangerous and I don't want Jensen or you even becoming involved. I have hung by a rope from the side of a mountain, just to recover an a Columbian artifact that buried in the side of the mountain. Only to look up and see an old partner cutting the rope and I fell into the ocean. If Mac and Gabe hadn't seen me fall. I would have drowned. That's why your mom doesn't go with me. I don't want to lose any of you," replied Judson.

"Judson, we have to go there and try and find Jensen," cried Annie as Judson held her.

"Connor, call the airport and see if the jet is ready, if not then call and see if we can rent one," replied Judson calling Mark on the phone.

"Agent Wheeler," answered Mark.

"Mark, have you found any thing?" asked Judson.

"We have gone over the route that the bus took and it looks like the ground opened up and swallowed the bus. No one has claimed responsibility, but the Indian side of me says that the may have something to do with it," said Mark.

"I'm leaving to come up there. It shouldn't take me more than five hours to get there," replied Judson.

"I'll meet you at the airport," said Mark hanging up the phone.

"Dad, the plane is ready. The mechanic just has to gas up the jet. This is my fault and I want to go and help in the search for Jensen," replied Connor looking at his dad.

"Connor, it's not your fault. It's mine, she wanted to talk to me, but I was too busy to take five minutes to sit down and listen to her," said Judson with a sad tone in his voice.

"You two can stand around and blame yourselves, but I'm going to find Jensen," cried Annie going up the stairs.

"Be ready in five minutes to leave," said Judson going up stairs.

***

The Indian Reservation

The tribal chief walked across the middle of town that lead to the town hall. He heard some members of the tribe talking about what some of the younger men had done. He had called for a meeting of the council. As he walked up the stairs he could hear the others talking. He opened the door to hear Tom Red Crow talking about what would happen now. Chief White Eagle walked up beside him.

"You have to listen to him, he knows what he is talking about. We have been living here in peace for over a hundred years, but now what our young men have done will bring the government here," said White Eagle.

"Some of us don't agree with you. We have heard what they want to do," said John Grayhorse.

"You don't understand what they want to do or you wouldn't be protesting it. We have met with some of them. All they want is to know where their loved one is buried. Have any of you been to the site of the graves. When I received the letter from Dr. Cross about the condition of the graves. I went out there and what I saw would have made me upset. The crosses that were put up to mark the graves are in such bad shape and worn from the rain and wind that you can't even see the name of the soldier. Some of the graves have no crosses to mark them," said Tom Red Crow.

"If we agreed to this, what would they do?" asked John Gray Horse.

"They have hired a Dr. Cross who is an archaeologist to oversee the project but I have learned that Dr. Cross was killed in an accident. His associate Dr. Hill has assumed the responsibility," replied Chief White Eagle as some of the younger men walked into the hall.

"We have come to tell you that we will not release the people," said Joseph Running Fox.

"You will bring the government men down on us. They will come looking for the people you took and they will not stop till they find them," replied Tom Red Crow.

"Then let them come, we are not afraid. We drove out the white man before and we will do it again," said Joseph Running Fox.

"It will not be as easy as you think. That part of the land doesn't belong to us any more. Chief Crazy Horse gave that part of the land to the white man's government. In 1879 the land was made a national cemetery for those that died there. That means we can't stop them," said Chief White Eagle.

***

A House on the reservation

"Where are we?" asked Tim.

"It looks like a house, but where," replied Bobby.

"We have to be on the reservation. Where's Dr. Hill and the other adults? Susan.

"They took them off the bus, about a mile from town. I don't know if they let them go or took them some where else," said Jensen.

"What do you think they will do to us?" asked Lisa.

"I don't know, but they took us to stop the digging," said Jensen.

"I'm gong outside, maybe I can see where we're at," replied Bobby opening the door.

"What is it?" asked Lisa.

"There is someone out there. He's riding back and forth on a horse," yelled Tim.

"He's watching us so we don't go anywhere," Replied Jensen looking out the door.

Jensen could see there captors as they rode up to the house. The men walked up to the house.

"I need to know if there is anymore of you coming?" asked Joseph Running Fox.

"The only adults that were coming with us, were the one that you took off the bus," said Jensen.

"Can you tell me who the adults were that with you?" asked Running Fox.

"The older man was Dr. Hill, he's an associate of Dr, Cross and the woman is Mo. She works for Dr. Cross as a facial reconstruction expert. A Dr. Leonard was suppose to be on the bus with us, but he hasn't arrived yet," said Jensen glaring at Running Fox.

"If this sis so important to Dr. Cross, then why isn't here?" asked Running Fox.

"Because Dr. Cross was killed three weeks ago in an accident," replied Bobby looking at Jensen who was trying to keep from crying.

"What's wrong with her? Running Fox looking at Jensen.

"Dr. Cross was her grandfather and he was killed by a man for what he believed was right," replied Tim looking at Running Fox.

"I'm sorry, but we all believe in what we think is right and we think that it's wrong to disturb those men who have been buried where they gave their lives for what they believed in," replied Running Fox.

"These aren't just any men to us. One of those men is my great-great-great-grandfather and he gave his life for his country when the 7th calvary died that day," replied Jensen.

"That still doesn't change anything or what is right," replied Running Fox.

"What would you do if the 7th had defeated the Sioux that day and their bodies were buried where they fell. Wouldn't you want to know," replied Jensen staring hard at Running Fox.

***

Jensen stood in the doorway of the house and watched as Running Fox rode off. Then she turned and walked back into the house. She thought about what she had done, what could happen to them. She wished that she had not made Connor promise not to tell where she was going. She laid her head on the table, then she heard Bobby's yelling and looked up.

"Jensen, there's nobody out there. Tim and I went outside and looked around the house. The men that were watching the house are gone," said Bobby.

"Are you sure? They may be out of sight?" asked Jensen.

"We looked and no one has come near the house," replied Tim.

"What does that mean Jensen?" asked Lisa.

"How long were we on the bus?" asked Jensen.

"For a while before they stopped," replied Susan.

"They may of left here thinking that we wouldn't try and leave the house. We don't no how far we are from town. That's another reason for leaving us out here. Do you guys remember the hike we had to take for the class?" asked Jensen.

"Yes, we had to hike ten miles over flat grounds and mountains," replied Bobby.

"I could do it. There's no mountains here," said Susan.

"I can too, if it means getting out of here," replied Lisa.

"We need to take the water and food they left. Make sure you have a hat to protect your head from the sun. Lisa I'm sorry, but we can take what we can carry. When we get back to town, we can come back and get it," replied Jensen.

"Alright," said Lisa sitting the bag down on the chair.

"We need to go now," said Tim walking out the door as the others followed him.

"Does anyone remember which way they came after they left the main road?" asked Bobby.

"Let's go this way. The sun was behind the bus when we got here and now it's late afternoon, that means the sun should be behind us," said Jensen.

"That means we should be going away from the sun," replied Bobby as they started walking.

***

The airfield just outside of town.

Judson could see Mark as he waited for the plane to come to a stop. Mark was on the radio talking to some of his men as they searched for the teenagers.

"Keep searching, they have to be some where in the area," replied Mark as he watched Judson get off the plane and walk toward him.

"Have you found any thing?" asked Judson.

"We know which way they went and we found the bus that Dr. Hill rented at the airport. We found some tracks and we were following them, when they used that old Indian trick and took something to wipe out the tracks," replied Mark.

"You look like you're tired, has it been that bad?" asked Judson walking with Mark.

"What makes you ask me that? I have only been here for the last four months, trying to keep peace between the Indians and the white man and that has been hard," replied Mark.

"Has it been that hard?" asked Judson.

"The Indian side of me agrees with the younger men of the tribe, but the white man's half says that if it were my grandfather buried out there, I would want to know where he was buried. Then there's the agent that says you have to do it this way," said Mark.

"No one said it would be easy. I may be able to help you. I found the papers that dad received from the government that gave him permission to exhume the remains of those men. I'm almost afraid of what we will find when we do. Mark, this is between you and me. My dad had information that those men were more than killed that day," replied Judson telling Mark what he had learned.

"I can't believe it, but I know your telling me the truth. If this ever got out. It would start a lot problems for us," said Mark.

"I called a friend of mine who is in the army and has access to the records on what happened that day and the days that followed. According to the records the 5th calvary was dispatched to recover the bodies, but when they got there, what they saw was so horrible that Colonel Hastings who was in charge, ordered the men to be buried where they had fallen. They were identified by the papers that they carried on them. Makeshift crosses were made out of the wood that was found in the area. In the colonel's report he says that the Souix sat on the ridge watching as his men buried the 7th calvary. There are statements from his men on what they saw that day. I also read where it was made a national cemetery in 1879 and the army put the crosses up that are there now. It is also in the file that the army met with Crazy Horse and agreed to give the land to the government in 1879 as memorial to Yellow Hair and his men," said Judson.

"Maybe this will calm some of the young ones down," said Mark.

"Are they the ones that took Jensen and her friends?" asked Judson.

"Yes they are," said Mark.

"Since your men are looking for them, I'll get everything set up. The sooner we get started the sooner we will get done. Was Dr. Hill with them?" asked Judson.

"They let him and Mo go. Your dad's trucks are just outside of city limits. Dr. Hill said that they would be there. Judson, answer me one question? Is Jensen anything like you were at this age?" asked Mark looking at Judson.

"I guess so, because I did the same thing, when I showed up in Mexico. Do you know where I can get a car?" asked Judson.

"We have all the cars rented, so take mine," said Mark handing Judson the keys and a radio.

Judson drove to where Annie stood with Connor and Gabe. After putting the luggage in the trunk, Judson drove to the city limits where the trucks were sitting. He drove up to the truck that was his dads office. He turned the car off and proceeded to get out.

"Dr. Hill!" yelled Judson walking up to the truck.

"Judson, it's good to see you. Have they found the kids?" asked Hill.

"No, but Mark is looking for them. I'm going to take over the project for my dad. I need for you to move the trucks to the area where the cemetery is and start setting up. How many of you are here?" asked Judson.

"Your dad said it was going to be a big project, so he called every one to be here," said Dr. Hill.

"Annie and Connor will be here to help and answers any questions you have," replied Judson.

"The last time I talked to your dad, he had decided not to do it. So why did he changed his mind?" asked Mo.

"That's true, when I talked to dad about four months ago, he wasn't going to do it. Then dad received some more information that made him change his mind. Dad found out that his great-grandfather belong to the 7th calvary and he is buried there," said Judson.

"Judson, do you want us to start x-raying the ground for remains?" asked Annie.

"Yes, if you x-ray what is suppose to be a grave and there is nothing there, I want the ground flagged, so that we know it has been done," said Judson.

"Judson, Mo says that a lot of families have given their DNA for the test," said Annie.

"That's good, the less people we have here, the better off things will be," replied Judson.

"We may have another problem. Some of the families have permission from the government to remove the body from the area after it has been identified," replied Annie.

"We could have a problem later on, but I'll have to worry about it then. Annie, I'm going to the reservation. I have to talk to the Chief White Eagle. I'll take Gabe with me, that way Connor can help you set up and get started," said Judson walking back to the car.

Judson drove to the reservation He had no idea what he would say, but he had to make some of the younger men see that he was going to do this no matter what they said. After a while Judson could see the houses of the reservation as he came closer. He drove to what was the tribal council hall. He parked the car and got out. He looked around to see members of the tribe as they came closer to where he was standing. He looked to see an older man come toward him.

"Are Chief White Eagle?" asked Judson.

"No, I'm Tom Red Crow. White Eagle has asked me to bring you to the tribal hall, he is there waiting for you. He was told by the ancestor that a great warrior would come," said Red Crow.

"I'm not a great warrior, but I'm a concerned dad. Your men have kidnapped my daughter. She has nothing to do with this," said Judson as Red Crow opened the doors and walked in to the hall.

"I'm White Eagle, tribal chief and you're Dr. Cross?" he asked.

"I'm not Dr. Cross, that is my father. I'm his son Judson. My father died in an accident three weeks ago," said Judson.

"I'm sorry. I had talked to your father about this. He said that they were only going to identify the men buried there, but I'm afraid that you will learn more about that day," said the chief.

"I already know what happened that day. There were reports made by Colonel Hastings and his men on what they found," replied Judson.

"We are not proud of what happened. It has been passed down from generation to generation about the great battle between the Souix and Yellow Hair and how Crazy Horse saved the Black Hills from the white man, but they don't tell the story of what happened after the battle was over. Some of the younger men thought that if they did this to the soldiers, they couldn't fight any more," replied White Eagle.

"No one will have to know what happen that day. Many of the families have given their DNA for the test and they have left. There are still some families here that want to see where their ancestor is buried. My father ordered new cross for the graves. The names will not fade this time," stated Judson.

"I'll have the younger men return your daughter and the others returned to you," said White Eagle.

"Thank you," said Judson turning and walking away.

"Judson, why didn't you tell them what the family members want to do?" asked Gabe.

"If I had told them, it would have only made things worse than they already are," said Judson starting the car.

***

A couple of miles from the house

"Can we stop? It seems like we have been forever," said Lisa.

"Alright we can take a break, but then we have to start again," replied Jensen.

"There's not a whole lot of water. Only take a swallow and thats it," said Tim.

"Have any of you seen what looks like tracks from the bus?" asked Jensen.

"No, but I have been looking," replied Susan.

"We need to find some place for the night. The nights get really cold," said Jensen.

"We need to start walking," said Bobby standing up.

***

The site of Custer's last stand.

"Connor, are the trucks ready?" asked Annie walking around the area.

"Yes mom. The driver of the semi parked it close to Dr. Hills lab. He said that he would move it as they empty them. I can't believe that grandpa ordered that many coffins," replied Connor.

"I know, but he wanted to make sure they were buried the right way," replied Annie walking over to one of the trucks.

"I'm going to unload the x-ray machine and get started on searching for the bodies. I don't think I'll find any after 130 years," said Connor to himself.

"Would you like some help?" asked Tony walking up to Connor.

"Tony ! I'm so glad to see you. When we didn't hear from you, dad started to worry," replied Connor opening the truck.

"After talking to your dad, I didn't know what I wanted to stay. So I went home to my family. It only took my wife a few days to convince me that this is what I wanted to do. So here I am. Are you suppose to be taking the equipment off the truck?" asked Tony.

"Yes, I have to start x-raying the ground for bodies," said Connor.

"I'll help you get it off. Where's your dad?" asked Tony.

"He said he was going to look for Jensen. He had a meeting with the tribal chief to see about getting her and the others back," said Connor.

"Don't tell that Jensen has gotten herself into trouble," replied Tony.

"Well sort of. She and some others were kidnapped by some of the younger men of the tribe," said Connor.

"She's more like her dad than she realizes. He used to get into trouble when he was her age. There was this one time when he was at the university of Phoenix, it was his senior year. He and Mark rode to the dean's house on horses. Someone had dared them to do it. On horse back wasn't so bad, but your dad and Mark took it one step further. They only had loincloths on and nothing under them, Judson got off his horse and the loincloth fell off. He didn't do anything like that again," said Tony.

"You said that someone dared? Who would of done that?" asked Connor.

"I did, that's who. We had been out on a couple dates but with other people and I wanted to see what he looked like without clothes. So I dared him," said Connor's mom smiling.

"We had better get started on this before Judson gets back," replied Tony.

"That sounds like a good idea, before your mom tells you any more stories, like how we were living together before we got married," said Judson.

"I don't have too, you just did," said Annie smiling at Judson.

"Judson, where do you want us to start?" asked Tony.

"I'm glad you could make it," said Judson.

"Is there a list of names for to use?" asked Tony.

"Yes, Annie has the list. The remains are to be taken to Dr Hill's lab for examination and Mo is going to try and get DNA for testing," said Judson.

"Judson, I'll stay here and help them," said Gabe going over to help Connor.

Judson and Annie walked to the trailer that would be the office for the next few weeks.

"I talked to the chief, he said that Jensen and the others would be released. Annie, you to really exam the remains when they take them out of their graves," said Judson.

"Are you looking for certain?" asked Annie.

"The army wants to know exactly what happened to those men. They have read the reports that Hastings and his men gave after coming back to Fort Lincoln, but they think that much of what they saw was left out of the reports. They believe Hastings did it to prevent further conflict between the army and the Souix," said Judson.

***

Judson's office.

"Judson, you want everything wrote down that we find?" asked Annie.

"Yes, they want an accurate account of what really happened," replied Judson.

"Excuse me, can you tell us where we could find Judson Cross?" asked the woman standing in the doorway.

"I'm Judson Cross, can I help you?" asked Judson.

"A man called the house and said that he was with the FBI. He said that he was calling to tell us that our daughter Lisa had been kidnapped with four other kids. That's not possible, she's at school. She goes to NYU. they have to wrong about this," said the woman.

"You're Lisa Murphy's parents?" asked Annie.

"Yes, I'm Bill and this is Laura. they were telling us the truth weren't they," replied Mr Murphy holding his wife who was crying.

"We know how you feel, our daughter Jensen was also kidnapped along with three other kids," replied Annie.

"Do you know who the other three kids are?" asked Judson.

"We found a note in Lisa's room, where she had wrote names down. There is Bobby Logan, Tim Godwin and Susan Madsen," said Laura Murphy.

"Do the other families know what has happened?" asked Annie.

"Yes, they were going to fly out here. Has the kidnappers asked for a ransom?" asked Murphy.

"No, they don't want a ransom. They want us to leave, but I'm committed to finish what my dad started," said Judson.

"If it will give us back the kids, then why can't you just leave? As Mrs. Murphy.

"I can't leave, because of the families that are involved. I owe it to them and my dad. We know who has the kids and has promised to return them," said Judson.

"Who are they?" asked Murphy.

"Some of the younger men from the reservation took the kids in protest," said Annie.

"Is there anyone that we can talk to?" asked Murphy.

"I went to the reservation and talked to the tribal Chief White Eagle. He told me that the kids would be released, but that was this morning and I haven't heard anything yet. I'm going back to the reservation to ask questions. If you would like to go with me. I'm going to be leaving in a few minutes," said Judson turning to Annie.

"We'll get started while your gone. Tony and Connor have already found the remains of four soldiers," replied Annie

"Mr. Cross, why are these men protesting what your doing?" asked Mr. Murphy.

"You can call me Judson. Do you know where you are?" asked Judson walking over to the iron fence.

"No, I don't, the agent we talked to, just gave us the name of the town to go to," replied Murphy.

"I'll show you. You're standing in the middle of what is the most famous battle known to the white man and the Indian. This is the site of the Little Big Horn battle. Inside that fence are the remains of 270 men who died that day. The Indians want us to leave the men alone, but the army wants them identified on the request made by their descendants," said Judson turning and walking to the car. When he looked up to see Tom Red Crow riding toward him.

"White Eagle sent me to find you. Thee is a problem with the kids that Running Fox took as hostages. White eagle got him to agree to release them, but when they rode to the house where they were being kept. They didn't find anyone there. When they saw that no one was watching, they probably left. They did take the food and the water. When he told me where the house was. I rode out there hoping to find which way they went," said Red Crow.

"We need to get a search party and start looking for them," said Judson.

"We can go to the reservation and ask some of the men to help in looking. Can either of you ride a horse? It would easier than a car. This way we don't have to stay on the roads and we can more area," replied Red Crow.

"I can ride a horse," said Judson.

"I can too, I grew up on a ranch," said Murphy.

"Good, then lets go back to the reservation and get started looking," replied Red Crow.

***

Judson's office

"You'll have to excuse me, Mrs. Murphy, but I have to go back to work. I made some coffee and your more than welcomed to stay here," replied Annie.

"Could I ask you what you do?" asked Mrs Murphy.

"I'm a Forensic pathologist. According to Judson, I put together what he digs up so to speak. Right now I have to piece together 270 bodies and determine the identity of each," said Annie going to the door.

"Maybe I can help you. I can't just sit and wait. I need something to keep me busy," said Mrs. Murphy.

"Alright, I don't think that I could just set and wait. What do you do?" asked Annie opening the door.

"The name is Laura and I work in the coroner's office for the city of Dallas," said Laura following Annie down the stairs.

"I can use the help. We have DNA from 150 families so far," said Annie walking to where Dr. Hill's lab.

"Annie, Connor and Tony brought the remains of the first four men," replied Dr. Hill laying the bones out on the table.

"Are Mo's people sifting the graves for anything that could be left?" asked Annie.

"Yes, but there's very little left after being in the ground for 127 years. Tony marked each box with a number and Mo's people are putting what they find in a bag with the same number. Annie, do you know who the lady is that's with you?" asked the doctor.

"This is Lisa's mom. She said that she can help us," replied Annie.

"I do believe that she can help. She's the coroner for the city of Dallas," said Hill.

"How did you know, she was the coroner?" asked Annie.

"I was asked to help in a murder case in Dallas. It involved a serial killer who had already murder several members of the same family. The police had reason to believe that it was a member of the family. After a couple of months their suspect was found dead, in the same way that the others had been killed. The police closed the case but the coroner didn't agree with them, she told them tat there was something wrong," said Hill looking at Laura Murphy.

"I had suspected that there was something wrong for a while. When the police found him dead. I knew then that I was right, but it wasn't till after I had done the autopsy that I had the proof. A DNA test showed that he wasn't related to the family. That was my first clue, then I found more proof, when I looked the body over. I found signs of scars, where he had plastic surgery to make him look like the killer. The police caught the real killer days later when she tried to leave Dallas on a plane," said Laura.

"Then you really can help, but Lisa never told me what you do," replied Annie.

"She doesn't like the idea of me working with dead bodies, but I have never understood her reason for wanting to dig up the bones from the past," said Laura.

"Annie, the first of remains are ready for you to look at. The recorder is ready," said Hill.

"This is Annie Cross, the remains are those of John Doe #1. I'm examining the skull for any possible signs of trauma. I have noticed that there are missing bone fragments near where the hairline would be. It shows sign of a knife being used in the area. There are also signs of blunt trauma to the back of the head. The blunt instrument was probably the butt end of a rifle. I am examining what is the rib cage. Shows the entry of an arrow, between the third and four rib. Arrowhead is still intact between third and fourth rib," said Annie putting down the mike and staring at the remains that once had been a soldier.

"Annie, here drink this cup of coffee. It may help you. Tell me what your doing. You say that it's to identify these men, but you're looking for more aren't you?" asked Laura.

"Yes we are. There are stories that tell what happened that day. There are many Souix who have told the story of how Crazy Horse after the battle took his warriors and went home. Other tribes that were involved in the battle, talked around the fires of stories of what they did," said Annie.

"I know the story of what supposedly happened after the battle to the bodies of the soldiers, but are you trying to proved that the stories are true or just rumor?" asked Laura.

"I'm here to prove that the stories are true. According to the army, Colonel Hastings and the 5th calvary were the first to reach the scene of the battle. Major Reno stated that he and his men were the first to arrive." said Annie.

"Now that I know what you're looking for, let's get started," said Laura as the door to the lab opened.

"Annie, it's Mark. Where's Judson?" he asked.

"He went to the reservation with Tom Red Crow. The chief got running Fox to agree to release the kids," said Annie walking out with Mark.

"We have looked every where for them on the ground, so we borrowed a helicopter from the national guard and we're going to continue the search from the air," replied Mark looking at Annie and Laura.

"You need to be out there looking for your kids. Go with Mark and continue working here," said Dr. Hill.

"It's up to you," replied Mark standing at the helicopter as Annie and Laura got on the helicopter.

***

The reservation

"The horses are ready. Running Fox and Pony That Walks are going with us. Pony is a tracker, we may need him," said Tom Red Crow as they mounted the horses.

"Running Fox, you need to take us to the house where the kids were taken to," said Judson.

"What do you mean there not there. Where are they?" asked Murphy looking angry.

"When White Eagle ordered us to release them. We went out to the house, but they were gone. The bags that they had on the bus were still there, but the food and water was gone. We looked for tracks, but the wind had blown them away," stated Running Fox.

"Pony That Walks, if we go to the house, do you think that you can pick up their tracks?" asked Judson.

"I'll try, if they started walking, they had to of left some kind of trail. We need to get going, its going to be dark after a while," said Pony That Walks as they rode off in a hard gallop.

After riding for several miles, Judson could see the abandon house off in the distances. As they came closer Pony That Walks was already looking for tracks. He got off his horse and knelt down where he found a small shiny earring. He picked it up and walked to where Judson was standing.

"I found this, do you recognize it?" asked Pony that walks handing it to Judson.

"It could be, but I don't pay attention to what Jensen wears. Bill, does this look like something that Lisa would wear?" asked Judson.

"I don't know, but Susan might of been wearing it," said Murphy.

"I think I found something. Around the house I couldn't find any tracks, because it's mostly bare ground, but as I started to go away from the house, I noticed the footprints in the ground because of the flattened grass," said Pony That Walks still looking around the area.

"They lead away from the house, but they're going in the wrong direction, away from the town," said Tom Red Crow.

"It's starting to get cold, is there any place that she could use to get away from the cold?" asked Judson.

"There are some hills in the direction she's going. there are a few small caves there," said Pony That Walks.

"Then we need to follow them. They could be in one of those caves," said Judson following the tracks that had been left.

"Where is Judson going?" asked Annie looking down.

"They may of found some tracks. Their headed for that area we flew over. There were some hills, there could be some caves there. Follow Judson and don't lose him," said Mark.

***

The base of the Black Hills

"Bobby, what do you see in there? Do you it would be safe to use for the night?" asked Jensen yelling at Bobby in the cave.

"If your asking about any wild animals in here? The answer is no. It looks like it would be safe for tonight," yelled Bobby from the mouth of the cave.

"We need to find some wood that we can use for a fire," replied Tim looking around.

"Tim, I found some, but I need help in carrying it," replied Susan picking up the wood.

"I'll help you," said Bobby walking over to where Susan was.

"We have to make sure that we have enough to keep the fire burning all night," said Jensen stacking up

"Do we have enough wood? I found some more bigger pieces, but I need help to carry them," replied Bobby.

"I'll help you," said Tim following Bobby to the pile of wood.

***

"Annie, we have to go back to town. The pilot can't see in the dark. We'll fly back here in the morning and start from here," said Mark motioning the pilot to fly back to town.

Annie kept looking down at the ground and wondering where Judson was. In the dark the pilot had lost sight of him and now Mark was going back to town to start over tomorrow.

***

On the ground Judson could hear the sounds of a helicopter off in the distances as it flew away. He could only wonder if it was Mark and Annie. Tom Red Crow had the decision to camp where where they were at. While Pony That walks made a fire, Judson and Bill Murphy took their bedrolls off the horses. Judson stood there and wondered how long it would be before they found Jensen and the others.

Jensen sat there around the fire with the others and hoped that they would find there way to the town tomorrow.

***

Site of the exhumation

"Connor, it's getting late. We need to stop for the night. I'll put the equipment up if you want to take these two sets of remains up to Dr. Hills lab," said Tony as he pushed the x-ray machine up the ramp and into the trailer.

"Dr. Hill, it's Connor I have two more sets of remains for you," yelled Connor walking into the trailer.

"I'm here Connor, I was just looking for something in my office," said Dr. Hill coming out of his office.

"Did it have anything to do with what we're doing?" asked Connor looking at Dr. Hill.

"I thought it did, but I maybe it was something else," said Hill coming out of his office.

"I put 5 and 6 on the table. Tony and I are quiting for the night. We thought that we would start early in the morning," said Connor.

"You're worried about Jensen?" Hill asked.

"Yes," replied Connor with a sad look on his face.

"I know how you feel," said Dr Hill walking over to the table.

"I hear a helicopter, it must be Mark coming back with your mom. Maybe they know something?" asked Connor going outside.

"Annie, we're going back out in the morning and look. I promise I wouldn't stop till we find them," said Mark stepping down on the ground.

"I believe you. I'm going to the lab. I think that I just need to stay busy," said Annie as she started to walk to the lab.

"Could you use some help?" asked Laura Murphy walking with Annie to the lab.

"Yes, maybe the work will keep us busy till morning," said Annie.

"I thought so too," said Laura following Annie up the stairs.

"Dr. Hill, did you finish with #1?" asked Annie.

"Yes I did. I'm on #3, if you want to take over. It's been a long day and I'm tired. Guess I'll go to bed. Annie, I'm sorry that I didn't let you know what Jensen was going to do. Maybe this wouldn't happen if I had," stated Dr. Hill.

"It's not your fault, Jensen would of done it anyway," said Annie watching as Dr. Hill left the lab.

"Annie, can I look at the skull for #1. There was something I noticed, but I wasn't sure till I saw the skull for #3," said Laura picking up the skull.

"If you can find anything, it will help," said Annie.

"This Laura Murphy, I'm looking at the skull of John Doe #1. There is a long jagged edge running from the left side of the forehead to the middle of the hairline. My conclusion is that the victim was scalped. I have noticed on further examination that the eyes of the victim have been put out. I'm picking up a ruler to measure the distance between the edges of the eye socket itself. I have found notches in the bone around the eye, that shows that the eyes were indeed put out, for what reason I don't know," replied Laura as Annie came to toward the examination table.

"Laura, is something wrong? You have this puzzled look on your face," replied Annie staring at her.

"I have this question that I need to find an answer too. When your friend was getting ready to go up in the helicopter, he made a remark that he could find them faster on horseback. What was he talking about?" asked Laura.

"Mark made that remark, because of his Indian side. Mark is half Apache," said Annie.

"Could you ask him to come to the lab. He may be able to answer the question?" asked Laura.

"I'll call him," said Annie picking up the phone.

"What the matter, Annie, is something wrong?" asked Mark.

"I just need you to come to Dr. Hill's lab. We have a question that you might be able to answer," replied Annie.

"I'll be right there," said Mark hanging up the phone.

"What did you find?" asked Annie walking over to the lab table.

"I found what looks like notches in the eye sockets and they look like they were made by a knife," said Laura.

"I found the same thing in #3, but I wasn't sure at what I was seeing," replied Annie.

"Annie, I'm here. What did you want?" asked Mark entering the lab.

"Mark, we're back here by the lab table," said Annie.

"Mark, Annie says that you might know the reason for these notches in the eye sockets?" asked Laura as Mark looked at the skull.

"Is the notches the reason you called me here? Yes it means something. For the Apache, if he doesn't have his eyes to see with, he will not go to the happy hunting grounds and his spirit will wander aimless through out the spirit world. Many of the Indian nations believe in that. The Souix are one of those nation. This is one of the soldiers. They did this so his spirit would wandered the here after in blindness. You may find some that didn't have their eyes put out," replied Mark.

"If they did it to some of them, why not to all of them?" asked Annie.

"They could have just done to the officers so that they couldn't lead any more men against them. Now if you don't need me anymore, I was headed for bed," replied Mark going out the door.

"Mark!" yelled Annie following him.

"What now?" asked Mark.

"You don't agree with what Judson is doing do you?" Annie asked.

"The Indian half of me believes that you should leave them buried here, but the white man says that if that were my grandfather buried out there, then I would want to know," replied Mark going back to the trailer that was his bedroom.

"Annie, I'm going to quit for the night," said Laura giving out a sigh.

"Whats wrong?" asked Annie.

"I just realized that we didn't rent a room at the motel. The man at the desk said to come back later and he would have one, but that was hours ago," replied Laura.

"Come with me, we have plenty of rooms available. Judson's dad use to bring his own trailer with him, when he went on a dig. He said that it would save time. Tony and Connor are in number 1. The others are empty, so just pick one. You'll find everything you need. From something to eat or drink," said Annie.

"Where are you sleeping?" asked Laura following Annie.

"Judson's office has a bedroom. I'll see you in the morning. Good night," said Annie going in the trailer.

"Good night," said Laura going into one of the trailers.

***

The base of the Black Hills

"Is there any more coffee?" asked Murphy standing up stretching.

"I just made some more," said Judson pouring the coffee into a cup.

"It looks like the sun is starting to come up," said Murphy.

"Your not use to this are you?" asked Judson drinking the coffee.

"No, I'm use to it. When you live on a ranch, morning comes pretty early. How did you get involved with what you do?" asked Murphy looking at Judson.

"My dad got me hooked on all of this. He took me with him one summer, I was about twelve. He told me that he was going on a dig to Montana, where the bones of a dinosaur was discovered by one of his friends. I spent the summer helping to dig it up, by the end of summer, I knew that it wasn't what I wanted to do or at least I thought so. By the time I was graduating from college, I had worked with my dad on another dig and it was totally different. I knew then that I wanted to be an explorer and search for sunken ships and what ever was out there," said Judson as watched Tom Red Crow walking toward him.

"I sent Pony That Walks out to look the area over. During the night I could smell a fire, but I wasn't sure where it was coming from. It seemed like it was all around us," said Red Crow.

"I smelled it too, but I just assumed it was our fire," said Murphy.

"There was definitely a different smell to the smoke, but I'm not sure what it was," replied Judson.

Pony That Walks slowly rode toward where the smoke was coming from. Then he noticed the tracks in the ground and got off his horse to follow them. The tracks lead to a cave that was just ahead.

***

Bobby stood at the mouth of the cave standing guard, then he saw Pony That Walks and ran back inside the cave.

"Wake up everybody. They have followed our tracks. I was watching out the cave and there is someone out there. He keeps walking around like he's looking for someone. We have to get out of here before they find us," replied Bobby.

"Go back and see if he leaves and when he does we will go to another area and hide," said Jensen.

"Can we go higher up in the hills. They can't follow us on horseback," said Tim.

"Bobby is he still out there?" asked Jensen.

"No, he got back on his horse and rode away," said Bobby.

"Lets go while no one is there," yelled Jensen walking out of the cave.

Jensen and the others walked out of the cave and started to climb up the hill.

***

Pony that Walks rode the short distance back to where the others were.

"I found some tracks. I followed them and they lead me to a cave. The smoke is the same smoke that I could smell earlier. There was someone standing watch at the mouth of the cave. I tried not to let him see me, but I think he did," said Pony That Walks.

"If I know Jensen, she has them moving right now," said Judson saddling his horse as they rode off toward the cave.

"Pony that Walks and Running Fox, you go ahead and try to stop them from going up the hills," said Tom Red Crow.

***

Jensen and the others had already started up the hill when Pony That Walks and Running Fox reached the cave. They looked inside and found no one. Pony That Walks came out of the cave and started looking for tracks that lead him up to the side of the hill.

"Running Fox, go back and tell Tom that I have found them. He needs to hurry and get here and bring rope with him, just in case," said Pony That Walks as he started up the hill.

***

"Jensen, there's someone coming from below. He looks like one of the kidnappers," yelled Bobby.

"We have to hurry before he stops us. Be careful where you walk. You could trip and go over the side," said Jensen.

"What did you say Jensen?" asked Lisa as she stepped on some rocks and started falling over the edge of the hill.

"Lisa!" yelled Jensen looking over the edge.

"Lisa, hanging on. We have to get help," said Jensen.

"Can't we pull her up?" asked Tim.

"We could if we had a rope, but we don't have one," said Bobby.

***

"Red Crow, Pony That Walks have found them. They are going up into the hills. He sent me to get you and some rope. Just before I left, I heard someone screamed. It sounded like someone had fallen," said Running Fox.

"It's not that far ahead. Maybe two or three minutes to get there." Tom Red Crow rode off in a hard gallop.

Soon they reached the cave and started to follow the tracks that had been left up to the side of the hills. Just then Pony That Walks reached the area where he saw the others looking down the side of the hill.

"Did one of you fall over the edge? Tell me I can help you rescue them," replied Pony That Walks.

"Stay back, we wouldn't go back with you," said Bobby.

"I'm not one of the men who took you. You have to let me help you before your friend lose her grip and falls. Which one of you is Jensen?" He asked.

"I am, but why do you want to know that?" asked Jensen.

"Is your dad Judson Cross?" He asked.

"Yes," replied Jensen.

"Because he is right behind me down by the cave," he replied.

"Why should I believe you?" She asked.

"Look for yourself. You should be able to see him from here," he replied as Jensen looked down the hill.

"Dad, is that you?" yelled Jensen.

"Jensen, it's me. Let him help you," yelled Judson.

"It is my dad. Our friend slid on some rocks and she went down the hill. She's holding on to a dead tree," replied Jensen as she heard dad's coming up the hill.

"It's Judson, I brought some rope. Jensen are you alright?" he asked as he hugged her.

"It's Lisa, you have to help her. She fell off the side of the hill. I know you can do it," said Jensen crying.

"I'll try, how far is she down there? We need something to tie the rope to," said Judson as he looked around.

"There's a boulder over here, it should be able to hold the rope. She's quite a ways down the hill," replied Pony That Walks as Judson looked over the edge.

"I'll need two ropes. It would be easier to take her down the hill to the ground, then try and pull us back up. Bobby go down the hill and tell Lisa's dad to come to the other side of the hill. Now I need to talk to Lisa. Lisa, can you hear me.: Yelled Judson.

"Yes I can hear you. You have to help me, I'm scared that I'll fall," cried Lisa.

"I'm coming down to get you, but you have to hold on," yelled Judson.

Judson took the rope and put it around his waist and then looped it several times so that he could pull the rope through the loops. then he started down the side of the hill. Judson had to be careful and not let himself go to fast. Using the side of the hill to help him climb down, he looked to see where Lisa was at , from where he was. He had a couple more feet before he reached her. He let go of the second rope letting it fall beside of her.

"Lisa! I need you to look up," yelled Judson.

"I see you, what do you want me to do?" she asked.

"I'm going to swing this rope toward you and I want you to grab it with both hands," yelled Judson moving down more.

"I'm afraid that I'll fall." She cried.

"I wouldn't let you fall. You have to grab the rope when I throw it to you. Then I'll swing over and grabbed you and the rope," said Judson throwing the rope toward Lisa who grabbed it.

"I have it, now what do I do? Lisa asked.

"Just hold on to it. I'm going to swing over to you and grabbed you and the rope. Then I'll show you how to get down from there," said Judson who had started to swing from side to side, till he could reach the rope and Lisa.

"How do we get down?" asked Lisa.

"You have to hold on to the rope and do what I do and don't look down. Now I'm going to put my right hand under my left hand. From then on it's right hand and then left, right and left," said Judson.

Slowly Judson moved down the rope till he was on the ground. Lisa ran to her dad who was standing with the rest of the others.

"Lisa, you should tell Jensen's dad thank you for saving you." He Replied.

"Mr. Cross thank you," said Lisa as she went back to her dad.

"I want to thank you for helping us to find them," said Judson to Tom Red Crow and the others.

"I'm sorry that we took them, but we just wanted you to stop what your doing," said Running Fox.

"I can't stop what I'm doing. There are people who want answers to so many questions. We aren't going to do anything that would dishonor the Souix. Now what are we going to do with you Jensen. You wanted to be like me, your mom could use someone to help with digging up the remains. Sounds like a good job for you," said Judson smiling.

"Dad, that means I have to get down in the dirt," replied Jensen.

"I didn't say that what I did was always a nice job. Sometimes you have to get dirty," replied Judson smiling.

"We have to hurry, if you don't know the hills you could get hurt," said Tom Red Crow.

***

Site of the excavation

Tony and Connor had just walked down the stairs of the trailer. They were on their way to the trailer to get the x-ray machine and get started for the day. When they heard noises coming from the excavation site. They ran to the site and found several groups of people within the site. They noticed the men were digging in the ground.

"Connor go get your mom, I'll take care of this. You people have to get out of there. You're on government property," yelled Tony.

"We have every right to be here. We are part of the group trying to find our ancestor that is buried here," replied a man.

"You are on part of the Souix reservation and it is protected by the federal government. I'm telling you to stop what your doing and to get off," replied Tony standing there looking at them.

"Mom, Tony needs help at the site," said Connor.

"What's going on out there? I heard some voices and Tony yelling," replied Annie putting on her shoes.

"Tony and I went to get the equipment and when we came around the trailer, there were these people in the site. The men have shovels and they were digging at graves. They didn't even know who was buried there," replied Connor following his mom.

"Your dad was afraid this was going to happen. There are some who are willing to wait and let us call them and then are those who can't wait and want to know right now. I need to call Mark," said Annie following Connor.

"You don't have to call me. I heard the yelling and shouting from the cemetery. My men are on their way," said Mark running with Annie and Connor.

"I have told them twice that they have to get off the property, but they wouldn't listen to me," said Tony.

"They will listen to me or go to jail. I'm Federal Agent Mark Wheeler and you people are trespassing on land that is protected by the federal government. This cemetery is a part of the Souix reservation and is protected by President Grant in the treaty of 1876. Now if you don't want to go to jail. I suggest that you walk out of the area and let them do there job," said Mark.

"We'll leave, but we were told that Dr. Cross would be doing this, but we haven't seen him?" asked one of the women.

"That's true, but several weeks ago Dr. Cross died and his son, Judson has taken his dad place. We ask that you be patient. This is going to take a long process to get everyone done. If you haven't given your DNA then you need to see Mo in lab 2. We will notify you when we have identified them all," replied Annie letting out a sigh of relief.

"Annie, I'll have some men assigned to watch over the area. Now we have to start searching for the kids again," replied Mark going to the helicopter.

"Mark, Judson called me. They found them with some help from the men of the tribe. They are on their way back," said Annie.

"Some good news for once. Where did he find them?" asked Mark walking with Annie.

"Tom Red Crow and some of the men helped Judson track them down, after they ran off from the house they were in. Then they followed Jensen up a hill and Lisa fell down the side of the hill and Judson had to rescue her. Other wise their okay," said Annie walking to the office.

"I'm glad to hear their okay," replied Mark puring some coffee into a cup.

"What's wrong, Mark?" asked Annie looking at him.

"I'm just tired. I have been here for the last five months just trying to keep control of the situation. I haven't seen Pam or the kids for so long, I'm ready to give up the bureau if it means that I can stay home," replied Mark.

"I know how you feel. Sometime Judson's gone for months, before I hear or see him. I always worry about him when he's gone. It's something that you just don't get use to," said Annie.

"I guess your right, but I wish it was easier," said Mark.

"Mom, it's dad and he's riding in with Jensen and the others," yelled Connor as he watched as his mom came out of the trailer. Annie walked over to where Judson was getting off the horse and talking to Jensen.

"Jensen, as soon as you see your mom, remember what we talked about and what your going to do. You need to find Tony, he will tell you what you're going to be doing. Don't forget to take your friends with you," said Judson

"Judson ! I'm so glad you found them, but where did you find them?" asked Annie hugging Jensen.

"I went to see if White Eagle could help me. He told me to ask Tom Red Crow so I did. He was more than willing. He also told one of the men had taken the kids, that it was over and the chief wanted him to take me to where they were. When we got to the house, there was no one. Pony That Walks is a tracker and he was able to find their tracks, which lead to the hills. When we got there , they were trying to find a way of rescuing Lisa, who had slid over the edge of the hill," said Judson.

"Mom, dad rescued Lisa. He went down the side of a hill on a rope, like he does it everyday. He didn't have any problems. That's what I want to be able to do," said Jensen.

"No! I don't want you to do this. What I did today was easy, but sometimes in a situation like that and I don't know if I'm going to get out of it. That's not what I want for you," said Judson watching Jensen shake her head.

"I'm so glad you're back. The last two days have almost been like a nightmare," said Annie.

"What happened here? Why are there men around the graves?" asked Judson walking over to the area, with Annie following him.

"Tony and Connor started x-raying the graves, to see if we could find any remains after this period of time, We're talking about 130 years. Also, there was Colonel Hastings report that the bodies had been put in coffins, but when we looked at the x-ray, there were no signs of a coffin in #1. So they opened the grave, to find that the body had just been put in there. So that part of the report was false. It took Tony and Connor three hours to get one set of remains out and the sift through the dirt for any more evidence," said Annie.

"So why are the men standing guard out there?" asked Judson.

"We got up this morning to find some of the family out there digging for themselves. So Mark had his men guard the place. Now that you're back I can do my job," said Annie walking over to Judson and hugging him.

"I wish we could stay like this forever, but we wouldn't get anything done," said Judson kissing Annie.

"Just remember that when we are done for the day," replied Annie smiling.

"I'll remember," said Judson with a smile.

"So what are Jensen and her friends going to be doing? I heard you say something about they could sift the dirt, for any evidence after removing the remains," replied Annie walking with Judson.

"I thought that it would be good way for to learn, that what we do isn't easy and it's hard work," said Judson.

"It looks like it was a good idea. Look over there, it will make it easy for Tony and Connor," said Annie.

"Have you found anything, that looks like proof? Judson asked.

"Come with me, I'll show you what we have so far," said Annie walking with Judson to lab 1.

Just as Annie and Judson reached the top of the stairs. Laura walked out.

"I was just coming to look for you. I may have found something else. I found it when I was looking at John Doe #4. " Said Laura standing there.

"Aren't you Lisa's mom? What are you doing in the lab?" asked Judson.

"Yes, I'm Lisa's mother. When we got here there was nothing I could do but sit and wait till Lisa was found. When I saw what Annie was doing I offered to help. I know what your thinking, am I qualified to do this?" Laura stated.

"Judson, she is definitely qualified. Laura is coroner for the city of Dallas. She has found something while looking at the remains," said Annie looking at Judson.

"If your wondering, yes I have seen Lisa. We took her the hospital and her checked out. She's going to be alright. She has some cuts and bruises, but they will heal. The last I saw her she was helping Jensen," said Laura going back into the lab.

"Laura, you said that you found something else?" asked Annie following her into the lab.

"Maybe, when you see it. You'll know what I'm talking about," said Laura going over to the lab table where the remains were laying.

"Are these the remains of those men?" asked Judson.

"Yes, after all these years I'm surprised that there is anything left," said Annie.

"According to Hasting, these men were buried in sealed coffins. These look like they were just thrown in to the ground and buried that way," said Judson.

"You're just as surprised as we were," said Annie.

"If Hastings lied about this, then what else did he lie about in the report?" asked Judson.

"I don't know, but there was a copy of the report in the folder. Maybe you should go over and see if there is something else," said Annie.

"I'll read it later, but what do you have here?" asked Judson walking over to the table.

"When I was laying the bones out on the table. I noticed that there were several knife cuts in the bones. It's like they took a knife and cut through the layers of skin till they got to the bone. The cuts are not the same distances a part. I noticed them on the arms too and also the rib cage. There was something else, when Tony handed me the skull for #4, they found it the mouth opened like he had been screaming. I would have to say that this man was still alive and he was tortured to death," said Laura.

"If he was still alive, why didn't they just kill instead of torturing him?" asked Annie.

"They wanted to prolong his life for as long as they could. It's a means of slow death. He would have suffered longer. The cuts in his arms and legs would have done that. He would have slowly bled to death," said Judson.

"What's the matter Judson? You have that look that tells me something is wrong. What is it?" asked Annie looking at Judson.

"Something is definitely wrong. There were two reports made, Hastings and Major Reno. Reno's report of what happened after the battle is probably more accurate, Before the battle, Custer split the regiment up. Reno was his second in command. He ordered Reno to take 350 men and attack the village from the right flank and would attack from the left flank, but Reno didn't do it. Reno stated in his report that it was several hours before he went to the battlefield to see if there was any one left. He reported that there was no one left standing except Custer's horse and he used it to bring Custer back to Fort Lincoln. In his report he said that what he saw made him sick. He said the ground was covered in blood," said Judson as Mo knocked on the side of the trailer.

"Judson, I need to talk to you. We have a problem. We can find any signs of DNA. There is another procedure for getting it, but I don't know what it is," said Mo.

"Judson, I have a man in my office that knows how to get it from whatever is available," said Laura.

"Doing the test is not Mo line of work. She reconstructs faces. I'll call him and tell to be at Dallas International and a private jet will pick him," said Judson.

"I'll ask Bill to go with the pilot to get him. I need to call him and let him know what equipment to bring," replied Laura picking up the phone.

"Have the other parents got here yet?" asked Judson.

"They have been since yesterday. All the parents said to tell you thank you for rescuing them. Susan wanted to go home, but her dad said that if she came down here to help, then she was going to help. Bobby and Tim are out there now. Their parents agreed with it," replied Annie walking out with Judson.

"I need to see how Tony and Connor are doing," replied Judson walking over to the site.

"If they don't have to stop and remove the remains from the graves. They could possibly get done in about four weeks," said Annie.

"Are they finding any remnants from the uniform or even the buttons from the shirts. If we could find any thing from the uniform, then we could check it for any DNA from that soldier," said Judson to where Tony and Connor were working.

"Hey dad, checking to see how we're doing?" asked Connor standing up.

"I just wanted to see how you're doing. Tony, do you have an estimate on how many you can remove a day?" asked Judson kneeling down beside an open grave.

"We can remove at least ten sets of remains or more, depending on what we have to do. If we have to remove the remains and then go back and sift the dirt for anything else then it will take us longer," said Tony.

"Are Jensen's friends helping?" asked Annie.

"Yes they are. I'm surprised at what they can do. First their sifting the dirt and then they are going through it and then they are sifting it again and going over it again. If there is anything in there, they aren't missing it," said Tony.

"We're not having any problems here, but they showed up about an hour ago. It was just a few of them, but the crowd just keeps getting bigger," said Connor as Judson turned his head to look.

"Are they tourists just watching what you're doing?" Judson asked looking at Connor and Tony.

"They look like some of the people that were found here this morning, but we can't be sure," replied Connor.

Judson slowly walked over to where the people were standing. He wasn't sure what to say to them. He stopped to think about what he would say, when he noticed that some of them were coming to where he stood.

"Excuse me. We were looking for Dr. Cross, but we have been here a week and we still haven't seen him?" asked the tall man looking at Judson.

"I'm in charge of operations here. Can I help you?" asked Judson.

"We were looking for Dr. Cross," said the man.

"The Dr. Cross you met with, was my father and he has died. Whatever he had agreed to has been changed. I know that some of you have papers giving you the right to remove the remains of your ancestors, but I'm sorry to say that those papers are no longer valid," replied Judson.

"You can't don't that," said the tall man.

"Yes I can. In the last few days that we have been here. I see this place in a different way. These men died for their country. They weren't just any men. They were part of a proud regiment, the 7th U.S. Cavalry. That's why they will be buried where they died, as part of the calvary," said Judson turning away and walking away from them.

As Judson walked to the edge of the fence, he stood there looking at the open graves and white crosses with the names that had long been worn away. He understood now what White Eagle had been telling him.

***

Two weeks later - lab 1

"Laura, do you have the results of the last DNA test that was done on John Doe #140?" Annie asked.

"Ask Rick, he was working on it yesterday," replied Laura going back to work the set of remains in front of her.

"Annie, I put the results in the folder, that has #140 on it," replied Rick.

Annie walked over to the table and picked up the folder and then opened it. She read the results and then put the file back into the folder.

"Annie, what's the matter? You look like you're frustrated about the results," said Rick

"I'm not frustrated. I should be glad that you're helping us, but I thought that I would have found him by now," said Annie.

"Who are you looking for? Is he one of those men?" asked Rick.

"Yes, his name is Jacob Matthews and he's Judson's great-great-great-grandfather. We didn't know till we reading the file and the name was in there. That's when Judson's dad found out about him. Judson decided to take on the project to find Jacob," replied Annie.

"Annie, look in file #115, you'll find what you're looking for," said Rick going back to work.

Annie took the folder from the file and walked outside to find Judson who was walking through the cemetery looking at crosses of each man. She knew he was looking for Jacob Matthews and the folder she held in her hand had the answers. Annie started to open the gate, just as Judson looked up when he heard the squeaking sound. Annie was walking toward him, when he stood up. She could see the look on his face as he walked to the next cross. The name was unreadable, just like the others that he had looked at. After looking at two more crosses, Judson gave up and came toward where Annie was standing.

"How long have you been you there looking?" asked Annie.

"I was helping Tony and Connor and then I just started looking at them and wondering which one was him, but it's a little hard to see the names when they are so worn down," said Judson.

"Maybe this will help you. We just got the results back this morning," said Annie handing the folder to Judson.

"These are the DNA results on #115, are you saying that the remains belong to Jacob Matthews?" asked Judson.

"What does the report say in the folder," replied Annie as Judson opened the folder and read the report.

"Are you sure, that the results are right?" asked Judson looking at Annie.

"Yes, we check the results twice to make sure that they are correct. I saw you out here and I knew what you were doing. That's why I wanted to give you the results myself. I need to go back to work, I'll see you in a little while," said Annie as she walked with Judson.

"I'm going to help Tony and Connor. Have you thought long it will take to finish?" asked Judson putting his arm around Annie.

"We should be done in less than three weeks. We have most of the remains already and I have plenty of help in the lab. Judson, Dr. Hill wanted to talk to you, something about burying them the way you found them," replied Annie.

"It's the only way to do it. I need to find Dr. Hill, he probably would be at lab 1. Annie, you're going that way, would you tell him that I need to speak to him. He can find me over where Tony's at," said Judson giving her a kiss and then walking over to where Tony was working.

"Did you come to help?" asked Tony who stopped what he was doing and stood up.

"I thought that maybe you could use some help. How many have you been able to remove so far today?" Judson asked taking a brush from the box and kneeling down on the ground.

"So far we have removed the remains of ten, just today. That brings the total up to 160 so far. Annie said that they have the DNA results of 140 so far. This guy that's helping Annie with the tests is something else," replied Tony.

"What do you mean?" asked Judson brushing away the dirt from some of the bones.

"I was taking two sets of remains up to the lab. He was working on a DNA test when I walked in. I watched him as he tried to find anything that remained in the remnant of the uniform or the button, but he told us that it is hard to find anything that can be used for the test in remains that old," replied Tony.

"If that's true, then what is he using for the test?" asked Judson.

"I saw him take a small section of the bone and then he grounded it till it was like a fine powder and then he mixed it with a couple drops of a sterile solution. I asked him how he could get the DNA out of the bone," said Tony.

"He said that it's possible to find some DNA in the bone, but it's very little and he has to be very careful," replied Tony.

"I don't know how it can be done, but I'm glad he's the one doing the test," replied Judson brushing the dirt of the remnants of a uniform.

"Have you decided what we're going to do, when it's time to bury the remains?" asked Tony.

"Yes, I have thought about it and I'm going to put them back the way we found them. It's the only way. Dad had ordered some specially made coffins. When I checked them, they are about two feet long and two feet wide. Dr. Hill is going to hire some men and start burning the ones that we have identified," said Judson standing up walking toward the gate.

"Where are you going?" asked Tony.

"I have put it off long enough. I need to meet with those families that have been waiting for information," said Judson walking over to lab 1.

Judson walked up the steps to lab 1, where Annie met him with reports that they had put together for the families. Judson gave Annie a kiss as he turned and walked back out the door. She could feel the tension in him as he walked toward the families. She wanted to go after him and tell him that it would be alright. She knew that Judson hated talking to people, no matter how big the crowd. Then she caught a glimpse of Mark going to meet Judson. She knew that she could relax with Mark being with Judson.

"Judson. Where are you going?" yelled Mark following him.

"I'm going to meet with some of the families. I had Connor go and tell them to meet me at the office. We have identified 140. I'm hoping that when we give them what they want, they will leave, so we an finish up with out any more interruptions or trouble," replied Judson.

"Are you alright?" asked Mark looking at Judson.

"Yes, but I need to talk you later about something, that only you could understand," replied Judson as approached the families.

"I'll stay here, just in case you need me," said Mark.

"I want to thank you for coming today, I know many of you have been waiting for a while. We now know the identities of 140 men. The men are listed as John Doe #1 through #263. When we call the name of the soldier, we ask that one member of his family come up get the report that we have made up for you," said Judson who didn't see Annie come up from behind him.

"Give me those, I can do it. I could feel the tension in you when you kissed me," said Annie calling the first name.

"We were told that we could remove the remains, so that he could be buried with his family?" asked the lady.

"We have a court order that prevents the remain of these soldiers from be removed from here. It has been decided that they will be returned to the same place that they were taken. If any of you should try and remove your loved one. Then federal agents that have been brought in and we'll have no choice, but to arrest you," replied Judson as Annie called out another name.

"This has been harder than you thought it would be. I'm right about how you feel?" asked Mark walking with Judson.

"Yes, it has been hard, but not in the way you think," replied Judson looking at Mark.

"What do you mean?" asked Mark.

"Every time I walked around those graves, I had this feeling that I was being watched. This feeling was there last night. I was going through the test results, as I read each name, I wonder what he had been like, or what had made him join the regiment, but more important than that. I wondered what had made him more than willing to give up his life that day," replied Judson.

"That's something I can't tell you, because I don't know the answers. Those men out there are the only ones that do know why. If grandfather was here, he probably tell you that they did it for the honor of their country," said Mark looking at Judson.

"I wonder what it was like for Jacob Matthews that night. Did he write a letter to his wife, just one last time? Was he thinking about his children and what they would grow up to be like?" replied Judson.

Judson and Mark continued walking, but Mark still couldn't give Judson the answer he was looking for. The only person who could was those men who died that day. They walked back to the office where Annie had just come from handing out the reports.

"I'm glad that parts over. If I had to answer one more question, I don't know what I would have done. Some of them were asking questions that I didn't know the answers to. I'm going to call those people that weren't here and let them know that we will be sending a copy of the test results to them. Then I have a report to write to the army after that. Now it's back to the lab for a couple of hours and then dinner," replied Annie.

"I'll meet you then for dinner," said Judson following Annie out of the office.

***

One week later

"Judson!" yelled Tony as he walked up to the office. "I wanted to tell you that the last of the remains have been removed and taken to the lab. Annie said that they would do the test and have the results back in 48 hours. We have all of them buried except the ones that we removed today. Laura said that she would have the postmortem done by tomorrow so we can bury these 10, in the next day or so," replied Tony.

"I noticed that Connor took the responsibility of making sure the crosses with their names were put up," replied Judson.

"I noticed that the closer we get to being done, the more are watching us. It's like they are keeping a silent vigil over those men," said Tony.

"I first saw them over a week ago. They were sitting on the ridge. At first I thought they were just watching us but now it's different. You're right, it's like a silent vigil for those men," replied Judson looking at the ridge where White Eagle and some men of the tribe were sitting.

"The reason I needed to see you, is because if you're done with me, I need to get started on the next project your dad had lined up. From what I have read it looks like it will take six months or longer," replied Tony walking with Judson.

"I found his next project in his computer. Did he really believe that he could find out what happened to the lost colony?" asked Judson.

"He had his theories. He did some research on it and found something, but he wouldn't say," replied Tony.

"What made dad think he could find it? There have been others, who thought that they knew what happened to it only to be wrong," replied Judson.

"I think it was the challenge that made him do it. Just like it's the mystery of the unknown keeps us going," said Tony.

"Maybe that's what kept me going all these years. There has been times when I wanted to give up and come home, but there was always that mystery that I had to solve. Maybe that's what I need one more mystery. Maybe I'll decide to come there, when we're done here," replied Judson shaking hands with Tony.

"It's up to you. You'll know where I'll be," replied Tony shaking Judson's hand as he turned and walked away.

Judson slowly walked back to the office. He looked to see Mo's lab be hooked to the truck that would take it to the next site. Annie and Rick were in lab 1 finishing the last of the test results. The Murphys had left that morning with the other families on the Cross jet that would take them home. Judson watched from the door of the office as Connor and Jensen made sure that each cross was right. He turned to go into the office, when he heard Connor yelling. He rushed out the door to see Tom Red Crow and some of the men ride to the edge of the graves. He got off his horse and walked over to where Judson was standing.

"Thank you for what you did. We know that you had to do it for the families," replied Red Crow riding back to the men who were sitting on the ridge.

Annie walked up behind Judson and took his hand.

"It's almost over. The last of the results came back a little while ago. Connor took Rick to the airport and then he's coming back. I moved my stuff to the office, so they can move the lab to the new site. It's getting late and I'm really tired. I'll be in the office if you need me," replied Annie as Judson hugged her.

Night was starting to fall, when Judson found himself opening the gate and walking into the cemetery. He slowly walked past each grave as if it were a monument to the men who were buried there. Then he heard the voice of White Eagle.

"You can feel them as they march across the battlefield?" asked White Eagle as he moved closer.

"Yes," said Judson standing there.

"I see the ghosts of those men every night. It's like they are waiting for another battle that doesn't come," said White Eagle.

"Now I know why you didn't want anyone to remove them from the graveyard. It would have been like breaking up the regiment and those men are part of the 7th calvary who gave up their lives to protect others," said Judson.

"Now you understand," said White Eagle.

"Yes I understand," said Judson as he watched them march by to carry on the regiment song.

THE END