Dragons Teeth Crichton 2017 (WWT)

Leaving the Badlands
The morning of August 26 was distinctly chilly as they set out on the one-day journey to Cow Island,
located at one of the few natural fords along a two-hundred-mile stretch of the Missouri River, where
the Missouri Breaks formed a barrier on each side. The island also served as a steamboat landing,
and it was here Cope planned to meet the steamboat that came up from St. Louis. They were all eager
to leave, and frankly worried about Indians, but they had too many fossils to take with them in the
wagon. Nothing would do but to make two trips. Cope marked the most precious box, the one with the
Brontosaurus teeth, with a subtle X on one side.
“I’m going to leave this one here,” Cope said, “for the second trip.”
Johnson said he didn’t understand. Why not take it on the first trip?
“The chances we get raided on our first leg are probably better than the chances the second load
will get discovered here,” he said. “Plus we should be able to pick up some extra hands at Cow
Island to protect us on the second trip.”
Their initial journey was uneventful; they reached Cow Island in the early evening and dined with
the army troops stationed there. Marsh and his men had gone down the Missouri on the previous
steamer, after warning the troops of “Cope’s cutthroats and vagabonds,” who might appear later.
Captain Lawson laughed. “I think Mr. Marsh bears no love for your party,” he said.
Cope affirmed that was the case.
The steamboat was due in two days, but the schedule was uncertain, especially so late in the year.
It was imperative that they make their final trip to the plains camp the following day. Cope would
remain in Cow Island, repacking the fossils for the steamboat journey, while Little Wind and Cookie
drove the wagon back in the morning under Sternberg’s supervision.
But early the next morning, Sternberg awoke with severe chills and fever, a recurrence of his
malaria. Isaac was too jumpy about Indians to go back, Cookie and Little Wind too unreliable to go
unsupervised. There was the question as to who would lead the expedition.
Johnson said, “I’ll lead it.”
It was the moment he had been waiting for. Summer on the plains had toughened him, but he had
always been under the supervision of older and more experienced men. He longed for a chance to
prove himself on his own, and this short trip seemed the perfect opportunity for independence, and a
fitting conclusion to the summer’s adventures.
Toad felt the same way. He immediately said, “I’ll go, too.”
“You two shouldn’t make the trip alone,” Cope said. “I haven’t been able to find any extra hands.
The soldiers are unavailable to us.”