Will's Race for Home

As they near the Red River, the trail becomes crowded with travelers on their way to the land rush. George and Caesar plan their river crossing, and Will becomes nervous as he learns of the dangers. Caesar intends to travel on to California, where he hopes the ocean water will finally make him “feel clean,” but he agrees to stay with George and Will for a while and help with the dangerous river crossing.

Caesar gives Will a harmonica and teaches him the tune Wait for the Wagon. As they sing, Will pictures his family in a new home.

Caesar insists that Belle must be well-rested to successfully cross the river, but George is also worried about reaching Oklahoma in time for the rush. As the trail gets more and more crowded, Will realizes that the land rush is actually a race; there might not be enough land for everyone, and if they arrive late, they won’t be able to stake a claim. The thought terrifies him.

Nearing a Red River town, Caesar’s vigilance increases. He urges them to bypass the town, but George insists they need supplies to reinforce the wagon. Both men seem tense, and George sleeps poorly.

They spot a lone wolf. Caesar admits he is not worried about the animal, but believes an enemy has followed them for 20 miles. He offers to leave, but George insists they will face the danger together, making Will “prouder than [he’s] ever been” (84).

In Red River town, Caesar leaves his revolvers behind to go get supplies. While George takes Belle to the farrier, Caesar hires a former Union soldier, Milt Perkins, to guard their wagon. Their military salute draws amazement from Will and hostile looks from onlookers. Will follows Caesar to the general store, pestering him with questions about the Civil War.

After securing supplies for the crossing, several men, led by John, the Confederate soldier from the previous town, ambush Caesar and badly injure his hand. Will runs for help, and George and Perkins join the fight. The town sheriff, wearing a Confederate buckle, stops the fight, aims his gun at George, and orders them to leave, claiming he doesn’t want any “Black men ruining [his] town” (91). Will is furious at this injustice, but George and Caesar defuse the situation and leave quietly. As they go, Will spots Caesar’s attacker watching from a distance.

That night, a heavy silence settles over their camp. George cleans and wraps Caesar’s wounded hand while Will tends the animals and the fire.

Will realizes that his father has found a friend in Caesar, which has made him “more alive.” He recognizes their silence shows a loyalty stronger than words, and that their “adventure” is happening internally, as well as externally.

Before dawn, Will finds Caesar saddling Midnight, wearing his guns. He realizes Caesar plans to face his enemy in a shoot-out, despite his injured hand. Will and George try to stop him, but Caesar insists he must go alone to protect them. John is tracking him, and Caesar knows he will not stop without a fight.

Will cries for Caesar to reconsider, but Caesar rides toward town. Refusing to let Caesar face an ambush alone, Will jumps on Belle’s back and gallops after him. George protests, but Will feels he is exercising “[his] choice” to help his friend.

Will finds Caesar on the deserted main street. He spots riflemen on a rooftop and understands that Caesar is walking into an ambush, not a fair gunfight. He shouts a warning to Caesar as John walks down the empty street. Shots are fired, and a bullet hits Caesar in the shoulder.

Will covers Caesar with his body, shouting that the war has ended. Will is frightened as the sheriff and his deputies approach, but the town doctor steps in to help Caesar and force the sheriff and John to let Caesar and Will go. Townspeople also rally around them, insisting that Caesar was unfairly ambushed. The doctor helps get the unconscious Caesar onto Midnight and tells Will to ride for help. Will flees town, leading Midnight from Belle’s back.

Will guides the animals back to camp, terrified that Caesar is already dead. As settlers headed to the land rush pass him, he worries that he has ruined his father’s dream of owning land. Back at camp, George has been waiting in fear and is overcome with relief at his son’s return. He sees Caeser’s wound and immediately springs into action. He directs Will to fetch supplies, including a knife to be heated in the fire to remove the bullet in Caesar’s shoulder.

Inside the wagon, George tells Will to hold Caesar steady as he prepares to extract the bullet. Caesar rouses briefly, demands to know why they are stopped, and consents to the surgery. They place a leather strap in his mouth.

George probes the wound with the hot blade. Caesar screams and passes out from the pain. Will holds him steady until George finishes the procedure.

As Caesar lies unconscious, George bandages the wound. He notes that Will called him “Pa” instead of “Father” when he returned. He remarks that he and Will have become closer on their journey, just like he and his own father did when they traveled away from Louisiana. Prompted by Will, George reveals a family secret: Years earlier, after leaving the plantation, an overseer attacked him and Grandpa and was accidentally shot in the struggle. Grandpa tried to remove the bullet, but the man died.

George explains the guilt he has carried since that day, comparing it to the “heavier burden” Caesar bears from the war. He claims that “everyone deserves to live” and violence “damages your soul” (119). Will tries to go to sleep, but his mind is on the secret that his father finally revealed.

Four days later, Caesar wakes up angry, calling George a fool for sacrificing their chance in the land rush. Too weak to stand, he rides in the wagon as they set out again, complaining his sacrifice was for nothing; George should have left him behind to continue on to the land rush.

Will defends George and plays Wait for the Wagon on the harmonica. Caesar calls out that he is not angry with Will. Will understands that Caesar accepts his help but still resents George’s choice.