BILLY STEELE CHAPTER FIVE: MENACE OF THE MOLE PEOPLE

Slade then quickly formulated a plan to use this tragedy as a way to eliminate the Indian wizard once and for all. And he sent his henchman, the snake-like Sheriff Whipjaw on a mission.

An innocent Billy was unaware that the power of his lost mine contained such a destructive force, but the devilish Lucy Fur knew of the power the mine possessed and she vowed to take control of the mine and use its treasures to rule all she surveyed.

But Lucy Fur's threat was unknown to the kid ranger, for today, over thirty years since Young's Haven disappeared, Billy and his ranger family finally made their way through the golden West on route to Billy's lost legacy-the Knox family mine.

While riding a happy trail to high adventure, Billy held tightly to the shimmering black coin that was the key to the mine as he anxiously watched Col. Tim and the rawboned Sgt. Big Boy study the map to the treasure that he hoped would change his beloved Western home's destiny forever. Billy only envisioned the power in the lost mine would become a positive force for the land he loved. Billy imagined the power locked in his mine would turn the unspoiled frontier into a haven of peace and prosperity, where settlers like his birth family would live free from want and free from fear together with the Native American inhabitants of the land.

Billy loved his golden West home. He was his unit's flag bearer with pride, and as the red, white and blue proudly waved in the wind, Billy puffed his chest and the brass buttons of his blue and gold cavalry uniform reflected the golden sun brightly. Billy loved being a member of his homeland's elite squad of protectors. As his golden tailed pony galloped briskly and his flop eared pup barked happily, Billy felt a sweet excitation as he journeyed under the big sky, through the big country's open trails. "Boy howdy," the 12-year old exclaimed as Billy greeted the utopian landscape as if he was greeting his best friend.

The fresh, clean aroma of the ponderosa pine trees intoxicated the boy's senses. The grand vision of a herd of wild mustangs, running free and proud, filled the boy's eyes with wonder. The neighs and rumbles of their hooves, signaled to all that no man or force of Nature would rob these magnificent steeds and broncos of their independence.

A great herd of buffalos, magnificent horned and wooly marvels of nature, joined graceful families of deer, proud antelopes, and packs of wolves raising their young to weave a living tapestry of color and beauty of the West's most vibrant communities. In his wildest dreams, Billy could not foresee human predators wantonly slaughtering the frontier's most distinguished inhabitants years later. And even as he rode the sun-kissed trails, men of his color sought to eradicate the Native Americans as swiftly as they would exterminate the beasts of the wilderness.

From a distance, Billy could see the lavender mountains, towering sentinels, God's gift to this spacious landscape, as they beckoned him to come forward and immerse his sprit in their noble presence. Oceans of tall grass spread their inviting green all the way to grand canyons and Rocky Mountains under a captivating orange sunset. Humongous white cliffs that one could climb until one could touch the heavens, filled the boy with awe. The boisterous long horned cattle of a great drive filled Billy with joy, as these herds would help feed the nation he loves.