Arizona, the Wild Side

By Daniel Hance Page

    Beautifully rugged Arizona attracted a wide range of characters including drifters, dreamers, builders, loners, prospectors, and the first to arrive, the Native Americans. Each group was seeking a better life. Clashes of wills became legends such as a shootout at the O. K. Coral and events along the Outlaw Trail. All became part of the tapestry of Arizona where both towering events and small acts of kindness changed lives.

• Language: English
• Publisher: PTP Book Division
• Release date: Oct 26, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223614869

Daniel Hance Page

Daniel Hance Page is a freelance writer with twenty-seven books published and others being written. His books are authentic stories filled with action, adventure, history and travel, including Native American traditions and spiritual insights to protect our environment in the smallest park or widest wilderness

Book preview

PTP

PTP Book Division

Imprint of Saguaro Books, LLC

Arizona

Copyright © 2023 Daniel Hance Page

Printed in the United States of America

All Rights Reserved

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This is a work of fiction. Any names or characters, businesses or places, events or incidents, are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in articles and reviews.

Reviewers may quote passages for use in periodicals, newspapers, or broadcasts provided credit is given to Arizona, the Wild Side by Daniel Hance Page and PTP Book Division, an Imprint of Saguaro Books, LLC

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PTP Book Division

An Imprint of Saguaro Books, LLC

16845 E. Avenue of the Fountains, Ste.325

Fountain Hills, AZ 85268

ISBN: 9798863523620

Library of Congress Cataloging Number

LCCN: 2023948105

Printed in the United States of America

First Edition

Dedication

Marg, Hank, Jim, Ivadelle, Sheldon, Colleen, Shane and Shannon Page, John, Dan and the Robinson family, Lester and Rose Anderson, Doug, Don, Bob Sephton and families, Garry and the Pratt family, the Massey family, Murray, Sue and the Shearer family, Joe and Linda Hill, Macari Bishara, Joan LeBoeuf, Kevin, Alison and Michaela Griffin, Jerry and Gaye McFarland, Dr. David and June Chambers, Mac McCormick, Grant Saunders, Frank Lewis and other friends with whom we have enjoyed the wilderness.

Page and friends

Left to right: Jim Page (Writer's brother), John Robinson (Friend), Dan Robinson (John's son), Dan Page (Writer)

None of nature’s landscapes are ugly so long as they are wild.

John Muir

One piece of good sense would be more memorable than a monument as high as the moon.

Henry David Thoreau

Other books by Daniel Hance Page

Florida, the Wild Side

Olympic National Park, the Wild Side

Killbear Park, the Wild Side

Smoky Mountains, the Wild Side

Yellowstone, the Wild Side

Banff, the Wild Side

Return of the Wild

Florida Journeys

Pelican Sea, a Legend of Florida

Walk Upon the Clouds, a Legend of the Rocky Mountains

The Pirate and the Gunfighter

The First Americans and Their Achievements

Life is a Fishing Trip

Riley, the Dog Visitor

Bear Trap Mountain

Where Wilderness Lives

Many Winters Past

The Journey of Jeremiah Hawken

Told by the Ravens

The Maui Traveler

Wilderness Trace

Arrowmaker

Trail of the River

Pelican Moon

Legend of the Uintas

Chapter 1

Starting Out

Present Day

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When Arlo Hawken, carrying his few possessions, was released from prison, he sat on the bench and watched for his girlfriend who had not waited for him but got married when he was in prison. Sitting on the bench, he was overwhelmed by his release into freedom. For the first time in a long time he basked in warmth from sunlight for it too was different as was the sky where only a few clouds moved. Looking up and away from the harshness of his present life, he saw a spec moving. It vanished into a cloud then emerged to grow larger as it came closer. An eagle, thought Arlo, and it’s not moving its wings but just soaring, being lifted up by rising air currents. Looking back to the land, Arlo saw a red car approach then stop. Maybe that’s what she’s driving now, thought Arlo as he stood up and started walking toward the vehicle.

Seeing him, Hadly knew the person was Arlo. He seemed thinner yet stronger, moving with confidence. He was tall. His black hair had acquired grayness and almost a white tone. Face had stature and toughness. His greenish brown eyes flashed when he walked up to the open window and asked, Hadly?

She looks older, noted Arlo. She has put on a little weight. Hair has some gray. Light brown eyes are the same and so is her beautiful smile.

Get in, Arlo, she said.

He walked around to the just opened passenger door, got inside and sat down. After closing the door, he put down the window and welcomed the entrance of warm, outside air.

I don’t like to be closed in any more, he explained. Thanks for the ride.

I have a lot to say I’m sorry about, she replied before starting the motor. Where do you want to go?

North edge of town, eventually, but on the way could we stop somewhere? I would like to enjoy your company.

OK, she replied. I’ll take you to our favorite restaurant. It has new owners, although the food continues to be the best.

Thank you, he said. I’m treating you.

You don’t have to do that, she stated. I owe you.

No, you don’t owe me anything but maybe some of your company.

A short silence followed filled with so much that could be said. Arlo continued to enjoy the breeze coming through the open window then slowly he started an explanation. Many people in prison say they are innocent and some of them are. I was innocent and sent to prison by a gang who used me as a decoy to lead investigators away from the real dealer. In prison, I learned a lot. Particularly, I gathered every bit of information I could get about the gang that had sent me in there. I also became skilled at minding my own business, becoming stronger and above all fighting. As a victim, I was sent to prison; however, you don’t want to stay that way when you get in there. That’s enough about me. How have you been?

Here’s the restaurant, she noted, before turning off the road and driving onto a parking lot. Inside the building, she walked to their previously favorite table where they sat across from each other.

A flood of memories engulfed Arlo. Hadly felt her previous life returning, too. They both ordered the special because they weren’t there for the food, taking time to decide on one item or another. Arlo sipped the cold, clear water then started to enjoy the rich, earthy flavor of a good cup of coffee.

I’m sorry I did not wait for you, explained Hadly. Time passed. I met Cal. He did not replace you but you weren’t there. Gradually one event led to another. I was pregnant. We got married. I have two daughters. We live in a better than average house. Most of the time, I have felt guilty. I do not regret my present life although I have not forgotten you. Cal is a stockbroker. I’m an associate professor of history, specialized in the history of Arizona.

I’m interested in the land, sky and environment of Arizona, observed Arlo, because they are the only things in life that haven’t let me down.

Hadly froze. For her, a cold, grayness filled the room. Tears fell.

I’m sorry, stated Arlo. I don’t want tears to ever fall again because of something I have said or done. I don’t think you have let me down. I was taken away by many people who did let me down and your life kept moving onward.

After wiping away the tears, she replied, Thank you for that. My life continues. Your life begins.

How did you get started being an associate professor majoring in the history of Arizona? he enquired.

I fell into it, you might say or I got caught by an endless series of stories, she answered.

You’re a storyteller, observed Arlo. Where did you first get caught and fall into a story?

Depends on how we look at life, she said. I could say I followed a predestined route that led to Tombstone Arizona and that’s what I think happened. I was led there by prearrangement but personally I was captivated by the place and made the choice to enter the past to understand and enjoy the present.

The broad strokes of our lives are predetermined, you think, said Arlo, and we have freedom in choices we make while following a pre-established outline.

That’s the way I see it, she answered.

Who sets down the outline—the broad strokes of our lives? he asked.

We do when we are in the spirit world, the other side, our true home people call heaven, she explained. "All agree life is