A swirl of conflicting emotions tangled in her chest. Chogan was here. What would her family say? Her brothers couldn’t even speak the word Blackfoot without spitting. Yet he’d been so kind to her in those fearful days of the kidnapping last winter. Now he’d been cast out from his village for his actions.
And he spoke of the great spirit’s leading. She’d never questioned the beliefs she’d been taught from her earliest days, but her sister Meksem had been speaking to her of the God Meksem now served. A God stronger than the great spirit. A God who made every person and thing that existed, with all power, far more than the sun or any other being. Yet Meksem said this God cared about every part of her life, wanted good for her, and was guiding her to that good path, even through the hard times.
If the great spirit had led Chogan here, did Meksem’s God have any part in it? And why here, to a quiet Nimiipuu village with good cause to hate the Blackfoot?
Chogan wouldn’t know of her husband’s passing. The last time she’d seen this man, Heinmot had been alive, and she’d not even known how bad his sickness had progressed. A pang pressed her chest.
Should she speak of him? She didn’t want this man to think she was asking for help.
She wasn’t. In truth, her family had been kind to take her back into their lodge. No matter how much the cluster of bodies and heat and smoke nearly suffocated her.
Chogan must have seen something of her thoughts on her face. He certainly watched her closely enough. “Your brave, he is recovered?”
Had she spoken of Heinmot to this man? They’d communicated mostly through signs before. Chogan must have overheard her speaking with one of the other women who had been taken with her.
She narrowed her gaze at him. “You know our language.”
A sheepish grin slipped over his face, and he shrugged. His actions more than confirmed the truth of her words.
Anger slid through her. Why had he lied about his understanding? He’d never actually said he didn’t speak their language. But his face had never revealed comprehension when they spoke to him in Nimiipuu. That naturally made her assume.
Again, he seemed to read her thoughts, for his brows dipped as his gaze turned earnest. Troubled. “I did not want my brothers to know I could speak your language. I did not want them to make me use that against you. I also knew if they heard me speaking much with you that they couldn’t understand, they would become angry and not believe what I told them you said.”
She studied him as she took in his reasons. This time, she was careful to let her face show only distrust. At least until she was sure whether she could trust him or not. “Why wouldn’t they believe you? You were one of them.” But not anymore? Could she dare believe what he said now? She might have been more willing before learning that he’d lied about their language.
His hand cut through the air. “They have long been displeased with me. This was my last chance to show myself as bloodthirsty as the rest of them.”
Nothing in his face made her think he was lying, but it took more than a few words to prove a man’s true character. Still, she would be civil to him as long as he did the same.
She gave him a nod, which wouldn’t commit her one way or another—she hoped.
He seemed to accept the response. “Is your brave recovered?”
She’d been distracted before and hadn’t answered him. She would speak the truth now. It was what she wanted from him, so she should do the same. “He has been gone these four moons.”
Chogan’s expression shifted. Softened. His brows drew close again, and his eyes glistened. “I’m sorry.”
Was he? About the death of a Salish man, the known enemies of the Blackfoot?
But whether everything he said now was true or not, Chogan had already proved himself different from the others who’d kidnapped her. Why would he feign sadness now if he didn’t feel it?
Again, she nodded to acknowledge his words.
His gaze dropped to her belly, then lifted again to her face. “His family has taken you in?”
Maybe that was the way his people handled such matters, but thankfully, she’d been allowed to return to her own family. She shook her head. “I have come back to the village of my people. To the lodge of my brother.”
Curiosity flickered in his gaze, but then it slipped away. “Do you need anything? Have your men found enough hunting? I can bring you meat.”
Again, a jumble of emotions churned through her. Why would he offer more kindness? Did he truly think the great spirit brought him here to help her? Meat wasn’t what she needed. And what she did long for was certainly not something she could seek from him.
Her own life again.
It didn’t even have to be the life she’d thought would be hers for the rest of her days—to keep the lodge for Heinmot until he grew old and passed away. By then, their future sons would have grown enough to provide for her. She’d not expected it to all end so soon, before even the first of those children had the chance to see the world.
She pushed those thoughts away lest Chogan decipher them on her face. “We have enough meat. I am well.” Hot, weary, and as large as a community lodge, but he could help with none of those.
It was time she end this unusual meeting. Her family would worry if she didn’t return soon.
Before turning away, Telípe sought out Chogan’s gaze one last time. “I must go now. You will not stay in this place?” Surely he knew what an uproar would be raised if a Blackfoot warrior was found hiding in the woods outside their village.
Chogan’s eyes drilled into hers. “I will not leave yet, not until I know the great spirit’s purpose for me.”
Another press of fear weighed her chest. “If they find you, they’ll not wait to ask your purpose. My people detest the Blackfoot.” Hate would have been a more accurate word, but she couldn’t bring herself to say it. Not about him.
His expression remained calm, though still intense. “I won’t be found. And I won’t do harm to your people. You may tell them so, if you think it wise.”
She shook her head. “They would hunt you down if they knew you were here.”
“I won’t be found.” He repeated the words in a steady tone with a peace that belied the determination in their meaning.
He was such a mystery, this man. Enemy, yet friend. Fierce warrior, yet gentle and kind. Undecided, yet determined.
Well, he would have to make his own choices. If she stayed away much longer, one of the boys would be sent to find her. If the lad spotted Chogan, she’d be putting him at great risk.
“I must go.” With a final nod, she turned away.
She’d once thought she’d never see this man again. Yet she’d been granted one more chance. Was this now their final farewell?
And why did the thought make her chest ache?
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Call of the Rockies Series
Misty M. Beller
Book 1: Freedom in the Mountain Wind
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Book 2: Hope in the Mountain River
Book 3: Light in the Mountain Sky
Book 4: Courage in the Mountain Wilderness
Book 5: Faith in the Mountain Valley
Book 6: Honor in the Mountain Refuge
Brides of Laurent Series
Misty M. Beller
Book 1: A Warrior’s Heart
The Mountain Series
Misty M. Beller
Book 1: The Lady and the Mountain Man
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Book 2: The Lady and the Mountain Doctor
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Book 3: The Lady and the Mountain Fire
Book 4: The Lady and the Mountain Promise
Book 5: The Lady and the Mountain Call
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Book 6: This Treacherous Journey
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Book 7: This Wilderness Journey
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Book 8: This Freedom Journey
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ok 9: This Courageous Journey
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Book 10: This Homeward Journey
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Book 11: This Daring Journey
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Book 12: This Healing Journey
Hearts of Montana Series
Misty M. Beller
Book 1: Hope’s Highest Mountain
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Book 2: Love’s Mountain Quest
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Book 3: Faith’s Mountain Home
Texas Rancher Trilogy
Misty M. Beller
Book 1: The Rancher Takes a Cook
Book 2: The Rancher Takes a Bride
Book 3: The Rancher Takes a Cowgirl
Wyoming Mountain Tales
Misty M. Beller
Book 1: A Pony Express Romance
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Book 2: A Rocky Mountain Romance
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Book 3: A Sweetwater River Romance
Book 4: A Mountain Christmas Romance
About the Author
Misty M. Beller is a USA Today bestselling author of romantic mountain stories, set on the 1800s frontier and woven with the truth of God’s love.
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She was raised on a farm in South Carolina, so her Southern roots run deep. Growing up, her family was close, and they continue to keep that priority today. Her husband and children now add another dimension to her life, keeping her both grounded and crazy.
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God has placed a desire in Misty’s heart to combine her love for Christian fiction and the simpler ranch life, writing historical novels that display God’s abundant love through the twists and turns in the lives of her characters.
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Connect with Misty at www.MistyMBeller.com
Copyright © 2021 Misty M. Beller
All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means - photocopied, shared electronically, scanned, stored in a retrieval system, or other - without the express permission of the publisher. Exceptions will be made for brief quotations used in critical reviews or articles promoting this work.
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The characters and events in this fictional work are the product of the author's imagination. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, is coincidental.
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, Kings James Version.
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