by C C Daniels
The ring lost some of its blocking power, probably because of the thin fabric between it and me. But it was still a great help.
Amaya arrived late as always. Her parents dropped her off and moved on to find a spot to watch the parade with their two younger children. I’d been told that Mr. and Mrs. Bell used to participate in the parade. Amaya said her mom thought it was too much trouble and didn’t want to do it. Kia had never participated. Sitting in a saddle was dangerous for him and he refused to roll along in a wheelchair.
Several Ute men helped Uncle Jun ready the travois rigs. The skins made a comfortable sling, like a hammock strung between poles. Ella would drag one travois and Amaya’s horse the other.
We got MawMaw situated on Ella’s travois. Then we piled Amaya’s with parts of a tipi, skins, pelts, tools, and other items that a Nuutsiu tribe would’ve traveled with back in the day.
Finally ready to go, Amaya and I saddled up. I had to hold firm to Ella. She wasn’t used to the strapping of the travois.
“It’s okay. You can do this,” I whispered to her.
The grand marshal struck up the band and we were off at a snail’s pace. Townspeople, people from neighboring Colorado Springs, and tourists from all over the world lined Manitou Avenue on both sides of the street.
Ella and I were directly behind the elders, and Miquin’s magnificent headdress mesmerized me. I was studying the beautiful feathers when brief glimpses of a soaring eagle flicked through my mind. I heard the bird’s cry, saw his capture by humans, and felt it when a few of his prized feathers were taken before he was set free again. I blinked rapidly and shook my head to remove the visions.
“You okay?” Amaya’s voice cut through the bird’s perturbed caw.
When I turned my head in her direction, the hallucination disappeared.
MawMaw twisted in the travois to look up at me. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” I said, grateful that Ella walked along without my guidance.
Not convinced, MawMaw narrowed her eagle eyes at me.
Despite breathing deep, the vibrations from the crowd got stronger, MawMaw’s thoughts being the loudest. I pointed to the crowd as a diversion. “Look! There’s Kai!”
On crutches and tucked between his parents, he waved frantically at us. Mrs. Bell, holding Amaya’s little sister, didn’t smile at anyone.
MawMaw waved back at Kai and caught her breath. The boy is standing! Her thoughts pinged too loudly.
One hand on the reins, I tried, nonchalantly and as covertly as possible, to lift my tunic so I could get to the secret pocket. I hoped that putting the ring on again would allow it to do its magic better. I had just found the pocket and was about to slip a finger inside when an alarming vibe made my skin crawl.
Leaving my hand where it was, I scanned the crowd. It didn't take long to home in on the bad aura. Near the doorway of the Fondue Pot restaurant, two men walked side by side. Obviously not interested in the parade, they stood out from the people hugging the curb of the street. They sauntered slowly keeping pace with our group.
I knew immediately who they were…men in black. I didn’t cower. I confronted them with a scowl. One of them looked at his feet. The taller one raised his chin at me in a dare. Heat moved to my eyes, which I pushed away. That moment wasn’t a time for anger.
Kanaan? I tried to reach his mind without looking back.
Damn! Will I ever get used to that? You’re going to make me fall off my horse.
Sorry. Two MIBs are here.
Crap.
Where’s the apple? I asked.
In a safe place.
At that moment, I wanted to feel and hear everything I could. I'd deal with the pain. So, I palmed the ring and, instead of putting it on, slipped it into the thicker belt pouch.
Oh, and the onslaught was immediate. Loud pandemonium, unrelenting chatter from hundreds and hundreds of people. The deepest of my breaths couldn't silence it. Even the low ebbs were deafening. Nevertheless, I searched all the channels and locked on to a vicious vibe that could only be the men in black.
We passed the roundabout at Ruxton Avenue and were almost to the end of the parade route when I lost sight of the two men, but I still felt their presence.
The rest of the parade stopped at Mike’s Turnaround just after Park Avenue. We, however, continued to our tribe’s mineral springs tucked into the narrowest part of the canyon at the extreme western edge of town.
Distance from the crowd helped dim the noise in my head somewhat. Though I couldn’t see them, the uncomfortable feeling the MIBs gave me continued. They were definitely following us.
The road was far too narrow at the spring for much of a crowd. It was only our parade contingent that filed into the parking lot behind the modern building surrounding our ancient Manitou spring.
Dozens of mineral springs, dotted around town, were sacred places, a source of spirituality and healing for all American Indians, not just the Ute. In fact, the entire area was so sacred that blood never had, and never must, spill in war.
Native legend was that the water was where Manitou breathed life into, and from, the Earth. Everyone was welcome to drink from the Manitou’s soul and people from all over the world visited for the health benefits.
Amaya and I dismounted. MawMaw scooted down and raised her arms so we could help her out of the sled. The Lykota boys dismounted next to us and tied their horses to the same tree.
Kanaan came close and put a hand on the small of my back. “Where did you see them?”
“See who?” Amaya asked.
Our favorite gunmen, I answered them both.
Amaya swallowed. “They’re really not going to give up, are they?”
“I don’t think so.”
The elders went first to the spring. They removed their headdresses and stripped their shirts. Antique terra-cotta bowls were filled with the sacred water. The elders drank and anointed themselves with it. When the elders were done, they assisted Sawaich in doling out the water to the rest of the group. MawMaw, Mary, and two more older women lined up for their turn.
After the elder women, MawMaw came for Amaya and me. She presented us to the elders for our sip of the naturally carbonated water. Allohak solemnly held a cup out for me to drink. While I drank the fizzy mineral water, he smirked like he knew a secret.
Do not worry, he mind spoke to me—clear and firm cutting through the other streams of thought. I spurted a little water, surprised that he knew to talk to me with thought. Allohak nodded once at me.
Before I had a chance to clear my throat and respond to Allohak, the two men in black appeared from the hiking trail that ran along the creek. They waltzed into the parking lot and leaned on a tree horrifyingly close to the travois. All the Utes turned to look at the intruders. The nerve of the two men surprised me, even though I knew exactly how far they’d go to get the object their boss wanted.
Hey! I thought, looking at the tall cocky one. Back off. He was shocked at first. Apparently, tattooed man hadn’t told his buddies about my abilities.
Make me, is what came back. The voice belonged to the man who had been in the barn and had attacked me. He moved his jacket enough to reveal a gun tucked in his waistband. He took a few arrogant steps towards us…just a few steps, though.
A grimace twisted his face just before he tripped awkwardly over his own two feet. He landed, appropriately enough, face-first on the ground. The other guy, the tall one, caught a coughing fit so deep and harsh that he gagged and doubled over. The group of Ute surrounded the two men in black.
Calm and composed, Allohak reached for the cup I still clutched in my hand. His eyes glowed silver gray. “Go now.” Allohak instructed me.
I touched Amaya’s arm. Let’s go.
She nodded her agreement.
I tugged on MawMaw’s sleeve and led her to the travois. She moved as fast as she could. I helped her slide onto it while Amaya mounted her horse.
Despite their current predicaments, I felt the me
n in black watching us. I quickly got in my saddle and signaled Amaya to ride.
The one who tripped—who attacked me in the barn—glared at me as we rode by, dragging the sleds. I read him quite easily.
How are you doing this?
He thought it was me who had his hands and cheek pinned to the ground. I didn’t answer him but dove into his mind.
An image of a woman in a black suit closing a suitcase stuffed with cash flashed in his mind. All I saw was the woman’s back before the man’s mind slammed shut on me.
Allohak motioned to Kanaan, who was already on his horse, and Uncle Jun to go with us.
“Wait,” Honaw called just as we reached the edge of the parking lot.
“Take them to the Bluff House,” he whispered helping Sawaich onto Amaya’s travois.
Miquin mounted his horse and held the reins of Sawaich’s ride. Allohak declined to come. Honaw nodded at Amaya and me to move forward. I glanced back at the scene we were leaving. Several of the younger Ute offered fake assistance and asked the men in black if they were hurt.
We delivered the elders and MawMaw to the Bluff House safe and sound. Amaya and I dismounted. Kanaan gave his reins to her to hold while he helped me get MawMaw and Sawaich off their sleds.
“MawMaw, you’re going to get a room here.” Uncle Jun helped her to a bench outside the front door of the historic hotel.
For once, she didn’t argue. “Wray can’t go home, either,” MawMaw said.
“We can’t leave the travois and Ella in the street.”
“You take care of your grandmother,” Uncle Jun said. “I’ll take Ella to my place.”
Ella loved to visit the lush meadows out in Black Forest, but it was so far away from me.
“Don’t worry. I’ll bring her home when the time is right.” He mounted his horse and trotted down the street to get his trailer from the motel.
The Bells’ family car rounded the corner of Cañon Avenue with a screech.
“Amaya!” Mrs. Bell shouted from the car window.
Driving, Mr. Bell turned into the hotel’s circular entryway.
“Amaya! Oh my goodness!” Her mother bolted from the car before it came to a complete stop and ran to Amaya and hugged her tight.
Mr. Bell opened his car door much slower and turned to help Kai with his crutches.
“No!” Mrs. Bell shouted at him. “You keep my son in that car. We are not staying.” She turned to me. “I don’t know what kind of people you’re hanging out with, Wray Sky. But I don’t want my daughter anywhere near you.”
“Mom!” Amaya said.
“I’m putting my foot down, young lady. Every day Wray puts you in more danger, and I won’t have it!”
“Now you wait just a damn minute.” MawMaw got up from the bench, puffed up her chest, and walked towards us. “My granddaughter is not at fault for any of this, and you know it!”
In MawMaw’s thoughts were fuzzy recollections of another confrontation with Mrs. Bell—a very angry Mrs. Bell.
“I don’t care who’s responsible.” Mrs. Bell raised her chin. “All I know is my daughter is in constant danger when she’s around Wray.” She softened her voice a little. “Delsin was my best friend.”
Delsin was my dad’s given name.
“I loved him with all my heart, you know that.” Mrs. Bell choked back emotion that, even without seeing into her mind, I sensed was authentic. “But my children come first. Delsin would do the same if the situation were reversed. Wouldn’t he?”
MawMaw couldn’t refute that. I couldn’t refute it. My dad would have put me on a plane to China if he thought it was the safest place.
“What the hell! They’re best friends.” Kanaan glared at Mrs. Bell.
I put my hand on his chest. “It’s okay. I want Amaya to be safe too.”
“But Wray.” Amaya was crying now.
You should go with your family. Your mom is right.
Mrs. Bell practically dragged Amaya to the car.
“You can’t Mom.” Kai yelled from the open backseat window.
Tears streamed down his cheeks and my friend’s. Mrs. Bell opened the back door for Amaya, who reluctantly got in next to her brother.
She hung her head out of the window as they drove away. Be careful my friend.
MawMaw choked back a sob and patted my arm. “Sweet girl, I’m so sorry.”
The emotions were too much. “MawMaw, please go sit,” I insisted.
I forced my sadness down. There would be time to cry later. Opening my belt pouch, I found the ring and put Gertie’s gift on my thumb. The relief was instant and welcomed.
In the space left by the Bell car, Uncle Jun pulled in with the horse trailer. While Kanaan and Uncle Jun dismantled the travois and loaded the horses, I went inside to get us a room. I’d beg if I had to.
Chapter 25
Waiting in line for my turn at the front desk, I focused my attention on the woodwork and true-to-era wallpaper. Entering the Bluff House was like stepping into another time.
Before my parents and I moved to New York City, the building was an eyesore and had been for a generation or so. Collapsing walls and ceilings caving in, the gold rush-era boarding house was on the schedule for demolition more than once.
Diverting my attention wasn’t working. Amaya’s tears and Kai’s devastated aura—especially Kai’s heartbreak—kept creeping back into my thoughts. The ring blocked everyone else's thoughts and emotions, but not my own. Gurgles of grief bubbled up inside me like bad indigestion.
I inhaled deep and tried again, concentrating intently on the conversation at the front desk.
A family was checking out a day early, which opened up three rooms. I snagged one of them for MawMaw and me, and requested an early check-in. When I went back outside, Uncle Jun was loaded up and ready to leave.
“You be good, okay girl?” I nuzzled Ella one last time.
Kanaan closed the trailer door on my four-legged best friend, then pounded the back of the trailer as a signal to Uncle Jun. I just stood there, watching him drive off with her. No matter that she'd be safe, and I’d see her again soon, the hole in my heart expanded. I was tired of losing what I loved, even temporarily.
MawMaw looped her arm through mine. I didn't need to look at her. The delicate touch alone told me it was her woo-woo side, and reminded me that, sooner or later, I’d lose her, too, and most likely permanently. She and I went inside and hung out in the lounge while our room was cleaned and prepped. Thirty minutes later, we were checked in and in our room.
I helped woo-woo MawMaw get situated in a chair by the window before going to the bathroom to get ready for work.
Hanging Mom’s skins on a hook on the back of the door, I took off her necklace and Gertie’s ring. I put them in one of the hotel-provided water glasses for safekeeping and unbraided my hair.
Once steam rose in the shower, I stepped in, arranging the shower curtain to keep in as much heat as possible. Oh, the warmth felt so good. I stood directly under the stream, letting it beat on the top of my head. The red-and-yellow paint washed down my face. Despite tightly closed lids, the paint seeped into my eyes.
Whether it was the sting of the paint or my despair, bona fide moisture simmered briny and bitter in my tear ducts. I put my face in the near-scalding water, rinsing away the rest of the color and the emotional eruption that threatened.
Soon, I’d let it all out. But it wasn't the right time.
Christy and Tom were waiting for me. I promised them I’d help out at their Founders Day tent. I was already late and needed to get to Soda Springs Park as soon as possible. There was a light knock on the bathroom door. Over the top of the shower curtain, I saw the door open a crack.
“Your bag, madam.” It was Kanaan’s voice.
“Thank you,” I said.
“I’ll wait for you in the lobby.”
“Close the door, Kanaan!” MawMaw shouted.
The door closed.
Paint rinsed, I shut off the wat
er and toweled off. Uncle Jun’s emergency bag suggestion was a good one. After I secured a room, Kanaan and Honaw went back to MawMaw’s to get them for us. Kanaan had set mine on the floor next to the vanity.
With the hotel’s wall-mounted blow dryer, I dried just the roots of my hair and combed it into a still damp ponytail. Clean underwear, jeans, and a generic T-shirt from my bag, I dressed quickly. I fished Gertie’s ring from the glass, bringing it close to my eyes to study it.
The blue stone was nondescript, not deep like sapphire or shiny like lapis. It was more like well-worn faded denim—a blue version of the green stones Gertie and Mrs. Bell wore. I strung the ring onto Mom’s necklace, right next to the silver star, and fastened the chain around my neck.
In the room, MawMaw had changed into a hotel robe and stretched out on one of the beds. She had draped a hand towel over the pillow to protected it from paint. Her eyes were closed, so I tried to be quiet, tiptoeing to the closet and oh-so-gently hanging my skins on the rod next to MawMaw’s. I pulled out my old gym shoes from the overnight bag and gingerly set the bag in the closet too. Still on tiptoes, I moved to a chair next to the fireplace to put them on.
“Going somewhere?” MawMaw wasn’t asleep after all, and she was back in PhD mode.
“Work.”
She opened one eye slightly to look at me. “You’re still going with all that’s happened?” She sounded as exhausted as I felt.
“The two guys from this morning are in jail. They can’t hurt me.”
MawMaw sighed and closed her eyes. “There’s a lot more of them you know.”
“I know, but I’m not going to hide. You taught me to face the demons and not let them control me.”
She snorted. “Your demons, not other people’s demons.”
“MawMaw.” Shoes on and tied, I went to sit on the edge of the bed. “I need you to be straight with me. Do you know whose demons they are?”
She opened her eyes and hesitated. She blinked a few times before pulling herself up to lean against the headboard. “It’s time you knew.” Letting her eyelids fall closed briefly, she took a deep breath. “You know that the Nuutsiu are ancient. Because of our long history on this earth and our foresight to hand down knowledge responsibly and carefully, our tribe has a rich pantology.” She patted my hand before gripping it tight.