by Jenna Kernan
“Come on!” She grabbed his arm and tugged.
But he wouldn’t move. Couldn’t. He was paralyzed by the realization that despite all his efforts to guard his heart, he had lost it again—to this woman. And he was more terrified now than any other moment in his life. What if they caught her, killed her? That would be his fault, too.
He had to get her out of here.
He fell into step with her. They walked silently out to the entrance. Sky looked around.
She handed him a wide-brimmed hat. He frowned.
“Put your hair up under your hat and pull the brim low over your eyes.” She told him the plan and he nodded his acceptance.
“If they catch you, I will never forgive myself.”
She lifted up on her toes and kissed him hard on the lips. “Then you better be sure they don’t catch us.”
Outside, Lucie tucked the pistol under her shawl, praying she would not have to shoot. Sky clasped her elbow gently as he escorted her toward the gatehouse. Behind them, she heard the howl of the captain and prayed that the soldiers would assume it was his prisoner for just a few minutes longer. Before them, the gate loomed.
As they neared the checkpoint, Lucie’s heart began a wild pounding. Sky would have to speak to the guard. If he failed to convince them, they would not reach the river.
Sky’s actions were slow and confident as he stopped before the entrance. Lucie stood between him and the guard.
“Corporal Fink, escorting this one to the ferry. Major’s orders.”
Sky reached in his jacket but the soldier waved him on and returned the way he had come. “Ferry’s leaving. You best hurry.”
Sky set them in motion. She listened for some sound of alarm as they continued down the hill. Many long, tense moments passed before they were out of sight of the fort.
They hurried down the incline away from the dock.
He glanced at her. “They’ll soon be on us. Ferry is the first place they’ll look.”
“We aren’t taking the ferry.” She glanced into the darkness. “Can you hoot like an owl? I told him that would be the signal.”
Sky hooted. A reply came and a moment later No Moccasins appeared from under the dock, gliding silently beside the larger ferry in a narrow canoe that had been scooped out of a single log, barely slowing as they scrambled aboard. A few minutes later they were halfway across the river.
“Someone will have seen us,” Sky warned.
Despite his nay-saying, they reached the opposite shore, somewhat down river. There No Moccasins led them to where he had hidden Falcon and a second horse.
Lucie’s eyes rounded in surprise. “But how?”
No Moccasins grinned. “Sky Fox is not the only man who can whisper to horses.”
Sky clapped him on the back. “Is he saddle-broken?”
No Moccasins shrugged. “I am better at catching them than training them.”
Lucie stepped back from the unpredictable mustang. She was a pretty filly, buff-colored with a darker mane and tale. Her saddle was the smaller Sioux version, a wooden frame that seemed to be only two pommels connected by dual crosspieces. Sky approached the unfamiliar horse, with hands raised. He moved slowly, chanting as he placed a hand on the mare’s neck. Over the course of the next several minutes, he led the horse, waving the reins in a slow circle. When, at last, he swung up into the saddle, Lucie could not breathe. The mare tried a few crow hops, but could not lower her head far enough to buck, because of the short rein Sky kept her on.
No Moccasins shook his head in disgust. “She threw me every time I tried that. Took me forever to get her saddled.”
Lucie and No Moccasins mounted Falcon and they were off. Sky sang softly to the wild horse, who kept one ear turned forward and one back as he followed Falcon into the heart of the Cheyenne River Reservation.
They headed north. All along the way, members of the Bitterroot tribe stood, waving and cheering.
Sky pulled his hat lower over his eyes, as if trying to disappear. “Why are they all out here in the middle of the night?”
“I told them you would come,” said No Moccasins, his voice loud with pride. “And so they have.”
“But why are they happy? The bluecoats will follow. It will bring more trouble.”
“And we will be gone by then,” said Lucie. “They want to see you, Sky. You’re a hero now.”
“Hero?” He made a scornful sound.
“Yes,” she said. “You are the man who saved the lives of Running Horse, Water Snake, Red Lightning and No Moccasins. Sky Fox the brave, who outwitted the Wasicu and walked through prison walls.”
Lucie saw that Sky was nothing but baffled by this. Had he been so long in shame that he did not recognize that all had changed the instant he had admitted to the crime?
Sky blinked at the crowds with disbelieving eyes, flinching as the women patted his legs, shouting congratulations and blessings.
“I will tell the story for many, many winters and my children will also know of this,” No Moccasins promised. “And the People will protect you and guide you through the land of the Bitterroot. Joy Cat has promised his help. We are going to his lodge now.”
Sky pulled to a stop.
No Moccasins kicked Falcon’s flanks to no avail. His voice grew petulant. “You must go or you will dishonor the head man.”
Sky looked at Lucie. “I have promised to wed his daughters.”
His face held such torment, it touched her heart. Was this an obligation he would be happy to be done with or was it as she feared, that he preferred to rejoin the People? No Moccasins interrupted.
“You are too late for that. Eagle Dancer is courting both.”
Sky looked at Lucie and she nodded. Was that relief she saw flickering there or just her own desire to see him happy at this turn of events?
No Moccasins cut in. “Hurry now.”
The shouts continued as they rode on through the night. Even at the remote houses, the People were there, mothers with babies in their arms, men and grandmothers. All but the children. Lucie sighed at their unnatural absence. They should be educated here, on their land, near their homes. Why had she thought to help their children to make a transition that no child should be forced to make? Their bondage was no different than her capture, except they had no hope of rescue. She was ashamed to have ever been a part of such a place.
They rode swiftly now, reaching Joy Cat’s home before the guards had even changed back at Fort Scully. Joy Cat stood before his tipi, flanked by Iron Horse and then Eagle Dancer and the two daughters of Joy Cat, Forever Flower and Dragonfly, each holding an arm possessively, as Sky dismounted and then helped Lucie to the ground.
Joy Cat stepped forward and placed both hands on Sky’s shoulders. “The People of the Bitterroot welcome back their lost son. He has journeyed far and been absent from our fire for too long.” Joy Cat pulled Sky to stand beside him. “He cannot stay for he is pursued by the bluecoats who would take his life. This life that I once wished to take.”
Lucie watched Sky’s head sink again. How sad to finally have all he ever wanted, readmission to the tribe he had lost, only to have it snatched away from him once more.
“The head man of the Sweetwater people was wiser than I all those years ago when he stole this boy away. He knew that vengeance does not return the lost.”
Beside Lucie, No Moccasins shifted restlessly. Was he thinking of the price of his own vengeance?
Joy Cat continued on. “If he had failed, four boys would now be locked up in the Wasicu prison awaiting their death. We do not always see the threads that connect us like the web of a spider. But they are there. Sever one and many strands break.” He clamped Sky’s shoulder. “I know that there is one who is not here today who would be proud of his friend’s bravery. In his honor, I take the place of Ten Horses as your father. From this day forward, this is my son.” Joy Cat raised his voice still louder and spoke to his people. “He is one of the People and welcome at my fire. He is Sky
Fox of the Bitterroot People once more.”
Joy Cat fell silent and the people cheered. Old friends who he had not seen in more than a decade stepped forward to welcome him. His new sisters, Dragonfly and Forever Flower, gave him a beaded medicine wheel pendant as a gesture of welcome.
Dragonfly motioned to the large tipi. “This is our home. We will paint a blue fox on the lodge to tell all that you are part of this family and to help you find us.”
Finally Eagle Dancer stepped up to speak to Sky Fox. The group fell silent.
“Goodbye, brother. Take good care of her.”
Sky murmured his farewell, his voice barely audible.
Eagle Dancer faced Lucie. She braced for his words.
“Forgive a man who tried to capture Sunshine.”
They shared a smile, but inside, her chest grew tight, for she knew he still loved her.
“Thank you for that,” she whispered and kissed his cheek.
Supplies were hurriedly gathered. Water skins, a knife for Sky. Lucie accepted parfleches of foodstuffs. The folded rawhide was brightly painted, light, sturdy and easy to tie behind her saddle. Soon the people had offered too much. Lucie knew they would need their blankets and food for the winter far more than she and Sky ever would.
Sky was diplomatic in his refusal. “We need to be light and quick to outrun the army.”
“They will expect you to move north on the great river. Instead, go west and hide among the Black Hills. They will protect you from your enemies as you make your way north,” said Joy Cat.
Sky nodded at the wisdom of this. “Thank you, father.”
The men embraced.
Sky turned to Eagle Dancer. They each rested a hand on the other’s shoulder for a moment. No Moccasins stood bravely waiting for Sky to look to him.
“Thank you, little brother, for this fine horse,” said Sky.
The boy nodded. “And I thank you for my life.”
Sky smiled.
No Moccasins held Falcon as Lucie mounted. She turned to Sky, who was already sitting on the wild mustang.
“What about our tracks?” she asked Joy Cat.
“By tomorrow they will be erased by the tread of many moccasins.”
“They will ask about us and search our homes. We will help them look.” He grinned. “And look.” He held his hand up over his eyes, peering this way and that. “And look!”
The People’s laughter filled the air.
Eagle Dancer smiled. “Perhaps this search will take days and days.”
Lucie nodded her understanding. “Walk in beauty,” she said and they answered in kind.
The next moment they were loping out of the village, heading west along the Grand River. Lucie longed to turn north toward the Canadian border some three hundred miles away, but they followed Joy Cat’s advice, heading west from the Missouri.
They rode hard through the night, stopping only when Lucie nodded off and nearly fell from her horse. Sky tied the filly to his horse and set her before him. She leaned back against him and let the rhythm of Falcon’s steady gait lure her back to slumber.
For the next three days they rode, with very little rest, eating what the People had provided and stopping only to let the horses graze. Once Lucie woke from a doze to see Sky singing a song to the new mustang. When he turned and walked away, the horse followed, stopping just when he did. To Lucie’s tired mind, they seemed to be dancing.
All too soon, they were riding once more. Lucie knew the army could catch them, but with each passing day, she grew more hopeful. They were heading north now.
On the following day, Sky decided to ride during the night. He did not like the open stretch of prairie ahead and there was a quarter moon and no clouds, giving them enough light to see the ground before them. This night ride reminded her of the time of her capture, only now she rode her own horse and her wrists were not bound. There were other differences. Then the sight of a rider with a blue jacket would have meant her salvation, where now it would mean the death of her. She did not know if they hung women and hoped she would never find out.
Lucie’s thoughts were interrupted when Sky stopped the horse and cocked his head. Lucie heard the buzz of insects and the ceaseless wind, but nothing more.
“Hold on,” he whispered.
Lucie had time to grip the pommel before they were galloping toward the dark line of trees. Streaks of crimson reached out across the wide sky, making the woods seem a dangerous place.
Once in cover, Sky drew her down off Falcon. She looked about and saw he had stopped in a dense pine forest. A poor place for grazing, but good cover, should they need it.
She opened her mouth to speak and he pointed. She peered out into the tall grass emerging now in the light of the rising sun. A carpet of wildflowers was sprinkled like confetti across the unending prairie. She was about to comment on the lovely sight when she saw movement and froze like a rabbit before a coyote.
The cresting sun glinted off of something, making it look like a row of mirrors, flashing in the pink light. The minutes passed and the light increased.
A line of thirty riders crested the ridge in a single-file line. The jingle of their tack and the murmur of voices now reached her, increasing in volume like a drum roll.
“You heard them?”
“My horse did.” Sky stroked Falcon’s neck.
“Soldiers,” she realized.
“Must have wired Fort Buford. That’s east of here.”
“You think they are looking for us?” Lucie’s voice broke on that last word. She glanced back and Sky met her gaze with a single nod.
He watched until the men rode into the forest ahead of them. “They’re waiting for us to cover that open ground. If it had been any lighter, they would have seen us.”
“What do we do? They’re in front of us now.”
“Wait for them to move south.”
“What if there are more ahead?”
Lucie flinched at every twig the horses broke with their feet. She followed behind Sky, who was leading Falcon and the little filly through brush and branches. He took a circuitous route that confused her so thoroughly that she did not know what direction they were now heading.
Finally, when her legs were trembling from fatigue, he found a mossy patch beside several fallen trees. Their passing had opened up a small gap of blue sky above them. The forest below had responded by growing a fine, thick grass, different than what they found on the prairie. It was pale green and soft.
“We’ll rest now,” said Sky.
Lucie sank to one of the logs as Sky removed the saddles and threw them over the log beside her. He hobbled the filly and unbridled them. The horses were more hungry than tired and proceeded to yank the grass out by the clumpful.
Lucie rallied and set out her blanket for them. The moss beneath made a fine spongy bed. Sky offered her water and she drank. They shared the last of the pemmican, given to Lucie by the daughters of Joy Cat. The mixture of dried, pulverized buffalo meat, fat and crushed dried cherries filled the hollow in her belly. She could not finish her second piece because her eyes kept closing.
Sky packed away their food and guided her to the blanket. They stretched out there in the circle of sunlight, listening to the horses munching their meal.
“It seems so peaceful,” she whispered. “It’s hard to believe that they are out there, waiting.”
“We won’t give them a reason to venture into the deep cover. We’ll have to stay here all day, be certain they pass.”
She thought of the stretch of treeless prairie he did not want to cross in daylight. His decision had saved them both. It took a moment to realize he had called a halt. She could rest, sleep.
She sighed in relief. But what if they had seen them and were searching or if…
“What if they hide in the woods and wait? How will we get by?” Lucie thought of the horror of being caught on the open land by the larger group and shuddered.
“I’ll find them and we’ll get past. Th
ey figured we weren’t on the river but misjudged our speed.” Sky gave her a look of appreciation. “Didn’t figure a woman could keep a pace like that.”
That look of admiration did more to lift her flagging spirits than anything she could imagine. They sat in silence, for a time, propped against the log, watching the birds flitting through the branches and listening to the steady grinding of grass between the horses’ strong teeth. The rhythmic sound and dappled sunlight lulled her. Her head began to nod.
He drew her down beside him in the tall grass. How long had it been since they had rested? She could not keep track of the days. They rode all night and still they were nearly caught. Her head jerked up and she glanced about the quiet grotto.
“Are we safe here?” she whispered, fighting hard against the sleep that pursued her as relentlessly as any army. She knew that she must surrender soon, whether she wished it or not.
“We’re as hard to spot here as that needle everyone is always searching haylofts for.”
“Haystacks,” she corrected and yawned.
He nodded then leaned close, whispering in her ear. “You’re safe with me.”
Lucie sighed, feeling the uncertainty seep away. She looked up, wanting to capture his face in her mind. His cheeks were now dark with stubble, but his eyes were the same vibrant blue.
He smiled. “Sleep.”
She lay on the mossy carpet, tucked her head on the crook of her elbow and closed her burning eyes. Sky would watch over her, protect her and wake her before the soldiers came.
Chapter Sixteen
Sky slept until the sunlight left them in shadow. Lucie now curled on her side, breathing softly. He rose and searched for the horses, finding them still hard at work filling their bellies. It did not take long to set a few snares for rabbits. The animal paths were clearly evident in the underbrush and they would be active as the night came upon them. Locating a spring was more difficult, but he found one, by following the ferns and moss to the crack in the earth that bubbled with fresh, clear water. Sky hurried to fill the water skins and return, fearing Lucie would wake and find him gone. When he returned she was still asleep and had not moved. She was so still that he checked on her.