Treasured Dreams (The Rivers Brothers Book 3)

by Lynn Landes

  After a search of the man’s body, he finds enlistment papers. “Craig?” So, this is what became of the scout. “Saved me the work.” Blood Eagle tucks the papers into his jacket pocket. Stripping the body of anything of value he holds up a silver compass and wonders why there are no defensive wounds on the soldier’s hands, indicating he fought back. “What kind of soldier would lay there and let a ban-chu rip his face off?” He tucks the compass in his pocket and pushes the body over revealing the bloody back of his body

  “Ah, a fatal wound,” he says. Blood Eagle stands up and steps back. Wolves are kindred spirits of almost every tribe. What is happening here? Nerves strike, he’s never afraid, but this is different.

  The first raindrop hits him, he curses and hurries to follow the tracks before they wash away. “Time’s up.” He rushes back to camp and just before he mounts his horse, he hears a low, guttural growl.

  Blood Eagle turns slowly, alarmed by the throaty noise. The sound was profound and menacing. It spoke of animal power and ancient savagery reminding him of his Apache brothers. The rumble grows louder, and he releases the saddle as he turns to face the menace. He shouts in terror at the massive, black beast advances on him. Larger than any wolf he’s ever seen with midnight fur and orange glowing eyes that burn with retribution.

  The beast leaps and strikes Blood Eagle, turning to mist the moment they collide, ripping his spirit from his body, and both watch as the human form drops forward into the rain and earth.

  Blood Eagle screams with agony as his spirit is separated, leaving behind the shell… and he is shown. His vision is no longer clouded with rain and cold weather but instead opened to what will come. Cast to the muddy ground, Blood Eagle rises to his knees prepared to fight for his soul only to freeze as the shadows surrounding him begin to take shape.

  “What is this?” he shouts, terrified they will answer. “Only God gets to judge me!” he rages.

  They walk out of the darkness, scores of Indians, staring at him with identical orange glowing eyes. Pointing at him, all the faceless shapes open cavernous mouths and scream the anguish of the dead, taken too soon, spearing his tarnished soul.

  One, by, one, the shadows walk forward and drop body parts on top of Blood Eagle. The weight of arms, legs, noses, and more intimate parts are tossed on him. Heaps of trophies pile up, and he can taste the metallic scent as it weighs him down. His scream of terror is silenced as the mountain of death crushes him beneath the weight of his sins.

  Vanessa trembles in the dark, and begins to thrash, fighting her way from under a heavy weight. Her eyes fly open wide, and she screams at the sea of death surrounding her. Body parts rain down on her, and she struggles to breathe, gasping for air. Harris hears her in the loft above and bounds up the ladder to wake her.

  Clawing and shoving she pushes her way through, only to scream in terror when she recognizes her Mother’s mutilated face. “Nikiya!” she screams. A movement to her right has her turning, and she comes face to face with a strange Indian dressed like a white man.

  Blood Eagle seizes her hand and pulls her from the rubble of dead. Together they climb free and collapse onto the shadowed ground, her sobbing and him trembling with an awareness of what he’s being shown.

  A growl rumbles the ground, and both start falling through the air. Vanessa slams into her body and weeps when she hears Harris calling her. “Nessa!” She leans over the bed and vomits, dry heaving and sobbing she shuts her eyes against the horrors.

  Later, after he cleans up and is wiping her face with a damp cloth, Vanessa looks at him with haunted eyes and says, “He’s coming.”

  Chapter 29

  The early morning sunrise calls to Vanessa and she hurries through the bushes to the river carrying a basket of supplies. Lifting her face to the sun as it rises, she soaks it in and whispers a prayer to thank her Father for the first time since her accident. How does one say thank you for protecting her and keeping her safe, when so many others died? Her mother taught her how to pray for the departed. It is with the hope of honoring her memory and spirit that she asks for guidance for the souls of her tribe. Shoshone believe that death is but another step in the journey of life. Though the body dies the spirit does not, and Vanessa has struggled to remember that. With her body in so much pain and her heart so full of fear and doubt, everything else was blocked out. No more. Peace soaks inside as she builds a small fire to keep her warm.

  This cabin is stocked with fishing string and hooks, and she sits in the morning sun tying hooks to the line at different intervals. Then tossing the line into the water. Harris has taken such fantastic care of her, and she wants to surprise him with breakfast.

  A chill fills the air as the sun burns off the mist and she grins thinking of how surprised he will be when he sees how many fish she caught. Thinking about her nightmare, she wonders about its meaning as she works. Six fat trout, wriggle in the basket, and she sighs pulling the line back to the shore once more.

  Dreams have meaning, she just has to figure out what this one is trying to tell her. So much death, when she closes her eyes, it’s always with her. If she died right now, what would she regret, the fact that she didn’t mourn properly or that she didn’t live to the fullest possibility of the word? Waking up, safe in his warm arms and watching his chest rise and fall, Vanessa can’t imagine her life without him. Yet, she knows all too well, just how quickly it can be taken away.

  Will Harris love her the way he did his first wife. No.

  Will she love him as much as Ahote? “Who are you kidding,” she murmurs. Kimani wanted to be loved, to belong. Ahote offered her that but her heart has always belonged to Harris and now, so does Vanessa’s. Decision made she wanders back to the cabin and cleans the fish before going inside to start breakfast.

  Harris wakes up to the scent of frying fish and his stomach growls. “Please tell me that I’m not dreaming,” he rolls from the bed with a thump.

  Vanessa laughs softly and flips the fish in the cast iron skillet. “Biscuits and fish,” she teases.

  “I’m starved.” Harris slides down the ladder and moves behind her at the stove, pinching a hot chunk of fish from the plate beside the fireplace hearth and popping it into his mouth. “Marry me,” he growls in appreciation as the full flavor hits him.

  “I’ll think about it,” she quips, and Harris stops moving.

  “What did you say?” His hands grip her arms and turns her slowly to face him. Her eyes meet his with a challenge.

  “I said, maybe. If you still want...”

  Harris stops her sentence with his mouth. He treats her to the passion she has ignited in his body. His arm snakes around her waist pulling her against his bare chest and slipping his tongue in between her luscious lips.

  Vanessa’s knees buckle, and he catches her, while she whimpers against his mouth. Harris invades her senses, touching, tasting and claiming her as she revels in it. She pushes him back, “The fish,” she reminds him, and he grins.

  “What if I say that I’m not hungry for fish?” He watches as she draws a shaky breath and removes the fish from the pan, before sliding the pan back to the side of the cooking grate. The second she sets the fork down Vanessa swirls around and stares at him.

  Later, neither will remember who moves first, but they leap towards each other and erupt. This time Vanessa slides her hands around his neck, tugging his mouth down to hers and slides her tongue over his lips, pulling a growl from him. Vanessa smiles when his hand clutches her hips jerking her hard against his body.

  He tugs her head to the side and tangles his hands in her wavy hair, kissing her feverishly, forgetting all about breakfast. He grips her firm ass through her skirt and growls when he realizes she’s naked beneath. Walking her backward he slams into the small table, telling himself to slow down, don’t take her like this, but she leans her head to the side, and he laps at the vein pulsing for him, she arches into his heat.

  “Mine,” he groans.

  “Harris,” she whi
spers.

  Lifting her up, he sets her gently on the table, “Say it, Nessa, say you’re mine.” Icy eyes dare her to deny him. She runs her hand up over his muscular chest, memorizing every dip and plane.

  “If this is what happens when I say maybe, what happens if I say yes?” she quips.

  “Say, yes and find out,” he demands and slides a hand up her bare legs. Vanessa jumps, and her eyes fly open wide. She licks her lips, and his eyes darken, “Say it,” he pleads, leaning down to taste her and she groans as his hands slide up to the back of her knees, gripping and kneading.

  Vanessa pulls his head back down to hers. Desperate for him to take the choice from her, she moans restlessly against him, but Harris isn’t giving in. He rips is mouth from hers, and his eyes dance with joy as he traces his lips over her face, trailing the moist heat across her cheek. Vanessa smiles softly and moans as he slides down her neck, pressing random kisses nipping at her neck and causing her to jump.

  “I need you, Harris,” she murmurs.

  “You have me, Nessa,” he promises and pulls back to look at her.

  His eyes held hers, promising more than words can say. “Will you marry me?” he asks.

  “Why?” she asks.

  “I need you, Vanessa,” he whispers. “I want you always beside me.”

  Vanessa drags his mouth back to hers and almost screams in frustration when he presses her back, “Say it!” he demands.

  “Yes, I will marry you, Harris.” He rips her blouse open shredding the material, sending buttons flying and leans down to capture her breast in his mouth. This time she does scream. Hot, heat, rips through her body, as he laps at her causing her to arch in pleasure. Teeth pluck, pull and tease, causing Nessa to thrash on the small table, and he leans back to drop his pants she stares in wonder at his beautiful body.

  “Harris!”

  “Lift,” he orders tugging on her skirt, but she tries to cover herself with the remnants of her shirt.

  “No, my scars,” Vanessa whimpers.

  “Are a beautiful tapestry,” he stops her hands and presses her back onto the table. “Don’t move,” he demands. Harris slides her skirt up revealing a scar on her leg, he presses a kiss to it gently, tracing his fingers over her body. “I know this body,” he murmurs and realizes the truth of his words. He’s seen every inch of her, but now he gets to claim it.

  His rough fingers trail over the texture on her skin causing her body to erupt in chills.

  “Harris,” she pleads and tries to move back, but he grips her preventing her from moving.

  “Vanessa, these scars tell the story of a woman determined to fight back and live. I see the story of you in each one. They tell the story of who you are.”

  She sniffs and pushes him back, standing proudly she drops the tattered remains of her shirt followed by her skirt. His eyes trace her body and darken with passion. Slowly she lifts a wrist, “Are you thankful for this one?”

  Harris grins, drawing her wrist to his mouth. His hot breath touches the scar as he presses a kiss to the sensitive skin. “Very,” he says.

  “What about this one?” she twists and points to her ribs.

  His eyes drop to her breasts, and his roughed hands trail down the arm he’s holding. Down the side of her breast to circle the scar on her rib. “It’s beautiful,” he murmurs.

  “And this one,” she spins and points to the one at the top of her pert backside.

  Harris drops to his knees with a growl, “Yes,” he hisses and again traces the scar reverently before kissing it. Vanessa groans and runs a hand through his dark hair. She jumps when both hands grab her waist. “Harris?”

  Silver eyes look up her body to her nervous face. “Don’t back away now, I’m just getting started.” His hands trail over her hips down to the top of her thigh, to touch the red, rippled scar. “This is my favorite because it brought you to me.” Hot tongue, moist heat, trailing over the rippled flesh and he grins when her hands fist in his hair.

  “Oh, God, your beard,” she moans, and he rubs it over her body causing her to jump. “Harris if you are only going to kiss the scarred parts, that might be a deal breaker.”

  “I’m going to claim every scar on your body as mine.” His eyes heat with a possession that thrills her. “Before I’m done you will love them as much as I do.

  Tears slip from her eyes as his words heal the invisible scars in her heart. “You’re mine, now Nessa,” Harris promises.

  “Yes, and you’re mine,” Vanessa nods, and the food is forgotten as they savor each other and nourish their souls.

  Chapter 30

  General Barclay sits back on the train with a soft sigh of satisfaction. Soon his land will be free of the vermin infesting it. The next few days he is meeting with the investors in San Francisco. Once he has secured a contract with them, he will return to the drilling site to see what progress has been made. While he is in the city, he can order more supplies.

  They will, of course, be delivered on an Army train and paid for by the U.S. Government without their knowledge. A grin blooms as he sips on his whiskey in first class and pulls out his small notebook. He jots down the delivery date for each supply train and looks over the plans.

  He almost wishes he could watch Harris River when he realizes this was never about the Indians. They are simply in the way of progress. Truth be told he’d kill his own mother for the kind of money this will bring. Oil is the next big commodity, and now they’ve discovered a way to refine it faster, producing a higher quantity of kerosene than ever before.

  Kerosene burns cleaner, longer and cheaper or at least it used to. He plans to raise the price once he buys up as many refineries as possible. The family-owned refineries will sell or be crushed while the larger ones can be dealt with in other ways. Accidents happen all the time when dealing with such an explosive process.

  Rivers and this loving Indian female will be dead soon, leaving him with no witnesses. Honesty, even if she did show up to testify no one would listen anyway. All he must do is dangle a share of the profits, and they would take care of her and Harris for him. He laughs loudly, tucking his notebook inside his jacket pocket.

  “Time for a game of cards.”

  Chapter 31

  “I wish we could stay here forever like this,” Vanessa sighs, wrapped up in his arms.

  Harris chuckles and presses a kiss to her bare shoulder. “Our own private, oasis, from the world,” he sighs and yawns.

  Vanessa grins and rolls over on top of him, pressing her breasts into his chest and her hair cascades around them. Her large eyes grow wide with pretend worry, “I forgot how old you are, Harris, I should let you nap,” she pushes up away from him, and he growls and rolls her over, giggling, onto her back.

  “Old!” Harris slides up her body, causing her to groan in pleasure, “I’ll show you old.”

  He drags his beard down over her neck, bare breasts and lower, causing her to grip a fist full of his hair. “The things I can show you, my Nessa,” his eyes dance, full of promise.

  Her belly growls, causing him to laugh, “Bur first I should make sure you are properly nourished.”

  “No,” she pouts when he climbs up from the bed and laughs at her.

  “Feed me, woman,” he glares.

  “The fish is cold,” she stares at him and pulls the covers around her.

  “I don’t mind cold food.” His smile fades as he stares at her wrapped in a blanket and glowing from their lovemaking. “You’re so beautiful, Vanessa,” he whispers.

  “Your old eyes are not seeing clearly,” she teases, running a hand through her long wavy hair.

  “I see you, Vanessa.” He stares at her, “I’m going to freeze this image of you in our bed, just after loving you, flushed from desire, and no matter how old I am, I will remember you.”

  “Harris,” she covers her mouth as his words wrap around her heart.

  “Stay temptress, and I’ll bring the food to you,” he slides down the ladder and takes a d
eep breath. It almost slipped out, the words “I love you,” he doesn’t know if either of them is ready for that yet, but he can no longer deny it. They both deserve better than that.

  Vanessa wipes her eyes and sighs happily when he returns with a tray of biscuits and cold fish. Soon they are laughing and eating in bed. It is a beautiful day spent with love, laughter and rest. Tomorrow will come, and they will have to decide what to do but today belongs to them.

  Chapter 32

  A low vibration wakes him with a start. The sun is starting to set. How long was he asleep? The noise grows louder, and he crawls to the top of the ridge wiping his eyes. He stares over the edge to the valley below. An Army train? “What are they doing out here?”

  His horse neighs softly as he slides back down hill, and he is just about to mount up when a low growl sounds behind him. The sound of his heartbeat pounds in his ears drowning out everything else around him. Fear has him turning slowly. This time he’s aware that he is facing death. “Ban-chu,” he drops to his knees in a show of reverence.

  The great wolf, pads towards him and bares his teeth, growling and snarling, waiting to see how he responds.

  “Use me as you will, mighty one. I have much to atone for.”

  Instead of the flash of pain, he is expecting at his death or another ripping sensation, the wolf pads away to the top of the ridge to look down on the train. Blood Eagle dares to look up and meets the golden eyes of the beast.