"My baby. Oh, dear God, it's my baby..." She was barely able to speak past the swelling of her heart that filled her bosom and squeezed her throat. She held out her arms, tears streaming down to smear the painted red triangles on her sun-bronzed cheeks. Her lips trembled, sobs bursting forth as she cried hoarsely, "Jacie, my baby. It is you. Oh, my precious darling, you're alive. You didn't die. You didn't die."
Jacie blinked, shock momentarily imprisoning her in a velvet cocoon. But then she came alive, and with a scream of joy scrambled from the horse and leapt upon her mother to wrap her arms about her. "I don't believe it. Sweet Jesus, I don't believe it. This can't be so...."
And then they were clinging together, crying together, and Luke motioned to the other women to go back to their tasks, to grant Sunstar and Jacie privacy in their golden moment.
He went to where Gold Elk stood frowning.
"Why did you bring her here?" Gold Elk angrily demanded. "You know she will take Sunstar away."
"Neither of them are going anywhere," Luke was pleased to be able to assure him.
Gold Elk's brows rose sharply. "You are going to make the young one stay? She will be kept against her will?"
Luke gave him a hearty pat on the shoulder. "You ask too many questions. You're worse than a woman. Now go help the men with their hunting and tell them to hurry, because there's going to be a wedding."
Gold Elk let out a loud whoop of joy and ran to his horse. Placing his hands on the animal's rump, he vaulted onto its back, then took off in a cloud of dust. He could not wait to tell the news. Not only had Sunstar found her daughter, but their leader had found a wife.
Still clinging to Jacie, crying unashamedly, Iris started to lead her to the privacy of her tepee, but Luke took Jacie's hand and said, "Mother, let me have a word with her first, please."
Drawing her to one side, he quickly explained why he had lied to her before. "It was selfish, I know, but I love her, too, Jacie, and I didn't want her to be taken away, only to be hurt back in your world."
Jacie could understand that but was hurt herself to think he had planned to send her back without her ever knowing the truth. "It will take me some time to forgive you for almost letting me leave.”
He laughed then, playfully tweaking her nose. "Why do you think I was out there waiting for you, little one? If you hadn't come back, as I was hoping you would, the settlement of Nacogdoches would have had a one-man Indian raid that night, because I assure you I would have turned savage and ridden in there to find you. Then my mother would have been mad at me for taking a white woman captive. Don't you know now I couldn't let you go, Jacie?" he asked tenderly.
She felt warm all over, glowing with more happiness than she ever dreamed possible. She wanted to throw her arms around him and kiss him again and again, and he was likewise having difficulty holding back from embracing her, but neither dared with the women watching from a distance.
"Go now," he told her, their locked gaze conveying secret messages of desire. He wanted her and Sunstar to relive the past eighteen years as quickly as possible so they could begin the rest of their lives—together.
Some of the women obediently and hastily erected Luke's tepee for him, then brought him food and drink. He ate his fill of deer stew and turnips, then wearily sank onto the bed of thick blankets of soft rabbit fur and fell asleep, dreaming of how good it would be to awaken later with Jacie beside him.
* * *
In the mellow glow of the small campfire burning outside the open door of the tepee, Iris drank in the sight of Jacie and thought surely she had to be dreaming. Holding the locket and its daguerreotype, she listened to her daughter's story, then said, "I can understand and forgive why Violet did what she did. She and Judd hadn't been getting along, and she was afraid he wouldn't want to stay married to her once he found out the baby they had both wanted for so long was born dead. With no one to know any different, I suppose it was all too tempting not to go through with such a deception.
"But how were you able to find me?" she went on to ask in wonder. "You had nothing to go on except the story of how I ran away from the fort all those years ago."
"Enough about me," Jacie said, laughing. "Tell me why you did run away. No one could understand."
And Iris obliged, explaining that she had felt she had no reason to go back, and how she had come to feel she belonged with the Comanche, loving Luke as her own son, and yes, she admitted, she had begun to care for Great Bear as well.
They talked on, the hours slipping away. Jacie told all about Mehlonga, how he had made sure she got to Bird's Fort, and finally about the horror of being abducted by Black Serpent.
Iris's face went cold. "Did he... hurt you in the a way a man can hurt a woman?"
"That was his intention, but I poisoned him before he could."
"But how?"
Jacie described what she had done with the morning glory seeds, how Mehlonga had taught her about them along with other herbs and potions.
Iris was impressed. "You must take after my father and me, with your interest in medicine. And there's so much more I can teach you, but..." She fell silent to think how they had talked of nothing but the past, with no mention of the future. She did not want to speak of that just yet and asked, "What about your life back in Georgia? I want to hear everything. As beautiful as you are, you must have many beaus. Maybe even a husband?"
"No husband," Jacie said.
"But a beau?"
Jacie nodded and told her all about Michael, intending to finish by explaining how she now knew why she had never been able to tell him she loved him, but her mother interrupted, "If he had asked you to marry him, why would he let you come on such a dangerous journey by yourself? Why didn't he come with you?"
Jacie lowered her eyes. "I didn't tell him."
"I see," Iris said quietly, at once understanding how Jacie had known Michael would not have condoned her search, and, no doubt, would not want anyone to hear of such a scandal, much less about her mother living with Indians.
Jacie suspected her mother was afraid she was going to ask her to go back with her and sought to allay her fears. "None of that matters, because—"
But Iris would not let her continue, deciding to settle the matter once and for all. "Listen to me, my child," she said in a rush. "I am glad we found each other, but do not ask me to return with you, please. These are my people now. I don't belong back there. But you do. So I want you to stay for a visit, as long as you like, and then Luke can take you to a settlement to begin your journey home. But let's just enjoy each other for now and not waste time arguing about my leaving, all right?" Oh, she hoped Jacie understood. Leaving was out of the question, and never would she expect Jacie to give up her own life for her.
"Mother," Jacie tried again, "you don't understand. I just told you how I realized that I could never tell Michael I loved him because I didn't, and I never will, and—"
"And he sounds like a wonderful man," Iris cut in again, smiling to show she approved. She held up the diamond and amethyst necklace Jacie had shown her. "He gave you this. A man who gives a woman something so fine has to be generous. You will learn to love him. He will make you a good husband."
"I'm sure he would, but—"
"He's probably worried sick about you. And why did you bring this, anyway?" She admired the necklace. "You might have lost it."
"I didn't know I was bringing it, Mother," Jacie said quickly, wanting to take charge of the conversation so she could tell her about Luke. "A child put it in there without my knowing, thinking I could sell it if I didn't have the money to get back home, but that isn't important. You have to listen to me. I'm not leaving you—"
"Yes, you are," Iris insisted. "Now please, let's don't spoil our time together arguing about it."
"Mother, please. Be quiet and hear me out."
She spoke so sharply Iris's eyes went wide.
"I'm trying to tell you something very important," Jacie said, heart full to bursting, "I'm not l
eaving you, not ever—because I'm not leaving Luke."
It dawned then, and Iris felt fresh tears welling.
"I love him," Jacie went on, "and I believe he loves me. Don't you see? He didn't tell me about you, afraid I'd try to take you away, so he took me where I could make my way home, but I knew I couldn't go. I stopped thinking about finding you then. All I wanted was to be with him. He knew then it was meant to be, just as I did."
Iris knew Jacie meant every word she spoke. She knew also that Luke would never have allowed her to believe he loved her unless he did. Still, despite the glow on her beloved daughter's face, Iris had mixed emotions over her embracing the Comanche world, for she remembered the difficulties she had experienced. And she did not know her daughter, could not be sure she had the mettle necessary to endure.
Jacie could see her doubts and beseeched, "Please be happy for us."
"I am, my darling, I am," Iris assured, "but so much has happened, I am dizzy to think. Let's sleep and talk in the morning. I want to hear what Luke has to say."
Iris made her a bed of buffalo skins at the rear of the tepee. With yet another hug and kiss, they said their good-nights.
Jacie settled down to dream of even more happiness to come. She dared not sneak out to find Luke, did not know where to find him anyway, and, finally, wearily, she slept.
She did not hear the knife as it sliced through the skin wall of the tepee, was unaware of what was happening until the warm hand pressed down on her face to smother any sound she might make and strong arms reached for her to render her helpless in the darkness.
Chapter 25
Terror bowed to a thrilling rush as Jacie heard Luke's husky whisper against her ear, "Be quiet. I don't want to wake anyone." Lifting her, he carried her quickly through the opening he had cut in the tepee wall.
Jacie clung to him, arms around his neck, as he moved swiftly in the night. Only when they were inside his tepee, set back from the others at the edge of the camp, did she scold, smiling as she did so, "My mother isn't going to be happy about your cutting the tepee."
"I'll mend it tomorrow." He set her on her feet. "Besides, I had no choice. I couldn't just storm through the door, and I knew you wouldn't know where to find me even if you did muster the nerve to sneak out.
"And this night, little one," he added, "I knew I had to have you." Gently, he drew her body close to his and began to caress her wordlessly. He could feel her flesh start to quiver before she pressed her head against his bare chest and rendered a small sigh of surrender.
Jacie closed her eyes to shut out any thoughts of the dazzling events of the day. Later she would marvel at the miracle of reunion with her mother, but this was here and now, and she wanted only to languish in the bliss of being possessed by the only man she had ever loved—the only man, she now knew, that she ever would.
It was uncanny, the strong, irresistible bond that had grown between them. Not only of the flesh but mind and heart as well. When he drew her down beside him, as he was doing now, deftly, quickly removing her clothing, his clothing, till naked flesh clung to naked flesh and desire burned hotly, brightly, every sense, every nerve, became raw with yearning. But there was more. Much more. And albeit subtle, it was there all the same, that driving need for each other, the hunger for contentment found only when they were close again.
He planted light kisses along her cheek and neck, pausing to nibble at her ear in a way that made her undulate her hips with pleasure, delighting in the feel of the soft rabbit fur against her bare skin as she did so.
Mellow light filled the tepee from the glow of the watch fire just outside. How beautiful she was, Luke reflected, feasting upon her bronze-gold body, the magnificent black cloud of hair, so thick and lush, like curtains on each side of her face as she gazed up at him with the radiance of desire in her mysterious lavender eyes. To realize that this woman, of all he had known, possessed the power to hold him a captive of her heart was overwhelming. He knew now, beyond all doubt, that he could not live without her. From the moment of their first meeting, Jacie had crept every so subtly, secretly, into the core of his being, until without warning, he knew he was helplessly in love with her.
Her perfectly formed breasts rose and fell with her quickened breathing, and he bent to take a nipple between tongue and teeth and bite gently, inflicting only sweet pain that caused her to gasp out loud and press her fingertips on the base of his neck, urging him on. He began to suckle, gently at first, then taking as much of her into his warm, eager mouth as possible, while one hand slipped down to cup her buttocks and pull her tight against him to feel the hardness of his desire slide between her thighs in promise of ecstasy to come.
The burning within her loins was a hunger not to be denied, and she thrilled to feel his muscles, his nerves, vivify as she touched him there, glorying in her power to invoke the diamantine state of his manhood. She closed her hand about it, smiled to feel the eager throbs, then moved slowly, gently, ever downward to cup the rest of him, thrilling to hear the soft cry of pleasure escape his lips as he continued to devour her breasts with abandon.
He could stand the sweet torture no more, but was not ready yet to take them both to the heights of glory, so he rolled onto his back, taking her with him so that she was above him, stretched the length of him. Then, hands at her waist, he held her as he bathed her in the warmth of his smile and said, "I don't think our mother would approve of your sneaking into my tepee every night. Like I told you, only experienced girls do that, and I don't think she would like to think of you as having that kind of past."
"Our mother." Jacie laughed to say the words. "I still can't grasp everything that's happened. Neither can she. At first she thought you just brought me here to find her, and she started talking about how I should go home and marry and settle down, but then I told her I had no intentions of leaving—because of you." She planted a kiss on the tip of his nose.
His brows rose. "And what did she say to that?"
"She's happy for us but worries I won't be able to cope with the hardships. She says it was different for her, because she had nothing else."
"But you do, and she worries you'll miss it. Maybe so do I," he added, searching her face for any sign he might be right.
She responded earnestly, fervently. "The only thing I would ever miss is you if you left me. But I don't intend to let you out of my sight."
"Then I guess we're going to have to do something about making sure she doesn't get upset with our spending our nights together. Which means I have to marry you."
"Have to?" Jacie pretended affront, even though her heart was hammering so hard he could surely hear it. Cocking her head saucily to one side, she teased, "Well, I wouldn't want you to be forced into doing something you don't want to. Maybe I'd better go back to my own bed, and you stay in yours, and we'll just give ourselves time to think about all this."
"And you talk too much." He gave a mock growl and grabbed her roughly, possessively, to roll her once more beneath him. And when he was on top of her, pinning her down, devouring her with hot, hungry kisses, he paused only long enough to avow, "I am going to marry you because I want to, Jacie, and because I love you."
He took her then, spreading her thighs to enter her as she yielded, hooking her heels into his buttocks. His mouth was pressed against her neck, and she twined her fingers in his long, dark hair, her gasps in cadence with his rhythmic thrusts.
They soared together to the moon, to swing upon the stars and orbit the earth in celestial bliss, both awed by the wonder of their ecstasy.
Afterward they lay together, bodies slick with perspiration. Jacie's head was upon Luke's shoulder, and he wrapped his arms about her possessively. For a long time neither spoke, both yet locked in the splendor of their love. Then Luke told her how they would plan to marry when the hunters returned in a few days, for he wanted all of his people to share in their happiness.
They talked also about the beloved woman they both called mother, about how happy they w
ere all going to be. Dawn was nearly tingeing the sky when they finally began to succumb to weariness.
"Later this morning," Luke said sleepily, "I'll show you where to find prairie apples, just outside camp to the west. We'll pick enough so that Mother can make her delicious apple flapjacks."
"I should go back to my own bed now. She shouldn't wake up and find me gone."
He pulled her closer. "Stay a little longer. I don't want to let you go..."
Jacie listened to his even breathing and soon knew he slept. But she was too keyed up to be still. She wanted to tell her mother they were going to marry soon, and she was also anxious to meet the other women in the camp, eager to communicate how she wanted to be friends with them. "So much to do," she whispered to herself as she quickly put on her clothes. And first she wanted to surprise Luke by finding those prairie apples by herself, so that when he awoke, his flapjacks would be ready and waiting for him.
She slipped out of the tepee and stepped into the rose and peach mist as dawn kissed a new day hello.
* * *
Black Serpent's men hung back, but he had taken his horse to the peak of the hill overlooking the camp and then dismounted, crouching to look for any sign of early morning stirrings. All was quiet. The camp-fires had long turned to ashes. It appeared everyone was still sleeping. And the fact that they had not come upon a guard, and that there were only a few horses grazing, told Black Serpent that what he'd dared hope was actually so—the men were out hunting. Howling Wolf, when he had ridden in late the day before, had probably sent any braves remaining to join the others.
And, oh yes, Black Serpent knew exactly when Howling Wolf had arrived. He'd had his enemy's every move watched on the trail for the past two days. Black Serpent had not, of course, let on to the white men that Howling Wolf and the woman had been sighted. They had no need to know anything till he gave them their orders to attack.
Now, seeing only Howling Wolf's white stallion, and realizing the other men were out hunting, was luck Black Serpent had not counted on. When they returned, they would find all their women and children dead, with Black Serpent claiming to have happened upon the carnage but not in time to save them, only to avenge their deaths by killing the white men. Howling Wolf would also be dead, unable to tell the truth and soon forgotten, while Black Serpent would be forevermore hailed as a great Comanche warrior.
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