High on a Mountain

by Tommie Lyn

  At first, he contemplated the problem of facing Latharn. He’d made no progress. He had no weapon and no plan for confronting the man. But considering his dilemma brought him face to face with his past. It resurrected his memories, and he couldn’t push them away this time. They swirled around on the surface of his mind, floated on his consciousness like the leaf caught in the eddy had swirled on the blocked current.

  He remembered his life with Mùirne and Coinneach-òg, in full, excruciating detail, the moments of happiness as well as the sorrow of losing them. Coinneach-òg’s voice echoed from his memory: “Dadein! Dadein!” And he closed his eyes as he felt the silken touch of Mùirne’s kisses.

  But his mind traveled on from the joyful scenes of his past life, and he saw Mùirne with the dead body of Coinneach-òg in her arms, her blue eyes vacant and staring. His breath came in searing gasps, and he wrenched his mind away. It turned to other parts of his past, to Da and to Da’s expectations of him. He remembered how much he had wanted to please his father but how often he’d failed.

  As a boy, his independent streak led him to disobey his father at times. As an adult, he had not fought in battle as his father taught him, fiercely, but with honor, fulfilling his duty. Each time he unsheathed his sword, he had become enraged and lashed out wantonly, indiscriminately, as a wild man, not a powerful, disciplined warrior.

  Even in the anetsa game, his savagery came from his anger, not from a purposeful striving to win for his team. He faced the truth that he had been a rebellious son, had flouted Da’s desires, had disappointed Da time and again. And he realized that without his father to provide direction for his life, he didn’t know where to go or what to do.

  At last, he gave up his search for understanding and clarity and started for the village.

  Halfway down the mountain, he caught sight of the tall, beautiful woman who’d caught his attention before. She knelt on the carpet of decayed leaves and dug at the base of a small shrub. She was intent on her work and didn’t hear him approach.

  He stopped, fascinated by her loveliness and the grace of her movements. He stood watching as she worked. A delicious, once-familiar stirring claimed his attention, and he gave himself over to it. A welcome warmth suffused his body. He felt as if he’d been existing in a cold, airless place, half-dead, and the desire aroused by the sight of the woman brought him to life again.

  What would it be like to hold this woman in his arms, to kiss her, to love her? He closed his eyes for a moment, and his hunger for her became a rushing flood that consumed him. He opened his eyes again, let his gaze rest on her, her every move pushing him further into a fire of longing.

  When she freed the root, she dusted the loose dirt from it and dropped it into the basket at her side. She sighed, raised her head and wiped her forehead with the back of her hand.

  She saw Ailean at that moment, and her eyes widened. She scrambled to her feet and stood regarding him, as if she was uncertain what to do. Ailean saw her consternation and wondered if his craving for her was emblazoned on his face, wondered if she sensed his yearning and was frightened by it. He knew the only way he could reassure her he meant no harm was to either turn and go up the mountain, away from her, or sit unmoving where he stood. He sat.

  She regarded him solemnly for a moment, unhurriedly picked up her basket and started down the mountain toward the village, looking over her shoulder at him once. Ailean watched until she was out of sight. The heat of his desire cooled, and he was able to think clearly again.

  And was appalled.

  How could he have felt those feelings for someone other than his sweet Mùirne? Mùirne, who had laid down her life to save him. He rubbed his eyes, groaning, wishing he could erase the sight of the beautiful Tsalagi woman from his mind and could obliterate the memory of the raging fire of passion the sight of her had aroused in him.

  But he could not forget her.

  ____________

  Ailean chewed a mouthful of venison and swallowed, gathered his courage and asked, “Who is the tall woman? The one with the long hair. It flows down her back. I’ve seen her once or twice.”

  Gòrdan raised his eyebrows. “I thought you weren’t interested in having a wife.”

  “I’m not. I just saw her and—”

  “Like I told you, a man needs companionship.” Gòrdan grinned.

  He turned to Tayeni and they conversed in Tsalagi briefly.

  “Are you speaking of the woman who goes about with a basket? The one who goes up into the hills for roots and other medicines? Leaves her hair loose instead of done up like the rest of the women?” Gòrdan swirled a hand in the air above his head, simulating the coiled hairstyles Tsalagi women wore.

  “Aye. I saw her on the mountain today.”

  Gòrdan and Tayeni spoke with each other again, and he told Ailean, “That’s Kutahyah. She’s a widow. That’s why she doesn’t fix her hair. Her husband was killed in a skirmish with Ani-Kawita last year. He was a real hot-head.”

  “A widow. She looks…sad,” Ailean said. “I can understand how she feels.”

  “Part of her sadness might be from still being a widow after such a long time. With Ani-Tsalagi, young widows marry again soon. But Kutahyah still lives alone. In her mother’s home.”

  ____________

  Jim Satterfield had proven unequal to the task of finding MacLachlainn. After weeks of fruitless tracking, Latharn insisted Satterfield take him to Charles Town. He suspected all along that MacLachlainn would go to a seaport and try to get passage on a ship bound for Scotland, rather than lose himself in the wilderness as Satterfield suggested. And Charles Town was a busy port.

  Latharn himself wanted more than anything to return to his homeland. This hot, humid place with its overgrowth of vegetation, dangerous reptiles and stinging insects was uncomfortable in the extreme, and he hated it. He longed for the cool, clear air and open spaces of Scotland.

  If he’d had enough money, he might have relinquished his obsession with killing MacLachlainn. But his expedition with Jim Satterfield left him too low on funds to secure passage.

  The sale of his furniture and other belongings had not brought him enough money. The cost of his passage to South Carolina and the subsequent expenditures for lodging and food had depleted his funds. Latharn disputed the amount Satterfield demanded for serving as his guide, but in the end, he paid it.

  “I didn’t give you no guarantees,” Satterfield pointed out. “I just told you I’d guide you and we’d hunt him. Never said we’d find him.”

  Latharn glared at Satterfield and counted out coins into Satterfield’s open hand. He turned on his heel without a word and searched for the nearest tavern. He had to have a drink. Then, he’d decide what to do.

  ____________

  Kutahyah thought about the white man when she lay down that night. She remembered the anetsa game, remembered how strong he was and how bravely he fought, struggling on even when he was covered from head to foot in his own blood. A woman would be fortunate to have a man so strong and determined, a man who could bring home plenty of meat.

  Yes, he was strong, but he was also kind. When he saw he’d startled her on the mountain, he purposely showed her he was no threat by sitting down. A strong man and a kind one.

  Her husband had been a strong man. But not kind. He even struck her once when he was angry. She had kept that violent act a secret. Tsalagi women were strong and commanded respect from their men. Kutahyah would have been shamed had anyone else known of the incident.

  She had feared her husband, but she also feared becoming an object of pity and contempt, had his unkindness to her been common knowledge. After he died, she had been in no hurry to marry again for fear that life with another man might be just as bad. And she was afraid she might discover she herself was lacking in some important way, a way that had brought his disfavor upon herself.

  But the white man…he seemed different. She wondered what it would feel like to be held in the white man’s strong arms, and
her thoughts awakened feelings she hadn’t experienced in a long time. A yearning to be held and loved engulfed her and made her catch her breath.

  Foolish, foolish woman!

  But…the man, he was so strong. And so handsome.

  She rolled over on her blanket and tried to go to sleep.

  ____________

  Latharn had almost no money left by the time he found employment. The owner of the tavern he frequented needed a bartender to replace the latest in a succession of men who worked for him briefly. Each had listened to the siren call of opportunity and left in search of more lucrative pursuits.

  Shame at the thought of such a menial occupation made Latharn’s face burn. But the position provided him a place to sleep in the storeroom at the back of the building and enough coins to buy a little food. And coins to buy his necessity, the bottled liquid life he couldn’t do without.

  FORTY-ONE

  It was past the time Gòrdan usually started for Charles Town. He had plenty of hides and other goods he obtained from Ani-Tsalagi in trade, but he didn’t want to leave until the question of Ailean MacLachlainn’s plans was settled. He liked the big man and felt uncomfortable leaving him on his own, unable to communicate. He remembered what it was like, not knowing the language or the ways of Ani-Tsalagi.

  And Gòrdan had worked long and hard to establish a relationship of trust with Ani-Tsalagi. He didn’t want it marred by some ignorant action of MacLachlainn’s. He decided to tell Tayeni about Ailean’s request to rent land.

  “The man wants to rent some land for a home. Land where he can farm and raise cattle.”

  “But he is a man,” Tayeni said. “Men don’t farm. That is woman’s work.”

  “Men farm in his country,” Gòrdan said.

  Tayeni thought it over. “He would have his own house and provide his own food?” she asked.

  Gòrdan smiled. He knew she was anxious to be rid of this guest with the large appetite.

  “Yes. He would live on his land, not here in the village,” Gòrdan said.

  “I will speak to the elders.”

  ____________

  Tayeni did more than speak to the elders. She set about gaining public approval for Ailean’s request, talking to everyone who would listen. She talked first to her aunt, Uayula, who was a Beloved Woman of the Bird Clan.

  “Asgayagiga helped remove the disgrace from our village. Surely we can give him a place to live,” Tayeni said. “A place some distance from here.”

  As Uayula considered the proposal, she stroked the new blanket her husband won for her in a bet on the anetsa game. “Yes, I suppose it would be a good thing.”

  The next day, Tayeni talked to other women as they worked their plots in the cornfield together, repeating the argument she used with her aunt. One of the younger women disagreed.

  “Why do you want to send him away? I like watching him walk through the village. I’ve never seen a man as tall and strong as he.”

  “Better not let Yahcahyah hear you say that,” another chided, and all the women laughed.

  “No, no.” Tayeni hurried to stop the current trend of the conversation. “He wouldn’t be sent away. We just need to reward him, give him what he wants.”

  ____________

  Kutahyah stayed on the periphery of the discussion, privy to the ebb and flow of social life of the women of the village but not part of it. She listened to the gossip but, as was her habit, didn’t say anything.

  I wish he wanted me.

  She stopped working and stood erect, surprised by the boldness of this thought. She considered it for a moment. And faced the truth of it.

  Yes, I do wish he wanted me.

  On her way home from the fields in the afternoon, when Kutahyah neared the spot where Ailean sat on the river bank, she walked slowly, lingering, wanting him to look up. She looked back over her shoulder after she passed him, and he raised his head at that moment. He turned toward her, scanning the area. When he looked in her direction, she smiled at him, then lowered her eyes and continued on her way.

  ____________

  Ailean jumped up and followed Kutahyah, overtaking her with his long strides.

  “Osiyo,” he said.

  “Osiyo.”

  He didn’t know how to say anything else to her in her language. They meandered through the village, eliciting curious and questioning looks from those they passed.

  He glanced at her discreetly as they walked, not wanting to give offense, not knowing what behavior was acceptable between unmarried people and what was not. Being this close to her for the first time he noticed the smoothness of her richly colored skin, and he wanted to touch the gleaming hair that flowed down her back.

  How can I feel that way? Mùirne died for me. I have to be loyal to her memory. I can’t touch another woman.

  He paused for a moment, torn between his attraction to Kutahyah and his memory of his beloved Mùirne. Kutahyah glanced up at him, their eyes met and a warmth enveloped him, imparted from their tenuous connection. It erased his hesitancy, and he fell into step beside her again.

  When they reached Kutahyah’s house, she paused, looked up at him with a smile and went inside. He waited, stood on one foot and the other, unsure whether she meant for him to follow her. When she didn’t come out or say anything more to him, he returned to his accustomed spot on the river bank.

  Each day afterwards, he watched for her. He joined her when she passed him on her way from the fields to her mother’s house. One afternoon, a young man was standing at her door, one foot propped on a bundle of firewood.

  Kutahyah said a few words to the young man, and he became angry. She gestured toward the wood as she talked to him. He picked it up and stalked away. Kutahyah turned and looked up at Ailean, her eyes filled with an emotion he couldn’t decipher.

  ____________

  After much private discussion, the elders called a village meeting and the people gathered at the town house. Tayeni’s aunt, Uayula, spoke in Ailean’s behalf.

  “This man helped Gulahiyi win the ball game. Without him, we would have lost again. Now, he has made only one request in exchange for the help he gave us. He wants a place to live. I think we should grant his request.”

  The people to whom Tayeni had spoken openly murmured in assent, some also rising to make statements in favor of granting Ailean’s request. No one disagreed with Uayula’s words. One of the elders rose to speak to the people.

  “We owe a debt to Asgayagiga. If he wants land to live upon, we will give it.”

  Since Ailean had made known his intention to raise cattle, the elders decided the plot of land granted to him should be at least two day’s journey to the west, to keep the cattle away from their crops. They selected the site of an old village to the west. It had been abandoned years before when the soil wore out.

  They appointed Tenahwosi and Itahcah to escort Asgayagiga to his new home, since they were the men who’d brought him to the village. The two men had also been instructed to take word to other villages that Asgayagiga would make his home on Tsalagi land with the approval of the elders of Gulahiyi, and that he was not to be molested.

  “The elders have decided to give you a tract of land. It’s a gift of appreciation. The men who brought you here will take you to it,” Gòrdan told Ailean the next day.

  “Thank you. Is there a way I should express my thanks to the elders?”

  “Tayeni will help you do that. You and she can meet with them, and she’ll know what to say. And later, after you have harvested a crop, you can make a gift to the village.”

  “I’ll do that. But what about the hoe they took from me? Can I get that back now? I’ll need it.”

  “I don’t know. I’ll ask Itahcah about it. I think he’s the one who kept it.”

  “Now, I have one other question for you.” Ailean pulled his knees up and wrapped his arms around them. He brushed his hair back from his face, smoothed a hand over the mat, trying to work up the courage to ask what he wanted to
know.

  “Well, what is it?” Gòrdan asked.

  “Something happened today that I don’t understand. I walked with Kutahyah to her house, and there was a man waiting for her. He’d brought her some wood, but she made him take it away. He got angry and left and—”

  “She just got a proposal of marriage from the man,” Gòrdan interrupted. “And she rejected it.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “When a woman has been married before, if she’s a widow like Kutahyah and a man wants to propose, it’s pretty simple,” Gòrdan said. “He takes some firewood to her. If she builds a fire with the wood and cooks something for him to eat, that means she accepted the proposal.”

  “And then what?”

  “He eats the food, and if he lets her know he likes it, that means they’re both willing. He moves in with her. Or, he’ll build a house for her, and she’ll move into it with him.”

  “But what about a ceremony? What about the parson?”

  “Their marriage customs are different from ours.”

  “But what about jumping the broom?” Ailean asked, remembering his wedding day. “Don’t Ani-Tsalagi at least jump the broom?”

  “No. Although, when it’s a young couple marrying for the first time, there’s more involved. The families have to agree, and there’s a ceremony where they tie a blanket around them. Like when Tayeni and I married. See that blanket hanging over there, with the corners tied together? That’s our wedding blanket. But when a couple were both married before…” Gòrdan’s voice trailed off.

  “Somehow, that doesn’t seem right. Like you’re not really married,” Ailean said.

  FORTY-TWO