Return To Yellowstone: Yellowstone Romance Series Novella Sequel to Yellowstone Heart Song

by Peggy L Henderson

  Aimee tiptoed around the stand of trees. The ground here was hard and rocky. The rain must not have fallen hard in this particular area. Her wet and muddy moccasins would leave visible tracks even she could follow.

  Discouraged, she left the safety of her cover and followed what appeared to be a deer trail into the forest, keeping close to the creek that meandered along to her left. The trees were too dense to break into a run, so she kept to a brisk walk, dodging fallen logs by following the faint trail left by countless deer that must use this path to reach the meadow at dusk to graze.

  When the trail became wider with fewer obstacles in her path, Aimee glanced over her shoulder again for any signs of being followed. She suppressed a startled scream when her head came back around and she almost collided with a dark-haired man in buckskins. Her hands flew to her mouth as her heart leapt into her throat. The rush of adrenaline to her system nearly brought her to her knees.

  The man stood before her, his face stoic for a fraction of a second, then he broke out into a wide grin. At the same time, Aimee expelled a relieved breath of air and held her hand to her heart.

  “Dosa Haiwi, you have returned.”

  Aimee mentally translated the man’s words, spoken in the language of the Sheepeaters. Other than the few words Daniel had taught her months ago, her Shoshone was barely passable. Learning the native languages was another thing she’d have to prioritize.

  “Patuhuyaa nuukwi,” she said, smiling brightly and with definite relief that it wasn’t some Blackfoot or Crow warrior standing in front of her, but Daniel’s Sheepeater brother, Elk Runner.

  His grin widened and he nodded vigorously. “Dosa Bia’isa will be pleased that you have returned. I see you are on your way to his cabin.”

  Aimee shook her head. She groped for the words to tell him that Daniel already knew that she was here, and why she was running through the woods. Elk Runner laughed.

  “We will give my brother reason to sharpen his mind.”

  The Indian picked her up without warning, slinging her over his shoulder, then walked briskly through the trees, purposefully stepping where his moccasins would leave an impression in the ground. After several minutes, he set her down behind a group of large boulders and motioned with his hand for her to duck to the ground. With another wide grin, he disappeared.

  Aimee smiled, staring after him. Could Elk Runner’s plan really work, and this would fool Daniel? She shook her head. They both had the same upbringing. No doubt Elk Runner was as skilled at tracking as Daniel. She shifted slightly on her haunches, crouching behind the rocks to remain concealed, and waited.

  Countless minutes passed. The sounds in the forest seemed to grow louder – birds chirped in the trees and some bugs swarmed around her face. When her legs tingled from lack of circulation in her cramped position, she stood to stretch her aching limbs.

  No sooner had she taken a step, when someone grabbed her around the waist from behind and clamped a hand over her mouth. There was no time to scream. This time it wasn’t Elk Runner who had surprised her.

  Aimee kicked and lashed out with her fists as she was dragged behind the boulders again. A firm arm tightened around her waist, bringing her against a solid body behind her.

  “Were I the enemy and not the man whose heart you own, your life would belong to me now.”

  Aimee relaxed in response to the deep voice whispering against her ear, sending a ripple of chills down her spine. The tight hold around her waist instantly eased and the hand lifted from her mouth. Aimee managed to turn in the man’s arms to look at her assailant.

  “My life already belongs to you,” she purred, and wrapped her arms around Daniel’s neck. “I thought I’d get at least to the river before you caught up to me. It’s going to take a lot of training before I ever outwit you, even with Elk Runner’s help.”

  Daniel’s eyes softened with amusement. “My brother had a good plan, but he failed to understand that I will always find you, no matter what.”

  Aimee leaned up to plant a kiss on his mouth. “As you’ve proven over and over,” she murmured.

  Daniel smiled as he held her. “You still have a lot to learn about concealing your tracks and traveling through the forest while being pursued, but at least you were heading in the right direction this time.”

  “Who needs to run away when my pursuer is a handsome mountain man whose heart I own?” she teased against his lips.

  Daniel deepened the kiss, his hands clamped around her waist. Aimee leaned into him, instantly forgetting the small jab of annoyance that she hadn’t been able to at least reach the Gibbon River before Daniel caught up with her. He’d promised to give her a head start of an hour at the beginning of their game.

  “You’ve done well today,” Daniel murmured. “Better than I would have expected.”

  Aimee eased her head back. “But you found me easily,” she argued. “If you had been a Blackfoot, I’d be dead now, like you said.”

  Daniel’s warm smile as his eyes roamed over her face melted her annoyance. “You remembered much of what I taught you before. It’s been many months since the last time I challenged you to conceal your tracks and find ways to mislead your pursuer.”

  “But I have to learn so that I’m prepared if I ever have to get away from real danger.”

  “You’ve learned fast before. You will again. And I will always protect you,” he added in a sultry tone.

  “I know you will,” Aimee whispered.

  Daniel’s gaze was still locked on hers when he released his hold around her waist. Aimee slipped her hand in Daniel’s as he led her out of the forest and into the meadow, heading east. She glanced sideways up at him.

  “Shouldn’t we find Elk Runner and let him know his plan didn’t work?”

  Daniel chuckled. “He already knows. To conceal his disappointment, he’s gone ahead to the village to be the first to announce that you’ve returned. We will visit my brother and his family. Now that the rains have stopped, we can make the journey you suggested to get rid of the device, but you need proper clothing first. The season is late, and snow can come at any time.”

  Daniel had agreed to her idea for disposing of the time travel device, but heavy rains had delayed their traveling plans. While they’d waited for better weather, he had used the opportunity to resume Aimee’s survival training they’d started months ago.

  Aimee nodded. “I definitely need better clothes. Your father’s old britches aren’t exactly comfortable and don’t fit me right.”

  “My mother and Elk Runner’s wife will be glad to see that you’re back. They will make sure you have clothing for winter, and they will teach you how to make your own.”

  “I still remember some of the words you taught me in Shoshone. At least I was able to communicate with Elk Runner enough to understand what he had in mind when he picked me up and brought me to hide here.”

  Daniel squeezed her hand. A soft smile formed on his face, and that familiar intense smolder returned to his eyes as his gaze drifted to her. “The only words you need to know for now are that you are Dosa Haiwi, wife of Dosa Bia’isa.”

  “White Wolf,” she repeated his Shoshone name in English. The Sheepeaters had named her White Dove after she’d saved a little boy from drowning, convincing them she had magical healing powers.

  “From the little I know about the Indians, I’ve always heard that a name has great significance. Why do the Sheepeaters call you White Wolf?”

  Daniel gazed off into the distance. “The spirit animal that protects Elk Runner’s clan is the wolf. The shaman gave me the name White Wolf to welcome me among them as an infant, because a wolf never turns against his own family.”

  Chapter Five

  “My son, you have returned.”

  Gentle Sun’s wrinkled face beamed in a bright smile. She rushed toward him with her arms held wide. Daniel pulled his foster mother into an embrace. The older woman was even smaller in stature than Aimee.

  “And it appears that
you have found your missing wife,” the woman added when Daniel released her. “Did you find the answers you were seeking when you last came to me?”

  “I found my wife, that is most important.” Daniel met her searching stare. His foster mother’s brows rose almost imperceptibly and she studied him in silence. Abruptly, she reached for Aimee and embraced her as well.

  “It is good to see you again, Gentle Sun,” Aimee said in stilted Shoshone. The older woman laughed in appreciation, then her sharp eyes traveled over Aimee’s ill-fitting and dirty clothing. The smile vanished and an accusing look passed over her as her eyes shot back to Daniel with the glare of an eagle.

  “You are not so destitute that you cannot provide proper clothing for your wife, White Wolf. Her manner of dress is no better now than the last time we met. Do you not have any hides at your cabin that she can be dressed properly? Winter is coming.”

  “There hasn’t been much time for me to tan hides this season, Mother,” Daniel answered, bowing his head. “My father’s death and searching for my wife has made it difficult to prepare for the cold months ahead. I brought her to you so that you may teach her to fashion appropriate clothing to wear. I will hunt for the clan in exchange for some prepared hides for my wife.”

  Gentle Sun cocked her head and stared up at him. Her eyes twitched as she scrutinized him. A flicker of annoyance flashed in her eyes. Her thoughts were easy to read. No doubt she wondered if she’d raised him to be fit enough to care for a wife. Finally, she nodded in agreement.

  “It will be so,” she agreed. “Elk Runner and the other young men are preparing to go on a hunt now that the weather favors us again. You will join them while your wife remains with us. She is welcome among the people. Little Bird has asked about her many times.”

  Daniel glanced at Aimee, who’d stood quietly next to him up to this point. She listened intently, clearly trying to follow the conversation. The last time he’d gone on a hunt and had left Aimee in his mother’s care, the women had gotten along well, even though there had been a communication barrier.

  Pride swelled for his little wife. Her strong and sharp mind made up for her small stature, and she would do fine without him for a few days. She knew some of the language, and Gentle Sun had clearly already looked past all of Aimee’s perplexing behaviors from the future due to her elevated status as a healer gifted by the spirits.

  “Dosa Haiwi,” a short, plump woman called, rushing from inside one of the seven wickiups in this camp. She carried an infant in her arms.

  Aimee stepped away from Daniel to greet Little Bird, Elk Runner’s wife. Many of the members of the village – women, children, and the older men – gathered to welcome the white dove, symbol of good fortune, back to the clan. Elk Runner emerged from the wickiup after his wife, smiling broadly. He headed for Daniel, two young boys close at his heels.

  “Next time, your woman will outwit you, White Wolf. She won’t require my help much longer.”

  Daniel clasped his brother’s wrist in greeting, even though they’d already crossed paths before he’d found Aimee’s hiding place.

  “She’s intelligent and learns fast,” Daniel agreed. He smiled at his brother. “Unlike you, thinking you could mislead me by carrying her to conceal her tracks.”

  Elk Runner smirked. “I could have been the enemy, and carried her off.”

  “There was no sign of a struggle. Aimee wouldn’t have gotten caught without a fight. You only made it easier for me to find her faster. It was clear what happened when her tracks suddenly turned into those of a man’s.”

  His brother shrugged. “It appears you will have to keep a close eye on your wife, White Wolf. She might disappear again. It is only because the spirits brought her to you in the first place that they have returned her a second time.”

  Daniel laughed to conceal the jab of worry Elk Runner’s words evoked. He wouldn’t lose Aimee again. He’d make sure of that. No one was going to take her from him, and that included any spirits or Sky People.

  Elk Runner’s face turned uncharacteristically serious. He nudged his chin for Daniel to follow him away from the others. Daniel glanced toward Aimee, who was busy holding Little Bird’s infant. The women laughed and all crowded around his wife. His eyes lingered on her. She stood out with her golden hair and fair skin, but she was completely at ease with these people, just as she’d been the first time she’d met the clan.

  Elk Runner tapped his arm, his brows raised. Daniel tore his eyes from Aimee and followed his brother to the edge of the village. Only then did Elk Runner stop and face him.

  “I have not seen you since I brought you the message that your father was ready to join the spirit world. Our mother told me you came to see her several days ago, asking questions about your birth. Have you gone on a spirit journey to speak to the Sky People? Perhaps they hold the answers you seek.”

  Daniel shook his head. “I don’t believe a spirit journey will give me any answers.” He touched the pouch around his neck that contained the mysterious device that allowed him to travel through time. “I made my peace with my father before he joined my mother, and I have my wife back. That’s all that matters to me.”

  “The shaman has said that Dosa Haiwi is here for a far greater purpose than we realize. When he heard news of her disappearance, he sought answers in the high mountains.”

  Daniel chuckled. “Did he receive any answers?”

  Did he want to know? Talk of spirits sent an uneasy feeling through him. Elk Runner often spoke about the Sky People. They were merely legends and stories told by the old men around a campfire.

  Believing in another tribe of people who had lived among the Tukudeka many years ago, or that they had gone to war with each other until they were all gone, wasn’t difficult. They may have been revered as highly spiritual people who had established themselves as protectors of their mountains and whose beliefs the Tukudeka followed, but in the end they couldn’t have been any different from other men.

  Daniel frowned. What if the snakehead in the pouch around his neck truly had come from them, and they had possessed some magical power to create such a device? Why would a clan with such power kill each other until none of them remained, or so the stories said? It made little sense.

  “The shaman has said that Dosa Haiwi is here at the will of the Sky People, just as I have told you all along. They brought her to you. They would not take her away unless you did something to anger them.” Elk Runner stared at Daniel. “And if that is so, I ask, why did she vanish, and where did you go to find her again?”

  “My father told me where to find her before he passed,” Daniel answered vaguely. It was the truth.

  Elk Runner’s glance became more suspicious. “Your father was not well when I last saw him. When he asked me to find you because he had important information for you, he also talked in his sleep. He mentioned the Sky People.”

  Daniel gritted his teeth. He’d never kept secrets from his brother, but this time, he couldn’t talk to him about the time travel device.

  “My father spent enough time among the Sheepeaters to have heard the legends. He said many things when I came back to the valley before he died.” Daniel frowned. “Why are you asking all these questions?”

  Elk Runner glanced in the direction of the wickiups and where the women stood with Aimee. His wife was among them, as were his two young sons and his newest child.

  “You cannot convince the people that your wife was not sent by the Sky People.”

  Daniel huffed. “Because it’s what you told them. You thought so before I even found her.”

  “There is no other explanation for how she is here.” Elk Runner raised his hand and motioned to Daniel. “And everyone has seen the strength of her medicine. Even you. I can see that you believe it, as well. Why do you deny it?”

  “I believe that Aimee, the woman you told me I should take as my wife, came here from a distant place, nothing more. Talk of spirits makes her uneasy. You can believe what you want, b
ut you will not bring it up with her again.”

  Elk Runner shook his head. He tossed a disbelieving look in Daniel’s direction. “I don’t understand why the spirits favor you when you fight so hard to deny their existence. They send you a woman, and you’re not grateful for it. Little Bird didn’t come to me that easily.”

  Daniel suppressed a grin. His brother was right. Someone had favored him when Aimee had come into his life because of the snakehead.

  “Perhaps I don’t pester the spirits as much as you do, so they take favor with me,” he challenged, then glared at his brother. “And I am grateful for my wife. It may have taken me longer to realize it, but she’s the most important thing in the world to me. No matter who is responsible for her being here, I will always be thankful for it.”

  Elk Runner glared at him. “If only the spirits would talk to me, so that I can convince you that it was the Sky People who sent her.”

  Daniel slapped his brother on the back. He offered a smile. “Perhaps they are biding their time to talk to you, and you will have your answer someday,” he offered.

  Elk Runner nodded. “Perhaps they are.” A mischievous grin returned to his face. “Your wife was happy to see me when she was running from you earlier, but I suspect she will speak her disrespectful mind again soon enough.”

  Daniel laughed. For once, his brother was right. Aimee wasn’t one to be told what to do. It had confused him initially and had led to some heated battles with words, but he understood her much better now, knowing where she came from. For her own safety, he no doubt would have to remind her at times that not all men would tolerate a woman who freely spoke her mind.

  His eyes sought out his wife again. The mother of the young boy whose life Aimee had saved months ago was speaking to her. When the shaman approached, Daniel headed in her direction.

  Little Bird saw him first. She balanced his youngest nephew on her hip and smiled at him. “White Wolf, the women will all help make clothing for your wife. We are all happy to see her return. A great sadness passed through the village when Gentle Sun told us she was missing.