An hour passed, and still Daniel led her along the river heading in a northern direction toward the canyon of the Yellowstone. Nothing along the water in this peaceful valley gave any indication of the abrupt change the landscape would take on further ahead, when the serene river would plunge twice into the golden canyon, hundreds of feet below.
Clouds moved in, obstructing the sun and bringing an instant cold breeze to the valley. Aimee shivered and slipped into her sheepskin robe. By the time Daniel stopped his horse near a large stand of aspen, a light flurry of snowflakes had begun to fall.
He reached his hands up to Aimee’s waist, and pulled her from the saddle. Wordlessly, he led her toward the trees.
“What are we doing here?”
Her question quickly became unnecessary. Daniel stopped in front of a freshly-dug mound of earth. The area next to it looked bare of grasses and sage, but the dirt was trampled and didn’t appear as if it had been disturbed in a long time.
Wide-eyed, Aimee guessed at the answer to her own question. “Your father’s grave? And your mother?”
Daniel nodded, staring at the unmarked graves. His hand tightened around Aimee’s. Her vision blurred and she wrapped her arms around his middle.
“I can’t think of a better spot for their final resting place,” she whispered, gazing across the vast valley. “They have a beautiful view of the river from here.”
Daniel nudged with his chin a short distance away from the trees. “After my father returned from the future with me and my deceased mother and gave me into Gentle Sun’s care, he brought my mother’s body here. He thought this was a fitting area for her to be buried, since this is where my father was born.”
“And I’m glad you chose to reunite them again when you buried Zach next to Marie.”
Aimee stepped around the grave to an area that was sparse of grasses and shrubs. A few hardy plants had tried to gain roots here. It was evident that the area had been well-trampled years ago, but nature was trying to reclaim the soil.
“I’ve only come here a few times.” Daniel bent to pick up a piece of burned wood that crumbled in his hand.
“My father told me this is where he spent the first few years of his life, before his parents left this place and went to live in the east.”
Aimee stepped carefully around several more logs that looked to have been lying there for decades, charred from fire. A pile of rocks that could have been part of a hearth at one time lay crumbled in a large heap. Apparently, there had been a cabin here at some point.
Aimee lifted her head to gaze into the distance, turning in all directions. A tear spilled from her eye, cooling her cheek. She sniffled and swiped her hand under her nose.
“My dad was always drawn to this area of the park for some reason that he never told me. He loved it here, in almost this same bend of the river. We spent days each summer hiking the trails through Hayden Valley. It hasn’t changed much, although there are far more bison now than when he, my mom, and I explored this valley.” She glanced at the aspens standing watch over the graves. “And, these trees won’t be here in two hundred years.”
The breeze whistled through the sparse grasses and sages in the valley, making the golden leaves on the aspen rustle on their branches, as if voices from the past were calling to her.
Chapter Ten
The rush of the water roared through the trees, announcing their arrival at the canyon long before it came into view.
“Oh my goodness.” Aimee’s jaw dropped and her eyes widened with awe. She pulled her horse to a stop when the trees gave way to expose the brilliant colors of gold, red, and bronze that painted the canyon walls before her.
“I knew it was coming, but I was looking for a sign or a visual barrier.”
After leaving Hayden Valley and the final resting place of Zach and Marie Osborne, Daniel led them away from the river when the forest grew too dense along the shoreline. The only indication that they were anywhere near the canyon was the loud roar of the falls, which grew steadily louder, until Daniel finally stopped his horse.
Aimee’s eyes widened as she pored over the grand spectacle that emerged before her through the trees. She leaned forward in the saddle, standing up in the stirrups, but it was impossible to see to the bottom of the canyon.
Her heart beat with excitement and her hands trembled when she pulled a shaky leg over the back of the saddle. Daniel was there to support her as she stepped to the ground.
“Imagine the surprise on anyone’s face who comes upon this for the first time,” she whispered, moving closer to the edge. Daniel held her arm, pulling her back.
“Careful. The soil is brittle in most places. You could easily fall to your death.”
Aimee glanced over her shoulder at him, smiling. “Don’t worry. I have a healthy respect for this canyon. You wouldn’t believe how many people have – or I should say, will – lose their lives by being careless and falling over the edge in the future. Despite the warnings that will be put in place.”
Daniel held her hand as they walked along the rim, careful of where they stepped. The forest grew almost to the edge of the canyon before it dropped vertically nearly nine hundred feet in many places.
“What a difference, seeing this area without parking lots or barriers,” Aimee said in awe.
She stepped between some trees and gazed off into the distance. The Upper Falls plunged in a wide stream several hundred feet into the canyon. The white spray from the force of the water was visible even from a great distance.
Moving further along the canyon’s rim, the river came into view below the falls as it traveled in a wide arc around the canyon walls. The larger and deeper Lower Falls roared somewhere below them in the canyon, but the dense growth of the forest made it impossible to see.
Daniel came to an abrupt stop, and surveyed the steep terrain leading into the gaping scar in the earth. “It will be a climb to get closer to the river. You can wait here.”
Aimee shook her head. “No way am I staying here. I want to see and be there, Daniel.” She stared up at him. Would he argue with her and tell her she couldn’t climb to the brink of the falls? Two hundred years from now, it would be a paved but steep hike with many switchbacks, and much easier to access.
He chuckled and smiled indulgently. “I already knew you would argue.” His face sobered. “It’s steep and dangerous. You will stay behind me at all times.”
Aimee nodded. “I’ve done steep off-trail hikes before, Daniel, but yes, I’ll stay behind you. At least there are lots of trees to hang on to, and the soil is different than further up the canyon. I couldn’t imagine anyone wanting to climb down into it in those areas, but people have done it.”
Daniel frowned. “I don’t see the purpose of anyone wanting to reach the bottom of the canyon. There is nothing down there by the river. I could possibly see someone young and impulsive trying it as a rite of passage, or to cause mischief.”
Aimee laughed. “There are a lot of people like that in my time.” She gripped Daniel’s hand and her eyes fell on the pouch around his neck. “And that’s exactly why this is the perfect place.”
Their eyes met. Daniel squeezed her hand. With a final nod, he led her closer to the edge, and together they descended into the canyon to reach the river before it plunged again over the Lower Falls. There were plenty of trees to use for support on the way down. The soil was moist and loose in places. Several times, Daniel dislodged some rocks that tumbled down the steep slope.
“With heavy rains, there could be quite a rockslide,” Aimee mumbled, staring up from where they’d come. The rim was no longer visible. She inhaled a deep breath. The air was laced with the smell of rich earth and pine, as well as river water. They were getting closer.
Remember, you still have to get back up again.
Daniel tugged on her hand, and she continued the descent, sliding in places and digging her moccasins into the dirt. The roar of the falls grew louder, and the air around them damp. The ground
evened out a little as they came closer, evidence of the late-season lower water level. The force of the current nevertheless looked strong, and played with her senses. As the water rushed by, a slight sensation of vertigo overtook her, growing stronger as they reached the brink of the falls.
Aimee glanced around to counteract the dizziness. Her eyes fell to a tree that leaned out into the river, its dead branches swaying over the water like the oars of a boat. The tree roots barely clung to the soil along the banks. A quick gasp escaped her lips.
“Daniel.” She gripped his arm, her eyes fixated on a round, whitish object that, at first glance, could have been a rock. Two hollow eye sockets stared back at her.
Daniel’s arm went around her waist. He stepped in front of her and headed for the tree.
“Apparently someone has been down here,” Aimee said, peering around his back to look at the skull and partial remains of what had clearly been a human being.
Daniel examined the area. He picked up the partially-buried skull, then placed it back where he’d found it. Aimee’s eyes fell on several more human bones, some of them concealed by earth and branches. The bones of a hand were wrapped around an old tree limb.
“It’s been here a long time,” Daniel said. “Most of the bones are gone, no doubt carried off by predators.”
“Poor soul,” Aimee whispered. “I wonder what he was doing here. It appears he was holding on to that tree when he died.”
Daniel stared up and down the river. “Perhaps he went over the first falls. His body may have been swept to shore and this is where he’s lain to rest for many years.
Aimee shuddered. “I always said to Jana whenever we came to see the falls that no one could survive that kind of plunge.”
Daniel smiled. “One more reason your idea of disposing of the snakehead this way is a good one. No one will ever find it.”
He took her hand and urged her away from the partial skeleton. He led her along the river closer to where the Upper Falls plunged further into the canyon. Trees became sparse and the soil had long eroded away, exposing hard rock. The roar of the water grew loud enough that Aimee had to shout to be heard.
Daniel pulled the pouch with the snakehead from around his neck. He held it in his hand, staring at it. Aimee’s gaze locked with his when he raised his eyes to hers. She held out her hand.
“It will take a miracle for it to surface and be found by anyone. This is the only solution I can think of.”
Wordlessly, Daniel handed her the pouch. She smiled, then gazed across the river, staring up the walls of the other side of the canyon, then looking downstream, where the Yellowstone River continued on its northern course. The water looked like a tiny turquoise ribbon from her vantage point. An osprey soared above the falls, and further away, an eagle spread its wings and glided majestically from one side of the canyon to the other.
Aimee wrapped her hands around Daniel’s middle. She looked up into his quiet face. “This is where I want my ashes scattered when I die.”
His face hardened at her talk of dying. His thumb grazed along her cheek.
“You are sure you want to do this? There is still time to change your mind.”
Aimee nodded. “Burying it will leave too much temptation to dig it up again in the event one of us has the urge to go to the future for something.”
“I can’t think of anything that might send me to the future again.” Daniel frowned.
Aimee’s lips twitched. She cocked her head to the side. “You never know, Daniel. But this way, the temptation is removed. My outburst yesterday is a perfect example, when I wanted to go back for medical supplies or books.” She stared toward the falls. “No one can retrieve it from here, unless you happen to be a spirit or have magical powers, like the Sky People.” She smiled, then laughed.
“We may never know who created the snakehead,” Daniel said.
“No, and I’m not going to think about it. There are a lot of things in my time that I can’t explain how they work. For instance, I don’t know how I can send images electronically from one computer to another. It boggles my mind, but someone knew how to make it happen.”
Aimee laughed at the confused look on Daniel’s face.
She stepped away from him, closer to the edge. He grabbed her hand to steady her as she glanced at him over her shoulder, her smile widening. “And if whoever made this wants it back, they can have it,” she shouted as she flung the pouch into the water. Immediately, the powerful force of the river swallowed up the pouch, and it disappeared as it plunged over the gaping edge.
Aimee leaned as far forward over the edge as possible, staring to the bottom of the falls. Mist sprayed her face. The sun emerged from behind the cover of several clouds at that moment, creating a rainbow deep in the canyon. Aimee smiled at nature’s spectacle before her, then she nearly lost her balance.
For the second time since descending into the canyon, a startled gasp escaped her throat. Her eyes widened and she stared again where the rainbow began along the opposite wall of the canyon. She blinked. Whatever she’d seen was gone.
Daniel’s hand wrapped around her waist, pulling her back. He frowned as their eyes met. “What’s wrong? You nearly lost your footing and fell.” He pulled her further away from the edge, holding her tight.
She shook her head, then darted another glance toward the water. “It’s nothing,” she stammered.
All this talk of spirits and Sky People was surely messing with her head. For a second, she’d thought she’d seen a familiar-looking Indian standing at the bottom of the canyon, enveloped in mist from the mighty Lower Falls.
She took Daniel’s hand and smiled up into the dark and loving eyes of her husband. The osprey soared from the canyon at that moment, breaking through the rainbow.
Aimee’s heart rate returned to normal, and she breathed a relieved sigh. The bird was what she’d seen, not a man. The fish hawk flapped its wings and disappeared among the canopies of the trees. Aimee smiled in relief.
“I saw the osprey, and it startled me,” she said when Daniel continued to stare at her with a worried look on his face. She leaned up and whispered against his cheek. “Let’s go home to our normal life.”
Aimee turned her back to the river and started the ascent to the top of the canyon. Her return to Yellowstone was now final, and there would be no more mention of spirits or Sky People legends.
Thank you for purchasing Return to Yellowstone, and continuing the adventures with Daniel and Aimee Osborne.
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The adventure continues with A Yellowstone Christmas Currently, there are seven full-length novels, four novellas, and a short story in this series.
The Teton Romance Trilogy and the Wilderness Brides Historical Romance Series cross over with the Yellowstone Romance Series. For a full list of my other time travel and historical romances, please visit my Amazon Author Page
Books in the Yellowstone Romance Series
(in recommended reading order)
Yellowstone Heart Song
Return to Yellowstone (novella)
A Yellowstone Christmas (novella)
Yellowstone Redemption
Yellowstone Homecoming (novella)
Yellowstone Season of Giving (short story)
Yellowstone Awakening
Yellowstone Dawn
Yellowstone Deception
Yellowstone Promise (novella)
Yellowstone Origins
Yellowstone Legacy
Yellowstone Legends (coming 2017)
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Return To Yellowstone: Yellowstone Romance Series Novella Sequel to Yellowstone Heart Song Page 8