Dance With A Gunfighter

by JoMarie Lodge

  Chapter 21

  About an hour later, the woman came back later and took the bowl, then motioned to Gabe to follow. Cautiously, Gabe left the wickiup. As the squaw led Gabe away from the camp toward some bushes, a guard fell behind the two women. Gabe’s fear grew. She had heard many stories of what Apaches did to prisoners--especially Apache women. She wondered if they, like executioners, gave last meals.

  The guard stopped and the woman continued walking with Gabe around to the far side of a ridge of paloverde. The woman then lifted her skirts and squatted down. Gabe got the idea, turned her back and did the same.

  The guard escorted them back, and Gabe was alone again. For the next three days, the woman who brought Gabe food and water and led her to the bushy area was Gabe’s only contact with anyone beyond the silent, ever-present guard stationed at the entrance to her wickiup. If the woman spoke English, or even understood any of Gabe’s questions, she gave no indication of it.

  In the hut, Gabe fumed, raged and begged for information about McLowry. She prayed they were helping his back, and not letting the infection kill him. The guard simply pulled the flap of the wickiup shut whenever she lifted it to speak to him.

  On the fourth morning, the woman walked in with a bundle of clothes. "What’s this?" Gabe asked.

  The woman giggled, her hand covering her mouth. She then held a buckskin dress against Gabe’s shoulders. It was incredibly soft, with concha shells and beadwork along the neckline, but it stopped just below her hips. "Isn’t it a little short?" Gabe asked.

  Ignoring her, the woman held a buckskin skirt against her waist. It fell almost to her ankles. "Ah! That helps," Gabe said with a smile. The woman chuckled again. Finally, the woman gave her a pair of tall moccasins with toes that were pointed and upturned.

  Gesturing, the woman indicated that Gabe was to put these clothes on and give up the battered, filthy dress she still wore.

  "Can I bathe first?" she asked.

  The woman looked puzzled until Gabe made washing gestures with her hands. The woman nodded, then spoke to the guard.

  Before long, she was led to a creek. Suddenly, half the women in the camp joined her, all quickly disrobing and jumping into the water. They found the whiteness of her skin and the lithe, thinness of her body quite hilarious. Gabe didn’t find either a laughing matter, but she wasn’t about to argue. All she knew was that the water was cool and refreshing.

  She used soap weed that had been pounded into pulp to wash her hair, and when she came up from rinsing it, she saw Nahtuyah standing beside a mesquite, his black eyes watching her. She turned her back to him, and when she peeked over her shoulder later, he was gone.

  The others called the woman who brought her food Kaiya. After being led back to the wickiup, Gabe turned to her and said, "Thank you, Kaiya."

  Kaiya at first looked shocked, then a slow smile filled her face. She giggled, nodded, and murmured a string of words in return.

  A simple rapport grew up between Gabe and Kaiya after that. The woman was pretty and petite, but strong. She had one child, a girl, who was three. She was expecting her second child. Kaiya’s husband’s name was Manolo. Gabe noticed that he didn’t spend a lot of time with the other warriors, but seemed to enjoy being with his wife and daughter.

  Gabe and Kaiya worked out a simple way to converse, a combination of English, Spanish and a few Apache words that Gabe picked up by listening carefully. In this way, Gabe learned that McLowry was growing stronger each day.

  On the twenty-fifth day of their captivity, Gabe was led out of the wickiup and in a matter of minutes she watched the squaws dismantle it. The entire camp was a maelstrom of packing and strapping possessions to the backs of the horses. The women were made to carry anything the horses could not.

  Gabe helped, working beside her silent guard. Kaiya was nearby with her husband, Manolo, while Nahtuyah, as always, lurked near, his eyes never leaving her.

  Late that morning, Gabe turned around, and the ground seemed to rock. McLowry was on the far side of the camp, near a gathering of horses. He was walking beside the colorful chief, talking with him, deep in conversation.

  He was still very pale, but his shoulders and back were straight and he seemed able to move much easier than he had been. Her chest swelled at the sight of him and a new fear--that the Apaches had allowed him to grow healthy only to have the knife fight with Nahtuyah--came to torment her.

  He turned, and their eyes met. He seemed shocked, at first, then he took a few steps toward her, one side of his mouth curving up to the lop-sided smile she loved. She, too, stepped forward, but Kaiya grabbed her arm and whispered, "No." She smiled, trying to let him know she was unharmed. He nodded, and a sudden, crazy, joyous hope took root inside her that they might yet get out of this alive.

  She was given an Indian pony and mounted it bareback, waiting to move out. Her eyes followed McLowry as he mounted. Black Cloud gestured to McLowry to come forward and the two rode side by side.

  The camp traveled due east out of the Dragoons, toward the Chiricahua Mountains. Although they didn’t stop until it was dark, and started again at the first light of dawn, the going was slow. Eight days passed before they reached the foothills, and it took another week for them to find a secure area deep in a mountain valley where the band would spend the winter.

  Gabe helped Kaiya secure the saplings that formed the frame of the wickiup as all the squaws worked to rebuild the camp. Kaiya showed her how to weave coarse, spindly yucca leaves to form a thatch between the poles.

  After that, every day, Gabe was given work to do. She stood beside Kaiya, helping the camp. Although she saw McLowry from time to time, they were never allowed close enough to speak.

  One evening, after the sun disappeared and night came quickly, Gabe realized that it must have been nearly Christmas. Her thoughts were filled with happy Christmases past. She wished she had realized, at those times, how hard her father must have worked to make the day, each year, such a good one for her and her brothers. She wished she could have had a chance to tell him thank you.

  The camp was left in peace throughout the two coldest winter months. Not a single Army patrol spotted them. Although they heard tales from braves who roamed the area scouting for trouble, learned of Victorio’s capture, and of other battles that raged elsewhere between Apache and soldiers, no troubles, not even the illnesses that so often plagued the Apaches after any contact with white men, brought grief to the band.

  She eventually lost count of the days altogether. All she knew was that the days grew warmer and a few leaves appeared on the mountain trees.

  One morning, Kaiya came to the wickiup and motioned for Gabe to follow. She was led to the stream to bathe and given a fresh set of clothing, a long green striped skirt and white overblouse with yellow trim. When she returned to her wickiup, Kaiya brought her roasted venison along with the ever-present mashed squash.

  Gabe hadn’t realized how starved she had been for meat until she took the first bite.

  An hour later, the flap to her hut lifted. Her guard motioned to her to step outside. Jess stood waiting for her. All signs of his illness had gone and he looked strong and healthy.

  "Jess!" She started to run to him, but her guard stepped between them, his knife in his hand. Confused, she looked at McLowry, her eyes and senses filled with him.

  He stood rigidly, but she could see the torment on his face. "Are you well, Gabe?" His voice was low.

  She twisted her fingers together. "Well enough. You?"

  He tried to smile, but his eyes betrayed him. "Much better now."

  She stepped forward, but the knife was raised again and she backed up. "What’s this about, Jess?"

  "Black Cloud has taken a notion about you. Since you’ve been here, his people have lived in peace. You fought his enemy. He believes you’re a strong, powerful force--a di-yin. It seems he wants to...to keep you here."

  McLowry’s words didn’t make sense. The Apache were already keeping them here. "I d
on’t understand."

  McLowry took a deep breath. "I’ve talked to Black Cloud about a lot of things. He’s a good leader of these people, but superstitious. All he wants to do is to live in peace in the mountains. He fears the reservation. Too many Indians get sick and die when they're forced to live there. He’ll fight, if necessary, to prevent his people from being taken."

  She nodded. "And so, to keep things peaceful for him, we’re supposed to remain with this camp."

  "No. Only you."

  Suddenly, his words, the reason for his distressed look, made sense to her. "You’re saying, you can go free?"

  He nodded.

  Her heart swelled. "Oh, Jess, thank God! I thought neither of us would get out of this alive."

  He slipped his hands in his pockets. "We meet with him this afternoon. There’s always the slight chance he may relent. We’ll try to convince him to let you go."

  "What if I refuse to stay?"

  McLowry’s eyes met hers. "He’s very proud. Whatever is said or done, don’t attack that pride. And, keep in mind, too, it’s only Black Cloud’s interest in you that’s kept Nahtuyah away. We’re his captives...and I’ve seen the way he looks at you."

  She nodded.

  "If you’re forced to stay here," he said, "I’ll stay, too. If they won’t allow it, I’ll be near."

  Her blood seemed to drain away, and all she could do was nod again.

  "I won’t abandon you, Gabe. Remember that."

  The thought of being left behind here, while Jess was able to go free was almost more than she could bear. The one thing she latched onto was that Jess would be free. She’d caused this trouble to come to him. Now, he would be spared any more of it.

  "If we’re separated," he continued, "don’t fight them. Especially don’t fight Nahtuyah. Keep alive, no matter what you have to do. No matter what, Gabe. Do you understand?"

  She couldn’t speak, her chest aching, as the unspoken meaning of his words hit her.

  Although the guard didn’t understand their words, the tense currents between them were tangible, and he pushed Gabe back into the wickiup.

  She sat, trying to keep away the thoughts that terrified her, and waited to be called.

  Kaiya came to her hut and tried to comb her hair into the style of unmarried woman. First it was pulled into a loose ponytail and wrapped with cloth. It should then have been folded up and down and wrapped again. Since Gabe’s hair was too short, the rewrapping wasn’t done. A large, beaded piece of hide, shaped like a bow, was then attached. While Gabe would have worn the bow horizontally, the Apache wore it vertically. Long cloth ties hung from it, reaching to her waist.

  Kaiya gave her an assortment of necklaces of seed beads, and then held up long, beaded and feathered earrings. Gabe’s ears weren’t pierced, though, so Kaiya couldn’t figure out how to attach them. With much shaking of her head and muttering, Kaiya reluctantly set them aside.

  Gabe was then led to Black Cloud’s hut. Inside were McLowry, Black Cloud, Nahtuyah and the highest ranking warriors.

  She was told to sit alone in the back of the wickiup, while the Apaches sat in a circle together, with McLowry only a little to their right.

  McLowry addressed her formally, in the slow, stilted manner that Black Cloud could more easily understand. "Black Cloud offers me four of his best horses for you, and offers you the safety of his family. He pays a great honor to so small and insignificant a woman."

  She looked from McLowry to the Apaches, her pulse racing, as her mind weighed possible replies, not knowing what was best to say. "I am very honored," she murmured, and was rewarded by the look of relief that crossed McLowry’s face.

  Black Cloud nodded and McLowry continued. "I said I thought you should be asked what you wished to do. Although you are a great di-yin, Black Cloud knows a di-yin’s power can die when the di-yin is unhappy. You could stay with a generous man like Black Cloud, or leave this place with a..." he cleared his throat, "with a penniless beggar like me. I asked him to remember that women are perverse--especially sharp-tongued ones."

  She looked from McLowry to Black Cloud and saw a hint of a smile on the old chief’s face. Confused, she turned back to McLowry, hoping for some clue as to what to do or say.

  "It’s okay," he said. "Speak your mind...carefully."

  Panic filled her. Carefully, he’d said. Yes. If she misspoke...

  She dropped her head a moment, then took a deep breath before facing the chief.

  "You have been very kind to me. I would like to repay this kindness. If I stayed here, I could do little. I would be a burden to you, as I have already been. Also, if by some chance the American soldiers discover that I’m here, they will pursue this camp, and many people will die. If instead I leave with the worthless one"--she nodded toward McLowry and saw him raise an eyebrow--"I will fight Tanner, your enemy, and I will tell everyone I meet that Black Cloud is a good and generous chief who wishes to live in peace in these mountains, as Cochise was promised many years ago."

  At that, her lip began to tremble. She bit it, bowing her head, scarcely able to breathe as she waited for the reaction.

  Black Cloud and his warriors spoke together. Gabe glanced at McLowry, but he stared straight ahead. She dropped her gaze again and waited.

  "You have given us much to discuss, woman."

  At his words, Gabe’s throat tightened.

  He narrowed his eyes. "I will listen for the words that Will Tanner is dead, and I will know who was the cause of it. You can stay with...the ‘worthless’ one." Then a grin slowly spread over his lined face and he chuckled.

  Gabe’s mouth fell open as she looked from him to McLowry. She rose to her feet, and when no one seemed inclined to stop her, she ran to McLowry, knelt down and hugged him. Then, to everyone’s surprise, she lunged forward and hugged Black Cloud. His braves surged toward her, knives flashing, but Black Cloud lifted his hand to stop them before his arms tightened around her.

  "Thank you, Black Cloud," McLowry said, as he took Gabe’s arm, pulling her away. They said quick good-byes and McLowry hurried her from the wickiup.

  "Don’t look back," he whispered.

  She stared at him. "Why not?"

  "I saw the look on that old fox’s face when he felt your arms around him," he whispered. For the first time in months she saw a mirthful glint in his eye. "I’m afraid he might up the ante to five horses. Then I’d be sorely tempted..."

  Chapter 22

  "McLowry, if we get out of this alive, you’ll rue the day you said that!"

  Laughing, he wrapped his arm around her waist and hurried her along to their horses, already saddled. It was pretty obvious old Black Cloud knew how Gabe’s questioning would turn out. Before Gabe could mount, she heard footsteps hurrying toward her. She turned, ready to run or fight.

  Kaiya carried a folded pair of men’s denim trousers, a blue and green plaid shirt and a small cloth-wrapped bundle. She stopped in front of Gabe and held them out. Gabe took them, trying not to think of what might have happened to the man who once owned these clothes. Then, she pulled open one corner of the cloth bundle and found dried squash and meat. It was a sacrifice, she knew, for Kaiya to give up this food. "Thank you," she said.

  Kaiya nodded, smiling shyly. Gabe gave her a quick hug and the woman’s face broadened into a wide grin.

  As McLowry and Gabe rode off, Nahtuyah stood alone at the end of the camp, his arms crossed and a glower on his face. He’d lost this time, and Gabe knew if he ever got a chance, he’d do all he could to even the score. Seeing him put a damper, for a little while, on the elation she felt, but as she and McLowry continued to ride far from the camp, her foreboding vanished.

  They put as much distance as quickly as possible between themselves and the band of Apache. When they reached a broad, flat mesa, Gabe spurred her dun. As he lengthened his stride, she urged his swinging canter into an all-out gallop and let out a whoop. McLowry’s face showed surprise for a moment, then a big grin came over it. He gave a
cowpuncher yell and raced along beside her.

  Gabe bent forward, flying with the thundering horse over the open land. She put her hand to his neck, feeling his trembling, vibrating muscles as they raced, the sweet smell of freedom all around them. Finally allowing the horse to slow, Gabe pushed back her hat, wrapped the reins around the pommel, and flung her arms wide, letting the wind sail through her hair, and over her body.

  McLowry reached her side, then leaned toward her, his strong arm circling her waist, and scooped her off the saddle. She laughed, wrapping her arms around his neck and holding on for dear life as his mouth found hers in a blinding, blazing kiss. When the horses stopped, McLowry carefully lowered her feet to the ground then dismounted. Wonder filled his eyes. "We made it," he said, his voice hushed with awe. Then he grinned. "My God, woman, we made it!"

  She flung herself at him, squeezing him hard against her, her joy at being with him, seeing him strong and healthy and free overwhelming her. She shut her eyes, burying her head against his neck. It felt so good to hold him she never wanted to let go.

  He lifted his head, holding himself back so that he could look at her. "You’re a miracle, Gabe," he whispered, causing her heart to spin. He lifted her by her waist, high over his head. Laughing, she held his shoulders as he spun them both round and round.

  Then he stopped. Their eyes clung as McLowry slowly lowered her along his length. She pressed her lips to his, her arms tightening around his neck as her toes reached the ground.

  She’d dreamed about this for so long, she could scarcely believe she was holding him, kissing him, and it was real. Her tongue sought his, in the way she remembered he’d kissed her so many months ago. His choked groan and small tremor startled her, that she could affect a man like him. She felt bolder, wanting him to know the strange, wonderful madness coursing through her, even if she didn’t fully understand it herself.

  She touched his back, his hair, his ears, his face, then along his chest. She wanted to know every part of him.