Love Finds You in Pendleton, Oregon

by Melody Carlson

  “Sunny,” called out Echo as she hurried over to join her, helping to carry a bag. “Come meet Ellie and Misty.”

  Echo did the introductions. Ellie was Bill’s wife and probably in her forties. Misty was their daughter and in the same grade as Echo. Ellie’s dark hair was wavy and full and Misty’s was pulled back into a sleek ponytail. But they looked very much like mother and daughter.

  Ellie thanked Sunny for the flowers, handing them to Misty to put in a vase. “Cody told me that you’re Bill’s cousin.”

  “According to Lulu.” Sunny quickly explained the old woman’s recollection.

  “Well, Bill’s outside supervising the barbecue,” Ellie told her. “But I’d like you to meet Bill’s mom.” She nodded toward the living room. “She’s in here.” Then Ellie introduced Sunny to an old white-haired woman named Gert. Her bronzed face was creased with wrinkles, but her black-brown eyes looked sharp and alert. She was seated in a recliner. Sunny sat down in the chair closest to her, and Ellie returned to her work in the kitchen.

  “I understand that you are the great-niece of my great-grandmother Polly Wikiapi,” Sunny began carefully. She had no idea what Gert’s memories or impressions of Polly might be, but she was prepared for the worst.

  Gert nodded as if this was not news to her.

  “And perhaps you remember my grandmother, Mary Sunrise.” Gert’s eyes flickered. “I remember the name well. But I was a small child when Mary Sunrise left. She and my mother were about the same age. But I recall my mother missed her greatly when she was gone. I think they had been close.”

  “Really?” Sunny was surprised by this. “Did your mother ever talk about my grandmother to you?”

  “Oh, yes.” Gert folded her hands together, laying them over her ample midsection in what seemed a self-satisfied way. But the way she narrowed her eyes appeared as if she was deciding whether to continue talking to Sunny or not.

  “I was named after my grandmother,” Sunny tried. “And after my parents died, my grandmother raised me.”

  “Oh?” Gert nodded.

  “But for some reason my grandmother never talked about her past. She never told me anything about her life on the reservation.”

  “Really?” Gert looked interested now.

  “No. She seemed to want to forget it.”

  “Yes, I can understand.”

  Now Sunny waited, observing Gert’s dark eyes.

  “Mary and my mother were forced to go to boarding school.” She shook her head. “Bad memories. Unhappy times.”

  “Do you mean the school at Saint Andrew’s Mission?” Sunny queried. Gert shrugged. “I don’t know for sure. My mother did not like to talk about it. It was not good.”

  “I went out there today,” Sunny said eagerly. “I saw that my great-grandmother Polly Wikiapi was buried there. Do you know anything about that?”

  Gert smirked…or frowned. Sunny wasn’t sure which.

  “Maybe your great-grandmother went to the mission for help,” Gert suggested.

  Sunny nodded. “Maybe so. She was young when she died. Maybe she was sick and went there for medical assistance.”

  “Maybe.”

  “My grandmother didn’t have good memories of her mother.” Sunny waited.

  Gert nodded as if she were aware of this.

  “And I’ve heard that Polly Wikiapi might have been crazy.”

  Gert’s eyebrows arched. “Yes?”

  “And that she drank.” Sunny watched for Gert’s reaction.

  “There were many stories about Polly Wikiapi.”

  “Do you recall any of them?” Sunny leaned forward.

  Just then Echo and Misty came into the room. Sunny didn’t know if she wanted to continue this conversation, but it seemed to be too late.

  “I remember one story,” Gert began. “A story my mother told me about Polly Wikiapi.”

  Echo and Misty sat down on the sofa now, as if waiting to hear this story.

  “Polly Wikiapi had a baby girl—your grandmother, Mary Sunrise—the year after Jackson Sundown came to the 1911 Round-Up.”

  Sunny’s cheeks grew warm now. She considered stopping Gert, but she really wanted to hear this.

  “Polly Wikiapi told everyone that the baby was Jackson Sundown’s.”

  “Jackson Sundown?” exclaimed Echo.

  “That’s right.” Gert nodded. “Polly said Jackson Sundown was the father of Mary Sunrise.”

  “Was he?” asked Misty.

  Gert shrugged. “How would anyone know?”

  “But if he was”—Echo gazed at Sunny with wide eyes—“that would make you Jackson Sundown’s, uh, granddaughter?”

  “Great-granddaughter,” Sunny told her. “I mean, if it were true.” “It’s not true?” Echo looked disappointed.

  Sunny held up her hands. “Well, no one knows for sure.”

  “But it could be true?” Echo was standing now.

  “That is so cool,” Misty said with excitement. “You could be Jackson Sundown’s great-granddaughter. Do you know how cool that is?”

  “It would be very cool,” Sunny admitted. “Except that I don’t know it’s true.”

  “What do you think, Grandma?” Misty asked Gert hopefully. “Is it true or not?”

  Gert shrugged again. “Some people thought Polly Wikiapi was crazy.”

  “Is that what your mother thought?” asked Sunny.

  Gert got a faraway look in her eyes. “My mother believed Polly Wikiapi’s story.”

  Sunny was too stunned to respond. She just stared at Gert and wondered if she’d heard her correctly.

  “So maybe it is true?” Misty turned to Sunny with arched brows. “Do you think it’s true?”

  “Of course it’s true,” Echo proclaimed. “It makes perfect sense.” Sunny couldn’t help but smile at this youthful confidence. “Why is that?” she asked Echo.

  “The first time you got on a horse,” Echo told her, “you acted like you’d been riding for years. You were a total natural. This explains everything.”

  “And Jackson Sundown was the greatest horseman ever,” declared Misty. “You have to be his great-granddaughter. Oh, I can’t wait to tell everyone.”

  And before Sunny could say a word, Misty dashed from the room yelling, “Let ‘er buck!”

  “Echo,” Sunny said quietly, “we don’t know this for sure.” “Woo-hoo!” Echo cried out. “This is so cool. Let ‘er buck!” she cried as she took off after Misty.

  “Oh, dear.” Sunny just sat there.

  “What is wrong?” Gert asked.

  “I don’t know if it’s true,” Sunny confessed. “I hate having this spread around and it’s not even a fact.”

  Gert looked dismayed. “Jackson Sundown was a fine man.”

  “I know that.”

  Gert pointed her finger at Sunny with a somber expression. “You should be proud.”

  Sunny wanted to be proud. She really did. But all she could think of was how foolish she might look in the eyes of others—those who would surely doubt this farfetched tale. Worse yet, those who would see this as Sunny’s attempt to gain recognition or attention here on the reservation. Nothing could be further from the truth.

  Chapter Seventeen

  “Is it true?” Cody asked Sunny as she went outside for some fresh air.

  “So you’ve heard?” Sunny frowned.

  “Everyone heard. But is it true?”

  She shrugged. “Who knows what’s really true?”

  “Of course it’s true,” Hank said as he came up from behind his son.

  Sunny gave him a warning look.

  “Why wouldn’t it be true?” he persisted. “You’ve got the photos and memorabilia. Your great-grandmother named her child Sunrise. The birth date lines up. I’d be willing to bet it’s the truth.”

  Soon others were clustering around her, treating her like she was some kind of a celebrity, and a couple of the younger guests even took photos with their cell phones. While a small part of her enjoy
ed this attention, another part of her wanted to shove it all away.

  When it was time to eat, she found herself surrounded by Misty and Echo and several other young people. All eagerly asked her questions, most of which she had to admit she didn’t have the answers to. Not that it stopped them. Her most eager admirer seemed to be a teenaged boy named Jackson.

  “Jackson was named for Jackson Sundown,” Echo told her. “His dad was my dad’s best friend.”

  Just then Sunny remembered. “Was your dad Larry?”

  Jackson nodded.

  “Hank told me about him. He must’ve been quite a guy.”

  “Yeah.” Jackson looked down at his plate.

  “Jackson is a really good horseman too,” Echo told her.

  Jackson looked up now, a slow smile lighting his face. “I’m going to be in the Indian relays when I’m sixteen.”

  “The Indian relays?” Sunny was curious. “What’s that?”

  “It’s this really cool rodeo event,” Echo began.

  “Yeah,” Jackson added, “a race where one rider has to switch horses. You have to be really quick.”

  “You switch horses?” Sunny was trying to grasp this. “In the middle of a race?”

  He nodded eagerly. “Yeah, it’s amazing. Sometimes it goes really smooth and sometimes, well, it doesn’t.”

  “And it’s an event in the rodeo?”

  “Yeah.” He grinned. “You’ll have to make sure you come see it.”

  “I don’t have tickets yet,” Sunny admitted. “But maybe I can—”

  “No way,” said Misty. “If you don’t have tickets by now, there’s no way. The hundredth celebration has been sold out for ages.”

  “My grandpa always has extra tickets,” Echo assured her. “Don’t worry, we’ll get you one.”

  Then the talk switched over the Dress-Up Parade and, to Sunny’s relief, she was out of the spotlight. She listened to the youths chattering amongst themselves and suddenly realized that she felt like she was sitting at the kids’ table. And while it was amusing, she would much rather be sitting with Cody and Hank. Or even her cousin Bill, whom she’d barely met. She glanced across the yard where chairs and tables were randomly placed and noticed that Cody was sitting at a small table with an attractive Native American woman and Bill and Ellie. The foursome chatted amicably as if they were old friends. And, as much as she hated it, Sunny felt an unexpected jolt of jealousy.

  She blinked and looked away, wondering what had brought that on. She tried to convince herself she was simply feeling slighted because she wished she was the one visiting with Bill and Ellie. But she suspected that was only a partial truth.

  “Hey, you should wear something in the parade tomorrow,” Jackson was telling Sunny, “that shows you’re Jackson Sundown’s great-granddaughter.”

  “Yeah,” Echo agreed. “And maybe we can ride with Jackson—he’s dressing up like Jackson Sundown.”

  “Really?” Sunny smiled. “That should be interesting.”

  “Yeah, I got the spotted shirt and chaps and everything,” he said with enthusiasm. “It’d be really cool if we could all ride together.”

  And then he and Echo were plotting how they could accomplish this and where they would meet. Realizing this was her chance to slip away, Sunny excused herself, dumped her plate, and went around to the front of the house, where she sat on the porch and just wondered. She felt like she was on a runaway horse tonight. Or like someone had set a wildfire, and there was no stopping it. She looked out to the western horizon, where the sun was sinking low in the sky and ripples of pink and red slowly began to glow.

  “Jackson Sundown,” she said quietly, “I wish you could pop down here for a minute or two and clear this thing up for me.” She sighed. “Are you my great-grandfather or not?”

  Of course, there was no answer. And she was guessing there never would be an answer. She slowly stood, knowing she wasn’t being a very polite guest to be hiding out like this. If she hadn’t promised to give Echo a ride back, she would simply have thanked her hosts, excused herself, and driven back to the Lowenstein ranch by now. As it was, she’d probably need to stay awhile longer.

  Just smile, she told herself as she walked back around. Act like you’re having a great time. And if you see Cody with that woman, act like you could care less. So what if she felt like a fake? After all, here she was, masquerading as Jackson Sundown’s great-granddaughter. How much more of a phony could she be?

  “There you are,” Echo said as she spotted Sunny. “Bill was looking for you.”

  “Oh.” Sunny smiled brightly. “Where is he?”

  Echo pointed to where he was still sitting with his wife and Cody, as well as the petite, pretty woman Sunny was desperately trying not to dislike. “Come on.” Echo tugged on her arm. “He wants to ask you about Jackson Sundown.”

  Sunny suppressed the urge to groan as she let Echo lead her over to the table.

  “Here she is,” Echo proclaimed.

  “Take my chair,” Cody offered, and before she could decline, she was seated.

  “Hey, cousin,” Bill said to her. “I hear there’s a rumor going ‘round that you’re Jackson Sundown’s granddaughter.”

  “Great-granddaughter,” Echo corrected.

  He grinned. “So, is it true or not?”

  Sunny held up her hands in exasperation. “Ask your mother. She’s the one who got this whole thing started tonight.”

  “So it’s the first you’ve heard of this?” he questioned.

  “To be honest, it’s not.” She sighed. Then, as Cody returned with another chair to join them, Sunny explained to Bill about her recent findings and some of her childhood memories. “But it’s not a lot to go on, and I honestly never planned to tell anyone without real evidence.”

  “Real evidence?” Bill frowned. “Like what?”

  She shrugged. “I don’t know.”

  “Well, I must say, my son is totally enamored with you,” the strange woman announced. “You are all he’s been talking about.”

  Sunny looked evenly at this woman. She was undeniably pretty. Her sleek dark hair was cut in a fashionable bob, and her perfect clothes and makeup suggested she worked someplace where appearances were important. “I’m sorry,” Sunny said. “I don’t believe we’ve met.”

  “Oh, I’m so sorry,” Ellie said suddenly. “Sunny Westcott, this is Trina Strong Horse.”

  “Trina is Jackson’s mom,” Echo explained.

  Sunny nodded with realization sinking in. So this was Cody’s best friend’s widow. Of course. It made perfect sense. Hank had said Trina was almost like family. It was only natural that Cody would be with her.

  “And Jackson was just over here telling me that you and Echo are going to ride with him in the parade tomorrow.” Trina smiled. “He couldn’t be happier.”

  Sunny smiled back. “Yes, I think it’s going to be quite a day.” She glanced at Echo now. “Speaking of the parade, do you think we should be heading back to the ranch? I mean, if we’re still having that slumber party, we might not want to stay up too late if we have to get up early for—”

  “Yes,” Echo said eagerly. “You’re right.” She leaned down and kissed her dad on the cheek. Good-byes were said, and to Sunny’s relief, she and Echo were on their way.

  Echo chattered happily about the Jackson Sundown news and about how fun it would be to have Jackson Strong Horse with them in the parade tomorrow. “It’s going to be the best Dress-Up Parade ever,” she proclaimed as Sunny parked her car in front of the bunkhouse.

  “Looks like Aubrey is home,” Sunny said as they got out. “I left her a note about our slumber party plans.”

  “And I brought movies and popcorn for us,” Echo told her.

  “Let the fun begin,” Sunny announced as she opened the door.

  “Let ‘er buck!” Echo exclaimed as they entered the bunkhouse.

  “That’s right,” Aubrey whooped, “let ‘er buck, cowgirls!”

  With pajamas o
n and popcorn popped, they started the first movie, an old western, but midway through Aubrey suggested that Echo and Sunny should try on their Dress-Up Parade outfits. “It’ll be like a dress rehearsal,” she urged them. But as Sunny gathered her clothes and things to change, she realized her split skirt was missing.

  “It’s probably still in Grandma’s sewing room,” Echo said. “Run over and get it.”

  “I’m in my pajamas.” Sunny wrinkled her nose. “I’ll get it in the morning.”

  “But you need to try everything on tonight,” Echo insisted.

  “It’s okay,” Aubrey assured Sunny. “Mom and Dad aren’t even home.”

  “Okay.” Sunny wrapped a blanket over her shoulders and headed out into the darkness. Letting herself into the still house, she quietly went to the sewing room and found the altered split skirt, but on her way down the hall, she noticed a light on in the pink memorial bedroom. Naturally frugal about conserving electricity, she went in to turn off the light, but instead of turning it off, she stood there looking at the cowgirl memorabilia and old photos of Lenora. What was she really like? And why did it matter so much to Sunny? She picked up the framed close-up photo of Lenora wearing her Round-Up princess outfit and stared at it. Those fluffy blond curls, a sweet sparkling smile, big blue eyes…she must’ve turned a lot of heads. No wonder Cody had fallen in love with her.

  For some reason, Sunny found herself comparing Lenora to the woman she’d met tonight, the one Cody had been engaged in conversation with. Trina Strong Horse. Of course, Trina, being Native American, was darker and different looking than Lenora. Yet there were similarities too. Both women possessed a beauty, style, and poise, a similar sense of self-assurance—all giving the impression that both were perfectly comfortable in their own skin, confident in themselves, and pleased with their position in life. So unlike Sunny. Why wouldn’t Cody be attracted to someone like Trina? Plus, she had been his best friend’s wife. They were already close—like family.

  “What are you doing in here?”

  The deep male voice made Sunny almost drop the framed photograph. But instead, with trembling hands, she set it back on the dresser and turned to see Aubrey’s father staring at her with suspicion.