Sacred Terrain (Traveled Hearts Series Book 2)

by Veronica Mahara

  She hunched behind a great northern pine. Her breathing was labored, and blood trickled down her face. She waited.

  Shaking with fright, she slumped down on the moss-filled base of the tree. It was cool, and she resisted the urge to wipe her hand on it. They would see her blood. With the sun’s position as her guide, she resumed her escape through the thick forest. Scurrying like a crab on a beach, she stealthily moved her body along the floor of the forest, traveling as fast as she could, her basket bobbing at her side. She refused to let herself be captured.

  A woman laughed. Jessica froze. She listened through the sound of blood surging like the ocean loud in her head. The laugh got nearer. Calculating the risk, she slowly moved in the opposite direction. A twig snapped under her foot, and she dropped to the ground.

  “Where are you?” It was Lea’s voice.

  Jessica did not answer. Lea asked again. She stilled herself, her breathing shallow. A rustle of underbrush and Lea was upon her.

  “You hurt?” she asked.

  Jessica slowly stood. “I tripped.”

  Lea laughed as she removed twigs and leaves from Jessica’s plaited hair.

  Smiling at the Indian woman, she told her she was gathering mushrooms and to go on back to the camp without her.

  “No. You are bleeding. I cannot leave you. I get in big trouble.”

  With a deep sigh, Jessica followed Lea back to camp. To her surprise, she had gone in a circle and would have ended up back there herself. Her poor navigational skills deepened her fear of never finding her way home.

  Chapter Thirty-seven

  Sunlight filtered through the forest as Will and Jacob rode the trail along the Sacramento River. The midmorning air smelled of the change in season—fresh and slightly cool. Sparkles of light could be seen in the distance as the sun played on the water. As they rode, Jacob caught a whiff of burnt wood. They followed the scent and soon came upon an Indian camp. Staying out of sight, they looked it over. The huts were roughly put together with branches, thatched grass, and animal hides. The fire was barely visible. Women sat around it with long sticks. The roasting of meat settled in Jacob’s nose and churned the acid in his empty stomach.

  Stilling his horse, he looked at Will. “What do you think?”

  “The runaways, I reckon. Might as well let them be. Looks as if they don’t have much.”

  They turned their horses away and headed in another direction. They didn’t go far when out of the woods came a young Indian woman. She looked at them with a startled expression, her black eyes wide and her mouth open. Dropping the basket in her arms and spilling berries on the forest floor, she ran to the camp, her voice clear with warning.

  Will and Jacob decided to follow her rather than have the Indians come after them.

  ~

  Approaching with caution, but with an air of confidence, Will dismounted and led his horse, and the packhorse, into camp. Jacob followed on Otis.

  “We come peacefully,” Will announced to the gathering of women around a firepit. The young woman who had spied them peeked out from behind the skirt of an older woman.

  A tall Indian came from behind one of the huts, a rifle at his side. He came forward. “What do you want?”

  “I’m Will. This is my cousin Jacob. We’re traders. You are?”

  The Indian waved his hand to dismiss the question.

  “We have things to sell that you might need. Cash only,” Will informed him.

  “Traders? We have no use for you.” He gestured for them to be on their way.

  “You might want to look at what we have. It may save you a trip up north.”

  The man stopped and turned to face Will. “Who tells you we go up north?”

  Jacob held his breath. He knew Will had to tread lightly. “We’ve heard rumors, that’s all.”

  The Indian yelped, and the piercing cry echoed throughout the forest.

  Soon the cousins were surrounded. Some men drew their loaded bows, and several of the men had rifles. They motioned for Jacob to dismount, and he came to stand with his cousin. Without daring to make a move, the cousins watched helplessly as one of the Indians took the packhorse, leading it toward their own stand of horses.

  “Give us your money,” the Indian commanded.

  Jacob let Will do the negotiating. “We need our money and you need our silence. You’ll have to kill us to get both,” he said. It was not what Jacob wanted to hear. He hoped Will knew what he was doing.

  “We will kill you!” a squatty Indian shouted as he came forward to stand by the tall one.

  “Let us keep our lives and we’ll keep your secret. We have no business with the government.”

  Jacob raised his hand. “I have money in my pocket.” The tall Indian nodded, and Jacob slowly and carefully reached into his pocket and brought out several worn bills. “Here, this is all we have. Take it and let us be on our way. We wish you no harm.”

  The squatty Indian went over to Jacob and snatched the money from him, then stepped back.

  The women had retreated to the huts, and Jacob could hear their feminine voices in the silence of the standoff. Suddenly, a commotion from one of the huts nearly broke its structure. A woman burst from the flap, flinging herself onto the ground. Everyone turned to see her rise up and run to them, shouting, “Help me! Please, help me!”

  The tall Indian stopped her, grabbing her arm as she wrestled to break free.

  The woman’s face struck a chord of familiarity with Jacob. Her hair hung in two braids down her chest, her skin browned by the sun, yet Jacob saw in her someone he knew. Weapons still pointed at them, Will and Jacob moved toward the woman but the men closed in. Peering between them, Jacob saw her being dragged back to the hut. Her pleading shouts grew stronger, moving him to take action.

  He drew his gun and cocked it, pointing it at the tall Indian. Before he could make his threat, arrows flew and gunshots ricocheted. Within a fraction of a minute, Jacob was pinned to the ground, his gun hot in his hand. A mighty force from the squatty Indian made it impossible to move his arm and make use of his weapon. Will was taken against a tree and held by several men, while another pointed a gun at his face. Then a command from the tall Indian and the action stopped.

  The cousins stood side by side, still in the site of an Indian with a rifle. The tension was thick. The tall Indian waved the others away. The men in camp gathered and watched. Some retrieved arrows, and others assessed themselves for wounds. One man lie on his side, holding a bloody arm. A woman helped to stop the bleeding. As far as Jacob could see, the skirmish had resulted in no deaths, only a few injuries. He himself was bleeding from his shoulder, but it was only a flesh wound. Will was roughed up but nothing greater than that. Jacob straightened his coat and addressed the tall Indian. “Who is that woman? Why do you have her here?”

  “Do not kill them!” The woman was back. She fell to the ground and pleaded at the feet of the tall Indian. The sight moved Jacob.

  The woman rose, her eyes penetrating deep into Jacob’s. A moment of recognition ignited a burning in his chest. “What is your name?” He knew what the answer was, yet he couldn’t believe what he saw.

  “I’m Jessica. It’s me, Jacob. Will, it’s me! You found me!” She reached out to him and he took her hand. Blue Heron stepped between them and yanked her back.

  Will let out an audible breath. “Jessica, my God!”

  Turning to Blue Heron, Jessica trembled and sought his eyes. “My kin, my family. They found me. Please let me go with them. We will go and tell no one about you. Please, Blue Heron, let us leave in peace.”

  With a grunt, Blue Heron took her arm. “Go to Lea.”

  ~

  Stepping back from her brother and cousin, she turned and reluctantly walked away from them. Her nightmare was over. Blue Heron would have to concede. Sitting in the hut, she cried tears of joy. Lea and Cara were there. “Those men look dreadful. They can’t be your kin,” Cara said. “I wouldn’t go with them. Stay with us.”
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  Jessica looked at her through watery eyes. “They’re the best site I’ve ever seen.”

  ~

  The slow, deliberate negotiations went on for hours. Sitting around the small fire, a pipe was passed between Blue Heron, the squatty Indian, Mallow, Will, and Jacob. Some dried meat was offered. Will was agitated and Jacob became restless. He couldn’t believe Jessica was so near and in such a bad situation. So many questions needed answers, yet Blue Heron offered very little. They would not leave without Jessica, and Blue Heron was reluctant to let her go. Finally, the Indian spoke the words that would seal their deal. “We take your horse with pack, you give us all your money and leave us to our life. If we know you have sent the government, we will find a way to repay your disrespect.” He looked over at the hut where Jessica sat within.

  Tired and hungry, Jacob nodded in agreement. Will did the same. “We must take Jessica with us,” Jacob said.

  For a moment, Jacob didn’t know how he and Will would take her by force, but he was willing to do anything to get her out of there. Blue Heron sat, staring at the fire. It seemed like hours instead of minutes when he stood. The rest of them followed.

  “Take her.”

  Jacob went to the hut and removed Jessica from it. She wrapped her arms around his neck and sobbed. “Take me home.” His heart lurched, and his eyes stung with the salt of his tears. There was still so much to learn about what happened, but first they had to get far away from the Indian camp.

  Part Three

  Chapter Thirty-eight

  Riding as far from the Indians as their horses were able to, they made camp at nightfall. Jacob made a note to himself to find a blacksmith to reshoe his horse. Both Otis and Drake had been driven hard, and it was time to find a town for their care before heading to their next destination. It was hardly in the forefront of his thoughts, but with their extra passenger, he knew they needed to make sure the horses were well cared for. This remarkable turn of events had him thinking in a different direction. He took it as a sign that his days of trading and trails had come to an end and being with Jessica was his future. The details would have to be worked out. He didn’t care. He wanted her more than he ever had.

  ~

  Tall cedars and pines surrounded their camp, and thick undergrowth covered the small clearing. Interspersed alder trees noted the change of season with their leaves a variety of yellow shades. A smear of reddish orange ran across the sky. Jessica looked upon the canvas of color and her heart swelled. But for the wind creating a swishing sound among the trees, a quiet fell upon the land as creatures bedded down in holes and burrows, trees and underbrush.

  Jacob crouched and teased a gathering of sticks into a small fire while Will counted what was left of their money. Jessica sat off to the side in awe of her rescue. The event played over in her head. One wrong move and her cousin and brother might have been killed. Mallow had been ready to take their lives as soon as he heard white travelers were near the camp. She would have gone with anyone. Having it be Jacob and Will gave her the notion that Caleb and the family had been searching all this time, and they were the ones to find her. Could Caleb be far behind? The thought both thrilled and disturbed her—Jacob and Caleb face-to-face. Jessica looked up at her brother, who was speaking to Jacob. She heard him say, “Jake, we don’t have a whole lot left.” She turned her back and listened.

  ~

  Will placed the money back into a pouch strapped to his stomach. He ran his hand over his light- brown mustache and beard. Crouching down beside his cousin, he said in a quiet voice, “I have a confession, but given our circumstances, it’s good news.”

  Jacob didn’t like the sound of that and swiveled to face his cousin.

  “Don’t give me that look, Jake. Listen, I have money … and rifles, too. I left them up in Medford. Sorry I didn’t tell you about it. I guess I thought if I returned someday for Mi, we would have resources, her and I and the baby, if she had waited.”

  Jacob stood. “Is that so? Medford? Why did you hold out on me? After all we’ve been through together? For a woman? A woman who gave up on you?” Jacob’s anger boiled over.

  Will spoke over Jacob. “The Indians would have taken it. It’s safe up north.”

  Turning his back on his cousin, Jacob squatted in front of the fire. “We have to ride up there and get it,” he said bitterly. He let out a breath. “I suppose I should be grateful.”

  Will turned from the growing breeze to light a cigarette. He blew the smoke from his lungs. “Yeah, you’re damn right you should.”

  Jessica turned to them. “Where do you need to go?”

  “Nothing. Don’t worry about it for now,” Jacob answered. “Rest.” He laid a thick blanket on the ground and brought another to cover her. She didn’t argue, and soon he saw she was asleep. Her face dirty and smeared with blood, she was still so beautiful to him. His heart wrenched.

  ~

  Jessica woke on a blanket, her body wrapped in another, a soft pack under her head. The ground beneath her was hard and damp and she was hungry. Sitting up with a jerk, she looked wildly around her. Where was Blue Heron? Where was the tribe? Then she remembered. Clutching her stomach, she cried out. Jacob and Will were by her side. She wept into Jacob’s coat and held on to him, begging God to let this be real. Fully awake now, she composed herself, wiping the wet grit from her face. She offered Jacob a weak smile. “I’ll be fine. Now that I’m with you and Will, I’ll be fine.”

  “We’d planned to ride today. Are you up to that?” Jacob asked. “If not, I think we will manage another night here.”

  Panic rose in her. She needed to keep going. “It’s a good day to ride. How far are we from Clermont City? How far from the Indian camp?”

  Will scratched his head and looked at the ground. “Several days’ ride, I’m afraid, and don’t worry about the Indian camp.” He peered at Jacob. “We should let her know, Jake.”

  “Let me know what?”

  Will turned to his sister. “We have to go to Medford, a town in Oregon. It’s practically on the border, give or take a few miles. We have resources up there we need to claim. The Indians took most of our things.”

  Jessica had another plan. They could take her to a train station. They could telegraph Caleb, and he would come get her. Before she could verbalize any of it, Jacob stood.

  “Jess, it won’t take too long, then we can ride to Clermont City, all three of us together. I can’t—we can’t—let you go off on your own. It’s too dangerous and you’re in no shape.”

  Jessica raised her body from the ground, suppressing a moan of pain. “I’m strong enough.” She swayed and Jacob caught her.

  “Then it’s settled,” Will said. “I’ll send word to the family that you’re safe with us, and we will return in a few weeks.”

  Conceding, she smiled at her brother as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

  Where had her strength gone? So determined was she to escape, she would have crawled home through the forest among the wild animals. Now she felt weak and tired. Her mind could not spin any more plans. Settling back on the blanket, she watched her brother restore the fire. “I’ll get us a rabbit later today,” he said, “but first, coffee. I think we have a bag.” Jessica looked over at Jacob pulling a small pouch out of his pack. He held it up in triumph. She gave a chuckle.

  A lump formed in her throat and her eyes misted. When would she sit with her aunt and a good cup of tea again? She could almost taste her aunt’s scones. Thoughts of home she dared not dwell on when she was captive came swarming into her mind. Wiping her eyes, she came back to the present. “Are you sure we are far enough away from Blue Heron and … Mallow? Maybe we should ride today.”

  “Nah, they won’t bother us. They took what they wanted. I doubt we’re heading in the same direction anyway,” Will explained. This calmed her, but her body was ready to move within a second’s notice.

  After her share of coffee, hardtack, and a handful of berries, the men prompted her to t
ell her story. Where to start? How would she explain her new life to Jacob without hurting him? A cold wind passed through, and she gathered the blanket around her.

  Without mentioning her new husband, she began when she was taken from the Rail River. After she finished, they remained silent. She could see they were trying to make sense of her story.

  Jacob was the first to speak. “My God, Jess, I don’t know what to say. I mean, are you well? Beside what we can see, are you well? Were you?”

  Will looked at her with the same question written on his face.

  “Yes, I think I’ll recover. My body hurts all over, and I haven’t slept well, but I wasn’t taken advantage of in the way you might be thinking. I did what would be expected of a wife”—she lowered her head—“to survive.” She hoped they caught her meaning without having to go into detail.

  Will cleared his throat and Jacob looked away.

  She continued. “Mallow had it in for me. As you saw, he was the hardest of them all.”

  Will slapped the ground. “Those sons of bitches! I have a mind to—”

  “Settle down, Will. Nothing we can do,” Jacob said.

  Her brother flung questions and comments at her without waiting for answers.

  Jacob stopped him. “Will, let her tell us in her own way.”

  Waiting for Will to calm down, Jessica recounted her experience.

  “I still don’t understand what their motive was. Do you, Jess?” Jacob stared at her, and she felt his look penetrate through her. She hesitated. What did she know? Her husband might be some bandit the law is after, and she was taken for ransom by the Indians a scout hired? This couldn’t be the whole story, and she wouldn’t let anyone think wrongly of Caleb.