Savage Hero Page 20

  Love knows nothing of order.

  —Saint Jerome

  The morning air was filled with a hazy fog, making it almost impossible to see a foot ahead of them as the soldiers and Crow warriors rode toward Fort Henry.

  Mary Beth felt proud to be a part of the group. She had feared that when it came down to the final decision, Brave Wolf would not allow it.

  But he had seen the pleading in her eyes and had heard the longing in her voice when she explained how she wanted a role in the demise of Colonel Downing.

  It was not because of anything he had done to her personally, because he had actually wanted what was best for her. But it was the venom she had heard in his voice when he was plotting against Brave Wolf. The colonel wanted to kill as many Indians as he could with the manpower of his soldiers.

  At heart, he was a vicious, prejudiced man.

  She still could not understand how he had been given back his command after being arrested for attacking an innocent Crow village.

  Only last night she had learned from Colonel Anderson that Colonel Downing had been reinstated because he had relatives in Washington who had spoken up for him.

  As the morning sun broke through the fog, Mary Beth jumped with alarm when far to her left a large herd of elk were startled, their sharp hooves stirring a swirling cloud of dust, their white rumps looking like war bonnets.

  Then Mary Beth looked behind her and saw the many soldiers who rode side by side with the warriors. She felt goosebumps rising on her arms to see their camaraderie . . . to see the soldiers and the warriors together in such force . . . as allies. She could not help wondering why it couldn’t be that way with all whites and Indians. Then there would be no more bloodshed between them.

  She gazed ahead again, and sighed when she saw what seemed to be a dreamland. The sun slanted through the trees at her left side, where the meadow reached into a forest of mixed aspens and cottonwoods. Growing there were the same wildflowers that she had been plucking when Brave Wolf rescued her from Colonel Downing.

  She glanced over at Brave Wolf, who was just now telling Colonel Anderson about where he had left Colonel Downing.

  She drew a tight rein when Brave Wolf and Colonel Anderson stopped, a command being sent behind them which stopped all the warriors and soldiers.

  “We shall go and see if he is still there. If so, our chore will be much easier,” Brave Wolf said, dismounting. He gazed at Colonel Anderson as he swung himself out of his saddle, then looked over at Mary Beth. “Come. I know you also want to see what Colonel Downing’s fate is.”

  “Thank you,” Mary Beth said, sliding into his hands as he reached up to help her from the saddle. She glanced nervously into the thickness of the forest, then into Brave Wolf’s eyes. “Do you think he is still there, or do you think he’s been rescued and is even now at Fort Henry plotting against you?”

  Brave Wolf dropped to his haunches and studied the ground around him, then looked ahead at the grass that grew up to the lovely meadow of flowers.

  He ran a hand over the grass and ground, then glanced up at Mary Beth, and then at Colonel Anderson. “I see no sign of many horses coming through here, which there would be if a search party had come this way,” he said. “It is my guess that he is still there.”

  “What a surprise he will get when he sees us returning, and not alone, but with Colonel Anderson,” Mary Beth said, smiling. She turned to Colonel Anderson. “I’m so glad that you realize the depth of this man’s prejudices and are ready to see that he is relieved of his duties forever, not only for a short while.”

  “Yes, it will delight me to do this,” Colonel Anderson said, his jaw tight. His eyes narrowed angrily. “Just let this sonofabitch’s relatives in Washington try and save him this time. I shall go to Washington myself if need be, to speak against him and his relatives.”

  “Come. Let us go now and get the man,” Brave Wolf said, standing and resting his hand on his sheathed knife. “I am the one who tied him. I shall be the one to set him free.”

  “But not to true freedom,” Mary Beth said, wading through the tall grass and knee-high ferns. “He deserves what he will get, and perhaps even worse.”

  They walked silently onward, and when they came to a break in the trees, where they could see the tree to which they had tied the colonel, Mary Beth gasped and went pale.

  “He is gone,” she said, her voice breaking. “Someone did come and find him. Oh, Lord, how long has he been gone? Is it enough time that he has gotten his soldiers ready to attack?”

  She turned to Brave Wolf and grabbed him by the arm. “Could he have gone a different route and already arrived at your village, Brave Wolf?” she gasped out.

  Brave Wolf saw the fear in her eyes.

  He placed a gentle hand on her cheek. “Do not let fear of the unknown do this to you,” he said quietly. “Let us go and see if we can discover how he escaped. Then we can decide our next step.”

  Mary Beth nodded.

  She gazed over at the colonel, whose eyes were filled with the same fire she saw in Brave Wolf’s, then walked on between them until they reached the tree where they had last seen Colonel Downing.

  All that was left of his captivity were the pieces of his wife’s dress that had been used to tie him to the tree.

  Brave Wolf bent to his haunches and picked up one of the strips. He studied it, then handed it up to Colonel Anderson. “No knife was used to cut these. It is not a clean cut,” he said, reaching for a sharp rock that lay close to the trunk of the tree. “No. He did not use a knife, nor did anyone else use one to release him. He somehow managed to get this sharp rock close enough to cut the cloth in two.”

  “I wonder when,” Mary Beth said, looking guardedly from side to side. “He might still be near, watching us.”

  Brave Wolf studied the ground. “Blood,” he said. “There is blood here.”

  “What could it mean?” Mary Beth gasped, paling at the sight of the blood.

  Brave Wolf gave her a quiet look, then studied everything around him again. He noticed crushed leaves and bent grass which had not been damaged by him, Mary Beth, or Colonel Anderson. He could tell that whoever had stepped there was going away from the tree, not toward it.

  He stood and looked at the trail the colonel had left. He began stealthily following it and saw more drops of blood.

  Mary Beth hurried up next to him, with Colonel Anderson soon at her other side. “What do you see?” she asked, trying to see what Brave Wolf was following. She shivered at the sight of more blood.

  “I have always been skilled at tracking,” he said, glancing up at Mary Beth for a moment, then studying the path again. “Colonel Downing walked where we are now walking. But do you see? He did not walk in a straight line. He seemed to be staggering.”

  “From weakness? Or from having been harmed by an animal?” Mary Beth asked, shivering.

  “From weakness would be my guess,” Brave Wolf said, then walked to the edge of the forest, where the trail of blood led out into the beautiful wild-flowers. There he lost it because the flowers were too thick to see through to the ground. But he did see in which direction some were bent. That was where the colonel had surely walked.

  “We shall make better time on horses,” Brave Wolf said, turning to hurry to his steed.

  Mary Beth ran to keep up with him and was soon on her horse, riding between Brave Wolf and Colonel Anderson, with the contingent of soldiers and warriors following close at hand.

  “There he is!” Mary Beth cried, catching sight of someone just pushing himself up from the covering of flowers. “He surely fell there and was resting before moving onward. He had to have heard the approaching horses. See how he teeters even now as he tries to stumble back away from us? He is trying to run. Now he is falling again!”

  They hurried onward and when they reached the colonel, found a pitiful sight. He lay where he’d fallen, his clothes in shreds, his eyes swollen and red. He cowered as Brave Wolf and Colonel Anderson dismou
nted and went to stand over him.

  “Don’t hurt me,” Colonel Downing cried. “Just help me. Please . . . help . . . me.”

  Mary Beth dismounted and went to stand beside Colonel Anderson as Brave Wolf knelt down beside Colonel Downing. She gasped and covered her mouth with a hand when she saw his bloody leg, where it was obvious that he’d been bitten.

  “Coyotes came,” Colonel Downing sobbed as he gazed down at his swollen leg. “They surrounded me. They attacked. But thank God, only one actually bit me. Then they left.”

  Colonel Anderson went and knelt down beside the ailing colonel. Together, he and Brave Wolf got Colonel Downing to his feet, then helped him to Mary Beth’s horse and into the saddle.

  After he was there, he leaned low and clung to the pommel. “Thank you,” he breathed out. “Thank you, thank you . . .”

  Brave Wolf handed the man the reins, then went back to Mary Beth. “You can ride with me,” he said. “I could not make him walk to the fort. Not in his condition.”

  “I understand,” Mary Beth said, already knowing the depth of his goodness, even toward an avowed enemy.

  She went with him. He lifted her onto his horse, then positioned himself behind her as Colonel Anderson mounted and edged his horse closer to Brave Wolf’s. “Now what should the plan be?” he asked. “Finding him like this changes things somewhat.”

  “You have trusted soldiers who work as scouts, do you not?” Brave Wolf asked, looking over his shoulder at the soldiers.

  “Yes. What are you suggesting?” Colonel Anderson asked.

  “As I see it, Colonel Downing is the only one who is at fault here,” Brave Wolf said tightly. “The soldiers under his command only did as he told them. If they plotted to attack us Crow, it was under his orders.”

  “Yes, Brave Wolf, from what I heard, Colonel Downing was the main one who wanted to attack you and your people,” Mary Beth said solemnly. “The others joined, but none sounded as eager as the colonel. They were being egged on. What else could they do but agree?”

  “Knowing that, Colonel Anderson, I would suggest you send two of your most trusted soldiers on to Fort Henry and tell them what has transpired. Let us alert them that we are coming with their colonel, and that he is wounded,” Brave Wolf said.

  Colonel Anderson nodded. “That is a very good plan and I will do as you suggest,” he said. He wheeled his horse around and moved among his soldiers, as Brave Wolf moved among his warriors, each telling his men of the new plan.

  Mary Beth stared at Colonel Downing, who still sat slumped over in the saddle, sliding an occasional downcast look her way. She didn’t trust him at all.

  Brave Wolf came back to Mary Beth. He watched the two soldier scouts ride off at a hard gallop toward the fort, then reached over and took Mary Beth’s hands. “We will wait for the soldiers’ return,” he said. “Then it will be safe to go on. We will stay at the fort for only as long as it takes to see that Washington is informed of the colonel’s plans to attack Indians, contrary to his orders. Then we will return home and begin another search for your son, for it would make everything perfect if he could be there to join us for the wedding celebration.”

  “It would be wonderful,” Mary Beth said, trying to make out the fort in the distance. She wondered if the sentries had noticed the large contingent of soldiers and warriors so close at hand.

  Her heart pounded as she sat there, her eyes watching for the return of the two soldiers. When she finally saw them riding back, her eyes grew wide when she saw how many soldiers from the fort were accompanying the two scouts. For a moment fear squeezed her heart, but it left again when the soldier scouts under Colonel Anderson’s command arrived with the good news that everyone was welcome at the fort, and that Colonel Downing would be detained in the infirmary until orders came from Washington.

  Colonel Anderson complimented the soldiers, then rode on ahead to meet those others who were still coming toward them.

  Mary Beth watched, wide-eyed, when he reached the soldiers. He was warmly greeted by each soldier.

  “He must know them,” Mary Beth said, giving Brave Wolf a questioning look.

  “Many of them were at one time or another under Colonel Anderson’s command,” Brave Wolf said, smiling. “The colonel only confided that to me this morning. That was one reason I allowed you to come with us. I knew that once the soldiers at Fort Henry discovered Colonel Anderson was playing such a big role in today’s activities, all would go well.”

  Colonel Anderson came back and stopped beside Brave Wolf. “Neither you nor your warriors need go any farther,” he said, reaching a hand over and placing it on Brave Wolf’s shoulder. “I have everything under control.” He smiled at Mary Beth, then grinned at Brave Wolf again. “Go and have a lovely wedding, you two. My only regret is that I shall not be there to celebrate with you. I am going to make it my duty to see that orders come through to deliver Colonel Downing to my fort, where I will put him behind bars.”

  “Thank you for everything,” Mary Beth said. “And . . . sir . . . if ever you run across a five-year-old white child among any Indians you meet, ask him his name. Perhaps you will be the one to find my little David.”

  “I shall spread word among all I know to keep a watch out for him,” Colonel Anderson said, removing his hand from Brave Wolf’s shoulder. He saluted them both, then rode off, his soldiers all riding with him.

  Brave Wolf turned to Mary Beth. “It is done,” he said, smiling broadly. “Now we can put our minds on more important things. Today I will send those warriors who are riding with us in different directions. They will once again search for your son. I shall tell them to return home tomorrow at dawn, though, for I want them to join our celebration of marriage.”

  “Tomorrow,” Mary Beth said, blushing. “Actually? Tomorrow? We will become man and wife?”

  “Hecitu-yelo, yes, tomorrow,” he replied, smiling.

  Mary Beth gazed down at the wildflowers. This time she really did want some for her wedding.

  “May I take the time to pick some flowers?” she asked softly.

  “You do not have to ask permission of me to do anything,” Brave Wolf said, dismounting.

  He held her horse’s reins as she began picking these flowers she loved the most. While she was gathering blossoms, he directed his warriors about the search.

  When she heard a thundering of hoofbeats, Mary Beth stopped and stared at the warriors as they rode in every direction.

  She gazed heavenward and prayed a soft prayer that this time the search would be a successful one.

  Chapter Twenty-eight

  Here are fruits, flowers, leaves and branches.

  And here is my heart which beats only for you.

  —Paul Verlaine

  Mary Beth lay snuggled in Brave Wolf’s arms. She smiled when she thought of what this special day was—her wedding day; then she frowned sadly when she remembered what else the day might mean to her. She might again receive word that her son was nowhere to be found.

  If only the warriors brought him back safe, this day would be doubly blessed.

  But if they didn’t, she would count her blessings for having found Brave Wolf, and let that happiness wipe away as much sorrow as possible.

  She ran a slow hand over Brave Wolf’s soft, copper skin; his back was so smooth and hairless, so beautiful. She was naked as well and scooted even closer to him so that she could feel the heat of his skin against hers. The lodge fire had burned down to low, glowing embers.

  Each day brought cooler temperatures. Soon snow would fall, blanketing everything with its wondrous white. It seemed impossible that when that snow fell she would be wife to a powerful Crow chief, preparing his meals, sewing his moccasins, and being everything to him that he wished her to be.

  She would show him how to make angels in the snow, lying full length in it and moving her arms so they left the impression of wings.

  She would encourage snowball fights like the ones she’d shared with her son whe
n he was old enough to walk out into the snow and make snowmen and snowballs alongside her.

  “What are you thinking so hard about?” Brave Wolf asked as he turned to gaze into her eyes.

  “How did you know I was thinking about anything?” she asked, always marveling at his astuteness. “I thought you were asleep.”

  “I was until only moments ago,” he said, brushing fallen locks of hair back from her eyes. “When I awakened and felt your body against mine, I became aware that your breathing had slowed. I knew that was because you were in deep thought about something.”

  “Snow,” Mary Beth said, running a hand over his muscled, hairless chest. “I was recalling times with my son in the snow. He loved snow. He loved helping me make snowmen.”

  “Snowmen?” Brave Wolf said, cocking an eyebrow. “How can men be made of snow? How would you make one?”

  Mary Beth laughed softly. “Haven’t your Crow children learned how to make snowmen?” she asked. “Have they not made and thrown snowballs?”

  “They know very well the art of making and throwing snowballs at one another, but no, not snowmen,” he said, then looked quickly toward the closed entrance flap, where Dancing Butterfly was speaking softly.

  “What does she want this early in the morning?” Mary Beth asked, glancing up through the smoke hole at the top of the tepee. “Why, the sky is only now turning to morning.”

  “I did not tell you what is required of you today before our wedding ceremony,” Brave Wolf said, moving to his feet. He hurried into fringed breeches and shirt, then stepped into moccasins.

  “What is required of me?” Mary Beth said, quickly dressing herself.

  “You must go for a while to a willow shelter that has only this morning been made for you,” Brave Wolf said, waiting for her to be fully clothed before sweeping aside the entrance flap so that Dancing Butterfly could enter.

  “Why would I go there?” Mary Beth asked, fully dressed and now stepping into her moccasins. She smiled at Dancing Butterfly as she came in.