We loaded up the new SUV. It took us two large coolers to manage this feat. I understood why this vehicle was so handy. We brought several cases of soft drinks, and at least three gallons of ice tea. Not to mention the bags of ice we packed nicely into one of the coolers for the tea and drinks.
Daniel drove as we all chatted about what to expect this evening. Jason thought it would be some elaborate pow-wow as he called it. I think he was looking forward to an evening complete with a huge bonfire, a traditional ceremony of Indians dancing around the fire. Daniel scoffed a laugh at his friend, reminding him that not everyone likes to dance around the fire. Jason threatened us all that if they did dance around the fire, then he was going to join in.
After an hour and a half of driving, we made it to the reservation. The map link in the car came in handy. At least Daniel didn‟t get lost like Heather and me. We turned down the road to my grandfather‟s promptly at five.
Daniel pulled the vehicle up to the front of the house. Willie and John were already loading his big pickup truck. There appeared to be some camping gear involved. That was something Daniel and I did not expect. We brought blankets and chairs for us, but nothing more. Willie looked up as we all got out of the car.
“Hey, there!” he shouted, his face bright with excitement. “I see you brought some friends.”
“Yes, I hope you don‟t mind. This is Daniel Maxwell, my fiancé,” I said as Daniel moved forward to shake Willie‟s hand.
“Nice to meet you, sir.” Daniel politely took Willie‟s hand.
“Awe, now,” he huffed. “Let‟s stop with all this formal stuff. I gotta teach this girl here to call me Gramps. So you might as well.” He looked Daniel over and smiled broadly. “Got yourself a good one,” he bolted out proudly.
A smile crossed my face. “I think so.”
“And …” His eyes darted to Heather. “You pretty little thing, who did you bring?”
“This is Jason. He‟s my husband.” Heather actually blushed.
Willie walked up to Jason and in his height seemed to tower over him. He smiled broadly and extended his hand to Jason. Jason returned his smile and grabbed his hand in a manly grip.
“Well, welcome to the family,” Willie announced proudly. “We have just finished loading the truck. So if you would follow us, we‟ll be on our way. The Reservation‟s campground is about three miles from here. I must say, everyone is excited. They can‟t wait to meet you, Julie. Especially Tess.”
“I‟m very excited, too,” I said turning around as we hopped back in the SUV.
We followed Willie for what seemed like longer than three miles. I suppose it was the slow speed we were driving. Not to mention it felt as though we were going deep inside the woodland area. Once we broke through to a clearing, my breath froze in my throat. There had to be at least sixty or so people lingering around the huge campsite.
It appeared the majority of the women were placing a variety of food items on tables. The men were stacking up wood for a bonfire. The thought hit Daniel and me at the same time, and we both turned to Jason. His eyes were already twinkling.
“Don‟t you dare,” I warned toward Jason.
Jason‟s lips twitched fighting back the smile. His eyes twinkled. Yes, I could tell, if there was any dancing to be done tonight, it was going to include him.
“Jason, please!” I begged.
“Awe, Julie. I promise I won‟t embarrass ya. Just have a bit of faith in me.” He chuckled.
I let out a long sigh of relief. Maybe too soon, as Daniel laughed softly as we left the car.
“Julie, why don‟t you and Daniel go with Willie? Meet your family. Jason and I can unload all of this.” Heather announced.
We nodded to Heather, and began walking toward Willie. He was already walking toward the site with a galvanized tub full of ice, probably for the drinks.
“Tess!” Willie shouted.
A woman, about the same height as I, turned around to face Willie. Her long black silky hair was pinned back out of her way. The oval shape of her face now broadened into a smile as she walked toward us. I could see the resemblance between her and my mother. She wore jeans, like the rest of us, covered with a loose fitting sweater featuring what I thought were Cherokee symbols.
“You must be Julie. You look so much like your mother.” She explained opening her arms to embrace me.
“Yes,” I said moving into her embrace.
“I‟m your mother‟s sister, Tess.” She said backing away from me to have a better look. “Willie was right. You‟re a very beautiful woman.” Her eyes traveled to Daniel.
“Aunt Tess, this is my fiancé Daniel Maxwell.”
She raised her eyebrows. A proud smile crossed her face. “Well, he is a handsome one, isn‟t he?”
The redness crept slowing to Daniel‟s cheeks. It was nice for once to see him blush for a change. He leaned in to give her a hug. Aunt Tess hugged him proudly then stepped back.
I glanced behind Tess and saw five tall and very dark red skinned young men walking to the table with Taylan. Each of them had long black hair that flowed down their backs. They were all very muscular and large built. Taylan‟s attention was immediately drawn to us. His black eyes peered into mine from the distance. He held his gaze, which sent shivers down my spine.
“Who is he?” Daniel asked following my gaze.
“Oh, that is Taylan and his group. I‟ll explain about him later,” Tess dismissed.
“Is he related to Julie?” Daniel inquired again.
“Yes, Taylan is her cousin. He‟s my son. Willie‟s grandson,” Tess explained.
“Everyone you see here is related to her and….” She suddenly stopped short. Her attention was diverted for a second or two, watching Willie and John placing food on the table. “Like I said, everyone here is related.”
I frowned slightly trying to do the math in my head. Apparently, old Gramps and his family had children way beyond our years of expectation. However, my attention went back to Taylan. There was something dark about him. The type of darkness that made me feel the need to stay away from him. Soon I felt an arm around my waist. My attention was now diverted from Taylan to Daniel.
“OH, goodness! He knows better than that! John!” Aunt Tess yelled out.
Daniel and I turned around to see Gramps and John arguing over a plate of pie.
This just happened to be one of the custard pies Daniel and I brought.
“I‟m sorry. Let me get that boy. He‟s as bad as his grandfather when it comes to sweets.” Aunt Tess touched my arm and darted off to rescue John.
Daniel and I lingered slowly behind her. The smell of meat cooking on a grill filled the air. The line was already beginning to form around the table of food. With Daniel‟s arm still around my waist, we walked forward to the crowd.
“I think your Grandpa is going to give John a run for his money on that pie.” Daniel leaned closer to my ear.
“I think John might need some help. It looks as though he‟s losing the battle.” I laughed.
We approached the table where Gramps and John were both still holding onto to the custard pie. Aunt Tess was trying to get it away from both of them. I chuckled lightly and slipped my arm around John‟s.
“John, why don‟t you take me on a tour of this lovely table?”
“But he‟s going to eat all the pie! I really want a piece of that coconut pie.” John sounded a little upset.
I reached over and grabbed a plate and a fork. I scooped up a slice of pie from the pie pan and placed it on the plate.
“Hey!” Gramps said jerking his head around.
I smiled and winked my eye at him. “We‟re all a pack of hungry wolves here.”
The crinkles deepened in the corners of his eyes and he let out a roar of laughter.
“Yep, she‟s my line all right.”
“Come on,” I said to John.
We walked along the table, and he without hesitation named each food and who brought it. This was the most lovely set up I had ever seen. Real, homemade food. Not like the expensive dishes and layouts I was used to. And this was actually more beautiful because each of these dishes were made with love.
John took his time, and happily introduced me to the women along the way. Some were young. Some were older, way into their grandparent years. I noticed some of the younger, teenage girls watching me on John‟s arm. Apparently, he noticed it too. He straightened his back proudly as he sported me down through the people he introduced me to. There was no way I could help from smiling. Yes, it always takes another woman to make women interested in a man. The young girls were now much more interested in John. They introduced themselves as they approached us, only to gain John‟s attention.
“It seems I‟m getting a little attention because of you.” His face brightened with a smile.
“You know what? I bet they‟ve been noticing you all along. You probably haven‟t even given them the time of day.” I teased.
“Naw.” His eyes traveled down to the ground. “They never noticed me until now.”
I smiled while giving him a little nudge to go over and talk to the girls. With what looked like a gleeful gallop, John made his way over to the group.
Daniel and I reunited with plates of food. Heather and Jason joined us as we sat with Gramps and Aunt Tess. The rest of the evening, we ate and chatted with the rest of my family members.
The darkness had chased the sun behind the mountains, and the great fire flamed into the night. Daniel and I sat around the fire with Gramps and John. The air had become cooler and the warmth from Daniel was soothing. Gramps cleared his throat.
Announcing since he was the eldest, he would tell us the story of the Aniwayah.
“Many years ago,” he began, “when our time was not counted in years, but counted by the moon, the ancient elders of a distant tribe settled into an area high in the mountains. The tribe was strong with the Great Spirit of the Aniwayah. The Wolf. They lived in peace for many moons and generations.
“Until one night. A hunter was approached by a group of strangers. The hunter was in his wolf form. He had taken on the spirit of the wolf. These newcomers were strange to the wolf. He did not recognize them as one of his people. And he didn‟t recognize them as the pale face people he‟d met before. These people were pale skinned, but more so than the white man. They had blond hair and their eyes were crystal blue, like gems. They had traveled a great distance through the night. The hunter changed back into his human form, and tried to make contact with these newcomers. They were shocked by his transformation from wolf to human. They spoke a language he was fairly familiar with, and understanding a few words, he led them back to his tribe. His hopes were that his Chieftain would be able to communicate with them.
“The great Chieftain, Running Wolf, knew the language of these people. He spoke to them. He began calling them the moon-eyed people. They were running from something deadly. It was an evil force that chased them deeper into the heartland of the Aniwayah. Chief Running Wolf knew these people were not human. But they promised to pose no threat to the tribe in return for their help. The evil Chief Running Wolf feared these people were running from was the evil that we now call werewolves.
“These moon-eyed people found refuge and favor with Chief Running Wolf. They agreed to build a great wall around the land of the Aniwayah. Under the night of the moon, the wall was built. The wall was later named Fort Mountain. The Chief and his great warriors performed a great ceremony over the wall. Sacred symbols were written in the stones.
“There was more to these moon-eyed people. They brought with them a great item.
An item the werewolves were after. The item was hidden deep within the mountain in a sacred place where no one would find it. Only the elders who could read the symbols would know where the item was hidden.
“The following night under the full moon, the werewolves approached and a great battle took place. Many died that night. Moon-eyed people, werewolves and the great Aniwayah warriors. The werewolves fled in defeat, and to this day, the item remains safe.
“The moon-eyed people moved on. No one knows to this day where they went, or even if they are still alive. When another group of settlers approached the mountain, they were the pale face people, humans. They were searching for a place to settle, and the great Chief Running Wolf made a deal with them. If they promised to protect the wall from the werewolves, they could make their home on the mountain. The humans agreed, and the great Chief introduced them to the Great Spirit Aniwayah.
“The Spirit they carried in their line was not by blood. The true Aniwayah remains in the bloodline of our tribe. The werewolves still search the mountain hunting for the item that was hidden. The guardians of the mountain remain, fighting against the werewolves.
“We stand strong still with the blood of the Aniwayah running through our veins protecting our lands and children from the dangers of the werewolves. Over the years the ones who live by the code of the Great Spirit Wolf have died. New leaders have taken over and the true nature of the wolf has faded. Only by blood does it remain true.”
Gramps finished his story. Daniel‟s arm pulled me tighter to him. For the first time ever, we now knew the real story of Fort Mountain. Tears formed in my eyes and now I understood. My mother was not human. She was the true Aniwayah. My hand went to my mouth fighting back the tears. Grandpa Willie came over to us and held out his hand to me. Daniel lovingly stood by my side.
“Tonight,” he declared in a thundering voice, “my grandchild has returned home.
With her, she carries the bloodline of the Great Spirit Aniwayah. She is a true wolf, like her mother. I welcome her home.” He pulled me into his arms.
Tears streamed down my face as I embraced him. I couldn‟t speak. My throat strained from the emotions I carried. Why didn‟t anyone know my mother was the real thing? Was this something else my father had kept a secret? But why?