Authors: Mercedes Keyes
"I promise you, I
will tell her. Just as soon as I am certain that she loves me. I
know that she does, but I need her to know that she does. When that
takes place, I will admit all." He finished, feeling as doubtful speaking
the words as Greeneye did listening to them.
Reaching their tepee, Hope noticed that Red Crow was not home; she felt it could not have been planned better. Wasting not a moment, she went about tidying up their small home and preparing a meal for
him. All the time thinking of the child she carried; a brand new
human being that would exist because of them.
Unable to help herself, she was making plans in her head, another
week or two and the meeting of the tribes would be in session. Once
that was over, she and Red Crow would leave in search of her brother. The first place she would suggest they stop would be
Webster Fields. That is where she wanted her child to be born,
nowhere else. Surely, her brother would be there along with Maria
and the children. Together they would all wait for her father to come
home. The holidays were fast approaching; because of that, she
thought that her father would go home to visit his father, Jordan and
the others. She laughed to herself, imagining the look on his face
when he saw them all there waiting for him. All of his grandchildren,
and the one she was carrying. In the meantime, she and Red Crow
would visit with his family, the O'Brien's.
Once the entire family was gathered, they would then set up a
perfect plan to find her mother.
'Maybe, if I pray, we may find her before
the baby is born. Oh how perfect everything would be then.'
He or she would
come into the world surrounded by all of her family and everyone at
Webster Fields. Tears came to her eyes she was so happy.
Things were
going to change; she could feel it. Somehow soon, her mother would be coming back into her life and all would be as it should be.
In her joyous daydreaming, she was surprised to see that her
preparation for her husband's lunch was completed and all was set
and ready. She sat and waited. After a while when he did not show up,
she decided to go by the stream and rinse out a few of their garments, by the time she was done, maybe then he would be home. She would
then break the wonderful news to him, they would make love and
they would lie in each others arms making plans together.
She gathered the small bundle and headed for the
stream. Suddenly, she stopped thinking,
‘
Today, I will tell my husband
that I love him. I will tell him before I tell him of our baby.'
She started
walking again, grinning from ear to ear.
‘I
will tell him over and over, ten...
no... a hundred times how much I love him.'
She thought, hugging the
bundle to her breast as she walked along a well worn path. Not far from the stream, she felt another wave of dizziness pass over her,
making her sway and reach out for a tree to lean against until the
world stopped spinning. She put her hand to her head and heard
voices as she stood waiting for all to steady itself.
Silkie Whisper and Rain-dance were near, standing, talking. She smiled;
she would tell them of her good news, just as soon as she felt it safe
to walk again.
"I'm telling you what he said. I heard it with my own ears. My
husband said the reason for all of the trouble she causes is because
the spirits are angry with Red Crow for his deception. He said that if
Red Crow had led her father and her brother to her when they met
them, all the trouble would not be. It seems that our village is cursed
because Red Crow lied to her and her family. He told her father he had not seen her when he came looking for her. And he told Gold
Raven he had not seen her brother, when actually - he had seen her
brother and her father, talked to them. Now, Greeneye believes
there will be more trouble for us, unless he confesses the truth to
Gold Raven."
"When could this have happened?" Rain-dance asked.
"They all went in search for her brother, not long after they
married, that is when he encountered them."
"This is not good. I don't think you should share this with anyone
else. I don't know... many things that happened, I was to blame, but
this concerning Red-..." Rain-dance suddenly stopped as her heart
started pounding in her chest, looking up past Silkie Whisper.
Seeing the stunned look on Rain-dance's face, Silkie Whisper spun to look
behind her.
Hope stood out in the open from a crop of trees, staring at them
with a lost look of shock on her face. The garments she’d carried
at her feet as she stood quietly letting their words sink in. Her face
paled as if she were seeing a ghost. Both women gulped, shaking and
nervous to be caught gossiping, speaking of things that did not
concern them. Especially Silkie Whisper, who knew her husband
would be furious with her once he found out that she had shared the
contents of a private conversation between chiefs.
Hope couldn’t move, didn’t know what to do. Her subsiding nausea
seemed to be on the rise once again for another reason entirely.
Staring at the quiet women, she knew her face went from pale to fiery
red.
'Oh Go, please... please I beg you, let her be lying. Please don't let this be true. He
wouldn't. He would not do such a thing to me. He would not keep my family from
me. Not when he knows how long we've been apart. How long I needed to find
him. No... not my father. God please, no! He loves me. He would never hurt me
this way. He would never deliberately keep my father from me.
He said...oh
God... what did he say? What did he tell me?'
She was racking her memory
for his words when Silkie Whisper swallowed fearfully and walked up
to her.
"Gold Raven." She called her name softly.
Hope was too busy thinking. Too busy trying to sort the truth
from the lies.
'He said he never saw Mike, because he had escaped. He took me
to Lake Charles. No, he did not lie.'
Hope looked up at Silkie Whisper
who was softly crying, so regretful. "Gold Raven...please, I-..."
"Why, why would you – how could you - you're lying! Why are you saying such ugly things about my
husband?!" Hope was breathing hard and deeply, her anger began to
rise.
"I'm so sorry."
"You bet you're sorry. You - lying - whore! You bet you're sorry!
What have I ever done to you? How could you stand here and say
such things! That horrible lie!"
"It's not a lie."
Hope swallowed the lump in her throat shaking her head. "No...
he would not lie to me. Red Crow would never do such a thing to me, m
y father? My brother? No, he would not."
"Gold Raven, it is the truth, I heard them!"
"Who?! Who did you hear?"
"Your husband, Red Crow, was talking with mine, about his deceit
towards you."
The look in Hope's eyes made Silkie Whisper back away slowly, her
hands held before her to calm Hope.
"I'm so sorry, really I am, but I have not lied. It is your husband who lies to you about
everything, keeping you from knowing the truth that your father and
brother are together looking for you, he pretended that he had not
seen you, when in fact, you had married."
"Nooo - you’re lying!!" Hope screamed and lunged
at Silkie Whisper.
Red Crow, after talking more with Greeneye and convincing him that he knew what he was doing and not to worry, left his friend's
dwelling to return to his tepee. He realized that he was a bit late and
all he could think of was being with his wife. The meeting with
Greeneye had shaken his calm, his sense of security where she was
concerned. The dream was also heavy on his mind, worrying him to
the extent that it upset his stomach, right now, he just wanted to find
his wife and hold her in his arms.
Even if only to reassure him that she was all right; happy, smiling,
and falling deeper in love with him.
The image of the crippled gold
raven kept popping into his mind, making his heart pound. No one
would dare harm his Gold Raven. She was safe. Had he not promised her mother that she would always be safe when with him? He would
protect her with his very life.
'No.'
The limping raven was not
representative of his Gold Raven. He denied the curse, refusing to
believe that such a thing would dare take place with someone he
loved as he did her.
He ducked into the tepee to smell the aroma of rich stew
cooling and waiting for him. He sat down and placed the bowls for
the two of them. Thinking she would be returning any moment
However, considering her past record for finding things to get into he had a change of mind, and went looking for her.
She was probably at the stream getting water and again forgot the
time, a bit fearful of what he might find; he stiffened his resolve and
went onward. Not far from it, such a feeling of intense doom washed
over him as he heard loud screaming and shouting.
"Oh no... what now?" He exhaled.
Reaching the scene, he could not believe his eyes; Rain-dance was
struggling to hold Hope away from Silkie Whisper who was cowering
behind her. His heart fell like a stone as he sped up to get between the
two women, unaware of the reason they had fallen out with each
other.
"What is going on here?! Hope! Calm down... what is wrong?"
The women fell apart; breathing deeply as each stared at him. He
stood, looking from one to the other waiting for an explanation. He
looked back at his wife; she had tears rolling down her face.
The look
in her eyes as she stared at him, made his heart stop; to start back with
a painful slamming against the wall of his chest.
"What - what has happened?" He asked as his ears buzzed from
his fear.
Hope took deep breaths trying to gain control of herself, of her
feelings of fear. This was not happening; there was no way that this
man who loved her would keep her father from her. He would not snatch away one of the persons she had dreamed of reuniting with.
Not the person whose arms she imagined had held her as a child. No, not her father. Suddenly nausea gripped her, she grabbed for
her stomach as her eyes closed, willing herself not to throw up.
"Hope... you're scaring me. What - is wrong?"
'Please God. Don't let him tell me that my father found Mike, and
that they came for me, but I was not there to meet them.
But... he...
he was. No... no, please don't let him tell me that he turned them
away! It's not true, it just can't be!'
Her mind agonized as tears slipped
from her eyes. Slowly she opened them and looked at him.
"Red Crow... please... please don't tell me... that what she has
been saying is true, please." She moaned.
"What? What has she been telling you?" He then turned to Silkie
Whisper. "What is she talking about?"
Silkie bit into her bottom lip as her tears also ran. "I'm so sorry.
Please forgive me."
"Answer my question!! What is she talking about?!"
"I - I heard you and - and Greeneye talking about you keeping
her father and brother from her. She overheard me telling-..." Red
Crow slapped her before she could finish. He was shaking with the
horror of what this meant.
His eyes crazy with fright, he turned back to his wife as Silkie
Whisper ran home sobbing and holding her cheek; Rain-dance
followed behind trying to console her.
"No-o-o-o... you didn't do that... nooo, please tell me you
didn't do that." She was shivering to the point of her teeth starting to
chatter.
He too shivered, unable to answer. He stood with his ears ringing
and chest squeezing from the stress of what he was facing.
"Tell me! Did you see my father? Did you!?!"
"Hope."
S
he closed her eyes,
gritting her teeth at the sound of him using
her name, covering her mouth, she fought back a sob feeling his
hands close around her upper arms to pull her to him.
She snatched
both from his grasp moving back, shuddering.
"Answer - my - question."
"You have to calm down and listen to me, I love you — I would
nev-..."
"Did you see my father?!! Did you see my father?
!! Did you see my father?!!" She screamed
repeatedly, hysterically.
"Yes! Alright!?! Yes!!!" He yelled back, trying to take hold
of her again, but she kept yanking her arms loose, and moving away
from him.
"Listen to me. I saw him." He finally confessed. Her eyes
welled with tears and fell as she saw him distorted and blurred.
"They - they were out looking for you. I - I ran into them by
accident – when - when I went to - to help your brother. I do not
know why - but - I was afraid you would leave me for them. I was
going to tell you the truth Hope. But I had to wait; I had to wait until
you-…"