Gypsy in Black: The Romance of Gypsy Travelers (43 page)

And then, with a loud crack, it was over. 

Emilian was still, too still.  Nicolae scrambled to his feet, his hand holding a long object.  He watched, catching his breath as Emilian slowly fell to the side.  His eyes dulled and a red stain spread across the side of his face.  The crowd lingered, watching and waiting.   In the silence of the early morning, life flowed from Emilian, a retreat into the ether while the people watched.  Nicolae shut his eyes and
dropped the object in his hand.  It landed with a thud in the dirt.  An iron rod used for cooking.  No one spoke, breathless in anticipation.  Their Rom Baro had won but, especially for those who had planned a desertion, they await
ed
his reaction.

When he opened his eyes, he looked away from the body of his brother and sought the crowd for his wife.  He found her, sobbing against Duda.  “S’hara,” he said as he walked toward her. 
She flung herself into his arms, crying and clinging to him. 
“It’s over,” he whispered into her hair, his arms holding her as tight as possible.  “It’s finally over.”
He
looked over her head at the faces of the people staring at him.  In the background, he could still see the smoldering flames from what had been their tent.
The air was still thick with the smell of smoke and burning canvas.  It was unpleasant and clung to his clothing as well as hers.  It brought him back to the present.  He kissed the top of her head then pulled away, staring at the people around him.

“Many of you questioned me, yes?” His voice was loud and stern.  “Many of you wondered about my loyalty to you…to my kumpania.  This man found your weakness and used your doubt to create a wedge…a wedge between all of us.  But it is over now.  For those of you who had wished to leave, you have a decision to make.” Nicolae paused, letting his words sink in before he continued.  “You may
continue on your own or you may
rejoin the kumpania under the leadership of your Rom Baro.  No questions will be asked.
But,” he held his hand up against the relieved murmurs from the crowd.  When they quieted, he continued.  “We must vow to stand united and never let any individual threaten the kumpania. Together, we are strong.  Divided we are like sticks, fragile and apt to break.”

He walked around the circle, meeting the eyes of the people, taking the time to stare deep into their souls in the silence of the morning.  A dog barked in the distance and birds were beginning to greet the morning with a symphony of songs.  “
Today is a new
day.  A new
beginning,” he continued.  “There will never be any more doubt about the true leadership of this kumpania.  F
or those who doubted, remember this day.  Remember t
he past for
by
forgetting to do so is what brought us here today.”  His eyes fell back onto Sahara.  Her tears had subsided and her breathing was more even.  “Now, I must tend to my family while you tend to yours.  I ask you to get busy and give me some time now.”

The crowd dispersed.  No one was certain what to do but they did not question Nicolae.  Those who had previously intended to leave retreated to their packed wagons while the others gathered near the tents, wondering whether they would still leave on this day.  Ignoring the other people, Nicolae motioned to two of the men and spoke softly, nodding toward Emilian.  Sahara couldn’t hear what he said but she knew that it had to do with a burial.  Despite everything that had happened, Nicolae would honor his family by requesting a proper burial for his brother. 

He turned his attention back to Sahara.  Together, they walked back to what had been their home.  There was nothing left.  Sahara clung to Nicolae, the tears threatening to resurface but she fought hard to remain strong.  Nicolae had his arm around her shoulders, her head resting against him.  He took a deep breath before he spoke.  “It will be fine, S’hara.  There is nothing lost that cannot be replaced.”

“I thought you were gone,” she whispered.

“I heard you leave, S’hara and then there was someone outside the tent.  I don’t know why I took the baby with me to investigate.  O Del was watching over us,” he replied.  

“What do we do now?” she asked.

He turned her away from the remains of the tent and walked toward the wagon that used to be his father’s.  “We continue moving on, S’hara.  This changes nothing.  Without Emilian, w
e have less to worry over, yes? 
He cannot create trouble anymore…raise doubts,” Nicolae responded. 
When he saw her looking at him, questioning him with her silence, he took a deep breath.  “S’hara, there is much you do not know.  It was Emilian who chased Amaya away. 
She was to wed my father but Emilian did not want her here, nor did he want to marry you.  He threatened you and your mother. 
She was protecting you from him and now I have done the same, yes?
He will bother you no more, my bori.”

“I don’t understand,” she said.  “If he didn’t want to marry me, why did he still want me?”

“With you alive, he could not marry another. You were betrothed to him, yes?  Only through death could he marry another.”  They stood outside of the wagon in the shadow of the morning sun, which finally was peeking over the horizon.  “Then when he lost m
y father’s faith and respect, h
e lost the right to lead these people.  In order to gain that back, he needed to marry you…and that was only possible through my death.” 

“And now he is gone,” she said softly.

“He always was, S’hara.”
  Nicolae took a deep breath and looked around at the activity of the camp.  “It is time, S’hara.  Time for us to move on at last.  I do not want to dwell of this day anymore.”  He forced a smile.  “You must find Lea and tend to our daughter while I oversee the kumpania.  We will go north once again,” he declared. 
“There are towns to visit, horses to trade, fairs to work.”  He leaned down one la
st time, kissing her tenderly before whispering,
“Go to our daughter, S’hara.”

The women were silent as they worked, making breakfast for the men and children.  When Sahara approached them, Duda was quick to point toward Finny’s wagon, indicating that Lea slept there with Finny’s own baby.  The women watched Sahara, their eyes wide and bright.  They were waiting for her to say something, anything.  As Nicolae was leading the men, the women anticipated Sahara to lead them.  
But there were no words to say.  So, rather than speak, she rolled up her sleeves and went to work alongside the women. 
It was the expected response and she knew that the day would be long.  There would be time to dance later when they camped in the days and weeks ahead.  In the meantime, she knew that life would go on…her life with the gypsies would take her many miles and her love
for Nicolae would never be challenged again.

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Nicolae watched the women dancing around the fires.  His wife had died during the last travel season.  Her childbirth had been too much for her to bear…or perhaps it was the stigma of knowing that she was damaged goods.  Emilian had ensured that her marr
iage to Nicolae would never progress past the ceremony.  The rest of the kumpania knew what had happened; the Rom Baro insured that all knew the reasons why.  Emilian was mahrimed but he continued to follow the shadows of the traveling caravan.  The Rom Baro did not have the heart to banish him for good.

Nicolae commented on the women’s beauty, knowing that his own time for re-marriage was near.  He was a man now and he felt the stirring of desire in his loins. 

“Aye, but not as beautiful as Amaya,” the one man said. 

“And her daughter,” another man said. The man proceeded to tell Nicolae about how he had seen the Irishman and the girl.  Nicolae leaned forward, listening to their words and trying to elicit more information than they actually knew.  But the seed was planted.  He knew the one way to finally get rid of his brother was to find his bride.  By marrying the daughter of Amaya, Nicolae would be able to lead the kumpania and force the hand of his brother to finally act in such a way that Emilian would be banished forever.  Emilian would no longer be a thorn in Nicolae’s side and the challenge to his leadership would be gone forever.

When he approached his father in the morning, his eyes glowed and he smiled.  “Father, I have good news…news of my betrothed…news of the girl, Sahara…”