One Hundred Horses (8 page)

Chapter Eight

She told herself not to be afraid. The feel of Grey Fox as he moved over her body sparked a deep need within her. She felt momentary doubt, but quickly that was overshadowed by his gentle persuasion of her mouth. Driven purely by instinct, she arched against him.

A moan of desire emanated from deep within him, as he slowly lifted up her shift. He was straddled over her, and with the lightest of touch, she felt his hardness rub against her, asking for entrance. Sarah felt his masculinity stretch the innermost part of her being. She bit down on his shoulder when he broke the maiden barrier. Before she could even remember the moment of discomfort, he was rhythmically moving, driving her into a sweet abyss of pleasure.

There was nothing else then. No pain, no fear, no other person upon the Earth. There was just the two of them tapping into an age-old dance. Sarah’s heart burst with an overwhelming feeling of love. She loved him. She wasn’t sure when it quite happened but she knew she would always.

Sun Puma rested her head on his shoulder.  Her fingers absently traced the deep scars from all the great battles in his life.  She listened to the sound of his hear beat against her ear.  She felt so full so utterly complete she couldn’t stop herself from placing a kiss on his warm skin.  Then he arm squeezed around her tighter, protectively.  When she tried to lift her head to look at him, he turned his face away and closed his eyes.  In the distance coyotes called out to the stars as she nestled herself against him and slept knowing she was safe and loved.

***

The next morning they had reached the Bravos River. Instead of relief, or joy, something seemed wrong to Sarah. She took a survey of the landscape and the way the terrain grew drier, and with less grass. The Sun also felt stronger here. Grey Fox seemed unconcerned as they continued on their path along the banks.

Resigning herself to his charge, she leaned against him and laid her head against his chest as she listened to him assure her that Sky Fire and Running Deer would be fine. Grey Fox did not tell her about Feather. The little horse’s trail was lost far back. Grey Fox reasoned that the filly must be dead by now. He asked her then about who had captured her and when she described the man, Grey Fox stiffened and grew noticeably quiet, staying that way for the rest of the day.

They made a small camp that night, and that was when the shocking discovery materialized in Sarah’s brain. She had seen this area before!

He’s taking me back to Cashion Ranch!

***

Grey Fox knelt over the fire, roasting a jackrabbit, as Sarah paced on the other side. She couldn’t shake the feeling of confusion and hurt. He seemed to be bracing himself against what she had to say before she even had a chance to say it. After a tense moment of indecision, she turned to him. “What are you doing?”

She placed both hands on her hips. She couldn’t help but glare at him. Her emotions now rising within her to full blown anger. He inhaled deeply and met her solid gaze.  His appeared cold, distant.  What happened to him?

“You will be safer there,” he said simply.

“Safer from who? From what? Do you not think that the very same thing could have happened to me, even on my ranch? Grey Fox...”

Grey Fox dropped his gaze from her as he angrily tossed his stick into the fire. “I will not change my mind.”

“What if I don’t want to go?” she snapped. A few weeks ago she would have jumped on the chance to return home. Her anger and change of heart surprised even her but she wasn’t about to stop.

“You have no say. I can’t be with you all the time and watch for your safety.”

“I’m not asking you to! I don’t need you with me all the time!”  He looked away from her. Enough so that his shoulder was turned, she could no longer see his face.

She stood over him, speechless. Her heart was screaming at her to beg him to keep her with him, but she knew inside that he would not budge. He had decided to reject her and the crazy prophecy they were supposed to fulfill. She was about to protest but again, she realized he would not respect a woman whining. Images of their night together making love under the stars squeezed her heart so tight she flinched. When she spoke to him, it came out thick, laced with the pain she could not deny.

“I gave myself to you. I thought we were going to get married, become man and wife,” she told him, the ground feeling suddenly shaky beneath her. 

When he turned to address her, she sucked in some air.  He looked as angry as the day he found her.  His Comanche blood ran hot and reminded her they were not the same.  She swallowed down the fear she had pushed him too far.  She was not a Comanche woman, she would never accept always submitting to him.  Maybe that is why he is rejecting her.

“There is no marriage ceremony in Comanche ways, only a bride price. Crazy Goose made yours impossible.  No one can pay such a high price.” His coldness stabbed at her. What had happened to the man she caressed last night? The one who had stolen her heart and her body? Anger seeped into her.

“I guess Crazy Goose sees a value in me that you do not,” she replied low and even while lifting her chin. Grey Fox said nothing in return. He just continued to stoke the fire. The firmness of his jaw and the clenching of teeth told her he was through with talking, but...

“I... I don’t know what... to...” The words died on her lips. How could she have misunderstood the situation so badly? She turned away from him to lie down on the blanket of hide stretched out for sleeping, facing away from the fire, unable to stop the tears. She couldn’t believe he had made a decision to return her back to her ranch. Up until the last few days, it would have been the exact thing she wanted. So why was she crying now?

***

Grey Fox sat well into the night just watching the firelight dance off Sun Puma’s sleeping form with her hair spilling behind her. She never once considered just how close she had come to death. Not once, but several times. The thought of losing her to the spirit world made his resolve hardened. Moon Water, his mother, She Who Wanders—all left this Earth too soon. He couldn’t see it happen to Sun Puma, too. Grey Fox did all he could to bolster himself to the decision he had made. She would be glad for it soon enough.

***

Sarah refused the morning meal. In fact, she refused to look at Grey Fox. Without warning, he scooped her up and held her in his arms. She struggled for only a moment. Their gazes caught and held. Sarah’s with pain and questions, Grey Fox’s with determination and something hidden. He whispered something and she had to strain to hear it.

“One day, when Father Sun peeks his face over the horizon, you will no longer hate me. You will understand that you are right where you belong.” Then he kissed her on her temple and placed her up on the horse. Sarah’s heart shattered.

***

Deidre was about enter the side of the house when voices rang out. Hope surged in her like a hot fire. She dropped her basket on the ground and lifted up her skirt to sprint across the yard. Coming over the ridge was a large Indian leading a woman on horseback.

She stood with Tom and watched the procession down the hill. The man leading the woman and horse appeared magnificent as they made their way toward them. “That is not Broken Horn. I don’t know who that is,” Tom admitted.

Whoever it was appeared damned formidable. Deidre swallowed down her fear and strained to recognize the woman on the horse. Was it Sarah? She then watched as Tom led the way to stretch out a hand to greet the Comanche. The Indian returned the gesture. When the Comanche shifted his gaze toward Deidre, he narrowed his gaze and a slight smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. “Your daughter is your face upon the water,” he said simply. Deidre showed no fear; instead, she hurriedly thanked him and then looked past him to Sarah, who remained quiet. She appeared to have changed only a little; Deidre couldn’t wait to hold her.

The Comanche assisted Sarah off the horse and then held her for a moment, peering at her. She could sense there was a strain between her daughter and this Indian, but by the way he protectively held her, Deidre’s eyes began to water. After a moment, the Comanche stepped away and she rushed in to wrap her arms around her little girl.

“Sarah, what have they done to you?” Deidre sobbed as she hugged her daughter. Her daughter stiffened, and then broke down into hard, wracking sobs. Deidre held her tightly as the two of them cried together while the two men watched with somber expressions.

***

Tom looked at the War Chief indecisively. Finally, he spoke up.

“I know I should thank you for returning Sarah. I just can’t understand why Broken Horn didn’t do it,” Tom said carefully.

At the mention of Broken Horn, the Comanche’s eyes narrowed and grew cold. Tom took a step back.

“You sent Broken Horn for this woman?” he asked.

Tom realized he had done something wrong. Well, hell, he knew he did from the moment he was talked into the idea. He squeezed his hands. “I couldn’t get the Fort to help me. Broken Horn bartered to find her for some of our land. I had a gut feeling he wasn’t to be trusted, but I didn’t know any other way,” he admitted.

The Comanche nodded stiffly as his lips tightened into a tight line. “Broken Horn is a murderer and a thief. The Comanche do not speak his name. He almost killed Sun Puma and Sky Fire. His heart is bad,” Grey Fox told Tom.

Tom looked down at the dirt between his feet. He made a mental note to have a talk with Gerald and Wade. It was their idea and by God they were going to pay. Taking a deep breath, Tom looked back up to the man, his skin warmed by his embarrassment for lack of better judgment.

“Again, I thank you for returning Sarah. I will give you whatever you want as a reward,” Tom said. The Comanche looked at him blankly.

“Do not let her leave,” he told him. Then Grey Fox turned toward the two women still embraced. He led his horse a few steps away and then mounted on its back with such swiftness Tom was amazed.

***

Sarah let go of her mom long enough to look up at him.

“My heart is heavy on the ground, Sarah. Goodbye,” Grey Fox said. Sarah’s vision of him became watery through her tears. She broke free from her mother to face him, chin lifted. She stood there, her hands balling into fists. She couldn’t believe he was actually leaving her. She told him she loved him and he showed her he loved her. An intense wave of hot anger engulfed her at that moment. She
hated
hearing her real name upon his lips. How dare he!

“You are wrong. My name is Sun Puma. I am the daughter of Crazy Goose of the Coyote Clan,” she said firmly. Her words seemed to have rattled him. He looked away from her, something she knew he never did. When he looked back at her again, a shimmer of tears reflected the sun in his eyes. When he spoke to her, his voice sounded strained.

“Remember me inside. I did not capture you; I rescued you. When you left that night on Black Cloud, you went the wrong way. You were heading straight for the Apache badlands. I saved you then, too. I was never your captor. If you come looking for me, you won’t find me. Do not take a fool’s chance.”

With that, he spun his horse around and raced over the hill beyond her view.

Chapter Nine

Wild Flower was the first to see Grey Fox as he entered the village. He had been gone for a full moon. The village had sent out several search parties but always came back with no traces of Grey Fox and Sun Puma. Seeing him made her heart soar with excitement. When she realized he was alone, a wave of fear and disappointment rippled over her. Sun Puma must not have survived.

She looked upon the War Chief through a watery vision. He seemed agitated, rather than saddened, and she knew something else had happened. A crowd formed around Grey Fox, and like her, some of them looked disappointed that their War Chief did not come home with Sun Puma.

“Sun Puma is home now, on her ranch with her mother,” Grey Fox said above the crowd. They all looked to one another, confused.

“She was badly injured. She is in constant danger here and I gave her back to the arms of her mother,” he tried explaining again.

“Did she want to go?” Wild Flower asked, knowing full well she was talking out of place. But Sun Puma was her sister after all.

Grey Fox looked at the ground. “No.” The crowd of people murmured and shook their heads while walking away.

“I don’t understand, Grey Fox,” Crow Feather chimed in next to her.

“What’s done is done,” Grey Fox said to no one in particular, as he spun around and headed for the meadow. Then he paused and turned his horse and faced them all once more.

“Broken Horn was the one to take our women. He is dead now. I hunted him down, found him cowering under the floorboards of his cabin. Nobody, no woman, will feel pain from his hands again,” Grey Fox shouted, holding his knife in the air. Broken Horn’s blood was still stained upon its edge. Nobody, not even Stalking Wolf, challenged what he had done. Lowering his knife, his face appeared cold and hardened. Wild Flower shivered. She had never seen Grey Fox like this before, not even back when he lost his mate and own mother. With a heavy heart, Wild Flower left the few people that still remained and went to mourn for Sun Puma in her tipi.

***

“Wait, Grey Fox, wait!”

Grey Fox turned again to see Running Deer running toward him. “What is it, Running Deer?”

“Sun Puma. She saved Sky Fire’s life at a great risk to her own. She fought off the one they call Broken Horn. She untied Sky Fire’s ropes so she could get away. Grey Fox, she is very brave, very strong! You are wrong that Sun Puma is weak. Nobody in the village feels this way.” There were no words to describe the mixture of pride and hurt Grey Fox felt inside at hearing such news. It did nothing to appease the growing pain and regret for what he had done. He could say nothing back to his nephew;instead he shifted his gaze to look toward the meadow that they once called home.

***

One year later

An unusual storm came down from the Northwest, traveled down the slope and settled into the valleys. The Coyote Clan huddled tightly in their tipis, trying to keep warm as the rare and heavy snow fell for days on end. Wild Flower’s baby screamed in protest of an empty belly. Sun Dweller was named after the woman Wild Flower loved, that once lived in his village. Sun Dweller, just learning how to walk, stumbled his way over to his mama, his eyes pleading for more milk.

***

Later that evening, the council of men all agreed that they would have to move the clan even further to the north and completely out of the Southern Plains. They would try and avoid conflict with the Blue Coats at all cost.

“The Blue Coats have captured the Otter Clan. They have them herded like buffalo and are pushing them to Oklahoma.” Stalking Wolf’s expression was grave as he spoke the words. The men inside the lodge all looked to one another for answers.

“If Mother Earth had not brought upon us the snow, we would have been taken with them. It’s time to move camp. There are no more buffalo. Our children will soon starve. They will find us soon enough,” Grey Fox said with a deep heaviness. He knew that moving the clan would also mean ending any hope that he would ever see Sun Puma again. He looked over to Crazy Goose, who hadn’t said much to him since he had arrived back over thirteen moons ago. The two men caught each other’s eyes, and Crazy Goose motioned for him to sit next to him.

“I see your thoughts reflect my own, Grey Fox,” the Shaman said as he watched the War Chief nod in agreement.

“She is better off. I know I did what was best for her,” Grey Fox replied.

Crazy Goose regarded him. “Better for Sun Puma or better for you? Grey Fox, you have always coveted my long knife with the elephant bone that I won from Crow Feather’s father, the Irish trader,” Crazy Goose said slowly. Grey Fox had no idea why the Shaman would bring that up now, but again, he nodded in agreement.

“What if I told you I would give it to you, no trade?” the Shaman asked. Grey Fox just looked at him, curious.

“It is worth everything to you. If you give it away it steals its spirit, rendering it useless and with no value,” Grey Fox shot back. Crazy Goose nodded.

“You have been told all your life of the prophecy, so you just expect to be given a great gift such as Sun Puma. You failed to see her worth. You failed to understand that while the prophecy is strong, you are not worthy to just walk away with something of such great value. That is why I set her bride price so high. No other man would have a reason or the ability to pay it. No other man will see her value in it. But I’m starting to think that you do, now. It is not too late to make her your woman. But the bride price is not to be paid to me, but to her mother. When that day comes you will see the rest of the path before you.”

“It’s probably too late. She must have found a husband by now,” Grey Fox whispered. The elder shook his head.

“Not if your seed grew warm in her belly.”

***

Grey Fox was standing in the meadow when he heard a far-off thundering sound. He looked around him, confused. The horses heard it too, as they all raised their heads and pricked their ears toward the hill overlooking the village. They all began to whinny and nicker.

Through the snowfall down the slope came a young black mare. Her mane and tail flowed long down her sides, just barely missing the snow-packed ground beneath her. Behind her trailed other horses, so many horses Grey Fox couldn’t count. The heavy snow had forced the renegade band of horses into the only meadow with enough grass to feed them all.

The entire village stopped their work to stare in awe. What kind of strange magic had befallen Grey Fox? Head to tail, down the rocky slope the horses filed in. Grey Fox with an Earth-shattering realization recognized the lead mare as Sun Puma’s Feather.

Grey Fox stood in the falling snow as the black mare approached him with caution. The feeling that settled over Grey Fox was unexplainable. The mare snorted and pawed her foot into the snow. Her large, brown eyes searched out his. Then the mare did the unthinkable. She walked past Grey Fox and tried to enter his tipi. The warrior threw his head back and laughed as snowflakes fell upon his skin. Then, and for the first time in his life, he allowed a single tear to fall. Feather’s appearance meant only one thing: the time for change had come.

***

Sarah knew, if she was really herself, that she would be elated over all this snow. She sat curled up on a chair by the fire and only looked out the window on occasion to see if it was still coming down. She hadn’t felt anything like herself in a long time, she realized. Her mind and her heart belonged somewhere else, but there was nothing she could do about it. She heard laughter outside, and that prompted her to get up and see where it was coming from.

It had to have been the first time she smiled in days. She watched as her mother made a giant snowball and perfectly pitched it at Tom’s head. The man busted out in a wide grin, and then the chase was on. Deidre tripped and fell, and the cowboy scooped her up in his arms and kissed her. Sarah watched with tears. She had known for years that Tom had loved her mother but for whatever reason was afraid to let it show. It was great that whatever wall had separated them in the past was gone now. Her mother’s face, bright with smiles, glowed with a happiness that Sarah imagined she may never find.

Returning to her chair, Sarah stared at the fire. She loved him, and she had thought he had loved her too. For months she wrestled with his actions, and she tried to come to terms with his decision to bring her home, telling herself that it was done out of love and nothing else. She sighed heavily as she looked down to the whimpering baby in the cradle.

She cast loving eyes on a little, round face. An overwhelming surge of pride, love and also hurt grew within her. Greyson was already so big. With each passing week, the infant began to look more and more like his proud Comanche father. She picked him up and cradled him. Her eyes misted over just thinking about the days with the Coyote Clan. She wanted so much for her son to know that part of his heritage.

Shadows streaming past the window caught her attention as she carried Greyson over to see what was happening. Several dozen soldiers from the fort appeared on horseback and were talking to Tom in the courtyard. Sarah tried to watch from the shadows, peering out only now and then. Her heart pounded so badly she put a hand over her chest. She watched, dismayed, as Tom pointed toward the house.
What do they want?

***

“Sarah, this is Captain Waverly,” Tom introduced. Sarah gave the Captain a dubious look.

“Good morning, Miss Cashion. I was wondering if I could impose on a minute of your time?” he asked as he removed his cap and held it politely in front of him.

“I guess,” she replied cautiously.

“
Good. Ah, shall we sit while we talk?”

“No need for that, Captain.”

Deidre walked into the room, gave her a disapproving glance then turned her attention onto the Captain. “Of course, Captain Waverly, please take a chair,” she offered.

“Well, it really won’t take long. Miss Cashion, I was wondering if you could be of assistance. We are trying to offer a settlement to the last few renegade clans of the area. Maybe you could point us in the right direction so we can get these poor folk the help they need?”

“I was lost. I have no idea where to find them. If I did—” Abruptly she stopped. The Captain looked at her with open curiosity. Then he looked down at the sleeping baby in her arms.

“Maybe you can tell me something about the terrain, Miss Cashion? Did you notice many trees or rivers? Or maybe there was tall grass?” he asked as he leaned forward, seemingly to continue his perusal of her son.

“No, none of those things. It was dry, rocky, dusty and ugly. There wasn’t any water around for miles.”

“Well, about how many are we looking at? A few filthy savages or hundreds?” Sarah bristled at his choice of words. “I have no idea. I’m done here,” she said point-blank. She knew the Captain’s lips puckered as he held them to the side, a look that told her he wasn’t sure. So she squared her shoulders and gazed right at him. “I don’t know how to find my way around my own ranch. If I did, none of this would have happened. I’m sorry I can’t be of any use.”

As she watched the soldiers file out of the courtyard, chills rippled the surface of her skin. She hoped he believed her story and would search in the wrong direction.

***

“What is Grey Fox doing?” Sky Fire asked Running Deer as they sat by the creek. Running Deer watched as his uncle rode Feather and used the mare’s status as lead mare to maneuver the horses around like a dance.

“I don’t know. He looks like he’s trying to get all of them to follow Feather.” Running Deer said with a shrug.

“There’s so many! How can one man control so many?” she asked.

“My uncle can. He can do anything, I think,” Running Deer said as he leaned in even closer to his bride. He heard her giggle.

“Maybe, but not as good as you.” she told him. Running Deer smiled. He kissed her cheek.

“We leave this place tomorrow. I’m going to miss it,” she whispered quietly into his ear.

“We will find something better.” her husband told her, rubbing the belly that held his protected baby inside.

***

Sarah took Greyson to the top of the hill overlooking the ranch. There had been so much snow over the winter that for the first time in years the hill boasted a healthy supply of fresh wild grass and little dandelions. She rocked him on her lap as she sang a little song that she once heard in the village. Her son lifted his hands in the air with joy as he threw his head back, gurgling happily.

She looked over her shoulder. On the horizon she noticed a peculiar string of dust. She thought maybe it was a herd of buffalo. She picked up Greyson and stood to get a better view. The ranch hands saw it, too, and soon, Deidre and Tom stepped out of the house, onto the porch so they could see. Whatever was rolling across the plains was large in number and moving fast.

Horses!
Sarah’s eyes widened when she realized it was a stampede of horses and they appeared to be heading straight into Cashion ranch! Then, as they came closer, she saw something that made her knees weak. The lead horse was a big, beautiful black horse with a rider. Behind him ran an even smaller, more feminine black horse.
Feather!

Following behind Feather, in nearly single file, ran many, many horses! Tears filled her eyes. She started laughing and crying; she couldn’t believe this was real. Grey Fox was heading straight for her, leading enough horses to pay her bride price and more!