Rose's Pledge (40 page)

Removing his partially dry fur robe, he spread it out on the ground for the women to sit on. Their quiet cooperation throughout the ordeal seemed to him another miracle …especially since Rose had never been too shy to express her opinion about things.

He and Bob were used to maintaining silence during these past years since they’d been exploring, and they worked together just as quietly now as they knelt down to get a fire going. While Bob struck his knife repeatedly against a piece of flint, Nate nudged fragments of dry moss beneath the flying sparks.

A tiny flame soon burst forth. Nate blew on it gently until it grew enough to add twigs.

Sighs of pleasure erupted from Rose and Shining Star, and he looked up to see admiration in their eyes. At least for the moment, it seemed he and Bob were their heroes.

“We should be safe here for a while,” Nate said. “Long enough for our clothes to dry, anyway, an’ maybe get something into our stomachs.” He knew he shouldn’t keep looking at Rose, but she seemed like a magnet to his eyes. He drank in the sight she made, cuddling Jenny Ann within the warmth of her damp cloak. Giving himself a mental shake, he tore his gaze away. “Have any jerky tucked away in that haversack, Bob?”

“Some, I reckon.” He broke a twig in half. “I’ll check once we get this fire goin’ good.” He added more sticks to the growing flames.

Nate nodded. “I prob’ly have some in mine, too. We’re gonna want somethin’ to flavor that cornmeal.”

“I wish I’d have had the foresight to bring something as well.” Rose’s sad comment drew Nate’s attention back to her.

He flashed an indulgent smile. “You looked after Jenny an’ kept her quiet when it mattered. That was more than enough.”

A tender glow of gratitude returned to her blue-gray eyes, and the sight was almost enough to be his undoing.

He shot to his feet. “You can handle this, Bob. I’ll go down to the river for some water.”

“Be careful, Nate,” Rose called after him, her voice soft and low.

He opened his mouth to reply then clamped it shut and turned on his heel. Didn’t the woman know that was what he was desperately trying to do?

The overcast sky added dampness to the day, making Rose’s search for dry moss difficult, since she’d been instructed to remain within sight of the camp. She moved aside a clump of dead leaves with her foot and found a small strand of green to add to the meager supply she’d already found. A gust of cold wind swirled her cloak open, and she used her free hand to tug it more closely about herself while she continued her search.

Detecting footsteps not far away, she glanced up to see Nate returning to camp, gingerly balancing his gourd cup and a small pan in either hand as he walked. She thought it odd that he’d used such little containers to tote water back to the shelter.

Even as she moved out of sight behind a tree trunk, she knew it was silly to not want him to know she was there.

He joined Robert at the rocky cave and set down both vessels with a faint
clink
. “Can’t believe it. How could both of us go off without grabbin’ our flasks?”

Smiling to herself, Rose tilted her head enough to peer out at them. Suddenly Nate straightened with a start and swung around, accidentally bumping the gourd. Water sloshed to the ground. She ducked behind the tree again.

“Where’s Rose?” A distinct note of panic tinged the frontiersman’s voice.

Robert snorted. “Calm down. She just went to find moss for the baby.”

“Oh.” Nate released a lungful of air. “You did caution her not to wander too far, right?”

“I did. Take it easy, pal. She’s not gonna take any chances.”

“Hmph.” He paused. “Guess it’s just as well she ain’t here right now.”

Rose inched forward and saw Robert look up at Nate in question.

“I saw some Senecas across the river runnin’ along the bank. They’re prob’ly the bunch that followed our trail. They must’ve found where we built the raft, and now they’re searchin’ the banks to see where we landed. They know we ain’t stupid enough to let ourselves drift very far downstream.”

Rose moistened her lips and let out an uneasy breath.

“You’re right about that,” Robert agreed. “Let’s pray they don’t find a canoe before gettin’ back to the village an’ spreadin’ the word.”

Nate lowered his voice, making his next words barely audible to Rose. “Don’t mention nothin’ to the women. They’re scairt enough as it is.”

As we have every right to be
. Shrinking out of sight again, Rose thought about Nate, her knight in shining armor, always doing his utmost to protect her, always taking care of her—regardless of anything thoughtless or hurtful she said to him. Why, she’d even refused to marry him, all because she was
too good
for him. What a laugh. Truth was, she didn’t deserve him! The very thought of how she’d berated him, how she’d so callously dismissed his proposal, made her loathe herself.

Still, the reasons for her refusal—no matter how tactlessly she might have expressed them—remained valid. She belonged to the Lord, and Nate Kinyon did not. God’s instructions must stand. She could not be bound for life to a man who did not seek after the Lord. No matter how her heart ached about it.

God had seen them through thus far. She had to believe He’d continue to do so.
Please, Father, give Nate and Robert wisdom for whatever may lie ahead. Stay with us. Keep us safe
.

The foursome gathered around the tin pan of mush. Holding Jenny in her lap, Rose couldn’t help thinking back on the sumptuous Sabbath meal they’d enjoyed a mere two days past. The roasted chicken had been tender and moist, the vegetables cooked to perfection. Yet this simple fare of mush with jerked meat could be no less appreciated. Nate and Robert had carved crude spoons from a couple of broad sticks they’d found, and Rose held hers poised and ready to attack the meal.

“We need to give thanks,” Robert said, bowing his head. “Lord God, we thank You for providin’ us with this food. I thank You for Shining Star, too, an’ ask a special blessin’ on her for rememberin’ to bring the cornmeal. In Jesus’ name, amen.”

About to thrust forth her spoon, Rose stopped midmotion as Nate’s voice interrupted.

“And one more thing, Lord,” he added as she closed her eyes again. “We need to thank You for all You’ve been doin’ to keep us safe.” He chuckled. “The fact that You had Rose make me so mad I couldn’t sleep was the first of ‘em.”

She sneaked a peek through her lashes at him, wondering if he was trying to get back at her, but the expression on his rugged face was the most sincere she’d ever glimpsed there.

“An’ since then it’s been one thing after the other,” he went on. “You know better than me all You been doin’ to look after us. I wanna thank You for that. Really thank You.” Abruptly he raised his voice. “Well, eat up, y’all.” He dug his makeshift spoon into the mush.

Still mildly stunned, it took a moment for Rose to remember to join the others scooping food from the communal pan. What was she to think about Nate’s prayer? She simply didn’t know what to make of it.

“Uhh. Uhh.” Jenny reached out a little hand toward the food, returning Rose to the moment. She quickly dipped her spoon and gave the child the first bite then alternated with her, making sure Jenny had no reason to fuss again.

Across the campfire, Shining Star said something to Robert that sounded like a question. He answered, his voice casual as they spoke back and forth throughout the meal.

Rose could think of nothing worthy to say to Nate. Fortunately, he wasn’t speaking to her either. Fact was, he seemed to be going out of his way not to look at her, even when he passed her the gourd of water. He kept all his attention on the food before them. So she did as well.

Eventually Robert broke the tense silence. “Shining Star asked me to thank you, Nate, for your prayer.” A smile added a spark to his dark eyes. “She says it’s a great comfort to know she’s with men who seek the favor of our God. An’ she believes that He must be very powerful.”

Nate tipped his head to the Indian girl. “That was a real nice thing to say.”

As Robert translated, Rose sprang to her feet, bringing the baby up with her. Truly overwhelmed with the incredible change in the frontiersman, she didn’t want anyone to discover the tears brimming in her eyes. Wiping Jenny’s mouth with her already-ruined cloak, she went to the cradleboard to fasten her in. Without chancing a look back at the others, she cleared the clog in her throat. “Time’s a’wasting”—words she’d heard Nate say so many times during their journey to Muskingum.

“But you gals’ clothes are still damp,” Robert protested.

“They’ll dry soon enough,” Rose assured him airily as she laced the baby in her warm cocoon.

Nate stood up. “She’s right. He used his foot to kick dirt over the fire, effectively snuffing it. Then he swung his gaze to Rose and locked with hers for the first time. He grinned. “Time’s a’wastin’.”

Chapter 35

R
ose scarcely noticed the weight of the baby and cradleboard digging into her shoulders. The seriousness of the pursuers chasing after them made even the discomfort of her battered feet of little import as she followed Robert and Shining Star into the woods, skirting leftover patches of dismal snow in their path. Nate had smiled at her. Sensing he was no longer angry, she walked on in silence, basking in the sweet memory of his grin.

No one had to remind her that two skilled frontiersmen like Nate and Robert could easily elude the French and Seneca trackers, were they on their own and had minds to do so. Instead they were willingly risking capture, torture, and even death just to protect their women.
Their women
. Rose didn’t dare dwell on the significance of that thought.

She tossed a worried look over her shoulder, hoping to see Nate coming. He’d remained behind to cover any evidence of their presence at the cave. Her last view of him as the party left the campsite revealed him spreading moldy leaves across those they’d disturbed and raking over imprints of their feet with a leafless tree branch.
Watch over him, Father. Surround him with Your angels…
.

The image of his priceless smile drifted across her thoughts again. But dear as the sight of it had been to her, Rose hesitated to assign it much significance. He could easily have changed his mind about marriage, considering the heartless fashion in which she’d crushed him by voicing her strong religious convictions. Even now the memory tormented her. But at least he was back to his old teasing self again …and how she loved that side of him.

She loved him. The prospect of having to give him up in the near future while they went their separate ways was worse than torture. How would she ever find the strength to do it?
Dear Lord, help me to bear in mind that just because Nate turned to You in a time of dire need, it doesn’t mean he won’t revert to his old ways the minute the danger is past
. Slowing her pace to step over a protruding root in the path, she deliberately steered her mind onto a different course.
And thank You so much that Jenny has been quiet and happy all this time. She truly loves being outdoors and traveling. Were I a Shawnee mother, I’d give her the name Traveling Woman
. With a smile, Rose stepped cautiously through a low, muddy spot.