The Last Sundancer (31 page)

He saw that Pele was angry and possibly humiliated by the defeat that he suffered at Kaichen’s hands. 
He knew for a certainty that the man would soon chose to call him a friend or name him an enemy.   

Kaichen led the way with Amara at his side.  He did not look back to see if the other
hunters followed. 

Kaichen
walked away with more than he had when he arrived.  Though he did not know the men that would soon join him as brothers of the hunt he reasoned that they were bound by blood and vows from the past. 

In this way they were alike. 

The old women and young children were safely tucked away in the underground cavern that her people had found long ago.  Their stores of food were kept in the cool, damp place.  If the underground cavern was ever discovered they would lose many lives over the cold season. 

Denoa treasured the old ones of her band.  They were the life’s blood of her people, telling the stories from long ago, remembering those that no longer walked the land, gone forever to rest with their forefathers.  

She raised her eyes high to the red rocks that enclosed and protected her people.  Watchers stood on the ridge and they shouted that a band of
men approached.  Denoa’s heart beat frantically for long moments until the young man above yelled down to them that Kaichen had returned. 

“I thought…” Madra stood beside Denoa and she crushed her hands to her mouth to stop the words from being spoken.

“Not yet.” Denoa knew that her friend had feared the worst. 

The raiders that often came to pillage and steal were a constant threat.  But so far, they
had not appeared, other than to leave their spears at the top of the red rocks as a sign of their mark upon the people that dwelled below.

The truth was that they
could not take any more.  Their band would perish if more of their food stores were taken or damaged.  Denoa walked over flooded ground beside her oldest friend and reminded herself that they were not done yet.   There was much more to see and do before the breath of life was taken from her. 

“Make ready!” Madra called out to the waiting members of her band.  The women that were brave enough to remain with them cast eager smiles her way. 

Denoa smiled back, though her shoulders were full of tension. 

Kaichen had given their people a reason to hope again.  He could not know how much his very presence had meant to her, to all of them.  Her son had breathed life back into their band with his strong steps and proud bearing, so like his father.  So like Shale and yet not.  Kaichen was a man that stood apart. 

Soon Denoa could see her son clearly as she climbed up to the top of the ridge and looked out upon the land below.  Kaichen led the way and warriors flanked him on the right and the left, trailing behind his footsteps.  A young woman walked at Kaichen’s side.  Amara. 

Denoa narrowed her eyes. 
It hurt her heart that Kaichen did not seek her approval before choosing a lifemate.  

“Be glad that your son has returned.” Madra’s wise voice caused Denoa to turn her
eyes away for a moment and peer into her friend’s knowing gaze.

“Are we sister
s, you and I, that you should know my thoughts so well?” Denoa’s voice held a hint of humor and Madra smiled.

“That we are.  But we will let those strong men walking toward us imagine that you are the older sister and I am the younger.” The women shared a moment of breathless la
ughter as the men drew closer.

“What is it?” Madra saw Denoa’s smile fade and her eyes narrowed into long slits as her lips thinned into a sneer.

Denoa did not trust her voice.  She stared at the men striding forward beside Kaichen. 

Madra clasped her hands over her mouth as Denoa
shook her head in dismay. 

“
The men that walk with my son were once friends of his father.  Tamol and Farren.” Denoa pressed her hands together to hide their trembling as she glanced at her friend. 

“
Farren.” Madra breathed the name of the man that she had once loved more than life itself.  Her eyes turned away from the image he presented as he walked toward them.  Madra’s silently pleaded for understanding as she glanced at Denoa.  Denoa nodded once as Madra took her leave. 

Neither
woman had expected Tamol and Farren to leave the safety of their bands and join Kaichen as he hunted for food.  But they had.  Denoa knew how the sight of Farren affected her friend, for he had once been her husband. 

It appeared that the foundations of the world that they knew had been shaken to the core. 

“Balance must be restored.” Denoa cast her words to the wind as she stood ready to face the past. 

Far below,
Tamol and Farren marched ever closer, led by the strong footsteps of her son.  Kaichen.

Tense silence reigned as food was offered to
the newcomers.  Denoa’s eyes sparked with anger as she directed one of the young men to run to the cavern and return with the women and children. 

The youth’s eyes were shadowed with doubt but Denoa’s expression dared him to voice his concern.  He nodded humbly and ran off to do her bidding. 

If only Kaichen responded to her in such a way.  Denoa glanced at her son and she saw that he was aware of her anger and frustration.   His stance practically dared her to object to the intrusion of Tamol and his men even though she knew that it was for the benefit of her people. 

Tamol
’s eyes were upon her and for that reason alone Denoa held her silence and deferred to her son. 

“Kaichen, your woman does not take the place of a wife by sitting to the right of her husband?”
Tamol’s voice was mild, though it hid a challenge within it.

Denoa’s eyes widened when Kaichen looked up at her and then glanced over at Amara.  The young woman had remained standing, uncertain of her place.  Denoa saw that Amara held her flute the way that others held a treasured weapon.  A long moment passed and then Kaichen spoke.

“I have taken Amara as my mate but her ways are not our ways.  I accept her as she is.” His voice rang out over the assembled band and the women that walked toward them with their children in tow heard him clearly. 

Denoa felt shame well up from the depths of her heart.  Kaichen had not given her the honor due to his mother, he had denied her the right to sele
ct his wife.  With a determined breath Denoa shook off the hurt that burned within her heart. 

“
Tamol, how does your wife fair?” Denoa’s question was polite and not unexpected.  She had once had the misfortune of dwelling in the same band as Tamol’s woman. 

“She died after giving birth to our last child, a daughter.” 
Tamol’s voice did not hold censure or anger.  His words were said in simple acceptance of their way of life.  At last count Tamol’s wife had given him eight children, now he had nine. 

“We grieve for you.” Denoa response was common but the flash of concern that lit her eyes struck a
chord within Tamol.

He inclined his head to show his appreciation.  Soon he and Kaichen were involved in discussions surrounding their plans for the hunt. 

Denoa was summarily dismissed and she did not allow her expression to show anything other than the fierce pride that kept her soul tethered to her body. At times she felt her son’s eyes upon her but she did not meet his gaze. 

She could not endure another blow as she stood before
the scrutiny of men that had once named themselves her friend.  The past swirled around her now as tangible as the wind. 

Denoa
forced herself to breathe deeply and draw upon the well of strength that had never failed her.  She needed to remember that she had survived more than this in the past and it had only made her stronger. 

“You have brought these men to sit at our hearth fire, our central place.” Denoa’s voice was accusing as she faced her son in the quiet of her dwelling. 

Kaichen’s clenched jaw told her that he was already angry.  H
is father had possessed the same flashing dark eyes that Kaichen turned upon her now.

“I have found a way to ensure that our people survive another season of cold.  Set your pride aside and accept their help.” Kaichen’s words struck directly at the heart of Denoa’s anger and fear. 

“Pride is all that I have left.” Denoa faced her son and she did not look away.  “Already you have taken a wife, without my approval.  I am your mother.”

Kaichen heard the hurt in his mother’s voice and long ago he would have responded to it.  She had been the one that he would turn to as a young child to find comfort.  But in his heart and mind
, he was certain that she had given up that right long ago.  He reminded himself that his mother had failed to save Siada from their grandfather’s cruel hand.

“I did what was n
ecessary to save Amara’s life and I do not seek your approval.” Kaichen knew that his words were like carefully thrown knives, but he could not call the words back. 

“You could have gone alone, leaving
Amara with me.” Denoa knew that her words had come too late. 

She could read the condemnation in her son’s
eyes and it hurt that he would not trust her with Amara’s life.  But then she wondered why he should trust her at all?

“
I protect what is mine.  I cannot speak for anyone else.” Kaichen was tired down to his soul where the spirit lived inside of him. 

He had nothing left to offer his mother.  She had sealed his fate on the day of his birth ju
st as she had done with Siada.

“Where are you going?” Denoa’s voice was utterly calm though her f
ingers were clenched in her lap to still their trembling.  She kept her hands hidden away from Kaichen’s piercing gaze.

“I am going to prepare the men for the hunt.  Tomorrow we will fill our food caches to the brim.  Are you pleased?  By the time the sun seeks its resting place you will have exactly what you want from me.” Kaichen’s words were bitter, thrown at the
feet of woman that stared at him without expression, without emotion.  His mother.

Denoa watched her son walk away from her, leaving her to sit
alone inside of her dwelling.  She did not have the one thing that she wanted above all else, in that one aspect Kaichen was incorrect.  The love of her son was lost to her, like sand slipping through her spread fingers the spark of hope in her heart fell away.  In that moment, she knew with painful certainty that Kaichen would never forgive her for the sins of the past. 

The men moved as one across the land of their birth, each man took his place moving in line with the one in front of him.   Kaichen paired the hunters of his mother’s band with the men that were claimed by Farren and Tamol.  Each hunter would support his brother by taking the lead where the other fell short and in this way they became brothers of the hunt.  

Tamol
admired Kaichen’s natural leadership and confidence.  He did not allow Kaichen to see his interest as he directed his men to lead the way.  Half a day’s walk was cut short by the running footsteps of the men.  They ran in harmony with one another, though they were not of one band, each man was born of the desert and full of strength and vigor.  

When their thirst was upon them, they
quickly emptied the waterskins that had been filled to the brim by the river’s edge.  Tamol had been startled to see Denoa, standing like a willow in the wind as he walked into her band’s resting place.   She was exactly as he remembered. 

From afar he would have thought that for Denoa, time stood still.
She held the same fragile grace that had captured Shale’s heart from the moment that he had first laid eyes upon her. 

“I see that you do not trust your mother with
the safety of your young wife.” Tamol’s words were prying, meant to illicit a response from Kaichen. Farren watched closely, ever watchful, missing nothing. 

Antuk and Amara traveled well behind the hunting party, keeping
their pace to a fast walk.  They had lost sight of them long ago, but Kaichen did not appear concerned.

“My wife is not your concern.” Kaichen knew that his actions appeared distinct
ly odd to the two men that were leaders of their own bands.  They would not bring their women along with them on a hunt.  Yet, he had dared.  

He could not set aside the feeling that his mother’s band was in danger.  They were content to wait for the raiders that roamed the land.  They did not see any other way to survive such an attack except by hiding their women and children.  Kaichen could not leave Amara defenseless and alone with the others.  He needed her nearby so that he could offer his protection
as her lifemate, as a man and a warrior.