Chapter Fifteen

Oh, Great Spirit
Whose voice I hear in the winds,
And whose breath gives life to all the world,
hear me, I am small and weak,
I need your strength and wisdom. – Native American Prayer

Adam awoke to the sound of glass tinkling, as if it were being brushed against more glass. He rolled over then remembered his lack of clothing and quickly grabbed his cover. He could see her moving around the cabin in the darkness, but couldn’t tell what she was doing.

She stopped. “Get dressed. We will be leaving soon.”

Adam did as he was told, thankful for the darkness, though it was difficult to figure out fronts and backs of clothing. She picked up a skin-wrapped package and the fruit from the table and opened the door. “Bring your gun and ammunition.”

Once they were in the barn she lit a lantern then took the gun and a box of bullets from him, burying them deeply in one of the slender baskets. She took the package she brought from the shack, burying it in another basket. She spread one of the skins on each of the horses then placed the baskets on them with the straps over their back, allowing the baskets to hang on each side of the horse. She followed this with the rest of the skins then covered both horses with a blanket. In the dim light, he could see that she was wearing a tasseled skirt and a shirt similar to his. Her hair was braided down the back, and she wore a colorful headband. She walked into a dark corner of the barn and came out with something in her hand. “Give me your right hand,” she said.

Adam held it out, and she tied a bracelet similar to her headband, but slimmer, on his wrist. She held her left hand out, handing him a matching bracelet. “Tie it on my wrist.” She rolled out a skin, revealing a collection of knives, took one and placed it in a sheath on her belt. When she pulled up her skirt, showing her thighs, he looked away. She placed a knife in a sheath tied around her right thigh, glancing up at him when he cleared his throat. “Get used to it. You cannot show embarrassment at the sight of your wife. These are our marriage bands. You will not take it off, even to bathe.” She handed him two knives and another sheath. “Tie the sheath to your leg inside your boot. Can you throw a knife?”

“Yes.”

“Can you use a bow and arrow?”

“I’ll learn.”

“Can you get on your horse without stirrups?”

“Yep.”

“Then we leave.”

The two rode through the town silently in the dark, the only sound the muffled beat of the unshod hoofs in the dirt. Once they were out of town, she spoke. “If a brave speaks to me or touches me in any way, you will step between us. If you cower, he will kill you. If a brave sits next to me or offers me food, you must pull him away from me in anger. When my family leaves to bathe, you will not hesitate to remove your clothes by the river. They will ask questions about you; you are hairy and your hair has curls. You will tell them that your mother was Shoshoni from the north and your father was a trapper from the mountains. Your hair is black and your skin is dark; you will pass for a half-breed. Do not use big words. Speak simply. I will teach you to trap and kill the crawlers and the desert dogs for food. If the sun burns your skin, you will cover it with the milk of the healing plant. You must learn all this quickly. Do you understand?”

“Yes.”

“You do not have to worry about the language. Because the Shoshoni and the Aha macave know that I have white blood, they will not question the language. They speak the tongue of the white man. But, if they give you a name, you must answer to it. The Aha macave may play jokes on you. This is the way of the Aha macave and means they like you. You will not be offended, but will laugh with them. If the men cry, you must cry. If the men shout in anger, you must shout with them. Do you understand?”

“This is a lot to remember. I’ll do my best.”

She jerked her head toward him, looking him fiercely in the eye. “Your life depends on this. If you cannot remember anything I have told you, tell me now so that I can repeat it.”

“I’ll remember.”

The night clouds had broken, and he could see her now in the light of the moon. Her skirt was hiked all the way up to the tops of her thighs. She rode with the tassels of her skirt hanging between her legs so that she wasn’t exposed. “You don’t wear shoes?”

“No. My feet are used to the ground. It would be a good thing if you do not have tender feet and can go without your boots. But if you must wear them…” She shrugged. “They will not protect you from sharp rocks or spines. You must learn to move silently.”

“What were the bottles you packed?”

“The white man has brought sickness to the Shoshoni and the Aha macave. I bring them medicine. This is why they allow me in their lands.”

“I can understand why you’re the only one that will come out here. I don’t see a white man being able to do the things you do.”

She laughed. “I do not fit in the white man’s world. I do not fit in the Indian’s world. I do not belong anywhere.  But I can walk through either.”

They rode in silence until a faint light shown just above the horizon. “We must find a place to make camp. When the morning sun has warmed the rocks, I will teach you to hunt the crawlers. Then we will eat and sleep.”