LITMIR.BIZ

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time. This was a good sign. His heart told him she lay between light and darkness now. That she wanted to return to the land of the living but was not ready to cross the Rainbow Bridge yet. Her face was tense and small beads of sweat formed on her brow.

      “Don’t struggle so much, my Brave Heart,” he coaxed, taking a cloth and dipping it in a wooden bowl filled with fresh river water. “You will come back to me. I will sing you songs filled with hope and strength—a beacon in your darkness.“ Daubing her brow, he smiled as he saw the corners of her mouth begin to ease, the stress disappearing with each ministration to her forehead. The deer rattle had worked its magic, allowing Cante Tinza to begin to release her hurt and fear.

      There was a scratch on the tepee. Wolf placed the cloth on her forehead and moved to the opening. It was late at night, and he wondered who it might be. Pulling the skin aside, he motioned for the visitor to step inside.

      Deer Woman blushed deeply as she entered. “Black Wolf, I have come to offer my services to you,” she stammered softly, clasping her hands nervously in front of her.

      Wolf sat back on his haunches, knowing that this confrontation had been long in coming. The morning he’d ridden into the village with Cante Tinza in his arms, Deer Woman had covered her mouth with a cry and fled to sob her heart out somewhere in the surrounding forest. He’d felt badly, but there was nothing he could do. If only Deer Woman would realize that he didn’t love her, that she must walk her path with another man.

      “Sit,” he invited, gesturing toward a nearby buffalo robe.

      Unobtrusively, Deer Woman sat, her eyes downcast. “I did not mean to disturb you, Black Wolf, but so many have needed your help in the past five days, I wanted to wait.”

      Sighing, Wolf pulled up one leg, encircling it with both arms. At this time of night, he was dressed only in a breechclout. “I thank you for your sensitivity, Deer Woman. Now, what is it you wished to see me about?”

      Her rounded face was softened by the firelight as she raised her black lashes and studied him nervously. “How is the red-haired one? I hear so much gossip. Is it true? Is she dying?”

      Wolf shook his head. “There are signs she is ready to awaken any time now.”

      It was true, rumors about Cante Tinza had abounded like wildfire. The reaction within the village had been sharp and divided. A number of warriors and wives had come to him directly, telling him that a wasicun was evil and bad luck to all of them. And quietly, as was his demeanor, Wolf acknowledged their concerns and then tried to convince them that Cante Tinza was not a threat. They’d leave, shaking their heads, still in disagreement with him but powerless to make him change his mind.

      “Oh…“ Deer Woman unclasped her hands, resting them on the thighs of her deerskin dress. “Well, then, I come to offer you help.”

      Surprised, Wolf ruthlessly assessed her. “What kind of help?”

      “When Redwing was alive, she and her daughter lived with you. She cared for your needs while you supplied her with food and shelter.“ She motioned to the baby. “Now, you must raise and tend a baby daily without a woman’s help. And this red-haired one demands equal attention, plus our people look to you daily for healing. I can care for your niece as well as tend to this wasicun.” Eagerly, she leaned forward, her topaz eyes wide and begging. “I can cook and sew for you. I can ease the many burdens you must carry, Black Wolf. And before you say no, I have already gone to your sisters, Evening Star and Little Swallow. Neither can help you because of their own families and responsibilities, even though they may want to.”

      Scowling, Wolf realized the wisdom of her words. “Deer Woman, if I accept your services, understand that it does not mean you become my wife.“ He bored a look into her golden eyes. She lived in a world of fantasy and hope, too young and unwilling to see the reality that he did not love her.

      A hesitant, hopeful smile touched her bowlike lips. “I—yes, of course, I understand that. But the Lakota way is to aid those in need of help. My mother does not require me, and my hands are idle. Dawn Sky’s needs are many. Although my breasts do not carry milk, I can become her mother in all other ways. I know that Dove That Flies nourishes her along with her own child. I would gladly take over Redwing’s duties for you.“ Her voice trailed off and she looked longingly at Wolf’s set features.

      Glancing at Cante Tinza, Wolf knew Deer Woman was right. The baby demanded full-time care. She had stood back and assessed the situation, showing him that she was capable of common sense. For that, Wolf was grateful. “Very well,” he said gruffly. He pointed to the buffalo robe that had been Redwing’s pallet. “You will stay with me until I ask you to leave. Until then, you will tend Dawn Sky and cook and sew for all of us.“ He made a point of gesturing to Cante Tinza. “For her, too.”

      Deer Woman’s eyes widened. “But—I heard that you intended to keep her as a slave if she recovered. I would not be expected to sew or—”

      “Cante Tinza deserves our help, not our placing her in a position of humility,” Wolf growled. “Do you reward bravery with slavery?”

      Tears sprang to Deer Woman’s huge eyes. “Then—then you intend to take her as a…wife when she is well?”

      “I intend,” Wolf snapped, “to allow her to make her own decisions. She is not our prisoner. We do not own her.“ Anger simmered deeply within him as he watched Deer Woman struggle with the all too vulnerable emotions that crossed her face.

      “But—Tall Crane said you claimed her for your own.“ Her voice was strained and subservient.

      “I claimed her so that she would be allowed the freedom that she has won by defending our women. Whether she stays or goes is up to her. By claiming her as my woman, I make sure no one challenges her on that issue.”

      Gulping unsteadily, Deer Woman stared at the woman. “She is wasicun!”

      Reaching over, Wolf gripped the maid by her arm. “In my eyes, she is a woman, sacred and deserving our goodwill, not our prejudice.”

      Trying to master her unraveling emotions, Deer Woman pulled her arm away. Wolf had not hurt her. Instead, he’d merely made physical contact with her to emphasize his words. “So, if she wants to leave, you’ll let her?“ Hope rose once again in Deer Woman’s heart. Perhaps, if she could prove how good a mother she could be to Dawn Sky and could show him her sewing and cooking talents, Wolf would finally realize that she was the right woman to be his wife.

      Harried, Wolf nodded. “I won’t force her to stay once she is well enough to go.“ Besides, she probably has a family and husband anxiously waiting for her, he thought.

      Casting her eyes back to the robe she kneeled upon, Deer Woman whispered, “You called her Brave Heart. This is a special name, one that the wapiya of our village has chosen to give her.”

      Smarting beneath the problems already surfacing, Wolf got up. He went over and arranged Deer Woman’s pallet. “She has earned the right to be called that,” he parried grimly. “And she has paid dearly for it.”

      Chastised, Deer Woman nodded and scrambled to her feet. “Your wisdom has always been correct in such matters. Who am I to question the name you give her? The mighty spirits you work with know better. I am sorry.”

      Throwing back one robe, Wolf rose slowly to his full height of six feet three inches. Deer Woman was small-boned, like a bird. And just as fragile emotionally, in his opinion. “Sleep with Dawn Sky in your arms. She won’t wake until Father Sun comes up. Then, take her over to Dove That Flies to be fed.”

      Joy bubbled within Deer Woman as she looked up at Wolf’s harsh features. A smile of gratitude crossed her lips. “I will serve you well, Black Wolf. Soon you will see how good a mother and caretaker I am for you and yours.”

      Disgruntled, and having no choice in the matter, Wolf went over to Cante Tinza to check on her one last time before going to sleep. “I am grateful for your help, but do not place any more importance than that to it,” he warned her darkly.

      Drawing

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