Kaylee heard hoofbeats and then a familiar voice calling her name. That voice, here, shocked her. She ran out from her hiding place, startling his mount.
"Randy! What are you doing here?" She stared at him as he calmed his lathered horse, stunned to see him in sweat-stained Army blue.
Dismounting, he dropped his horse's reins and rushed toward her. He grabbed her in a bear hug and held her tight. "Kaylee Marie! Are you all right? Lord, I can't believe you're here!"
"You're squishing me," she squeaked, certain that he was going to crack a rib.
He loosened his grip but didn't let her go. "Sorry, Kay, but I'm so damn glad to see you."
"I'm glad to see you, too," she said. And she was. Randy was like a breath of fresh air from home. But where was Blue Hawk? "Is . . . is the fighting over?"
"Yeah. You're safe now."
"Safe?"
Randy nodded. "The redskins are gone."
"Gone!" She twisted out of his arms, her heart pounding with fear and worry. Where was Blue Hawk? If he was alive, he would be here, looking for her.
Randy frowned at the note of panic in her voice. "Don't worry, Kay. We'll protect you."
She backed away from him. "I don't need any protection. Do you know where they went?"
"Where who went?"
"The Lakota! Where did they go?"
"You mean the Sioux? They ran." He looked at her curiously, no doubt wondering at her concern for a bunch of savages. "Beats the hell out of me, but you don't have to worry, Kaylee. They won't bother you anymore. We killed a good many of them. The redskins that survived turned tail and ran. Come on," he said, "let's go."
Feeling her fear give way to exhaustion, Kaylee did not protest when Randy lifted her onto Dusty's back and then mounted his own horse.
Taking up the reins, she followed Randy's lead, the words "we killed a good many" echoing in her mind. Was Blue Hawk dead? No, he couldn't be!
They reached the site of the Army encampment a short time later. Kaylee's gaze swept the area, anxiously searching for Blue Hawk, even though she knew her chances of finding him were slim. Whenever possible, the Lakota carried their dead and wounded away, often at the risk of their own lives. She saw several Lakota dead, left where they had fallen. Men she had seen smiling at their wives, laughing with their children. Shuddering, she looked away.
The soldiers stood or sat in small groups, talking. A doctor moved among the wounded. In the distance, she saw several covered bodies. Those would be the Army casualties. A detail was digging graves. Several wagons formed a circle on the edge of the camp. Horses stood hip-shot along a picket line; several mules were tied to the tongues of the wagons.
She reined her horse to a halt beside Randy's. He dismounted and lifted her from the saddle.
"Well, now, Harris, who's this?"
Kaylee turned to see a large red-haired man striding toward them.
"Kaylee Matthews, Sergeant."
"Pleased to make your acquaintance, Miss Matthews. How long have you been a prisoner?"
Kaylee started to reply that she hadn't been a prisoner, then paused. She glanced over at the covered bodies, thinking now might not be a good time to tell Randy and the sergeant that she was with the Indians because she wanted to be.
Randy answered for her. "Miss Matthews is from my hometown, Sergeant. She was kidnapped by the Sioux several months ago."
"Well, you're safe now, Miss Matthews. We'll be leaving for the fort in the morning. You can notify your family when we get there."
Leaving? She couldn't leave, didn't want to leave. She clasped her hands together to still their shaking. She murmured her thanks, wondering if they would let her stay behind.
"Harris, you'll be in charge of looking after Miss Matthews."
Randy nodded. "My pleasure."
With a grunt, the sergeant took his leave.
"Let's go over to the mess tent and get a cup of coffee," Randy suggested.
Coffee. It seemed a lifetime since she had tasted coffee. Memories of home flooded over her, warring with her fears for Blue Hawk's safety.
Kaylee sat down in the shade, her thoughts racing, while Randy went to get the coffee. Surely she would know if Blue Hawk was dead! Surely her own heart would have stopped beating the instant he was struck down.
She looked over at the bodies again, then shook her head. She could not—would not—believe that Blue Hawk was lying somewhere like that, dusty and still.
Randy returned from the mess tent a short while later, carrying two tin cups of coffee. He handed her one, then sat down beside her. "Careful," he warned. "It's hot."
Needing to think of something besides Blue Hawk, she asked about her mother. Randy hesitated a moment before replying, "She's not well, Kay."
"What's wrong?" she asked, alarmed. "Tell me, Randy. Is she sick? Is it serious? When did you see her last?"
"She's not sick, not exactly. I got a letter from my old man. Your ma's been failing ever since you went missing, Kay. Doc Emery says there's nothing he can do, that she's lost her will to live."
Guilt pierced Kaylee's heart. It was all her fault. She should have made Blue Hawk take her home. How could she have been so thoughtless? But then, her mother had always seemed so strong, how could she have known her disappearance would cause Emma to take to her bed? Oh, Lord, she couldn't lose her mother and Blue Hawk, too.
"I went to see her right before I enlisted. I have to tell you, she didn't look all that good then. But I'm sure she'll be all right, Kay, soon's she knows you're safe."
She could tell he was distressed at the effect his news had on her and was trying to ease the blow.
"Like the sergeant said, we'll be back at the fort in a couple of days. You can send word to your mother and let her know you're all right." He put his hand on her arm. "Don't cry, Kay, please."
But she couldn't help it. Once the tears started, she couldn't stop them. She cried for the pain she had caused her mother, cried because she didn't know if Blue Hawk was dead or alive. She wept for the Lakota who had been killed, wept for her unborn child. What if her mother and Shaun turned her away because she was carrying Blue Hawk's baby?
Randy glanced around and then, muttering, "Oh, hell," he put his arms around her and held her tight.
Kaylee rested her head on his shoulder. His arms were warm, familiar, reminding her of home. But they weren't Blue Hawk's arms. She cried until she was empty inside, and then Randy dried her eyes with his neckerchief.
"Feel better?" he asked.
"Yes," she said, sniffling, and it was both the truth and a lie. "You always said you wanted to enlist, but I never thought you'd really do it. Do you like being in the Army?"
Randy shrugged. "It's all right." His gaze moved over her. Even in buckskins, with her hair in braids, she was still the prettiest girl he'd ever seen.
That night, Kaylee stared unseeing into the darkness. It had been a long day. Randy had stayed close to her side, keeping her company at dinner, entertaining her with humorous stories of his first few weeks in the Army.
At bedtime, the lieutenant, a handsome young man with brown hair and blue eyes, had gallantly insisted that Kaylee sleep in his tent.
The cot was narrow, but more comfortable than the ground. Turning on her side, Kaylee closed her eyes. She was bone-weary, and yet sleep eluded her. She was worried about her mother's health, worried about Sisoka and the other women, but not knowing Blue Hawk's whereabouts was what kept her tossing and turning. She tried to tell herself that he was still alive, that he had managed to escape, but . . . what if he had been killed? Hot tears burned her eyes at the thought of never seeing him again. He couldn't be dead!
She wondered how long it would take to get home, how she would explain her absence to her mother and Shaun. They thought she had been kidnapped. What would they think when they learned she had stayed with Blue Hawk because she wanted to, that she had married him of her own free will.
She placed her hands over her stomach as a new fear crossed her mind. Shaun hated Indians. What would he say, what would he do , when he learned she was carrying Blue Hawk's child?
The troops were on the move shortly after dawn the following day. Kaylee rode beside Randy, her eagerness to see her mother overshadowed by the thought of facing Shaun, by the ever-growing fear that Blue Hawk had been killed.
The hours passed slowly, the silence unbroken save for the jangle of bits and spurs and the creak of saddle leather. She thought of the Lakota, remembering how the women chattered and laughed when they moved camp, how the young men paraded up and down the line, showing off their horsemanship for the maidens. There was no gaiety here. The soldiers rode two by two, grim-faced and silent, no doubt remembering the dead they had left behind. With his sergeant's permission, Randy stayed close to Kaylee. She was happy to have his company.
It grew increasingly hot as the day wore on. There was no shade, no respite from the heat. They stopped at noon to eat and water the horses. Kaylee knelt beside the shallow buffalo wallow. She splashed water over her face and arms, hoping to cool her heated skin, but the water was warm and did little to ease her discomfort.
She wasn't much impressed with Army food, which seemed to consist of salt pork, hardtack, bacon, sugar, and coffee. Lunch was hardtack and black coffee.
It wasn't long before they were riding again.
It was late afternoon when they stopped for the night. Kaylee sat on a wooden stool, watching the sol diers make camp. Picket lines were set up, guards were posted. Several men hauled buckets of water up from the stream; others took sacks and went in search of buffalo chips, since there were no trees in the area.
Soon a couple of the men started a fire, and shortly after that each man in the outfit was given a cup of strong black coffee. She was amazed at how quickly the men seemed to recover their energy after a simple cup of coffee.
After mess, the men spread their blankets. The lieutenant again offered Kaylee the use of his tent, and she accepted gratefully.
Utterly weary, she slid under the thin summer blanket and closed her eyes.
They would reach the fort tomorrow. She would send word to her mother and Shaun as soon as she arrived, assuring them that she was well. The lieutenant had informed her that he would assign a detail to see her safely home.
She stared at the shadows moving over the walls of the tent. She could hear the men settling down for the night, the rattle of chains on the wagon tongues as the mules stamped their feet, the snorts of the horses.
Lying there in the dark, feeling lost and alone, she closed her eyes. "I will not cry," she whispered, but even then tears were stinging her eyes, trickling down her cheeks, squeezed from a heart that felt as though it was breaking.
And suddenly she couldn't wait to get home, to rest her head in her mother's lap and pour out all her hurt and heartache. Shaun might disown her when he discovered she was carrying Blue Hawk's baby, but her mother wouldn't care. Emma would understand. And forgive.
Kaylee woke to a gray dawn and a flurry of gunshots. Scrambling out of the cot, she pushed open the tent flap and peeked outside. Soldiers were running everywhere.
She called to one of them, "What's happening?"
"Injuns spooked the horses, ma'am!" he shouted and ran past her.
A moment later Randy came running up to her. "Stay inside!" he instructed.
"Randy, wait!"
"Can't talk now," he said. "Just stay inside!"
"Be careful," she called, but he was already gone. She jumped when the mess tent suddenly went up in flames. Had the Lakota come back to retaliate for their losses? Or was it another tribe?
"Kay-lee."
She whirled around at the sound of his voice, hardly daring to believe it could be him. "Blue Hawk!" Joy flooded her heart and soul, spilled out in a rush of tears. "Blue Hawk! Oh, Blue Hawk, I thought you were dead!"
He shook his head, then held out his hand. "Come. We must go quickly."
She didn't question him, didn't hesitate, merely put her hand in his and followed him through the slit he had cut in the back of the tent. Dusty was waiting for her. The mare whickered softly as Blue Hawk lifted Kaylee onto her back.
"You will have to ride bareback," he said, swinging onto his own horse.
Kaylee nodded. She would have run alongside the horse, barefoot, over hot coals, to be with him again. Taking up the reins, she followed Blue Hawk into the gray landscape. Long shadows fell over the land.
They held the horses to a walk until they were well away from the camp, then Blue Hawk urged his mount into a gallop.
Exhilaration flowed through Kaylee as she followed Blue Hawk across the prairie. He appeared, and all her doubts and fears took flight. She sent a fervent prayer of thanks to God for reuniting them.
They were far away from the camp before Blue Hawk reined his horse to a halt.
Kaylee pulled up beside him. "Are you all right?"
"I am fine." Dismounting, he lifted her from the saddle and drew her into his arms. "You are well?"
"I am now. What happened? Where are the others?"
"They have scattered like shadows before the sun. Crazy Horse will gather them together. Perhaps they will fight again. Perhaps they will go north, to join with Sitting Bull."
"You didn't go with them."
"How could I?" he asked quietly. "When my heart is here?"
"I missed you," she whispered. "I was afraid, so afraid." With a sigh, she rested her head against his chest.
His hand stroked her hair, his touch ever so gentle. They stood that way for several minutes before Blue Hawk spoke again. "Matoskah was killed."
"Oh, no!"
Blue Hawk nodded.
"Poor Sisoka."
"We will not think of it now. Come, let us rest. The wasichu will be all morning gathering their horses."
She smiled faintly as he spread two Army blankets on the ground, then offered her a drink from an Army canteen.
He looked at her and shrugged. "It is a good thing, to steal from the enemy."
In this instance she had to agree. The Indians had lost much when the Army attacked; it was only fair that they get something back.
Kaylee sat down on the blanket, watching Blue Hawk hobble the horses. She welcomed him with open arms when he came to her, and for a time they sat quietly close. Then he placed his hand on her belly.
"The little one is well?" he asked.
With a nod, she placed her hand over his.
"The boy is here, with the soldiers. His head has healed."
"What boy? Oh, you mean Randy."
"He watches you with hot eyes."
Kaylee started to laugh, then thought better of it. "We're just friends, that's all. We grew up together."
"He does not want to be your friend, Kay-lee."
"I know, but it's you I love, not Randy." She frowned. "How do you know how he looks at me?"
"I have watched you with him. I have watched him with you."
"You've been following us."
"Of course. Did you think I would leave you?"
"I didn't know what to think. I was so afraid you'd been killed."
He placed his hand over her heart. "You would have known, in here, if that were true."
She nodded, knowing it was true. "Blue Hawk?"
"What is it you wish?"
"I need to go home."
He went suddenly still. "It is your wish to leave me?"
"No! No, of course not. But Randy told me my mother is ill, that she's been sick ever since I left home. I have to go to her. You understand, don't you?"
"I will see that you get home, if that is what you wish."
Something in his tone gave her pause. "You'll come with me, won't you?"
"Will your people welcome me, Kay-lee?"
She thought of the way the Lakota had welcomed her. She wished that Shaun and her mother would be as kind to Blue Hawk, but knew it was highly unlikely. Indians had been stealing Double R cattle for months; they had killed two of the cowhands.
"No," she said regretfully, "probably not, but I won't go without you. Please, Blue Hawk, my mother needs me. She's sick. I need to help her get well. And there's something else, something very important to me. I . . ." She paused.
"Speak, Kay-lee."
"I want to be with her when the baby comes."
"Very well, Kay-lee. I will take you home."
Somehow, he would find a way.