Back To Our Beginning (48 page)

They walked for hours, trudging through the heavy snow. All were cold and wet. Aidan thought of turning them around but knew Danny would only return to the mine without his family if unconscious. Aidan was concerned about the new baby and his mother, hearing about their lack of food was disturbing. Aidan thought of his own baby on the way. Though worried about Emmy, he knew Cord would look after her and the others. The men’s acceptance of one another grew from deep dependency; their lives were often in each other’s hands and they’d developed a strong friendship out of necessity at first until real relationships and trust flourished. Their most recent perilous encounter strengthened the bond, all having emerged victorious and unscathed. They worked well as a team.

“There,” Danny cried out. He pointed to the opening of a huge cave.

Aidan directed Tansy to stay back, guiding her behind a large fallen log. His warning was stern and the look he leveled made her pause in her tracks. He pulled the knife she had tied to her hip and placed it in her hands. He told her to stay quiet; any sign of trouble, she was to run and not look back. Tansy knew this man; she knew certain looks weren’t given to put her in her place but to keep her safe. She stayed, trusting his judgment; though she was confident it wouldn’t come to that.

The others approached the large opening, wary of a trap though doubtful one existed. Danny bounded ahead with unrestrained exuberance. His voice boomed out greetings. The cave was quiet and Tansy waited with concern, wondering if they were already too late, for Danny’s sake she hoped not.

At last they heard a voice, it was quiet and subdued. “Danny?” a woman called hesitantly.

“Mom, it’s me; I’m here.”

Danny ran ahead and grabbed a woman in her mid-forties and hugged her fiercely.

“Oh, Danny, your face. What happened?” the woman said while touching his cheek.

“I’m okay, really. We found other people. It’s okay now; they’re going to help us.”

“Will they really help us, Danny?” came a small frightened voice.

A young filthy girl huddled within a ripped tight jacket, the zipper broken and unable to close, with a tattered hat and holey socks used as mitts. On her small feet she wore torn pieces of clothing wrapped up around her ankles covered over with plastic bags. She looked with trepidation to the three large men who accompanied her brother, knives drawn. The men she was familiar with were mean, loud and angry most of the time; she did her best to avoid them and they her, scampering from them when they would return without game to show something for their time. Or hiding with her mother on a ledge, waiting hopefully for a meager morsel when they proved to be somewhat victorious. Knowing better not to approach until the men had eaten their fill or a sharp slap or blow would fall.

“Don’t be afraid, Trisha,” Danny soothed. “There are other kids for you to play with.”

There was another woman Aidan saw, who clutched a tiny bundle to her chest horrified. Aidan was happy Danny had explained her fears to them and he took extra care while approaching her, understanding her terror of him, sheathing his knife. She whimpered and shied back at Aidan’s approach. They were up fairly high on a small ledge in the open cave. He became filled with pity at their plight. They must be freezing as well as starving. The cave’s opening was too large to cover; it must have been at least two stories in height and thirty feet across. Though fires burned at the back where the cave became smaller in height it was smoke filled and hazy and Aidan could see his breath when he spoke.

“I won’t hurt you, honey,” Aidan said. His hands splayed, he moved slowly to appear unthreatening.

The woman hugged her baby to her breast, her arms curled inwards at the shoulders in her desperate attempt to shield the child. She moved as far back as the cave wall would allow. Finally flesh met stone, she was cornered and could retreat no further; she was trapped.

“Please, no,” she whimpered.

“It’s going to be fine, sweetheart. We’re going to help you.” Small running shoes adorned her feet, cloth stuck into their various holes for what little protection they would offer.

“Please,” the woman continued to beg, her eyes tearing, looked imploringly into his, seeking a small shred of decency and humanity. Although from her hollow look, Aidan realized she expected none.

Her high-pitched whimpered pleas tugged at Aidan’s heart; he could see her trembling. A single tear dripped its way down a smudged cheek. He could tell she was waiting for the worst.

“All right sweetheart, I won’t come any closer.” He backed away feeling disheartened. Aidan left to retrieve Tansy.

“She’s terrified of me,” Aidan said to Tansy miserably, as he walked her into the cave.

“So was Emmy once. She’ll come to realize you mean her no harm. Give her some time, Aidan. From what Danny has said I doubt the last few months have been easy on any of them.”

Aidan nodded and enlisted the other men in building a few small partitions to contain the heat. Tansy soon had a round roast of meat spitted over the fire to cook. She pulled out a cooking pot and started water boiling after filling it with snow for tea. The men set up their crafted partitions in front of the fires to trap heat. One fire was set to cook, the others blazed for warmth and protection.

Once the heat became contained the rise in temperature was dramatic. The aroma of cooking bison coaxed the frightened woman with her baby down from the cave ledge; she approached with caution.

Danny was ecstatic. He introduced Tansy to his mother and sister as if he were at a social gathering. He chatted of their mine and couldn’t contain his fascination at their food preparations. He praised the other men on their ingenuity at crafting useful items and mentioned to Stacie they were expecting two babies with their women. He was also careful to add the new babies would be a welcome addition and they were all looking forward to their arrival.

“Did you come just to bring Danny home?” Danny’s mother asked.

“We came to take you back with us, if you want,” Tansy told her.

The woman emitted a small cry of relief. She gathered her son and daughter and wept. Ethan took in her vulnerability; her gaunt despairing look seemed to lift and he was grateful they’d come for them. Danny was right, they were helpless and in need. Without help, they wouldn’t survive.

“We’ll be all right now, Stacie,” Danny’s mother said happily to the frightened woman. She was aware of the well-made warm clothing the others wore. Danny sported clean new clothing: a fur coat, leggings and thick hide gloves.

His moccasins looked better and warmer than the hole-ridden boots he’d outgrown during the summer and had been forced to cut the ends off to accommodate his toes. His mother could tell he’d recently washed, which was astounding considering how cold it was. He appeared as clean as the clothing he wore. She knew her son wouldn’t lie to her, even to lift her spirits, and the aroma of the bison was enough to convince her further all would be well.

“Where are the other men?” Stacie asked, her gaze glancing timidly.

“We didn’t provoke ’em none. They attacked us for meat. We killed ’em to protect ourselves,” Clint said.

Clint watched the woman close her eyes, in despair or relief he couldn’t tell. But she moved closer to the fire. Clint noted she was a few inches taller than Tansy, her long snarled hair was a drab brown, her face filthy, but she could be beautiful. It was hard to tell with the rags she wore and she obviously hadn’t washed for quite some time. Secretly Clint felt a little glad she was keeping her distance and outright refrained from wrinkling his nose in distaste at the strong odor that seemed to precede her presence...then linger, an ominous aura aroma of protection circling her and the babe.

Tansy offered the older woman some tea. Danny’s mother introduced herself as Becky. Smiling, Tansy became indulgent as once Trisha started talking she hardly took a breath. Though, the child continued to glance at the men as if she were afraid of being reprimanded. Tansy handed the girl some flatbread she cooked and packed at the mine the day before, and now warmed. To her relief, Trisha stayed silent long enough to eat it. Tansy then offered some to everyone else.

Reluctantly, Stacie reached for her food, as it brought her closer to the men, but she was terribly hungry, her belly growled at the scent of the flavorful meat. As the baby began to fuss she took her share and started back up to the ledge.

“Don’t go,” Tansy urged. “Feed him here where it’s warm.” She smiled at the frightened woman, eager to catch a glimpse of the fussing baby.

Stacie looked from her to the men uncertainly.

“It’s okay Stacie, they won’t hurt you or Bart,” Danny coaxed.

The warmth of the fire was too difficult to resist. Stacie bared her breast in almost a challenging way and fed her son. Ethan offered an indulgent smile as did Clint, Aidan turned bright red and wasn’t sure where to look and decided to keep his gaze on the fire. Tansy chuckled at him. The baby made hungry sucking sounds much to his mother’s delight, grateful her lack of food hadn’t dried her milk, and she wolfed down two more pieces of flatbread with bison chunks tucked inside.

“We’ll stay here tonight, but we need to leave at first light,” Aidan said. He was concerned another storm would hit and trap them without provisions. After a brief look around, Aidan determined they had nothing to sustain them except for what Tansy had packed. He was loath to spend more time than necessary in the cold smoky cave, and he was anxious to return to Emmy and to return the others back to safety.

“Leave? So soon? The snow is so high, it’s terribly cold away from the fire,” Becky said, glancing with concern at her frail underfed daughter, having slumped over once eating her fill.

“If another storm hits, the snow will be higher and heavier and colder. It will undoubtedly last longer. We can’t become trapped here. It’d be too dangerous. It’s best to move while the weather holds.” Ethan said, having seen Becky’s concerned gaze take flight to her child and reached out a hand to squeeze her shoulder in understanding, hoping to calm her fears.

Clint took first watch while the others slept. The next day would be slow and tiring. It would take them longer to return, and they weren’t looking forward to the grueling walk ahead.

* * * *

The small precession entered the mine late the following night after dark. They were tired, wet, cold and hungry. Thankfully, Tansy had made enough for leftovers the previous day and with Cord’s help, Emmy and Shanie were able to offer them a warm meal of stew from the dinner they’d all shared hours before. They drank warmed honeyed water and after compulsory introductions, all succumbed to exhaustion soon after establishing sleeping arrangements.

Morning brought about higher spirits. Tansy woke early, happy to be home, and went to milk the goat. When she finished, she was surprised to see Cord watching her.

“You’re up early,” Tansy commented.

“You, too,” he answered. He intercepted her as she tried to pass. Cord took the container of milk from her hands and placed it on a large rock. Tansy looked up at him quizzically.

“What is it?” she asked.

“You made a deal,” Cord reminded her.

Tansy was becoming alarmed; she didn’t like the intense look Cord was giving her. She didn’t like that she was being pressed backwards toward a cold dark place at the bottom of the mine.

“What deal?”

“I caught a turkey for tonight’s dinner. It’s gutted and clean. It’s hanging in the cold tunnel.”

Tansy almost laughed with relief. But seeing his intense gaze she changed her mind.

“That was before. It was nothing really, a joke with Clint.”

Cord’s large frame stopped her. He pushed her backwards until she rested against a cold stone wall.

“No. You never gave it a time limit, you never said the challenge was finished, or if it was just Clint. Aidan got involved.” He held both arms on either side of her pinning her effectively.

“Aidan,” Tansy stammered.

“Aidan met Emmy’s deal. I don’t want Emmy.”

His head ducked and he pressed his mouth over hers. She didn’t respond, but was too stunned to react. As his hand lifted to cup her breast Tansy tensed beneath him, a small sound escaped her lips.

“Easy, I won’t hurt you. But you made a deal. I want to collect on that deal,” Cord whispered.

Cord could hear Tansy’s teeth chattering, her body shook as he pressed himself against her and he felt a moment’s hesitation.

“I also said I could pick when and where,” Tansy reminded him shakily, her hands splayed against his large hard chest.

Cord’s hand stilled momentarily then lowered until it came up under her shirt and moved higher until his thumb pressed back and forth caressing a nipple until it hardened. He lowered his head and kissed her hard while his hand squeezed and kneaded her soft flesh. Tansy shuddered in response to his warm touch.

Tansy hadn’t pushed him away, nor had she struggled except internally.

“You owe me,” Cord demanded. His desire pushed all other thoughts from his mind.

Tansy could feel him and shivered. He was as rock hard pressed against her as the stone was behind her. She felt herself shaking, in fear or excitement she wasn’t certain. Undecided, Tansy searched the darkness for an escape. She felt Cord’s hand lower. She jumped as it delved between her thighs under her clothes searching. Her hands clutched at his shirt, her ragged breath deepened.

Again he was whispering in her ear. Deep guttural sounds, soft soothing words. She whimpered as his probing finger sought her moistness and she struggled briefly. He was too powerful. He held her immobile. His fingers were warm and huge yet he probed gently, she was tight and unready. Cord was a patient man when he wanted to be. He’d waited a long time for this; he didn’t want it ruined if he heard her cry out in pain. He didn’t like her sudden fear of him either.

“Cord,” she whimpered, a pleading to her tone.

“I won’t hurt you. I don’t want to hurt you, sweetheart.”

He kissed her lips, her cheek, her throat, following a gentle trail with his mouth and tongue. While his hands stroked and fondled everywhere. He smelled of soap and a rugged scent that seemed so familiar to her. She felt her breath quicken in response. Though her hands stayed unmoving, she still clutched his chest almost afraid to let go as her forehead rested against him.