Bittersweet Ecstasy (35 page)

Sun Cloud kissed the tearful and ecstatic girl on the lips, then smiled. “When it is possible, I will get word to
your love and tell him not to worry or to react rashly at this offensive news.”

“You have returned my heart and spirit, Sun Cloud. You have lived as a brother and friend to me, and I love you. I know of your prowess and truth, so I know my dreams are not lost. I believed my father should become chief; but now, I do not know for sure.”

Sun Cloud tugged playfully on a lengthy braid. “I do not seek to win over my brother’s children to my side. Know only that Sun Cloud will help you and protect you from evil, and Silver Hawk is evil. The sun will rise one morning and reveal his evil to your father, my brother. If it is Grandfather’s will for Bright Arrow to become chief, I will accept it and I will ride with him into battle.”

Bright Arrow and his band rode swiftly, taking only a few stops to rest and to water their horses. The night was half gone before they arrived in the forest which halted at the edge of the enormous clearing where Fort Dakota sat upon their lands. “We will camp here. Remain alert and ready to ride at the first sign of danger. I will take Night Rider and Flaming Star and we will sneak near the campfires of the bluecoats and listen to their words,” he plotted, choosing the two men who could understand and speak English.

“You must rest first; our ride has been long and hard,” Good Tracker reasoned.

“We need the cover of darkness, my friend. We must go now,” Bright Arrow told him, genially clasping the man’s forearm.

The others watched as the three warriors removed any item which might make noise or show movement. Then, gingerly and stealthily, the three sneaked toward the numerous tents which nearly surrounded the fort.

Flaming Star cautiously inched near one tent which had been erected near several wagons. He listened to the conversation in progress:

One soldier declared moodily, “I agree with Major Ames; we were
loco
to bushwack those Sioux. What’s Major Butler gonna tell General Cooper when he arrives in two days?”

“Probably a pack of lies, like them Sioux provoked us.”

“You know Ames is gonna call him a liar.”

“Not if he ain’t alive. Ames better watch his step; he’s made bad enemies in Butler and his sidekick Smith. I hear ‘em arguing all the time, and I seen the death look Butler and Smith put in Ames’s back.”

“Yeh, but Butler’s lost some of his best allies; the Sioux got Rochelle and Red Band. That Smith’s damn lucky to be one of the two survivors of that crazy plan. I heard tell, Clint was so repulsed by the slaughter that he got sick and ain’t been the same since.”

“Ever’body’s heard Clint’s wild tales about Gray Eagle being captured by Major Hodges when his brat was five or six and the Eagle traded himself for the kid, then walked out of the fort like he was on a Sunday
stroll. Why, they’re practically friends, to hear Clint talk.”

“Can’t blame ‘im. Not many Injuns spare your life when you’re helpless and they’ve tricked you. Looks like Clint will be getting out of the Army and leaving with that detail to Fort Meade next week.”

“Probably for the best if he ain’t got the guts to kill Injuns no more, ‘cause we’re sure as fire gonna kill plenty after Cooper gets here with all those men and supplies. For once, we’ll have more than them.”

“Smith says he hasta finish his duty on his feet, not on his butt in the infirmary. Smith’s gonna send him on every patrol he can, the bastard. You know some of them wild tales Clint throws around, happened right here. If’n you ask me, this place is bad luck. Them Injuns done rifled it once. What’s to stop ‘em from trying again?”

“Us and General Cooper. You know they’re sending him here to finish off those Sioux for keeps. I say, get rid of all Injuns. I bet Major Butler grabs all the glory he can before Cooper arrives and takes over. He’ll have Smith sending us out to harry them ever’day.”

“If I was Smith, I’d quit wearing that red bandana instead of the regulation yellow one. Makes him stand out like snow in July, and I’m sure there’s lots of Sioux who’d like to get their hands on ‘im.”

“Red Band gave it to ‘im, said it was an Apache good-luck charm.”

On another side of the fort, Night Rider was carrying out his duty.

“I ain’t afraid to admit it; I’m scared shitless. I sure hope Colonel Sturgis gets here afore General Cooper and his bloodthirsty pack. Them Sioux must be real mad about now; maybe he can calm ‘em down a mite.”

“Sturgis ain’t in the Army no more, and he’s an old man, sixty-eight, I heard tell, so he can’t interfere in
Army affairs.”

“He’s coming straight from the President, and the Army won’t go against the President’s man. Maybe he can make a truce with them Sioux; he did once before, with the Eagle himself. Met him face to face, and got him to settle down for years. Lordy, he scares me.”

“The Eagle is dead, boy, so stop shaking like it’s winter and you got icicles in your britches. Smith saw him hit the dirt, dead. He was just like you and me and ever other man, bones and flesh and blood. Weren’t nobody thought he could be defeated, but he was. I bet that’ll shock the fool outta Injuns and whites.”

“We don’t know he’s really dead. Smith didn’t bring back his body or none of his gear. Hellfire, man, we can’t get cocky or lax! He could still be alive or just wounded. I say he don’t die that easy.”

“Them Crow scouts said he was dead, said them Sioux sung that Death Chant for ‘em. You ain’t scared of his ghost, are you, boy?”

“What do them Crow know about anything except screwing their own kind. My papa always taught me, don’t trust no man who betrays his family or people. And you can bet, if any man can lick death or come back from Hell’s gates, it’s Gray Eagle. So don’t laugh at me. You can bet there’s certain men they’ll be coming after, like Smith.”

“Shame Captain Rochelle was done in. He’s the only one who knowed how to make them grenades, or whatever he called ‘em. Those exploding balls he flung at them Injuns did some real damage.”

“Not enough; it didn’t kill all of them.”

Near another area, Bright Arrow was eavesdropping intently, and caught two very familiar names…

“I think the Army should’a hung James Murdock!”

“They can’t prove Murray knows who Bright Arrow is just ‘cause Red Band claimed Clay Rivera was Bright
Arrow, and Clay and Murray were supposed to be good friends. I saw those two men that day, so did Major Ames. They didn’t look or talk like savages to me.”

“Smith and some men rode over to where that Clay Rivera and his friend were supposed to be camping. Weren’t hide nor hair of anybody in that area. And Red Band said they covered their tracks after they left here. They just vanished. Something’s up, if you asked me. If Red Band was right, them Injuns know all we got.”

“Don’t make no never mind. We’re covered until Cooper arrives, then we’ll have more than enough to finish ‘em off. Besides, them other Crow scouts told us Bright Arrow was banished, but we know that ain’t right. He’s been riding at his papa’s side for years.”

“Red Band said that’s because they let him come back. If Red Band was right, he was living as Clay Rivera after he was kicked out for getting hung up on that white whore. Anyway, he’s a half-breed; so how do we know he can’t look and pass for white like his mama? Leastwise the Eagle and his brood got good taste in women; they prefer white ones. If they keep snatching white women and bedding ‘em, won’t be no Injun blood left in ‘em. Maybe they’ll get civilized.”

Bright Arrow fumed at the insults about his lost wife, himself, and his family; but he kept still and silent. He realized he could never use his “Clay Rivera” identity again. He waited for the men to sneak swallows of whiskey before continuing with their potvaliant chatter.

“I still say they should haul Murdock in and beat the truth from him. Lordy, man, he might know all about the Eagle and the Sioux.”

“If Bright Arrow was playing Clay Rivera, Murray might not know it’s him. Murray’s a good man, and he’s white. We need his help. Nobody knows this area
better than a trapper who’s been here long as he has.”

“Murdock won’t work with us; that should tell you something.”

“Yep, he wants to stay neutral to keep his hair and hides, but he’s agreed to meet with General Cooper when he gets here.”

“Yep, probably to spy for his Injun friends. Red Band—”

“Shut your trap about that stupid Injun! If’n he was so smart, why’s he dead like all the others Smith left behind out there?”

“I was gonna say, if he was alive, he could recognize Clay Rivera.”

“We don’t need Murray or Red Band to point out Bright Arrow to us. Major Timothy Moore is heading this way with General Cooper and, the way I hear it, Moore’s got a debt to settle with Gray Eagle’s son. Yep, Moore knows exactly what the baby Eagle looks like. We’ll see if it’s the same man who visited our fort.”

The men laughed and talked a while about Timothy Moore, and Bright Arrow’s capture, that time when Rebecca Kenny had enchanted the lieutenant and helped her Indian lover to escape Moore’s grasp.

“Besides, it ain’t Bright Arrow we got to worry about; it’s his brother Sun Cloud. Lordy, boy, he’s just like his father. Sun Cloud would never capture no white woman and marry her. He would die before he weakened his Injun bloodline. I shore hope he don’t get chief.”

“But the Crow scouts said the oldest son took a father’s place.”

“I shorely hope this is one time them scouts know what they’re talking about, but I can’t see them Sioux picking Bright Arrow over Sun Cloud, unless they’re all dumb and reckless. Bright Arrow ain’t got what his father had or his brother has. We’ll be damn lucky if
Sun Cloud don’t make chief, ‘cause we can whip Bright Arrow easier.”

“Yep, that papoose’s gonna be a legend like his pa, if we let him live long enough. A real shame to kill such a great fighter.”

“He’s already lived long enough to make a name for himself, boy. Ain’t no Injun in this area who can match Sun Cloud, including that other little eagle with ten more warriors added to ‘em; and there ain’t no soldier or white who don’t know and fear Sun Cloud like his papa. If Gray Eagle really is dead, all we gotta do is kill off his baby, and this war’s over for good. I need to get rid of some of this whiskey and turn in. We gotta ride out on patrol right after dawn.”

Bright Arrow quickly and silently crept from their area to make his way back to the waiting warriors. No alert had been given yet, so his friends should be safe. He tried not to think about the white man’s opinion of his brother, or their opinion about him.

When the soldier returned to his friend after relieving himself, he was chuckling. “What’s so funny?” the other man asked.

“Oh, I was just thinking about Red Band and how he got himself killed in that ambush. I wonder how he knew where to strike at ‘em.”

“Beats me, but Smith’s gonna miss his Injun scout.”

“That’s ‘cause Red Band was always making them Injuns’ squaws spend time in Smith’s quarters for free, if you know what I mean.”

“Smith best watch himself. One of them squaws might stick a knife in his gullet one night. His tongue and his ways ain’t nice to ’em. You think Smith’s right about them Sioux being out there watching us and waiting to pick us off when we ride out?”

“Don’t matter what they’re doing or planning. But if they try to retaliate with an ambush, Smith’s trap will
work. If’n anybody follows us tomorrow, we’ll have ‘em trapped between us. Course, I’d rather be riding behind them Sioux with Smith instead of before ‘em.”

By the time Bright Arrow reached his band, the others had returned. The warriors exchanged information. Although he did not want to repeat what the men had said about him and his brother, Bright Arrow felt he should reveal every word, in case there was a helpful clue hidden amongst them. He was relieved when none of his men agreed.

“We will watch the fort and trail those who leave when
Wi
lights our lands. It is not wise or safe to attack their camp now; there are too many in one place. It is better to pick them off in smaller groups.”

“What about the supply wagons?” one warrior inquired.

“They are empty, so there is no need to burn them. It would only alert them to our presence. It is best to nibble cautiously and slowly at our prey, not devour it rashly and swiftly; it could choke us in our rush, or it could be bait to lure us into peril, or it could be tainted to kill us. We will slay those who leave soon, then we will seek this new leader they speak of. We must learn of his size and power.”

“What of the man who captured you long ago?” Night Rider asked.

“He is mine,” Bright Arrow declared coldly.

“How will we know him?” Night Rider asked.

“His hair is like flames of a fire and his eyes are as blue as the best summer sky we have seen. I will point him out to you.”

“What of the other men whose names you know?” Good Tracker inquired, recalling what they had been told about those white men.

“We must slay them all,” Touch-the-sky declared. “As with the Sacred Bow carriers and Cheyenne dog-rope
wearers, we must never surrender to our foes. We must fight till death, or honorably retreat to battle them another day. We must slay all whites,” he stressed.

“No, we must try to spare the lives of our white friends, for they are few and could help us another sun. Surrender is sometimes necessary, Touch-the-sky, to survive to find a chance to escape, to seek victory and vengeance another day. Guards must be posted while others sleep,” Bright Arrow told them, ending the conversation.

The sentry continually scanned the area from which the signal would come if there was trouble. Suddenly a flash of light caught his eye. “Major Ames and his men just passed the lookout, sir,” he called down to the waiting officers, then watched that area intently.

Smith said, “If any Sioux start following them, we’ll get another signal, then Ames will be alerted. He’s to keep riding for ten minutes while we get into position, then his detail is to turn and fight.”

Butler laughed wickedly and whispered, “I bet that order stuck in his craw, and he hopes we’re wrong. I can’t wait to see his red face when we have to rescue him from Sioux. You sure you told Sims to warn him? Shame if he got killed before we could reach him.”