Savage Destiny (The Hearts of Liberty Series, Book 1) (52 page)

Forcing himself to be calm, he retraced his steps. When he had traveled fifty feet or so, he began to call to Alanna in a hushed whisper, but there was no reply. Stealth was an important consideration, but finding her was imperative. Unable to think of a better idea, Hunter took out his flint and, after searching in the dark for dry branches, lit a small fire. Hoping that Alanna would see the glow, he waited a few minutes and then added more wood.

Once Hunter had disappeared, Alanna had been afraid to move, for fear she would stray off the path he had been following. Her knee was aching badly now and, frightened as well as hurting, she began to sob. She heard a small animal shuffling by, a raccoon perhaps, and rested her hand lightly on the hilt of Elliott's knife. Hunter had told her to travel south should they become separated, but she would be unable to set that course until dawn, when the sun would guide her way.

Feeling utterly defeated, she sank to the ground and prayed that Hunter would soon come for her. She knew she was an awful nuisance to him, but she had tried to match his pace, and simply hadn't been able to do so. Staring off into the forest, she saw a glimmer of light and, intrigued, stumbled to her feet. She doubted Hunter would have lit a fire, but praying whoever had would prove friendly, she started toward it.

Hunter heard only a soft rustling of leaves and, not daring to again call Alanna's name, he stepped out of the circle of light thrown by the fire, and waited to see who was approaching. Half-expecting one of the snarling demons from his nightmare, he had to suppress a loud whoop of joy when he caught sight of his bride. He came forward to greet her. She looked so forlorn that it broke his heart.

"I'm sorry," Alanna began. "I tried to keep up, but—"

Hunter stilled her apology with a kiss. "The fault is mine, not yours," he assured her. "Do you need to rest awhile?"

"No, I'm afraid if I stop, I won't be able to get up again."

Hunter turned away to throw dirt on the fire and extinguished it. "This day has been too long for us both. We'll just walk from here, and when you need to stop for the night, we will."

"But we can't stop."

"If we can't even find each other, the Abenaki won't be able to find us. Stop worrying, and let's go." This time Hunter took her firmly by the hand and shortened his stride to match hers. He had to be brave for her, but just being with her again gave him courage.

* * *

Stretched across Hunter's lap, Alanna slept soundly until the first rays of the morning sun grew too bright to ignore. She stirred slightly, but because Hunter was still sleeping, she chose to snuggle against him rather than stand up and stretch. They had walked for hours before stopping, and she hoped they would not have too much farther to go that day to reach the trading post.

Easily frightened, she grew tense when she heard a whistle that sounded too shrill to come from the birds who had begun to sing before dawn. She hoped it was merely her own nervousness rather than imminent peril, and attempted to listen carefully and analyze what she heard. Fully alert when the whistle came again, she was positive it was answered by a human voice speaking a language she didn't know.

"Hunter," she whispered. He opened his eyes, and she reached up to silence any response he might have made with her fingertips, then gestured toward the path that lay just a few feet away. "Someone's coming," she mouthed silently.

Hunter slid her off his lap, and then quickly surveyed the spot they had chosen to rest. He had purposely left the trail to provide them with a secluded hiding place, but now that he saw how little cover they really had, he pointed toward a cluster of blackberry vines and signaled for Alanna to follow him. Still carrying their weapons, he stayed low as he circled the vines, and when she joined him, he pulled her close.

"If it's the Abenaki searching for us, I'll let them pass and take another route back to the trading post. If they see us, I'll kill as many as I can, while you get away. Then I'll follow you."

"Don't ask me to leave you. Let's both go now."

"They're too close, they'd hear us. Don't argue with me about this, Alanna. I owe you my life, and I intend to safeguard yours."

Alanna reached for one of the muskets. "Is this loaded?" she asked.

"Yes," Hunter assured her.

Alanna swallowed hard. She had had no choice about shooting Blind Snake, but she prayed these Abenaki would not force her to kill again.

Impressed by her confidence, Hunter gave her a quick kiss and picked up his bow and an arrow. "Pray they don't see us," he whispered.

Alanna was already doing that, but she crouched even lower, desperately trying to make herself invisible. There was another whistle, this time much closer, and she was so frightened she had to remind herself to breathe. She dared not faint when the Abenaki would pass by so close she could almost reach out and touch them.

When the Abenaki at last came into view, they were traveling in a single file, spread out with several paces between them. The first man was moving slowly, scanning the trail before he took each step, but if he had been following their tracks, he missed seeing the place where they had turned east to stop for the night. He kept right on going past them. The next man in line glanced neither to the right nor left, and their hiding place remained undiscovered.

Peeking through the vines, Alanna began to count,
three, four, five,
as the Abenaki braves continued to stream by. It was the seventh man who gave a shout and started for them, but Hunter grabbed Alanna's wrist to stop her from firing. Terrified, she watched the brave bend down to peer into the vines. He was so close, she thought he could probably hear the frantic pounding of her heart, but Hunter remained motionless, and she followed his example. Her knee had begun to ache again and holding her cramped pose grew increasingly difficult, but the Abenaki brave persisted in his lazy perusal of the vines.

That his friends had kept on going rather than join the curious brave gave Alanna hope that he had not signaled a warning, but expecting to be sighted any second, she was nearly limp from anxiety by the time he straightened up and followed the others down the path. She set the musket aside and collapsed against Hunter. "I thought he would see us for sure. Was he just looking for berries?"

Equally exhausted by worry, Hunter sat down and tried to catch his breath. "Yes, that's why I let him live. Fortunately, none of these vines' berries were ripe enough to pick, or they might all have decided to join us for breakfast. Luck is still with us."

Alanna wasn't sure luck had all that much to do with it, but as composed as she was likely to get, she got to her feet. "You said you knew another way back to the trading post?"

Amazed that she had recovered so quickly from such a terrible scare, Hunter also rose. They still had some of the venison jerky left, and he handed her a strip. "Better eat this. To avoid the Abenaki, we'll have to swing farther to the north. It'll be a longer trip. Can you make it?"

Alanna bit off a piece of jerky. "I shall have to."

"Does that mean yes?"

Having spent a cold and restless night, Alanna felt anything but energetic, but she tried to smile. "Yes. Lead the way."

"You're a very brave girl."

"I certainly don't feel brave. I just want to go home."

Hunter rested his hand on her shoulder. "You're with me. You're already home."

Alanna reached up to give him a kiss, but, as she saw it, they were lost in the forest and being chased by thirteen Abenaki braves who were eager to see them dead. That wasn't her idea of being home, but she thought better of contradicting him. Instead, she slung the musket over her shoulder, and gestured for him to blaze the trail.

* * *

Despite the danger they were striving to avoid, Hunter set a leisurely pace, and they did not arrive at the trading post until the afternoon of the following day. While Alanna sat on the steps, Hunter went inside to see what he could learn about the Abenaki. All she wanted was to take a hot bath and sleep for a day or two, but she was soon surrounded by half a dozen trappers who stood regarding her with lascivious sparkles in their eyes.

Her once-stylish gown was now tattered and worn. She'd lost her frayed cap, and her long curls were a mass of tangles. None too clean, she tried to avoid their scrutiny by concentrating on the slits in her boots. Hunter had told her repeatedly that he could afford whatever she desired, and she certainly hoped the trading post stocked women's shoes.

Goaded by his friends, one of the trappers came to the bottom step. "You're an awful pretty girl to be all alone. Wouldn't you like some company?" he asked.

Had Alanna been walking along the street in Williamsburg, she knew his type would never have dared speak to her, but considering how disheveled she looked, she wasn't surprised at being approached. Deciding her best option was simply to ignore him, she looked away.

"She thinks she's too good for you, Wickert," one of the others called out, "but I'd make her pay
me
unless she took a bath."

His comment was met with hilarious laughter, and while Alanna had misinterpreted the first man's remark as friendly interest, she had no difficulty comprehending his companion's slur. Horrified to have been mistaken for a woman who sold her favors, she rose and started up the steps, but before she could enter the trading post, Hunter came through the door. Moving to his side, she silenced the trappers' laughter with a defiant glance.

"That your woman, Hunter?" Wickert asked.

Hunter had just sold the two muskets he had taken from the dead Abenaki, but he still had his own slung over his shoulder, along with two bows and two quivers. He slipped one arm around Alanna's waist and rested his other hand on the hilt of his knife. So they would not mistake his meaning, he enunciated his words clearly.

"No, she is my wife, so take care not to insult her."

"Your wife?" Obviously shocked by the unusual match, the trappers pulled their beards, whispered amongst themselves for a moment, and then, convinced none wished to argue with an Indian who had never been beaten in a fight, they shook their heads in silent dismay and shuffled away.

They had had so much trouble, Alanna wasn't even tempted to reveal she had already been insulted, and let them go without comment. "Have the Abenaki been here?" she asked instead.

"No one has seen any. I think they must have turned back and continued on their way, when they didn't overtake us yesterday. Come, let's go to my house. I can heat water to bathe, and make us something to eat."

"Do you think we'll be safe there? The dwelling is clearly an Indian's, and if I were searching for an Indian, that's the first place I'd look."

Hunter was tired and he wanted to go home. "That's where we planned to live, Alanna. Have you decided it isn't good enough for you?"

"No, of course not. What an awful thing to say. I just don't want us to be murdered in our sleep."

"I'll set traps by the doorways. Will that make you feel safe?"

To be reminded that he did not even have doors to lock didn't increase Alanna's sense of security, but she was too tired to argue the matter. "I'm sorry. I'm sure we'll be fine."

Hunter could see she had no such confidence, but he gave her a hug rather than call her a liar, and took her home. After encouraging her to lie down and rest, he borrowed a copper tub from the trading post, but by the time he had heated water over a fire, she was sound asleep, and he did not want to wake her. Making good use of the water himself, he then dressed in another set of buckskins.

He intended to cook supper, but first he wanted to make certain Alanna had a change of clothes. He sat down with the valise she had left there, and sorted through the contents. There were several sets of lingerie, toilet articles, and he was relieved to find another gown folded neatly in the bottom of the bag. She had left her petticoats lying across a storage shelf, so her change of attire was complete. He shook out the dress, and placed it atop the petticoats.

Her boots would have to be replaced, but he didn't want to even attempt that without her being there to try them on. With no shopping he could see to alone, he drew her brush through his own damp hair, and tried to imagine how his house would look when they returned with all of Alanna's possessions. Believing she would have too many pretty gowns to heap on a shelf, the house that had been perfect for him, now seemed maddeningly small. He could lengthen it, but he couldn't help but wonder if he ought not to start over, and build Alanna a brand new home of her own. It would be a great deal of work, but he wanted her to be happy.

For now, his immediate need was for a coffin and cart to fetch Elliott's body. That would surely be the saddest of chores, but there was no one else he could trust to do it. Believing he would have plenty of time to make those arrangements before Alanna stirred, he left to do so.

Not ten minutes later, Alanna awoke from her nap. Finding herself alone, she got up and hurriedly pushed aside the hides hung over the front doorway, to scan the adjacent woods for Hunter. When there was no sign of her new husband, she lowered the flap. While telling herself over and over that she was safe, Alanna filled the kettle to heat water for a bath. She first washed her hair, and had just eased herself down into the tub when Hunter returned. Startled by the sounds of his approach, she reached for the knife she had left within easy reach. After recognizing him, she dropped it quickly, but not before he had noted her fright.