The Legend of the Bloodstone (40 page)

The Weroance straightened his back and stepped one pace toward Winn.

“We hear you, warrior!” he shouted. Before he could finish the words, shouts and whoops filled the air, and the drum began to beat out a frantic celebratory rhythm. Men and women broke off from the circle and began to dance, and the children scattered like rabbits through the mesh of people.

As villagers vanished in all directions, Maggie pushed through the crowd to get to Winn.  He turned, and she could see his eyes scan the crowd for her, finally meeting her own as relief flooded his face. Damn the Indians and all their tribal rules, she was going to her husband and no one would stop her this time.  She threw herself into his arms.

“Winn!”

“
Tentay teh,”
he said. He held her tight, his breath warm upon her hair.

“You could have been killed!”

“You think so little of my skill, woman?”

“You didn’t have to fight him!”

“Yes,” he said. “I did.”

She bent her head to his chest, the babe sheltered between them, and his arms tightened around them.

“The English come here tomorrow to make peace.  I will stand with my Uncle, and then we will leave.”

“Your brothers?”

“They wait for us to return.”

They passed over the celebration and instead retired to a nearby yehakin, escorted by several of the less favored wives and left with a multitude of supplies. Furs heaped on a sleeping mat, and a basket lined with down for the baby, they had all the comforts they needed for what Maggie hoped would be a very short stay. The women accompanied them as they readied the yehakin, bringing
them bowls of food and stone jugs of drink, which they placed near the fire. One took the baby from Maggie and placed her in the makeshift cradle.

Maggie did not understand their words, which seemed different
from the Paspahegh she was accustomed to, yet Winn had no such impediment and spoke softly to the women.  One older woman in particular talked to him at length, and from the intimacy of their exchange Maggie was sure the woman was known to him. She was comely, with one long braid down her back, her oval face creased with tiny lines at the edges of her round brown eyes but betraying no other sign of her age. She placed a hand on Winn’s shoulder and Maggie watched it linger before she gave him a half-bow and summoned the other women.

As she left, she gave Maggie a shy smile, and then one more nod to Winn before she was gone.

“What was that about?”

“What?”

“That woman! Who is she?”

Maggie had never seen
her husband blush and she was not reassured by the sight.  His neck flushed, the color creeping up his jaw and cheeks, until he met her gaze with a hooded stare.

“
Sesapatae, wife to my uncle.  I lived with her family when I stayed here.”

“Oh. It just seemed like you – like she was someone special.”

“She was the first woman I shared furs with.”

Maggie
sat down hard on the fur pallet.

“Oh. Oh, okay,” she said. She had no idea what the proper response to such a revelation should be, so she clamped her mouth shut and pulled a fur over her shoulders. Winn said nothing as he sank into the furs beside her, nor as he wrapped his arms around her and pressed his naked skin to hers.

She should not be surprised to hear his explanation, since she was well aware she was not the first woman he laid hands on, but she was perplexed that the woman was his Uncle’s wife. She thought she would drop the subject, as Winn clearly had once he crawled beneath the furs, but when he still said nothing her curiosity won out.

“So how on earth did that happen?” she asked.

He moved above onto one elbow and squinted down at her.

“Like this,” he murmured.  He untied the laces on the front of her dress, and his other hand slid down over her thigh.  His mouth dipped down onto her neck, sending shivers over her skin as he nuzzled her playfully.

“But – “

“No more talk,” h
e whispered as he continued the path down her body. When he paused to give attention to her full breasts, she moaned at the contact, the pleasure of his touch mingled with the soreness from nursing, excruciating yet blissful pain that scattered the questions she meant to ask.

“Stop that and answer me!”

He shook his head and parted her thighs with his knee, continuing his gentle ministrations as he gave worship to her body. Slick with sweat under the heavy furs, their skin slipped against each other, his touch rising in urgency until he finally slid inside her, effectively silencing her remaining protests as he rocked her back against the furs.

“My wife and child were stolen from me today. I fought the man who stole her, and I threatened my Weroance in front of the entire village,” he said, his mouth pressed against her ear. “I will have you now, and you will have me!’

He rose up above her, his thrust boring her down, their limbs entwined. She knew no tenderness in his touch, for it was anger and despair that drove him, the sweet culmination sealing the oath of possession between their bodies as they moved as one.

Later, when he lay spent, his head nestled against her shoulder, she felt the breath leave him and his tense muscles finally softened
. He played with a lock of her hair, absently twisting it into a ringlet, his palm resting on her breast.

“It is the way of our people,” he said quietly. “I lived here when I became a man.  It is custom for the Uncle’s wife to lead the nephew into manhood. There is no more to it than that.”

“Allright then,” she replied, ready to dismiss the topic until another thought took root. “But you wouldn’t expect me – I mean, what about Ahi Kekeleksu?” she stammered.

“It will be the wife to the mother’s brother. Not you.”

“Oh.” She had more questions, but held her tongue.

She heard him laugh, and she reached out to smack his chest in response.  He caught her hand and pressed it to his chest.

“You are too busy teaching me,
Ntehem
. I will not share you with any other.”

The conversation was finished, and she was glad for it.

Chapter 27

Maggie watched the Englishman give his theatrical speech as she sat next to Winn.

Captain Tucker was an enigmatic speaker, his thick baritone sharp and clear as he bellowed out his pledge to the Powhatans.  Maggie expected a more imposing figure that would correlate more with the tales told of the man, but instead of an invincible solider, she only saw an average height man wearing a partial suit of overly decorated armor.  His girth had long outgrown the outfit, and when he stood up straight to address the crowd, a crack of his belly showed beneath the armor. Maggie smirked each time he raised his arm.

“Will this take very long, you think?” she asked Winn.  He sat cross-legged next to Opechancanough, but had been silent through most of the demonstration other than to nod in agreement with the Weroance. 

“I know not,” he replied.

The two opposing sides met on the banks of the Potomac, a neutral place where each felt on equal footing.  Although he seemed like a psychotic beast at times, Maggie had to admit that Opechancanough was a skilled tactical leader.  He had taken years planning the 1622 massacre, cultivating trust with the English so that his warriors could enter their homes without suspicion, until he took his vengeance out on them in one fatal day.  Every Powhatan man, woman, and child had known the plan for years, yet he managed to keep their blind loyalty long enough to carry through on the attack. 

Now the Great Weroance sat beside her husband, dressed in his finest attire, watching the Englishman pledge a truce to the Powhatan people.  She could feel the tension roll off them in waves, from the sly glances they shared and the grunts of disproval from the Weroance as the Englishman spoke.

Maggie looked over Winn’s shoulder to where Kwetii lay in the arms of a Powhatan woman.  It made her nervous to see her daughter out of her immediate reach, but Opechancanough had insisted one of his wives hold the child.  She suspected it was just another ploy to keep both her and Winn in line throughout the ceremony, and a successful one at that. 

“We share this meal as we meet as friends. All who take of this food today make this promise!” Opechancanough called out, raising his hands in the air.  The Powhatans hooted and hollered, and the sounds of joyful noise filled the air.  The Englishmen, few as they were, and none that she recognized, joined in by clapping and nodding in agreement. She fleetingly wondered why no English women were present, but then she recalled the subservient role they played in Jamestown society and realized they would not be included in such activities. 

“Business has no place fer women,” Charles said. Benjamin waved the man off.

“Then you know not my wife, Charles. She is quite clever.” Benjamin replied.

Maggie shuddered at the unwelcome memory. Its shadow persisted, however, nipping at her ankles like hungry fleas, begging for acknowledgement, wanting her blood. Was Benjamin safely returned to his own time? She knew she might never know the answer, and it was best left in the past. She glanced sideways at Winn.

He watched the English as he ate, taking the offered
bowl of food from the Taster. Winn only gave her bits from his bowl, and stopped her hand when she reached for his untouched mug of rum.

“Wait.”

He handed the mug to the thin man seated behind them, who took a gulp. Winn watched the Taster for a few moments, shrugged, and then handed it to Maggie.  She noticed the Weroance did the same.

Doctor Potts began passing around jugs of ale, which the Indians gladly filled their mugs
with.  He was another little man, yet dressed in the fine clothes of an aristocrat with a starched stand up collar and shiny new shoes, his brown hair tied neatly with a blue ribbon at his nape. His eyes followed the jugs as he watched the Indians pour out their share.

“
’Tis the best we have, for our loyal friends!” Potts shouted, his arm outstretched, pointing to the clay jugs.

The Taster
was given an overflowing mug, which he topped off with a gulp before handing it to the Weroance.  Opechancanough grinned and raised it in salute.

Maggie looked around the gathering at the Indians seated in a circle
, her mug sitting still full in front of her. Men, women, and children were present, nearly three hundred total, a token of trust to show the English they were sincere in desire for a treaty.  A young brave teetered across the fire, and the women around him snickered and laughed.

Then another young brave fell to his knees.

Maggie turned to Winn, who had also seen the men fall, and then she saw Opechancanough lifting his mug to his lips.  She lurched over Winn and knocked the mug from the hand of the Weroance in one quick motion, falling into Winn’s arms as a flurry of activity erupted around them.

“Red Woman!” the Weroance shouted.  Maggie felt hands trying to pry her from Winn, but her husband held fast and shielded her from her would-be captors.

“It’s poisoned!” she hissed. Both Winn and Opechancanough stared at her, and then turned their attention to the Taster, who hiccupped and promptly fell to the ground in a heap of twitching limbs. Thick foaming bubbles of saliva began to drain from his opened mouth into the dirt.

“Liars! We will kill you all for this!” Opechancanough shouted.

Bedlam exploded around them.  Warriors pulled the Weroance to his feet and shuttled him to the dugout boats waiting at the river.  He barked out commands and the Indians began to mill toward the canoes, some stumbling and falling into the mud amidst screaming and crying.  Maggie franticly searched for Kwetii and nearly keeled over with relief when Winn handed her the babe.

Shots rang out, and Maggie saw the Weroance stumble before he
was pulled into a canoe. As the crowd surged toward the shoreline, many men fell, never to rise, all foaming at the mouth as the Taster had done.  Women screamed and cried as they ran, dragging children behind them.

The English fired into the crowd, taking down more than the poison could finish off, pecking off the Indians blow by blow.  She let Winn push her into a canoe, then reached up for his hand to guide him in, panicked when he kissed her roughly then thrust her away.
As the bellow of gunfire roared around them, he pushed the canoe into the current instead of getting in.

“No!
Winn! No, no!” she screamed.

“Go! Be safe with my daughter!” he shouted.

She clutched the side of the canoe, tears clouding her vision. He stood still for what seemed like ages, his tall warrior’s body primed to fight, his chest rising only slightly with each breath, looking like some ancient pagan devil as he watched them leave.  Smoke from the fires rose behind him, the flames cracking and hissing to smother the screams. He glanced up at the sky, and then she lost sight of him as he turned back to the chaos to join the other warriors.

***

As she took a deep breath to steady herself, the thick smoke stung her throat and her lungs rejected the influx, leading to a spasm of coughing that served to agitate Kwetii more. The babe lay nestled against her breast inside a soft doeskin sling, but even the infant knew how precarious their lives were at that moment and she voiced her dismay loudly. Sitting wedged next to two sobbing women in the canoe, Maggie stared at the riverbank, hoping for something, anything to indicate the men would return.