Untamed (15 page)

"Long Belly," she said. "You've got to listen to me."

He turned to her in surprise. "You are here."

"Yes, it seems that I am. Please take the mule back into his stall and stay there with him, out of sight, until I tell you it's all right to come out again."

"Where did you come from?" he asked, completely disregarding her request. "How are you here?"

"I don't have time to explain anything right now. Just take the mule and go hide in the stall."

Still ignoring her, he said, "Does my brother know you have returned? He will be very—"

"Long Belly." Remembering his docile behavior after she'd clubbed him with the milk pail, Josie dared to use that reaction to her advantage. "Do as I say, and do it now, you no-account bastard, or I swear to God, this time I'll take your head off with that pail."

The threat, as she'd hoped, had the desired affect. As the stunned Cheyenne retreated with the animal into the stall, she helped herself to an armful of hay, and then rushed back out into the storm. Daniel, who'd been standing on the porch, was nowhere in sight.

Hoping he'd stay that way, in the cabin where he belonged, Josie hurried back to the small clearing just beyond the well-house, to the place where she'd left her new friend.

Chapter 10

Daniel returned to the porch, both crutches in hand, only to see Josie disappear into the forest again. As far as he could tell, Long Belly hadn't ridden out after her. Frustrated and confused, he hobbled down the steps and made his way to the barn to get some answers. A single lantern hung near the entrance, illuminating the enclosure in murky light. Even in those poor conditions, Daniel could see that with the exception of the livestock, the barn was deserted. What the hell was going on?

He made his way down the center aisle, heading for the last stall to check on the mule's whereabouts, when Long Belly's voice came to him from out of nowhere.

"May I come out now?" he asked, oddly enough.

"Long Belly? Where are you?"

He poked his head around the corner of the mule's stall. "Broken Dishes has returned."

"Yes, I know. I saw her run in here, but where is she now?" Daniel closed the gap between them and stood just outside the stall. "Why are you hiding in here? Have you done something to her?"

The embarrassment of explaining the situation lay in sullen wrinkles across the Cheyenne's brow. "She said if I did not obey her wishes, she would remove my head. I believe this women means to do me harm."

"And what wish was that?"

"She said I must hide in the stall and not come out until she said I could."

Daniel didn't know whether to laugh or beat the facts out of the man. At the moment, the latter seemed the more attractive option. "You're not making a hell of a lot of sense. What'd you do, scare her again?"

"I have done nothing," Long Belly insisted. "It is Broken Dishes who wishes to—"

The barn door squeaked opened, effectively closing the formerly fearless warrior's mouth. Without another sound, he ducked back into his hiding place. Utterly confused by now, Daniel turned to see that Josie was backing into the barn. She was slightly hunched, bending toward something. Her hands were full of hay and stretched out in front of her as she inched her way along the straw corridor.

Then, to Daniel's surprise, the nose of an animal appeared at the edge of the door, its nostrils flared, as black as pitch against the flurries of snow behind it.

"Come on," Josie cooed, still backing into the barn. "You're almost here, safe and warm."

A moment later the great matted head of a buffalo rounded the corner.

"Holy hell." Daniel staggered backward and nearly fell off his crutches.

At the sound of his voice, the beast raised its head from the temptation of the offered hay, planted its hooves, and grunted.

Josie glanced over her shoulder, shouting to Daniel in a whisper, "Be quiet and please go hide—now."

Astounded, unable to believe his own eyes, Daniel woodenly went along with her request and hobbled into the stall with Long Belly.

"Perhaps you understand now, my friend," the Indian said. "Broken Dishes has gone crazy, no?"

Daniel shook his head, but decided against explaining what he'd seen. If Long Belly knew that a buffalo—a
buffalo
—was following Josie into the barn, he wouldn't believe it until he'd seen, and undoubtedly startled, the great beast for himself. Daniel had seen, and he still wasn't convinced. Surely it had been an illusion.

After a few more moments of silence save for the soft sounds of Josie's encouragement, the barn suddenly came alive. The door squeaked to a close, the buffalo grunted like a hog in slop, and the horses began nickering in deep, nervous tones. Behind Daniel and Long Belly, the mule pawed the ground, its eyes big and white, rolling with anxiety.

Concerned about the ensuing chaos should the mule break loose and confront the strange beast in the barn, Daniel whispered, "Tie that lop-earned animal up before he tramples us."

Long Belly wasn't in a mood to listen. "What are these noises I hear? Is Broken Dishes—"

"You'll find out soon enough. Take care of that mule. Do it now."

Daniel didn't waste time checking to make sure that the order was followed. He had to be sure of what he'd seen. His movements slow and careful, he inched his head around the corner of the stall. The buffalo, no illusion or apparition after all, stood in the center aisle, its great head swinging back and forth. It was true. Despite the horrendous mistake he and hunters like him had made, at least this one great beast still lived to roam the plains. Daniel's relief was palpable. Redemption, it seemed, was finally within his reach—assuming the thing didn't trample then all to death first.

Concerned about Josie and her proximity to the wild beast, Daniel sought to gain her attention—and only hers.

"Psst."

The buffalo raised its head right along with Josie. "What?" she whispered back.

Daniel motioned for her to join him in the stall, then stepped back out of sight. Turning to Long Belly, he pondered ways of explaining the situation while keeping the Cheyenne relatively calm at the same time. It seemed an impossible task.

Josie crept up behind him and said, "So what do you think of my new friend?"

"I see, but I don't believe."

She laughed. "I thought he'd be happy inside out of the cold, but now he seems awfully nervous. What can I do to calm him down?"

"Her," corrected Daniel. "It's a female."

"It is? How can you tell from so far away?"

"Has to do with the horns. I'll explain later."

"Who do you speak of?" asked Long Belly, heading out of the stall. Daniel raised a crutch, barring his way.

"Quiet," he said. "And I'd advise you not to rush out there for a look at our... guest. You know how skittish buffalo can be."

Daniel had assumed that Long Belly would go wild when he learned that the buffalo of his dreams had been found, not that he would lapse into a stupor. The big Cheyenne was beyond excited, unable to say or do more than clutch his chest and sag against the wall, as mute as the planks of wood that held him up. Guessing that he wouldn't remain silent or immobile for long, Daniel took those precious few seconds to come up with a plan.

Whispering to Josie, he said, "If any of our horses get loose with your new friend, they'll be ripped to shreds in minutes. Can you sneak back out there and check to make sure the stall doors are secure so the horses can't get loose? The cow will just have to fend for herself."

Josie shrugged. "I doubt you have to worry about her. I think the buffalo has been living with some cattle—yours, I guess."

"Buffalo?" said Long Belly, looking and sounding hollow. "Where is this buffalo you speak of?"

"Go now," Daniel urged Josie. "Toss a little more hay on the ground to keep it busy while you're securing the stalls. And hurry," he added with great meaning, "before our other friend here decides to help you."

As Josie quietly went about her tasks, Long Belly regained most of his senses.

"I must see this buffalo you speak of," he said to Daniel. "I must see it now."

"You will," Daniel assured him. "But not until the three of us are sneaking out the rear door on our way back to the cabin. You can take a quick look at it as we leave, but be sure to keep quiet and don't make any sudden movements. It's a little nervous and might charge us."

Long Belly nodded in agreement, but his eyes were so huge and glazed over, Daniel would have bet that he'd forget his vow once he saw the great beast. When Josie returned to the stall, he urged her through the back door first, and then tucked both of his crutches under one arm in order to keep a firm grip on the Cheyenne's jacket as he stepped out into the aisle. It seemed like a good idea, keeping control of Long Belly in that manner, but Daniel might as well have tried to control the buffalo.

When Long Belly actually caught sight of the great beast, he fell to his knees in prayer, dragging Daniel down with him. He landed face down in the straw, kicking his splinted leg out behind him. That foot then hit the edge of the open door, prompting an involuntary howl Daniel couldn't have contained under the threat of death.

His agonized cry got the buffalo moving. Trotting down the corridor toward the men, the beast grunted several more times, a strange sound that sent The Black rearing in his stall and turned the other horses into high-pitched, whinnying maniacs. About the time Daniel thought he would be trampled to death by the last living buffalo on earth, Josie stepped between him and the beast.

"Get out of the way," Daniel shouted.

She, of course, didn't listen.

Instead Josie held her ground and began making cooing noises which, surprisingly enough, slowed the animal's approach. Although still highly agitated, the beast stopped in its tracks mere inches from where she stood, its tail raised in challenge to the two men behind her. That was enough to get Daniel going, but Long Belly was still caught in the animal's spell.

"Broken Dishes has mastered this great beast," he said, awestruck. "She must be a goddess or a—"

"Shut up, you fool," Daniel said, cutting off the Cheyenne's benediction. "Get me out of here before your great beast runs through her to get to us."

This got Long Belly moving at last. He helped Daniel to his feet, and then dragged him through the narrow opening Josie had left in the door. A moment later, she followed them outside and secured the barn door. Then the group trudged through the field of snow carpeting the corral and made their way back to the cabin.

Once they were all inside again, Daniel insisted that Josie warm herself by the stove before he would allow any further discussion about the buffalo. Now that he could concentrate on her, he saw that her face was scratched, a couple of gouges almost matching those she'd left on him their first morning together. Her cheeks were blotched with angry patches of red—frostbitten, no doubt—and her hair had come loose of its braid, leaving it to fall every which way across her back and bosom in a mass of auburn tangles. She looked as if she'd picked a fight with a wolverine.

"Are you all right?" he asked, removing his jacket from her shoulders.

Josie paused, warming her hands over cook top, and considered the question carefully. She'd been so cold she hadn't really been able to feel her extremities until now. As she warmed up, her fingers and toes began to tingle and sting, yet she didn't think they suffered from frostbite. She also ached from one end to the other—and knew exactly what had caused her injuries.

"Thanks to that no-account crazy horse of yours," she said, shooting Daniel an accusing glance, "I'm tired, cold, and bruised from my toes to my head. Other than that, I guess I'm all right."

Long Belly pushed his way into the conversation. "Where did you find the great buffalo? Why did he come here with you?"

"She followed me," Josie corrected. "At least Daniel says he's a she."

"She is," he confirmed, before going back to her previous comment. "As for my crazy horse, I would never have allowed you to ride him—that fool did." He pointed at Long Belly. "So what happened? Did The Black throw you?"

Josie nodded and rubbed her backside. "We were almost back to the cabin when something in the trees spooked him. I went flying out of the saddle, then rolled down a hill and crashed into a tree."

"And then you found the buffalo?" asked Long Belly, focused on only one topic.

"No," she said. "The buffalo found me. Actually, I guess you might say that she also saved my life."

The men glanced at each other. The look they exchanged said they thought her quite mad.

"I passed out after I bit the tree," she explained. "When I came around again, the buffalo was trying to nudge me up out of the snow. I think I might have laid there forever if she hadn't been so persistent."

Again they exchanged a glance, this one of both doubt and wonder. Then Daniel said, "All right. Assuming the buffalo saved your life—and I'm not saying that she didn't—how did you get her to follow you back here?"