Buck looked at the setting sun with a feeling of relief. As the daylight waned, it would be easier for he and Lou to avoid detection. They had covered a lot of ground that day, seldom speaking. Lou had quietly followed his lead. As they stopped at a small creek to drink their fill, he studied her. Considering how their morning had started, he wasn't at all surprised to feel uneasy. But as he watched Lou scrub at her face and neck with the water, he realized what else was bothering him. She hadn't looked him in the eyes all day. No, that wasn't entirely correct… She hadn't looked at him since they had fled Bert's deranged hunting party.
"Lou?" He whispered his call, but knew by her flinch that she'd heard him.
She said nothing, only continued to avert her eyes and scrub herself. Buck watched her small hands moving back and forth. Her neck. Her mouth. Her right ear. Every place Bert's mouth had touched her.
"Lou!" He crept closer and gently laid his hand on her forearm. "Lou, are you alright?"
She lifted her head, but still her eyes wouldn't meet his. "No, I'm not alright. A madman and his friends are hunting us." Her voice hitched as she continued. "He wants to kill you. And… And…" She pulled her arm away, so she could again dip her hands in the cool water. Her next words were spoken so softly he nearly missed them. "I can't let it happen again."
Though he knew she may have been referring to what happened at their camp before they fled, Buck was certain that Lou was talking about something else. Another time. Another place. Another man who had misused her. And his heart broke for her. But he also knew that desperation could easily become a distraction. They both needed to keep their wits about them if they wanted to survive.
"Lou?" He reached out to stay her hands from the repetitious task of scrubbing herself clean. "We need to keep moving if we want to try to get away. I have no intention of dying as part of some sick game, and I won't let anything happen to you either."
She nodded nervously, slowly raising her eyes to meet his. Ever since he learned she was a girl, he had experienced moments of distinct clarity. In those moments he would wonder how she had ever managed to pull off her deception, her femininity becoming so undeniable in those few seconds or minutes. And now, when her face seemed to consist only of her large, dark eyes and trembling mouth he was consumed by the need to protect her. She exuded a delicate frailty, a quality that had always brought out his fiercer instincts.
"I'm scared, Buck," Lou spoke quietly, the slight quiver of her chin telling him just how desperately she was clinging to her control.
With almost any other woman he would have exaggerated his own confidence, assuring her that he would protect her from whatever they faced. But whether it was the fact that Lou was like a sister to him or that this time he harbored no delusions about their odds in this horrific scenario, he couldn't be anything other than completely honest with her now. "I am too… But I'm not about to give up now."
He quickly scanned their surroundings, but saw nothing that might indicate where they should head next. He slowly rose, taking Lou's small hand in his. He stood still for a moment, closing his eyes and breathing deeply. Great Spirit, guide my path! Awareness struck him like a bolt of lightning and he opened his eyes, knowing their next steps. "We must hurry! We'll head into the river and walk in the water for as long as we can. I feel certain that we should head downstream. If we had more time I would head upstream along the shore for a while to distract them, then double back. But we'll just have to make do."
He studied her face for a moment, relieved to see her chin raise slightly. She looked more like the Lou he was used to know, ready to take on the challenge ahead of them. "I trust ya, Buck. Lead on."
They spent the next hour walking through the shallow edges of the river, trying to make it more difficult for Bert and the others to follow their tracks. The river began to deepen, the current pulling more intensely at their feet. Buck stopped again, hoping to feel the guidance of the Great Spirit.
"Buck? What is it?" Lou looked up him anxiously, chewing on her bottom lip and throwing glances back upstream. "We best keep movin'."
Buck opened his eyes. The Great Spirit seemed to be guiding him to the west, toward the rocky cliff walls in the distance. "This way. We're close to something, but I'm not sure what."
"As long as it ain't Bert," whispered Lou, following his lead.
After walking through a dense copse of trees for nearly half an hour, they came upon a clearing. Unease prickled at Buck's skin. The clearing formed a perfect circle, though one large tree remained in the center.
"I don't like it here, Buck. Somethin' feels off." Lou shuddered beside him. "We'd best keep movin'."
At that same moment, a ribbon of wind seemed to wrap around the large tree before them. The branches groaned as they swayed, while the leaves seemed to whisper in some foreign tongue. Lou drew close Buck's side, her hands gripping his arms tightly. "Please, Buck!"
But he was drawn toward the tree, pulling Lou along with him. There was a current running through him as he neared the base of the tree. Looking up into the branches, he quickly spied odd forms among the leaves. "Look up, Lou. This is a Lakota burial tree. It means this is sacred ground."
"A burial tree?" Lou still clung to his arm, nervousness making her voice tremble.
Buck was silent for several long moments as he studied the canopy of the large tree. Finally he spoke, "The Lakota usually bury their dead, but sometimes choose to lash the body to a tree branch instead. These were probably warriors killed in battle. This tree was large enough that platforms weren't needed."
"What are the little bundles with them?" Lou's eyes moved from body to body.
"Food, medicine, tools… Even weapons. Things they need as they move to the next life." At the mention of food, Buck felt his stomach twist. They hadn't eaten all day as they kept on the move.
"It would be nice to have that in this life." Lou's voice held the barest touch of humor, drawing a ghost of a smile from Buck. She shivered as she again tried to pull him away from the burial tree and back to the woods. "If we're gonna take a rest, we best find a hiding place."
Bone deep weariness weighted Buck's limbs as he tried to think about their next steps. He needed food and water as well as rest, but most of all he needed the guidance and protection of the Great Spirit. "You're right, Lou, but I need to pray first. Just give me a few minutes here, and then we'll go."
He could see in her eyes that she wanted to argue, but instead she looked around nervously and responded, "Alright, Buck. I'll keep watch, but please hurry." As he sat down in the tall grasses around the tree, he heard her quiet voice again. "If ya don't mind, ask yer Great Spirit if he could send some food and a rescue party. I'm starvin,' and I wanna go home."
Despite his exhaustion, a hint of amusement played about Buck's lips. He and Lou had come a long way since the start of the Express. He could remember when she'd thought most others like him were savages. Now, despite the danger, she was respecting his beliefs enough to allow him to stop for prayer. He needed to be quick, so they might get into hiding as soon as possible.
Closing his eyes, Buck began to chant under his breath, his voice a low murmuring hum. The ribbon of wind he'd witnessed earlier spun around him before rising up to again swirl around the burial tree. The spirits were strong here. He beseeched them to carry his cry for help. Soon the darkness seemed to close in tightly around him, his head feeling oddly heavy. Then a flare of light that almost seemed to blind him.
A shape began to emerge from the core of the light. Buck tried to concentrate on the form. There was something familiar and comforting about it, but he wasn't sure why. Finally as the new presence loomed large before him, a voice rang out.
"I bid the Great Spirit to lead me. Why have I come to this place?"
Buck couldn't believe his ears. He would know that voice anywhere. "Red Bear? Is it really you?"
"Running Buck, I did not expect to see you on my vision quest. I was seeking guidance." Red Bear's frown was severe, but it still was a source of comfort to his younger brother.
"I was also praying to the Great Spirit for guidance." Buck's surprised joy at seeing his brother dissolved as he recalled his purpose.
Red Bear studied him for a moment then spoke thoughtfully, "Then there must be a reason why we have been brought together. I thought you were living the life of your white father's people."
Buck didn't let his brother's words pull him into anger. "Though I do not live with the Kiowa, they are still my people. Their ways are still my ways." Seeing that Red Bear accepted his words, he continued. "And now I am in danger because of my mother's blood. A white man hunts me even as I am with you. He is tired of game and seeks to make my friend and I his prey."
Red Bear's eyes widened, though his voice belied any sort of reaction. "And you are afraid?"
Buck nearly laughed. The strain was clearly getting to him. "No, brother. I am terrified. I have no weapon, no food, no water. My companion is a small woman, and though she disguises herself as a man, our pursuer and his men know her true identity. We are in unfamiliar territory and outnumbered."
"Will your white friends not be looking for you both?" His older brother's face remained impassive.
Shaking his head, Buck replied, "No. We we're ahead of schedule." Buck raised his right hand, only now realizing he was holding something. Opening his hand, he discovered his medicine pouch and Lou's glasses. "Here," he said, reaching out to Red Bear, "take this. When you return from your vision quest, let this be proof that what I tell you is true."
As Red Bear took the items from his hand, Buck could see a jolt of awareness pass through his brother. After studying the artifacts for a moment Red Bear again looked up. "Tell me where you are. The Great Spirit will guide me, but you can start my path in the right direction."
Buck sighed with frustration. "We are in the Dakota Territory. Not far from the Black Hills." Memory flared, and he quickly added, "We are on sacred ground. A circular clearing, with a large tree standing alone. It's a Lakota burial tree. Several warriors are held in its branches."
Buck felt suddenly weak, his knees buckling and his head swimming. His brother's voice came to him as if from far away. "I will find you, Running Buck. The Great Spirit bids it so."
Though the weakness did not leave him, Buck felt as if his head were clearing a bit. Hands shook him roughly. He moaned in protest, only to have one of those hands quickly clamp over his mouth.
"Shhh! Buck, please wake up!" Lou's voice dripped with desperation. "I think they're closin' in, and we gotta get movin'."
Buck forced his heavy eyes to open. In the darkness he could barely make out Lou's eyes, but he knew they filled with panic. "I'm awake," he whispered. "How long was I out?"
Lou pulled him to his feet beside the burial tree. "I'd say it was over an hour, easy. I tried wakin' ya up after about twenty minutes. It was like ya were dead. I snuck back to retrace our path, and I definitely heard somethin'. Like a gunshot. It was a ways off, but I think we best hightail it outta here."
As they made their way to the other side of the clearing, Buck heard Lou's whisper again. "So did ya have a vision? Did the Great Spirit show you anything?"
Buck was uncertain just what to say. He didn't know for certain what his vision meant. Did he really meet his brother or was he meant to find some other meaning in the experience? With sudden awareness, he raised his hand to his chest. When it did not meet the ever-present medicine pouch, he felt relief flow through him. "I spoke to Red Bear. He will be looking for us."
