We headed back to the cars. I saw Kelly speaking with her boyfriend at his SUV then she moved away and headed for my truck where Angela was waiting for me.
When I reached the truck, I eyed Kelly questioningly but before she could say anything, Angela tugged at my pant leg. I looked down at her.
"I asked Aunt Kelly if she would ride with us. Do you mind?" She asked, a glint in her eye.
I smiled and shook my head. "No, I don't mind at all." I said and Angela beamed at me then darted into the back cab of my truck.
I looked up at Kelly and the two of us walked around the front of my truck and I could feel Angela's eyes on us the entire time. When we reached the passenger door I opened it for her and she looked at me out of the others line of sight.
"Always the gentleman Alec." She said as she stepped onto the step bar.
"One tries" I said as I lightly grasped her upper arm as she slipped. She grimaced and flinched from my touch, stepping down again out of Angela's sight.
My eyes went wide and before she could stop me, I gripped her sleeve and pulled it all the way up to her shoulder and gasped. Her upper arm was covered in bruises, some fresh some old. But the one that really got my eye was one that was almost the perfect outline of a hand.
She wrenched her arm from my grasp and shoved her sleeve down. "Alec please don't this…" She muttered tightly.
"How long has he been doing this to you." I demanded softly, my hands balling into fists.
"He hasn't…" She began to protest, softly.
"Kelly no fall or any other kind of accident could do that to you" I hissed back.
She just looked at me, a small tear in her eye.
"Has he hurt Ryan yet?" I demanded, tensely.
She shook her head. "No. He would never do that. He's a good man. He just gets a little rough." She said tightly, defending Eric.
I stared at her in shock. "Rough? Rough? Kelly this is not rough this is way beyond rough." I said, barely able to contain my anger.
She shook her head. "You don't understand…" She started to say before I interrupted again.
"I don't understand! Kelly he's beating you! What is it that I don't I understand?" I demanded, still keeping my voice low.
She looked at me then away and closing her eyes. A small tear fell down her face.
"Mr. Ryan Aunt Kelly?" Came a hesitant voice. I looked into the truck at Angela. "Are you two alright?" She asked in concern, a small frown on her small face.
I turned back to Kelly. She gave me a pleading look and I sighed. Turning back to Angela, I gave her a small smile and said, "Yeah, everything is fine.
Once more, I helped Kelly get into the passenger seat, careful to not touch her bruises. I insisted on buckling her belt and I used that moment to say something more.
"If he touches you again in that manner, I swear on my career, my home, upon everything I hold dear, I'll come after him and he's going to get a beating he'll never forget and nothing in this world will be able to stop me. I love you too much to allow you to come to harm." I said softly.
She raised a finger to my cheek a moment before I pulled away and went around to the driver's side. I paused before swinging myself in to stare hard at Eric in his SUV. He knew that I knew what he was doing to Kelly. I got in and started up the truck.
With the exception of the music playing and Angela singing along with it, we rode the rest of the way in silence. I smiled as I saw in my rear view mirror, Angela bounce up and down with excitement as she spotted the sign declaring the Cheyenne/Arapaho Reservation with their nation flag on it.
I rolled down the window as we pulled into the reservation nestled between two forested peaks. A few heads turned as I parked in front of the general store. As I climbed out a, few people came over and cheered as they surrounded me. I was hugged by several people at once and some of the older women examined my face. Some of the children that knew me darted forward. I was immediately bombarded with questions and peppered with information.
"Alec you look skinny! Have you been getting enough to eat?" One demanded.
"Mountain Lion, my man, you're just in time for the Annual Inter-Tribal Rodeo and Race. It's in a couple of days." Another shouted out.
"Who are these people with you?" Another asked.
"Are they Rangers as well?"
"What brings you home?"
"Hey! When did you get these wheels?"
I looked at the speaker as I scooped up one of the children and supported him on my elbow. "John Iron Bull my rodeo and race days are over. Yes I have been eating enough but nothing like your home cooking. As for this sweet ride I just picked this baby up a few weeks ago and yes these are my partners. Rangers Walker or Washo, Cook, Gage, Trivette, DA Walker, Erica Trivette, and this is Angela Bright Water Walker." I said as they came over and I placed a hand on Angela's shoulder.
Then they caught sight of Kelly and some of the women squealed as Kelly walked around the truck and hugged a couple of her friends.
"Oh its so good to see the two of you back together." One of my mothers said.
Kelly and I traded an uncomfortable look before she politely answered. "We're just friends...we're not together."
Then I saw the back of the crowd begin to part and an elderly man in a buckskin and a few feathers in his hair stepped forward down the cleared path. I smiled, put down the child I was holding and walked to meet him. He was a head shorter than me with a long face and very little wrinkles for a man his age. The feathers that hung from his grayish white hair were long eagle feathers. Like the rest of the people around him, he had high cheekbones and dark eyes and wore some beaded jewelry.
He smiled then embraced me. I hugged him back. "Welcome home my son." He said warmly.
"Thanks dad." I said then turned to the others with a hand on his shoulder.
"Everyone! This is Chief Silver Falcon, the man responsible for my upbringing and for me being adopted by the tribe. Dad these are Rangers Walker, Cook, Gage, Trivette, DA Walker, Angela Bright Water Walker, and Ranger Trivette's very pregnant wife Erica" I said.
As people started giving Erica there congratulations, I felt a hand on my shoulder and turned. A man in a reservation police uniform was behind me with a thick beaded necklace around his neck. He wore a similar western hat like mine only it wasn't as wide. On his face was a wide smile that went from ear to ear.
I laughed as he and I embraced. "Jason Fire Wolf, how have you been man!" I said when we separated holding onto each others upper arms.
He smiled back and said with a chuckle, "Hey to you and it's Chief Fire Wolf."
I laughed as well and said, "Well it's Texas Ranger Mountain Lion at your service." We grasped hands.
When we broke apart he smiled and shook his head. "Man, you came back just in time to take back the Rodeo title from those damn Cherokees." He said, humorously.
"hmm, hmm" Came from behind me.
I tried very hard to keep a straight face as Walker stepped forward with a look that could kill. "Ah Jason meet my partner Texas Ranger Cordell Washo Walker of the Cherokee Nation. Walker this is my brother Jason" I said.
Jason suddenly looked very nervous as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Uhm you're… ah Cherokee?" He asked, embarrassed
Walker nodded. "Half! My father was a full blooded Cherokee" He said, still keeping a stern expression.
That was when Jason really looked nervous. "Sorry about that comment, it was just a…" He tried to apologize. That's when Walker smiled and stuck his hand out, amusement glinting in his eyes.
"It's ok, I understand competition very well."
Jason exhaled deeply and smiled in relief then turned his attention back to me. "So how bout it Alec? Riding in the rodeo and the race?" He asked and I shook my head.
"No those days…" I started to say.
"He's riding." A voice said firmly.
Walker and I turned in surprise and stared at my father. "Dad…" I objected.
He raised his hand to silence me. "It's part of why you're here my son. You are the son of the tribe and we are counting on your skill. Also, this is part of the ceremony I wanted you to complete before your new assignment. You are a warrior Nanóse'hame and the spirits need to know if your heart and mind is in the right place since you're facing an enemy that has a lot of the same skills as yourself. As part of your preoperational ceremony you must defend your people and for you live a little more in case the unthinkable happens" He said.
I thought it over and nodded in agreement then commented, "...and also, because I have no choice" I said with a smirk.
He smiled at me and placed a hand on my shoulder "None, unless you want to put the tribe down." He said then walked away.
I sighed and watched him go then retrieved my duffle from my truck. "I hate it when he puts me on a guilt trip." I said as everyone gathered their stuff.
After we made plans to meet at the reservation restaurant, they left for the inn while I walked down main street waving to a few people. I stopped at the edge of town and looked to my right at a well kept little log house with a roofed porch that had a small drive up to it.
I chuckled a little as I walked up the familiar drive and onto the porch my boots clicking on the wood. I opened the well oiled door and stepped inside. The wooden furniture was just as I had left it from my last visit. I dropped my bag on the sofa with a long table in front of it by the door and I stepped onto the circular rug with Native American designs just before the stone fireplace.
I looked around the room that I had grown up in with pictures on the mantle and walls that showed various scenes of my life on the reservation, from building my first bow to winning my first Rodeo trophy.
"Home sweet home," I muttered and my hand shifted to something under my shirt. When I was settled in at my old home, I put on my wool fur interior denim jacket and walked back down the street to the inn.
I nodded to Soaring Hawk behind the desk and she pointed to the dinning room. I turned and saw everyone at a table. I said my thanks to her and stepped into the dinning room and a few people waved at me and I waved back as I took my seat between Walker and Jimmy.
We smiled at each other. "Well I'm settled in at my old home. How are you guys doing?" I asked as I was handed a menu.
Erika smiled. "The rooms are nice and warm, the people wonderful and friendly and they even offered to throw me a baby shower." Jimmy kissed her knuckles.
I smiled. "Well I suggest you take them up on their offer. They throw baby showers like no other and besides we do have a week long vacation." I said and I saw a sparkle in her eye.
Gage chuckled and glanced at Sydney next to him. I saw his shoulder shift with something under his shirt.
A second later he looked at me and asked, "So what is this ceremony your father wants you to go through?" He took a bite from his plate and my food was served.
I picked up my fork and took a bite before answering. "An old warrior ceremony to let the spirits know I still have the heart, the courage, and the mind of a warrior. It starts tonight with the Sweat Lodge"
At this information, Gage looked at me with excitement. "Hey, since we're here and all, why don't we all participate in the ceremony tonight."
I leaned closer and asked, "Gage, have you ever been to a Sweat Lodge before? It can be quite intense."
Jimmy nodded in grave agreement. "Yeah, I can remember my first experience. I had to be carried back to the Cherokee nation."
He shrugged and spread his hands. "Look! I want to do this and I can handle it." He insisted.
After a moment's thought, I relented. "Ok, you're in!" I turned to the other two. "Jimmy, Walker...you want in as well?" I asked. They looked thoughtful for a moment before finally nodding in agreement.
"Yeah, we're in, but does this mean we have to participate in the Rodeo?" Jimmy asked.
I shook my head. "No. But I expect Angela to cheer her loudest for me." I said looking over at her with a smile.
She smiled broadly back and saluted me. "You can count on me, Uncle Ryan."
I smiled, pleased with her response then glanced over at Kelly who sat between Eric and Ryan. She nodded and smiled at me as well.
When we had finished eating, I and the men got up from our chairs and headed out of the inn.
Gage rubbed his hands together and his smiling face looked from one to the other of us. "So where is the Sweat Lodge?" He asked.
I smiled and pointed to the western forest. "Way out there. Now let's get going." I started off with them close beside me.
When we reached the site of the Sweat Lodge, an hour and a half later, Gage had a look of disappointment on his face. He pointed at the small bowl shaped building and asked, doubtfully,
"Is that it?"
"What were you expecting...a log cabin sauna?" I snorted in amusement. "The Sweat Lodge is a sacred tradition of the Plains Native Americans, Gage. It cleanses the mind, body, and soul of a man and, in some cases, can help him decipher the path he must take. Often times, people are said to have visions during their time in the lodge." I told him just as Silver Falcon approached us with a clump of smoking herbs in his hand.
We smiled at each other then he waved the smoking herbs in front of me and I bent closer and inhaled the smoke deeply. Silver Falcon went to each of us for them to do the same. After we had inhaled the fumes from the herbs, then Walker and Jimmy walked to a bench nearby and started taking off boots and socks. A moment later, Gage joined us.
"So we just take our clothes off and hop in, huh." He commented as he unbuttoned his shirt.
I nodded as I removed my own shirt revealing a Dragon medallion necklace around my neck. I reached under the bench and grabbed a towel, tossing it to Gage which he caught. That's when I noticed he had something around his own neck.
"Gage, what is that?" I demanded, Walker and Jimmy turned to look as well.
Around Gage's neck was a gold chain with a simple gold ring band near his heart. He looked down then grasped the ring in his hand and blushed. "Oh… its… ah..." He stammered.
"That's a wedding ring!" I said flatly as I slipped my necklace off.
He closed his eyed and held it in his open hand "Yeah, it is." He admitted.
Walker and Jimmy stared at him for a moment. Then Walker asked softly, "How long have you and Sydney been married?"
Gage sighed and looked up at Walker, closing his hand around the ring. "Six years this May." He said quietly.
Jimmy gasped and asked, "Why didn't you tell us?"
Gage lowered his head, not looking at them as he answered. "Because we were afraid that one of us might lose our badge or get transferred to another company or partner. So we kept it a secret."
I had a feeling there was more to this but decided to dig deeper later. "My friend, I swear on my badge that I won't let that happen and since we now all know, why don't you renew your vows this week?" I suggested.
His head came up suddenly and he frowned at me in confusion. "But why...oh." His eyebrows rose to his hairline as he caught on when I nodded toward Silver Falcon.
He sighed. "So, not only are we going to have a baby shower, but a wedding as well!" He said in resignation as he removed the chain from his neck. He looked at it for a moment then broke the chain and let the ring slip off into his palm. He placed the ring carefully on his shirt and we continued to undress.
Once we were all dressed appropriately with towels around our waists, we all crawled inside the Sweat Lodge and sat around the smoking sweet grass. On crossed legs, Walker and I put our elbows on our knees and encircled our hands with one hand's fingers on top of the other and closed our eyes. Jimmy sat next to Walker while Gage was next to me and I could feel his eyes on me.
"So no thermostats!" He muttered.
I shook my head and muttered, "Nope!"
"So we just sit in here and…" He started ask.
"Shh" I said out of the corner of my mouth and he fell silent.
For what felt like hours, we sat in there as the sweat on our bodies grew more abundant, then it happened. For the second time in my life, I was taken away by a vision.
I lay on my back with a strange odor in my nose...almost like pine trees...my eyes stung and everything was blurry. Then I felt like someone had picked me up and I heard what sounded like a scuffle to my right and shouting from a voice I didn't recognize.
"LET ME GO! LET! ME! GO! GIVE ME MY BABY! YOU BASTARDS! I WANT MY BABY!" A woman yelled.
"Shut her up before she attracts attention!" A man said.
Suddenly there was a...BANG!...and the woman fell silent.
"Hey, wait this girl's an injun." Another male's voice snarled.
"What?"
There was an uncomfortable silence then someone spoke, "What do we do now? Who wants a half-breed baby."
The first voice that had ordered the woman shot growled, "Leave the brat! The wolves sound hungry."
I felt myself being put down on the cold ground.
For hours I squirmed around calling out at the top of my lungs until I heard someone coming. I felt someone pick me up into kind arms and I quieted as I was shifted about in the arms that held me. I heard more more people coming then a few seconds of silence before incomprehensible words were spoken before someone let out a sigh of grief then another set of kind arms picked me up and started to bounce me up and down.
"Don't worry little one. I made one mistake by letting her go and I promise to make it up to her." A kind voice said. I opened my eyes fully to see Silver Falcon's face.
I gasped and opened my eyes for real and found myself back in the Sweat Lodge. My mind was still trying to process my vision. 'What was that?' I asked myself.
I shook myself and took a deep breath. I glanced over at Gage who had his eyes closed.
"Gage, I'm surprised you lasted th… Gage?" I started to say then halted as I realized something was wrong. I waved my hand before his face and snapped my fingers but he didn't respond. The others looked at me with concern.
"GAGE?" I said louder and he still didn't move. "OPEN THE FLAP!" I shouted in Cheyenne and the flap was drawn back quickly, revealing darkness outside. Walker shifted passed Jimmy to help me take Gage by each arm and drag him outside. We laid him on the grass. Walker and Jimmy attempted to rouse him while I darted to one side of the lodge and fetched a bucket of water, carrying it back quickly.
Walker and Jimmy moved out of the way and I emptied the whole bucket onto Gage's face. He sputtered the water out of his mouth and I sighed in relief as Walker looked him over.
"Man…I feel… like…I…just…stepped out…of…a…lava pit." Gage sputtered and we laughed.
"Well I told you it can be intense and next time you feel like you're going to pass out from the heat, just let us know." I told him. I looked over at the bench and saw it now held three pairs of buckskin paints with frills and moccasins. I picked them up and handed a set to each of my companions and we got dressed.
"What now?" Gage asked as he stood on wobbly legs and was bare-chested adjusting his breechcloth.
"Now we run that away." I said pointing. I replaced my necklace while they put their wedding rings back on. Then we ran into the woods
For about ten minutes, we kept to a steady pace through the trees heading for our next destination. We stopped outside a clearing where one of my mothers named Painted Tree was waiting for us sitting on her knees with several bowls at her knees and one at her side with a lid.
We walked up to her and after taking my lead we sat in front of her. She smiled at me and dipped her fingers in the bowls and started covering parts of my face with war paint. When she was done she moved on to Walker, Gage, and Jimmy then smiled at us when she was done she then brought the lidded bowl in front of her. As she removed the lid I took a deep breath and took the bowl from her as she handed it to me which had fumes lightly rising from it.
After bracing myself for what was to come I lowered my face and breathed in the fumes. At once the world began to spin and I could barely give the bowl over to Gage before I passed out. About ten minutes later I awoke alone in a different part of the forest.
I quickly rolled onto my feet alert and weary as I looked into the night darken woods and moving cautiously so not to make a noise began to search the area around me. For a few minutes I searched until I came to a tree with a good sized knot hole in the trunk. Reaching in I smiled in triumph as I found my quarry and pulled out a antler handled knife then spun around a threw a silent attacker against the tree.
Taking a few steps away from him holding the knife at the ready as he steadied himself. He like me was dressed in buck skin pants with a breach cloth with frills and moccasins and had war paint on his face. Shaking himself we faced off knives at the ready.
We circled each other for a couple seconds then he lunged at me were after blocking and locking out his arm I threw him to the ground before he could counter. He came at me again and I blocked him by the elbow and we stood each trying to get our knife in a advantage point. Suddenly I dropped my knife into my waiting hand and slashed at his gut.
After leaping away he looked down at the red line on his lower chest then looked at me as I waved him forward. Lunging at me again I sidestepped him and nailed him with my elbow sending him to the forest floor. In a flash I was on top of him knife blade at his throat.
He moaned in frustration as I stood and chuckled, "brother if these knives were the real thing you'd be dead again," I said holding out my hand to him.
Smiling he took it and I helped him up. "You know Mountain Lion would it kill you to at least let me wound you if not beat you for once, because I'm going to have these for a week," he said dabbing at the red ink marks left by the knife.
"Now Black Hawk, how would you learn if I did that, now I'll see you at the bonfire," I said patting his shoulder throwing my knife into the ground and took off.
A few minutes later I came a stop and waited a moment later Walker came out of the dark with Jimmy not a mark on either of them. Then a couple minutes later Gage came up a hand on his shoulder.
"How'd you do Gage?" I asked as he came close.
He shrugged saying, "Not bad, I beat him if that's what you mean," and we looked at him.
Walker waved him closer with his finger and reluctantly he stepped forward and I lowered his hand and chuckled. "Gage considering that the guy you faced learned how to use a knife since a young age. Only getting a scratch mark like this on your first time is pretty impressive. Now come on guys we got a run ahead of us," I said after looking at the small mark on his shoulder and started off again them right behind me.
About twenty minutes into our run, Gage stumbled and we ran in place beside him. "I…thought…you said…this was…only a mile run" He panted.
I smiled, not even winded yet. "A mile? I don't remember saying a mile do you guys?" I asked the others.
"No, not me"
"Me neither"
I shrugged. "I remember saying five." He glared at me.
"Come on Frances, I went through this ceremony five times, believe me it's worth it." I said then darted off as he ran after me.
With him chasing me for the last few miles, we soon heard the drums and people singing. When he finally stopped chasing me and tried to catch his breath, a minute later Walker and Jimmy caught up to us.
When Gage could breathe more easily, he looked over at me as he stood straight again. "What, no more running?" He asked, sarcastically.
I shook my head and pulled back a pine tree branch to reveal the Cheyenne sitting at drums, playing them as others danced around a giant bonfire in ceremonial cloths and war paint. We watched them mesmerized. We spotted Angela, Sydney, Erica, and Alex in the crowd.
"That's beautiful" Gage said in awe.
I nodded. "Get going, they're waiting for us." I said and started to walk toward the fire. Gage grabbed my arm.
I eyed him questioningly. "You ever call me Frances again and I'll break both your arms." He said in warning then released me. Everyone laughed and we darted for the bonfire.
When we reached the bonfire, the crowd parted. We were handed spears and at the right time we joined the dancers. We twisted, swirled and leapt up into the air, Gage watching me to know what to do as we danced with the spears in the ancient warrior and hunter dance.
When the dance was over, we leapt up spinning around and landed on one knee laying the spears flat on the ground. At a signal, we stood and gathered together and stood before Silver Falcon in his ceremonial clothes and paint. I and the others were draped in wolf skins like capes and Silver Falcon looked at us then started weaving his smoking herbs at us as he started chanting. I held my hands up by my head palms facing me as he chanted around us and waved the smoking herbs around us.
When he finished, we lowered our hands. I was first and one of the elders brought Silver Falcon three handmade necklaces with pouches at the end. He picked one up at a time and slipped them around our necks. He smiled at us then brought his open hand to his chest and jutted it forward and we mimicked him and the ceremony ended.
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