Part I: The Gathering Storm (1809-1810)

Chapter 6: Thunder

"Mrs. Bulygin gave us an answer that struck us like a clap of thunder, an answer we could not believe for several minutes, taking it all in like a dream. In horror, distress and anger, we heard her…," Timofei Tarakanov

Oooooo

Fifty Makah men flanked Anna on each side as they disembarked their canoe on the sandy river bank. On the opposite side of the Hoh River, she could see some of the Russian and Aleut men waiting to speak with them. She could barely recognize the thin, bedraggled creatures before her. Their clothes were in tatters, their hair unkempt, and they looked as if they were wild things thrown upon the shore by the forest. On a hill behind them, she could just make out a roughly hewn wooden structure, hastily constructed to give them shelter. Within, the rest of their company held their hostages. The weapons of parties stationed on both sides of the river were trained on the opposing side.

This was not the first attempt of her comrades to negotiate for her freedom. Hardly a fortnight into her captivity, the crew of the Sv. Nikolai had gathered together all manner of precious clothing and tools to trade in an attempt to free her from the Hoh. The Hoh wished for nothing but their firearms, the last defense the marooned crew had between themselves, starvation, and slavery and so their attempt had failed. It was the last she had seen or heard of them. Her former companions had asked after her and she told them she fared well. In truth, she had realized she might fare better than they, if the barely healed wounds covering them and the lack of meat on their bones spoke of their state. Now, they were even more badly off than they appeared then.

One man came forward to act as spokesperson for the fur traders. Anna recognized him as Timofei Tarakanov, the supercargo of the Sv. Nikolai. During their journey, Tarakanov had acted as second in command under the navigator and was as capable and intelligent as he was determined. She was surprised, though, to conduct negotiations now with Tarakanov rather than Navigator Bulygin. She wondered if that meant her husband no longer lived for that was the only reason she could think of that would elevate Tarakanov into the position of leadership of their company. Tarakanov gave them a wan smile, clung tightly to his gun, and greeted the Makah in Chinook jargon.

Yutramaki stood tall beside Anna, wearing a European jacket and trousers. Amidst the brown-chested Makah warriors garbed only in deer pelts and weapons, he immediately captured all attention to himself. He lifted his beaver pelt top hat in greeting to the shipwrecked fur traders and welcomed them in English.

"You must translate," Yutramaki whispered to Anna in Quileute. She nodded and inhaled deeply to gather her courage. Then she moved to the front and center of the gathered company, a small and nondescript figure next to the imposing Makah chief. She swallowed her nervousness, but it slid down her throat as easily as a hot boiled potato.

"Good morning," Anna shouted in Russian across the river. All attention transferred to her when she spoke. The Russians and Aleuts shouted and cheered when they recognized her. Inquiries were made into her health. She smiled in response and ensured them she was well.

"We are mightily glad to see you are well, Mrs. Bulygin," Tarakanov called back. "It is our intent to ensure you stay that way!"

"I do not doubt your intent," she answered, "but this is not the way. The woman you captured is the sister of this chief. She and he are very fine people. They have rendered me many services and have treated me very well. You need to free the woman at once."

"We will gladly do so," Timofei responded. "But only on condition that you are returned to us."

By the smugness of his expression, she knew he thought he was doing her a favor and "rescuing" her from her fate. He would not be pleased with the decision she had come to, but it could not be helped.

"No," she answered and her response echoed off each side of the river bank. "I am happy and well where I am. I do not want to join you. If you wish to live, you should surrender yourselves to these people. This chief is an upright and virtuous man, widely known along this coast. He will free you and send you to the European ships right now cruising in the Strait of Juan de Fuca."

Timofei stared at her, entirely dumbstruck until his face went ashen white. He could not respond until she repeated her answer for a second and third time. Even then, he was nearly incapable of answering for a time as he considered his response.

"No! Mrs. Bulygin," he finally said. "This cannot be your answer! I beg you to come to your senses! Your husband is distraught! He was so broken-hearted by your capture that he went nearly mad with grief! He wept day and night for you and has thought of little else but your rescue. He set me as leader over our company because he could no longer carry such weight of responsibility with so much grief in his heart. Even now, we meant to make our way south in search of rescue, but Navigator Bulygin refused to leave unless we made another attempt at your rescue and brought you with us."

Anna shook her head again. "I do pity all you have gone through and I do not make this decision to torment my husband or pain him in any way. I have chosen this because I believe it to be the best decision," she said, as firmly as she could.

Timofei opened and closed his mouth before running his hands through his unkempt blonde beard. He spread out his arms before her to plead for her to change her mind. "Mrs. Bulygin, allow me to remind you that you are indebted to your husband for everything. You were but a serf, a woman with no prospects and little dowry and still he married you. He has given you food and shelter and clothing and opportunity. Surely, you feel some natural loyalty to a man who has done so much for you. What man loves his wife more than he? Is this how you repay such devotion? This is a betrayal of the highest order."

"You will not persuade me, regardless of what arguments you use," she said, her cheeks burning red. She stubbornly set her jaw and threw her shoulders back as she answered him.

When he saw he could not dissuade her from her course, he returned to their rough barracks to relay her message. He walked with slow steps and slumped shoulders and when he returned some time later, his complexion was little improved.

"Your husband wishes for me to convince you to return to him," Timofei pleaded again. "He says that if you do not come by your own volition, he will shoot you himself. He has his rifle in hand, ready to rush to this bank at this moment to kill you if you refuse him."

Anna's eyes flashed in anger and she stood even taller than she had before with her head held high. "I do not fear death," she said. "It is better for me to die than to wander about with you in the forest, where we might fall into the hands of a cruel and barbarous people. Now I am living with kind and humane people. Tell my husband that I scorn his threats."

Timofei, miserable at playing the role of mediator between such a pair, returned to his former leader. The man's cry, when he received his wife's answer, rent the air and disrupted the forest like glass shattered by a stone.

Oooo

Yutramaki's company spent the night in the warmth of the longhouses of the Hoh at the river's mouth. The family of his sister's husband gave them a generous welcome and plenty of food. From across the way, they could see the little flickering flames of the ho-kwat's fire, keeping the fur trappers warm while they ate their much more meager meal in their barely adequate shelter.

Anna failed to eat or speak much during that night. She listened to the chorus of voices around her, but she could not join in. Her heart was too heavy and she did not know what she should even hope for. What future would she have? At least she knew her husband and some of her companions still lived. She did not wish harm to come to them and heartily wished for them to be rescued. However, if she were ever reunited with her husband, she had little hopes for a happy reunion. Grudges could hold Nikolai like a bit could hold a horse and he would not let go of this "betrayal" easily.

Yutramaki came to sit beside her after the meal was finished. "The ships of the ho-kwat may have already returned to sea by the time of our return," he said. "I have promised to return you and as many of your people to another ship when I am able."

"We would be so grateful for your assistance," she answered.

"If some of the ho-kwat choose to give themselves over to us tomorrow, it is very good. However, I cannot keep a great number of you for myself. I would appear ungenerous and gain ill-favor from the other chiefs. I will only be able to keep one or two and the rest I must give out to others. However, my promise still is made. If I trade you and your companions, I will someday buy you back and help you return to a ship in the future."

"I understand," she said.

Slaves moved like currency along the coasts. They were not meant to stay in one place forever but were traded up and down the waterways as freely as the current of the waters which enabled their travels. There was no telling when another ship would enter into the strait or how many times she would be sold and resold until that ship arrived. Yutramaki would benefit multiple times over by this arrangement. He would gain prestige with the Hoh for rescuing his sister and the other hostage. Whichever clans he gifted the newly surrendered slaves to would also be in his debt. Finally, he would gain the future honor and respect of both the captured ho-kwat and the passing ho-kwat ships by orchestrating their reunification. He would lose nothing and only gain through assisting Anna and her companions.

oooooo

When dawn broke over the Hoh River and the dense forest woke with bird songs, five men stood waiting to speak to Yutramaki. Timofei Tarakanov and Nikolai Bulygin flanked each side of their two hostages. Behind them stood one other Russian crewman and two Aleut men. Tarakanov acted as spokesperson again while Nikolai's swollen, tear-stained eyes stared only at the soft sand beneath his bare feet. Anna acted her part as translator for a second time, her head still held high as if she were the chief and not the slave.

"If you and your people are as honorable and virtuous as Mrs. Bulygin assures us that you are, we will agree to surrender ourselves to you," Tarakanov said. "We expect you will do us no harm and you will allow us to depart for our homeland on the first ship to appear."

"Of course," Yutramaki answered through Anna. "You will not regret your decision. And your companions? What of them?"

"They will not come," Timofei said.

"Very well."

The five captives bade farewell to their remaining twelve companions, each weeping and pleading with their comrades to change their minds.

"Stay with us! We will sail our canoes to the sea. We will travel south to Gray's Harbor and find a ship to rescue us!" cried those who did not surrender to Yutramaki.

"Come with us! It is not too late!" beseeched those newly enslaved. Neither could convince the other and so they each parted ways, all going forward into an uncertain fate, entirely dependent on forces outside of their power to control.

Oooooo

It was a four-day canoe journey north to reach the winter home of the Makah. Each night, they stopped at sunset to camp and prepare a meal for their large company and greet their kin and allies from the clans they passed along the way. True to his word, Yutramaki did not keep all his newly acquired slaves but distributed them up and down the waterways in accordance with those he owed debts of honor to and those he wished to owe debts of honor to him.

At first, Nikolai followed his wife around like a shadow. He was in such a state of shock to find her alive and well and within his reach again, that he was beside himself in relief. He was content enough just to be in her presence until he could find a moment to be with her alone and they could address the great chasm the last few months had wrought between them. Anna knew what it was that he waited for and dreaded it with as much fervor as if she were about to have a rotten tooth pulled from her gums.

It was when they reached the mouth of the Quillayute River to spend a night among the longhouses of La Push that the Bulygins found time alone together. There, in a place she was familiar with, they slipped out of the village to walk along the grey waters of the beach just as twilight draped the forest in a curtain of dwindling light. As soon as they were beyond the prying eyes of the distant village, Nikolai pulled her into a tight embrace. He was so thin now that she could feel each of his ribs through his overcoat. A long, barely healed wound ran across his forehead and fell into his grey and brown beard. She nearly choked at the unwashed scent of sweat and forest that clung to his threadbare clothes, but she dared not pull away, especially when she caught the tears that ran down his weathered cheeks.

"I must be dreaming. Are you really alive?" he asked her as he pulled away far enough to look into her face.

"I am. I am glad to know you live as well," she answered with a half-smile.

"I thought I had lost you forever. I've thought of nothing but you since you were stolen from me," he said.

"I am quite well," she assured him.

"You do not look it. Look at you - you are dressed as a savage. What is the meaning of this?"

"What was not destroyed in the forest was taken by my first captors," Anna answered. "These were the clothes I was given to wear."

"It is not seemly to wear such things!" he protested. "If I but had another coat, I would give it to you to protect you from the eyes of these barbarians!"

She shook her head and sighed. "These keep me warm and dry. I am grateful for it," she answered.

"I suppose I am not the picture of civility in these rags either," he said and she smiled, genuinely this time.

They continued to stand in their embrace for some time, the only sounds to interrupt them were the call of the sea birds above them and the waves behind. Anna closed her eyes to listen and to wait. She knew what they must speak of next, but she would not address it first. She did not have long to wait.

"My wife, what was the meaning of that shameful display? I have thought of nothing but you since you were taken from me and have bent all my thoughts into rescuing you. Yet, when I come to you with the means to rescue you, at no little personal danger to myself and our company, you refuse. We could have made our way to the harbor without you, but chose to make one last attempt to rescue you. Then you publicly shame me in front of everyone. How could you?"

She stepped out of his grasp, which had grown as accusing as his voice, and she stared at the sea instead of meeting the well of anger in his eyes.

"Nikolai, what did you wish me to do?" she said. "Look around you. We are outnumbered. The people here are many and we could not find the harbor in winter. You are barely surviving as you are. How many times were you attacked with rocks and arrows and spears during your travels? You wished me to join you and starve? You wished me to trample through the forests and risk falling into the hands of people who would bring me to harm?"

"I wished you to trust your husband to protect you and know what was best for you!" he shouted back, angrily. "I wished you behave as a wife ought and obey your husband!"

She snorted. "What was best for me or for you?" she said. "It was not my safety that compelled you to act as you did, but your wounded pride."

"No! Of course not! You think I wish my wife to be made a whore to these savages?"

"Nikolai, what could you do to protect me that would not lead to your death?"

"So, you admit it! You have been violated by these beasts!" he shouted, so loudly that Anna took a step back from him.

"No, that is not what I said. Nikolai, I have been taken care of well and tended well. I did not speak any untruths when I answered as I have," she said, as gently and calmly as she could. However, she recognized the familiar undercurrent of his fierce jealousy in his face and she knew how this would end.

"You owe me your life!" he shouted back. "I rescued you from what your life would have been! I have fed you and taken care of you and given you a good life. And this is how you repay me, you ungrateful whore? I should have shot you myself when I had the chance. I should have left you here to die."

She turned away and tried to create more space between his furious fists and herself. It did not help. He picked up a stone and threw it, hitting her solidly on the arm. She cried out in pain and tried to run. He lifted another rock to strike her again, but the sound of their voices had gained the attention of some of the nearby Quileute. Two men and two women came running to intervene, war clubs and hunting knives in their hands. They restrained Nikolai, chiding him for his behavior, and checking on Anna.

She picked up the stone that had struck her, angry tears streaming down her cheeks, and she dropped the stone at his feet.

"If you ever lay a finger on me again, I swear I will kill you in your sleep," she hissed. She turned away and did not face him again, no matter how many times he cried out her name.

Oooo

It was the next morning, before the sun rose, when he was next at her door. She woke with a start, hearing her name from outside the longhouse.

"Anna! Forgive me! Forgive me, my love! I was wrong! The things I said…and my behavior! I was distraught! I have missed you so very much and I have been so afraid for you! Sometimes I have trouble controlling myself because I am so passionate about you! Forgive me, I beg you! I cannot live without you. Please, let me see your beautiful face again. The light of your eyes shines more than angel's wings and your hair is more beautiful than the sun itself!"

By now, everyone in the longhouse had been roused by the shouting and raving of the man. Anna hid beneath her blankets, humiliated at Nikolai's public display. Her only condolence was that none could understand him but herself.

The Yutramaki came to the door and shouted at the man to be quiet. Then he called for Anna.

"Tell this man to restrain himself," he told her. "He is a nuisance."

She joined Nikolai outside the house and he fell upon her with kisses. She tried to disengage herself from him, but he cried all the more loudly and refused to let her go.

"Forgive me, my little Rose, forgive me!" he said, over and over again as if his chanting alone could earn his pardon.

"Nikolai, stop this. Everyone is watching," she hissed.

"Let them watch. I am not ashamed of my love for you. Come and run away with me," he told her. "I promise you; I will get us rescued from here and I will take you away from here and build you a fine house and I will be a wealthy man and give you everything you have ever wanted."

All Anna could do in answer was to let him weep onto her shoulder and vainly tell him to speak to her quieter. She could not escape the many eyes that watched them from the porches of the longhouses – some curious, some amused, some irritated. Yet there was one gaze that burned like coals in anger. Even when she closed her eyes, she could still read the accusation in that glare.

Rolling-Thunder had not yet forgiven her...and Nikolai was only making it worse.

Oooo

Notes:

Thanks for reading and reviewing!

In this chapter, I extensively quote from Timofei Tarakanov's account of this exchange as is relayed in The Wreck of the Sv. Nikolai, by Kenneth N. Owens and Alton S. Donnelly, Western Imprints, 1985.

Some accounts of the Bulygins say it is a "love story". Tarakanov's account repeatedly says how much Bulygin loves his wife and how distraught he is without her…but then he also recounts how Bulygin threatens to shoot her and says how much she owes him (those are usually signs of a healthy relationship, right?). I don't find that super romantic so I'm reading between the lines and giving a different explanation that works with my storyline. Was this a one-sided marriage or was she as distraught and "devoted" as her husband as Tarakanov said? Who knows? I am using the bare framework history gives us and playing with the rest.

Speaking of playing with details, I messed with the time frame a bit here with various trading of masters and slaves. It is not stated who Anna's master was at this point…or if Yutramaki ever was her master or simply just a benevolent friend. It is likely she was translating into Makah and not Quileute as well, but I changed that for this story (since I want to focus more on the Quileute context than Makah). After this, it is not sure how many times she changed hands or which tribes she stayed with or really much of anything that happened from here on out for her, so there is more space for creative license.

I think we have one chapter left of this era (I thought we would only have three chapters here. Then they grew.) and then we will jump forward to the 1850's.