CHAPTER 35

Anoki releases her joy through giggles, a sound that is like a wind chime ringing in his ears. The high-pitched female tone entices his flesh and makes his heart beat like a drum. Without realizing it, her voice tempts him to turn and see more. "Are you testing my patience?"

"Maybe!"

Water wets her hair. She swims away from him and releases more joy.

No man can be expected keep his back turned on a naked woman. Surely this is a great crime! He grunts and clenches his fists as the passion in his heart sets his skin ablaze.

"Now I will turn around…" Anoki shouts, wiping water out of her cheerful eyes.

Before she can finish her sentence, he strips down to his loincloth. Her eyes widen. She gasps in a different way when she glimpses his curved buttocks and nude legs.

Kiowa extends his arms over his head, then dives into the water. His hair whips behind his head as he submerges in a splash and an explosion of air bubbles.

With a few powerful strokes he's already in the center of the pond. "This is paradise," Kiowa shouts, hearing his voice echo off the towering walls.

"Oh, you must be careful how loud you speak here," Anoki warns him.

"Why?" Kiowa wonders.

"Because the ancient woman who saw a god here and heard his name never died. She is so old her skin turned blue and her eyes went bad. She cannot catch game, so all she can eat is corn. If you call her, the last thing you will ever see is her old, evil, toothless face."

"Who is she?"

"She is the second daughter of the first Indians. She saw a god resting beneath the waterfall and singing a song about himself. When she heard his name, she called out to him. He was angry that a mortal had seen him, so he spread his eagle wings and flew away. He was so beautiful she wandered in and out of every cave searching for him. She called his name over and over again but never found him."

"What was her name?"

"I do not know her original name. But we call her Ayko. When you speak too loudly in sacred places, she repeats what she hears because she is trying to trick you into one of her caves. No one can resist repeating her words once they hear them. That's how she tricks you. She draws you nearer and nearer until she traps you and eats you alive."

Should I shout to the old evil woman that I love Anoki? Kiowa excites himself at the challenge. Do not be foolish. Use your fox thoughts. What if Ayko shouts something back that you do not want to hear? Anoki is right. For now I must watch what I say.

Rippling waves distort Anoki's naked frame. Kiowa catches himself staring, waiting for the ripples to stop, but they never do. Not so long as the falls pour water into the pool.

"It is always spring here," Anoki tells him. She flips her wet hair out of her face.

He laughs and takes a deep breath as he swims to the waterfall. Water slams against his head and forces him under the surface.

"Kiowa, be careful!"

"Kiowa, be careful!" Ayko calls out.

Anoki inhales sharply and covers her mouth.

He dives down, then pops back up behind the clear sheeting waterfall.

"Anoki! I think I am in love with you!" he shouts in his language as he leaps out of the white rushing falls.

Anoki gulps.

The old evil woman repeats Kiowa's words. "I love you! I love you! I love you!"

Oh no. It is true. She repeats words I cannot resist. "I LOVE YOU!"

"I love you! I love you! I love you!" Anoki's words echo.

Kiowa's body disappears beneath the water. Ha! I have tricked the gods.

Anoki laughs and cups her hands over her mouth. "Okay, that is enough!" She promises herself not to repeat Ayko's words. Best not to tempt her. Ugh…the sight of her face would kill me. She shudders at the thought.

When Kiowa surfaces, Anoki says, "Ayko heard you."

"Oh really? I forgot that you can speak my language. What did she say back?"

"I love you! I love you! I love you!" Anoki repeats in a low tone.

Her drenched black hair presses tightly against her smooth neck. She flips it back by arching her back and snapping her neck. The motion speeds up his heart and burns deep into his memory. Water droplets hang off her earlobes like diamond earrings.

He swims to her.

She pushes him away. "I will not be easily won with kind words and handsome looks. You have to prove your love to me in some worthy test."

The two laugh and play like children in the garden of Eden until the sun sets on their sparkling oasis.

When they exit the pool, Anoki demands the same honorable decency.

"Look away!" she orders him as she wipes herself down and slips her dress back on.

Uncle warned me she would test me. This test is not so hard. Anoki is a delicate flower. Not something to thrust my love into quickly and discard. Makes Trouble cannot be right. All women do not want a quick fix of love. Well, at least Anoki is not like any woman I have ever known. She is something special. Something sacred. She is to be cherished. Protected. Respected. Honored. Anoki, your voice is sweet as honey. Your lips soft as flowers. Your hair as fine as… His thoughts cease when he catches her looking at him.

Oh, how I want to touch him, she thinks. You are the only man I know who has captured the wild in your beautiful face and hair! Your fearless dark brown eyes flash kindness towards me, so I will be sure not to make an enemy of you. My heart would break if your eyes flared fiery hatred towards me.

Kiowa wasn't sure what made Anoki smile, but he was happy to see her do it.

To hold any part of him is to pet a wolf and play with a cougar at the same time, she thinks. I could stare at him all day with loving eyes that say, "I know you are as powerful as a grizzly bear, but with my heart, please, please be as gentle as a flower." Does he even know how fragile my heart is?

"Are you cold?" he asks when he sees her shivering.

She nods.

"I'll gather wood and build us a fire."

"I'll pick corn."

Both do their respective tasks quickly. The fire itself is lit by twisting a stick in his bowstring and thrusting his hands back and forth until an ember ignites in a bundle of dry grass.

"I have never seen a fire built this way. You are very good at that!" Anoki compliments him as she sets the ears of corn down and twists her hair into a tight ponytail. She clenches her fists and wrings the water out.

"How do you light a fire?"

"We preserve embers as much as we can. Then, if those go out, we strike two stones together over dry grass. The sparks make a good fire. But sometimes it can take all day."

She shakes her head and lets the damp wavy strands fall all around her bare shoulders.

Kiowa stares at her in a way that makes her think, Ha! Now you must be the one to wait.

When the sun dips down and quickly disappears, Anoki is nearly dry. The air cools. The sky dazzles them with stars. The caw of ravens returning home and the hoot of owls welcome night's arrival.

Anoki sets the husked corn down near the fire.

"Eat this while the corn cooks." She hands Kiowa a leather pouch of pemmican she prepared for herself and Walpi. Let us see if he appreciates Hopi meat. She smiles when he opens the bag and sees that it is meat. When he sets it down, her face shows disappointment.

"Is something wrong?" Kiowa asks.