Within a week or so, the composition of their days had fallen into a predictable rhythm, the cooking of meals becoming the domain of Cora, with the assistance of Alice, as Nathaniel and Chingachgook continued to make repairs to the roof of the cabin, laying out new support beams and painstakingly adding layer upon layer of wooden shingles. On occasion, Chingachgook left the work in the hands of Nathaniel and went off on his own to hunt for game, bringing back a few quail or a rabbit for all of them to eat.
There were also those times in the height of the afternoon, once the men had come down off the roof to enjoy an hour or two's relief from the sun, when Nathaniel and Cora quietly slipped away from the others and disappeared into the forest beyond. No one said anything about it, nor commented when they returned, always separately. Alice felt it was not her place to broach the subject, as Cora had not taken Alice into her confidence, which had often been the case between them, considering the variances in age and temperament that separated the two. She did worry that Cora might be forming too strong an attachment, which would only make it harder when they had to leave.
Sometimes Uncas too would be gone, his injury having healed enough that he could take short walks unaided, leaving Alice alone with Chingachgook, in whose company she always felt vaguely guilty, without ever quite being able to determine why. She tried for the most part to avoid him.
Alice's life had been made slightly brighter by the discovery within the cabin's small larder of some tins of tea and a jar of honey. She felt half-way civilized as she sat at the cabin's table, her hands warmed by a steaming pewter mug, the smell reminding her of rainy English afternoons, of straight-backed chairs and brocade tablecloths.
Late one morning, Cora found Alice sitting just so inside the cabin. They were, for the moment, alone, Nathaniel and Chingachgook having gone to a nearby stream in search of fish and Uncas strolling briefly in the open clearing beyond. She took the seat next to Alice, but kept her eyes down, not meeting her sister's gaze.
"May I speak with you?"
Alice made a little nod, her throat somehow very dry. Cora paused briefly, at that moment finally looking up at Alice.
"Nathaniel has asked me to marry him."
Alice's brow knotted. This was not what she had expected.
"And I've agreed."
Cora extended her hand and wrapped it around her sister's.
"Alice, I'm not going home. I'm going to stay here with him."
Alice pulled her hand back as if she had been slapped.
"You can stay with us, if you like. You don't have to go back alone."
Alice stood up suddenly, the harsh scrape of the bench against the wooden floor echoing in the air.
"Alice…" Cora said, almost pleadingly. But Alice had gone, rushing quickly out the door and tearing off across the open clearing.
She did not stop until she felt the reach of the trees surrounding her, until she felt completely hidden in their shadows.
She felt her breath catching in her throat, her lungs pumping but air somehow not reaching them. Leaning over, her hands placed on her thighs, she tried to breathe normally.
She felt so many things at once: anger, disappointment, sadness, and even a little embarrassment, as she considered how she had just behaved. Why was she such a child? She should be pleased for her sister, happy in her happiness, but instead all that was left in her heart was a gathering sense of betrayal. How could she choose this life, in this place, over their lives back in England? Was her attachment to this man so great that she would damage the bonds of sisterly affection? Alice knew she was being selfish, as she rubbed away tears from the edges of her eyes, but in this moment she didn't care. She wanted to go home and she wanted Cora with her. And now only one of those things was possible. As for the idea that Alice would stay here, certainly the very notion was preposterous. Was she to spend the rest of her life traipsing through the wilderness with them, Chingachgook forever eyeing her suspiciously, Uncas's disconcerting glances filling her with strange and uncomfortable thoughts?
She stood up, wiping her damp cheekbones with the back of her hand. She would be returning alone, then. It was a fairly terrifying prospect, but truly what choice did she have?