Cedar Woman (12 page)

can’t
d
o
t
h
is!”

The
bus
was
l
ate.
Sc
u
ff
i
ng
t
h
e
dirt
on
t
h
e
dusty
w
oo
d
en
p
o
r
c
h
o
f t
h
e
b
u
s
d
e
po
t
, Peter
tried
to
q
u
iet
h
i
s
j
an
g
ling
n
e
r
v
es.
What
wi
l
l
s
h
e
l
oo
k like?
Will
s
h
e
a
t
le
a
st
b
e
p
rese
n
ta
b
le?
Will s
h
e
b
e
o
f a
s
w
eet
na
ture,
o
r will
she
be
deceitful
like
Spider
Woman
?
¹²
h
e
w
o
nd
e
r
e
d
,
t
h
i
nk
i
n
g
o
f
t
he
La
k
o
ta leg
e
nd
of Sp
i
d
er a
n
d
h
is
d
e
vi
o
u
s,
con
n
i
v
i
n
g wif
e
.

Dress
e
d
i
n
a
denim jacket,
white
tee
s
h
irt
and
je
a
n
s
,
P
e
ter
was
a ha
n
d
s
o
m
e
m
an
of
t
h
e
L
a
kota Sio
u
x
t
r
i
b
e
.
A
p
pr
oxi
m
ately
5’
1
0
”,
sle
n
d
e
r, with
de
e
p b
ro
wn
e
y
es
a
nd f
l
ow
i
n
g
,
d
a
rk h
a
ir,
he
e
p
it
o
m
ized
t
h
e
r
o
m
antic fig
u
re
of
a
h
a
n
d
s
o
m
e, yo
u
n
g
,
Nati
v
e
A
m
e
r
i
c
an
m
ale.

Anxious, e
x
cite
d
,
filled
with tre
p
i
d
atio
n
,
Peter c
o
ntin
u
ally gla
n
ced
d
o
wn
t
h
e d
u
sty r
o
ad
as if t
h
e i
n
te
n
sity
o
f
h
i
s l
o
n
g
ing
w
ou
l
d ca
u
se t
h
e b
u
s to
m
ateria
l
ize.

¹²
Lakota
le
g
e
nd
o
f
Spider
Woman
and
C
o
y
o
te

R
e
m
ovi
n
g
his
black
c
ow
boy hat,
p
u
lling
his
r
e
d
ba
n
d
a
n
a
o
u
t
o
f
his right
hip
po
c
k
e
t,
and
m
opp
i
ng
his
b
r
ow,
Pet
e
r
he
a
v
ed
a he
a
v
y
sigh filled with
i
m
p
atie
n
ce.
It was
June
1
5
,
1
95
5
, a
n
d
at
least
to
Peter,
g
etting war
m
er
by t
h
e
m
inute.

S
t
artled
by
t
h
e s
ou
n
d
o
f
a l
o
ud
eng
i
ne,
he
glanc
e
d
d
o
w
n
t
h
e
r
o
ad
, and
s
potted
t
h
e
dust-
co
ver
e
d
bu
s
.
Fists
clench
e
d
in
n
e
r
vo
u
s
antici
p
ati
o
n, he
instinctive
l
y
stepped back
a
few
paces from the
edge of
the
splinter
e
d p
o
r
c
h,
an
d
t
oo
k
a de
e
p brea
t
h
.

Bra
k
es sq
u
eali
n
g,
t
h
e
b
u
s
s
l
o
wed
t
o
a
s
t
o
p
,
and
t
h
e
m
etal
d
o
o
r screech
e
d
op
e
n
.
Silhouett
e
d
in
a
r
ectangle
of
dim light
was
a
s
m
all, win
s
o
m
e
figu
r
e.
Peter
felt
his
heart
s
k
ip
a
beat
as
his
soul
recognized
its