Dances Naked (25 page)

Little Bear grinned at the vivacious girl, thought for a moment
,
then answered, “Yes, I’d love a cup of tea, that is, if it’s not too inconvenient.”

Jenny’s eyes darted back to me, confused at his words. I nodded, ‘yes, go ahead and make the tea,’ without spoken words then she darted away, Wren’s head bobbing over her shoulder. “Come on in unless you want to unload your mules first,” I said. “The men will be back in a bit. I, um, remarried. Ian kind of left me here. Well, hell,” I exclaimed as I stopped in the trek to the house and turned to face him, “he dumped me here. I mean, Jody and Sarah were, are, great
,
and it all turned out fine. I met Jody’s son, Wallace, and, well, one thing led to another and he and I wed a few weeks ago when these guys were six-weeks-old.”

“These are all yours?” he asked with eyes wide. I nodded yes in answer. “And Ian dumped you?” I nodded again.

Little Bear shook his head in amazement. “It’s easier for me to believe you had three beautiful, healthy babies at the same time than to believe that Ian woul
d be so stupid as to leave you—
leave you anywhere, even with family.”

I shrugged my shoulders; I didn’t want to say anything lest it come out mean or angry. I thought I was pretty much over the hurt but having to relate the story had opened up that old wound again. I guess I really didn’t need to explain it though. He had met Ian, they had spoken at length, and Little Bear probably knew about Ian’s revenge plans long ago.

Little Bear saw my reluctance to speak so changed the subject. “Just after you and, ahem, just after you left last winter, I met your Uncle Jody. Or is he your father-in-law?”

I gave a quick laugh and explained, “He’s both my father-in-law and brother-in-law, sort of. You see, Sarah, his wife, is my sister, sort of. We’re related but not by blood. It’s complicated so we just say we’re sisters.” There was no way I was going to let him know that Sarah and I were both time travelers born in the 20
th
century
and that my adult daughter and son-in-law were currently visiting his great-great ever so many times over uncle. It wasn’t pertinent to anything we would be discussing anyway.

Ж

Little Bear, Jenny, the babies
,
and I all spent the afternoon in the kitchen.
Jenny peeled the potatoes for the stew and baked another batch of cookies as I nursed all the babies and visited. Little Bear regaled us with his lessons on how to trap and skin a beaver and how dangerous they really were even if they looked innocent. An hour later
,
Jody and Sarah came back from town with as many goodies as they were able to barter for, followed by
Wallace
, back for the day from his wood cutting project.

“Weel, if it isna my messenger. How are ye, Little Bear?” Jody asked as he shared a hearty handshake. “Oh, Evie, I never did tell ye. I, um, met Little Bear jest before I met ye fer the first time. He told me about ye, that ye were with child. Although I dinna think that he ken ye were havin’ three at the same time.”

“No, definitely not,” Little Bear agreed with a smile.

There was an awkward moment there when no one spoke. It was obvious to me that we had all started thinking about that time nearly a year ago. If that’s when Jody had met Little Bear
,
then he knew that Ian and I had been with him only hours before. Shoot, there was probably more to that story and that’s why the men were suddenly tongue-tied. It would be better to ignore the subject than inquire about it. “So, have you got your trapping territory picked out yet? Or do you go back to the same place every year?” I asked, effectively changing the topic and mood of the conversation.

“Oh, I have a new area this year. I just decided to drop in and visit before I got too busy. I didn’t know that you’d be here but was pretty sure Jody would know where you were.”

“And you wanted to see her baby, huh?” Jenny popped in. “Only you thought there’d only be one. Boy, were you surprised!”

Wallace shot her a look, ‘B
e respectful, and don’t make fun of someone’s shock.’ Jenny sucked in her lips in embarrassment.
Wallace
saw that she felt bad; that hadn’t been his intent, so he opened up his arms
to
her, allowing her the opportunity to crawl into his lap. “Yes, I’ll bet you were surprised to see Evie with four children and a new husband. But
,
we’re
all doing fine. You’re welcome to stay as long as you’d like. I’m sure it gets cold and lonely out there.”

“Thank you for the offer. I think I’ll take you up on it, at least for the night. I’ll get a fresh start out in the morning.”

Ж

After dinner,
Wallace
walked with Little Bear to the barn. He could tell the man wanted to ask him something but was hesitant. “Is there something you need or want?” he asked.

“I see you have three milk goats here. I know an Indian family who could really use one. I’d like to trade for one if I could. I, I really don’t know what you need though. You seem to have everything a man could want,” Little Bear said as he looked around at his surroundings, hoping that his admiration for the man’s situation didn’t come across as jealousy.

“You’re right; I really can’t think of anything we need
,
so how
about if I just give her to you?
You said you were giving her to another family?”

Little Bear nodded. “Actually more than a family, they’re a small tribe. They have several small children and they’re just now recovering from a measles epidemic. I’m not sure how much food they have
,
but a milk goat would really help them out.”

“It’s a shame that what is just a childhood disease, a minor inconvenience for white people, has caused so many deaths for the Indians. Yes, I’d be more than happy to help them in my small, humble way. Take your pick of the nannies
,
and if I don’t see you before you leave, have a safe trip.”

Little Bear shook Wallace’s hand wholeheartedly. Evie’s husband knew that he would leave early in the morning, before anyone else was awake. Long farewells were uncomfortable for hermits like himself
;
Wallace must have realized it and had offered his guest the chance to say good-bye the night before departing.

Ж

  Little Bear was up and ready for the road when Jenny came running out of the house to see him. It was still dark and he thought everyone would still be asleep. “Would you take these to your friends with the children? There’s plenty for you, too. I just
thought that they might want some cookies. Is that okay?” Jenny asked hopefully, her eyes blinking back her early morning sleepiness.

“I’m sure they’ll all appreciate it. That was very thoughtful of you. Would you say good-bye to your family for me?” he asked, embarrassed that he had been caught leaving without bidding farewell to the generous and compassionate family.

“I will. And
,
I think I’ll be seeing you and your family again
,
but not for a few years. Be safe,” she said, sniffing back the tears. Hopefully
,
he would think her sadness was just because he was leaving. She couldn’t tell him that there would be more unhappiness for his friends before he had a family of his own. But
,
she could offer him cookies and good wishes to go with the goat that Daddy had given him.

Little Bear put the cookies in his daypack then grabbed the smallest of the milk goats and
,
as gracefully as he could, climbed onto his mule, balancing the terrified nanny across
his lap. He started his journey
then turned back and gave Jenny another wave good-bye. One of these days
,
maybe he’d have a daughter, too.

Jenny waved quickly then ran into the house to her parents and siblings
, glad that her Daddy was home—
safe and alive.

Asking Evie for her hand in marriage had been a far-fetched possibility. It was just that he had been so taken with
her when they met last winter. H
e couldn’t help but hope that she was now available. But
,
he really was glad she had a good family, a home, a real roof over her head
,
and even a dress to wear.
Wallace
seemed like a strong man, a gentle giant like his father, and he definitely cared for their children. Yes, it was time to go back to trapping and forget about a wife and family for a few more years.

Ж

A few hours later

“Well, my little lady, it looks lik
e a little udder relief is needed for you. Let’s see if I can still remember how to milk a goat.” Little Bear opened up his pack and pulled out his cooking pot. He let the nanny goat walk around, following behind her, holding her little rope leash, until she found a stand of grass that pleased her. He sat down next to her and hummed a tune. “Will Brahms’s Lullaby work for you?” he asked. He set the pan on the ground under her and continued his melody. He stroked her
hair
from her neck down her back, eventua
lly running his hands down her sides then under her belly. He stroked her udder then began milking her.
“Just like eating pudding.
I guess twenty years doesn’t make a difference. Once you’ve milked a goat, you never forget.”

Ж

Little Bear approached the l
ittle tribe; they were more of an extended family he realized, and saw the women preparing their evening meal. Or at least Prudence, that is Morning Star, was. Rachel was sitting a few feet away, nursing the little Indian baby. He wasn’t trying to sneak up on them
,
and the men probably already knew he was there and weren’t threatened by him
,
but it was the nanny goat that announced their arrival. All faces turned toward him so he waved, waiting until he was closer to speak.

“Where’d you get the goat?” Morning Star asked.

“My friends
,
the Pomeroys
,
gave her to me to give to you. I told Wallace about your, um, dilemma with the measles and he offered her to help feed you.”

“I know them!” Rachel crowed. “Did you see Sarah and Evie? How are they? Are the babies getting bigger? How’s Jenny?”

“Yes and yes and everyone’s fine
,
and I never saw the babies before
,
so I wouldn’t know if they’re bigger
,
but babies usually keep growing
,
so I guess they must be bigger.”

“Oh, fresh milk will be so nice,” Morning Star crooned.

“Oh, and Jenny sent these for you. She baked them herself. They’re oatmeal cookies.”

“Milk and cookies,” Morning Star said as she lifted the parcel to her face and sniffed, “life just keeps getting better and better.”

T

he men worked from porritch to potatoes, sunup to sundown, crafting their wood and wattle homes. The days blurred together for Marty. He tried to ignore the time passage
,
but his internal calendar plagued him like an emotional indigestion, popping in whenever he emptied his mind, churning his stomach and tightening his throat. Two weeks passed by, fifteen days, sixteen, another full moon, the second one since he’d been here; his only relief was the mental numbing of hard work.

Of course, the harder he worked, the more effort the other three men pu
t into the construction effort—
they couldn’t let a white man, an old white man, outpace them in trimming and notching the timbers.  But
,
the competition was friendly with everyone a winner: the houses were coming together quicker than Red Shirt had figured which meant that the trip to The Trees would be sooner. Marty even constructed an improvised pulley system to hoist the topmost timbers into place. He was humble about the design and even tried to give credit for it to the chief
,
but Red Shirt wouldn’t accept it. Instead
,
they all took turns employing it, none of them acting as the modern equipment foreman. Each man was able to perform all aspects of the construction and there were no egos involved.

The women had set up their own routine and were comfortable in each other’s presence, laughing as they did their chores. “You’re the little sister I never had,” Morning Star told Rachel.

“Well, you’re mo
re than the sister I never had—
you’re kind of like a mother, too,” Rachel replied. She gulped, suddenly afraid that she had insulted her new confidante. “I mean…” she stuttered.

“No, mother is fine. But
,
big sister is more how I feel with you or think a big sister would feel. I never had any siblings. I didn’t have a mother for very long either
,
so I don’t know how to act like one. It’s a whole new emotion, the way I feel toward you, Big Sister
,
and Baby Brother, but it all seems so natural.” Morning Star shifted Baby Brother over to her other shoulder and stirred the beans. “I hope instinct kicks in when I have a baby,” she added softly, blushing at the words of admission that she had been having sex.