Finding Home (16 page)

“
They were a beautiful
swirling green and we watched them until the sun rose. Later that
morning, we found a small rock pool that was teaming with ocean
life that had been stranded by the receding tide. ”

“
That sounds interesting,”
Marissa said.

“
I was amazed by how
plentiful the food was, just swimming there in the pool, waiting to
be harvested,” Nat said. “I was surprised that no one had settled
close with the plentiful food supply,” she said.

“
I am sure someone will
settle close in the coming years, as the towns continue to swell,”
Marissa said. “I have heard that the winter storms on the coast can
be brutal, which may discourage settlers from moving
in.”

“
It was much cooler there
than here,” Nat said. “We were lucky when we found a nice cave to
take shelter in.” She looked at Gyp, lying between them. “We saw
some strange creatures in the ocean, didn’t we girl.”

“
How were they strange?”
Marissa asked.

“
They were huge fish like
creatures, but every few minutes they would come to the surface and
blow water out of their bodies through a hole on the top of her
head.”

“
Those are called whales,”
Marissa said. “The natives hunt them for their meat and for the
blubber that the animals store to help them maintain their warmth
in the frozen waters up north.”

“
In the back of the cave we
found paintings of the creatures and others I have never seen
before,” Nat said as she turned the shrimp in the pan. “There was
also a skeleton of one of those whales and I brought this back with
me,” Nat said as she pulled the tooth from inside her shirt. “This
was one of many inside the huge jaws of those creatures,” she
explained.

Marissa had never seen a whale, but had
heard many tales of the giant creatures. She took the tooth in her
hand and examined it closely. “You would think it would be sharp
and not flat like a human’s tooth,” she observed.

“
That is what I thought,
when I saw the size of the creatures,” Nat said. She took another
batch of shrimp out and dropped the last few in the seasoned
grease. “Why don’t we start with these while the last of them
cook?” she said.

Marissa followed Nat to the table and
watched as she cut several shrimp into bite sized pieces for Gyp
and placed them in her bowl. Then she took several of the shrimp
and placed them on her plate, cutting a bite for herself. She bit
into the crunchy morsel and smiled at Gyp. “These are much better
fried than roasted,” she said with a chuckle.

“
These are tasty,” Marissa
said, as she took a bite.

“
I roasted some over the
campfire last night and they were terrible,” Nat said.

“
Well, you didn’t have the
luxuries of home, so there wasn’t much else you could do, but roast
them,” Marissa said.

“
That is true, but the fish
I cooked was excellent, so we filled our bellies with that,” Nat
said, as she placed Gyp’s bowl on the floor.

“
She will eat anything you
do, won’t she?” Marissa asked.

“
So far, but I think I was
pressing my luck with those shrimp,” Nat said.

“
She seems to be doing just
fine with these,” Marissa said, as they watched Gyp eat.

Nat stood and walked to the fire to
turn the shrimp still cooking. She was very pleased with how well
they had turned out and Marissa seemed to be enjoying
them.

“
We have been invited to
town tomorrow night for clam chowder,” Nat said as she turned and
walked back to the table. “The old woman was surprise when I
brought her some of these shrimp and gave me the secret to cooking
them,” Nat admitted.

“
You did an excellent job
and I will look forward to the chowder. I have never had it, but I
have heard of it from travelers,” she said.

“
I think the next time I
journey to the ocean I will take Quincy with me,” Nat said. “I
could have taken a nice buck on the journey home, but would not
have been able to transport the carcass,” she said. “I bet some of
those fish would taste great smoked too.”

“
Maybe next time I will
travel with you,” Marissa said.

“
I would like that,” Nat
said with a warm smile. She walked to the fire and took the
remainder of the shrimp from the grease and placed the pan on the
hearth to cool.

She and Marissa ate their fill and then
Nat cut up the remaining shrimp and dropped them into Gyp’s bowl.
Gyp stood and ate the rest of the food and then let out a soft
burp.

Marissa and Nat laughed at the dog as
she cocked her head to the side.

“
My feelings exactly,” Nat
said as she patted her full stomach.

Marissa cleaned the dishes while Nat
took the frying pan outside and poured the grease over the wood in
the fire pit. Unlike bacon grease, that she saved to season other
foods, the grease from the shrimp smelled too pungent and Nat
doubted it would be good for seasoning. She then took the pan to
the well and rinsed it thoroughly.

Marissa was wiping down the table when
Nat returned inside the house. “It is a bit cool, but it’s
beautiful out tonight,” she said. “Would you like to sit outside
with me for a while?”

“
Just let me get my jacket,”
Marissa said.

Nat and Marissa sat on the front porch
steps and looked up into the beautiful night sky. Nat wrapped her
arm around Marissa and held her close, sharing her warmth with her.
She pointed out the different constellations and told Marissa the
stories her father had shared with her as a child.

“
You really miss living
outdoors, don’t you?” Marissa asked.

“
It is so beautiful, but I
have to admit after sleeping in a bed, the ground was a lot less
comfortable.” Nat followed up her statement with a long
yawn.

“
Comfortable maybe, but
lonesome without you,” Marissa said.

“
So you missed me
too?”

“
You could say that,”
Marissa said.

Nat felt her shiver beneath her arm.
“Why don’t we go warm that bed up,” she said.

“
That is fine with me,”
Marissa said as she stood and took Nat’s hand.

“
Let’s go Gyp,” Nat said and
Gyp came bounding up the steps racing for the door. “Are we set for
firewood in the bedroom?”

“
Yes, I stocked up before I
left this morning.”

Nat blew out the lantern in the kitchen
and then followed Marissa into the bedroom. She placed several
pieces of wood on the fire and then began to undress. Marissa
offered her a night shirt, but Nat shook her head. “Tonight I want
to feel your skin next to mine.”

Marissa stripped down and climbed
between the sheets, while she waited for Nat.

Nat joined her in the bed and pressed
her body close to Marissa. “I missed you so much.”

“
I missed you too,” Marissa
said.

“
Will you roll over onto
your side and let me hold you tonight?” Nat asked.

Marissa was disappointed that Nat was
ready for sleep but understood her weariness from traveling. “Of
course I will,” she said, as she turned her back to Nat.

Nat snuggled in close and placed her
hand between Marissa’s warm breasts. She fell asleep breathing in
the fragrance of Marissa’s skin.

PART ELEVEN

When Nat woke the next morning, she
found Marissa’s head lying on her shoulder as her fingers toyed
with the bear claw around her neck. When she realized Nat was awake
she looked into her lover’s eyes and said, “Tell me about your
father.”

“
Nathan and Nanya were my
parents,” Nat started. “My mother was full blooded Mohican and died
many years ago from influenza, so Nathan pretty much raised me on
his own.”

“
Have you spent all of your
life in the woods?” Marissa asked.

“
With the exception of a few
months each year when we would take shelter for the winter months,”
Nat said. “Before the war broke out, we would winter with my
mother’s tribe. Once the war started Nathan felt it would be best
if we traveled west. ”

“
You have never had any
formal education, yet you read and write?” Marissa said.

“
Father was a well-educated
man and at night he would teach me reading, writing, math and
history.” Nat smiled with the memory of her father. “During the day
he taught me everything he knew about tracking, trapping and
harvesting the valuable furs that were so plentiful along the
border with Canada.”

Nat fell silent for a few minutes as
sadness seemed to hang around her like a mist. “I don’t have many
memories of Nanya,” Nat said somewhat saddened. “I do remember
though, how beautiful she was and how my father looked at
her.”

“
How was that?” Marissa
asked.

Nat smiled. “The way you are looking at
me now,” she said, “With love and adoration.”

Marissa blushed at Nat’s words. “I
understand the way he must have felt about your mother.”

Nat rolled onto her side, facing
Marissa as her eyes searched Marissa’s face. Her fingers caressed
her cheek. “I love you too,” Nat whispered before kissing Marissa’s
lips.

They spent the morning making love
under the warm covers oblivious to the falling snow that was
blanketing their world. When they finally crept from the bed, Gyp
raced to the front door, ready to go out to relieve her bladder.
Nat opened the door and sighed. “Would you look at this?” she
said.

Marissa walked to her side and looked
out the door at the yard covered in at least six inches of snow.
“Isn’t it beautiful?”

“
Very much so,” Nat said as
they watched Gyp romp playfully in the snow. “I think Gyp likes it
too,” she said with a chuckle.

“
Don’t forget we are
supposed to go into town for clam chowder tonight,” Marissa
said.

“
I am looking forward to
it,” Nat said. “I think I have worked up an appetite this morning,”
she said with a grin.

“
There should be some
leftover bacon and biscuits if you would like a light meal. I can
cook you some eggs too,” Marissa said.

“
You have my mouth
watering.”

“
Scrambled or fried?”
Marissa asked.

“
Fried, so I can dip my
biscuits,” Nat said.

“
Then we will take a bath to
be fresh when we go into town,” Marissa said.

“
You don’t like the smell of
the wild on me?” Nat teased.

“
It is not as appealing as
your fresh and clean smell after a bath,” Marissa said.

“
I guess I better go light
the fire on the wash pot then,” Nat said.

“
There is already cold water
in the tub, so at least we won’t have to carry more in,” Marissa
said. “Three eggs for you and two for Gyp?” she asked.

“
That should be plenty,” Nat
said. She moved off the porch and took several pieces of dry wood
and used dry grass to stoke the fire and watched as flames began to
lick up the side of the wash pot.

Nat scooped up a handful of snow and
formed it in a snow ball and took aim on an unsuspecting Gyp. She
hurled the mass at Gyp and struck her in the hind quarter. Gyp let
out a sharp yelp of surprise and turned to look at Nat. Nat laughed
as she shouted at Gyp. “Caught you sleeping, didn’t I?”

Nat was still chuckling and shaking her
head as she started for the porch. Gyp ran up behind her and caught
Nat by the ankle, causing her to trip and lose her balance, falling
none too gracefully on her butt in the cold snow. Gyp looked at Nat
and made a dash for the house. Nat saw her run toward the house and
roared with laughter.

Marissa turned just as Nat entered the
house, still wiping snow from her backside. “What are you two up
to?”

“
Just playing,” Nat
said.

“
Gyp ran into the house like
her feet were on fire,” Marissa said.

“
She ran in for protection,”
Nat said with a chuckle.

“
Were you picking on her?”
Marissa asked.