Grail Quest (20 page)

Less than ten yards away a broken tree had crashed to ground. Much closer and we would have been injured or worse. “Yes, lad. We’re lucky. We dodged a devil.”

We knelt and I more formally thanked God for our deliverance.

Our canoe was missing.
 
Everything we owned was in it.

Maybe the devil got us after all.

“The canoe! We’ve got to find it! Come on! Get up! Lets get going!”

All around, broken branches, uprooted trees, trees stripped of their leaves, a forlorn landscape surrounded us. The muddy Missouri was muddier than ever…and still roiling, carrying our canoe downstream? “Spread out, about three yards apart. Moyock, search midstream and the far shore. I’ll concentrate on middle river and near shore. Leahna, in case wind or waves carried it inshore, stay off to my left.”

Since it probably was turned over I hoped enough of it was floating to be seen. If we found it we’d have some idea where to look for its cargo, perhaps an impossible task. Without weapons other than our hunting knives and one hatchet, we faced a dire situation in this wilderness. Struggling along we proceeded about three-quarters of a mile before I called a halt. “I’ve don’t
 
think it could have floated this far. Spread out and wade back to search for any sign of cargo or canoe in the water.”

“Maybe if not see, we step on it, huh, Squire”

“That’s not as funny as you think, Moyock. The water is very muddy. We need to walk slow so we don’t step on anything that’ll hurt us. I’ll walk farthest out. You two stay closer to shore.”

Up to my hips in water slowed my progress. I let the other two press on a little faster.
 
When our original landing site came in view I was exhausted and discouraged. At least the rain and all the wading helped clean some of the mud off of us. I flopped down on a grassy hummock to rest. Moyock and Leahna set out to find something to eat.
 

She searched for edible plants and roots. Moyock gathered some branches to throw at any rabbits he saw.
 
After recovering my wind I searched for a limb that I could make into a spear. I was whittling a point onto a broken branch when I saw Moyock running toward me. “Squire, Squire, I found the canoe!”

“Huh? Where?”

“Back here. At the edge of that woods. The wind must have taken it.”

Our shouts alerted Leahna who came running from a marsh. Moyock led the way to his discovery. Somehow the keel of the canoe was smashed onto the trunk of a denuded tree.

From where we beached the canoe, the wind must have thrown it in a circular route to its destruction on the oak. Perched sideways the canoe was empty. Backtracking we found some of our things along its path. Most of the material items were sodden and dirty. Fortunately we came across our jerky supply. We chewed on strips of it while searching for weapons. We found my black powder canister nearby, and my flintlock covered in mud. When searching for the canoe we just missed the weapon. While I cleaned the gun, Moyock and Leahna looked for the pistol, any bows and arrows and our hatchets.

Darkness coming on I said, “Lets make camp. We’ll look around some more in the morning. Moyock see if you can find some fire wood. I’m going to build a shelter. Did you find anything to eat, Leahna?”

“Some leaves and roots. Berries, no way to carry. With skins I make bag. Bring back.”

“Don’t be very long. Light is soon gone.”

I knew she had very good vision in the dark, but we were in an unknown place. I didn’t want her straying too far.

Pushing over a rotten tree trunk Moyock dug out enough wood to start a fire. He soon had one going in front of a downed pine tree that I was converting to shelter. The rain stopped and a continuing strong wind blew away most of the clouds, but we were still soaking wet. We needed to dry off.
 
Twilight came and Leahna hadn’t returned. I felt very uneasy.

“I wonder where that girl has got to.”

“Not to worry. She too smart in woods to get lost.”

“Yeah, but we don’t know what else is out there.” As well as beasts, I worried about two-legged predators.

I walked to the edge of the clearing and facing the direction of the marsh hollered, “Leahna…Leahna. Come back. Come back in…don’t stay out any longer.”

We listened but didn’t hear any reply. “Maybe she can’t hear you.”

“That’s what I’m afraid of.” Around a marsh there could be sink holes. “Leahna…Leahna. If you can hear me, answer back.”

Nothing. Moyock added his voice. “Leahna, Leahna, where are you?”

No reply. Moyock’s face showed he was as worried as me. “I don’t like this. Build up the fire. I’m going to find her.”

Walking with my back to the fire I waited until my eyesight adjusted to the moonlight. Then I crossed an open field towards the marsh. At the edge of the swampy ground I hesitated and looked all around me. Rotting vegetation assailed my nose. “Leahna… Leahna, answer me.”
 
I couldn’t hear anything except the wind and croaking frogs. A beaver tail slapped water. Then I heard a large animal cough.
Oh My God! What was that?

“Leeahhhhnaaa! Leeaahhhhnaaa!

Then I heard her faint voice. “Squire…Oh Squire…Help me!”

Her panicked voice came from my right. Staying along the verge I ran toward her voice. “Leahna, keep talking!…Keep talking!…Where are you?…What is the matter?”

I heard her again…not talking…moaning! She shocked my soul. I dashed through the muck toward her voice. Then…I heard melodic whistling! My heart banged against my throat. I burst into a clearing.
 
My beloved crouched high in a tree! She clung to it’s trunk. Standing under her…a powerful Natural man! He
 
whistled a hypnotic melody. I jerked my knife from its sheath… flung myself on his back! “Coyote!”

Should have thrown my hatchet. Quick as a greased snake Coyote whirled. He dodged my thrust…grabbed my wrist… with his other hand reached for the knife. Coyote was strong enough to take away the knife. His torso was exposed. I slammed my knee into his groin. He squealed and doubled over. Desperately he clung to my wrist and knife. Coyote was still vulnerable… I kicked at his throat. He released me…fell over backwards.
 
I jumped on him. The witch changed to raven
 
He flew out from under my reach and away into the night.

Frustrated and angry, I tried to catch my breath. I gazed up at my trembling woman.
 
“He’s gone. You’re safe now. Come down, sweetheart.”
 

She climbed down and ran sobbing into my arms. “I so glad you come. He was going to put bone-thing in me, Squire.”
 
When she calmed down, I held my arm around her and started back to our camp. “I know why squaws not resist him. I held him off with
 
charm,” she fingered her crucifix, “long enough to climb away from him. Then he make magic power music. His music made me weaken. If you not come…I think I cannot help myself.”

So that is what her moaning was about. I will find a way to kill that slimy bastard.

Back at our camp we huddled around the fire to dry out. I held Leahna close to me. When she calmed down for a while I said, “Do you want to talk about what happened? How did he find you? Did he say anything?”

“Maybe he animal. Came up quiet while I pick berries. I hear noise. I jump up. See man with bone-thing ready. I see knick ear. I know Coyote. I hold up charm. I back up to tree. He say, ‘when you hear my magic music…that thing not help you.’ He walk toward me. I climb tree branches. I say, go away. I not want bone-thing.
 
He stop, hands on hips, he look up at me.”

Coyote say, “You make me mad. I help you to Mandan.
 
Make you my witch-mate there. You betray me. Be waischu’s mate.”

“I say, not want to be witch-mate. Too late for you. Go away.”

Coyote
 
say, “I gave much pleasure to you. Now I take my pleasure from you.”

“I say, No, you can not do. I stay in tree. My man come. Kill you with white magic.”

Coyote say, “Hah. I don’t fear your waischu. You come down when you hear my music.”

“Then he make mouth music. At first I don’t care. I know you come. Then music wrap around me. I feel like in blanket of music. Then music all inside me. I feel I want his bone-thing. I not want his bone-thing. Music make me feel I want his bone-thing. I say, No! No! I hold tight on tree. I not want to moan. Moans come out of me anyway. I very happy when you come. I sorry you not kill him.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t kill him too. I love you so much, Leahna. I’m glad I found you in time.”

What if he had seduced her with his magic? She was on the verge of succumbing to him. Since he failed he will be even more determined to have her. If he succeeded, how would I feel about that? I’ve got to protect her. Coyote Witch must have evil power of the devil. I really must find a way to kill him.

The next day opened bight and beautiful. We scoured the area for more of our things. We recovered a couple of bows and several arrows. The furs and material items we spread in the sun to dry in a field back away from the river. We failed to find my pistol. While Leahna and I continued to search, Moyock went hunting. After he returned, and we sat around eating rabbit and squirrel, I said, “We need to take a hard look at our situation and decide what to do.”

“Where we go, now Squire?”

“To find your people…and the Holy Grail, Leahna…along the river.”

Moyock said, “I think we walk, Squire. No fixing that smashed canoe.”

“Moyock right, Squire. Walking we can not carry everything. What we take? What we leave behind?”

“Well, we don’t know how far to the Mandan, so to make good time, we’ll travel light. The furs we took from the Sioux we’ll bundle up and cache. Once we get a canoe maybe we can come back for them.”

“What we take with.?”

“The weapons we have and the jerky. We can always get more game. We need to take the cooking pot, our blankets and the shelter. The only trade goods we have left are a little tobacco and the Sioux pipestones. I’ll carry them.”

“Let me carry some,” said Moyock. “If you’re going to trade them it’s best no one knows how many you have.”

A good idea. I kept five and gave him four. I abandoned the unwieldy Spanish helmet by jamming it between some branches of a cottonwood tree at the edge of the shore. “If we can come back for the cache, this helmet will help us find it.”

While Leahna prepared packs for each of us to carry, Moyock and I hoisted the cache of furs into a tree that was out of sight of the river. When all was ready we started walking north, but well off to the side of the river. “I don’t have to tell you two to be alert. We don’t know who or what is ahead of us. If we come across humans, we want to know so before they do.”

Breaking trail, Moyock led the way. Leahna walked in the middle. I brought up the rear. We stayed about thirty yards apart, never leaving the one in front out of sight. After making such good time in the canoe, our walking obviously reduced our pace. Where on water I estimated we made thirty to forty miles a day I reckoned we’d be lucky to make half that on foot. The ground was seldom flat. Keeping the river in sight we traveled over a gently rolling countryside often in deep grass. It might have been easier to walk along the shore, except we’d be very exposed to anyone living there, or out in canoes. From higher ground we could see
 
riverside tree lines, and so we skipped around some of the river’s meanders.

On the second day out, we looked down on a smaller river entering the Missouri from the East. Several teepees were strung along that river’s banks. We remained hidden while I studied the settlement with my spyglass. “I don’t see any one with blond hair, so I doubt we’ve found the Mandan. More likely Sioux or some other tribe. Take a look and tell me what you think.”

Moyock said, “No sign of a war party.”

Leahna surveyed the village and as far up the river as she could see. “Squaws washing in the river. Others working hides, some tend children. Have crops growing in open place. I think maybe every day time for them.”

“Can we go around…or should we visit them?”

The decision was taken out of our hands. We weren’t hidden as well as I thought. A young man coming over a hill to the side of us began shouting and pointing in our direction. From teepees in the village men bearing weapons appeared and scrambled toward us.

“Stand up, stand up. Act like we’re expected guests. Remember we’re powerful.”

Moyock in front, Leahna on my arm we strolled down toward the camp. At the edge of the clearing, on my signal we raised simultaneous peace signs. Then boldly we walked up to a center where men awaited us. Using signs and what Sioux words he knew, Moyock announced the arrival of a great White Chief called Squire.

The head man raised hand in peace. “You are strangers to us. You come in peace. You are our guests. We will smoke.”

He indicated a place in front of the largest teepee. When Moyock and I sat down, two women came to take Leahna with them. After a suitable smoky silence, Chief Akaska explained that his village was part of the larger Arikara tribe. Although taken aback by my apparent total whiteness and full beard, he was not surprised by Leahna’s red hair and Moyock’s light skin.
 
“We have seen many people of the See-pohs-ka-mah-ka-kee tribe. They are our friends.
 
Like us they are planters. They live north up the river from here.”