Into the Wilderness (13 page)

* * *

As
tired as she was, when she finally had found refuge in her own room after the
party, Elizabeth found that sleep eluded her for a long time. There was so much
to consider that her thoughts collided and bumped together in a crazy quilt of
images and colors: Anna Hauptmann's broad arms and the moon over the forest;
the feel of Nathaniel's hands on her face and the shimmer of his daughter's smooth
golden skin in the candlelight; the smell of burning sugar and spiced rum; the
look on her father's face when Chingachgook had made his purpose known.

Uneasy,
Elizabeth turned from side to side. She did not know what worried her more: her
father's distant and uncommitted response to what had been a clearly presented
and—it seemed to her—logical request; the cold look on Nathaniel's face at her
father's lack of response; or the look Nathaniel had given her, as if to say:
"You see, this is what you must understand about your father."

Before
leaving England, Elizabeth had not thought much about the natives; generally
people thought that they had been quiet for so long that they were no longer a
threat, that they had become Christian and had settled into a new way of life.
Elizabeth realized she knew nothing about them, about how or where they lived,
now, or before the continent had been taken by the Europeans. She did not know
her father very well, but she could see that he was torn between his debt to
the Bonners and his terrible love of the land he had acquired with so much
trouble, land he prized so highly that he was willing to sell her in marriage
to keep it in his own family.

And
there was the matter of Nathaniel's family, his Indian family. His wife, a Mohawk.
She remembered Katherine Witherspoon's knowing look. She understood now that
Katherine had wanted to tell Elizabeth about Nathaniel's Indian wife, but was
unable to do so without seeming to gossip. To tell Elizabeth that Nathaniel had
married an Indian, that he had a daughter who was half Indian, this would be
equal to telling her that he was unsuitable as even a casual acquaintance. To a
white woman of good family, such as Elizabeth was. That was what Katherine
Witherspoon must believe, Elizabeth realized. That was what she herself would
have taken for granted just a week ago.

Elizabeth
found in herself a deep curiosity, not just about Nathaniel and his family, but
about how they had come to the place they found themselves now. He was like no
one she had ever known, his life to this point beyond her imagination, his
problems beyond her understanding. Elizabeth knew that she could not ask her
father for explanations, and that whatever she needed or wanted to know about
this new place, about the people here, and about her own future in it, she
would have to learn from Nathaniel. That this man, as strange as it must seem,
was her only ally here. That they could help each other: she would do what she
could to advance his cause with her father, and he would introduce her to this
new world.

She
shifted uneasily in her new, unfamiliar bed, and thought of kissing Nathaniel.

"Well,
some things remain constant," remarked Julian on Christmas afternoon as he
reclined full—length on the settee. "This may be the New World, but
holiday afternoons are as boring here as they are in the old one."

Curiosity
and her daughters had served a midday meal which had put them all to the test,
and now the Middletons and their guests were gathered around the fire. Elizabeth
had taken up her reading and was relieved to see Richard Todd do the same,
hoping that it would spare her the necessity of another pointed conversation
with him. Mr. Witherspoon and the judge were both drifting off to sleep, but
Julian and Katherine Witherspoon were clearly eager for some activity.

Elizabeth
looked up from her book to her brother's fidgeting.

"Don't
suggest a walk, sister," Julian said, anticipating her recommendation.
"My idea of entertainment doesn't include slogging around in two feet of
snow after three servings of venison."

"Then
maybe we should go down to the turkey shoot," suggested Richard Todd. He
put down his book and walked to the fireplace where he stood with his hands
behind his back, rocking on his heels.

"Oh,
yes, the turkey shoot!" cried Katherine. She smiled at Julian as if it had
been his suggestion. "It's a Christmas tradition, we must all go
along."

"Certainly
this is a working day like any other?" asked Elizabeth.

The
judge roused himself to join in the conversation, stifling a yawn. "Yes,
of course. But we have a lot of Dutch and Germans here, and they have
particular ideas about Christmas—"

Reverend
Witherspoon cleared his throat in a disapproving way, and the judge shrugged as
if to apologize for the less seemly habits of the villagers.

"The
turkey shoot is a popular event. People take the time," he concluded.

"You
must have three dozen birds in your coops, Father," said Julian.

"Why
would you want to go and pay for the privilege of shooting at somebody else's
turkey?"

"I
wouldn't," affirmed the judge, settling back down into his chair.
"But it is good sport. Go on now, all of you young people, and see how
Paradise amuses itself. Kitty and Richard will show you the way."

* * *

They
set out in just a few minutes: Julian, Richard Todd, Katherine, and Elizabeth.

"Men
come from all over to shoot," Katherine explained to Julian and Elizabeth.

"Billy
Kirby organizes it."

"At
substantial profit to himself," added Richard Todd. Katherine overheard
this comment. It struck Elizabeth once again that her indifference toward
Richard Todd was too studied, and too careful, to mean anything but the
opposite of what it seemed to be.

They
kept up a brisk pace so as to keep the cold from making too much headway, but
still Katherine would talk.

"I
wonder," she said to Julian, "if you should have brought out your
gun. Should you like to try your hand at the competition?"

"I'll
leave the shooting to the locals," said Julian shortly. Elizabeth observed
him closely, but saw that he meant to say no more on this matter.

"Don't
you care for hunting?" asked Katherine.

"On
the contrary," Julian said with a smile. "But the game which
interests me is a more civilized one."

Richard
Todd's grimace was lost on Katherine and Julian, but Elizabeth noted it with
dawning realization. She wondered whether Richard's distaste was for her
brother, or for Katherine's flirtation. In either case, she found it difficult
to listen any longer, and so Elizabeth stepped up her pace in hopes of
outstripping the others. Soon enough she had left Julian and Katherine behind,
but to her surprise Elizabeth found Richard Todd was unwilling to be shaken
off.

"I
think it is hard for young people who put high value on amusement and parties
to live so far out," Richard said with an awkward smile.

Elizabeth
looked up at him in surprise. Richard Todd was making excuses to her for
Katherine, and she could not fathom why. Unless, of course, he had some tender
feelings for her himself and her behavior distressed him. Elizabeth considered
for a moment.

"I
suppose that is true," she said. "It is a very small neighborhood,
isn't it, and there cannot be much variety in the entertainment. I find that
less of a burden. At home I was never so interested in the dances as I was in
my uncle's library. But my cousins would not know what to do with themselves
here."

Richard
nodded. "Young ladies often have expectations which cannot be met by our
little circle of friends."

"Well,"
said Elizabeth, feeling a little easier toward Richard now. "Young women
have the habit of growing into older ladies, and giving up dancing for
whist."

"But
some young ladies seem to enjoy dancing more than others," said Richard.
"Did you enjoy the party yesterday evening?"

"Yes,
it was very pleasant," replied Elizabeth. She wondered if she dared raise
the subject, and then decided that she might.

"What
did you think of Chingachgook's proposal to my father?"

Suddenly
the easy feeling between them was gone, and Elizabeth thought that Dr. Todd
would refuse to answer her. He cleared his throat.

"I
think it will come to nothing."

"You
fear it will come to nothing," asked Elizabeth, "or you hope it will
come to nothing?"

"It
is not an easy thing, what the old man asks," said Richard, slowly
searching for words."Peaceful times are precious in this part of the
world, and I would be foolish to wish them gone."

"Why
should a business transaction such as the one suggested last night mean the end
of peace?" asked Elizabeth. "It seems a likely solution to the
problem."

"No
one wants to sell their land to the natives," said Richard Todd. "And
the reasons for that are both so complicated and so simple that I cannot
explain."

"But
the lands once belonged to them, didn't they? Why shouldn't they buy them
back?"

"With
what? With what will they buy it back? Do you really think—" Richard Todd
stopped and made a visible effort to calm his voice. "Miss Elizabeth, do
you believe that they have the funds necessary to buy such a valuable tract of
land from your father?"

Elizabeth
considered for a moment, looking over the forests under their cloak of snow.
"Well, they may have at least part of what they were paid for the land in
the first place. How much were they paid?"

Dr.
Todd stopped, the corner of his mouth twitching. One eyebrow raised, he looked
like a schoolteacher who suspected a student of posing a question constructed
to show him up. "Are you really ignorant of the history of this
valley?"

They
had come to the top of a little rise and the village was spread out below them,
the lake covered with ice reflecting silvers and blues in the sunlight. The
mountains reached up like fists into the sky, their shoulders cloaked with
hardwood and conifers.

"Well,
I know it was once theirs," said Elizabeth. "And that we now have it.
I assume that was done lawfully, with appropriate compensation. But
perhaps," she said thoughtfully, "perhaps I assume too much."

"You
assume that they think and feel as you do," Richard said with a new edge
to his voice.

"I
assume that they think and feel as any human being must, who must live and
eat."

He
let out a small grunt, and Elizabeth realized that for all his careful
reasoning, Richard's stance on this matter was based on a simple dislike of the
natives. Although she sensed that if she were to confront him with this, he
would deny it.

The
conversation had slowed them down a bit and now Julian and Katherine caught up
just as they came around one last bend and found themselves confronted with
Paradise's annual turkey shoot.

Some
thirty men and just as many women and children had gathered in the late
afternoon. There were horses and dogs, and a great deal of talking and
laughter. The women were feeding a great bonfire, most of them wrapped in a
variety of shawls, with reddened noses and eyes watery with the cold.

Anna
Hauptmann, directing the attention to the bonfire, was also engaged in a number
of distinct conversations and called out cheerfully, more than willing to start
another one. Her children dashed by Elizabeth in pursuit of an outsized puppy.
Molly and Becca Kaes called to Katherine, and the younger girl set off in that
direction on Julian's arm. Elizabeth continued toward the shooting stand with
Richard Todd, stopping to greet the villagers as she went.

The
men were dressed in raggedy furs, buckskin, and homespun in shades of butternut
and brown. Their heads were covered with a variety of caps and hats, some of
ancient vintage, many trailing frayed tails of animals Elizabeth could not
identify. Young and old, chests were crisscrossed with leather straps
supporting powder horns, and small leather bags sagging with shot. Several of
them turned as Richard Todd approached with Elizabeth, and they called out
cheerful greetings. At the foot of the tree stump which served as the shooting
stand, Elizabeth saw Dan'l and Nathaniel Bonner. Nathaniel's long hair had been
gathered together with a rawhide string and hung down his back in a thick tail.
His head was uncovered and his ears were tinged red. Elizabeth realized that
she was staring, and she turned away.

It's a small village
, Elizabeth
said to herself sternly.
You will have to
learn to get along with others at close quarters. You cannot, you must not, act
like a smitten schoolgirl.
The sound of Katherine's laughter rose from the
crowd and Elizabeth focused on this, willing her heart to assume a more normal
rhythm.
Leave flirtation to Katherine,
she told herself.
Nathaniel Bonner will
speak to you, or he won't.

The
contestants were growing restless, and in response a man pushed his way through
the crowd and leapt up on top of the tree stump.