The Legend of Tyoga Weathersby (32 page)

At this, Sunlei’s strength vanished. she fell into his lap in a convulsion of near hysterical sobs. Unable to catch her breath, unable to speak, she wept until there were no more tears.

They stayed by the fire for a long time. Sunlie’s head was in his crossed legs, and he folded her in his arms.

After darkness had engulfed them, the sound of the evening gave way to the silence of the night.

She sat up and looked at him. “This may be the last that we see of each other for many days.”

“I will be back tomorrow morning with Walks Alone. We will say ‘goodbye’ then, my little one. But we will see each other again. Sooner than you think.”

Sunlei gazed out at the darkness of the night. “No, Ty, I do not think that we will see each other for many days,” she said with a halting voice. “Tyoga, I could not live knowing that you are alone. You must promise me that you will not live your life alone. If I thought that you were cold in the night with no one next to you to keep you warm, it would break my heart more than knowing that you have found someone else. Promise me that you will not live alone, because I …”

Tyoga stopped her, “No, Sunlei, I want to be with you. There will be no one else. I can’t live without you.”

She interrupted, “No, hear me.”

“I ain’t gonna listen, Sunlei—”

“Listen to me, Ty. You must listen.” She reached up to stroke his worried brow. “Just as you have been awakened to the promise, I have been awakened to the ways of a woman. There are things that I know, just because I know them to be true, even if I cannot explain them to you. We must live our lives and seek to find happiness and contentment wherever our destinies may lead us. You do not want to hear it, my love, but I must tell you. I do not think that we will see each other again for many moons. I love you with all of my heart, and I know that you love me. It is because of your love for me that you will want nothing more for me than the happiness that all women feel holding their children in their arms. Don’t you see, Tyoga? It is because of my love for you that I set you free.”

Tyoga’s strength was waning when he heard Sunlei speak these words. She was right. And he knew what she was asking of him. Despite his bravest attempts, he knew that he may not see her again for a long time—maybe never again. His eyes welled with tears. He turned away so that she would not see.

She reached up and gently touched his cheek. She turned his head so that their eyes met in an aching embrace.

A tear rolled down his face while he gathered the strength to speak. “Sunlei, the words that you speak may be true. I release you to find happiness in the arms of another, just as you have released me. But know this. If we are never to be together, I will wander through the rest of life as half a man. Without you by my side, I will never be all that I was meant to be. There will be a hole in my heart that no other can ever fill. It is the place where you belong. I will go on, and I will be brave and strong. I will blaze new trails across this land, and I will speak for my Indian brothers wherever and whenever they need my voice. You will hear the name Tyoga Weathersby spoken around the lodge fires from the Chesapeake to the Mississippi, but I want you to know that whatever you hear is only half of what the tale may have been if you had been by my side. I will love you forever and always.”

They looked into each other’s eyes for a long while before turning toward the fire once again.

Sunlei stood up. “When are you to meet Walks Alone?”

“We will meet at the ridge when the moon has set.”

“Then there is time.” She took him by the hand, and led him to the cabin door.

Chapter 36

Run!

S
unlei awoke shortly after midnight and reached for Tyoga who had been next to her when she had fallen asleep. She was alone. Recalling that Tyoga was on his way to meet Walks Alone, she sat up in bed to watch the shadows cast by the fire dance around the room.

The wetness that spilled from between her legs brought a contented smile to her face. She lay back down and clutched her hands over her heart. The gentle sounds of the night seemed to agree. This time had been different.

In the middle of the night, she arose to peer out through the shutters. It was very dark outside.

The moon has set.
She noticed that the fire outside had dwindled to a bed of hot coals.

Wrapping the red blanket around her shoulders, she walked quietly to the cabin door. Tyoga had stacked some dried pine and hickory on the porch. Tip-toing in her bare feet, she carried two logs to the fire pit and tossed them onto the white-hot coals. Standing quietly, she listened to the sounds of the night while waiting for the logs to ignite into billowing hot flames.

As soon as the flames lit up the darkness, she noticed the haunting eyes on the far side of the campsite piercing the blackness staringstraight at her. Gasping out loud, she brought her hand to her mouth before realizing it was Wahaya-Wacon that was standing watch over her.

Remembering Tyoga’s words, “You won’t be alone,” she dropped her shoulders and allowed herself to relax.

Walking to the far side of the fire, she squatted down and said, “Come, Wahaya-Wacon. Come to the warmth of the fire. It is okay. Come on.”

The wolf never took his eyes off of her. He dropped his head the slightest bit, looked first to his left and then to his right. He took one halting step toward Sunlei before searching the air with his nose. Satisfied that Tyoga’s scent was in the air, and that Sunlei was the only other human he could detect, he took two more steps in her direction.

E
very time Sunlei had been in the presence of the magnificent creature she was taken aback at his majesty and grandeur. He wasindeed an imposing figure, especially in the blackness of the night. He was astoundingly thick and large. His head easily came to her waist. The confidence in his stature radiated from his eyes with an eloquence that needed no words and demanded no homage. The honor was in its being.

That was enough.

Sunlei had only been alone with the wolf when he saved her life on the trail. That they had bonded so strongly while gazing into one another’s eyes in the concealment of the grotto was little comfort to her as she stood alone in the woods with the naked rawness of the massive predator but two steps away.

Wahaya-Wacon was the wildest of wild creatures and Sunlie knew instinctively that there was no “tame” in him save that which he granted of his own free will.

Summoning her courage, she crouched down so that his head was above hers, and extended her hand toward him.

He took a step closer.

Frightened, she reflexively pulled her hand back into her lap. He could curl up at her feet as easily as he could rip her apart. Reaching her hand out toward him again, Wahaya took two more steps toward her until his nose touched her hand. It felt as cold and wet as it had when it brushed the back of her neck as she knelt on the trail crying for him to return to her.

He sniffed her hand with more intent, and gently brushed the palm of her hand with his muzzle and lips. When he licked the tip of her fingers with this coarse pink tongue, Sunlei smiled at the noble gesture of acceptance.

When she stood up, the wolf did not back away. “Stay by the fire, Wahaya,” she said to his now gentle eyes as she walked back into the cabin.

He followed her to the threshold and watched her lie back down on the bed.

Lifting her head up from the pillow, she saw him circle thrice before lying down to face the blackness of the night. She pulled the soft red blanket up close under her chin, hugged her cool, down-filled pillow and fell into a deep, peaceful sleep.

She was safe.

Sunlei woke with a start just before sunrise.

The muffled sounds descending the ramparts that encircled the grotto were difficult to decipher. Men’s voices. Loud voices piercing the silence of the dawn. Branches breaking. Many feet pounded the leaf-covered forest floor.

Springing from the bed, she put on her tunic and moccasins and ran to the door. The wolf’s hind quarters were inside the door, and the hair between his blood-engorged shoulder muscles was standing on end. His ears were piqued, and his gaze was intently focused on the north rampart.

“What is it, Wahaya?” Sunlei asked. “What do you hear? Is it Tyoga?”

The wolf lowered his head, threw his ears back and crouched ever so slightly toward the ground. His growl was more menacing and sustained. His gaze never left the path leading into the hollow from the north. With a quick chirp-like bark, he bounded off in that direction and disappeared in the morning mist.

Stepping quickly back inside the cabin, she quietly closed the leather-hinged door and placed the bar across the jam. She closed one of the window shutters and left the other cracked open enough to peer in the direction that the wolf had gone.

She could hear the cries in the distance more clearly now. They were war cries mixed with voices, some of them giving commands others calling out, “This way. They went this way.” The loud voices were the Shawnee tongue. She heard other voices, too. Cherokee speaking Tsalagie. She was certain that she heard Tyoga’s voice, but she couldn’t make out what he was saying. The voices got louder and louder.

They were coming straight for the campsite.

Tyoga had said that there was only one way in and one way out of the hidden hollow, and that the entrance to the cave that led the way in was well concealed. When she thought that the voices were practically on top of her, she saw her cousin Walks Alone running toward the cabin with Tyoga behind him. Even though Walks Alone had been traveling through the night to meet Tyoga on the ridge, his powerful build gave no hint of fatigue. He, like Tyoga and Tes Qua, was a seasoned mountain traveler. Even though they were both covered in sweat and nearly out of breath, both men could have continued to run for their lives for as long as necessary. It was the urgency in their eyes that warned Sunlei that there was no time to lose.

Lifting the heavy oaken bar from the door jam, she threw the door open and ran toward the breathless men.

“Ty, Walks Alone, what is happening?” Sunlie quietly asked.

Tyoga put his finger to his lips, and turned toward the tiny opening to the cave. The distance of the passage tunnel muffled the sounds coming from the woods, but the Shawnee braves were thundering through the underbrush just beyond the cave’s opening. The three of them held their breath and stared intently at the portal until they heard their pursuers footsteps disappear into the morning shadows.

Tyoga grabbed Sunlei by the shoulders. “Go with Walks Alone, my little one. Don’t look back. Run!” He looked at Walks Alone with wild eyes that conveyed the urgency of his message and repeated, “Just run!”

He kissed Sunlei brusquely on the forehead and started back toward the cave; unwilling to surrender the final touch of his skin, Sunlie held tight to his hand as he moved away.

He paused at the tender tug for only a moment. Then, without turning around, allowed their intertwined fingers to slowly release in a final, silent kiss goodbye.

Walks Alone grabbed her by the arm. “Come, Sunlei. We must go.” When her feet would not obey, he jerked her arm and commanded. “Sunlei! Now!”

Walks Alone was pulling her away to lead her over the rampart to the south, but she kept her eyes riveted on Tyoga while he jogged away. With her arm still extended, her fingers alive with the sensation of their final touch, her lips formed the words, “Goodbye, my love.”

No one saw. No one heard. Only the promise registered the pain.

She turned toward Walks Alone, grabbed his hand, and ran as fast as she could.

Chapter 37

Destiny Designed

B
ending at the waist and protecting his head with his hand, Tyoga ducked and raced through the length of the dank, dark tunnel. Concealed in the cover of the underbrush that hid the mouth of the cave, he emerged into the woods.

Wild grape vines, dense clusters of thick, broad-leafed ferns, and thorny rose and berry bushes made the two-by-three foot opening virtually invisible. The Shawnee had run right by without noticing it.

The wolf was standing like a muscled statue waiting for him to arrive when Tyoga stepped out onto the path.

After exchanging a quick glance with him, Tyoga quickly turned his attention to the direction that the Shawnee had taken.

Looking anxiously into Tyoga’s eyes, Wahaya took several energetic prancing steps in that direction. He stopped short and circled back to indicate that Tyoga should follow him so that together they could put an end to their tormentors once and for all.

Tyoga understood. But instead of following, he got down on one knee. “Nah-ya, Wahaya. You can’t stay with me. You must go with Sunlie.”

The wolf stopped his anxious circling, sat down, and stared up at Tyoga. His expressive face conveyed an understanding of Tyoga’s words, but that their meaning remained a mystery was evident in his eyes. He was to follow after Sunlei and Walks Alone. He had no way of appreciating the importance of the task he was being assigned, but he would do this thing for the one who asked. Stepping gently up to Tyoga’s side, he touched his cool wet snout to his cheek and lightly tasted his saltly skin. It was the first time that they had shared such a moment of intimacy. But as Tyoga lifted his hand to place it upon Wahaya’s head, he lithely stepped back out of reach.

Stepping reluctantly toward the mouth of the cave, Wahaya turned a final time to gaze upon the one to whom he had given the miraculous gift.

“Take good care of Sunlie,” Tyoga commanded his mate. “Don’t let no harm come to her. I’m countin’ on you, Wahaya-Wacon.”

With that, Wahaya disappeared into the cave.

Unexpectedly, Tyoga felt himself well up with tears.

So much had happened over the last two days. He hadn’t slept. He had released the love of his life to keep her safe and free. He may wander the rest of his days as a hunted man by the South Fork Shawnee, and now he had ordered his spirit guide to leave him to protect the one he loved. Wiping his eyes, he took a deep breath, and took off at a run to catch up with the Shawnee.