Page 36

She said, in a whisper, "Much as I be likin' the scent of the pines and other trees in this forest, this be, yet, an unhappy land. Not only can a body not see what be hidin' on one's right or one's left, I cannot see farther than two meters ahead of us."

"It is true," he responded. "It…why we must be ever alert and listen for signs of…enemy."

"Oh?" she asked. "And, what signs be those?"

"Sound…of hooves on path," he answered. "Voices carrying on…

wind, children playing, barking of dogs, all this and more…

must be alert and watchful. But, must seek shelter if we see…

scattering of game fleeing from the gloom of timber.

All…are signs of people, and most mountain people… enemies of the Pikuni."

"Oh," she murmured and then fell quiet.

And then, as if the dreariness of the forest weren't bad enough, it began to rain and there was a gusting wind up high in the treetops.

It wasn't long before First Rider turned back around to her and said, "Find your courage.

Rain here means there snow up higher in mountains.

It block our way forward…also our way back.

We have only one choice: we must go forward very fast and climb over those mountains before snow comes. "

Liliann gasped, but nodded. However, even with a quickened pace it was impossible. The light rain quickly turned to a downpour, and in reaction to it, First Rider began to sing the coyote song, one meant to give a body courage. Recognizing it, Liliann sang it with him.

" Soka'pii, " he said. "We must soon find shelter. Come, follow me."

And Liliann, bringing up the hood of her capote to cover her head against the blast of rain, did exactly as First Rider had bid her to do.

****

This was no friendly autumn shower. It was hard rain and a lot of it, soaking her hair right through her capote's hood.

Even her clothing beneath the capote was soaked, and it had happened within minutes.

In truth, the forest literally creaked and cracked under the downpour.

In the distance, a dead tree fell to the ground with a roaring crash. Another pine tree soon followed.

Liliann shivered.

"We cannot make good shelter in woods," said First Rider. "Too dangerous. Trees might fall on shelter. We find cover in…place where falling trees…not harm us. We leave trail here. Go there! See?" He pointed. "Cliffs there!"

It seemed a long way from where they were to where they needed to go.

The cliffs First Rider had pointed to were part of a mountain range, requiring them to leave the trail and go through the dense underbrush of the forest. But, this underbrush did not simply cover the ground, some of the bushes and saplings were as tall as she.

They had no more than stepped into the scrub brush when several small trees and many of the bushes dumped water on them.

First Rider, of course, being first, garnered most of the damage, but even following after him, each time she reached out to clear a path for herself, she had no more than touched a tree branch or a bush when she was showered by the gathering water.

Indeed, by the time she and First Rider reached the face of the cliff, they both looked as though they had been battling a river… and the river had won.

Their ponies were faring no better, their hooves sinking into mud inches deep with each step.

Also, every bit of her own and First Rider's gear, including the blanket she was sitting on, was soaking wet and so cold to the touch, she shivered.

First Rider's gun, however, being encased within a buckskin sheath, might have been spared the effects of the deluge, allowing him to hunt for their evening's dinner, were hunting even possible in this kind of weather.

Stopping and dismounting, First Rider grabbed his rifle from its resting place on his pony and then signaled for Liliann to alight, also. As soon as she slid to the ground, First Rider let their animals loose at the foot of the cliff. She hadn't even seen the cliff. How could she have missed it?

He said, shouting to be heard over the rain, "We not secure ponies in any way; they better off on…own—will naturally seek shelter—but quick, bring…saddle blankets."

Liliann went into action, struggling against the wind and the blinding rain to untie the wet blankets from their mounts. They were soaked through and heavy; the work was hard, but at last it was done and she looked up to see First Rider creating a footpath up the cliff.

When she joined him in the climb, she faltered, unable to find a foothold with the rain beating down upon her, blinding her. But, when she looked up, she saw First Rider was bending down, lending her a hand, which he kept hold of during the entire climb.

Liliann's teeth were chattering by the time they climbed up onto a ledge of the cliff. Above them was a portion of the cliff that jutted out over this lower ledge upon which they were standing, covering it completely, and, because of this, the rain at last could no longer pound upon them.

Still, even without the rain seeping its way into every crevice of her capote and her dress, she stood on the ledge and trembled, barely able to speak because her teeth were shaking and clicking.

It was then when First Rider turned to her and said, "We survive.

Come close. We go to back of cliff. We see if it large enough for us.

Out of wind…rain, we are. We wet and cold, but can make camp here. "

She nodded. She was incapable of saying a single word.

"Come," he said, still holding her hand. "I take you…far back part of ledge. Then I go down, get flint and tinder and…dried meat. We make fire, dry…our blankets. Then we sleep."

Again, she nodded. It was all she could do.

Thankfully, First Rider wasn't gone long.

When he returned, he brought with him some sticks, and, settling them onto the rock floor in a far back corner of the ledge, he came back to the center of the ledge, setting some stones in a circle, and once done, he immediately set to making a fire, keeping it small and low.

Then, using a knife which he always wore around his waist, he made ten of the sticks into five tall shapes with a "V" shape at their upper ends.

Next, gathering several rocks from the ledge, he placed these around the sticks, holding them into place.

Finally, he hung both of their blankets on the sticks around the fire to dry them.

Their meal was little more than the dried meat he had salvaged from the parfleches upon their ponies. But, never had dried meat tasted so good.

And, when, at last, their blankets were dry, they both gathered them together and, pacing toward the very back of the ledge, they set one of the blankets on the rock surface, then taking up the other, they placed it around both their shoulders and sat down, whereupon they huddled together and soon they were both asleep.

****

When First Rider awakened, he felt refreshed, but why? Looking at the beautiful woman he held in his arms, he remembered now the warmth of her embrace all through the night. Looking out from the blanket covering them, however, he groaned and set his lips.

It was snowing. Snowing… Cold Maker had come to this side of the mountain early. Though he wished to snuggle in closer to his woman, he knew he mustn't. He, instead, carefully extracted himself from her embrace, and, pushing back the warm covering, crept to the front of the ledge.

The snow was now coming down so fast he could barely see the trees at the foot of this cliff. And, there on the ground, the snow looked to already be deep, perhaps up to his knees. He knew exactly what this meant.

Should he tell her?

No, not yet. For now, there was work to be done, and he best get to it before even more snow fell.

Their ponies would require either fresh grass or the bark of the cottonwoods to nourish them; they needed water and they required a kind of shelter from the snow.

In addition, all of his gear and his woman's gear had to be unloaded and a real shelter made for them both against the elements.

Stepping back toward Otahki, he came down onto his knees and said, "Cold Maker…brings early snow. Must find ponies. Must ensure they have food…water…shelter, too. Then…must put together better lodge for us."

"Early snow?" Otahki asked. And then, looking out over the ledge, First Rider saw her sleepy expression change from one of wonder to one of fear.

He said, "Take courage. Make fire if…can. I go find ponies."

"Thou is going to find ponies? In this? But, me own self can hardly see past the snow. Thou could become lost. Please, I beg thee. Stay here until the blizzard passes."

"Must see to ponies. If not back soon, you beat on rocks. Make noise. Will lead me back."

"But, please, I must come with thee."

He shook his head. And, before she could keep him here on the ledge, he came up to his feet, grabbed hold of his capote and, turning, climbed down the slope backward, one foothold after another.

At last his feet touched solid ground, but the depth of the snow was as he had feared. Indeed, it came up to his waist.

But it little mattered. He had to find his ponies, see to their needs and return to his woman. He was not afraid of an enemy finding his woman on the mountain's ledge. Not in this kind of weather.