Only when the sun emerged on the distant horizon to illuminate the valley in a brilliant golden shine did he move his limbs. The effort was excruciating, as if a thousand knives cut into his legs, but it didn’t matter. His body was numb to all pain because the pain in his heart overshadowed all other feelings.
Gritting his teeth, Wo'itsa walked to the river to cleanse. The water did little to revive him. Unless Mukua returned, he was lost in this time forever. A small glimmer of hope remained. Would Naatoyita be able to find him in this unknown time? Did it matter? If his wife, the woman of his heart, was dead, he had nothing to live for? Not knowing if she was alive or dead would slowly kill him.
Understanding of Mukua’s grief and anger became clearer. The woman he loved had been taken away from him in the same manner Mukua had lost his wife. There was nothing he could do to bring her back. Naatoyita had been correct when he’d said that Mukua would stop at nothing to make sure that Kendra died. If Cameahwait was gone, as well, Wo'itsa was now the only child of the Sky People to remain.
Ravens took to the air when he returned to the ruins of Cameahwait’s home. Perhaps if he searched the rubble, he might find something that would tell him what had happened. He was halfway to the site of the cabin when movement along the river caught his eye. It came from the direction of the distant hills.
Wo'itsa tensed. It wasn’t an animal, but a person walking. Wo'itsa stood and waited. There was no need to take cover. It was only one man, but it wasn’t an elder. Disappointment washed over him. Whoever it was would probably not be of much help in finding the answers he sought.
The newcomer had seen him, for he stopped momentarily, then continued to approach. He raised his hand in greeting. Wo'itsa slowly returned the gesture. His eyes narrowed. There was something familiar about the man. He’d seen him before. Slowly, realization dawned. He’d seen him twice before, in fact.
“Greetings, friend.” Wo'itsa held out his hand. The other man smiled and clasped his wrist.
“I was not expecting to meet another hunter of the Tukudeka in this area,” the newcomer said. He glanced toward the ruins, looking around as if there might be others, then back at Wo'itsa with curious eyes. “We have not met before. Are you lost?”
Wo'itsa nearly laughed. Yes, he was lost. Lost in a time in which he didn’t belong, but he couldn’t reveal that to this man.
“What brings a lone hunter of the Tukudeka this way?” he asked, instead of giving an answer.
“I am on a journey. I seek answers from the Sky People, but I do not think they will reveal themselves to me.”
Wo'itsa studied the hunter, who matched him in stature and age. “Why do you seek answers from the Sky People?”
The other man shook his head. He threw his hands skyward as if in defeat.
“It is my brother. He refuses to follow the traditions of the Tukudeka as set forth by the Sky People.”
Wo'itsa cocked his head to the side. “What traditions?”
The hunter scoffed in exasperation. “His wife is near her time to give birth, yet he refuses to leave her side. I have repeatedly told him that he will anger the spirits, and that he must go on a hunt to bring gifts to our clan, but he will not hear it.”
Wo'itsa nodded, even as a sharp pain threatened to crush his heart. Hadn’t he had similar thoughts about remaining with Kendra at the birth of their future children? He would never know.
Perhaps he was brought to this time for a reason, after all. Even as his heart bled for the woman he had lost, he might be able to do some good for this man and his brother.
“What is your name?”
The hunter studied him. He hesitated. There was a question in his eyes, but he didn’t ask it aloud. Instead, he said, “I am called Patuhuyaa nuukwi.”
Wo'itsa nodded. He hadn’t been mistaken. This was the man he’d seen before. “Patuhuyaa nuukwi, your pleas to the Sky People are answered. I am here to give you the advice you seek and tell you that it is not always a bad thing to start new traditions. They will not be angry by the actions of your brother. Return to your clan and be happy for your brother that he can be with his wife when she gives birth.”
The man stared at him with a frown. Wo'itsa raised his bow for him to see, and the hunter’s eyes widened. Wo'itsa glanced at the weapon that had belonged to his father. No doubt the hunter would recognize it as exceptional, something that would belong to the Sky People.
“Return to your clan. Stand by your brother’s side and protect him and his new family. After all, it is you who brought White Wolf and his wife together.”
Chapter 30
Kendra hissed and sucked in a quick breath as the knife sliced through the buckskin of her shirt and grazed the side of her abdomen. She lost her balance and fell in the mud along the riverbank. The impact with the ground knocked the wind out of her, and she lay stunned and motionless for a few moments. Somewhere nearby, Wo'itsa was calling her name, then he shouted something at the elder.
Kendra raised her head, pushing off the ground with the palms of her hands. The effort sent a burning sensation through her side. The injury from Mukua couldn’t be that bad, could it? A new respect grew for her husband, who’d endured much worse when the grizzly had attacked him.
She struggled to her feet and caught a glimpse of Wo'itsa as he grabbed the elder by the shirt, nearly lifting the old man off the ground. In the next instant, both of them were gone.
Close by, Riley was yelling at her. “Kendra? Kendra, are you all right?”
A baby wailed in her ear. Kendra groaned and clenched her teeth as she clutched her side. Cameron made an appearance on the scene, running full-speed in their direction.
“Are you all right?” Cameron pulled his wife into an embrace, then took their crying son from her and held him close.
“Mukua was going to kill Zach, but Kendra put herself between him and us,” Riley choked. “If she hadn’t been here, Zach would be dead. I didn’t even see the elder until it was too late. He came out of nowhere.”
“And now that coward disappeared again. Wo'itsa must have grabbed him just as Mukua touched his vessel. Now they’re both gone.” Kendra caught her breath as she forced the words from her mouth.
A mixture of fear and anger triggered her heart to pound fiercely, causing most of her body to shake uncontrollably. She reached for the pouch around her neck, fumbling with trembling fingers to remove her own vessel from within.
“What are you doing?” The question came from Cameron.
Kendra glanced up at him, still trying to get the vessel out of the pouch. If only her hands would stop shaking, she might be able to remove the thing more easily.
“You’re injured, Kendra. Your shirt is torn and bloody. Let me take a look,” Riley chimed in. She’d stood close to her husband, leaning against him while he had his arm around her, but now reached out to Kendra.
Kendra stopped what she was doing to take a step back, preventing Riley from fussing over her. The color was still drained from Riley’s face, her eyes wide with fear. Her young son squirmed and cried in his father’s arms. Thankfully, the boy was unharmed.
For some reason, Kendra had turned to glance over her shoulder at the exact moment Mukua had stepped into the clearing and stood a short distance behind them. He’d raised his knife and aimed it at Zach Osborne. She’d done the only thing that had made sense in that split second and leapt in front of Riley and the baby to shield them from the knife.
Wo'itsa had appeared seconds later, and now he and Mukua were both gone.
“I’m going after him,” Kendra growled. “I’m going to take care of this problem with Mukua once and for all.”
Rage flowed through her veins and made the pulse throb at her temples. She once again reached into the pouch and finally succeeded in getting the snakehead out. A bony hand on her arm stopped her from touching the eye of the vessel. Kendra’s eyes shot to Naatoyita, who had come up beside her.
“The only way you will find Mukua is with his ow
n vessel. You won’t know for certain if your vessel will take you to him.”
“You said I can control this thing, that it will take me where I want to go.”
“You have not completely mastered control of the vessel, Natukendra’eh. It is foolish to try to go after Mukua. You will most likely travel somewhere else.”
Kendra squeezed her eyes shut momentarily. She swallowed back the lump in her throat.
“What about Wo'itsa? I need to find him and bring him back.”
“Wo'itsa can take care of himself,” Cameron chimed in. “But if you’re going after Mukua, I’m going with you.” Turning his gaze to Naatoyita, Cam added, “I agree with Kendra. Something needs to be done about Mukua. He nearly killed Riley and Zach.”
A haunted look came over Cam’s face. Most certainly, the thoughts that he’d nearly lost his child or wife and had failed to protect them from the elder, had him visibly shaken up.
“I know Wo'itsa can take care of himself,” Kendra blurted. “What if Mukua talks him into switching sides again? Wo'itsa wasn’t completely convinced that Mukua was wrong.”
They hadn’t really talked about Mukua since the day they’d encountered Danica Jensen and the family of Sheepeaters. Kendra had been satisfied when Wo'itsa had said he wanted to return to this time to give the lost vessel to Naatoyita, rather than seek Mukua. Despite the trust that had grown between them, a nagging doubt lingered that Wo'itsa might be swayed by Mukua’s lies.
“Mukua will not harm Wo'itsa, and Wo'itsa cares deeply for you, Natukendra’eh. He will not betray you, if that is your fear.”
Kendra stared at the perceptive old man. She pressed her lips together and nodded. Was she really worried that Wo'itsa’s loyalty would be stronger to Mukua than to her? Wo'itsa loved her. She silently scolded herself. If he could manage it, he’d take the vessel away from the elder and time travel back to her in an instant.
“What do you expect us to do?” Cam glared at the elder. “We should try and find them. Mukua isn’t going to give the vessel up voluntarily, and Wo'itsa is too honorable to harm that old man to get rid of him permanently.”
Kendra nodded. “Wo'itsa may be too honorable, but I have no problem taking Mukua’s vessel by force. Then we will have all of them, and they can be destroyed.”
Naatoyita shook his head. “Finding Mukua right now is too risky. It is better if he comes to you.”
Kendra’s eyes narrowed. “And how are we going to get him to do that?”
The elder hesitated. “There is something you must do, Natukendra’eh, to guarantee that the timeline follows its intended path.” He hesitated. “It is something I was going to ask, and I realize Mukua’s appearance and taking Wo'itsa away makes you reluctant to go, but I will accompany you. It might bring Mukua to us.”
Going on another mission was the furthest thing from her mind and really didn’t sound like the best option. Kendra frowned. There was no need to worry about Wo'itsa’s safety. He could easily defeat an old man, but Mukua had proved before that he was devious and cunning. He would try to get to Wo'itsa in other ways.
She glanced from Naatoyita to Riley, and then to Cam. Indecision gripped her. The elder’s gaze was focused on little Zach.
“Mukua has once again demonstrated that he is willing to break the sacred laws of the Sky People elders. You cannot protect your family while you remain here, Cameahwait. As long as Mukua is able to time travel, you are not safe.”
Cam’s forehead wrinkled. “And that’s why Kendra and I want to find him, before he can try again to kill my wife and son.”
The old man shook his head. “You must take your family far away from the sacred mountains, Cameahwait. You have never wanted to embrace the life of the Sky People. It is time for you to live a normal life with your wife and son, where Mukua will not be able to follow.”
Cam looked stunned, and so did Riley.
“You want me to take my family to the future to live there?”
Naatoyita shook his head. “As long as Mukua has his vessel, he could find you in another time, just as he found Matunaaga. The safest thing to do is remain in this time but go far away from here. Make a life somewhere else. There are many white settlements in the east. Raise your family among them. It is not something Mukua will expect you to do. If he were to look for you, he would do so in the future.”
Cam stood in silence. It was clear that he was wrestling with the idea of leaving.
“Natukendra’eh and Wo'itsa will carry on here in the sacred mountains,” the elder coaxed. “Your children will grow up not knowing anything about Sky People. That lack of knowledge will protect them.”
“We’ve never considered leaving. Do you think this is really something we should do, Cam?” Riley stared up at her husband. It was difficult to determine whether she was asking out of fear that he might not want to leave, or if she was asking because she wanted to stay.
Cam hesitated. He took Riley’s hand, glanced at Naatoyita, then focused his attention on his wife. “Not a day goes by that I don’t worry about you and our son.” He placed his other hand on her slightly swollen belly. “And our future children. We could be raided by a war party of Bakianee and I might not be able to protect you, or we could freeze in a particularly cold winter.” He visibly clenched his jaw. “Mukua nearly killed our son today.”
Riley shook her head. “There are dangers back east, too, during this time in history. Are you sure you want to give up this life, Cam?”
He nodded. “I’m sure. I don’t want to run like a coward, but I need to do what’s best for my family. I can give you a better life if we are among other people.”
Naatoyita nodded in approval. He pulled Kendra to the side. “You and I must go now to and make sure another important event along the timeline takes place, before Mukua can do something to change it.”
Kendra held up her vessel. Naatoyita shook his head and removed the other snakehead from his medicine pouch. “We will need this vessel.”
Kendra glanced at Cam and Riley, who were still talking in hushed tones about their plans for the future. She leaned toward Naatoyita.
“If they leave, how are their descendants going to help the sacred mountains? I thought Daniel Osborne was Zach’s child.”
Naatoyita smiled. “Zach Osborne will return to these mountains, but he will not know about his connection to the Sky People. As I have said, this is the best way. Zach will have two sons born to his wife. One son will grow up among the Tukudeka in this time. He will join with Matunaaga’s daughter to continue the family line. His twin will grow up in the future where he is destined to carry on the work of the Sky People.”
Kendra frowned. She shook her head. “I hope you know what you’re doing,” was all she said.
Naatoyita nodded. “Let me tend to your wounds, Natukendra’eh, and then we are needed somewhere in another time.”
“Where in the future are we?”
Kendra followed Naatoyita through the dark parking lot. Stars twinkled in the night sky, but they didn’t seem as bright as when they shimmered several hundred years in the past. She glanced at the ground. It should be asphalt, but the surface had a strange shine to it that almost looked like a sheet of ice.
“We are in the year 2035,” the elder finally answered.
Kendra’s eyes widened. Traveling to the past was one thing, but going twenty years further into the future from when she’d grown up was downright strange. It almost took her mind off Wo'itsa, and where he could possibly be at the moment. She fought back tears again, something she’d been struggling with since before they’d arrived in this new time.
After he’d inspected the wound Mukua had inflicted, Naatoyita had told her they’d be traveling to the future. He’d mixed together some kind of poultice that he’d given to Riley to apply. It had brought back memories of the time she’d awoken in Wo'itsa’s camp, thinking he’d taken her prisoner. The elder had left the cabin shortly after, only to return an hour later, while she’d paced the ro
om and almost used her vessel to try and find Wo'itsa.
“I don’t want to go on this mission with you, Naatoyita. I need to find my husband,” she’d said adamantly.
The elder had held out a pair of pants, a shirt, and one of her leather jackets, and he’d told her to change into them. Kendra hadn’t bothered to ask where he’d gotten them. He’d obviously done some time traveling while she was being bandaged up by Riley.
“Your husband is capable of taking care of himself. You must have more faith in the love Wo'itsa has for you.”
Kendra had gritted her teeth. She was still working on trust and faith. She raised her chin and finally gave in. The elder was right. She had to put her insecurities aside and trust Wo'itsa, but if he wasn’t back by the time she’d completed Naatoyita’s mission, it wouldn’t matter what the elder said. She’d go and find her Wolf.
Kendra stared at the strange ground again. If they were in the year 2035, it was entirely possible that many things had changed from what she knew.
“What are we doing here?” She finally raised her head and looked around. Beyond all the cars parked in the lot and the buildings in the distance, something looked oddly familiar. One of the signs on the buildings read Canyon General Store.
“We’re in Yellowstone in the future?”
Naatoyita kept walking, leading her past the parking lot and through the trees. He followed a path that led past barracks and other buildings that looked like housing units, until he finally stopped near a log structure. Still concealed behind some lodgepoles, he watched and waited.
Kendra rolled her eyes as she stood next to the elder. “If we’re on some kind of a stake out, it might be a good idea for you to clue me in on what we’re looking for.”
“We are waiting for someone.”
“I figured as much. Are you going to tell me who and why?”
Out of the darkness, laughter and voices grew louder. Seconds later, a group of people emerged, heading for the building in front of them. It looked like a group of young guys, maybe college age. Some looked obviously drunk.
Yellowstone Legends Page 33
