Gordon brought Daisy into her room, and placed her on the bed. “Do you want me to remain until Mazy gets here?” he asked with empathy in his eyes.
“I think I am fine,” she murmured. “I just want to be left alone.”
“Davy should be punished for what he did to you. It was unthinkably cruel; a terrible way to welcome his sister home!”
“I don’t think he likes me,” Daisy sighed. “My father mentioned he was spoiled and rebellious, having been the only child all the time I was gone. I am sure he believes I am usurping his place.”
“It doesn’t matter. You are his sister, no matter what he thinks about the situation. He should show you some respect.”
Daisy shrugged. Talking Dog had not shown her any respect. Gray Wolf had refused to profess his love for her and seemed irritated with her before he left on the hunt. Merry Morning had made sure she would be taken from the village, so why did she expect anyone to have any true feeling for her? She had been fooling herself all these years, thinking she actually belonged with the Sioux. There was no place where she belonged, not in the Sioux village or in the house of her father.
“It doesn’t matter,” she mumbled. “Davy doesn’t have to respect me. To him I am just a heathen from an Indian village. I have never been his sister. I don’t think I wish to become his sister now, either.”
“I don’t blame you! He has been allowed to be spoiled and unmanageable, because the Mistress was so distraught about you getting lost. She never allowed him to be reprimanded for anything, trying to make him feel loved and protected from disappointment. Now the rest of us have to feel disappointed by him instead.” He gave a short chuckle.
Daisy shrugged. She really didn’t care about Davy or anything else. She just wanted to disappear, but there was no place to go. She would have to brave it, regardless of how she felt. She turned her head away, and Gordon took the hint and went to the door. He paused as he opened it.
“If you ever need my help, feel free to ask,” he said, and then left the room.
How a servant could help her, Daisy didn’t know. No one could help her now. Her virtue had been stolen, and her dignity abused. Her brother disliked her, her father seemed indifferent, and her mother didn’t quite know how to be a mother to her, probably believing she was more of a heathen than she was her lost daughter after all.
There was a tap on the door and Mazy came in, looking concerned. “Is there anything you wish me to do for you?” she asked, not quite knowing what was expected of her, since Daisy looked recovered, even though there was a distraught appearance in her features.
“I am fine,” Daisy murmured. “I just want to be alone, if you don’t mind.”
“If you need me, all you have to do is ring. There is a pull by your bed which rings a bell down in the servant’s hall. I could bring you some warm milk if you wish.”
Daisy shook her head as she glanced at the braided pull beside her bed. She didn’t know where the so called servant’s hall was or how pulling the rope could ring a bell there. Everything there was so new and strange to her, it almost frightened her. If she had more of Davy’s pranks to look forward to, she didn’t think she was going to enjoy being there. She shrugged, and Mazy turned and left the room.
Daisy blinked at her reflection looking back at her from the mirror of the dressing table, trying to erase the memory of her first day home, after being separated for so long from her parents. Had she known this was what she had to look forward to, she would never have agreed to return with her father.
As the thoughts washed over Daisy, she rose up from the little stool she sat on before the dressing table and then went to the bed collapsing onto it, trying to wish herself back to the Sioux village before Talking Dog ever touched her.
She wanted to go back to that day by the river when it was Gray Wolf touching her so tenderly. As she thought of it, tears overtook her. What was to become of her? How was she going to survive this new experience? Where are you now, Gray Wolf, she screamed inside.
Unexpectedly, she felt someone touching her cheek. She hadn’t heard anyone come into the room, so it alarmed her. She turned to see who it was, and took in her breath in astonishment. How did Gray Wolf get there?
“Gray Wolf?” she asked unbelievingly, but the moment she uttered his name, he vanished into thin air. It had been her imagination! She had wanted him to be with her so badly, that she had conjured him up in her mind. Only it seemed so real. She had actually felt his finger run across her cheek. She had looked deeply into his eyes, and he had returned the stare. His eyes looked sad, and a little astonished. She felt astonished too.
Abruptly, Daisy jumped up from the bed. She had to escape the confines of the house. She needed fresh air! She found herself racing down the stairs and out the backdoor. Then she was heading to the stable. She had to have something familiar to cling to. She knew Starfire and Lucky would be in the stable to greet her. When she opened the door of the stall, she threw her arms around Starfire’s neck, clinging desperately to her. Lucky was jumping and yapping around her feet. She could tell he missed her and wasn’t used to being left alone in a strange place. She knew exactly how he felt.
Without thinking, she scooped Lucky up in one arm and swung up onto Starfire’s back. It didn’t matter that she had no rein; Starfire was well trained and the pressure from Daisy’s legs would guide her. The blue taffeta dress billowed over Starfire’s back covering her rump. Daisy guided her out of the stable, and down the drive. When she reached the gate, there was no one to open it, so she leaned over and lifted the latch, letting Starfire pass through. She didn’t bother to close it, but continued on down the narrow road.
Daisy remembered seeing water in the distance when she had arrived in the wagon. Her father had explained that it was the ocean, which was located not too far from where he turned the wagon in the direction of the house. She recalled the sound of the crashing surf had been intriguing to her. Daisy had never seen an ocean before, and determined it would be a good place to go to find solitude and a place to escape the confines that this new life was starting to weave around her.
As she urged Starfire forward, people on the street turned and stared at her. They looked shocked to see a woman in a dress, riding a horse with no reins or saddle, clutching a puppy to her breast. Daisy ignored their stares. She didn’t care what they thought of her. She would never be accepted by these white people anyway, she was certain, so who cared if they believed she was wicked or wild?
The sound of the surf in the distance and a distinct smell she had never experienced before pulled her forward. The smell was calling to her. The splash of the waves beckoned to her. The closer she got, the more excited she became. She wanted to escape into the pleasure of it all, to become one with nature again, as Starfire galloped over the soft sand and into the surf.
There were very few people on the beach, but those who were there, looked astonished as Daisy dashed by them, throwing up sand behind her. Then she turned Starfire, galloping along the water’s edge, causing the water to spray up around them as the waves crashed in the distance and then traveled up the sand to meet Starfire’s hooves, pounding against the damp sand. The water created dark splotches on the material of her dress and sprayed in her and Lucky’s face.
The feeling of freedom consumed Daisy as she looked out over the ocean that stretched on into eternity, perhaps as far as the other-side-camp, she thought, as it merged into the horizon, becoming part of the sky. The fresh salt breeze filled her lungs, while her hair that Mazy had so patiently pinned to the top of her head, was starting to come loose to fly around her body and reach to her waist, creating a curtain over Lucky’s body. The wind whipped the long strands about her face, almost blinding her, but she didn’t care. She just wanted to run and run until Starfire could run no more.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Unexpectedly, Daisy became aware that another horse was running behind her. She looked over her shoulder to discover a young man mounted on a bl
ack stud, gaining on her. She couldn’t understand why he was chasing her. She knew he was not one of her father’s servants. At least she did not recognize him as such. Slowly he gained on her as Starfire began to tire, and came up abreast of her.
“Are you alright?” he called to her. “Is the horse running away with you? You have no reins or saddle!”
“I am perfectly fine,” Daisy called back. “My horse is not running away with me and I don’t need any reins or saddle. This is an Indian pony, trained by the Sioux.”
“My word, you are the missing girl! You are Mr. Radford’s daughter, aren’t you?”
“Does everyone know about me?” Daisy asked, feeling shocked that he knew who she was.
“A lot of people do. What have you got there?” He nodded at Lucky in her arms.
“It is my wolf pup. I call him lucky.
“And so you and Lucky just decided to take a ride in the surf, while dressed in a beautiful gown? No saddle, no bridle, and no one accompanying you?”
Daisy lowered her eyes. “I had to get away, I… It is not important,” she mumbled.
The horses were starting to slow, and the two began to walk their horses as he spoke. “Perhaps I should introduce myself,” he said, giving her a friendly smile. “I am Madison Kane. I work at the Radford Hotel. The whole staff knows that Mr. Radford went to collect his daughter from the Indians. Does your father know where you are? I can’t imagine him allowing you to dash off to the surf on your horse, dressed in that gown, with no saddle or bridle on your mount.”
Daisy appraised the young man, mounted on the black horse next to her. His light brown hair was ruffled by the salt breeze, and his hazel eyes had a spark in them that drew her to him. His smile was inviting and he looked harmless enough, so Daisy decided to trust him.
“I have escaped,” Daisy finally admitted. “In fact, I may return to my own people!”
“Your own people?”
“The Sioux, they are more my people than my family is,” she muttered.
“You can say that after what your father has gone through to hunt you down and then go collect you? You are acting rather ungrateful!”
“Well, you know little,” Daisy said with a huff.
“Is that actually a wolf?” he asked, changing the subject, seeing the pained expression on her face.
“Yes,” is all she replied, hugging Lucky tighter.
“How fascinating, a real wolf from the wild! He doesn’t bite, does he?”
“He’s only a pup,” she mumbled.
“As I mentioned, I work for your father as assistant manager, and you must be Daisy Radford.”
“Seems you know a lot about me,” Daisy shrugged.
“Not really. I merely know you got lost as a child and there was a reward out for anyone who could find you. Then not long ago, it was discovered the Indians had you, so your father left to get you back. Your mother had given up hope of ever finding you alive.”
“It must have been a sobering discovery to find that I was still alive,” Daisy shrugged.
There had only been that one moment when her mother first saw her that she had shown any real excitement that Daisy was with them again. She didn’t think her mother knew how to respond, now that she had her daughter back. All those years she had not been able to raise Daisy to her liking, and now she was discovering that her daughter kept a wolf and spoke with a Sioux accent. A couple of times, during lunch, she even lapsed into talking in the Sioux language, which probably unnerved her mother as well.
“I believe my family is having as much trouble adjusting to me being home, as I am from being brought here. I think I scare my mother, while my little brother hates me, and my father seems to have all these plans about me and my future husband taking over the Hotel. He is going to be disappointed when he discovers I shall never marry.”
“And why not?” Madison wanted to know.
“Because I am in love with a Sioux brave, I could never learn to love another,” she admitted.
Madison began to laugh. “You certainly are outspoken, aren’t you? Maybe you could learn to love another,” he suggested.
“Never! No sniveling white man could ever compare to Gray Wolf.”
“Gray Wolf, like your pup there, huh?”
“Yes, he gave the pup to me.”
“If you were so much in love with the Indian, why did you come back here with your father?”
“It was a choice I had to make because of circumstances beyond my control.”
When Madison saw the anguish in her eyes, he decided not to press for answers. Instead he smiled. “Well, you are here now, and regardless of how you feel, I must offer you my friendship, whether you believe me to be sniveling or not. Maybe I can help you learn to fit into your new life.”
“I don’t think I shall ever learn to do that. I can’t even read or write. I never went to school. I may look white to you, but inside, I am Sioux.”
“Well, that can be remedied. I can teach you to read and write, and no one will ever be the wiser.”
“You would do that?” Daisy asked, raising her eyebrows and reappraising him as hope started to grow.
“Of course, what are friends for? Why don’t we get down and walk, I am sure your pup is anxious to have his feet on the ground.”
“I think I would like that,” Daisy admitted, giving him a sideways glance, as she slipped off of Starfire’s back.
Daisy pulled her slippers off, so she could feel the sand on her feet, only she was wearing stockings. Before Madison realized it, Daisy was hitching up her skirt to pull the stockings off. His eyes widened and he started to laugh at her innocents.
“Here,” Daisy said, handing Madison her stockings and slippers. “Hold these.”
Madison continued to chuckle as he put the slippers and stockings in his riding jacket pocket.
“Oh, that feels so good!” Daisy exclaimed as she dug her toes into the damp sand. Lucky was digging madly in the sand trying to unearth a sand crab, and both Daisy and Madison laughed at him, as he started to pounce on his unsuspecting pray.
“So, Daisy,” Madison said as they started walking together. “You don’t have anything to worry about. I will help you get accustomed to your life here. Your father is very kind. I will let him know I have offered to become your tutor so you can learn to read and write. I am sure he will give me the time off to do so. He does want you to become interested in his business, and who better to teach you than his assistant manager?”
“I still won’t get married,” Daisy insisted. “Davy will just have to take over my father’s hotel.”
“You would let the brother that hates you take over? You are the oldest. You are the first in line. You will probably inherit the Hotel in the end. Perhaps you should rethink your refusal to marry. Davy is so spoiled. The reason he probably hates you is because he knows you will get the hotel instead of him. He would do anything to discourage you from liking it here. He probably wishes you will go back to your people, as you call them”
Daisy shrugged. “Perhaps you are right,” she said a little indifferently. “Only it doesn’t change my love for Gray Wolf.”
“Give it time. No telling what will happen in the future, but for now, we must let Davy know he is not going to get away with scaring you away. What did he do to make you take off like you did?”
“He…he…locked me in a horrid place called an outhouse,” Daisy said bitterly.
She was surprised when Madison burst out laughing.
“It was not funny!” Daisy cried.
“Yes, yes, I know,” Madison said trying to control his mirth. “I would have hated to be locked in such a place too. However, the very thought of it is rather amusing, I suppose from Davy’s point of view. After all, he is a child.”
“I didn’t even know what the stupid little building was used for!” Daisy informed him.
“Oh, I suppose you wouldn’t. I am sure you come from a culture that I would feel uncomfortable in if I was sudd
enly transported and forced to live there. I would know nothing about your customs, any more than you know anything about ours.”
“One of the servants let me out, and then when I was in my room, the strangest thing happened. I felt someone touch my cheek, and when I looked up, Gray Wolf was sitting beside me, touching my cheek, only he vanished the moment I called his name.”
“That is strange,” Madison mumbled. “Don’t worry, Daisy, you will learn to fit in here in the same way you learned to fit in there when you first got lost.”
“They call me Little Flower. I mean the Sioux do,” she told him.
“The name suits you, seeing as how Daisy is a flower as well. Would you rather I call you that?”
Daisy shook her head. “It wouldn’t seem right. People would wonder why you call me by that name. I just wanted to let you know.”
“I appreciate it, which makes me believe that you trust me.”
“You seem kind. You are the first person to actually take interest in me. My father never asked me anything about my capture or my life with the Indians. Davy only wants to tease me, and my mother is set on teaching me how to become a proper lady.”
“I suppose a proper lady would not be out riding her horse in the surf alone wearing a gown and holding a wolf in her lap” Madison laughed.
“I am not even sure what a proper lady is supposed to act like. I just have a feeling it is not something I would enjoy. And for your information, I hate this gown, and the awful corset I am expected to wear beneath it! I can barely breathe!”
Madison raised his eyebrows. “Sorry to hear that, Little Flower” he smiled.
“In fact, if I do not remove it, I may pass out! I already fainted once today. I would hate to do it a second time! Only Mazy put it on me and I can’t reach the ties. Could you just unfasten the back of my gown and unlace it for me?” she begged.
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