Tanya had offered her a home. The two girls had been through thick and thin together and Tanya needed Missy now as much as Melissa needed her. They would weather it out together, come what may. At Melissa’s suggestion that perhaps Tanya’s parents or her aunt and uncle, at whose home they would be staying, would object, Tanya was firm.
“They’ll accept you and like it, or else,” she promised. “I dare any of them to try to turn you out, Melissa. You’ll always have a home with me, wherever I am. That I promise you.”
Midway into their travels, they passed the spot where the wagon train had camped the day the girls had disappeared. Disregarding what the others might think, Tanya stopped her horse in her tracks, then veered Wheat down toward the river. At the exact place where they had bathed, she stopped.
Jeffrey had followed her, telling his men to wait. Melissa, obviously disturbed by bad memories of this place, stayed with the troops.
For long moments, Tanya sat staring into the water, remembering that spring afternoon when her life had changed so drastically. A smile hovered over her lips as she recalled that she had been discussing her upcoming marriage to Jeffrey, when Panther had suddenly swooped down on her and carried her off on his horse. It was almost as if Fate had stepped in to snatch her from Jeffrey’s arms and place her in Panther’s. Thank goodness it had, or she might never have experienced the one true, passionate love of her life.
Hunter shifted position in front of her on the mare, and Tanya smoothed his silky black hair. How precious he was! Tanya pointed to a spot in the river, directing the youngster’s gaze.
“That is the exact spot where I first met your father,” she told him softly. “I was bathing in the river when he rode up out of nowhere, and took me away with him on Shadow’s back. I thought him very strong and proud and handsome, and he has said I reminded him of a golden-eyed cat, like Kit.”
Hunter pointed to his own eyes, so identical to his mother’s. “Yes,” she agreed, smiling, “you have eyes like Kit, too.”
Again she gazed at the river, and a feeling so strong came over her, that she could almost sense Panther’s presence beside her, but looking about, she saw no one but Jeffrey.
With a sad sigh, she murmured to her sons, “We must pray to the spirits to guide your father to us soon.”
Seeing the sadness on her face, and misunderstand- ing it, Jeffrey said softly, “Are the memories painful, Tanya?”
Wordlessly, she nodded, not caring if he misinterpreted. The memories of Panther were indeed painful, but not as Jeffrey thought. They were poignant, piercing her heart with an acute longing for Panther and their life together.
“Try not to think about them just now. Soon you will be home, and the memories will fade. We’ll all help you if you let us.”
Retracing her horse’s steps, she contemplated Jeffrey’s words. He and her family would probably do their best to make her forget, and if Panther could not come right away, she might fall prey to their sympathy and love, and grow used to the comforts of civilization again, if she were not careful. She knew she must guard against that happening. At all costs, she must not give up hope that Panther would find them, and if he took some time in doing so, she must keep his memory alive inside herself. She must help Hunter to remember his father, and tell even little Mark about him, though he could not understand a word. In doing so, she would hold Panther close to her heart and be comforted in his absence.
Chapter 14
THEY ARRIVED in Pueblo in the early afternoon of Christmas Day. Jeffrey dismissed his troops, and he and the women made their way directly to the Martin house. Wanting to surprise them, he had not sent word ahead.
The family was just sitting down to their Christmas dinner when the interruption came. The maid who answered the door didn’t know quite what to think of the bedraggled group standing there with Jeffrey, but she invited him in and told him she would get Mr. Martin.
It was then Kit nudged her way through the door. The poor woman’s eyes grew huge in her face, her mouth working desperately, but it was several seconds before any sound came out. When it finally did, her shrill shriek shook the rafters. She fainted dead away just as Tanya’s Uncle George entered the hallway.
George Martin took one incredulous look that encompassed them all. He barely had time to ask “What in the world is going on here?” The words were not out of his mouth before he was joined by Tanya’s father, whose reaction was much the same.
Zeroing in on Jeffrey, Edward Martin asked, “What on God’s green earth is all this about?”
Jeffrey hesitated, then blurted, “Mr. Martin, I’ve brought your daughter home for Christmas.”
By this time, the commotion had attracted the rest of the family. Sarah, Tanya’s mother, was standing just behind her husband when Jeffrey made his blunt announcement. She’d been staring dumbfounded at the cougar until his words brought her head up in surprise. Her gaze switched to the fur-wrapped woman with her hand on the cougar’s head.
A wisp of honey-colored hair peeking out of the hood, and large golden eyes were the only things to distinguish this woman from an Indian squaw. Across her sun-browned forehead was the strap that supported the bundle on her back, and she carried a raven-haired Indian child on her hip. Flanked by the big cat on one side and a smaller blond woman on the other, she stood silently, a remote, restrained figure.
“Oh, my God!” Sarah exclaimed faintly, clutching her husband’s arm as all the color drained from her face.
“Tanya?” Edward still could not quite fathom the fact that this woman was his daughter.
Tanya did not respond, and for several seconds no one said a word.
“Ahem,” Jeffrey cleared his throat. “Do you think we might continue this reunion someplace where the ladies might sit down? Tanya and Melissa have traveled a great distance in a short time so that we might arrive today, and Mrs. Martin looks about to faint.”
Tanya’s Aunt Elizabeth was the first to recover her wits. “Of course, let’s go into the parlor. George, you take their wraps, and I’ll see if I can revive Sally and get us some tea.”
Uncle George eyed Kit warily. “Uh, why don’t I let the lieutenant see to their coats. I’ll stoke up the fireplace in the parlor.” To Jeffrey he said, “Just toss their things across the banister for right now.”
The atmosphere was no less strained in the parlor. Julie, who also had yet to utter a word, sat gawking at Tanya, Kit, and the children in turn.
Tanya stood uncertainly, gazing in awe at her aunt’s lovely furnishings, unsure of whether to sit or stand. She was outwardly calm, but inside she was quivering with fear, uncertainty, and an intense desire to flee.
Treading softly, as if unwilling to shatter their long- held, fragile dream, Sarah patted the cushion next to herself on the divan. “Come, Tanya. Sit down next to me. Let me look at you.”
Tanya crossed the room, and perched uncomfortably on the edge of the cushion. Immediately, she stood again and spoke in Cheyenne to Melissa, who helped her remove the fur-wrapped cradleboard from her back.
Seated once more, she unwrapped the baby, and everyone stared in shock as she lifted the infant from his confining nest.
“Do you want me to take him?” Melissa offered. She spoke in English for the benefit of the others.
Tanya shook her head and smiled slightly for the first time. “No, he needs to eat.”
“What did she say, Melissa?” Sarah questioned. Then, as if she’d just recalled her manners, she said, “Oh! Melissa, I’m sorry. I haven’t said hello to you. It’s nice to see you again.”
“Hello, Mrs. Martin. It’s good to be back,” Melissa reponded.
“Why doesn’t she speak English and what is she doing with that — that animal?” Julie’s curiosity finally loosened her tongue.
“The cougar seems to be her pet, and she hasn’t spoken a word of English since I found her,” Jeffrey answered.
“Oh, dear!” Elizabeth murmured, setting the tea on a small table.
<
br /> “She’ll speak when she’s ready,” Melissa counseled.
At this point Tanya answered the question that had been uppermost in all their minds. Loosening the drawstring of her tunic, and crooning softly to the baby, she put Mark to her breast. From beneath her lowered lashes, Tanya noted each individual reaction.
Jeffrey, now used to this, merely turned away in disgust.
Sarah’s “Oh, dear Lord!” echoed loudly in the still room. Her hands flew to her breast as if to keep her heart from leaping out. Tears flooded her eyes as she stared at the dark head nestled against her daughter’s breast.
Aunt Elizabeth nearly dropped the teapot, and it rattled precariously on its tray. Her face registered a series of rapidly changing emotions; first shock, then pity, and finally resignation.
Edward also stared, his face first pale, then mottled, and finally beet red. For a moment Tanya feared he was having a heart attack. Finally he burst out, “Damn! Damn it all! Damn those red savages all to hell!” His clenched fist pounded into the other, emphasizing each distinct word.
Tanya’s head jerked up at this, and she clutched Mark to her defensively as Hunter edged even closer to her side.
“Now, Edward, calm down,” George advised, his face solemn and concerned. “It was too much to hope for. She’s been with them for two-and-a-half years.”
“Are they bothhers?” Edward choked out.
Jeffrey nodded, miserable. “I’m afraid so.”
“Does this mean the wedding is off?” Julie’s inane comment drew dumbfounded looks all around.
“I think we can discuss that later, Julie,” her mother advised weakly.
“No,” Jeffrey interceded, “I’ve already made it clear to her, and now I want to assure all of you that I will still want to marry Tanya.”
Tanya’s father leapt from his chair and started to pace angrily. “That’s good of you, son, but what about — what are you going to do with — damnit!” He could not admit that the two black-haired babies were his daughter’s.
Suddenly he stopped pacing and stood glaring down at the children and Tanya. “I won’t stand for it, I tell you!” he roared. “Give them away, send them back to the Indians, sell them to Mexican traders, turn them out to starve — anything! Just get rid of them! I won’t have some savage’s halfbreed bastards underfoot, a constant reminder of a time we’d all like to forget!”
“Edward!” Sarah was astounded at the extent of his anger. This was a side of her husband she rarely saw. Calm, capable Edward rarely raised his voice, let alone lost his temper.
Kit growled low in her throat ready to defend her mistress and her sons, and Edward backed off slightly, though his face was still set and angry.
Tanya’s face hardened and her eyes were narrow slits, but she said nothing. Silently, she put the baby back into his cradleboard and bundled him up. Readjusting her tunic, she picked up the baby in one arm and Hunter in the other and started to leave the room.
With a tired sigh, Melissa rose to follow her. “Well, folks,” she said, “It’s been nice visiting with you.”
“Whoa!” Jeffrey stepped into Tanya’s path. “Where do you think you are going?”
Tanya spoke one sharp word in Cheyenne.
“Home,” Melissa interpreted.
“Wait!” Sarah started toward Tanya. “Wait, darling, please! Try to understand the shock we’ve all had today. Until an hour ago, we didn’t even know whether or not you were still alive — and now this!”
“We’ll work it out, Tanya,” her Uncle George promised. “Come back and sit down. Your father is upset.”
“Your damned right I’m upset!” Edward shouted. “My daughter shows up after nearly three years looking like some Indian squaw, dragging two half-breed kids behind her, and I’m supposed to be calm?”
“Be quiet, Edward,” Elizabeth ordered, seeing Tanya scowl again at his words. She advanced toward Tanya, watching Kit cautiously. “You are home, Tanya, and what your father overlooked in his tirade is that this is myhome, not his. I reserve the right to say who goes and who stays. I say you stay; you and your children, and Melissa as well.”
As she came closer, Kit snarled. Elizabeth shot the cat an exasperated look. “As for thisthing,” she pointed to Kit, “if you can keep him in line, he can stay; but if he so much as looks like he wants to bite me, I’ll turn him into a hearthrug faster than you can blink!”
A reluctant smile tugged at Tanya’s lips. Her aunt reached out for the baby, waiting. At last Tanya nodded, and relinquished Mark into her arms.
“Good!” Elizabeth said decisively. “Now that’s straightened out, let’s get you settled in.” Turning to Julie, she said, “Go find that delinquent nephew of mine and tell him it’s past dinner time.” At Tanya’s questioning look she explained, “My youngest sister’s son, Jeremy, is living with us now. He’s a twelve-year-old scamp who’s never still a minute. Trouble is, he’s cute, and he knows it.”
“He’s a brat!” Julie grouched on her way out. “He and Tanya ought to get along famously!”
A look passed between Tanya and Melissa, and Melissa commented lamely, “Julie hasn’t changed much, has she?”
Elizabeth laughed and shook her head, “You can please some of the people some of the time, but Julie — rarely. Now let’s leave the problems for later and celebrate Christmas with joyful spirits and profound thanks for the safe return of these two girls,” she added solemnly.
“Amen,” came the chorused reply.
The next few weeks were an anxious period of adjustment through trial and error, on both sides. Through it all, Tanya had one devoted admirer; young Jeremy. He was truly enthralled with Tanya, and even more so with Kit.
The first opportunity he had to catch her alone, he asked, “Did you really live with the Indians?”
Tanya nodded.
“Are you an Indian now too?”
Again she agreed.
“That’s terrific!” he exclaimed, his eyes shining. “Oh, boy,” he sighed dreamily. “I sure wish I was one.” Then he brightened, “Well, we both have the same Aunt Elizabeth, so that’s something anyhow, huh? That sort of makes me related to an Indian I guess, doesn’t it?”
Tanya shrugged and grinned at him.
“You sure don’t talk much,” he commented, “but that’s alright. I don’t like yakkity girls. I like your cougar, though. What’s his name?”
Tanya surprised him with an answer. “Kit.”
“Can I pat him?”
The eagerness of Jeremy’s face won Tanya over. “Her,” she said in English. “Kit’s a female.”
“Can I?” he repeated.
Tanya called Kit to her. Then she told Jeremy to let Kit smell his hands. He sat down on the floor, his hands extended. Soon Kit was licking his hand, his arms, and his face; and boy and cougar were rolling on the floor, playing. Tanya and Kit had found a friend.
Before he left her that day, Jeremy promised solemnly, “I won’t tell anyone you remember English if you don’t want me to.”
“Not just yet,” Tanya agreed.
Jeremy thought about this for a moment, then with remarkable insight, he asked, “Is it because of this Lieutenant Young?”
“Mostly.”
Jeremy nodded. “I don’t trust him either.”
Not everyone was as tolerant as Jeremy, but Tanya did not make it easy for them. Unlike Melissa, who readily reverted to the white world, Tanya repeatedly dug her heels in. She refused to wear shoes or dresses, sticking adamantly to her doeskin clothing and moccasins. Though she sat in chairs and ate with the proper silverware, she would not sleep in a bed. Instead, she slept on a pallet of blankets on the floor. She still refused to speak English, and spent most of her time playing with her sons or gazing longingly out the window.
Edward and Jeffrey had spoken at length the day after Christmas, and Jeffrey had explained much of what he thought he knew about Tanya.
After Jeffrey had left, Edward talked with Melissa. “Lt. Youn
g says Tanya was married to one of their warriors,” he said. “This can’t be, can it? What I mean is, he just took her for his captive, didn’t he?” He looked so hopeful that Melissa actually started to feel sorry for him.
“No, Mr. Martin,” she said as gently as she could. “There was an actual ceremony, and she became his wife. In her eyes, and his, they are married.”
“This is preposterous!” he blustered. “Next you’ll be telling me she lovesthe savage!”
Melissa deliberately held her temper, knowing how hard this must be for him. “Tanya does love him, and her husband is not a savage. He is a Cheyenne Chieftain, and he is very fair and protective of those he cares for.”
“He’s an Indian!” Edward argued illogically.
“Yes, he is, but that does not matter to Tanya. He is also proud and strong and handsome. This is what your daughter sees.”
Edward’s face became mottled as he strove to control his anger. “Tanya is engaged to Jeffrey, and she’s lucky he’ll still have her. She’ll forget the Indian soon enough.”
Melissa could hold her tongue no longer. “I really don’t see how that is possible, Mr. Martin. Your daughter considers herself married to Panther. She has his sons. You delude yourself if you think Lt. Young stands a snowball’s chance in July of ever making Tanya forget Panther. How can a woman be engaged to or marry one man when she is already wed in fact and in her heart to another? Face it, Mr. Martin, don’t fight it, or you and your daughter will never have anything between you again but hate and distrust.”
“Say what you like, Tanya will get over this Indian,” he insisted.
Melissa shook her head at his obstinacy. “We’ll see.”
Another bone of contention between Tanya and her father were Tanya’s sons. Edward still thought it would be best if she’d give them up.
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