Enchanted Ecstasy

by Constance O'Banyon

  "Wars are so useless, Mangas. Sometimes after they are over, no one knows what they were all about."

  "Someday the Jojoba will either have to fight the white man or leave this land. If we do choose to fight we will know what it is about. It will be to remain free."

  "I hope it never comes to a fight. I would hate to see you lose. You cannot win against them, Mangas, they are too many."

  "I have heard what the white men do to the tribes they defeat. The men are asked to cut their hair, and plant corn like a woman. Then they want them to forsake their way of life and live like the white man. I do not want this for my people."

  "Nor do I, Mangas."

  He stood up, and offering her his hand pulled her to her feet. "In the time of your grandfather life was good. Then came the white man, and with him he brought change and destruction. The buffalo have diminished in number, and the Indian goes hungry."

  "I wish there was an easy answer, but I fear there is not. What do you think you will do?"

  He smiled. "Would you like me to cut my hair and plant corn like a woman?"

  "No, I would never want that, nor would I want to see the Jojoba be under the white man's thumb. I think my father will look after the Jojoba. He is a man of great influence in New Mexico. He would never stand idly by while the government pushed my mother's people aside."

  "Your father cannot live forever, Little Flower."

  "No, that is true, but when he is gone I will watch after my people, and then when I am gone, the child I carry will do the same."

  Mangas pushed a dark strand of hair from Maleaha's face. "Perhaps in you, little princess, lies the salvation of the Jojoba people."

  She touched his hand. "I pray it is so, Mangas."

  "I think you have been too long in the cold, Maleaha. You should return to your aunt." He avoided looking into her eyes, and Maleaha knew he wanted her to leave.

  "Don't love me, Mangas. I do not want to hurt you."

  He looked at her for just a moment and she could read the sadness in his eyes. "Go now, the sun is setting, and with that come the cold winds."

  She turned away, knowing she had hurt him once more and wishing it didn't have to be so.

  As winter advanced it brought with it the heavy snows and cold winds blowing out of the north. The countryside was covered with a blanket of white. There was smoke coming from the many teepees and Maleaha spent most of her time inside her aunt's teepee. The Jojoba had moved twice since she had come to stay with them, always following the game in their never-ending quest for food.

  It was late March and the winter had been cold and the snowfall unusually heavy, because they were at such a high elevation. Mangas had chosen a site deep inside the forest that afforded them some protection from the wind. Most of the younger men had ridden off two days before to find fresh game, and Maleaha knew they would not return until they found sufficient meat.

  Maleaha placed her moccasined foot lightly on the slick ice-covered ground, fearing she might fall in her advanced, clumsy state of pregnancy.

  She heard the sound of riders and knew the hunting party was returning. She saw Mangas dismount and he led his horse over to her with a smile on his face. They had not spoken to each other since the day in front of his teepee.

  "You should not be out in such weather, Maleaha. It would not be well should you fall and injure the child you carry."

  "You are beginning to sound like Aunt Kosha," she told him. He put his arm out for her to lean on, and she allowed him to lead her to her aunt's teepee.

  "Are you feeling well?" he inquired.

  "Yes, my health is very good."

  Mangas seemed uneasy about something as he stopped in front of her aunt's abode, and Maleaha knew he had something on his mind. His dark eyes rested for a moment on the swell of her stomach, then he looked into her green eyes.

  "Maleaha, I would not mind if you wanted to stay with us permanently."

  "I do not know what the future holds for me, Man-gas. I suppose I am just waiting for my father to return."

  "Let us speak of Kane. Do you love him?"

  "Yes," she whispered avoiding his eyes, knowing what it had cost him to ask about her love for Kane. "I did not want to love him, but I could not help myself."

  "Maleaha, love is not a choice one gets to make. It is something that happens whether you welcome it or not."

  Maleaha nodded in agreement.

  "I know it is not long until the child comes. If you will put your marriage to Kane aside, I would be a father to this child and a husband to you."

  Maleaha knew that Mangas loved her and if she accepted his offer he would love her child as if it were his own, for she had often seen him with the children in the village. He was always kind and understanding with them, and they seemed to adore him.

  "Mangas, it would be easy to say yes to you, but you need a wife who can give you love, and you should have your own children. I believe the woman you choose will be very fortunate."

  "I see you are not ready to consider me as your husband. I will wait, you may change your mind."

  "No, I will never change, Mangas. I have no love inside me to give to any man at the moment, and I do not want to be a wife."

  "You are already a wife, and you will soon be a mother. The child will need a father."

  Maleaha was feeling the cold through her buckskin dress, and she shivered as Mangas pushed her inside the teepee. "We will talk after your baby is born."

  Maleaha watched as he disappeared. She then removed the blanket from around her shoulders and sat down beside her aunt feeling very miserable.

  "I heard what Mangas was saying to you," her aunt told her. "He would make a good father for your baby."

  "I know, my aunt, but I do not love Mangas as he deserves to be loved."

  "Sometimes the love is all on one side," her aunt summed up wisely, and Maleaha nodded in agreement, knowing it was the case between herself and Kane.

  "Your baby will be born soon, you are already carrying it low."

  "I will be glad when it is over, I feel so tired lately."

  'It is because you do not sleep, have I not heard you tossing on your robe at night, and have I not heard you crying when you thought me and your uncle to be sleeping?"

  "I cannot seem to help myself. I feel so miserable, so useless."

  Her aunt put a comforting arm about her. "You feel this way now, but when your baby comes you will know you are useful and needed. Her aunt stood up and led her over to her robe. "You should sleep now, you will need all your strength for the labor that is ahead of you."

  Maleaha did not argue but allowed her aunt to draw the robe over her, and she turned her face to the wall. Her hands went automatically to her swollen stomach, and she could feel her baby moving inside of her as tears of self-pity stung her eyes.

  She wondered not for the first time if Kane had returned to Boston with his father to the woman he was to marry. Most probably he had left long ago, and perhaps he was even married by now.

  She would always think of him as her husband, and she would have his baby to remind her of that fact. Had he already forgotten about her?

  It was late that night that Maleaha's pains started. She was awakened by a sharp pain that started in her back and moved to her abdomen. She moved from side to side trying to find some relief from the pain. She tried to be as quiet as possible, not wanting to awaken her aunt and uncle, but she had not reckoned with her aunt's watchfulness.

  "Awake, Ninah," Kosha told her husband. "My niece is having her baby. You must seek shelter in another place. I will send word as soon as the child is born."

  Ninah sat up quickly and stretched his arms over his head, then he stood up and pulled a blanket about his shoulders for warmth. "Have a healthy baby, Maleaha," he told her as he walked toward the door.

  "Send Hanna to me, my husband," Kosha told him. He nodded his head and disappeared into the cold night.

  Maleaha had heard many stories of how women suffer
ed in childbirth. She thought if the pain did not increase she would not be too uncomfortable. That hope did not stay with her for long, however, for before Hanna made her appearance her pains had become fierce, leaving Maleaha gasping for breath.

  The sun had risen and set again, and still Maleaha labored to bring forth Kane's child. The whole village waited for the birth of her child, for Maleaha was very dear to them.

  Sometimes the pain was so severe that Maleaha had to bite her lips to keep from screaming, for she knew a Jojoba woman must bear her child in silence.

  Maleaha's body was wet with perspiration, and her aunt bathed her face with cool water and spoke soothingly to her. "Your labor is hard, Maleaha, this happens sometimes, but you are not to worry, Hanna has brought many healthy babies into the world."

  Maleaha grasped her aunt's hand as pain ripped through her body.

  "The baby comes," Hanna said as she reached for the tiny infant who had just made its appearance into the world.

  "You have a daughter, Maleaha," her aunt told her as she wrapped the tiny girl in a warm blanket and handed her to Maleaha.

  Maleaha had not once cried out with the pain of delivering her daughter, but there were tears of happiness in her eyes now, as she looked down upon the tiny girl. She rested her cheek against the soft black downy hair and then kissed her daughter's smooth cheek.

  Kane shook the rain from his mackintosh and hung it by the open fireplace to dry. Looking about the empty sitting room he felt pride in his new home which had only been completed a week before. He hoped Maleaha would be pleased with it.

  He now had a goal in life, and he found it felt good just waking up in the mornings. He even found satisfaction in coming home exhausted in the evenings, after a hard day's work. For the first time in Kane's life he felt good about himself. If only he could convince Maleaha to marry him, his life would be complete. He knew if he weren't so busy, time would lie heavy on his hands while he waited for Maleaha to return.

  Kane had not wanted to furnish the house, hoping that as his wife, Maleaha would take on that job. The only room that he had bothered with was his study, aside from a table and cooking stove in the kitchen, and a cot in one of the upstairs bedrooms.

  Kane felt a hunger pang and frowned. He had hired a Mexican woman to do the cooking for him, but so far he had not acquired a taste for the hot spicy food she always prepared. Perhaps he wasn't so hungry after all, he thought wearily.

  Kane lay down on his cot and closed his eyes. Deep inside of him was always this dull ache that he knew only Maleaha could soothe. When he remembered making love to her his body trembled. Never before had the memory of a woman stayed with him for so long. Everything he did now was to please her. He found himself wondering if she would like the place he had chosen for a garden. Would she think the stables were too near the house? Would she like the dark red tiled roof on the house? Everything had to be just right for her.

  He wondered if she ever thought of him, or was she too busy meeting admiring gentlemen in Europe. Remembering their last meeting, he knew if she did think of him at all it would be with loathing. His father had hurt her badly that night at the dance. Knowing all about Maleaha's pride, he cursed his father for his cruel words. If his father had not interfered that night, Maleaha might at this moment be lying beside him as his wife.

  As Kane fell asleep he had no way of knowing that Maleaha was not in Europe as he thought, but only two days' journey from where he slept.

  Kane was awakened not by a sound but more from a feeling of another's presence in the room. Opening his eyes he was startled when he saw Lamas standing beside his cot.

  "Mangas wants to see you."

  "Right now?" Kane asked, trying to shake his need for sleep,

  "He said to bring you now," the old man said, handing Kane his mackintosh. "I have saddled your horse," Lamas said as he turned his back and walked away.

  Maleaha's daughter was four months old, and Maleaha had named her Cimeron after her mother. Cimeron was a beautiful child and was a favorite with everyone. Her hair was soft and dark and her face was angelic and lovely. Her disposition was sweet and loving. She now had a smile for everyone. Cimeron's eyes were the same silver-gray color as Kane's, and she had the same dimples in her cheeks that Kane had.

  It was June, and it had been raining for the past two weeks, but as Maleaha watched the sun rise over the mountains she could see that it would be a bright, cloudless day. As she made her way through the village, she could see it coming to life. Reaching the stream, she bathed her face in the cool water and then smiled at Hanna who was filling a water jug.

  As Maleaha walked back to her aunt's teepee she remembered the strange conversation she had had with Mangas the day before. He had asked her if she knew where Kane was, and she had told him he had probably gone back to Boston with his father. She remembered how oddly Mangas had looked at her. He had asked her once more if she would put her marriage to Kane aside, and once again she had told him she wouldn't. He had then asked her again if she loved Kane, and when she told him she would always love him, Mangas had left her abruptly.

  She reached her aunt's teepee. Cimeron was awake, so she began to nurse her daughter, forgetting about the conversation of the day before as she became absorbed in the baby.

  Kane rode beside Lamas wondering what Mangas wanted to see him about. The last time he had seen the chief was the day they had clashed with the Arapaho and he had been wounded.

  "How far is it to the Jojoba village, Lamas?" he asked when they dismounted to rest the horses.

  "No more than two days."

  "Do you take me the long way around this time?"

  "No, Mangas trusts you."

  "Why does Mangas want to see me?"

  "He will tell you when the time is right."

  Kane soon became weary of trying to get any answers out of the old Indian, and he lapsed into silence.

  That night when they made camp, Kane tried to question Lamas again, but the old man shrugged his shoulders, saying nothing.

  After two days of hard riding they finally reached the Jojoba village. As Kane dismounted Mangas greeted him with a smile, and the two men clasped arms in Jojoba fashion.

  "I am glad to see you, my friend. It has been too long for good friends to be parted," Mangas told him.

  "That's true," Kane agreed.

  "Come with me and we will talk, my friend," Man-gas said, leading the way to his teepee. When they both were seated Mangas handed Kane a bowl of meat. There had been a time when Kane would have refused the food, but he had come a long way from the man he had once been.

  Mangas watched Kane silently as if trying to read his thoughts.

  "I never did get the chance to thank you for saving my life, Mangas. I was told that had it not been for you I would have died."

  Mangas waved his thanks aside. "First you saved my life, Kane, so I returned the favor. There need never be a reason for thanks between friends." Mangas picked up his bowl. "I am told that you have built a house, Kane. Does that mean you are planning to stay in this country?"

  "Yes, I have grown to love this land. I do not ever want to leave here."

  "That is good to hear, Kane. I wonder why you built such a large house. I am told it has many rooms. Surely it is too large for one man to live in." Kane had a feeling his answer was very important to Mangas.

  "Yes, you are right, it is a big house, a house large enough for a wife and children," Kane told him.

  "I myself have decided to take a wife, Kane. I want strong sons to fill my life."

  "That is good, Mangas. Tell me all about the woman you have chosen to be your wife."

  Mangas smiled. "I have not yet decided who the woman will be, but I keep my eyes open." Mangas's eyes scanned Kane's face. He would find out how Kane felt about Maleaha, and if he loved her, as Mangas suspected, all would be well, but if he did not, he would not let Kane find out that his wife and daughter were in the village.

  "It has been hard for m
e to find someone to replace Maleaha in my heart, Kane."

  "We both love Maleaha, Mangas. I hope when she returns from Europe with her father I can convince her to live with me in the house I had built for her."

  Mangas frowned. "Did you say Maleaha is with Jonas?"

  "Yes, didn't you know? I hope they will be back sometime this summer, but I cannot find anyone who will tell me when they are returning."

  "Do you really love Maleaha, Kane?" Mangas saw the answer to his question in the depth of Kane's silver eyes. They were eyes that were tormented and full of uncertainty.

  "I love her, Mangas, but I fear she does not love me.

  Mangas smiled. "One can never be sure with a woman. Sometimes I think women are very hard to understand."

  The two of them finished eating and then Mangas stood up. "You have had a long journey, my friend, and you should rest. We will talk more later."

  Kane stood up, puzzled. He still had no idea why Mangas had sent for him. Mangas walked outside with him and motioned for Lamas to come to him.

  "Take Kane to Kosha's teepee," he said in the language of the Jojoba.

  Maleaha dropped vegetables in the stewing meat and placed a lid on it so it would simmer. Her aunt had taken Cimeron for a walk, and Maleaha expected them back at any moment. Hearing the heavy footsteps outside the teepee, Maleaha frowned. Whoever it was wore boots, not moccasins. She turned around just as the tent flap was thrown open, and she blinked her eyes, thinking they were deceiving her.

  It took Kane's eyes a moment to adjust to the dim light inside the teepee, and when he could see well enough he stood as though turned to stone.

  17

  Kane and Maleaha stared at each other in disbelief. It was as if the whole world had paused to draw breath. Kane's eyes roved hungrily over the woman he loved. He noticed everything about her, from the wide leather band that circled her dark hair to the buckskin dress she wore.

  Maleaha's heart was drumming loudly as she looked at Kane. He was wearing brown trousers, a brown shirt, and brown leather boots. She had not realized until that moment how much she had wanted to see him. She had the urge to fly into his arms.