The Dove

by Sharon Sala

  “I will smell better when I have washed,” she said.

  He laughed.

  When she saw he had all of his teeth and they were white, she decided to like him.

  Chapter Twenty

  One Week Later:

  Recuperation time was over.

  The New Ones were getting ready to leave the cave. Stores of food had been replenished, new water containers had been made and refilled. Clothes were washed and medicines replenished. They had smoked meat, dried fruits, and all but one of the nine people who’d come into the cave on travois were up and walking, with the other one not far behind.

  Like most of the New Ones, Yuma was anxious to get moving. Tyhen had been quiet for the past three days to the point that he had begun to fear there was yet another big disaster awaiting she had yet to disclose. When they slept at night, she clung to him like a burr, and when they made love, it was with desperation.

  Finally, on this last morning as they were waking up, instead of making love when she turned to face him, he cupped her face, kissed her lips and then took her hands.

  “Talk to me, and don’t tell me nothing is wrong.”

  She exhaled slowly, almost reluctantly, like she’d been waiting for permission to tell what she knew.

  “I keep dreaming the same dream. We are walking our path and it takes us into a place that is very high on both sides of us, but they are not mountains.”

  “That is called a mesa... like a small mountain with the top cut off. Are they flat on top?”

  She nodded.

  “Yes, a mesa,” Yuma affirmed. “And the place below the mesas is called a canyon. Remember Firewalker. We ran through canyons.”

  Her eyes widened. “Yes, like that! I had forgotten. Are we going to be back where Firewalker began so soon?”

  “No, I would guess we will be crossing into what used to be called Mexico, if we aren’t already there. The land is very different there than it was back in Naaki Chava.”

  “In my dream, we are approaching this canyon, and there are bad men up on the mesas but we cannot see them. Half on one side, half on the other. They will roll big rocks down upon us and throw spears. I will have to leave you to fight them. You cannot be with me. You will have to stay with the others.”

  He frowned.

  “Now that you have told us, we can be on the lookout for such places, and we can send guards ahead to make sure we do not get trapped.”

  She nodded. “It is a good plan. What bothers me most is that these men know who we are and still want us dead. Windwalker told me that word had gone out to all the people of all the tribes that we were coming. He said we would be welcomed. I worry that if this is going to happen, then I must have done something wrong. Why else would they want to kill us?”

  Yuma shook his head. “You are wise in many ways, my little whirlwind, but you are a child in many others. There will always be bad people who don’t want to give up their power. And if there is a tribe without a shaman to receive the message, they will not know what your presence means. There are many reasons why bad men kill, not the least of which is pure greed.”

  “We have no treasures.”

  He rubbed a thumb across the back of her hand as he carefully chose his next words.

  “But we do. We have women, many women, and in a place where there are many men, women are always a prize.”

  She shuddered as what he meant sunk in. “Then we have to make sure not to fall into the hands of these bad men. When we start into that canyon, I will change their plans.”

  Yuma frowned. “How?”

  “Strong winds blow people down. Stronger winds can blow people away.”

  He nodded. “That is good. So now that we have a plan of our own, no more sad faces?”

  She smiled. “No more sad faces.”

  “Everyone is ready to leave today,” he reminded her.

  “So am I. It was beginning to feel like we were hiding. I don’t like that feeling.”

  “But I do like how it feels when I kiss you good morning,” he said softly.

  She leaned forward and closed her eyes.

  Yuma’s heart skipped a beat as he cupped the back of her head and pulled her to him. Such a beautiful face. Such a strong, loving spirit. He was a blessed man. And so he kissed her.

  Tyhen straightened up with a smile.

  “Good morning, my Yuma.”

  “Good morning, my love.”

  About an hour later, the cave was empty, the clearing void of human voices. They were once again on the march, happier, healthier, and better prepared for what lay ahead.

  ***

  Singing Bird had lost her spark. Ever since she accepted her part in the demise of Little Mouse, it seemed to be the final loss she could not put aside.

  She tended to the people as was her duty and kept the twins in food and care, making sure Evan’s head continued to heal. But at night when she lay in Cayetano’s arms, she felt empty. All she could do was hope that when they reached their destination, the work of rebuilding would be what she needed to fill the void in her heart.

  Adam and Evan sensed her emotional absence far stronger than Cayetano. His days were full of duty and concerns and he had to put his personal happiness aside to get it done.

  They’d walked a very long way since the fire and when possible, they stayed close to the coastline. At times, it made finding food for everyone easier. All they had to do was go fishing.

  As for Cayetano, he had already seen two of the landmarks from the map he had put to memory and believed they were near their final destination.

  When he reached a small rise in the landscape, he walked up on it and turned around for a better view of the people behind him.

  His warriors were in place, moving with the marchers, but along the perimeters as guards.

  The people who’d been injured during the run from the fire in the sky were nearly healed, while the others had adapted a slower pace to accommodate their elders. They’d lost far too many people to be careless with the ones they had left.

  The twins stayed close to Singing Bird at all times, which gave Cayetano the freedom to do what he had to do, and they had surprised him. Their skin had turned darker from the constant exposure to the sun, and they were far leaner and more muscled than they’d ever been in their lives. They had become hardened veterans of this march and unless someone looked close, they could not tell them from the others.

  But it was Evan who had changed the most, and not just in physical appearance. He’d begun carrying a weapon and moved with a loose, easy stride like the warriors, always watching the tree line along the coast to make sure there was no danger.

  Cayetano searched the moving crowd behind him until he saw the twins with Singing Bird between them and was satisfied.

  He was about to jump down when he noticed Adam react in a sudden and very anxious manner, and as he did, Evan took a fighting grip on his spear.

  He turned and looked all around but saw nothing out of the ordinary, then told himself he had been concerned for no reason when Adam suddenly grabbed Singing Bird by the arm and pushed her behind him, as Evan started running toward the front of the line.

  Cayetano could tell by the expression on Evan’s face that something was terribly wrong. He leaped down from the rock and ran to meet him, his own weapon gripped tightly in his hand.

  The moment Evan saw him coming, he increased his speed.

  “What is wrong?” Cayetano asked as Evan slid to a stop.

  “Warriors are coming. We think a whole tribe. They are wearing face paint and carrying weapons. The chief who leads them is called Teya. He has many scars on his face and belly from the claws of a jaguar.”

  Cayetano groaned. He had warriors. He could fight. But he was in a quandary as to what to do with all the others.

  “Will we fight? Ar
e they coming for women?”

  “Adam doesn’t think so, and I am not so sure. We think they are here because they have heard about the Dove.”

  “But she is not with us,” Cayetano said.

  “No, but her mother is,” Evan said. “Adam thinks it will be enough.”

  “Where are they?” Cayetano asked.

  Evan took a deep breath and then pointed over Cayetano’s shoulder.

  “Behind you.”

  Cayetano spun around, then grunted like he’d been belly-punched. He’d fought in many battles, but he’d never been this outnumbered. There had to be hundreds. His numbers were larger, but he did not have nearly this many warriors. If these people wanted, they could kill everyone here and he would never be able to stop them. It was his worst nightmare come to life.

  They were coming up the beach at a trot, the black feathers in their headdresses bobbing as they ran and the vivid colors of paint on their bodies gave them a frightening appearance.

  He took a deep breath and started toward them, and when he did, Evan was right at his side, the spear clutched tightly in his hand.

  “Your people have stopped. Your warriors come,” Evan said.

  Cayetano heard, but he kept moving forward. He wasn’t waiting for them to catch up. When they were within a dozen yards from each other, Chief Teya suddenly stopped moving and held up his hand, signaling for his warriors to stop, too.

  Cayetano held up his hand and his warriors froze.

  One long look passed between the two chiefs and then Teya suddenly dropped his spear and went down on his knees, threw his arms up and his upper body forward and prostrated himself before them. Behind him, his warriors immediately did the same.

  Cayetano gasped. “What is happening?”

  Evan tapped him on the arm. “Singing Bird comes.”

  ***

  Singing Bird was in a panic. The moment the twins told her there was an army of warriors intending to intercept them, she knew this would be the day they died.

  “Are you certain?” Singing Bird asked as Evan headed toward Cayetano to give him the news.

  Adam nodded. “Yes, Singing Bird. I can see them in my head. The leader is called Teya.”

  She groaned and glanced around at the people behind her, then looked up ahead and saw nothing.

  “Are there many?”

  “Hundreds.”

  Her chin came up. “Then today we die.”

  “No, no, I do not think so. I think they come because of the Dove.”

  “But she is not here!” Singing Bird said. “What will happen when they find out she is not with us?”

  Adam hesitated. “I think they already know this. But they have been given the story. They know the prophecy and they know you are a part of it. You are Singing Bird, the woman who gave birth to the Dove. You will be just as honored as the child you bore.”

  “You think they mean us no harm?”

  “I know they don’t,” he said.

  “Then what should I do?”

  He smiled. “Remember the day you first went to greet the people of Naaki Chava after you had healed? Remember how you walked from the palace down into the city without the guards ahead of you?”

  Her eyes widened. “Show no fear.”

  “Yes.”

  And at that moment, the tribe of warriors ran into view. There were far too many for them to fight and they had a frightening countenance. All she could do was pray Adam was right.

  She shoved her fingers through her hair in a gesture of defiance and led with her chin as she took her first step toward Cayetano. There was a knot in her belly but purpose in her stride. The warriors looked fierce. She wanted to turn and run, but instead kept walking toward them with Adam at her heels.

  When she was only a few yards away from Cayetano, she locked gazes with their leader, and the moment he saw her, he dropped to his knees and threw himself facedown in the sand. When the others followed, the knot in her belly relaxed. Adam was right. It was going to be okay.

  She saw the shock on Cayetano’s face when he turned around, then she smiled and the panic receded from his eyes.

  “My Chief,” she said softly as she slid her hand along his arm.

  “They honor you,” he said. “Accept it.”

  She stepped forward, still holding his hand.

  “Teya, we are honored you have come to greet us.”

  The chief rocked back on his heels and when Singing Bird smiled, he stood. His warriors shifted into the same mode and stood behind him.

  “Are you Singing Bird? Are you the mother of the Dove?”

  “Yes, I am Singing Bird and this man is Cayetano. He is my husband and our chief.”

  Teya thrust his hand into the air and let out a single cry that his warriors echoed.

  Singing Bird’s heart leapt. She could only hope that Tyhen’s first reception would be as welcomed.

  Teya took a step forward, acknowledging Cayetano and then waved his arm toward all the people Cayetano was leading. “Our city is many sleeps from here, but we would ask to be allowed to walk with you as we return. My warriors are great hunters. When you make camp, we will feed your people as ourselves.”

  Cayetano eyed the other chief closely. He didn’t want to be taken in by false friendship and put his people in danger.

  “We will build our new city near the water just a few sleeps from here,” Cayetano said, making sure the man knew they were not just passing through.

  Singing Bird gave Cayetano a startled look. She hadn’t known they were so close. Yet, she reminded herself, she hadn’t been aware of much of anything but her own sadness.

  Teya frowned. “My people used to live near the water,” and gestured toward the ocean beside them. “But strangers came. They took our silver and our gold, left their babies in our women’s bellies and did not come back. We moved farther away from the water to hide from them.”

  Singing Bird’s eyes flashed in anger and Teya saw it.

  “We know of this, and I tell you they will come back, each time taking more and caring less about what you think, and they will still find you and take your belongings and your women, and no matter how many times you run away, their numbers will increase and the day will come when there will be no place left to hide. That is why we will live near the water—to stop their thievery before it can begin.”

  Teya stared, his lips parted in shock. “This is what our shaman predicted.”

  “And he was right.”

  “How do we fight such people?” he asked.

  Singing Bird thumped her chest with a fist. “We will conquer them with wisdom and power. Walk with us and I will tell you how.”

  And so they walked with Teya’s warriors leading the way while others were sent ahead to hunt and set up camp.

  It was only a short time before sunset when they arrived, led by the scent of wood-smoke and cooking meat. Cayetano’s people began to set up their camps and wash their bodies in the surf, while others began refilling water bags and bottles from a nearby spring.

  Teya’s men had deer, wild pig, and many birds cooking on the fires, and banana leaves spread out on the ground covered with coconuts and fruit.

  He had walked every step beside Singing Bird, riveted by the story of Firewalker and what their people had endured to make the change. As they finally sat down at their fire to eat, Teya’s focus shifted from Singing Bird to her man.

  “Cayetano, I would ask, as one chief to another, how will you battle these people who will come? How can we stop them?”

  “Singing Bird says they cannot be stopped.”

  Teya frowned. “Then there is nothing to be done?”

  “We do not kill them to stop them,” Cayetano offered. “But as a people, if we stand as one, keeping our tribes as we wish, but united as a people, then when the str
angers come again, they will be greeted, but with caution. There will be many among them who will wish to live here for their own personal gain, and that is when our power as a united nation matters most. We can grant them the right to make their home here if we wish, but they have to understand from the start, that the land is already claimed. That it is not free for the taking, and that we will not be moved from the places that are our homes.”

  Teya’s eyes widened as understanding grew. “The strangers can live within it, but they cannot claim our world because it is already taken.”

  Singing Bird sighed. She’d been saying the same thing a dozen ways as they had walked, but Teya had not grasped the full scope of how it would work until now. Sometimes a man-to-man talk made everything better.

  “Yes,” Cayetano said. “Now we eat. I am hungry and my ears are tired of hearing words.”

  Teya grunted in assent.

  Singing Bird blinked. Now they were saying she talked too much? She glanced over and Adam and Evan, who were grinning. She frowned at them, struggling not to laugh as she reached for some food. She hadn’t been hungry in days, but now everything felt different. She’d had her first taste of success and it was good.

  ***

  Three days later:

  Teya and his warriors parted company the day before, but their trip together had cemented what would become a life-long bond between the two chiefs. By the time he and his warriors returned to their city, the story would be told and retold a thousand times, and it would set Singing Bird’s place into their history.

  Cayetano guessed they would reach their destination today, and when he had seen the last landmark a short while ago, he began moving the people faster. He knew they were trail-weary and heartsick, but so was he, and in the end it would all be worth it.

  And it was.

  When he found himself walking out of the jungle onto the broad white sands bordering the water of the vast ocean before them, he knew they were home.

  He threw his hands up into the air and let out a cry of jubilation that was heard all the way back to the last people in line.