“Why don’t we just ask him?” John asked.
“What?”
“I mean, sure he wouldn’t answer you, but to be honest, you’re not his favorite person these days. Maybe with all of us, the whole Council of Elders standing in front of him, we’ll get a different answer,” Long-armed John explained.
“And would you all be willing to do that?” Little Bird asked.
The woman looked around the table and just as she expected, beside from Laughing Dog, no one would meet her eye.
“Well, I guess that answers that. Any other bright ideas John?”
Long-Armed John looked down and just shook his head in reply. Laughing Dog gave a little smirk and said, “It don’t matter none, Two-Steps isn’t in the village right now anyway.”
Little Bird looked up at his words,” What do you mean?”
“I seen him riding out when I was on my way over here.”
“Where was he going?”
“Beats me, he was alone though.”
“He probably rode off to tell poor David about his father I suspect,” Amy Red-Tail said, “The boy…I mean the young man, he isn’t in the village.”
Little Bird nodded at Amy’s words, of course, he wasn’t, David was out doing god-knows-what for his illustrious Chief. The old woman raised her teacup to her mouth but then her hand froze before reaching her lips and a smile spread across her face.
Laughing Dog looked up and her, “Oh shit,” he said.
Ignoring the old man, Little Bird asked, “Where is Daniel Strongbow’s body now?”
“In the church, awaiting burial, I would imagine,” Sally offered.
“And Two-Steps isn’t.”
Laughing Dog was already shaking his head, “No Little Bird! I know what you’re thinking, and the answer is no!” he said.
“David doesn’t have any other family now, does he? No one to make arrangements for Daniel’s burial, to change the man’s clothes and prepare his body for burial.”
“No,” Laughing Dog repeated.
“That’s true, David doesn’t have anyone else,” Amy said.
“It’s so sad, maybe we should do something?” Sally offered.
“My thoughts exactly!” Little Bird said.
The old woman practically jumped out of her seat,” Now we don’t have much time, so I’m going to need all of your help,” she said.
“Shit,” Laughing Dog said.
A half an hour later Little Bird led the Council of Elders across the dusty street towards the church. Amy Red-tail cradled a basket of wildflowers in her arms while next to her Sally Night-Song carried an assortment of clothes taken from the closet of Strongbow’s own house. Laughing Dog brought up the rear of the little procession still shaking his head. Just as Little Bird suspected two guards flanked the church steps and the doors were shut tight. Upon seeing the council one of the young Braves stepped forward and opened his mouth, but before he could speak Little Bird demanded, “Is the Chief back yet?”
The Brave hesitated for a moment before shaking his head, “No respected elder,” he said.
“Good then we’re not too late, be a dear and get the door for us.”
Little Bird followed by the rest of the council actually made it up three steps before the confused Brave managed to blurt, “Wait, no stop.”
“What’s the problem young man?”
“I can’t let you in, not when the Chief is out,” he said.
“Why not?” Little Bird demanded.
“His orders.”
“Really? Did he tell you that today?”
The Brave hesitated again and then glanced back to his fellow guard before replying, “Well, no.”
“I guessed as much because most days the Chief doesn’t keep the body of a dead man lying in his hall. We’re here to prepare Daniel Strongbow for burial. Change his clothes and clean him, hopefully before his son arrives to see him. I’m sure you can understand this isn’t an everyday occurrence, and the Chief will not mind. Now let us in.”
Little Bird went to take another step, but the young Brave lowered his spear blocking her path, “Respected Elder, I’m sorry, but I can’t.”
The old woman opened her mouth ready to lash the young man into submission with only her words, but it was Laughing Dog’s turn to cut her off.
“You’re Tommy T-Bird’s boy, aren’t you?”
At the mention of his father’s name, the young Brave’s eyes narrowed, “Yeah, so?”
“Your pa and me we go way back. In fact, I remember that day, back before you were even born, back before all of this, when Tommy wanted to buy his first car. He was 19 and walked all the way into town. All he had $500 bucks in his pocket and shit eating grin. He told everyone on the Res that he was going to buy a pickup truck and we all laughed at him. You see, you couldn’t buy no pickup truck for $500 at least not one worth a damn, but that didn’t stop Tommy. The next day he comes driving back on to the Res, but it wasn’t in no pickup truck. He was driving a 1957 T-Bird, a convertible in the sweetest candy apple red you’ve ever seen. No one could believe it, that some Indian kid from the Res could own a car like that. He made a real slow drive around the village and people came out of their houses just to stop and stare, kids followed after him, waving and shouting his name. He just smiled and waved back, like it was Tommy’s own little parade.”
The Brave was smiling now, nodding his head to the story he had heard often while growing up.
“It was a hell of a thing to see and old Tommy loved every bit of the attention, he was strutting around here like the cock of the walk. I can tell you the rest of us boys, even his friends, were pretty jealous of him and that car. And there wasn’t a girl on the Res that didn’t want old Tommy to take them for a drive. Of course, that all changed a week later when the state patrol rolled in and arrested poor Tommy for car theft. He, of course, claimed that he had been scammed and that he had bought the car from some white dude he met in a bar. Now I believed old Tommy, but the State Patrol didn’t, and neither did the judge. How long did he get?”
“Two years,” the Brave replied with a grin.
“But whats two years compared to being a legend?” Laughing Dog said with a chuckle.
The Brave laughed also, “Not much I guess.”
“Now son, I want you to do something for me. Imagine old Tommy T-Bird is the one lying in there dead and gone. Would you want your last memory of him, the last time you seen your father on this earth, to be like he is now? His clothes stained with piss and stinking to high heaven because the last thing he did on this earth was shit himself before he died?”
The Brave’s eyes went wide, and he shook his head slowly. “Then how about you let us in. The man that is laying in there had a son too, his name is David, and he is on his way back here right now.”
Little Bird watched as the young Brave looked down at his feet obviously torn, and then looked back over his shoulder. The other guard who looked perhaps even younger only shrugged in reply. Finally, the Brave shook his head and replied.
“Ok, you can go in, but I’m going with you. That way no one can say we didn’t do our duty.”
Laughing Dog hesitated for the briefest of moments before smiling and nodding in reply, “Of course not, come on, let’s go take care of Daniel.”
The old man stepped forward placing a reassuring hand on the Braves shoulder and turned to walk towards the door of the church. The young Brave bent to unlock the double doors and Laughing Dog shot Little Bird a quick glance and a shrug of his own. The old woman replied with the slightest of nods, in fact, she was impressed, Laughing Dog had handled the situation masterfully. Though having the Brave standing over their shoulder wasn’t the most ideal of situations, it was better than nothing. The truth was that she had no real plan other than getting a look at Daniel’s body. She didn’t know what, if anything, she could find that would prove that the man was murdered, but she knew they would never get a chance like this again.
The Brave led th
e council of elders into the church, shutting the door behind them. Daniel Strongbow’s body was laid out on a wide table at the center of the long room. He was wearing the same long-sleeved white button-down shirt and jeans that he had been when Little Bird found him. For a moment she just froze, staring at the body again as if she had just seen it for the first time.
“Bring everything in and set it here at the end of the table,” Amy Red-Tail said taking charge.
At the woman’s words, the rest of the elders snapped into motion and began to set down the baskets of wildflowers, sage, and oils by the dead man’s feet. Little Bird gave Amy the slightest of nods in thanks, she really had no idea how to prepare a body for burial and for the second time today she found herself glad that the other elders were there with her.
“Son, why don’t you help me with his boots?” Laughing dog asked.
“Me?” the young Brave asked in surprise.
“Of course you, did you think we were just going to let you stand around and watch the old women work? Now grab a boot.”
The young man had no reply for that and bending down he began to pull off the dead man’s boot. Sensing her moment, Little Bird stepped forward to lean over Daniel Strongbow’s body. She still had no idea what she was looking for, but almost immediately her eyes went to the dead man’s face. His eyes were wide as if trapped in a state of perpetual surprise. The old woman noticed immediately that the man’s eyes were both bloodshot, the veins in both of his eyes seemed engorged with blood. Daniel’s mouth was open just enough that little Bird could see a bit of the man’s tongue, it was a dark shade of purple. Finally, her eyes came down to the horrific marks around Daniel’s neck, where the bridle-noose that had killed him had marked the skin there in various shades of blue and purple. But was any of that unusual? Little bird shook her head, she simply didn’t know enough to say for sure and not for the first time, she wished Anna was there with her.
At the end of the table Daniel’s boots came off, and before the warrior could see her examining the wounds, Little Bird quickly busied herself undoing the buttons of Daniel’s shirt. Laughing Dog set Daniel’s worn boots aside, taking the opportunity to shoot the old woman a quick glance. The look showed that he clearly wanted Little Bird to hurry, but having found nothing the old woman could only frown in reply.
“Now the pants,” Laughing Dog announced, turning back to the Brave.
“The pants?”
“The pants,” the old man said nodding.
As the two men unbuttoned and began to remove the pants from the corpse, Little Bird finished unbuttoning the man’s shirt. Quickly she examined his chest and stomach, looking for anything, bruises or a concealed wounds perhaps. She noticed a long red line on Daniel’s right sides, she leaned forward trying to get a closer look, but quickly realized it was an old scar and nothing recent. Amy Red-Tail suddenly appeared at her side carrying a bowl of oil scented with flower petals and thrust a rag into Little Bird’s hand.
“Now that his shirt is off, wipe him down with the oil. But be careful a little goes a long way,” she said.
Little Bird opened her mouth, but over Amy’s shoulder, she realized that the Brave was watching them as Daniel’s pants came away in Laughing Dog’s hands. The old woman nodded in understanding and began to run the oil-soaked cloth across Daniel’s exposed chest.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
“No problem,” Amy replied.
With the dead man’s pants off the room was quickly filled with a foul order, as advertised Daniel Strongbow had filled his pants shortly after his death. Both Laughing Dog and the Brave stood back from the table now as if suddenly unsure of how to proceed. Luckily Sally had come prepared, and the grandmother stepped forward wearing a pair of thick rubber gloves and carrying a small plastic bag. Thankfully for everyone, Daniel Strongbow was wearing briefs when he died, and after two quick cuts, Sally was able to remove them and dispose of them easily.
As Sally finished, Amy and Little Bird managed to turn Daniel enough to slip off the dead man’s shirt and see the rest of his body. Little Bird shook her head in frustration, the man didn’t bare a mark that didn’t look at least a decade old, and she was quickly running out of time and ideas. As laughing Dog and the young Brave pulled a fresh pair of pants onto the dead man, Sally stepped forward and handed them a fresh shirt, nearly the twin to the one they had removed. As Amy and Sally sipped the fresh shirt in place, Little Bird took time adjusting the cuffs and taking the opportunity to look at the man’s hands, looking for any sign that perhaps Daniel had struggled with anyone before he died. But just as she feared the man’s hands, though callused and rough with age, didn’t have a fresh cut or scrape on them.
Little Bird shook her head in frustration and looked up to meet Amy’s eyes, the woman could only shrug in reply. Suddenly the sound of galloping hooves could be heard outside of the church as a pair of horses raced up to the building and then were pulled to a halt abruptly. Laughing Dog looked up at Little Bird, “They’re here,” he said.
Laughing Dog stepped to the side, gesturing Little Bird to stand next to him and giving the table a respectful distance. Sally and Amy hurriedly made the final adjustment to the body, smoothing out the dead man’s clothes and quickly running a comb through what remained of Daniel’s hair. A pair of quick footsteps could be heard on the steps outside, followed by a few angry but otherwise unintelligible shouts. Little Bird watched the young Brave’s face go suddenly pale as if he was suddenly reconsidering allowing them in. As the door to the church flew open, Amy readjusted Daniel Strongbow’s neatly combed head ever so slightly and then froze as Chief Two-Steps stormed into the church.
“What is going on here?” he demanded.
“We are here to see that Daniel’s body was properly looked after,” Sally replied with a smile and a nod.
Ignoring her, Two-Steps turned to face the young Brave, “You allowed this?”
“Of course not,” Little Bird replied, “custom allowed this and as you well know upholding tribal customs are the responsibility of the Council of Elders, my chief.”
Two-Steps didn’t reply, his eyes remained fixed on the helpless Brave, but even from where she stood Little Bird could see that the man was trembling with rage.
“Since Daniel Strongbow had no other family, we wanted to make sure he was properly looked after before David arrived. Isn’t that right Amy?”
When Amy didn’t respond Little Bird, turned to look and found the woman still standing at the head of the table. Amy Red-Tail was staring at the Chief, her mouth slightly open with her hands clasped behind her back. Little Bird shook her head in frustration, it seemed the Chief had managed to silence her fellow co-conspirators with a mere glance. But at that moment David Strongbow stepped into the church, and the conversation ceased.
The young man looked just like Little Bird remembered him, wearing the same blue jeans and leather vest he wore the day he had escorted her home. But since then something had changed in him, the soft edges of his face seemed leaner as if the young man had aged years in just the last few days. David took a few faltering steps forward towards his father’s body and reached a hand out as if to touch him, but then pulled it back. Sally Night-Song took a step forward, and it was clear she intended to put her arms around the young man, but Two-Steps held up a hand stopping her in her tracks. Then the Chief nodded towards the door, and the elders began to quietly walk out, Amy Red-Tail was the last to leave walking slowly and still wearing her look of surprise.
The elders crossed the street and stood beneath the shade of a large tree there. For a moment they were all silent, and then Laughing Dog quietly asked, “So, was this whole thing worth it?”
“Of course it was worth it, did you see poor David’s face? I’m glad we could do this for him,” Sally replied.
“That’s not what I meant.”
Little Bird could only shake her head in frustration, “There has to be some way to prove he was murdered.”
“You mean, if he was murdered,” Laughing Dog pointed out.
The old woman shot the man a dirty look and then glancing at Amy, “And thanks for all of your support in their Amy. Congratulations, I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone freeze up so completely before!”
In the smallest of voices, Amy Red-Tail replied, “I didn’t…I didn’t freeze up.”
“It’s nothing to be ashamed of dear,” Sally said.
“I didn’t freeze…I…I found something.”
The small circle of elders went deathly quiet, and all eyes turned to look at Amy Red-Tail. The woman took a deep breath as if to steady herself and then spoke.
“Daniel had a knot on the back of his head, it was the size of a goose egg.”
For a moment no one spoke, and the Little Bird broke the silence, “I knew it!”
“A knot on his head? But that could have been from anything,” Sally pointed out.
Laughing Dog smirked, “Yeah anything, like a club or the butt of a knife maybe. Just before someone slips a rope around his neck and hoisted him into the air.”
The group went silent then and one by one they all turned to look back towards the church, where a boy mourned his father and a murderer determined the fate of their people.
The Rubicon
Kyle drove the buggy north along route 89, leaving Flagstaff and the smoldering national forest behind them. The land opened up in front of them, the tree-covered hills giving way to wide open desert plains. It wasn’t exactly the same type of terrain that he had back home to, but it was close enough to set Kyle a bit more at ease. The long unbroken distances, marked with only a scattering of small bushes and clumps of sage, left little chance of ambush. Coal also seemed more like his old self, throughout the drive Kyle often looked over to find the bounty-hunter scanning the horizon, just as he had done the first time they had ridden the wastes together, in what seemed like a lifetime ago. While keeping his silent vigil Coal kept a hand on Mile’s shoulder, holding the wounded man upright, mercifully Miles had fallen back into unconsciousness again not long after leaving Flagstaff.
The Road North Page 25
