When they had stopped several times to drink at various streams, Candy had mingled among the women, trying to look nonchalant as she asked them to band with her, to get the best of Albert. But none of the women had the courage. There was fear in their eyes as they told Candy to leave them alone and not bother them anymore.
As the wagon wheels rumbled onward along the packed earth, with the forest at their left side, Candy felt her buttocks ache as she sat on the floor of the wagon, each bump in the road causing a sensation like sharp pins sticking into her flesh.
She gazed over her shoulder into the distance, in the direction of Two Eagles’s village. She was devastated to know that she would never see him again, or be held in his loving arms.
She would cherish those times with him, especially the nights, when he had taught her the true meaning of love. If she closed her eyes, she knew she would be able to hear his voice, smell his flesh, and feel the wonders that come with those moments when they had came together in the final throes of passion.
But she feared that love was hopeless, for she didn’t see how Two Eagles could possibly know where to look for her. The abduction had been so swift, it was all like a blur to her now.
She turned her eyes forward again, finding it too painful to think about Two Eagles and what they had meant to one another, and what they could have been.
They had talked of children. Oh, to have a child in Two Eagles’s image would be something she would have treasured.
But that was never to be, unless she found a way to escape the clutches of this madman. Fortunately, he had not yet approached her sexually. He knew the importance of placing many miles between himself and the Wichita village, for the farther he traveled, the less chance there was of the Wichita finding him and the women and children who were his family.
Through tears, Candy eyed the rifle that Albert always kept beside him on the seat of the wagon. He had made it clear he would use it if anyone tried to escape, or if anyone happened along and questioned him about why he had so many women and children with him.
Candy knew he would not let anyone interfere in his life. He would shoot anyone who tried.
She knew that it would not be long before he felt it was safe enough to stop for a full night. She suspected that every time he stopped for a night of rest, he chose a different woman to spend that night with him.
Chills rode Candy’s spine to think about him choosing her. Surely he would want to see if she had been worth all the effort it had taken to abduct her.
“I was foolish to go into the forest alone,” she whispered to her mother, who for the most part sat silently beside her, her face pale, her eyes empty and hopeless. “But I will not give up hope. I must believe that somehow Two Eagles is even now following the tracks which will bring him and his warriors to me.” Candy had told her mother about Two Eagles and the way he had found her after the massacre at Fort Hope.
“Shh,” her mother whispered back to her. “If Albert hears you talking to me, he might stop and give us both a lashing with his whip.”
Candy’s eyes widened. “He does that?” she whispered, seeing how her mother was cowering against the side of the wagon, so afraid she looked like a tiny woman, not the strong-willed person Candy had always known.
Her mother nodded, confirming that he did use a whip to make his wives obedient to his every whim.
Agnes then turned her eyes away from Candy so that even if Candy did whisper to her, she would not hear.
Agnes already had scars on her back from the day she had told Albert she wouldn’t tolerate his touching her ever again. Furious, he had yanked the whip from the wagon, and as everyone watched, he lashed her, over and over again, until she had crumpled to the ground, begging for mercy.
That night he had asked her forgiveness as he applied ointment to her back where the whip had cut into her flesh. He had told her she would be his favorite woman now and he would give her many things he did not give the others.
She had bravely, brazenly spat in his face.
She could even now feel the sting of his hand as he slapped her and then shoved her to the ground and took her sexually as the other women, even the children, watched.
She had been taught a lesson that evening, one that she would never forget. She gave in to him now every time he ordered her to his bed.
Worse, she was afraid that she was with child. It was terrible to consider, not only because it would be this madman’s child, but because of her age. She knew she was too old to have babies.
In all her life she had only been able to carry one child to full term. The other times she had lost the baby in the early stages of her pregnancy.
She hoped that if she was pregnant now, she would lose this child, too.
Confused as to why her mother was ignoring her, Candy wiped tears from her eyes. She tried to focus on finding a way to escape the lunacy of this man. If she did, she would bring help back for the other women and their children.
She would be so proud if she could find a way to help these people, especially the children. There was much sadness in their eyes, for they knew their future was bleak.
There would be no schooling, no freedom, no love. They were there only to satisfy this madman’s need to have as many children and wives as possible.
With determination tightening her jaw, Candy looked around her, and then up at the angle of the sun in the sky. She was trying to figure out how long she had been traveling since her abduction, and how far she was from Two Eagles’s village. The two wagons were so loaded down with belongings and people, Albert could not travel quickly. Candy knew Two Eagles could catch up to her if only he discovered the wagon tracks.
Candy started when she felt her mother nudging her in the side with an elbow, drawing Candy’s eyes quickly to her.