Wild Whispers

Question if his glory

Be the perfect one.

—EMILY DICKINSON

Kaylene was torn with how to feel as Fire Thunder strode through the doorway into the lodge. Part of her was glad to see him. The other part could not help but fear him.

She still was not sure what her final fate was going to be at the hands of the Kickapoo chief.

She recalled how his people had stared at her as she had entered the village on his horse.

She had felt their mistrust. She had to wonder how they felt about her being in his lodge?

She was glad to have at least two Kickapoo friendly with her, and she felt that the proffered friendships had been genuine.

Except there was some doubt in her heart about Running Fawn. Little Sparrow had even referred to her as . . .

Her thoughts were brought back to Fire Thunder as he knelt down on his haunches before her.

Still he stared at her, but more so in her eyes now.

Little Sparrow broke the silence as she went to Fire Thunder and knelt between him and Kaylene, giving Fire Thunder cause to stare at her instead of Kaylene. She asked in quick sign language if Fire Thunder had found Good Bear.

Fire Thunder framed her tiny, copper face between his powerful hands. He slowly shook his head, then spoke the word “no” distinctly.

Little Sparrow emitted a soft sob as she lowered her eyes.

Then she looked slowly up at her brother again. Her tiny fingers signed as she finally confessed to Fire Thunder that she blamed herself for Good Bear’s disappearance. It had been she who had slipped away from him.

Now she knew that she should have not done that. Surely when he discovered her gone, Good Bear had blamed himself. In shame, he probably ran away, not wanting to face Fire Thunder with the news that she was missing. But he had had no idea that she was a captive all along, right there in one of the carnival tents.

“What was Good Bear doing that he would even not realize your hand slipped from his?” Fire Thunder asked, forming the words on his lips carefully so that she had no trouble reading them.

When he saw an instant blush leap into her cheeks from the question, he forked an eyebrow.

Kaylene sat, scarcely breathing, as she watched the silent deliberation between brother and sister. She was glad that Fire Thunder had spoken the last question aloud, for she felt that she might have the answer. Many a curious little boy had slipped into the tent where the naked tattooed lady performed with her snake.

Kaylene suspected that was exactly where Good Bear had been, perhaps for the very first time in his life having seen a naked lady.

Little Sparrow kept her eyes lowered not wanting to reveal the naughtiness of Good Bear to her brother. All Kickapoo boys Good Bear’s age were taught the dangers of bad women.

They were told many stories about them.

Little Sparrow knew that Good Bear had known better than to look at the naked lady at the carnival. That was why she had left his side so eagerly. She had been too embarrassed to watch the lady prance around with the snake coiled around her tattooed body.

“Little Sparrow, you know the answer to my question, but something keeps you from telling me,” Fire Thunder prodded. He placed a finger beneath her chin and lifted it, so that their eyes could meet and hold.

Still Little Sparrow did not respond to his persistent questions. It was bad enough that Good Bear was missing, let alone tell Fire Thunder the worst about him.

“Little Sparrow, how can we find Good Bear if we do not know all truths about the afternoon that he disappeared?” Fire Thunder said.

Tears splashed from Little Sparrow’s eyes. She flung herself into Fire Thunder’s arms, sobbing.

“I think I know what the answer is,” Kaylene murmured. She was glad that Little Sparrow’s back was to her, unaware that she was going to tell Fire Thunder what Little Sparrow refused to tell. Kaylene did not want to risk destroying her friendship with the child by telling a secret that the child seemed to want to keep to herself. But for the good of the boy, Kaylene felt that she had no other choice.

Fire Thunder’s gaze went to Kaylene. “You know where Good Bear was before he disappeared?” he asked guardedly.

“Yes, where most young men and adults alike were for a portion of the afternoon,” Kaylene said. “He may have been in the tent where the naked tattooed lady performed with her snake. Wouldn’t that prove why Little Sparrow doesn’t want to talk about it? She doesn’t want to tell on her friend.”