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83be7de
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I don't understand adoptions myself. I wouldn't want to be a father to somebody else's son. But the French and the Indians have run out of children. They love to pretend we're their children." They aren't pretending, thought Mercy. Annisquam's mother and father were not pretending. Annisquam is their son. "Do you know this boy Annisquam?" asked Joanna. "Where is he from?" Ebenezer shook his head. "Nobody will say and he isn't allowed to tal..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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2f75b73
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They stayed in St. Francis for several days. Mercy was careful not to be around Ebenezer Sheldon again, and careful not to examine the reasons why. Minutes before the Kahnawake Indians stepped into their canoes to paddle home, Mercy spotted the adopted boy walking alone. She darted between buildings to catch his arm. "Forgive me," she said in English. The language felt awkward and slippery, as though she might say the wrong thing. "I know ..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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77b6371
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One of the Sheldon boys had frozen his toes. His Indian came over to look but shook his head. There was nothing to be done. Ebenezer Sheldon could limp to Canada or give up. "Guess I'll limp," said Ebenezer, grinning."
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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37f5b31
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Ruth stormed away. She hated the Indians and prayed constantly not to hate her fellow captives as well. They were becoming Indian lovers. Only the stupefied Eliza had avoided it--and that was because she loved Indians so much she had married one. Ruth could not stand the sight of her own Indian, whose Mohawk name Mercy said meant "Otter." Ruth could not bear to think that Otter owned her, but the other captives easily referred to their Indi..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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f81b611
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Listen to Sarah Hoyt!" cried Ruth. Her long bony face was twisted with anger and hunger. "She's actually laughing. I despise her! It dishonors the dead to make friends with their murderers." Eben's heart broke for Ruth. Was that how she believed her mother had behaved? Dishonoring her dead? Ruth stormed over the snow to holler at Sarah, and Eben hoped Sarah would answer gently. But Ruth was caught by her Indian, who did not want the childre..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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0bf2cde
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Ruth lay down and inched forward until she could look over the edge of the cliff to see what had happened. The force of Otter's fall had brought snow and rock down upon him. One hand stuck out, and part of his face. What could Jesus have been thinking when he said that? This enemy was the murderer and slaughterer of innocent women and children. Ruth was not going to love him, she would never do anything good unto him, and certainly she was ..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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d0d55cd
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They marched. "Ask your Indian his name," Mercy said softly to Eben. "They like that." So Eben patted his chest and said, "Eben." Then he touched his Indian's arm and said, "Who are you?" "Thorakwaneken." Eben said it over and over until Thorakwaneken nodded and Eben supposed he had the pronunciation right. Mercy pointed to a squirrel sitting on a branch. "Thorakwaneken," she said, "what is that?" " repeated Mercy, and Eben echoed her. ..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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6a9b415
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Somebody was tapping Mercy in the ribs. It couldn't be Tommy, who pounced, or Sam, who jabbed. It wasn't John, who kissed, or Benny, who snuggled. Whichever brother it was had wet the bed in the night, and wet Mercy with him, and so far it was still warm, but the moment she separated from that sleeping brother, it would be cold and awful. But the tapping would not stop, and Mercy woke to see a deerskin legging with a painted running deer. "..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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723f397
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Mercy's only hope for friendship was Nistenha's cousin's daughter, Snow Walker, who was a frequent visitor and pleasant enough. But Indians were less likely to talk for the sake of talk and Snow Walker hardly talked at all. Snow Walker for a friend would be like a fence post for a friend.
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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35fca7b
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Eben would rather have had that knife pierce his chest and kill him than live to acquire an Indian vocabulary, but it was something to do and it kept Mercy cheerful.
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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d611d6e
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By summer, Kahnawake children had stopped wearing clothing. Mercy could not get over the sight of hundreds of naked children playing tag, or hide-and-seek, or competing in footraces. The boys--naked!--went into the woods to shoot squirrels and rabbits and partridge. They used bow and arrow, since their fathers did not like them using guns yet. Even the six- and seven-year-olds had excellent aim. Joseph didn't go entirely bare, being a littl..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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eb937df
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Mercy was outdoors more than she had ever been. She had thought that after the horrifying journey of ice and snow, she would never want the outdoors again. But spring and summer were joy. "You're not joyful because you love the outdoors," said Ruth. "It's because you don't have to be afraid of the Indians anymore. Anything they could do, they've already done." Ruth was in a terrible mood because ransom had never arrived. Joanna said Ruth w..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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82b33d2
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My theory," said Eben, "is that being a captive is an honor for the strong and the uncomplaining." Sarah and Mercy considered this. "Then why is Ruth alive? She complains all day long," said Sarah. "But she isn't sobbing," Mercy pointed out, "and she isn't actually complaining. She's calling them names. She attacked her own Indian this afternoon, did you see? She was going to stab him with his own knife." They giggled. It was scary to watch..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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e4ab408
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My theory," said Eben, "is that being a captive is an honor for the strong and the uncomplaining." Sarah and Mercy considered this. "Then why is Ruth alive? She complains all day long," said Sarah. "But she isn't sobbing," Mercy pointed out, "and she isn't actually complaining. She's calling them names. She attacked her own Indian this afternoon, did you see? She was going to stab him with his own knife." They giggled. It was scary to watch..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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cd4451b
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By the time Mercy had sorted this out, her three brothers were gone. She panicked. "Sam!" she screamed. "John! Benny!" She ran from group to group, darting behind sledges, racing among the dogs, circling the fires. "Sam! John!" What was the matter with her? How could she have stayed separate from them? Why had she not kicked Tannhahorens in the shins, as Ruth would have, and marched with her brothers no matter what he said? Ruth was right, ..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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0739c1b
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Mercy had never liked thinking about Eliza marrying an Indian. But what was her own future now? Would she, would Sarah, would Ruth, end up marrying an Indian? The image of Ruth Catlin agreeing to obey an Indian as her lawfully wedded husband made Mercy laugh.
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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f018c38
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Lord, it's only been six months since the last time I was a total jerk, thought Reeve. Am I going to be a total jerk again?
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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1cf7cd2
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I've had so much coffee I'm on the ceiling.
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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de60aab
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The letter, crumpled in her purse, felt as large as any Rocky Mountain.
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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fcb5f6f
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He shrugged and sipped his root beer. It came in a bottle. He liked holding a bottle to his lips much more than a can. He was exhausted from worrying about everybody.
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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5301365
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Last time she had been here, the room had been pastel, romantic and soft. Now it was icily white. It was urban, out of a slick magazine, as if some cold, successful woman lived here with two possessions and an empty refrigerator.
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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194855b
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My theory," said Eben, "is that being a captive is an honor for the strong and the uncomplaining." Sarah and Mercy considered this. "Then why is Ruth alive? She complains all day long," said Sarah. "But she isn't sobbing," Mercy pointed out, "and she isn't actually complaining. She's calling them names. She attacked her own Indian this afternoon, did you see? She was going to stab him with his own knife." They giggled. It was scary to watch..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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63162f8
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At the crunch of footsteps they looked up, and then they stopped talking. Ruth was dangerous, not because of her habit of throwing things, but because every word she spoke was upsetting. They had begun to see that part of survival was staying calm, and Ruth could not be calm. Even the way she sat down next to them, flouncing her skirt and whipping her cloak, was angry. Nobody asked what she was angry about now. She probably felt they should..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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720aaf3
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Turnpikes at night were like girl talk: not interesting.
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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af6b43e
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It's me! Mercy Carter! Oh, Mr. Williams! Do you have news?" She flung herself on top of him. Oh, his beautiful beard! The beard of a real father, not a pretend Indian father or a French church father. "My brothers," she begged. "John and Sam and Benny. Have you seen them? Have you heard anything about them? Do you know what happened to the little ones? Daniel? Have you found Daniel?" Mercy had forgotten that she had taken off her tunic to g..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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96bc0c6
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The Indians, it seemed, had paused here on their journey south from Canada to go hunting before the battle. Under the snow were stored the carcasses of twenty moose. Eben had to count them himself before he could believe it, and even then, he could not believe it. Eben was no hunter. If he'd gotten one moose, it would have been pure luck. But for this war party to have killed dragged every huge carcass here so there would be feasting on ..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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34a18c3
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And Ruth was the last person to whom a sensible Indian would hand a weapon.
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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a055d04
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But am I lost? And am I Mercy Carter? she had promised Uncle Nathaniel. I will remember my family, my God and my home. I have not broken my promise. I remember my family with love. I honor my God in every way...and in every language. And my home-- Is it here? It seemed to Mercy that she needed more time--weeks, months, even years--to know the answer to that question. She had been thinking about it since May of 1704, and yet she did not kno..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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c55a4b8
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The girl who had been Mercy Carter stood for a long time watching the canoes disappear down the St. Lawrence. She had waved after Daniel, had been too crushed to wave after Sarah and Eben, and never thought of waving after Deacon Sheldon. Ransom, she thought. I didn't take it. Nistenha removed the hat, folded it and touched the heavy gold braids. "Daughter?" It seemed to the girl that sky and wind and river held their peace and waited to he..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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6091225
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Oh, Eben!" breathed Mercy, thrilled and astonished. "Guess what?" The glare off the ice was bothering him, and as the temperature rose, the snow on the frozen river was turning to slush. His moccasins were soaked and his feet were so cold he could hardly bear the pressure of each step. "What?" "I can figure out Mohawk words, Eben!" she said excitedly. " was one of the first words Tannhahorens taught us. And we learned to count, so I know t..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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9a6560a
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Everybody was outdoors. This was the walkingest place Brian had ever seen.
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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8554373
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Stephen was shaped like a tire iron, all his bones a little too long:
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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947a176
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It's such a good meal tonight. Lemon chicken, carrot-raisin salad, orzo, broccoli, a nice dinner roll, and chocolate pudding.
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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ea8362f
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Rents were high, according to the ads in real estate agents' windows, but not killer high.
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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8d8dc4b
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When you were steadily dating a boy, as she was Reeve, and this was known to everybody, it freed you up to be friends with boys.
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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2e05f4a
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They reached a river where the water was open, seething and churning over rocks. We're going to cross that? thought Mercy. It's too wide and deep. We'll drown. Tannhahorens took off his tobacco necklace. He loved to smoke, as did all the warriors. Since they smoked only when they had time and felt safe, the prisoners also loved it when the men smoked; it meant everybody had time and was safe. Tannhahorens poured tobacco into his palm. He li..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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92a73e6
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It was worth going into the water just to get away from Ruth's nagging. Mercy waded in, appalled by how cold it was. Snow Walker towed her around for a minute and then let go. At first Mercy couldn't take two strokes without having to stand up and reassure herself that there was a bottom, but soon she could swim ten, and then twenty, strokes. Joseph, who had been swimming with the boys, paddled over to admire her new skill. Snow Walker coax..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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7573848
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The Indian next to Mr. Williams interrupted him roughly. "We kill. You tell." Mr. Williams ceased to pray. "Joe Alexander escaped last night," he said. "If anyone else tries to escape, they will burn the rest of us alive." Burn alive? Burn innocent women and children because one young man flew from their grasp? Her Indian stood some distance away amid the other warriors. He was now wearing a vivid blue cloth coat of European design. In one ..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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646b6b1
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Eben realized that he need not worry about being burned or tortured. He was going to starve to death. Eben had thought that up here, where nobody lived or ever had, the deer would be standing in rows in the woods awaiting a bullet. He had expected rabbits and grouse, moose and beaver. But there was no game. They built shelters from woven branches, piling spruce and hemlock on top to keep out the snow. Each day some of the Indians left to hu..
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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d375b7f
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Pretty dresses, desperate hearts.
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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1952ca8
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And Charlotte!" said Mrs. Shields in tones of disgust. "Who even knew there was a town called Charlotte?"
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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a781604
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Stephen was holding his glass of tea so tightly it squeezed out the bottom of his grip like toothpaste and landed on the table.
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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68e2063
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He pressed the icy glass against his cheek, literally trying to chill out.
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Caroline B. Cooney |
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7194778
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She could eat a salad without worrying about diarrhea.
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Caroline B. Cooney |