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3187909
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Hunter found Warrior down by the river, teaching Pony Girl to swim. Sitting beneath a cottonwood, Hunter pressed his back to the trunk and rested his forearm on his upraised knee. "Warrior, I must make a short trip," he began. "Will you watch my woman and her sister while I'm gone?" Distracted by the question, Warrior forgot to watch his niece and turned. "Another trip? You've only just returned." Hunter's gaze dropped to Pony Girl, and his..
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Catherine Anderson |
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05ef4c5
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Hunter?" She grasped his shoulders for support, digging her nails into his flesh. "Hunter?" "I am here. Be easy." He slid a hand to the nape of her neck and turned her face back to him. "Be easy." Loretta's legs felt like wet clay. As his mouth again claimed hers, a hundred possibilities ran through her mind, all frightening. Then sensation wiped out everything. There was only Hunter, solid and warm and gentle, holding her in rock-hard arms..
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Catherine Anderson |
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d2dbf2a
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My song says I will one day leave my people. I am Comanche. Without them, I will be as nothing, Blue Eyes." Loretta stared sightlessly into the shifting shadows, watching the play of firelight. "It's only a legend, Hunter. A silly legend. Hatred going away on the wind? High places and great canyons of blood! New tomorrows and new nations?" She turned her face toward him. "Look into my eyes. Do you see a new morning with new beginnings?" He ..
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Catherine Anderson |
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0721df3
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Watching you and my daughter, seeing how you've survived things other women couldn't--" She licked her lips. "That steel in your backbones came from your bringin' up, from me. I've taught you to stand up and fight back. I've raised you proud. Lately, I've been staring into my looking glass, wondering where the old Rachel has got off to." "Oh, Aunt Rachel, you've only done what you felt you had to for me and Amy." Rachel nodded. "Yes. But th..
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Catherine Anderson |
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fbf372f
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My dear child," the priest inserted, "it's not often one of these"--he threw a meaningful glance at Hunter--" offers to make an honorable woman of a captive. Wouldn't it be wise to accept?" "I'm in no need of matrimony, Father. I still my honor."
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Catherine Anderson |
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4413f43
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Loretta didn't realize she had drifted off to sleep until she awoke to the delicious warmth of Hunter's lips on her throat. She opened her eyes slowly, registering his presence beside her. A shaft of moonlight coming through the smoke hole gilded the broad shoulders that canopied hers. His solid chest, warm and silken, pinned her against soft fur. A wonderfully hard arm encircled her, his broad wrist pressed against her spine, his long fing..
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Catherine Anderson |
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0eace02
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Hunter grew amused, watching Loretta. When she threw him an accusing glance, he noted that her pupils had flared until her irises were almost black. Crimson rode her cheeks, and a rosy flush colored her slender throat. He wondered if her entire body was pink and wish they were alone so he could find out. Tonight he would build a fire so she couldn't hide in shadows, and he would learn every inch of her, slowly.
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Catherine Anderson |
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3eb5a61
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Tonight he would build a fire so she couldn't hide in shadows, and he would learn every inch of her, slowly.
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Catherine Anderson |
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9865065
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Hunter grew amused, watching Loretta. When she threw him an accusing glance, he noted that her pupils had flared until her irises were almost black. Crimson rode her cheeks, and a rosy flush colored her slender throat. He wondered if her entire body was pink and wish they were alone so he could find out. Tonight he would build a fire so she couldn't hide in shadows, and he would learn every inch of her, slowly. Her shyness tantalized him..
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Catherine Anderson |
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e75dce8
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We should get back," she said softly. "It'll be getting dark soon. And I'm tired." Brimming with the energy of youth, Swift Antelope and Amy leaped to their feet, eager to be gone. When Loretta stood, Hunter grasped her ankle. "We will follow later," he said huskily. Swift Antelope flashed a knowing grin and took Amy's hand to hurry her along. Loretta gazed after them, her color deepening. When she looked down at Hunter, her eyes were wide ..
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Catherine Anderson |
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eb0551c
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Your woman tries to flee," Red Buffalo snarled. "She makes a lie of her promise to you, eh? It is just as I said. She can never be one with the People. Never! She is an , liar, and unworthy. She has made a fool of you, cousin!" A hush fell over the crowd. Hunter tightened his legs around his stallion and picked up the reins. "Which direction did she go?" "Toward the horses. Where else? Whose will she kill this time, eh?" Hunter kicked his ..
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Catherine Anderson |
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32ee73a
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Let's list our evidence against him, shall we?" Loretta held up a fist. "What did Hunter do when Santos took you?" "He came and got me." Loretta uncurled her thumb. "That's one piece of evidence. What did he do after he got you away from Santos?" "He took care of me," Amy replied in a thin voice, her mouth trembling. "Oh, Loretta, I all the good things about Hunter! You don't have to make me count 'em." "That's a relief, 'cause I'm not su..
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Catherine Anderson |
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dcab1f0
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I think you know, Matthew. You have many corners in your heart.
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heart
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Catherine Anderson |
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a0f127b
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I don't know why you even want me!" A sad smile twisted his mouth as he recalled how she had walked out alone to face a hundred Comanches, one small woman against an army. "You make a smile inside me, that is why I want you. The way a man wants his wife." He ran a hand up her back, kneading her tense muscles. "You will trust this Comanche? As you did when you rode in a great circle back to me? This one last time, you will trust? No hurting ..
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Catherine Anderson |
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37866f0
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By the fifth night his perseverance was rewarded with a smile from Amy after Swift Antelope escorted her home from their daily walk. With flushed cheeks, Amy regaled Loretta with the details of her time spent with Swift Antelope, about the doe and twin fawns they had spied upon, about the flowers Swift Antelope had picked for her, about the birdcalls and sign language he was teaching her, about the silly tricks he played on her. Clearly Swi..
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Catherine Anderson |
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d190e74
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Cookie: And I ain't trustworthy. You got no call to be insultin'!
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Catherine Anderson |
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17a54b7
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Maybe people truly did have differen corners in their hearts.
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hearts
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Catherine Anderson |
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1a5ee87
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You're plumb addled, stealin' off like this from a Comanche husband. Don't you got an inklin' of what he'll do when he catches you?" "Beat me senseless, I reckon, which is why I'm not planning to get caught." "He'll beat you all right, in front of the whole village. Your leavin' is a dishonor to him. Why, he's liable to be so mad he'll hack your nose off! It ain't like he's white folk, Loretta Jane. You don't go leavin' a Comanche! Hunter'l..
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Catherine Anderson |
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0f1eb7a
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You can make war with your eyes for a moon and win no battles. I grow tired of your anger, Blue Eyes." She lifted her small nose in the air and refused to look at him. Her hair had dried in a wild tangle of ringlets that wreathed her head in gold. Frustrated, Hunter clenched his teeth. Whether she realized it yet or not, she no longer feared him as she once had. A frightened woman didn't push like this. "You will tell me of this anger that ..
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Catherine Anderson |
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0a3b780
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The first day out, she and Amy kept one eye on the horizon behind them, terrified that Comanches would appear. The second day, both of them relaxed a little. By the third, Amy was convinced Hunter wasn't going to follow them. "He must figger it's good riddance," Amy mused. "They can cover twice the distance we can in a day. What else could've took him so long?" Loretta had no illusions. Hunter would follow her--to the ends of the earth if h..
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Catherine Anderson |
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fe3d299
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She touched the scar that slashed his cheek, the lifeless lips that had so frequently whispered comfort to her. If her face was carved on his heart, his was carved on her soul.
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Catherine Anderson |
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c4adbef
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Something impressive for a boy, Ma." Amy pursed her lips. "You know--like Mighty Fighter. Or Wise King. You gotta remember how Hunter thinks. They give boys grand names." "Swift Antelope, for example?" Loretta grinned. "Makes him sound like he oughta have a tail to wag, don't it?" Amy dimpled her cheek. "Of course, he hates the name Amy, so we're even. He says it sounds like a sheep baaing." "The way he says it, it sound like a sheep baai..
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Catherine Anderson |
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db70724
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Someone must preserve the ways of the People," Warrior rasped, "someone who will sing our songs and teach our ways. Unless you do that, all that we are will be lost. You must go get your woman and take her far away into the west lands where this war does not reach." Warrior's voice shook with emotion. "To a new place, Hunter. You know the words of the song." "Warrior, you make it sound so simple. You saw what happened near her home today. ..
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Catherine Anderson |
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5f6ba2b
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Your own name isn't half-bad. Bet you don't know what Loretta means." Rachel folded the dough over, then glanced up with a teasing grin. "Your momma and me picked it, mainly for the meaning." "It's a variation of Laura, isn't it? Laurel wreath or something?" "That's the common meaning. But in your ma's name book, there was another." "Well? Give over." Loretta waited, watching her aunt. "What's it mean? Flat-chested and scrawny?" Rachel thre..
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Catherine Anderson |
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1b0355e
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Still numb with shock, she stared off into the distance, remembering the night Hunter had recited his song to her. She studied the rise, truly believing, for the first time, that she and Hunter were destined to be together. She tried to remember all the words to his song. They came to her in snatches. A silly legend, she had once called it. Now she knew better. Too much of it had already come to pass for her to scoff. A canyon of blood..
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Catherine Anderson |
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c9c4658
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You will lie beside me." "But what about Amy?" "Your Aye-mee is with my mother, yes? The woman who is mean like a buffalo. She is safe. You will be easy about her until the sun shows its face." His voice turned husky. " , come." "I--I'd really like to check on her. She fainted, Hunter. I want to know she's okay. I won't rest until I know that." "If she were not, my mother would come. My mother has good medicine, yes? And she is very kind. Y..
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Catherine Anderson |
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a111380
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You have stolen my heart." "No," she whispered rawly. "Don't say that, don't even think it. Can't you understand? I'll never love you back, Hunter." Her pulse started to slam. "I'm terrified of--" He crossed her lips with a gentle finger, his eyes clouding with warmth. "Of lying with me? I am not blind, Blue Eyes. Your heart is laid upon the ground with memories. That will pass. You will come to me. You will want my hand upon you. It will b..
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Catherine Anderson |
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3178e57
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You must also remember the yellow-hair may give you many more children than a Comanche woman. Take care or you could father more children than you can feed. I've never seen a white woman yet who wasn't a good breeder." A slow grin spread across Hunter's mouth. "You will tell her this, yes? So far she isn't showing the proper enthusiasm."
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Catherine Anderson |
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eeca2e0
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Now you will show this Comanche how good you play number one fiddle, yes?" "I--" Loretta's mouth went as dry as dust as she tripped along beside him, her arm vised in his grip. "Surely you don't mean right " Her startled gaze focused on the lodge door. "It's not even dark yet. People are still awake. You haven't eaten. There's no fire built. We can't just--" He lifted the door flap and drew her into the dark lodge. "Blue Eyes, I have no hu..
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Catherine Anderson |
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af0a486
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He clamped a hand behind her head and drew her against his chest, burying his face in the hollow of her shoulder. "It is not the way of a Comanche to beat his woman," he rasped. "Just as it is not his way to let her go away from him." She turned her face to touch her lips to his neck. "Make a memory with me, Hunter," she whispered huskily. "One more beautiful memory." Cinching an arm around her waist, Hunter stretched out with her on the fu..
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Catherine Anderson |
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608f8df
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I will go wherever the Great Ones lead me," Hunter whispered. "You know I will. It's just that I can't see the path they want me to follow. There is no one to lead me." "The path will be there. When you turn your face westward you will , deep within, where to place your feet." Warrior's voice rang with certainty."
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Catherine Anderson |
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1caf95c
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She turned her face to touch her lips to his neck. "Make a memory with me, Hunter," she whispered huskily. "One more beautiful memory."
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Catherine Anderson |
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73a32fd
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Buffalo chips!" Amy grumbled. "Fine way to spend the mornin', gatherin' pooh for fires. Why us?" "Because we aren't so old we get crinks in our backs or so young we'll get lost." Loretta bent over, picked up a dried pie, and stowed it in her gunnysack. Since their ordeal at the Bartletts' last night, Amy hadn't once smiled. Loretta couldn't help being concerned. "You never complained in Hunter's village." "That was different. You to do th..
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Catherine Anderson |
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239f74a
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Well, with Hunter as the father, I have to think of names he'd approve of." "You call that child Running Water and I'll disown you." Loretta giggled. "I don't know. After hemming all those diapers, maybe Running Water wouldn't be so far off mark."
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Catherine Anderson |
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4b96412
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How about naming a boy after his papa and his uncle Warrior?" Rachel asked. "Chase Kelly. Chase means hunter, Kelly means warrior." Loretta lowered her sewing to her lap, her gaze dreamy. "Chase Kelly--Chase Kelly. It has a nice ring, doesn't it?" "Be nicer with a proper surname," Rachel commented. "Wolf!" Amy cried. "That's as close to a last name for Hunter as you'll get." "Chase Kelly Wolf." Loretta rolled the name off her tongue a few t..
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Catherine Anderson |
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1027860
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For a girl, how about Nicole? It means a girl who's victorious for her people." "Oh, I like that," Loretta whispered. "Hunter would that." Rachel smiled. "Nicole Wolf. If she has her daddy's eyes, Indigo would go perfect with it. Nicole Indigo Wolf." "Doesn't sound right," Amy argued. "Indigo Nicole Wolf! That, I like." "Indigo Nicole." Tears burned behind Loretta's eyelids. A girl victorious for her people. "Yes, that's beautiful, for bo..
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Catherine Anderson |
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b27c7f5
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Your own name isn't half-bad. Bet you don't know what Loretta means." Rachel folded the dough over, then glanced up with a teasing grin. "Your momma and me picked it, mainly for the meaning." "It's a variation of Laura, isn't it? Laurel wreath or something?" "That's the common meaning. But in your ma's name book, there was another." "Well? Give over." Loretta waited, watching her aunt. "What's it mean? Flat-chested and scrawny?" Rachel thre..
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Catherine Anderson |
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4f87525
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A Good light to kill by.
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Catherine Anderson |
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033eebd
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Do you sleep?" Warrior asked. Hunter jerked and peered at his brother through the silvery gloom. "No, , I do not sleep." Warrior spread his buffalo robe and sat down, bracing his arms on his bent knees. Contemplating the darkness, he said, "You are no longer one with us." Something hard and cold turned over in Hunter's stomach. Was his turmoil so apparent? "I love the People, Warrior." "I know that. But you are no longer one with us." Warr..
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Catherine Anderson |
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7432faf
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She and Hunter were enemies; that she understood. He hated her. She understood that even better. But deadly enemy or not, hated or not, Loretta never would have laughed at him if their roles had been reversed. She might have obliged him and slit his throat, dad-blame him, but she wouldn't have laughed. She hated him more than she had ever hated anyone--so much that during the course of the afternoon, she had imagined murdering him in a doz..
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Catherine Anderson |
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fab7e3f
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I have great love for you, If you leave me, my heart will be laid upon the ground. But it is time that you fulfill the last part of the prophecy." Hunter's mouth went dry. He fixed his attention on the stars. "Someone must preserve the ways of the People," Warrior rasped, "someone who will sing our songs and teach our ways. Unless you do that, all that we are will be lost. You must go get your woman and take her far away into the west la..
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Catherine Anderson |
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dc92478
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The hate has gone from you to a faraway place you cannot find, as it was spoken in the prophecy. That's why it is time for you to walk your own way. You must fight the last great fight for the People, yes? And you must fight it alone. I have to stay here. For our mother, my children. You're our hope, our only hope." "You call it hope? I call it running away." "No! When we run, we find someplace familiar and safe. Winter will be upon us soon..
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Catherine Anderson |
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d3eac26
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The wise ones called council. We cannot remain passive. The whites must be driven out. Now is the right time, while they are at war amongst themselves. Their soldiers are away. They're defenseless. The People must strike." Red Buffalo's sobbing quieted. "But Hunter, that is exactly what you feared might happen. What about survival through peace?" "It's too late for that." A heavy ache centered itself in Hunter's chest. "I am a dreamer, Red ..
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Catherine Anderson |
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d226bb4
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The wise ones called council. We cannot remain passive. The whites must be driven out. Now is the right time, while they are at war amongst themselves. Their soldiers are away. They're defenseless. The People must strike." Red Buffalo's sobbing quieted. "But Hunter, that is exactly what you feared might happen. What about survival through peace?" "It's too late for that." A heavy ache centered itself in Hunter's chest. "I am a dreamer, Red ..
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Catherine Anderson |