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Authors: Dorothy Wiley
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kidnap her, he’ll want to torture her. He’ll make her pay and he won’t give up until she has,” Sam said.
“That’s not going to happen,” Stephen snapped.
“We’ll keep her safe and yer wee bairns too,” Bear swore. “The question is how?”
“I’ve been trying to figure that out all afternoon,” Sam said. “We’ve dealt with Indian uprisings before, and we’ll do it again if necessary. But this isn’t an uprising. This is Bomazeen. He’s unpredictable and vicious.”
Stephen raked his fingers through his hair. “The problem is we don’t know when the sneaky devil will attack or attempt to get Jane again. I don’t want her living in fear every minute of her life and I can’t stay here at the house all the time. But now, I can’t leave them alone either.”
“We could take turns standing watch,” Bear suggested.
“But how long—a week, a month, six months?” Sam asked.
“Could she stay with kin?” Bear asked.
“Her folks have both passed, and she has no other relatives near here,” Stephen said.
“You could move into Barrington, near Edward,” Sam suggested, “but there’s no guarantee she would be safe there either. And how would you care for your livestock or keep someone from stealing them.”
Stephen’s heart beat faster. He realized what they needed to do. “There is a way to keep her safe, or at least to get her away from this threat. We go west. You both wanted to go anyway. Maybe this is God’s way of telling us it’s time. His way of spurring us on.”
“I beg ye na to take offense man, but is it possible that ye are usin’ this as an excuse to leave?” Bear asked. “Would ye have decided to go anyway? Ye told me ye were worried about the risks. About being reasonable.”
“Damn it Bear, what would you have me do?” Stephen tried to throttle his anger. “You’re the one who made me realize a decision like this has to be made from faith and courage not from what is rational and safe.”
“Aye, I did say that.”
“And you were right as rain,” Sam said. “Now it’s even moreright.”
Stephen scrubbed his fingers across his tired eyes and gritty face. Lack of sleep made it difficult to think clearly. Had they considered everything? One thing still bothered him. “What will keep them from following us?”
“If they did, I think they would only follow as far as the Merrimack River. Once we cross at Manchester, we should be safe. Natives are rarely seen past there,” Sam said. “After we cross the Merrimack, we’ll turn south towards Springfield. Of course, we could go to Pittsburgh and then take a flatboat down the Ohio, but we would be unable to take much with us. I think we would be better off going over land so we’d have more provisions when we get to Kentucky. This way, we can take food, tools, extra horses and a few of your best cattle.”
Stephen knew that for Sam a trip to Kentucky would be a glorious adventure, despite the dangers. Sam often talked about moving on. Most of the area’s tribes had relocated to Canada or high into the White Mountains and life did not challenge him as it once had. Since the Revolution, Sam made his living as a hunter, tracker, and sometimes a mapmaker. The work provided a reasonable livelihood, but he could tell it did not light a fire in Sam’s soul. The fire within his big brother was cold, smothered by some buried pain Sam refused to acknowledge, even to him.
Stephen gently stroked George’s face and scratched under his forelock. Touching his horse made him feel somewhat calmer.
“I agree, and a wagon will provide shelter for the children. After Springfield, where would we head?” Stephen asked Sam, already anxious to plan the trip. Sam had studied maps all his life and would know the route to Kentucky from memory.
“South through Hartford towards New York, then Philadelphia, skirting around larger cities as much as we can.”
This was no surprise. Sam hated large cities, especially
“That’s not going to happen,” Stephen snapped.
“We’ll keep her safe and yer wee bairns too,” Bear swore. “The question is how?”
“I’ve been trying to figure that out all afternoon,” Sam said. “We’ve dealt with Indian uprisings before, and we’ll do it again if necessary. But this isn’t an uprising. This is Bomazeen. He’s unpredictable and vicious.”
Stephen raked his fingers through his hair. “The problem is we don’t know when the sneaky devil will attack or attempt to get Jane again. I don’t want her living in fear every minute of her life and I can’t stay here at the house all the time. But now, I can’t leave them alone either.”
“We could take turns standing watch,” Bear suggested.
“But how long—a week, a month, six months?” Sam asked.
“Could she stay with kin?” Bear asked.
“Her folks have both passed, and she has no other relatives near here,” Stephen said.
“You could move into Barrington, near Edward,” Sam suggested, “but there’s no guarantee she would be safe there either. And how would you care for your livestock or keep someone from stealing them.”
Stephen’s heart beat faster. He realized what they needed to do. “There is a way to keep her safe, or at least to get her away from this threat. We go west. You both wanted to go anyway. Maybe this is God’s way of telling us it’s time. His way of spurring us on.”
“I beg ye na to take offense man, but is it possible that ye are usin’ this as an excuse to leave?” Bear asked. “Would ye have decided to go anyway? Ye told me ye were worried about the risks. About being reasonable.”
“Damn it Bear, what would you have me do?” Stephen tried to throttle his anger. “You’re the one who made me realize a decision like this has to be made from faith and courage not from what is rational and safe.”
“Aye, I did say that.”
“And you were right as rain,” Sam said. “Now it’s even moreright.”
Stephen scrubbed his fingers across his tired eyes and gritty face. Lack of sleep made it difficult to think clearly. Had they considered everything? One thing still bothered him. “What will keep them from following us?”
“If they did, I think they would only follow as far as the Merrimack River. Once we cross at Manchester, we should be safe. Natives are rarely seen past there,” Sam said. “After we cross the Merrimack, we’ll turn south towards Springfield. Of course, we could go to Pittsburgh and then take a flatboat down the Ohio, but we would be unable to take much with us. I think we would be better off going over land so we’d have more provisions when we get to Kentucky. This way, we can take food, tools, extra horses and a few of your best cattle.”
Stephen knew that for Sam a trip to Kentucky would be a glorious adventure, despite the dangers. Sam often talked about moving on. Most of the area’s tribes had relocated to Canada or high into the White Mountains and life did not challenge him as it once had. Since the Revolution, Sam made his living as a hunter, tracker, and sometimes a mapmaker. The work provided a reasonable livelihood, but he could tell it did not light a fire in Sam’s soul. The fire within his big brother was cold, smothered by some buried pain Sam refused to acknowledge, even to him.
Stephen gently stroked George’s face and scratched under his forelock. Touching his horse made him feel somewhat calmer.
“I agree, and a wagon will provide shelter for the children. After Springfield, where would we head?” Stephen asked Sam, already anxious to plan the trip. Sam had studied maps all his life and would know the route to Kentucky from memory.
“South through Hartford towards New York, then Philadelphia, skirting around larger cities as much as we can.”
This was no surprise. Sam hated large cities, especially
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