chapter 17

It was mid-morning when the cry was sounded that the warriors were spotted returning to the village. As the call echoed from person to person, everyone began making their way towards the center of the village where the battle-weary group was convening.

Unlike the quiet, reserved way the warriors had been sent off to war, their return was met with an abundance of cheers and cries of joy. Unfortunately, those sounds were soon joined by a few sad cries when some of the tribe saw their loved ones returning on travois, but thankfully the dead and seriously injured were few for the Quedeyona.

As the warriors entered the center of the village, friends and loved ones began to surround them. Black Wolf and Fighting Dog were immediately approached by their relieved parents, as was Mountain Lion Guides. Any slaves that went to greet the returning warriors hung back as was the custom. They would only be allowed to greet them once the Quedeyona natives had their chance first.

Mountain Lion Guides had forgone a travois for the last leg of the journey, opting to be on his horse upon his entrance to the village. Despite that, he still had to be helped down by Black Wolf and Fighting Dog since his injury was very bothersome. Still, it had not been so serious as to weaken him to the point of needing to travel back on a travois for the entire journey.

Once he was on his feet, his parents surrounded him, fussing over his injury and his return. Black Wolf and Fighting Dog shared a laugh as they left a flustered Mountain Lion Guides in the care of his parents.

As they headed toward their own parents, Brown Skunk and her cronies blocked the path of the two weary warriors.

"Black Wolf," cooed Brown Skunk, “It is good to see that you have returned from the war in one piece. Our families will be pleased, I’m sure.”


“Yes, I’m sure they will be, excuse me,” replied Black Wolf as he and Fighting Dog sidestepped the twittering group to continue towards their parents. Neither of the brothers saw the angry glare Brown Skunk directed at their retreating backs.

Walking over to where Gentle Otter and Bright Wolf were standing with a silent Porcupine Smiles behind them, Fighting Dog was the first to reach them. He happily hugged both parents then grinned as his mother looked him over for injuries. Of the two sons, Fighting Dog was the least injured since he only had a few scrapes and bruises.

Bright Wolf hugged Black Wolf while Gentle Otter was busy with Fighting Dog, but when it was her turn to hug Black Wolf she was in full mother mode.

“Black Wolf, you are wounded!” She chastised as Fighting Dog wrapped Porcupine Smiles in a tight embrace while Bright Wolf just shook his head at his wife’s dismay.

Black Wolf shook his head. “It is nothing mother.”


“Nothing! These are threads I see. What? Did you mistake your skin as a piece of cloth you needed to sew up?” She motioned to his arm.

As Fighting Dog, Porcupine Smiles Bright Wolf tried to hide their amusement, Black Wolf squirmed under his mother’s attentions. “It was just a flesh would, not deep at all and it stopped bleeding quickly. See? It’s already almost healed.”

She tsked him. “Then it has been healing at least two days now, if not more.”

Black Wolf gave her a sheepish look as Fighting Dog broke into laughter. “Mother, you should see his side and thigh.”


“Brother!” hissed Black Wolf as Gentle Otter lifted up his shirt to peer at his side while Porcupine Smiles lightly hit Fighting Dogs shoulder for tattling on him.

“It’s not bad mother,” Black Wolf insisted as she worried over his side for a few moments before trying to lift his pants leg.

“Ugh, I cannot see the wound on your calf. Let’s get to the house so that you can remove your pants.”

As his father and brother roared with laughter while Porcupine Smiles tried to hide her giggles behind her hand, Black Wolf turned bright red. “Really, I’m not a child! Besides, there is something I have to discuss with White Swan. Where is she by the way?”

He’d glanced in Crow Flies and his family’s direction when they’d arrived to greet their returning sons, but White Swan wasn’t with them. As they all began to look around for her, Fighting Dog frowned.

“I don’t see Owl Sees Truth either and I’m sure she would want to see Mountain Lion Guides since he is hurt.”

Porcupine Smiles suddenly gasped, then gave them a slight nod. Speaking in slow, halted words she managed to speak to them in Quedeyona. “Excuse me, but I almost forgot, White Swan had told me last night she was to be doing some washing today. Maybe Owl Sees Truth is at the river too and they have not been informed that the warriors have returned.”

Bright Wolf frowned. “You may be right, Porcupine Smiles. I do not think the announcement cries were loud enough to reach the washing river. Would you please go and see if they know?”


“Yes and tell them all to come immediately. Take White Swan to my parents home to meet us there, okay?” added Black Wolf.

Porcupine Smiles nodded as Fighting Dog gave her a quick hug before she hastened to do as they asked.

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White Swan had just finished putting the last of her wash into the basket, then turned to help Owl Sees Truth out when Porcupine Smiles came rushing into the clearing with a huge smile on her face.

“Bella, you have to translate for me!” she said in a rush before looking around at the rest of the slaves and braves who were there.

“Go ahead,” replied White Swan as she waited for Porcupine Smiles to say what she needed to.

“Everyone, I was sent here to tell all of you that the warriors have returned home from the war and they want all of you to go to greet them like the rest of the village is. Most of them are still within the center of the village. Leah, Mountain Lion Guides is with his parents and more likely on his way to his home right now. And Bella, you are to come with me to Black Wolf’s parent’s house because he wants to talk to you.”

White Swan finished translating for the others who were there, but as soon as the words were out of her mouth, everyone began gathering up their things to head back to the village. Owl Sees Truth was frantically trying to finish up her wash, which Porcupine Smiles and White Swan helped her to get done quicker.

Then the three of them headed back to the village with Owl Sees Truth heading one way while White Swan and Porcupine Smiles headed another way once they’d reached the first line of houses. As Owl Sees Truth disappeared around a corner, White Swan looked at Porcupine Smiles.

“Any idea what Black Wolf wants to talk to me about?”

“None,” replied Porcupine Smiles, “but I should tell you that Leah is going to be happy to see Mountain Lion Guides alive. It seems he was severely injured a few days ago.”

“Oh no!” gasped White Swan. “Is Black…”

“He’s fine and so is Fighting Dog. They said Mountain Lion Guides looks much better now than he did a few days ago.”

“Oh, that’s good then.”

“Yep,” answered Porcupine Smiles as they approached the home where Black Wolf and Fighting Dog were outside waiting for them.

As soon as Black Wolf saw White Swan, he smiled and walked to meet her with his arms wide. White Swan laughed with joy to see him alive as she ran into his arms where he hugged her tightly before kissing her. Not too far away, Porcupine Smiles and Fighting Dog were saying their own hellos in a similar manner.

As the two of them parted, White Swan glanced down at Black Wolf’s arm. “Oh Jake!” she whispered as she saw the stitches there.

Black Wolf ran a hand over them. “It’s almost healed now, nothing to worry about.”

White Swan looked up at him with a raised eyebrow. “Are there any other wounds you have that I can’t see?”

Fighting Dog started laughing. “You cannot fool her, brother.”

Black Wolf rolled his eyes at him. “Angela, why don’t you take my little brother for a walk so I can talk to my woman alone.”

Porcupine Smiles winked at Black Wolf as she slid her arm around Fighting Dog’s waist. “Come on Embry, let’s go find a quiet place for us right now.”

It was a testament as to how much Fighting Dog wanted to be with Porcupine Smiles when he didn’t argue with her, but grinned and winked at White Swan before sliding his arm around Porcupine Smiles’ shoulders to lead her away from the others.

As soon at they were gone, Black Wolf cupped White Swan’s face in his hands, then leaned over to kiss her. As he deepened the kiss, sliding his tongue between White Swan’s parted lips to tease her tongue, White Swan let out a soft moan. Before she had the chance to really lose herself in his kiss, he pulled away once more to lean his forehead against hers.

“Sorry, I really needed to do that.”

White Swan chuckled softly. “That’s okay Jake, I needed that too.”

He smiled as he lifted his head, but before he could say anything else, White Swan spoke again. “So, what other injuries are you hiding?”

Black Wolf laughed at the look she wore. It was a don’t-think-the-kiss-made-me-forget look. Still, he didn’t brush her off the way he’d tried to with his mother. Lifting his shirt slightly, he showed her the row of stitches on his side where an arrow had managed to knick him.

At her gasp he said, “Luckily my shirt stopped the arrow from making a deeper gash. As it was, the shooter wasn’t a good aim.”

Then he pointed to the spot on his thigh where the other wound should be. “There’s a hole from the tip of a spear, but again I was lucky to stop it before it went deep. It was cauterized to stop the bleeding and to keep infection from setting in.”

As White Swan grimaced, Black Wolf took her hand in his. “None of them were that bad really. Mountain Lion Guides’ was much worse.”

White Swan frowned. “What happened to him?”

Black Wolf quickly told White Swan about Mountain Lion Guides, but reassured her that he was now all right and probably more so since Owl Sees Truth should be with him now. “But enough of that, I wanted you to meet me here for another reason.”

White Swan gave him a curious look. “What’s that?”

Black Wolf gave her a smile before letting go of her hands. “Wait here, there’s someone I want you to meet.”

White Swan watched as Black Wolf disappeared into his parent’s house for a few minutes. When he came back out, he wasn’t alone. “White Swan, this is White Coyote.”

White Swan’s eyes went wide as she instantly recognized him. Before she was able to say a word, White Coyote threw his arms around her and hugged her tight.

“Oh my God, Isabella!” he exclaimed.

White Swan closed her eyes and hugged her older brother just as tightly as he held her. “Oh Emmett! I never thought I’d see you again!”

“Me too Bella! Me too!”

He pulled back to look her over and grinned at her. “Wow! Look at you! You’re all grown up now!”

White Swan smiled as she took in Emmett’s appearance too. His hair was much longer than he’d worn it as a boy, reaching just past his shoulders. It was darker than she remembered it, but it still had golden highlights throughout it. That had always been a sign of his spending time outdoors.

His eyes were still the blue she remembered, the kind that turned stormy grey when he was moody. His smile was still the same too. It was a smile that made his eyes sparkle when he was being mischievous.

He had also acquired a darker skin tone like she had from living among the Indians so much. She and Emmett had been the two who had never really burned when exposed to excessive amounts of sunlight.

But what amazed White Swan the most was that he wasn’t as tall and lanky as she’d thought he would be. She had thought Emmett would have grown up to be tall and slender like their father. Instead he was a few inches shorter than Black Wolf and a little stockier too.

Despite the fact that she was petite, she knew she’d be the one most mistaken for one of the natives than he would ever be. Her hair and eyes were brown, plus she wore all of the Quedeyona clothing as comfortably as if she had been born to it.

In the leggings and vest Emmett wore, he still had very visible tan lines around his biceps, waist and neck. Then there were those blue eyes that stood out when not obscured by his hair while the clothes sat on his body as if they had been meant for someone else other than him.

“You look all grown up too, Emmett.”

He chuckled at that before turning serious. “How have you really been, Isabella?”

She gave him a comforting nod. “Fine. The Quedeyona have treated me well. Crow Flies and his family have been really good to me.”

“I’m glad to hear that.”

“What about you?” she asked.

“As good as I can be…better now that I’ve seen you.”

White Swan smiled. “How did you get here anyway?”

Emmett nodded towards Black Wolf who’d been silently standing nearby. Black Wolf smiled at them before moving closer.

“I recognized him in the midst of all the fighting. You both share the same features but the colors are a bit different. When the war was over, I saw him again with the Taganila, but that time it became clear who he was. His owner allowed me to purchase him so that I could reunite the two of you once I was certain he was your brother.”

White Swan’s eyes were wide as she stared at her brother. “You were fighting in the war?”

Emmett shrugged. “It was better than remaining at the village and feeling like a weakling.”

White Swan quirked an eyebrow at that as Black Wolf spoke up again. “Since I now own him, I will start looking for my own home tomorrow so that we may have more room. It’s time that I lived on my own, but for the time being, White Coyote and I will be here with my parents.”

White Swan nodded to Black Wolf before turning to grin at her brother. “Oh Emmett! It’s so wonderful to have you with me again!”

Emmett wrapped his arms around his younger sister, hugging her tightly. “It’s good to be with you too, Bella!”

As she remained in his embrace for a few moments longer, she glanced up at Black Wolf who stood there with a smile.

“Thank you,” she mouthed to him.

He winked at her before speaking up again. “White Swan, why don’t you show White Coyote around the village while I speak to my parents. It will give the two of you some time to get reacquainted with each other.”

White Swan gave him a grateful nod. “Thank you Black Wolf, I’ll do that.”

She took her brother’s hand to lead him away from the house. “Come on Emmett, let’s go for a walk.”

As the two of them walked away holding hands with smiles on their faces, Black Wolf couldn’t help but feel lighthearted. His negotiation skills had paid off well. He had been able to give White Swan her brother back, thus making her even happier than she already was. For Black Wolf, seeing White Swan smile was one of the things he enjoyed the most nowadays.

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Emmett glanced at his younger sister out of the corner of his eye. Never in a century had he imagined that he would ever see one of his sisters again. Yet now that he had seen Bella, he was still surprised to see how happy and healthy she seemed.

Granted, his life had not been a hard one with the Taganila either. In fact, the family that had taken him in as a slave when he’d been fourteen had been strict, but nice. He knew the firm way they had treated him in the beginning had only been to control his rebelliousness. However, once he had settled down after realizing that life wasn’t so bad, they had begun to treat him with respect and kindness.

As the years had gone by, he had begun to learn how to hunt, make weapons and fight with or without weapons. He had even learned that the Taganila believed all slaves should be able to protect themselves. Of course, they did not encourage those who seemed eager to use their training to harm a Taganila in order to escape.

Those who attempted to do that were hunted down and killed as punishment for any harm they’d inflicted. It may have seemed harsh to some, but it was effective in preventing a huge loss of life or runaways.

Also, there was the bonus of knowing a slave could be freed someday, depending on the circumstances. For a slave like Emmett, all he had to do was continue his duties willingly, then put in some extra effort if he wanted to. The extra effort was where his freedom lay. If Emmett hired himself out to other members of the Taganila with his owner’s approval, he was often paid for his efforts in various goods and bounty.

It was that bounty that would eventually add up if he took care not to spend any of it. Once a certain amount was reached, the slave would be allowed to purchase his own freedom. Of course, the owner could refuse to grant freedom to their slave, but it was rare and mostly done only for legitimate reasons. The council also had a hand in those decisions so that everything went smoothly and fairly.

Now that Emmett was with the Quedeyona, Black Wolf had told him he could continue to earn his freedom even though this tribe did not generally use that custom. The Quedeyona tribe usually only brought female slaves since they were better suited to the tasks they needed them for, although there were a couple of male slaves in the village besides Emmett. Since the Quedeyona didn’t allow their slaves to earn their freedom, that meant the slaves could only be freed if they were to be married off or if an outsider came to buy their freedom.

Quedeyona slaves also were not allowed to earn anything through extra effort like the Taganila slaves were. However, Black Wolf had assured Emmett that since he had originally come from the Taganila, all rules and agreements that tribe had made with Emmett would be honored by the Quedeyona.

He had been allowed to bring his earnings with him, plus the tribe would continue to allow him to be paid for any extra effort he did within the village. Then, when he used those earnings to buy his freedom or anything else he wished to, Black Wolf and the council would either accept or deny his request according to the legitimacy of it.

As he walked through the village with his sister, he was certain he would be able to afford both his freedom and Bella’s within a few months, if not sooner. He knew he would have to work extra hard to get them both free as soon as possible, but he didn’t mind that at all. The sooner he and Bella could get away from the savages, the happier he would be.

“So, have you heard anything about Alice?” asked White Swan.

Emmett shook his head. “I was kind of hoping they’d let you two stay together, but I knew the chances were slim.”

White Swan nodded. “They took me the day after they took you. I have no idea where she is now.”

Emmett sighed. “Wherever she is, I hope she’s treated as well as you and I have been.”

White Swan nodded. “Yes, I’ve always hoped you both were all right. I’m glad things turned out well for you, but I knew you’d be okay on your own.”

Her eyes darkened as a frown appeared on her face. “The last I saw of Alice, she’d been screaming and crying as if they were torturing her. Sometimes I still hear her screams in my sleep. Even though I could see that she was whole and no one was hurting her, I just couldn’t stop thinking that she would never survive on her own as easily as we could.”

Emmett stopped and pulled his sister into a hug. “I know Bella. She was always the weakest of us three, but I haven’t given up hope. She’s a Swan after all and she has both ma and pa’s blood in her veins, just like we do. That has to account for something!”

White Swan hugged him tight. “Yes, I hope so too.”

When he finally pulled away, he grinned at her. “So little sister, tell me about your life here. I want to know how it is that you came by the name of White Swan.”

White Swan laughed as they continued to walk on. “Not as much as I want to know how you got White Coyote!”

He gave her a mischievous smile before beginning to tell her the story, knowing full well that Black Wolf would allow them a few hours to catch up with each other before they had to be separated again.