Blind Fury (13 page)

Instead of answering, he burrowed, snug as a sleepy kitten, against Colin's chest.

Wakara felt a rush of love for her little brother. He could be such a pain; sometimes she forgot he was only six.

She showered quickly and washed her hair. Sunday school didn't start until 9:30, so she could let it dry naturally instead of using the blower. She usually just braided it while it was still wet, but she wanted to wear it down today. As she combed conditioner through the thick, black locks, her
conscience stirred uneasily. She really should offer to stay home with Ryan and give Anne a break. She felt a surge of disappointment; she really wanted to sit with Colin in church.

She peered into the mirror, expecting to see a little devil sitting on one shoulder and a tiny angel sitting on the other. “All right, you win!” she told the imaginary angel. “I'll offer to stay home. But if Anne says no, then you leave me alone. Deal?” She grinned at the silly charade, pulled on slacks and a bright red sweater just in case she did make it to church, then hurried downstairs.

Anne was in the kitchen. She shook her head when Kara repeated her offer. “No. I will stay.”

Kara wrinkled her nose as Anne poured one of her special brews into Ryan's favorite mug. If this was the same concoction she had made a few weeks ago when Kara had a cold, it tasted as bitter as an unripe lemon. A teaspoon of honey would make it easier to swallow. She reached into the cupboard and handed Anne the honey jar.

Anne set it right back on the shelf. “Thank you, but sometimes a boy must take the medicine he earns.”

Kara didn't dare laugh. Poor Ryan! It looked like there would be more consequences for his behavior than he'd counted on. And, she remembered, they still had to tell Dad.

Colin opened the back door just as Anne disappeared into the family room.

“Whew, who said July doesn't follow September? It must be 80 degrees out there.”

Kara peered out the window at the thermometer. “More like 70, but you're right, you'd never know we had ice yesterday.” She stepped outside, raised her face to the sun, and inhaled the balmy air. “Awesome! I'd better go find something cooler to wear.”

Colin looked at his watch. “Eat first, we have plenty of time.” He didn't look at her as he pulled a box of cold cereal off the shelf and grabbed a carton of milk from the fridge.

Kara gathered bowls, spoons, and the basket of fruit and set them on the table. By the time she poured juice and sat down, Colin was halfway through his first bowl of cereal. He finished off a banana, then cleared his throat.

“Uh, Wakara? If it's okay with you, I'd rather go into the college class today.”

She stared at him, startled, then looked down at the table. It did hurt her feelings a little, but she hoped he wouldn't notice. “Sure,” she managed, “they're more your age anyway.”

That wasn't true, and they both knew it. Colin was only seventeen, but he'd been away from high school so long, she supposed he felt like he didn't fit in. She had guessed that the night of the football game. Or was it just that he wasn't interested in sitting with her anymore, and he was trying to let her down easy?

She took a sip of juice to try and swallow the lump in her throat, but Colin wasn't through.

“Nothing personal, okay? Mr. Andrews and I had a talk the night of the game. We decided it would be better if I went into the older group.”

Kara looked up, but Colin was concentrating on filling his empty cereal bowl. Was that what he and Mr. Andrews were discussing when she got back to the bus the night of the game? And why was he so nervous about it? It wasn't like she had begged him to come to Sunday school, or to the game for that matter. She'd been so excited to have him along; maybe she had come on too strong.

She took a deep breath to gather courage. “Colin, have I . . .” She was about to ask if she'd said or done something to make him feel uncomfortable, but Anne chose that moment to come back into the room.

“We will have a hard winter, I think.”

The Indian woman was standing at the window, but she might as well have sat down right between them.

“What makes you say that?” Colin asked.

“When Chinook Wind blows warm, Winter Warrior is not far behind.”

“Excuse me,” Wakara whispered. “I'm going up to change.” She kept her napkin to blot her eyes and hurried up the stairs.

When she heard the car in the driveway, she came down and kissed Ryan good-bye. “Be good, mind Anne, and take your medicine,” she warned him.

He made a face. “Yuck. She says I gotta drink that stuff two more times today.”

Kara smiled.
Serves you right
. But she didn't say it out loud.

When Colin saw her coming, he climbed out of the driver's seat, opened the passenger door, and held out his hand to help her in. She looked at him, astonished, but he just grinned and drawled, “You look mighty pretty today, Miss Kara.”

She wanted to sock him. One minute he acted like he didn't want to be with her, the next he was telling her she looked pretty—in that sick fake accent, of course. He couldn't be serious if his life depended on it.

She smiled brightly. “Why, thank you, sir,” she mimicked his voice, “so kind of you to say so.” She almost curtsied, but stopped herself in time.
Who's the fake, Wakara Sheridan? You chose this outfit on purpose
. She tried not to look smug. The short, white skirt looked fantastic against her sun-browned skin, and the turquoise blouse was the perfect accent for her long, black hair and sea green eyes. A narrow headband along with dangling turquoise-and-silver earrings completed the look. Yahi or Nez Perce? Whatever. She was proud of her heritage and wasn't afraid to show it.

She sat with Tia in church. Colin and some of the older boys sat in the row right behind. When the service was over, Kara hurried to the parking lot and climbed into the car without waiting for Colin to open the door. She just wanted to get changed, saddle Lily, and go for a nice, long ride. Alone.

When they pulled up to the house, it took her a minute to recognize the pickup parked in the drive. “Mark's here.”

Colin nodded. “You go ahead and get out here; I'll park the car and be up in a few minutes.”

She undid her seat belt and hurried into the house. Mark was at the kitchen table with Anne. He smiled and swallowed a bite of roast beef sandwich. “Hey, kid, looking good.” He nodded at her outfit. “You just get in from a party?”

“Sure, I've been out all night.”

“Not dressed like that you haven't.” He winked at Anne. “Looks like I'd better drop off that radio and bring Harley on home.”

She was used to his gentle teasing, and it was fun to tease him back. Mark was in his early thirties, single, but with lots of prospects. Besides being the best bush pilot in the county, he had been a friend of the family for years.

Wakara sat across the table from Mark, and Anne handed her a glass of iced tea. “Are you flying in today?” she asked him.

He nodded. “Sure. Thought I'd take advantage of this weather. From what I hear, it won't last long.”

“Can I come?” It was out before she had a chance to think about it, but it would be a great time to see Dad, make sure he and Greg were okay, and tell him in person what had happened to Ry.

But Mark shook his head. “Sorry, kid, no room. I'm taking in hay. And that radio unit puts me right at the weight limit.” He looked down at his empty plate. “Come to think
of it, I probably shouldn't have eaten that sandwich.” He wadded up his napkin, carried his plate to the sink, and kissed Anne on the cheek. “Great meal, Sweetheart. If my plane goes down, I'll die a happy man.”

Kara giggled in spite of her disappointment. Mark was the only one she knew who could make Anne blush.

On the way out the door, Mark squeezed Kara's shoulder. “You should hear from your dad tonight. I'll tell him to call you about seven o'clock. Other than that, my lips are zipped.” He made a slashing motion across his mouth with two fingers.

“Seven's fine,” Kara smiled in gratitude. He understood that she wanted to be the one to tell Dad about the incident with Ryan. She wanted Dad to get it straight the first time around.

Kara changed into shorts and a tank top. Instead of riding Lily, she decided to lie in the sun and read. She fell asleep about four o'clock, and before she knew it, Anne was calling her in for dinner.

Her skin felt warm, but the sun sinking behind the mountains left a chill in the air that reminded her more of yesterday's weather. She put her book away and went in to check on Ryan.

He was sitting up working a puzzle at a TV tray. “Hi, Ry, how are you feeling?”

He shrugged. “My head still hurts.”

She felt his forehead. He was still warm, but his eyes were clear. “The doctor said it probably will for a while.” She watched him move the puzzle pieces around hit-and-miss, and could tell he wasn't really concentrating. “Are you hungry? Anne has chili and beans for dinner.”

“I'm not hungry.” He finally fit a piece into the puzzle. “Wakara?” His voice was so soft she had to bend down to hear him.

“What?”

“When is Dad gonna call?”

So that was it. He was worried about talking to Dad. She couldn't blame him. She had seldom been in trouble as a child, but once or twice was enough to remember the fear of waiting to find out what her punishment would be. Dad was fair but strict, and disobedience was something he didn't tolerate.

“He's calling at seven o'clock. I'll talk to him first, then you can talk, okay?”

His mouth quivered. “I think I'll prob'ly be asleep by then.”

She tried not to laugh. “I doubt it. You've been asleep most of the day.” She decided to change the subject. “You're not coughing as much. It looks like Anne's medicine is working.”

When he didn't answer, she pulled the TV tray away. “Dinner's ready, Ryan.” She took his hand. “Come on, let me help you to the table. It's too hard for Anne to bring you a tray.”

His face clouded in a scowl, but he didn't resist when she put her arm around his skinny shoulders and led him into the kitchen. Not that it did much good. He ate about two bites of chili, then asked to be excused.

Anne covered his bowl and put it in the refrigerator. “He will be hungry later.”

D
AD
'
S
CALL
CAME
IN
at seven o'clock on the dot.

“Good news, Sugar Bear! We cleared the trail down from Pinewood Meadow. It's pretty black over in there, but the trail is in good shape.”

She felt relieved. Besides a bush plane, that trail was the only way into the valley and was popular with many of their guests. “What about Eagle Lodge?” she asked. “Did you get any work done there? Over.”

“We managed to get that old barn boarded up. We're finishing off the roof on cabin three today. If we have time, we'll get a new corral built before the first snowfall.”

With all the work left to do, when were they taking off on their scouting trip? She decided not to bring it up. They were already getting some static, and she still had to tell him about Ryan.

She kept the story brief, relating what he needed to know and checking from time to time to see if he was still with her. Other than acknowledging that he was still on the radio, he didn't interrupt. When she told him how she had handled
the situation, he said, “You did fine, Wakara. Put Ryan on, then I'll talk to you again. Over.”

Ryan approached the radio as if it were an electric chair. Kara almost felt sorry for him, but she stepped away and tried not to eavesdrop as Dad talked to him. Ryan nodded a couple of times and shook his head, but only spoke once to say, “I'm sorry, Daddy,” then he handed the microphone to Kara. His eyes were full, but he didn't cry, and she knew Dad had been kind.

“Dad?”

“Okay, Sugar Bear, here's the scoop. We'll be home in five days. Until then, Ryan goes nowhere except to school. No Timmy's house, no horses. He's to help you clean the barn every day. He's old enough to work. Don't let him slack off.”

She nearly groaned out loud. Help her clean the barn! Why did that make her feel like she was being punished too?

“Got it, Dad. When are you going . . .” She was interrupted by a whistling sound, like wind rushing through the trees.

“Wakara, are you still there?”

“Yes, but I think the signal's getting weak. Over.”

“Okay. We're going to take advantage of this . . .” Static crackled in her ears, and she knew they were losing contact. “. . . Don't expect to hear . . .”

“Dad?” She twisted the frequency knob, but the line went completely dead, and she knew she'd lost him. What were they going to take advantage of? Probably the weather. Maybe they would get the corral done tonight or tomorrow. That would mean less work when they went back in June.