Cedar Woman (145 page)

Lena
d
rew
her
child
to
her.
She
re
m
e
m
ber
ed
how
she
frantically tried
to
get
him to
drink
f
r
o
m a
cup,
only
to
watch
as
h
e
r
unci
so
l
v
ed
t
h
e p
ro
b
lem
with
co
m
m
on
sense.
She
la
u
gh
e
d
t
o herse
l
f,

My
u
n
ci!
On
l
y
she
c
ou
l
d
s
e
e
r
i
ght
t
o
t
h
e
h
eart
of
t
h
e
p
ro
b
l
em
a
n
d

qu
ietly fix i
t
.

Unc
i
!

Lena felt
a
tear
sli
d
e
d
o
w
n
her
c
h
e
e
k.
Her wise
an
d gentle gr
an
d
m
other
h
ad
pass
e
d
to
t
h
e
spirit
w
o
rld j
u
st
six
m
onths
be
f
o
r
e
.
U
p
o
n wa
k
e
n
ing
on
t
h
at fatef
u
l
d
ay, Le
n
a wal
k
ed
to
t
h
e
k
itc
h
e
n
to
find
it
d
ar
k
: no
c
o
f
fee
b
re
wi
ng, no
clat
t
er of po
t
s
a
n
d p
a
ns.
R
e
t
u
r
n
in
g
t
o
t
h
e
u
p
s
t
airs, she
o
p
en
e
d
t
h
e d
o
or
to
h
e
r
g
r
and
m
othe
r
’
s
b
ed
ro
o
m
.
The
r
e
Reva
la
y
,
her face
toward
the
window,
a
sm
ile
upon h
e
r aged face.
L
e
na
look
e
d out of the
windowp
a
n
e, following her
grand
m
o
t
her’s gaze.
T
h
er
e,
on
the
sh
ore, sto
o
d
t
w
o
bl
u
e
h
e
r
o
ns,
t
h
eir
ne
c
k
s
e
n
t
w
i
n
ed.
Reva
was
n
o
w
with
h
e
r hu
s
b
an
d
;
she
h
ad
r
i
dd
e
n
t
h
e w
in
g
o
f
t
h
e
T
h
un
d
e
r
bi
r
d
to
t
h
e
e
d
ge of t
h
e un
i
vers
e
.

C
h
apter
Ni
n
e
t
een

H
o
,
Th
u
n
der
B
eing Nati
o
n, I hear
yo
u
si
n
g
i
n
g
.

I
g
reet you
as a relati
v
e, and
t
h
ank
y
o
u f
o
r the
g
ifts
t
h
at you brin
g
.

H
o
,
Th
u
n
der
B
eing Nati
o
n, I co
m
e singi
n
g
.

I
g
i
f
t you
w
ith t
ob
acco
as a tha
n
k you
f
o
r
yo
u
r
g
i
f
t. H
o
,
Th
u
n
der
B
eing
Nati
o
n,
t
h
e
skies
a
re
s
i
n
g
ing. H
o
,
m
y relations, I h
a
ve
sp
o
k
en
a
n
d it is s
o
.

J
u
lie S
po
tted Ea
g
l
e Horse Marti
n
eu

So
nn
y u
n
l
o
c
k
ed
t
h
e d
o
or
t
o
the
restaura
n
t
.
D
u
c
k
i
n
g
in
q
u
ic
k
ly,
h
e
c
l
o
sed the door aga
i
n
s
t an e
a
rly
A
u
g
u
st thu
nd
e
rstor
m
.

He
li
k
ed
t
h
i
s
t
i
m
e
of
da
y
,
w
h
en
he
was
a
l
one
i
n
V
i
ck
i
’s.
He
cou
l
d pret
e
n
d
t
h
at
Mi
chael
w
ou
l
d
sh
ow
u
p
s
h
or
tl
y
w
it
h
L
en
a.
S
oo
n
V
i
c
k
i w
o
uld
f
o
ll
o
w,
and
t
h
e
day
wou
l
d
slowly
b
e
gin.
I
n
t
h
e
fi
v
e
y
ears
since

Michael
and
Vicki’s
deaths,
Sonny
never
c
eased
to
m
iss
the
m
;
he
nev
e
r

qu
ite
g
o
t
away
from
t
h
e
p
a
in
t
h
eir
m
e
m
o
ry
ca
u
sed.
T
h
en,
t
h
ere
was