Cedar Woman (44 page)

Mary
was
still
a
b
ea
u
tif
u
l woma
n
.
At 5
0
,
s
h
e
retained
h
e
r
y
ou
t
h
f
u
l
, willowy
figur
e
.
The
only
change
w
a
s
the look
of
fatigue
in
h
e
r
still gl
o
w
i
n
g
e
y
es, and
t
h
e nu
m
erous str
a
nds
o
f
sil
v
er, whi
c
h w
o
ve
t
h
eir
w
a
y t
h
r
o
ug
h her sh
i
mm
ering, da
r
k l
o
ck
s
.

²⁷
M
ee-he
en
-
g
ha
–
H
u
sb
an
d

²⁸
M
ee-tah-we
e
n –
Wife

Lena
gaz
e
d
in
w
o
n
d
e
r. Was
she
t
h
e
o
n
ly one
wh
o saw
t
h
e ph
e
no
m
enon wh
e
n
e
v
er her par
e
nts’ hearts see
m
ed
to
fill
with
love for each o
t
he
r
?
Was she
t
h
e only one who
s
aw the floating hair, the ni
m
bus of
li
g
ht,
w
h
ich
encircled
h
e
r
par
e
nt
s
?
Was
she
t
h
e
o
n
ly
o
n
e
w
ho
hea
r
d two he
a
rts bea
t
ing
i
n uni
so
n
?

Lena did
not have
the
c
h
ance to
s
h
are her news.
Actually,
she was glad,
bec
a
use
she
needed
t
o
for
m
ulate
a
p
l
an
i
n
w
h
i
ch
s
h
e
c
ou
l
d
m
ake her
a
nn
o
u
n
c
em
ent
in
s
u
c
h
a way
a
s
to gu
a
rantee
p
e
r
m
ission
to
t
a
ke
t
h
e
j
o
b.

She
cle
a
ned
t
h
e
kitch
e
n
after supp
e
r,
a
n
d
clai
m
ing
ho
m
ework,
w
e
nt to
t
h
e
s
m
aller
be
dr
oom
which
she
a
n
d
Re
v
a
shar
e
d
.
L
y
ing
d
ow
n
u
p
o
n the
double
bed,
she
clos
e
d
h
e
r
eyes
and
r
e
viewed
the
past
two
years
of

h
er
yo
u
n
g
li
f
e…

Le
n
a
filled
t
h
e
h
o
ur
s u
n
til
s
h
e
was
re
un
ited
with
h
e
r
fa
m
i
ly
with pra
y
e
r
s a
n
d fr
e
nzied
p
r
e
p
arat
i
on
s
.
U
n
cle D
e
an look
e
d puz
z
led wh
e
n
s
h
e ask
e
d
if
he had
a
piece of
rawhide he cou
l
d
sp
a
r
e.
Luckily,
he re
m
e
m
b
ered
a
good-sized piece
stored
in
t
h
e
barn,
a
nd hand
e
d
it
to
his spiritually adopted niece.
H
i
s heart constr
i
cted at the site
of h
e
r childi
s
h face –
s
o
purposeful,
h
e
r
lips
press
e
d
t
og
e
ther
i
n
deter
m
ination.
She accepted
t
h
e
g
i
ft
of
t
h
e
r
a
whide
with h
e
r
left
hand,
t
h
e
h
a
nd
closest
to
h
e
r heart,
and
m
u
r
m
ured,

“
W
opila,
Unc
l
e
De
a
n
.”

Dean
dro
v
e
h
e
r
to
May Hill, a
n
d
e
n
tered
t
h
e
s
m
a
l
l
h
o
u
se with
Le
n
a
. She
di
d
n
’t
wa
s
te
t
i
m
e.
W
a
l
k
ing
p
u
r
p
os
e
fu
l
ly
to
t
h
e
kitc
h
en,
s
h
e
pi
c
k
ed up
her
father’s
j
adeite
coffee
cup,
a
n
d
placed
it
in
a
basket
she’d
brought