The Mandie Collection (23 page)

“Yes, I think so, too,” Sallie agreed.

“Tomorrow Uncle John will repair the barn and Uncle Ned and Uncle Wirt will go back and start work on chiseling out the message in the cave. And when they get done, we can do something with the gold. Uncle John said they wanted the message to show the people when they present the gold to them.”

“That will be a great day for the Cherokee!” the Indian girl said.

Tired and worn out, the two girls were soon asleep in spite of their excitement. But while they slept peacefully, things were not so peaceful in Uncle Ned's yard.

Joe was trying to sleep inside on the haystack, while Dimar was on guard outside the barn. He couldn't get comfortable, his ears attuned for intruders. Finally he gave up trying to sleep and went outside to join Dimar.

“I might as well forget it,” he told the Indian boy. “I can't go to sleep in there.”

“I can't sleep either,” Dimar said.

“How about if you stay in the front here and I'll stay at the back?” Joe asked.

“All right. Sounds good to me.” Dimar was too tired to argue.

Joe walked around to the back and stretched out in the grass. He had been lying there for what seemed like hours to him, when he heard the soft snap of a twig. He didn't move, but his ears perked up to listen. The night was so dark it was impossible to see very far. Then he heard another pop in the underbrush behind the barn. Now he was certain someone was there. He waited, his heart pounding furiously. Whoever it was, he must be out of sight lying in the tall grass.

Quietly turning on his side with his eyes trained on the brush in front of him, Joe finally distinguished the figure of a man. He took
one step forward, pausing to listen, took another, then paused again. Joe waited until he was almost within reach, then bolted upright.

He could hardly believe his eyes, “Tsa'ni! You liar! You're supposed to be in bed!”

Tsa'ni stared in surprise at the sudden outburst. As he turned to run, Dimar, having heard the commotion, joined the chase. He was as surprised as Joe to see Tsa'ni.

“Tsa'ni! You are a disgrace to our people!” Dimar shouted at the fleeing Indian, who, knowing the area so well, was soon far from the reach of his pursuers.

The two boys finally gave up the chase. “Looks like we lost him,” Joe said, exhausted and gasping for air.

“Yes, but now we know who started the fire, don't you think, Joe?” Dimar replied, wiping the perspiration from his forehead.

“Shall we wake up his mother and Uncle Wirt and tell them?” Joe asked. “We must be somewhere near his house. I'm sure he's the culprit all right.”

“No, I think it best we wait until daylight. We can keep watch until morning, and then we'll tell Uncle Ned,” thy Indian boy said.

“Yeh, Uncle Ned will know what to do,” Joe agreed, as they returned to the barn.

In spite of their good intentions, they both fell fast asleep and didn't awaken until daybreak, when they heard Morning Star open the door of the cabin.

They waited until everyone was gathered around the table, and then relayed the excitement of the night before.

“Uncle Ned, we think we know who set fire to your barn,” Joe told the old man.

Every head turned in his direction. Just then, Uncle Wirt came in through the open door, unnoticed.

“Who?” Uncle Ned asked.

“Tsa'ni,” Joe replied.

Uncle Wirt stopped in his tracks, his presence still undetected.

“Tsa'ni?”
Uncle Ned repeated, shaking his head There were a few seconds of shocked silence; then the questions began.

“How do you know, Joe?” Uncle John asked.

“We caught him prowling around the barn last night, only he escaped,” Joe said.

“Joe caught him by surprise. We know it was Tsa'ni We chased him a long time,” Dimar added.

Uncle Wirt stepped forward to the table and everyone noticed him for the first time.

“Tsa'ni?” Uncle Wirt asked incredulously.

“Yes, Uncle Wirt,” Joe replied.

“Tsa'ni—gone last night,” Uncle Wirt nodded.

“I'm sorry, Uncle Wirt. I know he's your grandson,” Uncle John sympathized.

“No. Tsa'ni bad Indian,” Uncle Wirt affirmed. “He make lies.”

“We chased him all through the woods, but he didn't go home,” Joe said.

“But, we didn't actually
see
him set fire to the barn,” Mandie spoke up. “We couldn't say for sure that he was the one who did it unless we actually saw him, right?”

“You are absolutely right, my dear,” Uncle John agreed. “We are jumping to conclusions. Just because Joe and Dimar saw him near the barn last night doesn't mean he was the one who started the fire.”

“But what other reason would he have for lying about not being able to walk and then showing up at Uncle Ned's barn the night of the fire?” Joe argued. “If he were just curious, he wouldn't have taken off like the wind when he saw us.”

“ ‘Judge not, lest ye be judged,' ” Mandie quoted. “Do you remember our Sunday school lesson not long ago, Joe?”

Elizabeth gazed admiringly at her daughter and smiled.

“I don't understand why you are always defending him, Mandie, after all the things he has done to us.” Joe shook his head.

Uncle Ned pushed a plate of food toward Uncle Wirt. “Sit. Eat. We go get message in cave.”

Uncle Wirt sat down and began eating.

“I would like to talk to Tsa'ni if anybody sees him,” Uncle John said.

“No one is going to be seeing him around for a while. I'm sure of that!” Joe was emphatic.

“You boys better get some sleep,” Uncle John told them.

“Sleep? We want to help fix the barn!” Joe said between mouthfuls.

“Sure thing,” Dimar added.

“All right, but you must both be terribly tired—or did you sleep some last night?” He looked at the boys with a knowing grin.

They both dropped their heads. Joe told him, “I guess I dozed off a little after we lost Tsa'ni.”

“So did I,” Dimar admitted.

Uncle Ned got his tools from the barn, harnessed up the horses to the wagon, and he and Uncle Wirt set out for the cave.

The boys went out to work on the barn with Uncle John.

Mandie and Sallie helped Morning Star and Elizabeth with chores around the house. Everyone was occupied for the day, though constantly on the alert. But just as Joe predicted, the day passed peacefully with no sign of Tsa'ni.

Inside the cave Uncle Ned and Uncle Wirt began hammering away at the stone wall. After hours and hours of work, they had made a continuous crack around the carved message and stood back to survey their work. Then there was a soft rumble. The two men held their breath listening. The rumble became louder and louder until the whole cave seemed to tremble.

“Rockslide!” gasped Uncle Ned, snatching his lantern and tools as he stumbled backward to the other side of the cavern.

The two men were temporarily stunned, and then suddenly the whole wall broke into pieces and a portion of the ceiling came crashing down. They ran for their lives. The noise was deafening. They had barely reached the entrance when the whole cave seemed to collapse. They ran without stopping until they were safely on the road. When they gazed back, it seemed the entire mountainside had changed in appearance. Huge boulders had slid down the side,
dragging trees and brush with them into the waterfall. Everything in view was in shambles.

“Cave—gone!” Uncle Ned gasped.

“Gone!” echoed Uncle Wirt.

“Tsali message gone!” Uncle Ned wiped tears from his eyes as he thought about the great Indian hero who had remembered his people even in death.

Uncle Wirt could not speak. He simply turned toward the wagon on the road. Uncle Ned followed him and together they rode silently back to tell the others the news.

It was late afternoon when Mandie and Sallie saw them coming and ran to meet them. The girls could tell immediately that something was wrong.

“Uncle Ned, what happened?” Mandie asked as he stopped the wagon in front of the barn and stepped down. John and the boys came out at once.

“Cave gone. Tsali message gone,” Uncle Ned shook his head in sorrow.

“Gone? How could it be gone?” Mandie asked.

“Rockslide. Cave gone. Message buried,” Uncle Ned replied.

“A rockslide? Are you all right?” Uncle John asked, checking them over. “How did you manage to get out?”

“Run. God with us,” Uncle Ned explained.

“Cave gone,” Uncle Wirt repeated, shaking his head in bewilderment.

“That message Tsali left would have meant so much to our people,” Sallie stated sadly.

“Now no one will ever believe us when we tell them about it,” Joe said dejectedly.

“Part of our history has been lost,” Dimar added.

“But we still have the gold,” Mandie reminded them.

“Yes, and we still must decide what to do with it,” Uncle John said.

As they sat around the table for the evening meal, they discussed the matter at length.

“I'll watch the barn again tonight,” Joe offered after a lull in the discussion.

“So will I,” Dimar said.

“You boys need a good night's rest,” Uncle John told them.

“We can take our blankets and roll up in them on the grass outside. If anyone comes around, we will surely wake up,” Joe insisted. Dimar nodded in agreement.

“Well, I certainly hope so,” Elizabeth said. “It could be dangerous.”

“Gold bad luck,” Uncle Ned muttered.

“Not the gold, Uncle Ned. It's the greedy people,” Mandie said.

Elizabeth spoke up. “What
are
we going to do about the gold? We can't keep it here forever.”

“I know,” Uncle John replied. “We'll have to decide what to do very soon.”

“Why can't we put the gold in the bank?” Mandie asked.

“Good idea! Have you ever heard of bank robbers, Mandie?” Joe protested sarcastically.

“Bank robbers don't ever come to Bryson City.” Mandie was sure of herself.

“I suppose the bank
is
a possible solution,” John said. Turning to Wirt and Ned, he asked, “Do you think we could get it to the bank early tomorrow morning before the town is stirring?”

Both the old men nodded affirmatively.

“Well, if the people decide to storm the bank and take it, it belongs to them anyway,” Joe conceded.

“No. Gold bad luck to Cherokee,” Uncle Ned insisted. “Cherokee not steal gold.”

“But what about Tsa'ni?” Dimar asked. “He wanted the gold.”

“Tsa'ni!” Uncle Wirt spat out. “Bad Cherokee!” He rose to leave.

“Don't be too hard on him, Uncle Wirt,” Elizabeth told him. “We don't know for sure who set fire to the barn.”

But Uncle Wirt was angry, it was plain to see.

“He lied about not being able to walk and he should be punished for that,” John said. “Will you be back tomorrow to help us move the gold to the bank?”

“Early tomorrow,” the old man nodded as he waved good-bye.

As darkness began to fall, the two boys took their blankets to spread on the grass by the barn. The girls went up the ladder to their room and watched from the window until they were too sleepy to stay awake any longer. Snowball curled up contentedly at Mandie's feet.

It was long after midnight and both boys were sleeping soundly. The figure of a man appeared out of the brush and came stealthily toward the barn. He stopped at the corner of the building and lowered the flame of his lantern to the grass against the wall.

Joe stirred uneasily in his sleep, unseen by the intruder. Then his subconscious registered the distinct odor of burning grass mixed with the stench of liquor. He was awake in a flash, taxing his brain to orient himself to the situation. Then he saw the blaze not ten feet away, and he lunged to his feet. The figure, still not aware of Joe, darted around the corner. Joe headed the other way to alert Dimar who was already awake.

“He's on that side of the barn,” Joe whispered softly, pointing to the north side.

They crept around the building in opposite directions and were both surprised to find themselves face to face with Snuff and Rennie Lou. With one fell swoop Joe had Snuff on the ground. Dimar kept his eyes on Rennie Lou, who stood there in a daze.

“We got you this time!” Joe shouted as he held him to the ground.

“Hey, wait a minute. I ain't done nothin',” the man protested, his speech slurred.

Dimar took a deep breath and gave his loud Indian call for help. Within seconds Uncle John and Uncle Ned came rushing out of the cabin.

Noise of the scuffling woke the girls and they slid down the ladder and watched at the door.

“Why, it's the man and woman who captured us on the mountain,” Mandie said, as she watched Uncle John “handcuff” Snuff with his belt.

Morning Star slipped past the girls without a word and joined the others outside. Rennie Lou had come out of her stupor and saw a chance for escape while Dimar and Joe went to stomp out the fire. But she was no match for the strong Indian woman, who subdued her after a short struggle.

“I ain't done nothin'!” the woman was yelling. “Leave me alone, squaw!”

Morning Star ignored her threats and kept a firm grip on her arm.

“Hey, you're a white man,” she directed to Uncle John. “You gonna let this Injun woman bully me?”

“Anything she wants to do to you will be all right with me,” Uncle John replied. “Don't you realize these young people are the ones you kidnapped on the mountain? You two are going to jail as soon as we can get the law to take over.”

“Take palefaces to Bryson City,” Uncle Ned said as he went to hitch the wagon.

“This time of night, Uncle Ned?” Elizabeth asked as she joined John.

“Yes,” the old man nodded.

“He's right, Elizabeth. We can't keep them here, and they should have been behind bars before now,” John told her.