Boundless Hearts

Chapter 4

Richard walks out on the porch Tom is sending Jonah to get Joseph. Lyle runs over to him and Tom telling them that he found several horse tracks coming and going toward the hills. Richard sends Lyle into town to bring back Roy. He's a tracker. But he still wants to talk to Joseph to make sure that these tracks are not men that he has hired. Richard and some of the ranch hands saddle their horses and start to follow their tracks.

After hours of riding in circles, Richard knew that it was the Indians that took his precious Treasure. Joseph rode up with the tracker and three of Richard's ranch hands.

Joseph jumps off of his horse looking at the tracks. He sees that the tracks have been cut through so many times. He walks over to Richard. " I don't care how long it takes I will help get Treasure back home to you."

"Thank you. I am sure that you know who took her. By the way, the tracks are cut." Richard points at the tracks on the ground.

"Yes sir. It was the Indians who took them. Howard and some of his men are not too far behind us. They are coming to help with the search." Joseph rubs his chin looking worried.

"Flossie is sending a wagon with food and supplies by Howard." Daniel pats Richard's shoulder. "We will get Ms. Treasure and the girls back."

"I know we will." Richard is looking at the tracker.

Roy is walking around and squatting down looking at the tracks. Then he looks at Richard. "You are not going to like what I am about to say. It's just about dark. We have to wait here until morning."

"Damn." Richard takes his hat off of his head and throws it on the ground. But he nods his head. "You bastard if you have hurt my daughter and those girls. I will skin all of you alive." He is thinking.

*****

Qaletaqa is outside talking to Big Horn and Tatanka as they are patrolling the camp. He also sent scouts out to make sure that no one followed them.

Treasure is inside the lodge. She is getting the girls ready for bed.

"Treasure are you okay?" Isabell whispers as she points at Treasure and Qaletaqa's bed.

"Yes, I am fine. It has been a very long day. Now you two get some sleep. Everything will be fine. I promise you. I will not let anything happen to either of you." Treasure smiles as she covers the girls up and rubs their foreheads.

Qaletaqa walks into the lodge. He looks at her tucking the girls in for the night. He pulls the blankets across the rope to give him and Treasure some privacy.

"Go to sleep you two. Sweet dreams, see you in the morning." Treasure stands up and takes a deep breath. She walks over to her and Qaletaqa's bed.

He is lying down, holding the blanket up for her to lay beside him. She slides her dress off and lays down. Qaletaqa lays his arm across her waist, pulling her into him. He buries his head into the back of her head and her hair.

"You can do this" She's thinking as she feels his hardness against her. She closes her eyes. It didn't take too long before she fell asleep.

The next morning when she wakes up she is facing him with her head buried into his chest. Her leg is across his body and her arm is lying across his waist. She raises her head looking at his handsome face. "He is more handsome than I realized. His lips are perfect" She is thinking as she lightly touches his lips with her finger. He is still sleeping with his arm around her waist. Treasure slowly moves his arm. She looks back at his face. He is looking at her smiling. "Even his smile is perfect." She's thinking as she smiles at him.

"You cook for us." He points at himself and the direction in which the sisters are sleeping.

"Yes, I will. After breakfast, I want to take a bath. The girls and I need to wash up." She stands up and slides her dress back on.

Qaletaqa nods his head. "I have to go with you. I do not want other warriors looking at you." He spreads the blanket up.

"Okay," She's walking over to the fire to start cooking.

Isabell and Audrey sit down beside the fire looking at Treasure and Qaletaqa. She is cooking, while he is looking at her smiling. After she has finished cooking, she places his food on a plate first then the girls and hers last.

He tastes the food and smiles. "Good food," he looks at her and smiles.

She smiles and she and the girls lower their heads to say the blessing.

He looks at them a little confused. Because he has never seen anyone do that before. "Why are they doing that?" He is thinking.

After they have finished eating. "We have to go to the river to wash the dishes." She looks at the girls.

"No, I will bring you water to do that, " he picks up a bucket and walks out of their lodge.

Treasure is looking at him weirdly and smiles, thinking. "Qaletaqa is different than any warrior that I have ever met before."

Isabell and Audrey are looking at her. They are wondering why is she smiling.

When he comes back with the water he pours it into a large bowl for her. Then he sits down looking at her and the girls. The girls are picking up everything he had lying around the lodge. They are placing his things against the lodge wall. Treasure is washing and drying the dishes. She stops and looks around the area where she is washing the dishes.

Qaletaqa nods his head and smiles. "When you are done come outside. I have to talk to some of the warriors. Then we will go to the river."

Treasure is walking over to the girls. "Okay," she runs her fingers through Audrey's hair as she braids it into two pigtails. She did the same to Isabell and hers. "Remember stay close to me. Unless I say otherwise." She is looking at both of the girls.

They nod their heads to her.

Treasure and the girls walk outside. Qaletaqa is still talking to two warriors. One of the warriors is looking at Isabell. Then he points at her. "I want her," He said in their Native language.

Qaletaqa turns to look at who he is pointing at and sees that it's Isabell. "No. She is my woman's family and too young." He said in their Native language.

Treasure looks in the opposite direction pretending that she doesn't understand anything that they said.

The woman who said that she was Qaletaqa's woman walks over and kicks dirt on Isabell and Audrey. Treasure turns around and looks at the woman. "If you do that again you will make me very angry. You do not want to see that side of me. Your fight is with me. Not my girls. I took your man not them." Treasure is looking at the woman with both of her fists balled up.

Qaletaqa walks closer to them. But he did not say anything or interfere. "She doesn't show fear. The same as she didn't when she told me that she can walk. " He's thinking.

"Chapa, she is Qaletaqa's woman. He chose her." Chief Tasunka walks over to stand between the two women.

Treasure is still looking at Chapa with her fists balled up. "You better be glad that he came. I was about to give you a good beating." She is thinking as she is looking at Chapa walking away.

She is rolling her eyes at Treasure.

The warrior that is standing beside Qaleteqa touches his arm. Qaletaqa looks at the man. The warrior points at Treasure's fists. Qaletaqa smiles. "My woman is strong and fearless. A warrior," he looks at the warrior and walks over to Treasure. "Are you ready to take a bath?"

"Yes, we are," she motions with her head for Isabell and Audrey to stand up.

He leads them to the river. There were some warriors there when they arrived. He tells them to leave and do not come back until he tells them to. He is standing between the warriors and Treasure and the girls. As soon as the warriors leave he folds his arms and turns his head from the water.

Audrey and Isabell walk behind some bushes to take their clothes off. Treasure walks to the bank of the river. She starts taking her clothes off. She is used to taking a bath in front of people. Because of the years that she lived with the Sioux. Treasure is not ashamed of her body.

Qaletaqa can't contain himself. He turns just to take a quick look at her while she takes off her undergarments and walks into the water. "She is perfect. Her body is beautiful." He is thinking as a lump forms in his throat.

"You may turn around now." Treasure yells as her entire body is covered with the water. She is not aware that he was looking at her as she was undressing.

He walks over to her undergarments and picks them up looking at them. His head is moving from side to side. "You wear too many."

She looks at him. "What do you want me to wear?" She knew that Indian women did not wear undergarments.

He takes out his knife. Then he cut the legs off the bloomer and smiled at her.

Treasure, Isabell, and Audrey burst out laughing.

When they were finished washing the girls walked behind the same bushes to get dressed. Treasure walks out of the river toward him. He is smiling as he stares at her naked body with her bloomers still in his hand.

She is standing in front of him "I need those" Treasure points at her bloomers.

Qaletaqa hands her bloomers to her with a huge smile on his face. He is looking at her as she is dressing.

"Thank you for letting us take a bath." She looks up at him. He is still looking at her smiling. He did manage to nod his head. She is looking at the water. "Can we have fish for dinner?" She turns to look at him.

"Yes," He looks at the water

"Good. Do we have any potatoes?" She is looking at the gardens

Qaletaqa looks at Isabell and Audrey walking over to them. "Yes, I will bring them after I catch fish."

Treasure is looking at the woods "Thank you. I guess the girls and I will wash our dresses and gather some berries."

"Do not go too far from our lodge." He lifts her chin looking at her smiling.

"We won't" She smiles looking at him as she reaches for both of the girl's hands. They walk toward the camp.

He is walking behind the three girls. But he is looking at his woman. "I like that she and the girls feel comfortable here and around me." He's thinking.

On the way back to the lodge Treasure notices that a young warrior that is close to Isabell's age keeps looking at her Isabell smiling. She also notices that Isabell is looking at him smiling.

After Qaletaqa left to go fishing Treasure and the girls washed the dresses that they wore there. "Isabell you might have to choose a warrior. The older warrior this morning said that he wanted you. But Qaletaqa said that you are too young. I don't know how long that will work. It will be best if you choose the one that you want." She is wringing her dress out.

"Okay. How long did you live with them?" Isabell is also wringing her dress out.

"Two years," she smiles thinking about her family and friends at the camp.

Audrey giggles. "The warrior seems to like you.

Isabell looks at Treasure smiling. "It seems that you like him too."

"He is handsome, brave, and strong. Yes, I do like him." Treasure smiles nodding her head. "A lot."

The two sisters giggle.

"Let's fill these buckets up and hang our dresses out" Treasure laughs as she is filling a bucket full of water.

"Do you think your father will find us soon?" Audrey looks at the woods.

"I don't know. We might be moving soon to a different camp. Sometimes they do not stay in one place long. But what I do know is my father will not stop until he finds us." Treasure starts walking toward the camp.