No, she didn't believe in fate.
But, there was an oddity about Tsistsaki's reappearance at this time. First Rider had lost his first wife after only a few months of marriage, and now he was rediscovering her again after being married to another…and for only a few months, as well. Aye, it was strange how the timing in these incidents seemed similar. But, it could also be only a coincidence, and in the full scheme of life, such a minor fact probably meant nothing.
Liliann lay still, and so caught up was she in her own misery, she didn't hear the muted sighs of First Rider. But, when he uttered "I go alone" into her ear, his words could not be discounted.
Did she have a fight on her hands? She would accompany him, even if it meant she had to follow him from a distance.
Indeed, she would go with him.
****
Liliann was standing on a cliff high above the prairie, and although the wind blew her hair and her dress back, she didn't dare move. Looking outward toward the prairie, she saw the lone rider approaching her position, the place where she had decided to make her stand. She knew the man was an enemy, and at first she thought the lone rider was Ernest.
In her past dreams, the lone rider had always been Ernest, come to kill her husband and drag her away. But, now she was no longer certain it was he.
It was the same dream, the same sunset, the same danger and the same prairie as in her other dreams, yet here within her mind was a different version of the nightmare. The horse and rider became suddenly a buffalo, became an enemy warrior, became First Rider, then it turned into a spinning whirlwind.
A whirlwind? This had never before been a part of her dream. In her past dreams, the villain had been Ernest or another enemy warrior.
The spinning dust-filled gust, small at first, grew in size until it became so large, it touched the ground and the sky together. She cried out, "Husband, go back!" But, over the sound of the spinning wind, he didn't hear.
Then, from above came the deafening roar of the thunder and the sizzle of lightning, the sound it makes before it strikes the ground. More thunder followed. One lightning strike after another plummeted to the ground, illuminating the torn-up prairie and shaking it so greatly, even the cliff where she stood trembled.
Then, the worst happened. The lightning became a part of the whirling wind, spinning so fast the thunder could not be distinguished from the sound of the wind or the crackling of the lightning, which itself came out of the wind so fast it seemed supernatural. The whirlwind struck the ground again and again; it struck a person, and then, as though its mission had been accomplished, the spinning wind rose up into the sky, and, with the lightning grumbling within the clouds, it moved off.
At last, it was over. The wind, the thunder, the lightning disappeared, leaving behind, there on the ground, itshandiwork: a man lay there without movement or any sign of life.
Then came recognition. It was he; her darling, beloved husband. He was gone.
"No!" Liliann awoke to her own screams.
Strong arms immediately encircled her and turned her over until she lay beside and facing her husband. She was crying, and First Rider held her head against his shoulder, saying nothing, but holding her firmly while one of his hands came up to stroke her backside, up and down.
She couldn't speak; her voice wouldn't allow any sound except her sobs. Always it was the same dream; sometimes it came with a few different details, but it always ended in the same way: she helpless and he lying there on the prairie with no sign of life.
Then suddenly she found her voice, and she cried, "Please, I beg you, do not go! Please, listen to me and do not go!"
First Rider did not reply at first. But, then in a whisper, he said, "As soon as Tsistsaki's father…awakens, I go see him. I promise this to you. I go see him. We talk. I perhaps plead with him…let dogs lie."
Liliann nodded and then cried again, glorying in the feel of First Rider's lips as he kissed away each and every one of her tears.
****
Liliann watched her husband closely as he stepped over the entrance flap of their lodge. Then, striding into the lodge, he came to sit down beside her.
She asked, "Did Tsistsaki's father agree to let sleeping dogs lie now?"
When First Rider didn't answer right away, and, when his eyes would not meet hers, Liliann knew the truth, and she didn't need First Rider's softly spoken "Saa" to confirm her fear.
Her voice was jerky when she asked, "When do we leave? And, what do I need to prepare for our journey?"
"You…not come. Alone…I go."
"I will be goin' with thee. Do not think for an instant I will be stayin' behind, and that be God's own truth."
First Rider didn't answer. Instead, he rose up, and, stepping to the entrance, he left posthaste.
When First Rider still hadn't returned to their lodge though the sun was cradled in the western horizon, Liliann at last ceased her crying. Drying her eyes, she left her lodge to trudge toward the home of Czanna and Stands Strong. Tears were in her eyes as she approached Czanna's lodge.
