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Lavinia welcomed anything that could help relieve this gnawing pain of loss, even if it meant drinking something unknown to her. It was better than being awake and knowing that her daughter was out in the Everglades all alone, perhaps even… Her eyes drifted slowly closed as Shining Soul handed the half-empty cup to Wolf Dancer, then gently eased Lavinia’s head back down on the pelts. He reached for a blanket and covered her with it, then sat up again, watching her.
“When she awakens, I hope to have her daughter sitting beside her, waiting to be held in her arms,” Wolf Dancer said. “Thank you, Shining Soul, for caring for the woman. She doesn’t deserve all of the pain she has been forced to endure these past days. I hope to alleviate at least some of it by bringing her daughter back to her.”
“If she does not see her daughter again, she herself may not survive, for it seems that the child is her world,” Shining Soul said thickly.
“She deserves far more than she has been given in this world,” Wolf Dancer said, slowly rising. “I must go now and inform her friends that she awakened for a short while. I will assure them again that she will be alright.”
After leaving Shining Soul, Wolf Dancer went to Joshua’s hut and spoke his name outside the closed door. Joshua hurried over and opened it.
He gazed into Wolf Dancer’s eyes, the moon’s glow giving him enough light to see by. “Have you brought me news about Lavinia?” he asked, his voice drawn with anxiety.
“She awakened,” Wolf Dancer said, seeing how that news lit up Joshua’s dark eyes. “But she is asleep again.”
“But she is gonna be alright?” Joshua prodded as Twila awakened and came to stand beside him. She reached out and took one of his hands.
“She spoke to me,” Wolf Dancer said. “Then I explained to her about her daughter. I told her that I would be searching for the child early in the morning. Then she went to sleep.”
He did not tell Joshua and Twila the worst of what had happened, that Lavinia had to be sedated so that she could sleep again.
Sleep was what she needed until better news was brought to her!
“But she is going to be alright?” Twila burst out, searching Wolf Dancer’s eyes as he gazed down at her.
“I assure you, she will be alright,” Wolf Dancer said. He placed a gentle hand on Twila’s shoulder. “I must go now and get some rest, for the morning hours are not far away.”
“I will go with you when you leave in the morning,” Joshua said. “I want to help search for Dorey.” “I want to go, too,” Twila added quickly. “She is my best friend. I want to help find her.”
“We’ll see,” Joshua said, smiling down at her.
“Until tomorrow,” Wolf Dancer said, then turned to walk away.
Joshua and Twila called their thanks after him. He gave them a soft smile over his shoulder, then went on his way toward home.
When he passed Shining Soul’s hut, he wanted to go and spend the night there, but he knew that rest would benefit him more than sitting and gazing at the sleeping woman whom he now knew he loved with all his being.
Chapter Seventeen
There are two things to aim at in life;
First, to get what you want;
And after that, to enjoy it!
—Logan Smith
After placing his horse in the stable, Hiram stumbled through the dark until he found the steps to his front porch.
He had drunk from his flask of whiskey all the way home from his poker game. He had already imbibed a great deal while playing, and when the flask was empty, he found himself too drunk to continue on. He’d slid off his horse, passed out, and awoke who knew how many hours later.
Now he stumbled on the bottom step, fell, laughed throatily, got up and made it to the second step, then fell again. He was still drunk.
Dizzy, his legs like rubber, he sat down on the step and lowered his face into his hands, then started and opened his eyes quickly when he heard the growl of thunder in the distance.
Hating storms, he rose shakily to his feet and stumbled up the steps and inside the house to the foyer.
Teetering, he glanced up the winding staircase, thinking it would be quite a feat to tackle in his condition.
But wanting to sleep on a mattress, not a sofa, he grabbed hold of the banister, steadied himself, and began the slow climb.
