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They made a wide half circle, then came out above where the buck was feasting on the leaves of a tree below them.
“We will dismount here,” Strong Wolf said, nodding over at Hannah, then nodding at Proud Heart and his warriors as they each dismounted. “And now is the time for us to clear our minds. Do not think of the deer as we approach it. A deer hears a hunter’s thoughts if his thoughts are on the deer.”
Hannah’s heart thumped wildly within her chest as she yanked her rifle from its gun boot. She watched Strong Wolf and his braves clasp onto their bows, then followed beside Strong Wolf as they moved stealthily through the thick stand of birch trees.
She occasionally gave Proud Heart a nervous glance as he would say something softly to Strong Wolf. She was too proud to ask what was being said. When Strong Heart wanted her to be included, he would include her despite Proud Heart’s interference.
Strong Wolf held out an arm, stopping everyone. “We will wait for the deer to come up the trail again,” he whispered to Hannah, the others seeming to know without being told. “He is just down bow range. He is alert to all sounds. We must now wait in silence.”
Hannah nodded. She gripped the rifle tightly, her eyes watching the narrow trail that led up from the ravine where the deer was taking its time eating.
Strong Wolf said a quiet prayer to himself, asking the deer to forgive him, then drew an arrow from his quiver. He notched the arrow on his bow and drew the string back as he heard the deer’s feet shuffling along the trail.
Strong Wolf held his breath as he waited and watched.
Hannah’s eyes were wide. She had also heard the deer approaching. She could even now hear the deer breathing!
When the deer came close enough, Strong Wolf let out his breath and loosed his arrow.
/> Proud Heart loosed his, the others standing back and only observing. Their time would come when the next deer was spotted.
The two arrows dove straight into the middle of the deer’s side, just above its front leg.
Hannah’s fingers felt frozen to the gun. She couldn’t pull the trigger. She was in awe of how quickly the arrows had sank into the deer’s body. She watched the deer take one leap, then tumble to the ground.
Hannah ran beside Strong Wolf as he went and knelt down beside the deer. The buck heaved a heavy sigh, then shuddered and died.
Having never before been this close to a buck such as this, Hannah was in awe of its size. She reached out and touched the antlers, then pulled back her hand when Proud Heart hoisted the deer over his shoulder and carried it to his horse.
After the deer was secured on the horse’s back behind the saddle, they repeated the search and kill until six deer were downed.
“That should be enough meat for the white men’s table,” Strong Wolf said as he secured the last kill on the back of his own horse. “Let us now deliver what we have promised.”
The journey back to the fort was silent and full of reverence. The hunt was a time of solemnness. Respect to the dead had to be paid.
The wide gates of the fort were open when they arrived. They rode on inside and drew tight rein before the colonel’s cabin.
Shirtless, Patrick came outside. A cigar hung from the cormer of his mouth. His eyes danced when he saw the deer. “And so you did it,” he said, giving Strong Wolf a quick smile. “You actually did it.”
“Did I not say that I would?” Strong Wolf said, dismounting. He loosened the ropes around the deer that lay across his horse’s back.
“You did in one afternoon what would take my men a month to do,” Patrick said, chuckling. He watched Strong Wolf lay the deer at his feet, then stepped around the deer and clasped his hands on Strong Wolf’s shoulders. “Thank you, my friend. Thank you.”
Strong Wolf nodded.
Patrick lowered his hand to his side and stepped back as the other deer were placed on the porch.
Patrick then gazed at Hannah. A small smile tugged at his lips. “And so you also joined the hunt?” he asked.
“I watched,” Hannah said, stiffening.
Strong Wolf and his men mounted their steeds. The colonel gave Strong Wolf a salute, then Hannah wheeled her horse around and rode beside Strong Wolf from the fort.
When they rode a short distance, Hannah wheeled her horse to a stop. Strong Wolf stopped beside her, motioning for his men to go on without him.
“I must get back home,” Hannah said, reaching a gentle hand to Strong Wolf’s face.
“We took much time hunting when, if not, we could have been together in the privacy of my lodge,” Strong Wolf said, taking her hand and kissing its palm.
