AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Margaret noticed Snow Bird glancing at her and shook her head. "She doesn't speak English."
Snow Bird nodded.
But one day a trapper came busting in, with a beautiful red-head on his arm. He was loud and obnoxious at first, but he twirled her around like she was some queen. It looked very much like she came from a saloon, the way she was dressed. She was a sight. Her hair was a magnificent color or red. Matt sized her up quickly. All the men there stared at her. She had a blouse that fell off one shoulder, and she had ample breasts that allowed little to the imagination, when she bent over. She watched as the men eyed her. All but Matt. He wrapped his arm around Snow Bird and watched the couple.
"This is my indentured slave, and no one touches her but me." The big man at her side claimed with a booming voice.
"Your slave," Ferg asked.
"That's right. She's indebted to me, like a bond servant. But she's my property. Understand, gentlemen?" The big tall man asked.
The man was not ugly, but he was huge and might have been handsome if he hadn't had such a scruffy looking beard. His dirty hair was blonde, his eyes a dark brown. The girl was close to Snow Bird's age, with flaming red-hair and green piercing eyes. She glanced around at everyone, then she spotted Matt and Snow Bird. "Well," She sent him a sultry glance, "She your squaw?" She asked.
Matt firmed his lips, squashed his temper and added, "No ma'am. She's my wife."
"You married an Indian?" The woman grimaced. "How primitive." She turned her nose up at Snow Bird and she glanced at Ferg. "What are you looking at?"
"Well, you of course." Ferg smiled. "Ain't that what you want men to do, look at you. I'd say the way your dressed, a lot of men will look at you. But not in the right way, if you'll excuse me for saying so."
"I'm not responsible for men's bad behavior. I'll say this for you, you have good taste. And…I enjoy men looking at me. I'm a woman, why wouldn't I?" She went back to stand beside the man she came with. She shot Matt a frown.
Days went by and there was no encounter with the red-head, Snow Bird was glad. She was not sure how she'd fair in a fight with her.
But as time moved on, Snow Bird began to show, and Matt was fascinated in her ever-changing body. Her breasts rounded more, the small bump became more pronounced and her dress was tight on her. Still she was so beautiful to him.
"I need to get you another dress," He kissed her head and smelled the aroma of red beans and cornbread.
Margaret overheard them and came over. "I got one that might fit her fine."
"Oh but…. I can't take your clothes." Snow Bird said.
"Sure, you can. I won't need that one any longer. I wore it while I carried my babies."
"Babies, you have children?" Snow Bird asked.
"No, not anymore. They all died from the fever."
"Fever?"
"Scarlet Fever." She told her with a long ago look in her eyes. "One by one, they all caught it. Inside a week all my kids were dead. Dern near killed me too. Took years to get over that. Thought I might just go out of my head it hurt so much. Hardships of life, I guess, just makes you stronger."
"I am sorry…How many did you have?"
"Five, three boys, two girls."
"So, sad. Tell me, how did you come to be here?"
"They were about to throw me out of my house, the law. I couldn't pay the taxes on the land. So, one neighbor told me about this place, said if I could come up here and cook for them, they'd let me live here. So, I did. I packed my few belongings and moved up here. Been here seven years now."
"Did you have a doctor, a medicine man or anything? I mean, when you had your children." Snow Bird asked innocently.
"Land sakes no, child. We didn't have a doctor where we lived, and I did the best I could, but it wasn't enough. But there was a mid-wife, she helped me with most of them, but by the time the fifth one came, I knew exactly what to do for myself. I delivered her three weeks early, by myself."
"You are one strong woman." Snow Bird shook her head.
There was a small porch out back and they went back there to try the dress on. Margaret closed the door, and stood in front of it, less someone tried to come out.
It fit well, as it was Margaret's when she was pregnant. Snow Bird glanced fixedly at her, "I've never worn a white woman's clothes before."
