Hi friends. Today I will move into the heart of this story. The problem of missing children from the USA native American reservations is 10 times worse per capita than it is elsewhere in this country. When I interviewed some of the staff at Little Big Horn College, I asked if the missing children were only girls. Emerson Bull Chief and the others thought the missing girls were the largest group, but thought maybe one in four of the children were boys. I’m hoping this novel will raise awareness and maybe produce some protections for the native children.
Sheri Schofield
Chapter 10
Ramie fell asleep on the short drive home. He felt warm in my arms as I lifted him out of the car seat and carried him into the house. While he slept, I peeled and sliced apples then arranged them in the pie crust I'd just rolled out. I added the top crust, carved a design of apples and leaves on the top, and slid it into the oven to bake.
Pouring a tall glass of iced tea, I walked out onto the porch, leaving a window open so I could hear when Ramie awoke. I sat back in one of the lounge chairs and looked out over the meadow and hills where our livestock grazed. Ethan's cattle and horses grazed just the other side of our fence. He was a weekend cowboy. A neighbor boy helped him move the herd around once a week. The frequent rotations allowed the grass to recover from the grazing.
I thought back to the meeting with Sheriff Bold Eagle. As I prayed for the missing girls, thoughts came into my mind.
If the girls are in our area, then they are probably being abused. They've been gone for six months now. They are probably pregnant. Lord, help Ramona and Jenny during this time of great trial! They belong to you! They have followed the teachings of the Bible. Be close to their hearts. Protect them from whoever stole them. Help us to know how to find them. I don't have any idea where we should even begin looking. Guide us, Lord.
I sighed, contemplating the kidnapped girls. What would their needs be?
"They will need medical care when their babies are born." It was as though Jesus had spoken clearly to me.
"Of course!"
When Ethan came to the ranch after work, I waited until after dinner to broach the subject. Ramie was playing with our dog Tatum on the lawn below us.
"Ethan, those kidnapped girls must be pregnant by now," I said.
"Yes, I've thought of that." He sighed and shook his head as he sipped his iced tea.
"They're going to need medical care at some point. Who would be most likely to help them, knowing they were captives?"
Ethan frowned. "We have two nurses and three paramedics in town. We have a midwife or two. We may have some retired medical professionals. I don't know any of them well, except for Dr. Bill. He might know." He shrugged. "I can talk with him and with Aaron about it. They might have some ideas. Plus, Aaron has the personnel and authority to investigate anyone acting suspiciously."
"Okay. That sounds like good start." I shook my head. "The sooner we find those girls the better."
***
Later that night as I lay sleeping, I heard Tatum, who slept next to my bed, let out a low growl.
Looking down at her, I saw her head was up.
The front door squeaked. Someone was in the house!
I jumped out of bed, locked my door and rushed toward the open window.
The sound of stealthy footsteps reached me as I slid out onto the roof over the downstairs bedrooms.
Tatum growled again, louder this time.
"Tatum! Come!" I whispered loudly.
The golden retriever turned and followed me out the window.
I dashed toward the front edge of the slanted roof. Below me was the raised flower garden about six feet below.
Hearing the bedroom door crash open, I turned, grasped the edge of the roof, and dropped into it.
"Come, Tatum!" I whispered.
Tatum whined.
A man cursed above. He must be at the window!
"Come girl!" I held up my arms.
Tatum jumped. I caught her and together we fell into the flowers. Jumping up, I turned to toward the road through the aspens to Ethan's house. The moon came out from behind a cloud, flooding the parking area with light. The intruder's van was parked alongside my car!
Skidding to a halt, I turned and headed for the nearest trees separating our homes. If I could just get into the trees and find the old pathway we'd used as children, I'd have some cover. Though the path was somewhat overgrown, I was able to find it.
The front door of the house slammed against the side of the house behind me, sending jags of fear through my body. I heard a man curse, then the sound of him running toward me.
Low branches slapped at my body as I struggled through the trees, some catching at my light cotton nightdress. I heard my pursuer trying to find his way behind me. Reaching down, I grabbed Tatum's collar and whispered into her ear. "Guard, Tatum. Guard!"
Tatum stopped, turned around, and began barking loudly at the man behind me. A light came on at Ethan's place.
"Get out of my way, dog!" a vicious male voice shouted.
Tatum yelped, but she must have grabbed his pants leg. I could hear the scuffle.
"Ethan! Ethan!" I screamed. My pursuer was gaining on me when I broke out of the trees and made a dash across the open area.
The front door opened. Ethan stepped out, a shotgun in one hand.
Behind me I heard my pursuer's feet halt then turn and run the other direction as he cursed briefly.
"Ethan! Help!" I gasped.
Without hesitation, he raced down the porch steps and across the lawn toward me.
I flung myself into his arms.
With one arm he held me, with the other he held the shotgun. "Skye! Are you okay?"
Tatum raced out of the woods toward us and barked.
"Good girl! Good girl!" I said over my shoulder as she crowded close to me and whined.
I was trembling too hard and out of breath, so I simply nodded against Ethan's shoulder, his flannel robe feeling warm and comforting beneath my cheek.
A moment later, we heard an engine rev. No headlights. The van backed up hurriedly and raced out to the road, disappearing into the night.
"Who was that?" Ethan demanded.
"I don't know!" I clung to him. "I heard Tatum growl, then I heard someone coming up the stairs. I climbed out onto the roof with Tatum, and we jumped off into Mom's flower bed." I paused, catching my breath. "I ran here as fast as I could. Tatum helped slow whoever it was down. Otherwise, he would have caught me."
I shivered involuntarily.
"Let's go inside," Ethan said, turning me toward the house, his arm across my shoulders.
The lights seemed bright after my nighttime dash. I blinked and crossed my arms over my thin nightdress.
"Wait here." Ethan headed straight for his cell phone, which he'd left in his bedroom then returned to me and held me close.
"Aaron, it's me. Some man tried to kidnap Skye....Yes, she's okay now....she's at my place....Okay. I'll leave the porch light on for you. Skye's place is in complete darkness. Sure. 'Bye." He clicked the phone off, put it in his pocket, and came toward me.
"Thank God you're safe!" he said. "You're cold. Let me get you something warmer. Aaron's coming over." He released me and strode toward his bedroom, emerging shortly with one of his long flannel shirts. "Here. Put this on." He draped it over my shoulders and I slid my arms into the sleeves. It fell almost to my knees.
"You said you came through the aspens. Let me look at your arms and legs." He held me away and gave me a once over. "Okay, it looks like you have some scratches." He led me to the couch. "Sit here. I'll be right back."
I looked down at arms and legs. There were a few places where blood had risen to the surface in the long scrapes from the brush beneath the trees.
"Here. Let me take care of those scratches," he said, entering the living room with a small medical kit. He dabbed my cheek with a cotton ball soaked with medication.
I looked up at him. "Thank you, Ethan."
"Sure." His eyes met mine, a grim look on his face. "Did you see who it was?"
"No. But I did see a dark van."
Ethan's eyes met mine, startled at the implications.
Lights flashed outside as a police car pulled into the drive silently, stopping close to the house. Ethan gave a quick look at my arms and cleaned some more scratches.
"Let me see the rest of you." He opened the shirt he'd lent me. "Just what I thought." He put medicine on another cotton ball and cleansed a scratch just above my neckline. It was a bad one. He reached for a bandage and taped it to the skin. "Okay. That will do for now."
I pulled his shirt tightly around my body.
He was cleaning the worst cuts on my leg when Aaron walked in with the new deputy, Liam Webster. Aaron walked over and knelt in front of me next to Ethan.
"Are you okay, Skye?" he asked.
"Yes," I heard my voice waver. "Um, I'm mostly scared." I shivered.
Tatum whined. She couldn't reach me.
"Good girl, Tatum," I said. "It's okay."
"Tell me what happened," Aaron demanded.
Aaron took over everything in detail. When I mentioned the dark van, he stopped and exchanged glances with Ethan. "A dark van, huh. Okay. Liam and I will go over to your place and check for fingerprints inside the house. You said he came in the front door, and it sounded like he put his head outside your bedroom window, so his fingerprints might be on the sill. Unless he wore gloves. Tomorrow we'll come back to look for footprints outside." He stood and turned to Ethan, who rose next to him. "Skye should stay here tonight."
"Of course."
"Skye, I'm glad you're okay. But this is serious. I don't want you walking over to your house until we've checked and dusted the areas you mentioned. And I don't think you should be alone at your house, at night especially, until we catch this intruder."
"I have Tatum. She's the one who warned me."
Aaron shook his head. "She's not enough."
I shrugged helplessly.
"Try and get some sleep. You can figure out what to do tomorrow."
"Okay."
Ethan walked Liam and Aaron out to their car. "Thanks for coming, bro."
"Not a problem. See you in the morning."
Coming back inside the house, Ethan sat on the couch beside me and pulled me close. "I'm putting you in Aaron's old room for the night. I know you're wound up. Let me make you a cup of hot chocolate. It will help you sleep."
"Daddy?" a sleepy voice sounded. Ramie stood in the bedroom doorway rubbing his eyes.
"Ramie, Skye is here. She needs to sleep at our house tonight."
"Okay." Ramie said. He yawned and walked over to where we were sitting. "You have scratches." He looked at my legs and face. "Did Daddy fix your scratches?"
"Yes, honey."
"I need to put a few band aids on some of the cuts." Ethan released me and reached for the first aid kit. "You want to help me, Ramie?"
"Yes," Ramie's eyes lit up.
"Okay. When I take the wrappers off the band aids, I want you to hold the wrappers."
Ramie nodded importantly. "I'll help fix Skye."
Watching them bandage my wounds, I smiled and began to relax. What a team! I was still smiling as I fell asleep in Aaron's bedroom later, after having a hot cup of chocolate milk.
***
"Boss was late getting in last night," Cara said softly. "He was cursing when he came in, but I pretended to be asleep. I don't think his plans went well."
"Do you think he tried to capture another girl?" Ramona whispered.
"Yes."
The three girls moved around the kitchen as quietly as possible, trying not to wake the men. Jenny was flipping pancakes before their kidnappers staggered out into the kitchen and dropped into chairs around the table.
"What happened?" Mac asked Boss.
"She heard me and escaped to a neighbor's place." He cussed freely.
Jenny set the stack of pancakes in the center of the table. The men each grabbed a couple and began buttering it and passing the syrup around.
Ramona placed a bowl of scrambled eggs on the table and Cara added the coffee pot, then returned to the kitchen to help prepare their own breakfast, which they wouldn't eat until the men were finished and had left.
Mac took a long drink of coffee. "You gonna try again tonight?"
Boss shook his head. "No. Gotta wait until things calm down a little first."
"Maybe you should try someone else," Chet suggested.
"No. I want this one. I'll just have to wait awhile. But I'll get her." Boss stuffed a big bite of pancakes into his mouth.
Mac stared at him for a long moment, looking at a long, thin cut along his jawline. "Maybe we should head south for a few months."
Boss shook his head. "No. We'll be fine. Nobody saw me."
"You girls need to weed the garden again today. There's still a lot of weeds," Chet said. He looked over at Boss. "I'll call in sick and keep an eye on them."
"Okay." Boss glanced at his watch. "Gotta go. Don't want to be late to work."
"Me too," Mac said, rising from his chair.
When the two other men had left, Chet went out to tool shed to fetch shovels, rakes and hoes. Leaning them against the house, he went over to the burn pile and tossed a garbage bag on it. Returning to the house, he poured himself another cup of coffee and watched the girls eat.
"Soon as you're done, you'd best get busy outside."
Ramona looked up hesitantly. "It's close to Cara's time. Could she sit in the shade and let us work?"
Chet ignored the question.
After they'd washed the breakfast dishes, the three girls headed out the front door and walked toward the garden. Chet lounged in the doorway for a few minutes, then went back inside.
Ramona walked over to the burn pile with some weeds and tossed them on top. As she started to turn back, she noticed an old tire laying in the sun beside the house. It hadn't been there the last time the men had let them out into the sun. She glanced up at the house to see if Chet was watching, but she didn't see him. Walking over to the tire, she carried it back to the burn pile and put beneath some of the rubble.
Cara looked up as she returned to pull weeds. "Good idea. That should catch someone's attention when they light the pile."
Ramona nodded. "We'll have to be ready to run and hide when they do. If the fire fighters come up here, we'll be locked inside the house so they won't find us."
Jenny, who had been watching, shivered. "I hope we can get away. How much longer before they burn the pile?"
"Probably not until the pile is bigger. Maybe a couple weeks. But you'll have to be ready to run." Cara said. "That black smoke will get the fire department up here fast."
"So which way should we run?"
"Hey! Get back to work!" Chet yelled from the house.
"Take the path along the creek. Follow it down the mountain," Cara breathed. "It's your only hope. I won't be able to go with you. My baby is due any time now. Bring help. I'm counting on you."