Bound by Honor Bound by Love by Ruth Ann Nordin Read Free Book Online Page B

retrieve her buffalo robe.
    “ I’ll go, too,” Gary added
and helped her get their daughters ready to leave the
lodge.
    “ You’ve seen the white
couple?” Onawa’s father asked her as he set down his
pipe.
    “ Yes. They’re with
Citlali,” she replied.
    Gary glanced her way. “Citlali came
here with them?”
    “ Yes. It’s why I went to
the chief’s lodge.” Onawa waited until they were ready and then
left with them. With a good look at Woape, she said, “You’re
excited.”
    Woape grinned and shifted her daughter
Phoebe to her other arm. Beside her, Gary carried Penelope. She
looked away from him and focused on Onawa. “I think the couple are
the two people who helped me when I was running from Hothlepoya. I
think they might be Penelope and Cole.”
    “ The Penelope you named
your first daughter after?”
    “ Yes. She became my friend.
I hope it’s her. I’d like to see her again.”
    Surprised that this could be the same
woman who took care of Woape before she returned to the tribe with
her child, Onawa hurried her steps. When they reached the chief’s
lodge, she led them through the crowd which parted for them. Her
gaze fell on Citlali, and she offered him a shy smile as she
approached him. Even with the swirl of activity in the lodge, she
couldn’t help but be acutely aware of his strong, masculine
presence.
    When they reached the chief, she
stepped aside so she was out of the way. Citlali glanced over at
her and seemed to be ready to motion for her to join him, but the
chief spoke, directing his attention away from her. She didn’t dare
approach the chief unless she had his permission, and since he
invited Woape and Gary to approach him, she understood she needed
to stay with the crowd and watch what happened.
    The white woman’s smile widened when
she saw Woape, and the two women hugged. Onawa’s heart warmed at
the reunion. Gary shook the man’s hand and introduced himself.
Around her, the people grew quiet so they could hear everything the
people in the center of the lodge would say.
    “ Penelope explained how she
adopted Etu and Yepa from an orphan train,” the chief told
Woape.
    Woape nodded at the children who clung
to Penelope’s skirt. “Yes, I remember them, and I’m sorry it was my
foolish action that caused their parents’ deaths,” she said in a
voice so low Onawa barely heard her.
    “ There will not be more
sorrow,” the chief replied. “This is a day of rejoicing. We learned
that Etu and Yepa survived.”
    “ You adopted them?” Woape
asked Penelope.
    “ Yes.” Penelope rubbed
their shoulders in a comforting manner. “They didn’t have anyone to
care for them and I spoke their language so it was meant to
be.”
    “ There are no
coincidences,” the chief agreed. “You finding Citlali and him
bringing you here while he was seeking a vision is significant. We
must not miss the meaning behind it.”
    Onawa frowned, his meaning not clear
to her, but she sensed this wasn’t something the white couple had
anticipated. Her gaze went to them, and Penelope glanced at Cole
who shrugged.
    “ Penelope and Cole have
been good to them,” Woape told the chief. “They are healthy and
happy.”
    “ The boy has questions and
some nightmares,” Penelope commented. “We thought by coming here,
he might find answers and peace.”
    “ A very good reason to be
here,” the chief replied. “You were right to bring them. They must
learn the ways of their people. A good way to start is for you to
stay with the children in the lodge belonging to their aunts. They
will want to see their lost ones.” His gaze turned to Etu and Yepa.
“Your aunts can tell you about your mother and father.”
    “ We have room in our
lodge,” Woape argued. “Etu and Yepa’s aunts don’t have enough room
since they recently made a smaller lodge to inhabit.”
    The chief scanned the crowd and saw
one of their aunts. He motioned for her to come forward, and she
quickly obeyed. In low tones, the