Flight of Fancy: Cora's Daughters by Mercedes Keyes Read Free Book Online Page A

she knew that to be true, twice she’d attempted it. She’d watched him from on high, and both times she loaded her bow, drew the arrow back and yet… could not let it fly. She could not lay him down as she had others. Was she crazy? She wondered about herself.
    Was he crazy? Was something wrong in his head?
    He saw what she could do, would do – but he kept coming, “Lawd, he ain’t even got sense enuff t’hide from me. He jus’ come on out where he know I see’im, like he waitin’ on me to kill’im? He crazy Lawd? Is he? Lawd, I’on like crazy folks, 'specially no crazy white men, they scare me even more. Lawd, sen’ that crazy man on way from me… sen’im on now.” She fussed after giving up on killing him to out ride him. She tried not to think about him anymore, she would think about her horse. She’d been feeding her bay mare and calling her ‘Flower’ to get used to it.
     

That was so, when she heard it, she knew she would get something good.
    It was working. Her horse had taken a strong liking to her because she talked to her, treated her good, rubbed her down and gave her treats she enjoyed while calling her Flower.
    Since the big white man - she was now thinking she might have to let Flower go. Flower was making it easy for him to find her, trail her, keep up with her – horses left signs you couldn’t cover.
    “Can’t let you go Flower. I get lonely if you ain’t wit’me, don’t wanna be lonely…’cept that big ol’crazy man can fin’me long as I keep you.” She spoke low and gentle to her mare, stroking the animal’s long strong neck as they traveled.
    “Don’ even know where I’m goin’ now. Got nowhere t’go Flower – don’t know where m’mama at – don’t know where Suga at. I love my baby sister – you’da like Suga – she don’ complain, she jus’ do her bit an’ get on wit’ what need to get done.” She rode a while thinking, “Lawd, see ‘bout Suga – take care’o’ha – don’ let nobody do her bad, please don’t – it break my heart somebody hurt my lil’sista. Lawd, I want you to see ‘bout my otha sista’s too… don’ worry ‘bout me – wha’s gone be for me, gone be… I ain’ gone fight it Lawd – no sa’ I ain’ gone fight it.”
    Asiza rode but she was feeling a bit weary, lost, alone, and lonely. Going back to Clover Grove and not finding her mother or Suga seemed to sap the energy right out of her body. She was feeling tired for no reason, maybe because she was so sad. She never knew that being sad, could make you feel so tired, that all you want to do is sleep. She didn’t even feel like eating. Once more, days went by and she found herself deep in a densely covered forest. The trees were thick, their canopy let in the smallest traces of rays from the sun. She was surrounded by trees that could be easily climbed. Asiza dismounted, removed the saddle from Flower and hid it under a cluster of bushes. Turning back to Flower, “Go on girl, be free. Don’ want nobody holding on to me, ain’t gone be holdin’ on to you… go girl… go on.” Flower looked back at her, snorted a bit and turned away and started grazing, but would not take off.
     

Asiza sighed, “I wanna sleep, just a bit. You go on now, be happy girl, be happy.” With her weapons strapped onto her back, Asiza searched out a good tree, climbed it – and hung her weapons from boughs strong enough to hold them.
    Pulling full leaf cluster branches down and weaving them together in place, she found the right cradle and lay upon it, giving in to her need to doze off to sleep.
    It was the smell of smoke that woke her. She wasn’t sure how long she’d been asleep, but when stirred – she was alert. Grabbing hold of a strong bough, she leaned outward to look down toward the dark forest floor. To her surprise, there was a crackling fire going – next to it, the big man from the lake.
    She quietly came down from her sleeping perch, to a limb below, squatting in