[Song of Alaska 02] - Morning's Refrain by Tracie Peterson Read Free Book Online

Robbins.”
    Phoebe felt her face grow hot. “I’m afraid I wasn’t very congenial at our first meeting. I’m sure he probably told you.”
    Mrs. Lindquist and her aunt exchanged a look that suggested they had no idea what Phoebe was talking about. Great , she thought. He hadn’t said anything, and now she would have to explain—all because she had to open her big mouth in defense.
    “Dalton said very little, actually. He’s a man of few words,” his mother offered. “I’m sure the shock of your accident left him little concern as to your reaction. I can say that if I had fallen into the harbor, I might have lacked congeniality, too.” She smiled warmly, again putting Phoebe at ease.
    Her mother picked up one of the offered sweets. “Phoebe made him some cookies to show her gratitude.”
    “Then all will be perfectly well,” Zee announced. “There are few things that boy likes more.”
    “I find that true of most men,” Phoebe’s mother replied. “Might I ask how long you’ve made your home here in Sitka, Miss Rockford?”
    Zerelda smiled and eased back in the chair. “I’ve been here since before the purchase. When Russia sold Alaska to America, I was already a citizen. I came here to work as a nurse for a German family. The wife took ill quite often and needed constant care. Later, my niece moved here, as well, and we’ve managed to stay on ever since.”
    “My husband, Kjell, was born and raised here,” Lydia added.
    “So you certainly know all there is to know about the place.”
    Phoebe knew her mother had a million unanswered questions. Not the least of which was concerns about the Indians. As if reading her daughter’s mind, she pressed on.
    “What do you know of the Indians here?”
    Zerelda raised a brow. “Enough to know they don’t like to be called Indians. They are Tlingits. The Russians call them the Kolash.”
    “I haven’t seen very many of them. Are they . . . well . . . are there many here?”
    “Quite a few, but this is summer and they are out gathering food. They live in the village for most of the winter, then head out around April, when the herring spawn. They’ll be gone for most of the summer and early fall, hunting and even visiting other kwaans . Those are tribal units of other Tlingits. The group here is called the Sheet’ká kwaan, or ‘inhabitants of Sitka.’ ”
    Phoebe sensed her mother’s discomfort at this comeuppance. “And what are these people like, Miss Rockford? We have seen only a few of them around the town. They are rather frightening with their faces painted black and red. Is this normal, or are they dressed that way for a specific purpose?”
    “It serves various purposes, not the least of which is protection against the sun and insects,” Zerelda replied. “The flies and mosquitoes can be vicious up here, if you haven’t already encountered them. This remedy has served them well.”
    Mother gave a shiver. “Well, they are rather frightening to me.”
    “They are good people,” Mrs. Lindquist said. “Their skill in fishing and herbal remedies is not to be underestimated. I have learned so much since coming here, and a great bit of that knowledge has come from the native people. They have problems, just as anyone would, but I find most Tlingits to be highly industrious. You will learn this for yourself come fall. When they return for the winter, you will find the town quite populated with them.”
    “Are they violent? I heard they’ve had uprisings here. Someone mentioned it on the ship.”
    “There have been issues from time to time,” Mrs. Lindquist conceded. “But all people—white or otherwise—disagree from time to time. We have no further to look than our own War Between the States. Which reminds me—I understand that your husband and our new governor are heroes of that war.”
    Phoebe admired how easily and quickly Mrs. Lindquist moved the conversation away from the controversy of the Tlingit people. She knew her mother was