Free Sweet Savage Heart by Janelle Taylor Page A

try to steal her from your tepee. If I fail, her grandfather will bargain with the Army to fight for her release. Do not force me to battle my brothers for what we know is right for all concerned.”
    “What if I order my warriors to slay you and your father friend? Why do you not challenge for Wild Wind in the Lakota way?”
    Travis gently seized Nathan’s arm and shook his head in warning when the older man started to interrupt. He smiled affectionately and encouragingly at him, then answered the warrior in Oglala for privacy. “My friend’s protection and happiness come first in my heart, for he has given me love and acceptance as no other has. I am as his son. It would pain him deeply to cause my death while seeking the return of his loved one. He is getting old and needs me at his side. If I challenge for her, then she is mine, not her grandfather’s. I seek to marry no woman until love is a strong bond between us. We came under truce. If you slay us, your face would be stained with dishonor. If I challenge for Wild Wind, her bargain price and all it buys will be lost to you and your people. Accept our offer, Lone Wolf, for we will not leave the Dakota Territory without her. You must trust me. If I were a man of lost honor and hate, I would have entrapped and slain you and your warriors.”
    Lone Wolf grinned, for he knew Travis could have andwould have done exactly as he had said, and probably would have succeeded. The warrior was cunning and astute. He knew Travis’s words were not a threat; they were a sincere warning, a statement of fact. He could tell that the two white men were determined to regain the white girl who had lived as his sister for ten winters. Lone Wolf knew he could refuse Nathan’s and Travis’s demands and offers, that he could slay both men. But these were men of courage and honor, despite their white skin, and they were offering something his people needed desperately.
    Lone Wolf sat and crossed his legs. He had many responsibilities on his shoulders. He needed a clear head for planning their defense against the awesome white attack that was sure to come soon. Worries over his sister constantly clouded his reason and provoked his anger and impatience. He needed the weapons, supplies, and money that Nathan was offering for her recovery. He needed Wild Wind’s future settled. Undeniably, Wild Wind was Rana Michaels, and Rana was white. Perhaps she belonged with her true family, away from these conflicts between the Indian and white man. Perhaps the Great Spirit had sent this solution to him, for White Eagle had lived in both worlds and could help his sister adjust to her old life. Lone Wolf could not help but wonder what Wild Wind would say and do. Perhaps, he mused, it would be best for all if White Eagle and Wild Wind were joined…
    Travis sat down before Lone Wolf. Black eyes locked with green ones. Travis could tell that the warrior was considering his offer seriously. Yet an air of mystery and a hint of amusement exuded from the warrior, which he tried to comprehend. Travis pressed his advantage by reiterating why Rana should be sent home and why Lone Wolf needed to accept their bargain. Recalling a fact mentioned earlier, he inquired, “Has the joiningceremony been announced for Rana and Rides-Like-Thunder? Is that why you hesitate or refuse to bargain?”
    The chief answered candidly, “Many have asked for Wild Wind, but she has rejected all warriors. She threatens to leave our camp if I force her to join on the full moon. She bluffs Lone Wolf; she has no place to go that offers safety and happiness, and she is too proud to disobey before the eyes of our people. She is to choose her mate or leave by the Sun Dance, or I will bind her to my Cheyenne friend. What if my sister refuses to go with her grandfather? What if she chooses Rides-Like-Thunder or another warrior over him?”
    Travis smiled at the amusing and strangely pleasing revelations. “She has been raised Oglala, Lone