face perked up. “Then we can go?”
Elizabeth glanced outside and saw numerous children in attendance. “I suppose.”
Jude looked surprised for a moment, but then he opened the front door wider. “After you.”
Elizabeth took Rose’s hand and walked through the door with her chin held high, though her knees were shaking beneath her gown.
He watched her closely, the planes of his handsome face quirking into a half smile—something she chose to ignore.
Instead, she skirted past him on the porch and forced herself to watch the dancers.
After he closed the door and joined her, she asked, “What are they celebrating?”
“Victory over their enemy, the Dakota.”
“Why do they celebrate here, and not in their own village?”
“Little Falls sits in a contested zone between the Chippewa and Dakota. They celebrate here to claim the territory—and, I suspect, to keep us aware of their presence. Do you see the young ladies in the center?”
She nodded. The women were beautiful with their dark hair flowing freely to their waists.
“Each hoop they carry represents the death of an enemy warrior. In this case, there were three Dakota who were killed in their recent raid.”
A shudder ran the length of Elizabeth’s spine.
Rose strained to leave her side, but Elizabeth held her sister’s hand tight. “It’s time to go inside, Rose.”
Jude turned with her. “I didn’t mean to upset you.”
She shook her head, her whole body ill. How could they celebrate killing?
He took a step closer. “Are you all right?”
No, she wasn’t all right. She was terribly frightened. Why had she thought this place was the answer to all her prayers? Things had been so much safer in Rockford. Never once had she seen an Indian victory dance. Here, Jude and everyone else acted as if it was a common occurrence.
She glanced into his face and saw his concern. He truly thought she was too weak for life in Little Falls—and he should know. What other atrocities would she face?
But what were her choices? She had to succeed here, because she and her sisters had nothing in Rockford to return to. She would have to pull herself together. A strong woman wouldn’t behave like this. “I’m fine.” She straightened her shoulders and forced herself to look back at the dancers.
“Are you sure? You don’t have to watch.”
Rose moved her head this way and that to get a better view of the dancers, so Elizabeth picked her up to see over everyone’s heads. “Yes, I’m sure.”
He nodded, but didn’t move away from her. After a few moments, he spoke. “Despite how this looks, they are friendly.”
She didn’t respond. How could she? She had little comprehension of Indian life.
“Their enemies are the Dakota in southern Minnesota, not us,” he continued. “They fight back and forth. The deaths they’re celebrating are the restitution they’ve gained for the death of three of their warriors from a few weeks ago.” He put his hand on the small of her back. “I really am sorry I frightened you. Would you like to go back inside?”
His touch surprised her—not only because he reached out to comfort her, but because it was so tender.
His brown eyes were full of compassion, and a strange feeling stirred within her. “It wasn’t your fault—and I really am all right.”
He dropped his hand back to his side and cleared his throat. “The last time they danced—”
The dancers stopped hopping and jumping, and threw up their arms. With a wild cry, they gave three of four whoops, placing their hands over their mouths and taking them away quickly.
Elizabeth grabbed Rose by the shoulders and was about to race into the hotel when they returned to the normal rhythm and continued shaking and moving in the circle.
The longer they stood there, the harder it was to watch the Indians dance—especially when Elizabeth allowed her eyes to wander to the women holding the poles in the center of the circle. “It’s time to go back inside, Rose. I need to help Martha with supper.”
Rose’s bottom lip protruded, but she didn’t put up a fight. They went back inside the hotel, Elizabeth’s whole body shaking with the pulse of the drum. She doubted she’d be able to sleep peacefully tonight.
She looked over her shoulder and found Jude watching them. He offered a reassuring smile and then pulled the door closed, staying outside to watch.
They had only known each other for two days, but already she sensed in him a kindness that was hard to come by in a world that had treated her poorly. The letter she’d hidden in the bottom of her trunk still troubled her, but there had to be a good explanation. Surely she had read more into it than was intended.
At least that’s what she continued to tell herself.
* * *
Nearly everyone had come out to watch the Indians dance, as they usually did. Jude stood by and watched for a few more minutes, speaking to friends and neighbors. Several Chippewa who lived and worked in Little Falls were participating in the celebration.
The traditions of the Chippewa never failed to amaze Jude, even if he didn’t fully understand them. They had taken the lives of three Dakota warriors because they were avenging the blood of their fallen men—but it meant the Dakota would now seek revenge for the three who had died this very day.
He felt bad that Elizabeth had been so shaken by the dancers—and that he’d been the one to explain the reason for the celebration. He had touched her back in a spontaneous gesture to comfort her, yet the contact had made him all too conscious of how she affected him. Even now, his hand still tingled and he had to rub it to ease the sensation.
The night before, as he’d stood in the ballroom and watched her dance, he’d enjoyed himself far too much. Hopefully one of the gentlemen had made an impression on her. No doubt several would be coming by to court her and Grace. He expected a full dining room for all three meals until both were married.
He sighed and looked back at the dancers. He should go inside and fix the hinge on the kitchen door that Martha had been bugging him about for almost a week—yet he needed some space from Elizabeth until he could clear his head.
Jude walked east on Broadway. The streets were quiet, with everyone watching the dance. Many of the storekeepers had even closed their shops to go and observe the scene. Even though there had been other dances like it, they never failed to amaze the citizens of Little Falls.
Movement down an alley caught Jude’s attention.
A group of four men entered the back door of Harper’s Emporium; one of them cast a glance over his shoulder to the opposite end of the alley.
Jude pressed against the side of a
