When Love's Gone Country

Chapter Four



“Did you guys stop for ice cream, too?” Jeremy asked.

“No, why?” Bobby asked.

“There’s something sticky on the door handle.

Meg turned her body toward the waterfall to hide the flush creeping up her cheeks. She wasn’t quick enough, Courtney caught the move.

“Sticky stuff?” she teased her friend. “Just when did you and Bob arrive here?”

“We were a bit early.”

Courtney giggled. “And everyone thinks you’re the shy, innocent one.”

“Keep your voice down.”

“I’m whispering. My voice doesn’t go any lower.”

“I knew we’d get caught.”

“That’s half the fun.”

“It really was.”

Brad and Bobby turned their attention to the lodge. “How old do you think these trees are?”

“Really old,” Bob said. “It looks like they built the lodge right around them.”

“Roots must run deep.”

Brad tried to put his arms around one of the bases, but they only made it halfway around.

Jacob joined them, looking up. “Hey, what’s that up there?”

“Looks like a tree house,” Bobby said.

“There’s another one,” Jeremy yelled from the car.

“We have eight of ‘em. Welcome to Moon Spirit Lodge.” A silver-haired Indian holding a carved wooden cane with an eagle at the top stepped forward.

“We didn’t see you there,” Brad said.

“I’m always here. Sometimes you see me, sometimes you don’t.” The man with the weathered face looked down at Jeremy. “You like these trees?”

Jeremy nodded his head vigorously.

“I had you pegged for a climber right from the get-go.” He looked at Jacob. “Not you, though. You’re more of a cave dweller, like having something solid at your back.”

“Are there caves around here?”

“Sure. Lots of ‘em. They’re hidden. You have to search to find them.”

“Is there a map?” Jeremy asked.

Courtney and Meg were intrigued by the man’s tone of voice and mysterious aura. They joined the others.

“This lodge was built many moons ago to celebrate Chief Atonga’s marriage to lovely Marion Little Bear. You are standing on the boundary that used to separate the two tribes. On the eve of their wedding day, they signed a pact to join together, erasing the divide and becoming a new tribe. That day never arrived.”

“Why?” Jacob asked.

“Not everyone wanted the tribes to merge. Factions from both sides found them and drove arrows through their hearts.”

“I’m not liking this story very much,” Meg said.

“There is more. A love that strong doesn’t die when blood no longer flows through the body. Their spirits found one another under the midnight moon by the waterfall. They made their sacred vows to love one another and remain together for eternity.

When the two tribes realized they had not succeeded in keeping the lovers apart, they honored the agreement to merge and the boundary was dissolved.

They built Moon Spirit Lodge in the shadow of the waterfall where Marion Little Bear and Chief Atonga solidified their vows to one another.”

“You okay, Mom?” Jeremy asked.

Tears were streaming down Meg’s cheeks. “Yeah, honey.”

“You know your Mom always cries at sad stories,” Courtney said. “And happy stories and funny stories and—”

“All right, leave me alone. I’m a crier, so sue me.”

Bobby put his arms around Meg and held her close. “I love that you have the biggest heart of anyone I’ve ever met.”

“Hey, where’d he go?” Jeremy asked.

They all looked at where the man had been standing. There was nothing there but an old bench made of gnarled tree stems.

“He was right here a second ago,” Jacob said. “He’s really cool. Wish I could come and go like that.”

“I wanted to ask him more about the tree houses,” Jeremy said.

“I’m sure they can tell us more inside,” Bobby said.

“But I want to hear it from him.”

“And I want to know where we can find maps to the caves.”

“Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, guys, but we’re just eating here, then we need to hit the road if we’re going to get to the Double Y Ranch by nightfall,” Meg said.

“Oh, Mom, come on. We want to go on a hunt. This place is awesome!”

“It is pretty spectacular,” Bob said.

“Throw your damn schedule out, Meg. We want to explore,” Court said.

“If Pure and Alex want to, then I’m okay with it.” Meg shrugged. “Don’t know why I made a schedule in the first place if no one was going to follow it.”

“We love your organizational skills, but we’re also on vacation. We have to allow room for spontaneity,” Bob said.

“I suppose. I would like to get a peek at the tree houses. Do you think you can stay overnight in them?”

“You mean you don’t already know?” Court asked.

Meg gave Courtney a glance that she was all too familiar with. So were the boys.

“You’re pushing it, Court. If I were you, I’d zip it,” Jeremy said.

“Wise advice,” Courtney said with a grin. “Come on, let’s go inside and see if we can find that man again.”

Purity and Alex pulled up, joining Bobby, Brad and Meg.

“Hey, you made it,” Brad said, opening the car door for Purity. “How are you feeling?”

“I’m good. Didn’t puke once.”

“Glad to hear it.”

“We met this cool Indian guy and he was telling us about the history of this place. There are caves to explore and houses up in the trees. Look!” Courtney said, pointing up into the trees.

“Is there time in the schedule to look around?” she asked Meg.

“We’re making time.”

“Oh, good. I know it’s hard to be flexible sometimes, Meggie.”

“Does everyone think I’m a hard-ass?”

“I think you have a very soft ass,” Bobby said.

“That’s not what I meant.”

“I know. No one thinks you’re a hard-ass, but you did make the schedule in fifteen minute increments.”

“All right, no more schedule.”

“We need a schedule,” Purity said. “Without your planning, we’d all still be at home twiddling our thumbs saying, ‘Yeah, someone ought to do something about that.’”

“Beautiful place here. How old is it?” Alex asked.

Everyone looked at Meg.

“You’ll have to find out for yourself. Ms. Organization is taking a vacation, too.”

Courtney laughed. “I love you, Meg. Come on, everybody, let’s go do some research ourselves, then we’ll really appreciate Meg’s gifts.”

“You can say that again,” Purity said.

“Let’s go do some research—”

“No! Don’t say it again.”

“You said!”

“Since when does anybody listen to me?”

They entered the lodge to find handcrafted items placed on shelves around multiple seating areas. Leather couches faced opposite each other to make square conversation areas. Beautiful stained glass lamps were on individually carved end tables.

“Is everything in here homemade?” Courtney asked.

“It is,” a gentleman with long, black hair tucked neatly in a braid said. He wore a denim shirt with embroidered trees on the collar and a vest made of suede embedded with beads.

“Do the beads mean something?” Jacob asked.

“They do. We wear our story on our bodies, in the clothes we wear, the walking sticks we use, even our footwear. Each piece is chosen with care and customized according to our tribe and the path we’ve chosen for our lives.”

“I’m suddenly feeling very much like a boring white person with no history,” Purity said.

“Our culture is different. No better, no worse.” Courtney said. “It’s all about honoring each person’s journey. That’s why I love art so much, there’s no wrong way to express yourself.”

“Is it possible to get a tour of the tree houses?” Meg asked.

“Of course. Most of them are already spoken for, but we do have two left. I’m happy to show them to you.”

“What’s your name?” Jeremy asked.

“Michael. What’s yours?”

“Jeremy, and this is my brother, Jacob. That’s our Mom and Dad, Meg and Bobby. And their friends, Courtney and Brad and Purity and Alex. We’re sort of like a gang.”

“I can see that,” Michael smiled broadly, his teeth seeming even whiter against his dark skin. “There are quite a few stairs to climb. There are resting places, but if you need to stop and sit, please feel free to do so at any time.”

“Are you up for this?” Alex asked Purity.

“Are you kidding? Just try and stop me.”