Chapter 72

When Fighting Hawk returned to the meeting, the negotiations were over. He dropped softly to the ground beside Gray Eagle. Big Owl leaned forward and spoke softly to Fighting Hawk, Grandfather raked them over the coals. You would think that he was bargaining to keep everything. He must really love cows because he asked for such a large number of them." Fighting Hawk watched Gray Eagle stop what he was doing and give Big Owl a menacing look, but Big Owl just innocently looked back at him. Fighting Hawk whispered to Gray Eagle, "You know how mother always says that you never do anything together? Why don't you put another cow behind your lodge? You can sit and milk cows together, I'm sure that mother would love to spend the time with you, doing something together."

Fighting Hawk saw Gray Eagle start to fume before the full impact of his words sank in, and then he watched an evil smile cross his lips. Fighting Hawk knew that there would be two cows behind the lodge, but he didn't think it would be there long. He also wondered if Gray Eagle had considered what would happen to him, if he actually did that. Fighting Hawk shrugged, it would be a learning experience for everybody involved.

With the peace talks completed they all rose to their feet. It was Big Cloud that spoke, "Colonel, you have one hour to have your men out of this valley. After that you will be killed where you are found. Tom made his intentions clear, and we guarantee the safety of everyone in the valley. There will be no excuses or negotiations about bothering his women. If any of your men are found here they will die. I suggest that you stress to your men that all of the women in this valley are not to be touched, or even talked to."

The Colonel nodded his head. He clearly remembered Mr. Sherman's warning. He turned to the waiting soldiers and told the Lieutenant to get his men mounted up and ready to move out. Big Cloud grinned at the look the demoted officer gave to the colonel. They waited until the army had left the valley before Fighting Hawk entered the house and told his women that they were free to roam around again, and he told Walking Buffalo that he could go back to working on old Pony Walk's house. Walking Buffalo snorted, "Once I showed Black Otter the things that I learned, he ran me off and won't let me go back. I haven't had a tool in my hands in two weeks."

Fighting Hawk grinned at the way that things worked out. He had a sudden thought, "Why don't you get some things together and make me my steam room. Black Otter wouldn't know what he was doing anyway, and you have experience in building them now. Just make it big enough to handle all of us."

Walking Buffalo grinned at him, "How come I never knew about any of that?" Fighting Hawk smiled back and told him, "That is One of Fighting Hawk's secrets. If I didn't need a steam room, you wouldn't know now, so be glad that you are useful to me." Fighting Hawk watched the shocked look on his face and smiled to him.

That evening as they were sitting at the cooking fire of Gray Eagle he said, "You know, I have met some good negotiators in my years, but I don't think that I have ever met anybody that can manipulate people like you can. You knew how to handle the Colonel, the scout, the warrior Running Deer. You knew how to get what you wanted, and how to make them want to give me everything but their first born, and the Colonel probably would have offered that, if he had one. You knew exactly what to say and how to say it to scare them enough to piss on their boots. You coached both of us on our parts and when you started barking at them I swear that you were ready to go to war, and even hungering for it. It frightened me, and I knew what you were doing. You can be a scary man at times, my son."

Fighting Hawk shrugged. "It was easy. When you know what frightens somebody, all you have to do is play on their fears, and weaknesses. The white men in Washington do it and the Beavers did it. It isn't hard to do. You just have to convince the other person that you are willing to do the thing that they fear. In the case of the Colonel, it's the death of every white man in these lands, starting with him. Since I really would like to do it, it isn't even acting." Gray Eagle nodded thoughtfully.

Big Cloud looked at him and asked, "Where did you go during the meeting?" Fighting Hawk shrugged. "When the warriors returned they brought back a woman and her girls that they couldn't kill. They said that the others weren't an issue, but that they just couldn't kill her. I went to see for myself what was so special about this woman."

Big Cloud waited for him to continue, but he just sat there. Finally Big Cloud growled, "Well, what happened?" Fighting Hawk looked at him surprised, "Oh, you want to know how she died? Well, you will be disappointed this time. I didn't kill her. I thought that she as an honorable woman, that hasn't been treated very honorably lately. If what she said is true, we will be paying the other villages a visit. I put her in one of the empty lodges over by Snow Owl's mother, I think that they will have something in common, and they should get along well."

Gray Eagle looked troubled, "Just what has she said, that you would need to be traveling to the other villages?" Fighting Hawk frowned and thought before he softly said, "She said that warriors put meat in her cook pot. Then they come to her in the night and expect her to do certain things for them. I noticed that her oldest girl looked over her shoulder when her mother told me. I suspect that she has been approached as well. Warriors like that need to be talked to, and it wouldn't be just me going to talk to them. This is a matter for the Chief of the Cheyenne, and even the War Chief might want to talk to a warrior like that. I will want to talk to the Shaman. I want to see what he has been doing, that blinds him from something so dishonorable."

Gray Eagle had a hard look as he nodded his head, "Talk to the woman, and the girls. If what she says is true, I want the names of all of the warriors that don't understand what charity is. When I'm finished with them, they'll understand that mercy and charity go hand in hand, and they'll want mercy."

Fighting Hawk looked at Big Cloud and he could see that he remembered his life as a little boy. He could remember that he and his mother depended on the charity of others, and the look on his face said that he wouldn't be so easy on any warrior that abused the widows and orphans. Big Cloud nodded his head, "There are some warriors that will volunteer to be our guards for this trip. I will talk to them and make sure that they are available."

Fighting Hawk could imagine who he would pick to visit warriors like that and smiled. He hoped that some of them survived. A living object lesson is better than a dead one. Living ones you see every day, but dead ones are easily forgotten.

Fighting Hawk collected some food and set off to visit the Beaver women. Since they were his slaves it was his responsibility to keep them fed and watered. He collected a bucket of water before he got there. He sat and fed them each by hand and noticed that they spent as much time nuzzling his hand as eating and drinking. He cleaned them up and washed the waste away. He turned to leave and saw Little River watching him. He smiled at her and left the Beavers to whisper between themselves. They were each other's only companion.

The next day Fighting Hawk and Big Cloud visited Little River, and her girls. They spoke to Little River for more than an hour and got the names of six warriors that had abused her. Big Cloud wanted to go and cut their throats, but Fighting Hawk took his arm and looked him in the eye, "You will do nothing. We, will visit the warriors and you will let me decided what their punishment is, unless you think that you can think up something worse than me."

Big Cloud listened and then shook his head, "But, it had better be good." Fighting Hawk nodded his head, "If it isn't good enough, you can always cut their throat after I finish with them." Big Cloud nodded and settled back down. Little River saw that these men were serious about the warriors and she felt bad that she had said anything, as there were still widows depending on them to eat.

Fighting Hawk told Little River to stay at the cook fire, and then called Water Flower to them. They told her to sit and she was obviously afraid as she sat down. It took almost an hour of questioning her before she cracked and admitted that there were warriors that had used her. She cried when she told that her own brother had lured her into the woods, to help him with a kill, and then he tied her to a stump and took her the first time. Little River swore as she held her baby as she cried on her shoulder.

Little River had hard eyes as she looked at Fighting Hawk, "That little bastard. A woman's first time is supposed to be special, not tied to a stump and used by your own brother. I wish he was still alive, so that I could kill him myself." Fighting Hawk nodded that the understood, but then turned his attentions back on Water Flower. Once she had started it all came out, how he had used her and then sold her to each of his friends. When he cut her off of the stump, he told her that he would kill her if she ever told anybody. After that the other warriors would corner her any time she was away from Little River and use her. She gave list of names to match Little River's list.

Fighting Hawk and Big Cloud sat stonily as they called Summer Storm to them. After twenty minutes it looked like they hadn't gotten to her pussy, but they had her sucking cock every chance that they got. Little River was livid with anger. She suddenly saw that she didn't know anything about her own son, and the other warriors were using her girls like cheap whores. It made her sick to her stomach. Fighting Hawk motioned to Soft Rain and she understood. "I'll talk to her. You have enough names, and any names that she might tell you wouldn't deserve to live. I want them punished, not killed. And I want them punished within an inch of their lives, and I want us there to see it." Fighting Hawk nodded, but Big Cloud didn't say or do anything. They gave Little River, and the girls, their best and left the cook fire.

As they were walking away Big Cloud's voice was as hard as stone, "Have you thought about what you are going to do with them yet?" Fighting Hawk didn't answer as he guided Big Cloud over to the Beaver women. He sat and fed them and gave them water as Big Cloud calmly waited for him to answer. Fighting Hawk looked up and said, "Have you figured it out yet?" Big Cloud suddenly looked confused. He looked at Fighting Hawk and then he looked around. When he looked back realization hit him, and he grinned and nodded his head. "Yes a lesson in charity, and it would be so appropriate. I love the way your mind works. You make me feel ashamed that I am the War Chief. You are still a much better War Chief than I will ever be. Can't you be both?" Fighting Hawk shook his head, "Shaman, Chief and War Chief can never be the same person, because it takes all three to declare war. It helps keep us safe from people like Little Buffalo, and the Beavers." Big Cloud nodded that he understood, but he still wished that he didn't have this job.

Gray Eagle was beside himself when he heard the story of Little River, and her girls. The fact that there were still widows there being abused by them, had him ordering preparations for leaving in the morning. Fighting Hawk looked at Big Cloud, "Do you know what warriors that we will need to have with us? They will have to have a strong stomach and be able to do what must be done. There may be talk, and they would have to live with that."

Big Cloud grinned as he said, "I know the ones that we need. They are used to talk, so that won't bother them. They will do what you want done, and they were all orphans with widowed mothers. When they hear what has been done, we won't be able to keep them away." Fighting Hawk nodded and went to make his own preparations.

Gray Eagle looked at his retreating back, "Do you know what he is planning?" Big Cloud had a grin that shook Gray Eagle to his core, "Oh yes. You were wrong when you said that he was good at negotiating. That is not what he is good at. He is a master of retribution. It was part of what he was saying about the things that people fear, and he chooses not only the things that people fear, but what is appropriate for what they did. Like what he did with Running Bear, he ran to the Colonel and told him everything that he saw and heard. His punishment left him not able to see, or hear, and he couldn't tell anything. That is retribution. You will understand what I mean by the time that we leave the first village." Gray Eagle nodded. He didn't understand, but if Big Cloud as right, he would soon.

The next morning Fighting Hawk showed up at the lodge of Little River. She was ready to go, and Fighting Hawk introduced her to Moon Flower and Little Mule. He explained that they would watch over Summer Storm and Soft Rain, as he didn't think that they needed to be involved in the incident. Little River nodded and gave them over to Moon Flower. Fighting Hawk had two extra horses and he helped Little River and Water Flower up. He knew that they hadn't done much riding and hoped that they would toughen up before too long.

It was four days later that they rode into the Cheyenne village. The presence of Gray Eagle caused a stir and everybody turned out. The local leader of the village was beside himself with excitement as he looked at the leaders of the Cheyenne nation in his village. The Shaman was almost worse as he fawned over Fighting Hawk. He quickly got the message that this wasn't a social visit. Fighting Hawk led him off to the spirit lodge, as Gray Eagle led the local leader off to his cook fire. Big Cloud motioned to the warriors and they quickly spread out and surrounded the local people. The message was clear, and it was immediate. Nobody moved as the talk quickly died down. Big Cloud called out names and the warriors called stepped forward. As each stepped forward Big Cloud took his knife and tied his hands.

An hour later a somber shaman and village elder watched as the warriors were stripped and tied to the posts. The warriors didn't understand what was happening, but they knew that they were embarrassed. Only women were tied to the posts, and it sent a message to them that they weren't thought of as anything but a woman.

Each of them was given a begging bowl in front of their post. None of them would beg, but Fighting Hawk had expected that. He smiled as it was only the first day. They settled down to see how long it would take. The warriors weren't happy about their position, especially when they soiled themselves. The humiliation alone was almost enough to bring tears to their eyes. All of the villagers pretended that it didn't exist.

It was late the second day that Big Cloud made the rounds and cleaned up the warriors and put meat in their begging bowls. They quickly made short work of the meat. That night Big Cloud's warriors paid a visit to the warriors on the posts. Everybody in the village heard the screams as they were fucked for the first time.

The next day there were a lot of widows visiting the warriors. Little River had talked to every widow in the village. They were very pleased that the warriors were to be punished for their actions, but feared what would happen to them. Little River told of the valley at the main Cheyenne village and the work that awaited them there. She explained that they could work for their food, and never have to depend on charity again.

The widows seemed to find the warrior's plight very interesting. Many of them had been on the same end of their attentions and they loved being able to give pointers on how to service their men, and how to make it feel better for them. The warriors were mortified, but weren't able to do anything about it. All of them realized that their actions were coming back to haunt them, and the widows drove the point home, every chance they got.

That evening Big Cloud made the rounds and cleaned everybody up and put meat in their begging bowls. None of the warriors would touch the meat. They found out that it didn't matter if they took it or not. The warriors still came in the night, usually in their ass, but some of them decorated their faces.

The next morning, their bowls were empty and their spirits were broken. They cried as they begged to be taken off of the posts. The widows grunted in disgust. They moved along the line of warriors calling them names and telling them that they didn't make a very good woman, and they obviously weren't much of a warrior, if they were tied to a post. The rest of the week settled in and the villagers got past the stigma of the punishment of the warriors.