The Dove (Prophecy Series) Read Online Free Page A

vision.
    “He is well?”
    Little Mouse smiled. “He is well.”
    Tyhen sighed, then leaned back and let her resume her task.
    “Will this mark me?” she asked.
    “Not on your face. You are already healing. Maybe here,” she said, pointing to the cut on her wrist.
    Tyhen felt the tears rolling down her cheeks as she closed her eyes.
    Windwalkers do not die.
    There was so much knowledge she’d been born with, but this was the first time that fact had been tested. Obviously Windwalkers healed fast, too.
    Little Mouse smiled as she left, passing Acat who was on the way in.
    “Is it too late for food?” she asked.
    Acat was happy her sweet child was hungry. It was a sign she was well.
    “I will find food and drink,” Acat said and scurried out of the room.
    Tyhen nodded, her gaze still locked on Yuma.
    Wake up , she thought and exhaled softly when his eyes suddenly opened.
    “I am awake,” he said slowly. He sat up then looked around the room. “Where is Acat?”
    “Bringing food and drink.”
    He looked at the raw wound on her wrist until his vision blurred. “You saved my life.”
    She nodded. “And I would do it again and again and—”
    He felt the passion in her voice. “You are still young,” he said softly.
    She sighed. “I am grown in every way that counts.”
    He eyed her soft curves. “And I gladly wait, regardless. You belong to me.” And I will love you forever.
    She smiled shyly. Even though he hadn’t spoken aloud, she heard it anyway. She scooted down to the end of the bed then leaned over and stroked the side of his face.
    “I know you will protect me,” she said. “But you did at the near-cost of your life, which should not happen again.”
    He saw a flush of color on her cheeks and thought there was none more beautiful than her face.
    Moments later, Acat came back carrying a tray laden with food and drink.
    Tyhen motioned to Yuma. “Come eat with me.”
    He got up and moved closer. Acat handed him some fruit and bread, and a cup with a drink made of chocolate. He drank until the cup was empty and then began peeling the banana as Tyhen chose a piece of fruit and piece of the bread made from the corn and maize they grew in the fields.
    She ate like she was starving, ever-conscious of Yuma’s steady gaze. As she took a bite of the fruit, a drop of juice ran down her chin. Yuma reached out, caught the drop with his finger, then licked it off.
    Suddenly frightened of the feeling that ran through her, Tyhen shuddered then looked away. He was right. She was still too young.
    Yuma saw the uncertainty in her eyes and sighed. He’d waited over fifteen years. Soon it would be sixteen, and for her, he would wait a lifetime more. Some things were just meant to be.
     
    ****
     
    It didn’t take long for word to spread throughout the city about what happened at the gorge, and that the swinging bridge was gone.
    Singing Bird had expected a reaction and thought she had prepared her daughter for the worst, but the next morning as they walked down to the school where Singing Bird taught, she was shocked. People looked at Tyhen with new eyes and then looked away, suddenly afraid of the chief’s daughter.
    Tyhen didn’t care. She’d done what she had to do to save Yuma and she would do it again. She walked with her shoulders back and her chin up. She’d always known she was different. Now they knew it, too.
    Singing Bird gave her daughter a quick look and then relaxed. She didn’t know what had happened at the gorge and didn’t ask, but Cayetano was right. Tyhen was changing. She thought she’d been ready for the inevitability of this day. She’d always known it would be Tyhen who would finish what she started, but the time when that would happen was suddenly upon them and she wasn’t ready.
    Still the children awaited her at the school, and once she began the day, she pushed her worries aside. Tyhen was no longer a student and worked with her, teaching younger children the math and the