Wilderness Days Read Online Free

the dough again with the rolling pin, as if the act alonewould smooth out all the wrinkles in my life. “I hate this place. I don’t even know why I’m here. I’ll never be dry again, not to mention I’ll never get a moment’s sleep from all the snoring, and—”
    “I haven’t seen my father since he laid open my cheek with that horse harness,” Jehu said quietly.
    My hands went still.
    He rubbed the thick, angry scar on his cheek. “That was, well, nearly ten years ago now. Don’t really know for sure if he’s even alive.”
    His eyes met mine across the emptiness of the cabin, and I felt myself bite back tears.
    Oh, Papa
.
    Just then the door banged open. It was Keer-ukso.
    “This is not a barn!” I shouted, my grief turning to fury in a rush.
    The two men exchanged a look, and Keer-ukso closed the door carefully, then sat down on a bench near Jehu. Keer-ukso meant crooked nose in Chinook. As was the Chinook custom, he had changed his name after some of his family had died in the summer outbreak. The Chinook believe that the ghosts of the dead can’t haunt you if you change your name. Still, in my mind he would always be the name I first knew him by and which suited him so well, Handsome Jim.
    For, you see, he was truly the most handsome young man I had ever been acquainted with in my entire life. He had long, thick black hair, lovely eyes, and a muscled body. He was also akind, sweet friend who always managed to make me laugh. Well, usually he did. For I found nothing amusing about him reaching into the bowl of berries I had set aside for the pie. I slapped his hand away.
    Jehu rolled his eyes.
    “Mr. Russell say you cook pie, Boston Jane,” Keer-ukso said, looking affronted.
    “Oh, did he?” I asked in a tight voice.
    “Jane’s a little frustrated with Mr. Russell right now,” Jehu explained helpfully.
    “Frustrated!” I huffed. “Frustrated is living in a cabin where fleas are permanent residents! Frustrated is being surrounded by filthy, snoring strangers! Frustrated is being stuck in this infernal wilderness where it never stops raining. Believe me, I am frustrated by a great many things, but Mr. Russell is not one of them.”
    “So if you’re not frustrated, what are you?” Jehu asked, reaching for a berry.
    I grabbed the overworked, gray lump of dough and flung it in the men’s general direction. It struck Jehu’s chest with a thump before landing on Keer-ukso.
    “Is this pie?” Keer-ukso asked, an astonished look on his face.
    “Yes! It’s the blasted pie,” I shouted, and stomped to the door of the cabin. “And for your information, Mr. Scudder, I’m not frustrated with Mr. Russell.” I paused for effect. “I’m furious!”
    And with that I slammed the cabin door, and practically ran down the path alongside the slender stream that led to theChinook village, my blood racing. I passed by Father Joseph’s small chapel and saw him raise a hand in greeting, but I didn’t stop. I kept walking fast, my heart pounding, and it wasn’t until I saw the large wooden buildings rising from the trees that I felt my heart slow down to a reasonable thump.
    Chief Toke’s village consisted of several large cedar lodges. The lodges were quite comfortable dwellings, and much more spacious, not to mention cleaner, than the pioneer cabins. As I entered the village, I saw the Chinooks going about their daily routines. They were a copper-skinned people, with thick black hair. Some of them, like Sootie, had slanted foreheads from having been placed in a cradleboard as a baby. A slanted forehead was a mark of distinction.
    The men wore the same style of clothes as the pioneers, although some of the older men wore blankets. In addition to wearing calico dresses, the women sometimes wore skirts constructed of strips of twisted cedar bark.
    Some of the Chinooks shouted my name in greeting.
    “Boston Jane!”
    Although I was from Philadelphia, the Chinooks referred to the Americans as
Boston