yes a vivid shade of blue, like the turquoise stone from
the Southwest he carried in his medicine bag.

"Visiting the members of your flock, are you, Reverend?" Elysee asked.
Auguste noticed that he put the tiniest humorous inflection on the word
"flock."

Hale's thick gray brows drew together as he nodded sourly. "Trying to
bring the Word to that wilderness you call a town."

Here was an unhappy man, thought Auguste, whose life was dedicated to
persuading those around him to be equally unhappy.

"Ah, yes," said Elysee with a broad smile. "Quite a population of sheep
gone astray in Victor."

"In all of Smith County," said Hale.

_It must scandalize him to think that my mother is an Indian woman and
that my father, by the lights of this man, isn't even married to her._

Auguste suddenly wanted to defy the disapproval he felt from the
reverend. He jumped out of the carriage and in an instant was standing
on the road beside the minister's buggy. He swept off his high-crowned
hat with the flourish he'd seen in New York and bowed deeply.

"Miss Hale," he said. "Auguste de Marion. At your service."

The blood rose to Nancy Hale's cheeks.

"My pleasure, Mr. de Marion," she murmured. Her large blue eyes looked
frightened and her flush deepened, but she did not take her eyes away,
and his gaze was locked to hers. His heart beat as hard as it had the
first time he saw the White Bear.

"The Lord's work awaits us in Victor," said the Reverend Hale loudly.
"You really must excuse us." And without waiting for a reply he snapped
the reins of his buggy, and the old horse ambled off.

Auguste stood in the road waiting to see if Nancy would glance back at
him. She did. Even at a distance and through dust he could see the blue
of her eyes.

Elysee said, "Well, Auguste, close your mouth, put your hat back on and
get back up here."

_I'm going to meet her again_, Auguste thought.

He still wanted just as much to go back to his people. He had not
forgotten Redbird. By now, though, she had probably forgotten him. And
so, what harm could there be in getting to know this white young lady a
little better?

Then their carriage was passing the log wall around the trading post. A
shadow fell over his enjoyment at meeting Nancy Hale. He ran his finger
down the scar on his cheek.

"Is _he_ in there?" he said abruptly to Nicole.

Her face paled. "He's down-- You know about what's going on in the Rock
River country, don't you?"