KEEKO
Beyond the river, the trees came down to the water's edge, where roots
lay bare to the lap of the stream which frothed about them. They
shadowed the wide waters with a reflection of their own dark mystery.
They helped to close in the world about old Fort Duggan, deepening the
gloom of its aged walls, and serving to aggravate the shadow of
superstition with which the native mind surrounded it.
The hills rose up in every direction. They were clothed with forests
whose silence only yielded to crude sounds possessing no visible source.
The river seemed to drive its way through invisible passes. It appeared
out of a barrier of woodlands, backed by a rampart of seemingly
impassable hills, and vanished again in a similar opposite direction.
Between these points it lay there, a broad, sluggish stretch of water
upon which the old fort looked down from the rising foreshore.
The benighted instincts of the Shaunekuks know no half measure. Fort
Duggan to them was the gateway of Unaga, which was the home of all Evil
Spirits. So they looked upon the fort without favour, and left it
severely alone.
But now all that was changed. Fort Duggan was no longer silent, still,
the shadowed abode of evil spirits. Crazy white folks had come and taken
possession of it. They had dared the wrath of the Evil One, and the old
place rang with the echo of many voices.
For awhile these primitive folk had looked on in silence. They wondered.
They thought of the Evil One and waited for the blow to fall. But as the
weeks and months went by without the looked-for retribution they began
to take heart and give rein to a curiosity they could no longer resist.
Who were these folk? Why had they come? But most important of all, what
had they brought with them?
They found a white man and two white women. They found several dusky
creatures like themselves, only of different build. Oh, yes, they were
Indians, Northern Indians, but they were foreigners. They were slim,
tough creatures who gazed in silent contempt upon the undersized people
who came to observe them.
But the Shaunekuks were not concerned deeply with the men of their own
colour. It was the white man and the white women who chiefly aroused
their curiosity. Years of tradition warned them that the coming of the
white man was by no means necessarily an unmixed blessing, and so they
had doubts, very grave doubts.
Perhaps the white man understood. Anyway he promptly took steps. He
invited them to feast their eyes upon the treasures he had brought with
him from far distant lands. He assured them that he had come to give
away all these splendid things in exchange for the furs, which only
great hunters like the Shaunekuks knew how to obtain.
Capitulation was instant. The Indians forthwith held a council of their
wise men, and set about inundating the fort with priceless furs. So it
had gone on ever since. In a year the white man was complete master of
the situation. In less than two years he had assumed the office of
dictator.
The man Nicol knew his work. He had been sent there by Lorson Harris,
which was sufficient guarantee. None knew it better. Having established
in the Indian mind the necessity for his existence amongst them, he
exploited the position to its extreme limits. Through methods which knew
no scruple he usurped the authority of the wise men, or adapted it to
his own uses. He saw to it that the generosity of his original trading
was swiftly reduced to the bare bone of extortion. And the Indians
submitted. The white man had come in the midst of their darkness and had
given them light, at least he had dazzled their eyes, and excited their
cupidity by his display of trade. Furs--furs. They could always obtain
furs. If he were foolish enough to exchange simple furs for beautiful
beads, and blankets, and tobacco, and essences, and coloured prints, and
even fire-water, well, that was his lookout. At least they were not the
fools.
With the coming of the white man and the two white women with their
several Indian followers the life of the Shaunekuks at Fort Duggan was
completely revolutionized. Before the foolish Indians knew what was
happening they were captured body and soul. They quickly learned that
the white man was to be feared rather than loved. They realized it was
better to risk the anger of the Evil Spirits of Unaga rather than to
offend him. So they yielded to the course which they hoped would afford
them the greatest benefit. It was no less than submitting to an
unacknowledged slavery.
It was perhaps a dangerous condition, a situation full of risk for the
white man and all his people, should his force and ruthlessness weaken
even for one moment. But Nicol was too widely experienced, too naturally
cut out for his work to fall for weakness. He treated the Indian as he
would treat a trail dog, as a savage beast to be beaten down to the
master will, and kept alive only as long as it yielded return for the
clemency.
For the women folk of this man the benighted Indians had little concern.
One of them was sick, which made her a creature of even less
consequence. The other, the one who called herself Keeko, she seemed to
live her own life regardless of the man, regardless of everybody except
the sick woman, who was her mother. She made the summer trail after
pelts and so trespassed upon what the Indians regarded as their rights,
but since the white man seemed to approve there was little to be said.
Just now the spring freshet had subsided, which meant that the river was
clear of ice. Keeko was at the landing preparing for the trail. She was
there with her Indians looking on while the laden canoes received their
final lashings, and the joy of the open season was surging in her rich
young veins.
Keeko was more than a little tall. She was as graceful as a young fawn
in her suit of beaded buckskin. She was as slim as a well-grown boy in
her mannish suit, with muscles of steel under flesh of velvet softness.
Reliance and purpose, and the joy of living, looked out of her
beautiful, deeply fringed eyes. Her ripe lips and firm chin were as full
of decision as the oval of her wholesomely tanned cheeks was full of
girlish beauty.
An Indian looked up quickly at the sound of her keen tone of authority.
His face was crumpled and scored with advancing years, and the merciless
blast of the northern winter trail. But for all his years he was hard as
nails.
"We'll pull out after we've eaten," cried the girl. "We're days late.
Get Snake Foot, and don't leave the outfit unguarded. Guess we're not
yearning for the scalliwag Shaunekuks thieving around. It'll be two
hours. The sun'll be shining there," she pointed, indicating an immense
bank of forest trees. "Where's Med'cine Charlie? By the teepees of the
Shaunekuks? He's most generally that way."
Little One Man nodded, and grinned in his crumpled way.
"Oh, yes," he said. "But I get 'em."
"Good. See to it." The girl nodded. "Don't forget. Two hours. The sun on
the water. I come."
Keeko turned away up the rising foreshore in the direction of the long,
low building of the fort.
Once she was beyond the observation of the Indian's keen eyes her whole
expression underwent a change. The light died out of her eyes and a deep
anxiety replaced it. She was torn by conflicting feelings. The desire of
the trail had grown to a passion. The immense solitudes of the great
forests were the paradise she dreamed of during the long dark days of
winter. But deep in her heart there were other feelings that preoccupied
her no less.
Her mother was sick, sick to death with the ravages of consumption, on a
bed from which she would only be removed for a grave somewhere in the
shadows of the surrounding woods. And she loved her mother. She loved
her mother with a passionate devotion.
It was the thought of all that might happen during her prolonged absence
that robbed Keeko's eyes of their buoyant light and happy smile.
But--what could she do? She must go. She knew she must go. It had all
been arranged between her and her mother. And with each season her work
became more urgent.
As she passed up to the fort her mind had leapt back to the early days
when she had reached full young womanhood. And a scene that lived in her
memory came back again to urge her, as it never failed to urge her at
such moments.
It was one of the many times that her mother had hovered at the brink of
the grave. She and her step-father had shared the watch at the sick-bed.
Up till that time the man had displayed no regard for herself but the
treatment he would bestow upon an unwelcome burden on his life. There
had been a bitter antagonism on his part, an antagonism that suggested
positive hatred. But while they sat watching the closed, sunken eyes and
waxen features of her mother, as she lay gasping in what seemed to be
the last throes before collapse, an amazing change seemed to take place
in him. His whole attitude towards herself appeared to alter. It became
impressive in its kindliness and solicitude. He seemed suddenly to have
become far more tenderly thoughtful for her welfare than for the wife
who lay dying before his eyes. And when he spoke--But his words and
tones did more than disturb her. It was at the sound of them that the
almost dead eyes of her mother opened wide and turned a dreadful stare
upon him. For minutes it seemed they stared while the ashen lips
remained silent, unmoving. It was painful, dreadful. It was the man,
who, at last, broke the horror of it all. He rose abruptly, silently
from his chair and passed out of the room.
Then had come the great change. The moment the man had passed beyond the
door her mother stirred. She seemed to become feverishly alive in a
manner suggesting the victory of sheer will over a half dead body. She
turned on her bed, and a warm light flooded her eyes.
"Don't _you_ go, child," she had gasped eagerly. "I'm not dead yet and I
don't intend to die. I'm going to live long enough to fool him. Say,
you've got to quit nursing me. I tell you I shan't die--yet. A squaw can
do all I need. You reckon to help me. I know. You're a good girl. You're
too good to be--If you reckon to help me there's just one way. Get out.
Get right out. Learn to help yourself. Get out into the open. It's only
the woods, and the trail, and the Northern world'll teach you the same
as they taught your father. You've got to get so you can face life--when
the time comes around--alone. Learn to handle a gun--and use it. Learn
to face men, and hold them in the place that belongs them, whether
they're Indians or white. I'll die later on. But I won't die till I'm
ready. And that'll only be when I see you fit to stand alone. Then I'll
be glad, and I'll die easy."
The natural protest had promptly risen to the girl's lips.
"But I'll have Father," she cried. "Please, please let me help you,
Mother dear. I want to make you happy, and comfortable, and better. I
don't want you to die, and----"
But her plea was never completed. A hard, cold light suddenly leapt into
the sick woman's haggard eyes.
"Don't mention your father to me," she cried fiercely, "He's no father
of yours. Cut the thought of his help right out of your mind. Forget it,
and work--work as I say. Work and learn, so you don't need to fear man
or--devil."
It was more than three years ago since the scene occurred. Her mother
had said she would live. She had lived, and was still dragging on a now
completely bedridden life. She lived, and, to the girl, it sometimes
seemed that it was only the fierce purpose in her mind that kept her
alive.
From that time, despite all other inclination, Keeko had obeyed. She had
plunged herself into the battle of the Northland which only the hardiest
could hope to survive. Even the winter trail she had dared
and--conquered. Oh, yes. She had obeyed and she had realized her
mother's commands to the letter. She had reached that point now when
she feared neither man nor--devil.
But for all her ability the whole of Keeko's equipment was only a
splendid veneer. Under it all she remained the simple-hearted girl, the
loyally devoted daughter. Her mother was still her first concern, a
concern that haunted her in the far distant woods, and on the waters of
the river, in storm and sunshine alike, and amidst the snows of the
winter trail. Each time she returned to her home she feared to find her
mother gone, flown to that rest from which there was no returning. And,
as the seasons passed her fears only increased. Her mother fought with a
passion of bitter purpose, but she was struggling against an
irresistible foe.
It was this that troubled Keeko now. It was the thought of nearly six
months' absence, and that which she might return to, that robbed her
eyes of their smiling light. She must go, she knew. It was her mother's
will. But she was loth, bitterly loth.
She passed within the low doorway of the fort, and approached her
mother's room. The place was all very crude. Its atmosphere lacked all
sense of comfort. It was all makeshift, and the stern days of the old
buccaneers frowned out of every shadowed corner. Keeko had neither time
nor inclination to brighten the place to which her step-father's plans
had brought them. And her mother--? Her mother was indifferent to all
but the purpose which seemed to keep her hovering upon the brink of the
grave.
When Keeko entered the sick room the attendant squaw gladly enough
departed to the sunlight outside. And, left alone, the girl prepared to
take her customary farewell. The eyes of the sick woman lit at the sight
which was her only remaining joy in life. But the tone of her voice
retained its privileged quality of complaint.
"You're pulling out?" she demanded, in a low, husky voice, in which
there was always a gasp. "I was hoping you'd be around earlier, seeing
you won't get back till fall."
The girl understood. She did not take up the challenge.
"I had to fix the outfit right, Mother," she said. "You can't even rely
on Little One Man. But I guess it's all fixed now. How are you feeling?
Better? You're looking----"
"You don't need to ask fool questions. You don't need to worry how I
look. It's you we need to think for. How many boys are you taking?"
"Three. Little One Man, Snake Foot, and Med'cine Charlie. They're all I
need. Snake Foot and Charlie with the big canoe and outfit, and Little
One Man and me with the other. We're out after a big bunch of pelts."
The sick woman's eyes shone prompt approval, for all the fixity of their
regard.
"See and get them. You've put your cash away. You've hidden it close. I
mean the cash for your trade at Seal Bay. That way you'll be fixed all
right. Keep it close, child. This year you need a good haul. Yes, yes.
And trade it, and hide the cash. Always hide your money. How much have
you got?"
"Nearly two thousand dollars."
"Not enough. Not enough. You need more. See you get it this year."
The mother broke off in a spasm of coughing, and Keeko stood helpless
and fearing until the fit had passed.
The tragedy of it all was terrible to the girl who had to look on so
utterly helpless. The convulsed figure beneath the coloured blankets was
simply skin and bone. The alabaster of the sunken cheeks was untouched
by any hectic display. The ravages of the consumption were too far
advanced for that. The wreck was terrible, and the dreadful cough seemed
to be tearing the last remaining life out of the poor soul's body.
"Well, don't stand around, child," the sick woman gasped, after a
prolonged struggle for breath. "You're going to eat. I can smell the
cooking. Well, go and eat. It's good to be able to. You've got to get
another three thousand dollars. You can get them out of your furs--if
you've any luck. Maybe this year. Don't worry for me. I'll die when I
feel like it, but not before. God bless you, child--as you deserve. You
needn't come around again before you pull out. It's time wasted, and
you've none to spare. Good-bye. You can send Lu-cana in to me again when
you go."
The straining eyes closed as though to shut out sight of the going of
the child who was all that was left to the remnant of a mother heart.
And Keeko knew that the dismissal must be accepted. There could be no
tender farewell. Her mother forbade it. Yet the girl was longing to
nurse and caress the suffering creature in her arms. But she understood.
Her mother refused everything for herself in a burning fever of urgency.
There was time for nothing--nothing but that purpose which she had set
her heart on.
Keeko obeyed. She passed out of the room at once.
Her meal was awaiting her, a rough, plain meal prepared by the squaw of
Little One Man. She partook of it in the kitchen, the long, dark old
hallplace that had probably served as some sort of barracks for the
disreputable pirates of centuries ago. She ate with a healthy appetite,
and some half hour later quit the shadows of the gloomy fort for the
bright sunlight of a spring noon.
The hour of her departure was nearing, and Keeko glanced down at the
landing. Her canoes lay there at their moorings, but----
Her orders had been disobeyed! The canoes were deserted. Little One Man
was nowhere to be seen. Neither were the other boys. A quick frown of
displeasure darkened her pretty face, and she moved down to the water's
edge almost at a run.
But her journey was interrupted. It was the sound of a familiar, angry
voice, harsh, furious. It came from behind her, somewhere behind the
fort. The words were indistinguishable in their violence, but, as she
listened, there came another sound with which she was all too familiar.
It was the sickening flog of a rawhide quirt on a human body. It was her
step-father flogging an Indian, with all the brutality of his
ungovernable temper.
Keeko's eyes flashed in the direction of the canoes. Inspiration leapt.
Where were _her_ boys? They had no concern with the work of the fort.
They were _hers_. Something of the teachings and instincts of the life
she had learned stirred her to action. Light as a deer she ran to the
landing, and snatched up a rifle lying in one of the boats. It was the
instinct of self-preservation. But it was also an expression of her
determination to enforce her rights--if need be.
There was no hesitation. Keeko had learned so much in the past three
years. She knew the man who was her step-father. She knew his brutality
to Indians, and she suspected more. She hated the thought in her mind
now. She even feared it. But she was determined.
She was late by the seconds it had taken her to reach the spot. It was a
spot she knew well enough. A single tree standing by itself just behind
the fort. She found a group of Indians gathered about it looking on in
apparent indifference. Above their heads, in their midst, she beheld
the rise and fall of a heavy quirt.
Into the midst of this gathering she thrust her way. And, in a moment,
her worst suspicions were realized. Her boy, Snake Foot, was bound to
the tree-trunk. Bared to the waist, cowering but silent, he was
shrinking under the cruel blows of the quirt. Nicol, his dark eyes
blazing with a merciless fury, was flinging every ounce of his strength
into each blow of the terrible weapon in his hand. Keeko's horrified
eyes missed nothing. She saw that Little One Man and Med'cine Charlie
were amongst the crowd. It was all she needed.
In a moment she had flung herself in front of her Indian's bleeding
body, and whether by design or chance the muzzle of her rifle was
pointing and covering her step-father.
Her eyes were on his inflamed face. They were confronting him without a
sign of fear or any other emotion.
"Don't let that quirt fall on me!" she cried. "I want Snake Foot right
now, and I'm going to have him. Little One Man," she went on, without
removing her eyes from the furious face of the man still flourishing his
quirt aloft, "just cut him adrift right away, and hustle down to the
landing. We're going to pull out--sharp."
But Nicol had recovered from his surprise, and his mad fury suddenly
leapt into full flood again.
"Stand aside, girl!" he roared violently. "This swine refused to obey my
orders and I'm going to teach him--and anyone else--who's master here.
Get out of my way," he bellowed with an ominous threat of the quirt.
Keeko stood her ground. Her two boys had closed in towards her. They
were on either side of her, and a wicked gleam lit the eyes of Little
One Man as he watched the man with his upraised weapon. Keeko knew her
step-father had been drinking. The signs were plain enough to her. They
were all too familiar. But there was no yielding in her, whatever the
consequences of her act.
"Cut him adrift," she cried sharply, to the men beside her. Then to
Nicol her tone was only a shade less commanding. "Let that quirt touch
me, and I won't answer for the consequences. Guess you've no right to
thrash my boy, and I'm right here to see you quit. Think it over," she
added, and, with her last word, there was a movement of her rifle which
added to its aggression.
Just for a moment it looked as though a clash was inevitable. Just for a
moment it seemed as if the man's half-drunken madness was about to drive
him to extremes. But the girl's cool nerve, or more probably, perhaps,
the presence of her rifle, seemed to have a sobering effect. There was
the snick of Little One Man's razor-like knife as he released his bound
comrade from the flogging post, then Nicol, with a filthy oath, flung
his quirt on the ground, and, turning, thrust his way through the crowd,
and strode back to the fort.
Five minutes later Keeko was down at the landing. She was standing
looking on while her Indians cast off the moorings of the canoes. She
was shaking from head to foot. But not a sign of her weakness was
permitted in the sharp, clear orders she flung at her crew.