She was opening her mouth to speak to him when she found that Tewa had apparently not even seen her.
He had dropped down on his knees before Bettina, and yet far enough away to be entirely respectful.
“You are not hurt; all is well with you, Anacoana? I have been waiting in a cave not far away, where I wished that all of you might take refuge,” he explained.
Bettina felt her cheeks crimson and a sensation more of surprise than anything else for the instant kept her silent.
She had told Tewa her Camp Fire name and he had used it several times. But that had not seemed remarkable. They were friends and she had found him unusually interesting. He had told her of the work he hoped to do for his people as a lawyer representing their claims before the great Government of the United States which so often had misunderstood the Indian. And Bettina, whose life had largely been spent in Washington among the lawmakers of the country, had found nothing ridiculous in this idea.
Tewa had even confessed the struggle he had always to make, not to return to the life and customs of his own people at each homecoming. And Bettina had urged him to follow his larger ideal.
Now, however, his use of her Camp Fire title—even his interest in her welfare—struck her as almost impertinent. Yet she did the Indian the justice to realize he had not meant this.
“We are all perfectly safe; the storm was not in the least serious,” Bettina replied coldly, although she could feel her voice suddenly shaking.
Although Mrs. Burton had not yet spoken, Bettina was aware that she had become deeply annoyed; that in some fashion she was entirely misunderstanding the situation. But how could she explain; what was there to say at the moment?
“Go to your tent, please, Bettina; I will speak to Tewa,” Polly said with a coldness of which she was always capable. The whole atmosphere had changed. Bettina felt humiliated and angry, but obedience was the only possible thing. Yet she had the sensation of not having been altogether fairly treated. Why was there no real sympathy and understanding between Mrs. Burton and her? She ought not to be made responsible for a situation she could not have avoided.