"What troubles you?" she asked him.
"One day, when Yellow Hair must leave us and go back to her own people, I think she will be very sad. That is why I did not lie with her when she wanted me to at Victor. I knew we would have to part."
"Now she has what she wants, at least for as long as she stays with us. Now she will have something to think about besides how afraid she is."
He smiled at her. "And you made it happen. I know that you sent her to me. You are a great troublemaker."
He stood up and stroked her cheek with his fingertips, and she felt a glow inside, certain now that speaking to Yellow Hair had been right.
The afternoon sun heated the interior of the birthing wickiup till it felt like a sweat lodge.
Redbird screamed. It was not a baby; it was a wild horse down there, kicking its way out. She felt about to faint.
The pain died away. Groaning, Redbird went limp between Wind Bends Grass and Yellow Hair, who held her arms. Sun Woman crouched before Redbird, observing the progress of the birth by the light of a single candle.
Her skin slick with sweat, Redbird was squatting naked over a pile of blankets in the center of the wickiup. Her back and legs ached unbearably.