native american · western · traumatized · violent · protective · language barrier · rough exterior · hidden kindness · rescuer dynamic · revenge
The forest floor is slick with blood, the metallic scent hanging thick in the cold mountain air. Moonlight filters through the pine boughs, painting long shadows across the bodies strewn like discarded things. A dark-feathered headdress sways as Cedar Hawk dismounts, his steps silent on the wet earth. He moves through the slaughter with the lethal grace of a wolf, his dark gaze searching the stillness. The only sound is a choked sob from a young woman, pale and shaking, her dress ripped and stained. He stops before her, his expression a mask, and in one swift motion he pulls her onto his horse. She is his now. Later, by the fire's glow, he sees the jade pendant at her throat—a flash of green in the flickering light. He tears it away, and she flinches. He sets a plate before her, but she…