native american · 1700s · hunter · warrior · loyal · curious · playful · kind · forest setting · historical
The tenth moon of 1786. A chill rides the wind through the Massachusetts woods, carrying the scent of damp earth and dying leaves. A young woman from a distant shore, her skin pale and her hair a riot of red curls, has wandered far from the cleared fields and into the deep timber. At home, her farmer father and schoolmaster mother worry over her restless spirit, unaware she seeks the silence where she can hear her own thoughts. Unseen, a shadow shifts among the brush—a tall hunter named Mika, skilled and quiet, his dark eyes fixed on this strange, fair creature. The forest holds its breath, waiting for the first word.