Dreamchasers
by Grasshopper
Epilogue
Cody had worn the pendant his father had carved for him when he flew east. He carried two small pouches, one for his mother and one for his brother. He let them open the small bags and he watched their faces as they both realized that a dream was about to come true.
When they all three flew back to Albuquerque together, Allison wore her pendant and Elijah wore his. It was acceptance. It was forgiveness. It was a beginning.
Kajika remained in his small adobe house in the desert. The life he knew was quiet and his carving still the only way he knew to escape the blindness. Cody drove out every day and ate lunch with his father. They grew close and a bond began to build that would never be broken.
Allison rented a house in Shiprock and drove out into the desert every morning. Twenty-two years was an eternity, but now the days they spent together saying nothing, saying everything, turned into what might become forever. They had nothing in common except two boys and their love for the desert. She would touch the white streak in his hair and he would take her hand.
Walt Crisp had come to the house one morning when he knew Cody was at work and handed Jase a large manila envelope. It had been sealed and now it was best forgotten. Jase struck a match on the heel of his boot, held it to the corner and watched the photographs melt away. It would take much longer for the memories in Cody's heart to melt away.
Cody was happy working at his new job. He got Davy off to school each morning and drank an extra cup of coffee with Jase sitting on the back porch talking about their day. He was always home to welcome Davy after school and hear all the tales of fifth grade. The store would never make much money, but Cody loved meeting the local artists and helping set up for the Northern Navajo Fair. Cody never met anyone he didn't like and he and his family became a part of Shiprock.
Davy sat on the back porch steps one night and asked if he could go see where his Daddy Quiet Water was buried. They drove over to Tuba City, Arizona and let Tommy's parents meet their grandson. Davy spent time standing by himself looking out over the red sand. He had grown so much over the past year. You could see the strong courageous man he would one day become hiding just under the surface of the happy boy.
Cody came home one day and handed Jase a piece of paper:
"The District Court of San Juan County, the State of New Mexico, Judge Henry J. Bravehorse presiding, does hereby grant Dakota Joshua Taylor the right to be known from this day forward, March 1, 2005 as Dakota Joshua McBride."
Usually names were changed after divorces, but when Cody had explained to the judge who he was and why he wanted the 'Taylor' removed from his name, Judge Bravehorse helped him fill out the papers himself.
The McBrides sat on the back porch one evening just about sunset listening to the sounds of the desert and enjoying the quiet. Davy saw them first. Ole Three Paws and a beautiful silver coyote standing just beside the giant saguaro by the barn. Davy called out his name and the big gray coyote seemed to smile. He stepped aside and the silver female nudged a small gray pup out in front of them. The pup was small and when he walked, he limped. He would never survive in the desert.
Davy named him Pakwa, Little Frog, the name his Grandfather Jakita had given him. Pakwa stayed close by the ranch and slept on a woven Indian blanket beside Davy's bed at night. At night, when Ole Three Paws howled, Pakwa would raise his muzzle and send greetings back to his family.
Life began to be just as Jase had wished for; dull and boring. To the McBrides, it was heaven.
Cody began to heal, his memories beginning to fill with happy days and laughter. He would never forget the two men who had tried to kill his spirit, but he had proved that he was stronger than then both. Wherever they were, Cody wished them peace, though he knew they'd never find it.
Davy asleep down the hall, Pakwa snuffling on his blanket bed, only the light of the moon dancing across the bed, Jase and Cody blended their bodies; one russet skinned, long shiny hair flowing like liquid fire across the pillows; one long and lean, tanned dark by the sun. Jase reached for the man who had given him back his son, his life.
Helaku had tried to make a life in the east, but the desert had called him home. It had taken pain and desperation, but Jase and Cody McBride would build a life now.
Hands stroking softly, whispers of love, skin warming to each other's touch. It would always be this way. Love is all there is.
The wind sighed as the lovers sighed. Niyol caressed the ranch house with her breeze, letting the soft gauze curtains blow into the room where so much love and laughter grew. She would always watch over them; Jase and Cody and Davy. They are her family. She had protected them and it would always be so.
Four Corners is a magic place. In the canyons, one can still hear the voices of a people long gone. No matter how lonely souls can feel, they are never alone. They could always feel the spirit of those who came before.
Soft Wind, Quiet Water, Charity…all the souls taken from the life of the desert, but living forever in the wind.
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