Eternal Love

Chapter 18: The invasion

Winter came and went and Sheila was thrilled by the time spring had set in. The winter had been a long one. Here it was, end of April and summer just around the corner. Bella had been busy in town; her husband Opened his own bank. Her son had gotten married to the Ute chief's daughter; which really was the highlight of her year yet.

They went on further down the mountain, into the valley to live. Thomas was beginning to slow down now that their children were all grown, except one little one. The youngest of their litter, Samantha. She did have a rough start, being born the runt. Now she was ready to go on into school.

Even though it was the beginning of elementary, Sheila couldn't help but feel a bit anxious about her going into town every week day, alone. Yet she knew Samantha had to learn to be on her own sometime; she just wished it wasn't so young. She wished she could have at least one more year with Samantha at home with her; but she didn't have the knowledge to homeschool, so Sheila had no choice but to let her go. Thomas was a bit sad because she was his little princess. Yet he reassured Sheila the child would be just fine.

Sheila spent her spring days building a garden behind the log house. Her garden had beautiful roses, tiger lillies and magnolias. Three of her favorite flowers. Tiger lillies were Bella's favorite, Sheila remembered as she planted them. Thomas went off hunting, he said there would be fat and healthy bucks out there and he wanted a chance at the game before the forty niners got there.

Thomas had heard in town there was a flush of men coming to Shasta City for gold. Thomas and Sheila knew the gold up there was only fools gold; but some men are far too greedy to understand what that was. The day they arrived was a beautiful spring day and Sheila was enjoying a little hike. She never imagined when she got to the crossroad at the entrance of the Mountain trail; there would be a celebration going on. The Ute Nation was celebrating their new year at the crossroads.

The children were running around chasing the monarch butterflies that habitated there. The men were playing a game of kickball and the women were preparing a feast for the celebration. The chief's wife saw Sheila and invited her to join them. She gladly accepted her invitation. She sat down with them around the firepit and helped them to knead bread.

The celebration was going wonderfully, everyone was so joyful they couldn't have expected what came next. There was a few gunshots heard in the air and then a rush of men with guns running towards them. The women began to scream and the children started crying as the men swept through the celebration, killing whomever they could. Sheila got up and grabbed her friend and ran away. She kept running until she finally got to her log house; then told her friend and the few others that had run with them to hide inside the house until the men with the guns were gone.

Unfortunately, the camp of men did not leave right away. Thomas had come back home and told her that the Chief had taken some more of his people and headed further into the mountain. It was the only place the nation could hide while those men were there. Telling those men the gold was fake gold did no good, they didn't believe him. Therefore it was necessary to go into the mountain.

Thomas said they would stay for a little while, but he knew they would have to move on too. Once those men figured out what they were; they wouldn't stand a chance living where they were. By September, the invaders had made their way up the mountain where they were living. Sheila was already prepared and ready for the trip down the mountain. She couldn't wait to see her friend again.

A few days later and they got to the settlement where their Ute Nation friends were awaiting them. The cheif informed Sheila and Thomas that they were in a sacred place and they would be safe. Bella had stayed in the city and the other children all spread out around the mountain and made their homes. Sheila was a bit worried they all chose to be a few miles from each other; but she knew if anything happened, Thomas would be there in a flash. Sheila settled down in the valley and did her best to make a home for them.

Sheila was walking along the river in the valley, when she ran into a strange looking being. It resembled a human only brighter. It's skin was shiny like diamonds and it's eyes were as blue as the bluest ocean. It was tall as well, which made Sheila lean back on her heels to see the face of the thing. It began moving and Sheila decided to follow it.

She followed for a couple miles and realized it wasn't going to stop anytime soon. She decided to make a note of the direction she seen it go in; then proceeded back to the settlement. She told Thomas straight away about the creature she saw; Thomas reassured her he would take some of the hunters and try to find this creature. The next day, Thomas and three hunters went out to find the strange bright creature. Sheila only hoped they wouldn't harm it.

Thomas and the hunting party was gone longer than she expected. They left at the end of September and here it was the beginning of November; and they still hadn't returned. She took what valuable trinkets she could and asked the chief's nephew to take her into town. She was going to either hire a rescue party or get the equipment to go find Thomas and the others herself. She was determined to find them before the winter snow set in.

She traveled up the mountain after they got back from the town. She took a few warriors with her, to be safe. She knew the mountain was no place for a woman to be alone in. The elements alone could take her out. She had packed enough in her bags to last her at least thirty days; so she wasn't wasting any time.

She was glad she was immortal. Otherwise, this trip would have taken it's toll on her quickly. The further up the mountain they went; the colder it got. They got half way up the mountain and found a small cave. Sheila and the few men with her squeezed their way into the cave; to take shelter from the coming storm.

The blizzard raged on for a few days before it was safe enough for them to tread on. Sheila was hoping they would find Thomas and the others soon. She wasn't sure how much longer she could endure the elements. They would stop every few miles and take shelter from the storm. It got better as they moved further up the mountain.

They got ten thousand feet from the very top of the mountain; when Sheila saw a bright light shining from atop the mountain. She told the men they should hide out of sight and watch the light; to see what came out of it. They hide in another small cave they had found and watched the light. They watched for a while before they saw what was in the light. To her shock and amazement; it was Thomas and his hunting party that came out.

She was about to run out to him, when one of the warriors with her stopped her. She had realized something wasn't right about Thomas.