"Absurd! We did not speak of this till this morning. You were not here."

Could Armand have heard, and told Raoul?

Armand must certainly know about Marchette, Pierre thought. But he knew
Armand would never directly attack him. Armand's ancestors had come to
America when this part of the country was still New France, and such
people retained a feudal outlook. The poor fellow doubtless considered
him far superior in birth and breeding. But he was capable of seeking
some kind of revenge, such as turning Raoul against him.

Pierre opened his mouth to chide Raoul for setting one of the servants
to spy on him, but he closed it again when he saw the look of
self-righteous reproach in Raoul's face.

His brother felt betrayed too. He had never stopped feeling betrayed
since the massacre at Checagou. Then how could Pierre expect him to be
reconciled to what must be done now?

Perhaps it would be best to leave Sun Woman and Gray Cloud where they
were. He could just send them gifts. Doubtless they were content. His
own years with the Sauk and Fox had shown him what a good life they had,
so simple, so closely attuned to Nature, so constantly aware of the
things of the spirit. Those years had been the happiest of his life.

No, sending gifts from afar would not be enough. It would be as if he
was hiding his Indian wife and son away, concealing his sin in the
wilderness. As he had been doing all these years, to his shame. The boy,
Gray Cloud, was flesh of his flesh, the only child he had in the world.
He was a de Marion as much as he was a Sauk Indian. He had a right to
come here and to know what his heritage was. He had a right to know his
father, in the time his father had left to him.

_I cannot face God and tell Him I turned my back on my son._

And that beautiful Sauk way of life, what a fragile thing it was! Powers
were massing, Pierre knew, to drive them from their homeland, to force
them to choose--exile in the Great American Desert, or annihilation.
Knowledge might help Gray Cloud meet that threat.

From the depths of his chair Elysee said, "Pierre, it is quite obvious
what is at the bottom of this. It is distasteful to speak of wills and
inheritances, but it is best to be candid. Raoul is afraid that you will
marry this Indian woman and make her son your heir in place of him. Can
you set his mind at rest?"

Pierre stared at Raoul. Ten years ago, on the day of Pierre's wedding to
Marie-Blanche Gagner, Papa anno