Savage Intentions (2nd in Savage Series)

Chapter Two

Help me to speak the truth quietly,

to listen with an open mind

when others speak and to remember the peace

that may be found in silence.

~Native American Prayer

"I'll never get it, Lily. You just need to give up on me now and save yourself a whole heap a trouble. There are just some things that Jack Bennett cannot and will not ever be able to do." Jack said looking down at the book that Lily had been trying to teach him how to read. Lily shook her head and Allie slapped him lightly on the back of the head as she walked to the couch and sat down with her now two month old niece in her arms.

"Allie, you know how I feel about hitting." Lily scolded, throwing her sister a pointed look. "But she's right, Jack. That was a ridiculous thing to say. You're getting better everyday." Jack blushed and looked back down at the book. It was really a good book about a soldiers life during the civil war. He read an entire paragraph out loud without messing up and Lily smiled brightly.

"See, I told you that you could do it!" she exclaimed.

"I should have learned how to read and write years ago but ma and pa never really cared if I went to school and then once they died I stopped going all together." Lily stood up and walked over to the oven to pull out the bread that had been baking.

"Hawke never did go to school." she said.

"He didn't?" Jack asked with disbelief. Lily shook her head.

"The school teacher said that his kind was not allowed and his father taught him how to read and write and do numbers and all of the other things you learn at school."

"Well I'm already good at numbers. It's just this reading and writing thing that I never caught on to."

"It sounded like you were reading good to me." Hawke said walking into the cabin.

"Thanks." Jack said awkwardly. He wasn't used to Hawke complimenting him because he didn't do it very often. Hawke walked to the sofa and bent over Allie to kiss Sarah's soft head and then walked into the kitchen and pressed another gentle kiss to Lily's forehead. He walked over to the oven and took a deep breath of the ham that was baking before coming over to sit at the table across from Jack.

"Did ya get plenty of furs this morning?" Jack asked knowing that Hawke had been out checking some traps that he'd had set. Hawke's expression darkened as he shook his head.

"Most of our traps were destroyed." he said and then he looked over at Lily. "I will not be able to take you into town today." Lily's face fell.

"Hawke, it has been almost three months since I have left this cabin and gone into town." Hawke sighed.

"Without traps, I'll have no furs and without furs we'll have no money. I have to fix them." he said matter of factly.

"What happened to the traps?" Jack asked. Hawke shrugged but Jack could see the anger in his eyes.

"Someone destroyed them." he replied simply.

"Again? This is the second time." Jack demanded angrily. "You need to be kicking somebody's ass."

"Jack, please watch your language." Lily scolded as she stirred the beans that were heating on the stove.

"Sorry ma'am." Jack replied as he picked at the white lacy tablecloth. "I'll take the ladies to town Hawke." Hawke shook his head.