" Mona's taken her," Jillico finally admitted in exasperation.

"Why would she do so without me?"

"Why?" Patrick demanded, cursing himself for driving Catherine away. In his effort to keep from giving in to his desire for the woman who'drisked her life to save him, he'd put her in danger. He should have known that she'd never take orders, not even when they were for her owngood.

"She thinks she is fulfilling a prophecy."

"Where is she taking Catherine?"

"To the sacred realm of the Sun King. Mona believes that your

Catherine is destined to be the new White Woman who comes to take her

place beside the Sun King and rule our tribe." Patrick had faced starvation as a child. He'd battled the king's menin war, fought with the most feared pirate crew to sail the seas. He'd been through hurricanes and revolutions and he'd survived. But now he'd lost Catherine and he was helpless to stop whatever washappening.

"Sun King? White Woman? Jillico, I don't understand any of this. Catherine is the woman I love and I won't lose her, if I have to follow her through every bayou and swamp in this country. Either take me to her, or I'll go alone. " Jillico stared at his friend helplessly. Stone had befriended him and saved his life. Since then Jillico had been treated with respect andrewarded with his share of the purses they'd taken. He was becoming awealthy man. But now he was being asked to go against his own people,to dishonor a legend and interfere with a request from their highestgod.

"It will not change what is to happen," Jillico explained sadly.

"You have lost her. But you should know that she will be honored aboveall women."

But Patrick was having no part of legends and prophecies. Angrily, heshook his head and began to move toward the water.

"I don't accept any of this, Jillico. How could Catherine be in anyone's vision? Nobody knew she'd be here. She was to be my wife andeven I didn't expect her."

"The vision goes back further than our memory, back to the time weexisted in the thick air, the fog that concealed our path. Our peoplelived in chaos. And then the Sun King came, bringing the wind to blowaway the mists and show us the way. With the Sun King came the motherof us all, the White Woman. And the Natchez prospered."

"So what happened to her?"

Jillico's face fell.

"It is said that when the outsiders came they took our lands and ourpeople began to change. In the beginning, my clan lived on the greatriver at the place of deep water. In my grandfather's time the Frenchcame and claimed our land. We fought, but they were stronger. Theykilled the White Woman and took our Sun God away. The old ones survived by retreating to the villages where our ancestors built moundsof earth away from the intruders' eyes."

"And you think Catherine is that White Woman? That's absurd." No more absurd than the knowledge that the shadow woman in his dreams had beenMona. But she was. He didn't know how he knew, but he did. And with that thought, he tightened the muscles in his jaw.

"The vision has been passed down that one day a white woman wouldreturn to our sacred place."

"But she didn't come of her own accord, she's being taken there."

"No. The sacred place to which she was destined to come was the siteof your plantation. In that same clearing we once held the ceremonythat signaled the beginning of our new year."

Patrick was becoming very concerned. This had to have been a terrible coincidence. That he would buy a plantation that had once been thesite of ancient Indian rituals could be a reasonable happening. The Indians had been here long before the white man came.

But the rest of the legend was too absurd to be believed. The comingof a white woman?

"What about the plantation owner's wife who was there before? Couldn't she have been the woman in your vision?"

"No. The vision could not be realized until the Sun King returned.

Once he came back we knew she would follow. It was foretold that, oncat's feet, she would come in fire to save the sun and we would know her because of her fearless manner and her hair, the color of theflames. "

The burning of the indigo fields. Fearlessly, Catherine had come, towarn him about the Spanish captain, Catherine with herstrawberry-colored hair--not red, perhaps, but given the otherconditions, close enough. And her name was Cat.

"And what will happen to this White Woman?"

"She will bring wisdom and power to the Sun King."

Wisdom? Patrick wasn't sure about that, but power he understood.

Whoever this Sun King was, he'd enhance his position of authority byhaving a white woman at his side, any white woman with red hair. And Catherine would fit that description very well. For a moment he allowed himself a smile. The man didn't know what he was asking for.

Unless he broke her spirit, controlling Catherine was going to be afull-time job. A sense of dread fell over Patrick.

"Where are you, little people? Forget the rainbow and the pot of gold,just send me a little magic."

"Little people? Are they here?"

"Never mind, Jillico. I understand if you can't help me, but I ask younot to stand in my way. Just give me a boat and let me go."

"No, I cannot do that. I am bound by my honor to protect you. Perhapsthis is also meant to be. I will take you to our ruler. It will be he who decides your fate, not Mona. Come."

Moments later the two men were poling themselves down the waterway,leaving the other members of their party behind as a buffer betweenthem and the Spanish. Later Patrick would wonder how any man couldknow where he was going, or how to get back when he wished to return.

But for now, he put himself in Jillico's hands, trusting him withoutquestion as he had refused to trust Catherine.

In the swamp behind, Captain Lopaz slapped at a mosquito and swore.

"I.

don't believe you know where that renegade is. We've been muckingabout in this swamp for two days. "

"Senor, we would have been there by now if your men hadn't insisted onstopping so often."

Captain Lopaz knew the Indian was right but he refused to agree withhis logic, reasoning that agreement elevated their guide to a positionof authority to which no self-respecting Spaniard would agree. His men had never become accustomed to the rigors of this liquid wilderness.

Now they were showing signs of unusual fatigue. This morning two menhad become so ill that they'd been sent back. The captain wasbeginning to regret his hasty departure from the fort.

He'd brought thirty men, but carrying proper equipment would haverequired more boats than they'd been able to find. Believing theirmission would be brief, they'd made poor choices in supplyingthemselves for the pursuit. They had already used up the fresh water,and the brackish swamp water was as unpleasant as the hordes of insectsthat fed constantly on their bodies.

As if the Indian sensed the captain's waning interest in the search, hestepped to Lopaz's side and spoke in a low voice, imparting the lastbit of information he had, like a carrot before the Spanish donkey.

"The Green Mounds of Earth are near," the Indian said, "the place wherethe new leader of the Natchez reigns and where you will find Stone."

Find Stone. Lopaz liked that. Finding Stone and the girl would beenough to regain favor with the governor. But a new Indian leader?

That was an added attraction. It was unlikely that the Natchez wouldmount a threat to the fort, they were too scattered, and too few.

Lopaz searched his memory for what he knew about the Natchez. He'd been told that long before the Spanish had come the Natchez Indians hadsuffered great losses trying to reclaim their land from the French.Afterward, they'd retired into the swamp and all but disappeared. Therecouldn't be enough of them left to worry about.

Still, it might enhance his position with the governor to report thathe'd quelled this potential source of trouble.

"A new leader? Who?"

"He is called the Sun King."

"And he's just come?"

"Yes."

"And where did he come from, this new leader?"

"On the Irishman's ship, from the island in the sun."

The Irishman's ship? The sea captain he'd killed? There was somethingdisturbing about this connection between the Irishman and the pirate,Stone. Lopaz had wished a hundred times that he'd never laid eyes onPatrick McLendon. The inquiry from the American president aboutMcLendon's death and the sale of his ship had been the start of Lopaz'strouble.

Lopaz knew the passengers on board the Savannah Lady believed that he'dbeen responsible for the death of the plantation owner on board.

Only he knew that, for once, he'd been innocent. Blaming the Irishmansolved two problems, by assigning guilt and removing any proof that theship had been stolen. Lopaz and his superior had split the profit andshortly thereafter, the other man had returned to Spain, leaving Lopazto answer the inquiry. In the end Lopaz had escaped blame for anywrongdoing, but doubt had been raised and as a result he'd beenreassigned to Florida.

But the Sun King on that ship? He couldn't recall anyone that fit sucha description. Of course he'd paid little attention to the slaves andit was possible that there'd been a stowaway that he might not haveknown about. Many stowaways who came in on foreign ships slipped awayin the night and were never seen again. "And Stone is in league withyour new chief. Where is this Sun King?"

"In the village of the sun."

"God's blood, you heathen. You talk in riddles, and I suspect thatyou've been deliberately leading us in circles. If you don't get us tothat village by noon, I'll feed you to the alligators! Now getmoving."

The guide nodded and quickly resettled the soldiers in the low flatpirogues. He poled the craft carrying the captain, hiding the smile onhis face. He'd take them to the village and collect his fee. He'd disappear before anyone knew he was there. Then later, he'd return.

Although he was a commoner, he was now a wealthy man. Mona would look with favor on his courtship.

Catherine was already regretting her act of rebellion in running awayfrom Patrick. The heat had become unbearable. There was hardly abreath of air and what she breathed in was so thick that she felt smothered. Perspiration was running down her face, streaking themud.

She knew she must look as though she were wearing war paint.

Wishing for a simple garment like the one her silent companion waswearing, she unbuttoned her coat and fanned her damp skin with her felthat. Immediately a swarm of insects descended, forcing her to refastenthe buttons.

Leaning over the side of the shallow dugout she scooped up the warmwater, splashing it on her face to wash the dried mud away. Let the insects devour her. Nothing could compare with the pain of Patrick'srejection.

"No, do not put your hand in the water!"

At first Catherine was startled. Then, feeling her hackles rise at thedictatorial tone the woman was using, defiantly stuck her hand back inthe water, caught sight of the snake swimming lazily across their pathand jerked it back.

"Poison!" Mona said.

Catherine's second act of defiance had nearly been one ofself-destruction. She settled back in the boat and let out a deep sighof frustration. She'd never been one to feel sorry for herself. And she had no plans to begin now.

She could continue to sing at Isbella's, or she could travel to NewOrleans. But Charles was in New Orleans and she wasn't ready to facehim yet.

Glancing overhead she studied the sky for a long puzzled moment beforeshe realized what was wrong.

The sun was on the wrong side. If they were heading toward theMississippi it should be behind her. It wasn't. The rays of lightpenetrating the forest were angling in from the front. They weretraveling west, away from Natchez-under-the-Hill. The full understanding of her error was becoming clear. Instead of heading backto Heaven, she was being kidnapped.

"Stop this boat this minute!"

Mona neither relaxed her stance nor moved her gaze from where they weregoing.

"I demand to know where you're taking me."

The pirogue continued to snake its way through the narrowing tributaryof water.

Catherine sat up and began to swing her feet over the sides, causingthe flatboat to dip into the water.

"The gator would like that," was Mona's only comment.

Gator? Catherine pulled her feet back inside and took a quick angrybreath. She hadn't come hundreds of miles, braved a wilderness, astorm and a house of pleasure to be eaten by an alligator.

This time she'd really done it.

"Oh, Patrick, where are you?"

But there was no answer. Only the throaty croak of a frog and a splashas he leaped into the water just ahead of the boat.

All right. Cat 0"Conner, if you can't swim to safety, at least you canfind out something about who this Sun King is and what he wants with awhite woman. She didn't want to think that he'd sent for her because he'd learned she worked at Heaven. But he wasn't likely to have aharpsichord out here. If he expected anything else, she might as welltake her chances with the gators.

"Tell me about this Sun King."

"Wait. You will learn soon. Answers come to those who've learned to be silent and listen."

"You know that I belong to the pirate, Stone. He'll come after me."

"It matters not. What will be, will be."

Mona suddenly turned the boat into a thicket whose branches reached outand caught in Catherine's hair before parting to reveal a vee-shapedindentation along the shore.

Catherine pushed the escaping strands of hair beneath her hat andwatched as Mona leaped to the bank and tilted her head, directingCatherine's attention to a well-worn path.

"You first," Catherine said.

"No, I will follow." Any thought Catherine might have had about fleeing was quicklydispelled by the sight of a very large field of ripe corn. A plantation. She could get help. Catherine made haste toward the fields with Mona behind her. After a heated walk they circled the corn, its stalks heavy with ears tasseled brown and ready forharvest. Catherine could see that she'd made another error in judgment, for beyond the field, rising above the clearing in the distance, were fourgreen mounds of earth. Atop the largest mound was a huge building witha thatched roof. On what might have been called a porch on a normalhouse, stood a man magnificently bedecked in a cape of brown turkeyfeathers and an elaborate headdress.

"Go forward," Mona urged."The Sun King awaits.""I don't think so." From behind, the familiar voice spoke."Not without me."Catherine turned in a show of relief."Oh, Patrick.I'm so sorry. I should never have run away. How did you find me? "Mona turned toward the two men and gave Jillico an angry look."How?"was her first question, followed by a sadder, "why?""Because I believe this to be wrong," Jillico answered."It was not difficult to catch you. Two strong men can move faster than two women.""You are a fool!" she snapped."You cannot stop what is to come. I have seen the vision.""You have seen what you choose to see, in order to gain power.""Silence!" The voice of the man standing on the green mound carried across the open space and boded no pleasure.