James McGee

The Blooding


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      JAMES McGEE

       The Blooding

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       Dedication

      This one is for my cousin, Mark.

      Flying free … O:nen Ontiaten:ro

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       MOHAWK NAMES

      The Mohawk at the time the novel is set had no written language. Iroquois vocabulary was originally transcribed by Jesuit missionaries and therefore, even today, there are discrepancies in the origins, spelling and meaning of certain words. I’m indebted to Thomas Deer of the Kanien’kehá:ka Onkwawén:na Raotitióhkwa Language & Cultural Center in Kahnawá:ke, Montreal, for his guidance.

      Rotinonshón:ni: “People of the Longhouse” – the Six Nations – Iroquois Confederacy

      Kanien’kehá:ka: “People of the Place of the Flint” – the Mohawk

      Kaion’kehá:ka: “People of the Marsh” – the Cayuga

      Oneniote’á:ka: “People of the Standing Stone” – the Oneida

      Ononta’kehá:ka: “People of the Hills” – the Onondaga

      Shotinontowane’á:ka: “People of the Great Mountain” – the Seneca

      Tehatiskaró:ros: “People of the Shirt” – the Tuscarora

      Kaianere’kó:wa: “The Great Law of Peace” – the Constitution of the Six Nations

      Oyata’ge’ronóñ: “People of the Cave Country” – the Cherokee

      Wendat: “People of the Island” – the Huron

      Ahkwesáhsne: “Where the partridge drums” – Mohawk village near St Regis

      Kahnawá:ke: “On the rapids” – Mohawk village near Montreal

      Kanièn:keh: “Land of the Flint” – Traditional homeland of the Mohawk

      Kenhtè:ke: “Place of the Bay” – Mohawk village on the Bay of Quinte, Canada

      Anówarakowa Kawennote: “Great Turtle Island” – North America

      Atirú:taks: Adirondacks

      Kaniatarowanénhne: “Big Waterway” – the St Lawrence River

      Ne-ah-ga: Niagara

      Oiqué: Hudson River

      Senhahlone: Plattsburg

      Tanasi: Tennessee

       If they are to fight, they are too few;

       If they are to be killed, they are too many.

      Theyanoguin

      Wolf Clan, Kanien’kehá:ka

      Warrior, sachem, diplomat, orator

      Table of Contents

       Cover

       Title Page

       Map

       Epigraph

       Chapter 5

       Chapter 6

       Chapter 7

       Chapter 8

       Chapter 9

       Chapter 10

       Chapter 11

       Chapter 12

       Chapter 13

       Chapter 14

       Chapter 15

       Chapter 16

       Chapter 17

       Epilogue

       Historical Note

       About the Author

       Also by James McGee

       Copyright

       About the Publisher

       PROLOGUE

       Mohawk Valley, New York State, May 1780

      Reaching the edge of the forest, Lieutenant Gil Wyatt halted and dropped to one knee. Cradling his rifle, he gazed down at the scene spread below him, his expression calm and watchful.

      From his elevated position the ground sloped away gently, gradually widening out into a swathe of rich green meadow-grass speckled with blue violets, through which ran a shallow stream bordered by stands of scarlet oak and white willow. Tree stumps dotted the incline, evidence of the labour that had gone into converting the land and raising