Joseph cried at a small group pushing past him on their way out of camp by the time he and Ollokot reached the village at Tepahlewam. “No reason to be afraid—you have done nothing wrong!” “The soldiers will come looking for us!” White Bird wailed as he stepped up between the lodges. “All must join now. There is blood. We will be punished if we delay our escape!” Joseph dismounted. “We look guilty when we run away,” he explained. White Bird shrugged, turning slightly to gesture at the frantic activities of those breaking camp. “I am afraid it is too late for talk now—the war has started. Look at these people—they are running for their lives before the soldiers come searching for the killers and find us instead.” “We must wait for the soldiers to come,” Joseph protested. “Then we can make us some kind of peace with Cut-Off Arm. It would be better than running and fighting, because too many women and children will die—” “Too late, too late,” White Bird groaned, wagging his head.
