women, knowing what you do to the man, will not
speak? They would rather bear the shame, than have a man so hurt. One of
the girls told me so. A man hurt her, but when she saw a man punished,
she could not report the one that had hurt her. She could not bear the
thought that he would be so cruelly punished."
47 "She would not be the first," acknowledged Thundering Dove, "but you
will have to give me her name, and I will send someone to speak with
her. The man will have to be dealt with one way or another. He will
either have to be punished or, do her honor."
48 Little Blossom looked shocked. "I must betray my trust?" she
inquired. "I promised the girl I wouldn't speak."
49 "Such a promise cannot be kept," explained Thundering Dove. "if you
are told of a crime you must report it. That is The Law. If you do not,
you are
as guilty as the person committing it, and share the same punishment."
50 "I will do as you say," agreed Little Blossom. "But answer me one
more question....why do you kill a man who forces himself on a boy? Why
do you not simply do to him what you do to men who take women?"
51 "Because," explained Thundering Dove, "such a man has not only
violated a body, he has violated an Eternal Spirit. He has touched the
boy's Eternal Light. The boy will wonder of his manhood for all of his
days. For a man who does such a thing as that, there is only one
punishment, one price to be paid."
52 "I STILL think," argued Little Blossom, "that it's too harsh."
53 "As harsh as burning a woman at the stake," asked Thundering Dove,
"because she cut the throat of the man who had abused her, and taken
her innocence?"
54 Little Blossom looked at her hands. "He will never hurt another
girl," she admitted, "but neither