The men and women of Big Foot’s band were nervous as they headed toward Wounded Knee. They distrusted soldiers and knew they were in some trouble for running away from their army escort at Cheyenne River, but also knew they had done nothing wrong and hoped their unwillingness to join the Badlands Sioux would mitigate officials’ anger. They were eager to get on to the Pine Ridge agency, where they expected to meet family members and take shelter with the Oglala leader Red Cloud.
