The clan of the cave bear_ a novel - Jean M. Auel [265]
“With a lot of help. It’s enough strain on a woman to have two. I’m grateful Oga has always had plenty of milk, for Durc’s sake.”
“I hope I have plenty of milk,” Uba gestured. “I think I’m going to have a baby, Ayla.”
“I thought so, Uba. You haven’t had your woman’s curse since you were mated, have you?”
“No. I think Vorn’s totem has been waiting a long time. It must have been very strong.”
“Have you told him yet?”
“I was going to wait until I was sure, but he guessed. He must have noticed that I didn’t go into isolation. He’s very happy about it,” Uba motioned proudly.
“Is he a good mate, Uba? Are you happy?”
“Oh, yes. He’s a good mate, Ayla. When he found out I was going to have a baby, he told me he waited for me for a long time, and he was glad I didn’t waste any time getting one started. He said he asked for me even before I became a woman.”
“That’s wonderful, Uba,” Ayla said.
She didn’t add that there wasn’t anyone else in the clan he could have mated, except herself. But why would he want me? Why would he want a big, ugly woman when he could have someone as attractive as Uba, and she was born to Iza’s line. What’s the matter with me? I never wanted to mate Vorn. I guess I must still be thinking about what will happen to me when Creb is gone. I’m going to have to take good care of him so he lives a long time. It just seems that he doesn’t want to live. He hardly ever goes out of the cave anymore. If he doesn’t exercise, he won’t be able to leave the cave.
“What are you thinking about, Ayla? You’ve been so quiet lately.”
“I was thinking about Creb. I’m worried about him.”
“He’s getting old. He’s much older than mother, and she’s gone. I still miss her, Ayla. I’m going to hate it when Creb walks in the next world.”
“So will I, Uba,” Ayla gestured with feeling.
Ayla was restless. She hunted often, and when she wasn’t hunting, she worked with tireless energy. She couldn’t stand not having something to do. She sorted through the stores of medicinal plants and rearranged them, then scoured the countryside to replenish old or used-up medicines, then reorganized the whole hearth. She wove new baskets and mats, made wooden bowls and platters, containers of stiff rawhide or birchbark, made new wraps, cured and dressed new furs, then made leggings, hats, hand and foot coverings for the next winter. She waterproofed bladders and stomachs for water and other liquids, constructed a new frame firmly tied with thong and sinew to support skins for boiling over the fire. She nicked out flat stones to make a deeper well for fat for lamps, and she dried new moss wicks, knapped a new set of knives, scrapers, saws, borers, and axes, searched the seashore for shells to make spoons, ladles, and small dishes. She took her turn traveling with the hunters to dry the meat, gathered fruits, seeds, nuts, and vegetables with the women, winnowed and parched and ground grains to a superfine texture to make it easier for Creb and Durc to chew. And still she couldn’t find enough to do.
Creb became the object of her intense interest. Ayla pampered him, cared for him as she never had before. She cooked special foods to encourage his appetite, made medicinal brews and poultices, made him rest in the sunshine, and coaxed him into long walks for exercise. He seemed to enjoy her attention and company and to regain some of his strength and verve. But there was something lacking. The special closeness, the easy warmth, the long rambling talks of earlier years were gone. They usually walked in silence. The conversation they did have was strained, and there were no spontaneous demonstrations of affection.
Creb was not the only one growing old. The day that Brun watched the departing hunters from the ridge until they were tiny dots on the steppes below jolted Ayla into a sudden awareness of how much he had changed. His beard was not grizzled, it was gray, and it matched his hair. Deep wrinkles lined his face, cutting chasms into the skin