The Land of Painted Caves - Jean M. Auel [227]
“Ayla says a big storm is coming,” Jondalar told the other two men when they brought up hunting. “She thinks it would be better to hunt later, after we get there.”
“I know there are clouds in the distance,” Kimeran said, “but that doesn’t mean it will rain here. They look pretty far off.”
“Ayla has a good sense of rain coming,” Jondalar said. “I’ve seen it before. I don’t necessarily want to have to dry out wet clothes and muddy footwear.”
“But we only met them at the Matrimonial,” Jondecam said. “I don’t want to ask for their hospitality with nothing to give in return.”
“We were only there a half a day before we left to look for you, but I noticed that they don’t seem to be familiar with the spear-thrower. Why don’t we ask them to come hunting with us and show them how to use it. That might be a better gift than just bringing them some meat,” Jondalar said.
“I suppose … do you really think it’s going to rain that soon?” Kimeran asked.
“I trust Ayla’s ‘nose’ for rain. She is seldom wrong,” Jondalar said. “She’s been smelling rain for a few days and she thinks it will be a big storm. Not one that we’ll want to get caught in without good shelter. She doesn’t even want to stop to cook a midday meal; she says we should just drink water and eat traveling cakes along the way, so we can get there faster. Now that Beladora is getting well, I don’t think you want her to get soaked.” Suddenly he had another thought. “We could get there more quickly riding on the horses.”
“How can we all ride on three horses?” Kimeran asked.
“Some people could ride on the pole-drags and others double up on the horses. Have you ever thought about sitting on a horse? You could sit behind Jonayla.”
“Maybe someone else should sit on a horse. I’ve got long legs and I can run fast,” Kimeran said.
“Not as fast as a horse,” Jondalar said. “Her two children can ride on the pole-drag with Beladora. It would be a bumpy ride, but they have already done it a few times. We could move the gear on Racer’s pole-drag to Gray’s. Then Levela and Jonlevan can ride double on Racer with me. That leaves you and Jondecam. I thought he could ride on the pole-drag, or he can ride behind me, and Levela and her young one can be on the pole-drag. That leaves you riding double with Ayla or Jonayla. With your long legs, it would give you more room if you ride with Jonayla, since she rides so close to Gray’s neck. Do you think you could hang on to a horse with your legs while you are sitting on her? You could also hold on to the pole-drag ropes. Whoever rides double with me can hang on to me. We won’t ride too long like that—it would tire the horses—but we could cover a good bit of ground a lot faster if we let them run for a little while.”
“I see you’ve been thinking about this,” Jondecam said.
“Only since Ayla told me of her concerns,” Jondalar said. “What do you think, Levela?”
“I don’t want to get wet if I can avoid it,” she said. “If Ayla says it’s going to rain, I believe her. I’ll ride a pole-drag with Jonvelan like Beladora if it means we’ll get there faster, even if it is a little bumpy.”
While the water was heating for tea, the loads on the pole-drags were rearranged, and Ayla and Jondalar got everyone settled. Wolf was watching from the side with his head tilted at an angle as though he was curious about what was going on, which was emphasized by his cocked ear. Ayla caught sight of him and smiled. They started out slowly at first, then with a look between them, Jondalar signaled Ayla, then gave a shout.
“Get ready, and hold on tight,” he said.
Ayla leaned forward, instructing her horse to run. Whinney started into a fast trot; then her gait changed to a gallop. Though it wasn’t as fast as it would have been if she hadn’t been dragging the travois, she did gain considerable speed. The horses behind followed her lead and the urging of their usual riders, and picked up their pace.