The Land of Painted Caves - Jean M. Auel [228]
“Well, that was exciting,” Beladora said.
“That was fun!” both the twins said together. “Can we do it again?” Ginadela asked.
“Yes, can we do it again?” Gioneran asked.
“We’ll do it again, but we have to let Whinney rest a little now,” Ayla said. She was pleased with the distance they had traveled in their short burst of speed, but they still had some ways to go. They kept going, but at a walk. After she felt that her horse was rested, Ayla called out, “Let’s do it again.”
When the horses started running, the riders hung on, knowing now what to expect. The ones who had been frightened were not as frightened this time, but it was still exciting to move with greater speed than any of them could have run, even those with the longest of legs.
The native wild horses, which had been tamed but not domesticated, were very strong and tough. Their hooves needed no protection from rocky ground, they could carry or pull a surprisingly heavy load, and their endurance was well beyond what might be expected. Though they loved to run, the horses with the extra loads could sustain the pace for only a limited time, which Ayla watched very carefully. By the time she slowed them back to a walk, and after a while signaled them to take off in a run a third time, the horses even seemed to be enjoying it. Wolf did too. It seemed like some kind of game. He tried to anticipate when they would start to run again and get a head start, but he didn’t want to get too far ahead because he was keeping pace and needed to predict when they would slow down.
By late afternoon Ayla and Jondalar were beginning to recognize the region though they weren’t sure, and didn’t want to miss the trail they needed to take to reach the Cave of Camora’s people. It had been Willamar who knew the region. Going at a slower pace made everyone notice the changes in the weather. The air was damp and the wind had started to pick up. Then they heard a resounding rumble and the roaring crack of thunder and not long after saw a flash of lightning and it wasn’t very far away. They all knew a big storm was almost upon them. Ayla began to shiver, but it wasn’t just the sudden blast of cold damp air. The rumbling and roaring reminded her too much of an earthquake, and there was nothing she hated more than earthquakes.
They almost missed the trail, but Willamar and some of the others had been keeping a watch for them for several days. Jondalar was very relieved when he saw the familiar figure waving at them. The Trade Master had seen the horses approaching from some distance away, and had sent one of the people up to tell the Cave that the horses were returning. At a distance, when Willamar didn’t see anyone walking alongside the horses, he was afraid they hadn’t found anyone, but as they drew closer, he saw more than one head above the backs of the horses, and realized they were riding together. Then he saw the pole-drags and as they pulled up, people on them.
People from the Cave were rushing down the path. When Camora saw her brother and her uncle, she didn’t know which to run to first. They solved her dilemma when both of them ran to her and hugged her together.
“Hurry, it’s starting to rain,” Willamar urged.
“We can leave the pole-drags here,” Ayla said, then they all hurried up the trail.
The travelers stayed longer than planned, partly to give Camora a chance to visit with her kin, and for her mate and children to get to know them. The Cave was a more isolated band of people, and though they went to Summer Meetings, they didn’t have any close neighbors. Jondecam and Levela considered staying with Jondecam’s sister, perhaps until the travelers could stop and pick them up on their way back. She seemed hungry for company and news about people she knew. Kimoran