The Land of Painted Caves - Jean M. Auel [250]
That evening, although meals were cooked by the families or groups that normally ate together, they all more or less sat together, rather like a feast. Balderan and his henchmen were given food, and their hands were untied so they could eat it. They spoke quietly to each other as they ate. There were several people watching them, but it was hard to maintain interest when there was nothing to watch except people eating their food. The night sky darkened as the meal progressed, and people who were friendly strangers were interested in getting to know each other.
Ayla and Jondalar left Wolf with Jonayla to give him a rest from his stressful vigilance and went for a walk together toward the zelandonia dwelling. The First had gone there to talk about making a special tour of the Sacred Cave with Ayla, Jonokol, and a few others, and another tour with the rest of the visitors, except for the children, which might not be as extensive.
The couple knew in general where the men they had captured were being held, but in the dark they didn’t notice how carefully they were being watched by them. Balderan had been watching the tall man who was the mate of the woman acolyte, and as they approached, Balderan spoke to his men.
“We have to get away from here,” he said. “If we don’t, we won’t live to see many more days.”
“But how?” one of the men said.
“We need to get rid of that woman who controls the wolf,” Balderan said.
“That wolf won’t let us get close to her.”
“Only when he’s around. He isn’t always with her. Sometimes he stays with the girl,” Balderan said.
“But what about that man who’s always around her? The visitor she came with. He’s big.”
“I’ve known men like him, tall and muscular, but too calm and mild. Have you ever seen him angry? I think he’s one of those gentle giants who are so afraid they’ll hurt someone they even avoid arguments. If we’re quick, we can grab her before he knows it, and threaten to kill her if he makes a move. I don’t think he’ll take a chance that she might get hurt. By the time he thinks about it, it will be too late. We’ll be gone and her with us.”
“What are you going to threaten her with? They’ve taken our knives.”
Balderan smiled, then loosened the leather thong that laced his shirt closed. “This,” he said, pulling the thong out of its holes. “I’ll wrap this around her neck.”
“But what if your plan doesn’t work?” another man asked.
“We won’t be any worse off than we are now. We’ve got nothing to lose.”
The next day one of the other Caves in the region arrived, and by evening, two more. The First came to see Ayla the morning of the following day. Jondalar stepped out to let them talk in private.
“We are going to have to think about how to deal with these men.”
“Why do we have to?” Ayla said. “We don’t live here.”
“But you caught him. You’re involved, whether you want to be or not. It could be the Mother wants you to be,” the First added.
Ayla gave her a look of skepticism.
“Well, maybe not the Mother, but the people here want you to be. And I think you should. Besides, we need to talk to them about your tour of their Sacred Site. You will be amazed at this cave. I’ve seen it once and I know I’m going back in. There are some difficult places, but I’ll never get another chance and I won’t miss it,” the First said.
That intrigued Ayla, and aroused her curiosity. All the walking on this Journey seemed to have improved the woman’s health, but she still had problems and needed help when they got into rough terrain. She was a more than ample woman in spite of all her walking. She carried her weight with grace and assurance, and in many ways it added to her stature, but it could make moving around in tight places with uneven footing difficult.
“You’re right, Zelandoni, but I don’t want to make decisions about him. I don’t think it’s my place,