The Plains of Passage - Jean M. Auel [455]
“It’s all right, Ayla,” Joplaya said, in a voice that sounded hollow, empty. Her eyes were dry. “What else could I do? I’ll never find a man who loves me as much as Echozar does. I’ve known for a long time I would mate him. There just wasn’t any reason to wait any more.”
Ayla stood back, fighting to control tears she shed for the woman who could not, and she saw Echozar move closer. He put a tentative arm around Joplaya’s waist, still not quite able to believe it. He was afraid he would wake up and find it was all a dream. He didn’t know he had only the shell of the woman he loved. It didn’t matter. The shell was enough.
“Well, no. I didn’t see it with my own eyes,” Hochaman said, “and I can’t say that I believed it, then. But if you can ride horses and teach a wolf to follow you around, then why couldn’t someone ride the back of a mammoth?”
“Where did you say this happened?” Dalanar asked.
“It was not long after we started out, far to the east. It must have been a four-toed mammoth,” Hochaman said.
“A four-toed mammoth? I’ve never heard of such a thing,” Jondalar said, “not even from the Mamutoi.”
“They are not the only ones who hunt mammoths, you know,” Hochaman said, “and they don’t live far enough to the east. Believe me, they are close neighbors, in comparison. When you really go east, and get close to the Endless Sea, mammoths have four toes on their hind feet. They tend to be darker, too. A lot of them are almsot black.”
“Well, if Ayla could ride on the back of a cave lion, I don’t doubt that someone could learn to ride a mammoth. What do you think?” Jondalar asked, looking at Ayla.
“If you got one young enough,” she said. “I think if you raised almost any animal around people from the time it was a baby, you could teach it something. At least not to be afraid of people. Mammoths are smart; they could learn a lot. We watched the way they broke up ice for water. Many other animals used it, too.”
“They can smell it from a long distance away, too,” Hochaman said. “It’s a lot drier in the east, and the people there always say, ‘If you run out of water, look for a mammoth.’ They can go for quite a while without it, if they have to, but eventually they will lead you to it.”
“That’s good to know,” Echozar said.
“Yes, especially if you travel much,” Joplaya said.
“I don’t plan to travel much,” he said.
“But you will be coming to the Zelandonii Summer Meeting,” Jondalar said.
“For our Matrimonial, of course,” Echozar said. “And I’d like to see you again.” He smiled tentatively. “It would be nice if you and Ayla lived here.”
“Yes. I hope you will both consider our offer,” Dalanar said. “You know this is always your home, Jondalar, and we don’t have a healer, except for Jerika, who is not really trained. We need a lanzadoni and we both think Ayla would be perfect. You could visit with your mother, and return with us after the Summer Meeting.”
“Believe me, we appreciate your offer, Dalanar,” Jondalar said, “and we will consider it.”
Ayla glanced at Joplaya. She had withdrawn, closed in on herself. She liked the woman, but they talked mostly of superficial things. Ayla could not overcome her sorrow at Joplaya’s plight—she had come too close to a similar circumstance—and her own happiness was a constant reminder of Joplaya’s pain. As much as she had grown to like everyone, she was glad they would be leaving in the morning.
She would particularly miss Jerika and Dalanar, and listening to their heated “discussions.” The woman was tiny; when Dalanar held his arm out, she could walk under it with room to spare, but she had an indomitable will. She was as much a leader of the Cave as he was and argued vociferously when her opinion differed from his. Dalanar listened to her seriously, but by no means did he always yield. The welfare of his people was his main concern, and he often