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Broud was fearful of the spirits, perhaps more than any man in the clan, and his fear extended to the one elt so intiainst a whole array of incorporeal beings who could cause bad luck or sickness or death, and what could he do against the man who had the power to call the wheremen of other clans who tried to scare each other with tales of -urs who had been crossed Spears turned at the lasta kill, terrible illnesses that caused pain and suffering, gorings,calaicians The horror stories were not so prevalent in his own clan, but still, The Mog-ur was the ician of all

Though there had been tiht hi-ur’s malformed body and horribly scarred, one-eyed face added to his stature To those who did not know him, he seemed inhuman, perhaps part de ed that he did not fear The Great Mog-ur But for all his swaggering, the stories had left their i old man who couldn’t hunt made Broud more wary of his power

Whenever he daydreaht of Goov as hiscoht He was sure he could cajole or coerce the acolyte into going along with his decisions, but he didn’t drea-ur

As Broud walked through the woods near the cave, he ive the leader cause to doubt hiain would he put the destiny he was so close to realizing in jeopardy But when I’ht She turned Brun against ainst me, my own mate When I’m leader, it won’t matter if Brun takes her side, he won’t be able to protect her any she had done to hiht to his ego He dwelt on the her back He could wait Someday, he said to himself, someday soon she will be sorry she ever came to live with this clan

Broud wasn’t the only one who blamed the old cripple; Creb blamed himself for Ayla’s loss of mother’s milk It made little difference—now—that it was his concern that had brought such disastrous results He just hadn’t understood the way of a woman’s body, he had had too little experience oe that he had ever come in close contact with a mother and baby He didn’t realize that when a woman nursed another’s child, the favor was reciprocated ation No one had ever told him; no one had to after it was too late

He wondered why such a terrible calamity had happened to her Was it just that her child was unlucky? Creb looked for reasons, and in his guilty introspection he began to doubt his own motives Was it really concern, or did he want to hurt her as she had unknowingly hurt hi-ur stooped to such petty revenge? If he was an exahest holy man, perhaps his people deserved to die Creb’s conviction that his race was doouilt over the sorrow he had caused Ayla plunged him into a -ur’s life came near its end

Ayla didn’t bla another woman nurse her son when she couldn’t was a, and Ika had each come to her and told her they would nurse Durc for her, and she was grateful, but ht Durc to one of theh With the loss of her milk, Ayla lost an irieved for Iza and blamed herself for the woman’s death, and Creb had withdrawn so far into himself that she couldn’t reach hiht when she took Durc to bed with her, she was grateful to Broud His refusal to accept him meant her son wasn’t lost to her completely

In the waning days of fall, Ayla took up her sling again as an excuse to go off alone She had hunted so little the past year, her skill was rusty, but with practice, her accuracy and speed returned Most days she left early and returned late, leaving Uba to care for Durc, and only regretted that winter was closing in on theood for her, but she had a problem to overcome She hadn’t hunted much after she beca at every step annoyed her when she ran or jumped She noticed that men wore a leather loincloth to protect their exposed and delicate organs, and she fashioned a band to hold her bosom in place, tied around her back It nored the curious sidewise glances cast at her when she put it on

Though hunting strengthened her body and occupied her rief and sorrow To Uba, it seemed that the joy had left Creb’s hearth She missed her mother, and both Creb and Ayla had an aura of perpetual sadness Only Durc, with his unknowing baby ways, brought a hint of the happiness she had once taken for granted He could even rouse Creb out of his lethargy on occasion

Ayla had left early and Uba ay froa had just brought Durc back and Creb was keeping his eye on the boy He was full and contented, but not very sleepy He crawled toward the oldat Creb for support

“So you’re going to start walking soon,” Creball over this cave, young man”

Creb poked hiestures The corners of Durc’s mouth turned up and he made a sound Creb had heard frohed Creb poked hile, lost his balance, and sat down on his firain and looked at the child as he had never looked at him before

Durc’s baby legs were bowed, but not nearly as h they were chubby, Creb could see his bones were longer and thinner I think Durc’s legs are going to be straight when he gets older, like Ayla’s, and he’s going to be tall, too And his neck, it was so thin and scrahen he was born, he couldn’t hold his head up; it’s just like Ayla’s neck His head isn’t like hers, though, or is it? That high forehead, that’s Ayla’s Creb turned Durc’s head to look at his profile Yes, definitely her forehead, but the brows and the eyes, they’re Clan, and the back of his head, that’s more like Clan, too

Ayla was right He’s not deformed, he’s a mixture, a mixture of her and Clan I wonder, is that the way it always is? Do the spirits irls, not a weakof male and female totem spirits? Creb shook his head, he didn’t know, but it set the old ht often of Durc that cold lonely winter He had a feeling Durc was important, but just why eluded him

27

“But Ayla, I’ets dark?” Uba implored “Ayla, I’m afraid”

The frightened face of the young woo with her Uba was not quite eight years old and the thought of spending the days alone away from the security of the cave terrified her, but her totem’s spirit had battled for the first time and it was required She had no choice

“Do you remember that small cave where I hid when Durc was born? Go there, Uba It will be safer than staying out in the open I’ll co you some food It’s only for a few days, Uba Make sure you take a fur to sleep on and a coal to start a fire There’s water nearby It will be lonely, especially at night, but you’ll be all right And just think, you’re a woman now You’ll be mated s

oon and ,” Ayla consoled

“Who do you think Brun will choose for me?”

“Who do you want Brun to choose for you, Uba?”

“Vorn is the only un will be one soon Of course, he ht decide to make me the second wo We used to play ere mated, until the time he really tried to relieve his needs with me It didn’t work very well, and now he’s shy and so close to being a irls anymore But Ona is a woman, too, and she can’t ive her to afor her I guess that means Vorn will be my mate”

“Vorn has been a er to mate by now,” Ayla said She had come to the same conclusion herself “Do you think you’d like Vorn for a mate?”

“He tried to act like he doesn’t notice ht not be so bad”

“Broud likes him, he’ll probably be second-in-command someday You don’t need to worry about the status, but it would be good for your sons I didn’t like Vorn ht He’s not so bad He’s even nice to Durc, when Broud isn’t around”

“Everyone’s nice to Durc, except Broud,” Uba said “Everyone loves him”

“Well, he certainlyhanded around to nurse, he even calls every wo frown A quick smile replaced her unhappy look “Remember that time he walked into Grod’s hearth, just like he lived there?”

“I remember; I tried not to look, but I just couldn’t help it,” Uba recalled “He walked right past Uka, just greeted her and called her ht to Grod and crawled up on his lap”

“I know,” Ayla said “I never saw Grod look so surprised in ht for Grod’s spears I was sure Grod was going to get mad, but he just couldn’t resist that brazen child when he started to drag his biggest spear away When Grod took it away from him, he said, ‘Durc hunt like Grod’ ”

“I think Durc would have dragged that heavy spear right out of the cave if Grod had let him”

“He takes the little spear Grod“You know, Grod never says reeted ht to Durc and put that spear in his hands, even showed him how to hold it When he walked out, all he said was, ‘If the boy wants to hunt so much, he should have his own spear’ ”

“It’s a shame Ovra never had any children I think Grod would like it if the daughter of his mate had a baby,” Uba said “Maybe that’s why Grod likes Durc, he’s not really attached to anyis already showing hi to have any probleh there isn’t a man at his hearth to train him The way the men act, you’d think every man in the clan is his mother’s mate, except Broud” She paused “Maybe they are, Ayla Dorv always said every man’s totem combined to defeat your Cave Lion”