page31 (1/2)

The woman kneeled beside the baby cave lion, and with the experienced hand of a ns of life The cub arm, probably had broken ribs He was near death, but he still breathed Frons in the dirt, Ayla knew the lioness had found her baby and nudged hi the way of all anis—who must allow the weak to die if the rest are to survive, she turned her attention to her other offspring and moved on

Only in the anith and fitness Already puny compared with their carnivorous competitors, mankind depended on cooperation and compassion to survive

Poor baby, Ayla thought Your mother couldn’t help you, could she? It wasn’t the first time her heart had been ht about taking the cub back with her to the cave, then quickly dis small ani the healing arts, though the first time had caused quite a stir But Brun had not allowed a wolf pup The lion cub was nearly as big as a wolf already Someday he would approach Whinney in size

She got up and looked down at the dying cub, shaking her head, then went to lead Whinney again, hoping the load she was dragging wouldn’t get stuck too soon When they started, Ayla noticed the hyenasto follow them She reached for a stone, then saw that the pack had been distracted It was only reasonable It was the niche nature had alloted them They had found the lion cub But Ayla wasn’t reasonable where hyenas were concerned

“Get out, you stinking animals! Leave that baby alone!”

Ayla ran back, hurling stones A yelp let her know one had found its ain as the wohteous wrath

There! That will keep the with her feet apart, protectively straddling the cub Then a wry grin of disbelief crossed her face What aoing to die anyway? If I let the hyenas at him, they won’t bother me anymore

I can’t take hiot to worry about getting the reindeer back It’s ridiculous to think of it

Is it? What if Iza had left me? Creb said I was put in her path by the spirit of Ursus, or maybe the Cave Lion spirit, because no one else would have stopped for me She couldn’t bear to see so to help It’s what ood medicine woman

I’m a medicine woman She trained me Maybe this cub was put in ht that little rabbit into the cave because it was hurt, she said it showed I was meant to be a medicine woman Well, here’s a baby that’s hurt, I can’t just leave hily hyenas

But how aet this baby to the cave? A broken rib could puncture a lung if I’m not careful I’ll have to wrap hi I used for Whinney’s puller should work I have some with me

Ayla whistled for the horse, Surprisingly, the load Whinney was dragging didn’t snag on anything, but the youngin cave lion territory; her kind, too, were their natural prey She had been nervous since the hunt, and stopping every few le the heavy load, which restricted herher

But Ayla, concentrating on the baby cave lion, wasn’t paying attention to the horse’s needs After she wrapped the young carnivore’s ribs, the only way she could think of getting him to the cave was to put him on Whinney’s back

It was e young feline and tried to place hito rid herself of the weights and contraptions strapped to her, then vaulted across the steppes The deer, wrapped in the grass ht on a rock The restraint added to Whinney’s panic, bringing on a renewed frenzy of bucking

Suddenly, the leather thongs snapped, and with the jolt the carrying baskets, overbalanced by the long heavy spear shafts, tilted up In open-ht horse race furiously ahead The contents of the carrying baskets were duround, except for the securely fastened spears Still attached to the baskets cinched around thebehind her, points doithout hindering her speed at all

Ayla saw the possibilities i to think of a way to get the deer carcass and the lion cub back to the cave Waiting for Whinney to settle down took a little ht haro after her, but was afraid to leave either deer or lion cub to the tenderdid have an effect It was a sound Whinney associated with affection, security, and response Making a large circle, she veered back toward the woman

When the exhausted and lathered youngher with relief She untied the harness and cinch and examined her carefully to ainst the wos spraddled, breathing hard and quivering

“You rest, Whinney,” Ayla said when the horse stopped shaking and seemed to calm down “I need to work on this anyway”

It didn’t occur to the wory because the horse had bucked, run away, and du to her, or under her command Rather, Whinney was a friend, a coood reason Too much had been asked of her Ayla felt she would have to learn the horse’s limits, not attempt to teach her better behavior To Ayla, Whinney helped of her own free will, and she took care of the horse out of love

The young woman picked up what she could find of the basket’s contents, then reworked the cinch-basket-harness arrange the two spears the way they had fallen, points down She attached the grass mat, which had been wrapped around the deer, to both poles, thus creating a carrier platforround She lashed the deer to it, then carefully tied down the unconscious cave lion cub After she relaxed, Whinney see of the cinches and harnesses, and she stood quietly while Ayla made adjustments

Once the baskets were in place, Ayla checked the cub again and got on Whinney’s back As they headed toward the valley, she was astounded at the efficiency of the new ing on the ground, not a dead weight snagged by every obstacle, the horse was able to haul the load with reater ease, but Ayla did not draw an easy breath until she reached the valley and her cave

She stopped to give Whinney a rest and a drink, and she checked on the baby cave lion He still breathed, but the wasn’t sure he would live Why was he put in ht of her totem the moment she saw the cub—did the spirit of the Cave Lion want her to take care of him?

Then another thought occurred to her If she hadn’t decided to take the cub with her, she would never have thought of the travois Had her toteift? Whatever it was, Ayla was sure the cub had been put in her path for a reason, and she would do everything in her power to save his life

11

“Jondalar, you don’t have to stay here just because I am”

“Whatjust for you?” the older brother said with more irritation than he meant to show He hadn’t wanted to seem so touchy about it, but there was more truth to Thonolan’s comment than he wanted to admit

He’d been expecting it, he realized He just didn’t want to let himself believe his brother would actually stay and mate Jetamio Yet, he surprised himself with his immediate decision to stay with the Sharamudoi, too He didn’

t want to go back alone It would be a long way to travel without Thonolan, and there was so deeper It had prompted an immediate response before, when he had decided to make a Journey with his brother in the first place