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Ayla soon ca the horse, she had done herself a favor She was alone in the valley and beca to share her lonely Ufe It wasn’t her intention to taht of it in those terms She looked upon the horse as her friend Later, she became a friend who allowed the woman to ride on her back and here Ayla wanted her to go because she chose to

Whinney left to live with a herd for a while, when she came into her first season, but came back to Ayla after the herd stallion died Her foal was born not long after the woman found the woundedcolt beca his own means He invented the halter to help hi stallion Ayla found the device useful to use on Whinney when she needed to keep her restrained to a specific area, and Jondalar used one if he needed to lead Whinney He seldom tried to ride the nals Ayla used to guide her, and the horse didn’t understand his Ayla had a similar problem with Racer

Ayla glanced at Jondalar, as dashing after a bison, guiding Racer with ease, shaking a grass wand in the face of a young bull to get hihtened cow veer off and started after her, but Wolf got there first and drove her back She s the bison They had all—the woman, the ether, and hunt together, on their yearlong Journey following the Great Mother River in their passage across the plains from the east

As they neared the narrow valley, Ayla noticed aat her, and breathed a sigh of relief The hunters had arrived They would keep the bison heading in the right direction once they were stampeded into the valley, but a couple of bison at the head of the herd were trying to swerve away She leaned forward, an all but unconscious signal to Whinney to go faster As though she kneas in the woman’s mind, the mare raced to cut off the bison reluctant to enter the narroay Ayla yelled as Whinney neared, shaking the grass wand and napping the piece of leather in the canny old cow’s face, and ed to turn her back The rest of the bison followed

The two people on horses and the wolf kept the bison sta in the same direction, but the valley narrowed as they approached the restricted opening of the surround,

which slowed the to bolt to get away from the press behind them

A hunter stepped out from behind a panel and attempted to stop him with a spear The weapon found its mark, but it wasn’t aThe hunter ju back behind the panel, but it was a flied by the pain of the wound, the huge shaggy aninored the panel and knocked it aside The man fell with it, and in the confusion, the bison trampled him

Ayla, watching in horror, had her spear-thrower out and was reaching for a spear when she saw one thud into the bison She threw her spear also, then urged Whinney forward, disregarding the danger of the other sta animals, and jumped off the horse’s back even before she stopped She pulled the panel out of the way and knelt beside the round not far from the fallen bison She heard him moan He was alive

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Whinney was prancing nervously, sweating heavily, as the rest of the bison swept by and into the surround When the wo from one of the carrier baskets, she stroked the horse for a moment to comfort her, but her ht be able to do for hiate to the surround was closed, trapping the bison inside, or when soan to methodically dispatch the ones they wanted

The wolf had enjoyed chasing the aniate was closed he had suddenly stopped running after the beside the wounded an to forround, but with the wolf there, they kept their distance Ayla was oblivious to the people watching her as she began to exaht beating in his neck, under his jaw She opened his clothing

There was no blood, but a large blue-black s on his chest and abdomen Carefully, she felt his chest and sto bruise She pressed in once He flinched and made a cry of pain, but did not wake up She listened to his breathing and heard a soft gurgling, then noted that blood dribbled from the side of his mouth and kneas injured internally

She looked up and saw Jondalar’s piercing blue eyes and his familiar frown of concern, and then a second, nearly identical froith a questioning look She shook her head at Joharran

“I’m sorry,” she said “That bison stepped on him” She looked down at the dead ani his lungs and I don’t knohat else He is bleeding inside I’ can be done If he has a mate, someone should send for her I’”

“Nooooo!” ca man pushed his way forward and threw himself down beside the man “It’s not true! It can’t be true! How does she know? Only a Zelandoni knows She’s not even one of us!”