Across the Face of the World (41 page)

'We'll have to strap it to him,' the Haufuth muttered.

'No need,' Hal whispered back. 'Look.'

The spasms had stopped; a bad sign, Leith thought. The Hermit was fading. The Haufuth placed the poultice on the wounds, which were grouped close together, then Hal soaked a cloth in water, and added a few drops from a vial he carried in his pack. He dabbed the Hermit's lips with the cloth. In a moment, colour returned to his cheeks and his breathing eased.

The Haufuth leaned over the prone body. 'His heart has settled down. What was that you gave him?'

'Just a few herbs in water.'

'Will he live?' Stella asked.

'Perhaps,' the big man replied. 'We'll know better in a few days.'

'We don't have a few days!' Farr's voice rang through the cavern. 'We have to leave now!'

'Too true,' Kurr agreed. An agreement between the farmer and the elder Storrsen was so rare as to occasion comment, but it passed unnoticed.

'But who will look after the Hermit?' Stella pressed. 'What's the point of saving his life only to leave him to die?'

'Someone must remain behind,' said the Haufuth. 'Either that or we must all stay behind.'

'What is the Hermit to us? Our task is to fight, not to nurse¬maid!' Farr was unsympathetic.

'You may be right,' Kurr agreed. 'This is not our affair. We have been given the responsibility of Mahnum and Indrett, of rescue and vengeance. We can't afford to wait for this man to heal

- if indeed this is not his time anyway.'

'But he'll die if we leave him!' Stella could not believe what she was hearing.

Farr shrugged his shoulders. 'He would have died sooner had we not been here at all. Perhaps it would have been better if he had died.'

Wira stood next to Stella, as if lending her support. 'Don't you think that is being just a little selfish? Can't your revenge wait a few days?'

Farr clenched his fists. 'Who are you to talk to me about self¬ishness? How dare you!' The elder Storrsen was furious with his brother, his reaction leaving the others mystified.

'I'd leave one of my men with the Hermit,' said Leader, 'as he has been a faithful friend of the Fodhram for many years. But none of my men is an apothecary. We'd just as likely kill him unwit¬tingly as nurse him back to health.'

Another dilemma! Leith thought. Perhaps if this had just been a simple matter of pursuing and fighting the Bhrudwans then maybe, just maybe, they might have accomplished it. But the combination of bad weather and bandits, of enemies expected and unexpected, an overall run of bad luck, and now this affair of the Hermit, had conspired against them. Delay after delay, dilemma after dilemma, had led them to the side of a sick Hermit under¬neath a hill many miles away from their true road, while the Bhrudwans and their captives drew further and further away at every moment.

Finally Kurr sighed and spoke. 'I have made my decision,' he said. 'We leave immediately, and trust the care of this Hermit into the hands of the Most High. We must pursue our quest. I cannot willingly exchange the lives of Mahnum and Indrett, not to mention Parlevaag, for this Hermit. He has entrusted his life to the solitude of this wood, and I say we should allow the forest and the hill and the cave to nurture him.'

One or two nodded their heads at this speech, Farr shrugged his shoulders, Leith frowned.

Stella cried out: 'No!' Then silence settled on the party, punctuated by the shallow breathing of the Hermit.

'I'm staying with him,' the Haufuth said quietly.

'What?' Kurr exploded.

'Kurr, you have made the decision to go on. By so doing you have taken leadership of the Company. No, my friend,' he said, over the old farmer's protestations, 'it was only right and proper that you should do so. I've shown no leadership since we left the North March of Firanes.'

It was no good arguing, the Haufuth explained; his mind was made up. All along he had known that his presence on this expe¬dition was a liability. He was no real leader, he told them; instead he found himself unable to keep up with the Company. He would be no use in a fight. He had been wondering how he could leave them without causing problems, and now this Hermit needed looking after - and no one else (with the exception of Hal) could do it. No, his decision was final. He would stay with the Hermit until his charge had recovered.

Arguments raged back and forth most of the morning, but the Haufuth's decision remained firm. He had been supported by Farr (not surprisingly, thought Leith) and by the Fodhram.

There was food enough for three months in the Hermit's larder - three weeks, the Haufuth estimated with a smile - but the Hermit obviously could not feed himself. His poultice would need regular changing. He would need water. Someone would have to stoke the fire. Wild animals had to be kept at bay. Wisent had to be fed and watered. Someone had to stay with him, and the Haufuth was clearly the best choice.

'Keep listing my indispensable talents,' the big man said, 'and you might convince me that I should come with you after all! Now off with you and get ready to leave. I must tend the needs of my patient.'

* * *

Stella threw her arms around the big man as they stood at the hidden entrance to the cave. Her tears ran down his neck.

'Look after yourself,' the Haufuth said gruffly.

Stella nodded, not trusting herself to speak.

'You know, it is when I think of you left amongst all these uncaring men that I doubt my decision.'

'Not all the men are uncaring,' she whispered, a blush reddening her complexion.

The Haufuth frowned. 'Now you really have me worried,' he said. 'Be careful! Things with men are not always as they seem!'

The young girl laughed brightly, a little too brightly. 'Don't worry! Anything is better than the fate awaiting me should I return home a single woman!'

Now the Haufuth took a deep breath, ready to reply with heat, but Stella skipped away out of his reach. 'Don't worry about me!' she called, then walked over to where Wira stood. Her hand slipped easily into his. I'm capable of looking out for myself, her gesture said eloquently.

Now Hal said his farewell to his village headman. 'You'll take good care of him,' he said with assurance. 'And when he is well, you'll follow us to Instruere. We'll meet again there.'

Kurr nodded his farewell, and shook the Haufuth's huge hand. 'I didn't mean to ...' he began.

'No need,' the headman replied. 'I know. You wanted to lead the Company as little as I did.'

'Be careful! And make sure you come to Instruere when the Hermit is healed. We'll need you when we speak to the Falthan council.'

'I'll be there,' the Haufuth said. 'Now go, otherwise the Bhrudwans will be at Vindstrop House before you.'

Finally the Company took their leave of the Hermit, of the faithful Wisent, and of the Haufuth. The vast bulk of the headman and the aurochs were specks at the bottom of a small cliff when they waved for the last time, then the trail dipped over a low hill, the specks disappeared from view and the snow-shrouded forest swallowed them again.

The urgency of their journey began to press at them, and the events of the Hermit's cave receded as once again the travellers set out on their road. Kurr now strode unchallenged at their head. But the Haufuth was not forgotten; every now and then, a member of the Company would cast a glance towards the tail of the proces¬sion, as though expecting to see him. But he was not there, and somehow they felt incomplete without him.

A NIGHT ON THE ICE

THE AFTERNOON SUN GLOWERED impotently at the Company as they wound their way up a snow-covered ridge. She stretched pale yellow fingers towards the fur bales bobbing on the backs of the heavily laden travellers, but she could not touch them. At this time of year, as the clouds cloaked the land, she did not often see the snow and the trees. And she seldom if ever saw humans abroad in the northern winter, the season when the great god Qali ruled the land and the skies. Never mind, she thought, remembering that there were places far from here over which she held absolute sway. Perhaps one day she would see these humans in the arid lands far to the south. Then she would show them a thing or two.

The Company pulled two laden sleds. Each sled carried eight fur bales and a pile of provisions, while each of the four Fodhram had two bales on his back. The rest of the Company took turns to pull the sleds: two pulled on the ropes, while a third pushed from behind. In this fashion they guided the sleds over the snowy path.

'Couldn't do this in the summer,' Shabby grunted. 'Track is a mess of tree roots, stones and dust after the thaw.'

'Never been on it in the snows,' Taller chipped in. He was the least spoken of the Fodhram, but was their cook and the best singer among them. On both counts he was a valuable member of the group.

'Well, it's easy here,' Leader agreed. 'But that's because we haven't got to the river yet.'

He turned to the others. 'What I mean is that this track doesn't go all the way to Vindstrop House. See, we don't have the time to make tracks like this one in the woods. Even if we did, we'd never use them enough to keep them open. The forest would just close right over them again.'

'Who made this track, then?' asked Stella.

'Not who, but what,' Leader replied. 'This is a bear track, made by the animals to get to the river. They use it all the time; the trees wouldn't dare close this track up!'

'We have bears in Loulea Vale,' Leith said, trying not to appear ignorant. 'Huge ones. I saw one once.'

'What colour was it?' Leader asked him.

'Ah - brown, I think.' Leith already regretted his comment. It hadn't been much more than a glimpse, really.

'You haven't seen a bear until you've seen the black. Massive, they are. Take your head off with one swipe.' Taller sounded quite proud of them.

'From what I hear, we're not missing much,' Farr said. 'Black bears are mean enough to tear a man apart as soon as look at him. Better off without them.'

The Fodhram looked shocked at these words, but their leader merely laughed. 'Maybe some time we'll teach you better! There's nothing grander in the woods than the bear. In fact, the bear and the woods were made for each other! Remind me to tell you about it around the fire tonight. But for now, we'd better stop wasting breath and get on with our walking. River isn't far now!'

They wound their way up an exposed ridge, out under a bright but cold sun, then topped the ridge and took a moment to catch their breath. They were on a high point in the gently rolling, tree-draped land, and for mile after mile on every side the still, white forest stretched away. A long way behind them the Jawbone Mountains stood, mist-covered and grey. Ahead the horizon and everything in between was made of wood and wore a coat of snow.

Behind me lies everything I know, thought Leith, as he tried to visualise the miles they had travelled. But somewhere to the south lies everything I love, marching to death at the point of a Bhrudwan sword. He stood on tiptoes but could not see any sign of the Westway. Feeling foolish, he shot a quick glance at Stella, whose eyes were on Wira. Well, perhaps the Bhrudwans do not have every¬thing 1 love. Do I realty love her? He watched her as she walked beside the Vinkullen man. It doesn't matter whether 1 do or not. She loves him.

When did it happen? He tried to think back. Somewhere in the mountains, some time after I saw him and his brother argue over his drinking. .. He mentally fingered the knowledge he held as a weapon against Wira. I could tell Stella at any time, he thought, and that would be that. Stella's older brother would be about Wira's age, too. He shuddered when he thought of the Loulea village idiot, unkempt and filthy, smelling of the drink he always seemed to get from somewhere. Everyone avoided him — except Hal, thought Leith with a small pang of guilt. Hal took care of him when things got really bad.

Would he tell Stella? Part of him said yes, he wanted to see her cry, to see her angry at Wira, to comfort her ... but he knew he wouldn't tell her. He knew it would be wrong. She'll find out soon enough anyway, he thought.

And what of Hal? Leith still couldn't accept what he had seen: his gentle, wise and good brother had somehow poisoned a defence¬less man. It seemed to Leith that just as he was trying to put his world back together in one place, it was coming apart at another. Was nothing as it seemed?

He looked up. Lost in thought, he had drifted some way behind the others. He stopped for a moment and adjusted the bale on his back. He had asked for two, like Wira, but the Fodhram had given him only one. Then he sprang forward hurriedly as he saw the others disappear around a bend in the path. His foot caught an exposed tree root and he fell, landing heavily on his side at the very edge of the trail. Helpless because of the weight on his back, he slid from the path and down a slope to the right. At the bottom waited an ice-covered pond, but the ice was not thick enough to support Leith and his bale. Crack! The ice broke open and freezing water enveloped him.

Up ahead the Company walked on, unaware of what had happened behind them. Then Kurr, who had trained himself to look regu¬larly at his companions as a way of assessing their condition, noticed that Leith was missing.

'Hold up a moment!' he cried. 'Where's that fool of a boy?'

The Company pulled up, and eyes were cast anxiously back down the trail. 'He was with us when we stopped last,' Stella offered.

'Follow me!' the Fodhram leader said, taking Wira by the arm. Together they ran back down the trail, retracing their own foot¬prints. A few moments later they came to the scene of Leith's fall and in an instant Leader saw what had happened: the tree root, disturbed snow and the marks of a slide down from the path. He scrambled down the slope, the younger Storrsen following. At the bottom of the slope a bale floated in an icy pool.

'Leith!' Wira shouted. There the youth was, lying on the snow next to the water. Wira tried to lift him: he was soaking wet, and the water was beginning to freeze his clothes to his body.

'Ahhnn ...' Leith tried to speak. The pain seared his senses as his body stiffened into uselessness. He had managed to scramble out of the pool, but had collapsed from the effort.