The Curse of the Viking Grave (18 page)

The wood was green and wet and burned slowly and with no heat—but it was not heat the travelers wanted. Great coils of yellow smoke rose from the smoldering mass and hung low in the still air. One after another the four flung themselves into the smoke, only to be driven out again coughing and spitting and with their eyes streaming. Each time they emerged they were met by a new wave of flies and driven back again.

The hours that followed were sheer agony. The choice was one of being choked to death or of being driven mad by the flies. When deliverance finally came in the form of
a heavy rain followed by a rising easterly wind, all four were at the end of their endurance.

The relief of being free of the flies was so great that they ignored their soaking clothes and the chill of the east wind and lay in exhaustion on the saturated moss until Awasin roused them.

“We must go back to the canoes. If this wind gets too strong it will turn them over and all our gear will get wet.”

“Let it rain! Let it rain!” Jamie cried. “Boy! I never thought I'd live to bless the rain. Okay, Awasin, you're right as usual. Let's go.”

They plodded back across the dark plain to the abandoned canoes. There was no point in trying to move on until the rain let up, so they crawled under the canoes, and there, wet and shivering, they put in the rest of that miserable day. Towards night the rain slackened to a drizzle and they emerged, stiff, swollen and utterly dispirited, to lug the canoes and gear to the little valley. After a long struggle they finally got another fire to burn but it could not be made to boil the tea pail, and so they had to content themselves with a mug of warm water each, instead of tea. Wearily they erected the tent and crawled into it.

Lying all together in one wet huddle, like half-drowned pups, they finally dozed off, but not before Peetyuk had spent several moments mumbling mysteriously in Eskimo.

“What are you up to, Pete?” Jamie asked him.

“Not laugh at me, Jamie. I make old medicine song to Spirit of the Wind. I ask him blow and blow and never stop blow.”

“
Laugh
at you? Listen, Pete. You tell me the words and
I'll
sing too. I'd rather have a hurricane than face those flies again!”

 

Whether the Wind Spirit heeded Peetyuk's song, or whether luck was simply with the travelers, the wind kept blowing all that night and shifted to the north The morning dawned clear and cool and free of flies.

After a hearty breakfast the travelers again took up their loads, and led by Peetyuk, who seemed able to find firm footing in the worst of the muskeg, they continued their portage.

It was not as long a march as they had feared. Some five miles from the head of the wild cataract they came to the borders of a good-sized lake. Here Angeline and Awasin set up camp while the other two went back to pick up the balance of the gear. It was almost dark before they returned, but a big fire and a huge meal of meat roasted on long sticks over the coals was waiting for them.

They snuggled into their robes tired but content. Ahead of them lay several miles of easy paddling on quiet waters. They did not let themselves think about what might lie beyond the lake. The two Crees and the Eskimo boy had known from early childhood that one must live each day without worrying overmuch about what the following day would bring. Jamie was learning that this was an essential attitude for those who had to live the nomad life. He was phlegmatic as he sleepily summed up the trip that night.

“It's sure a crazy country. One day we whip along like an express train and go maybe forty miles. The next we crawl like a sick lemming. Ah well, some day we'll get there…I suppose.”

 

CHAPTER
20

Of Wolves and Sails

O
N THE FOLLOWING DAY, THEIR
third on Big River, the travelers made good progress. A light wind kept the flies at bay and helped the canoes along. Not that they needed any help, for Big River continued to flow downhill at an appalling speed. The voyagers had only to paddle hard enough to keep steerageway on the canoes while the current carried them along sometimes at eight or nine miles an hour.

Rapids were frequent, but the boys and Angeline were becoming hardened to them. During this day they ran twelve major rapids and innumerable smaller ones without mishap.

Being more relaxed now, they had more time to look about them, but there was not much to see. Big River continued to carry them through flat tundra country. Towards evening, the monotony of the barren plains was broken by a range of low hills. Everyone kept a sharp lookout for spruce thickets. The Eskimos had told them they would touch the edge of timberline just before reaching the only really large lake on Big River.

As they crossed a little lake in early evening Peetyuk, in
the bow of the lead canoe, gave a shout and pointed with his paddle. Under the southern slope of a high sand esker they all could see a tiny stand of woods. Excitedly they headed for it and beached the canoes on a fine sand beach a few feet from the “forest.”

It was a pathetic forest, consisting of a few dwarf black spruces that looked more like bushes than trees. These were the tough outriders of the forests to the south. Here on the edge of the open plains they somehow managed to survive. When Jamie chopped one of them down he discovered from the rings in the wood that it was over a hundred years old even though it was no more than six feet tall.

For the first time in weeks the travelers were able to have a really big, hot fire that night. They luxuriated in the joy of leaping flames, while their bedding and clothing hung steaming on surrounding trees.

The heavy dusk which passed for darkness in the summer Barrens had settled over the land, and Peetyuk and Angeline had already crawled into their sleeping bags. Jamie and Awasin were having a last mug of tea when Jamie stiffened, spilled half his tea, and hissed at Awasin.

“Look! Down by the beach!”

Awasin turned his head, and what he saw made the hairs on his neck rise. Not more than thirty feet away sat two immense white wolves with eyes glowing green in reflected firelight.

For a moment both boys were too startled to move.
Then Jamie cautiously reached out his hand for the rifle. Never taking his eyes off the wolves, he dragged the gun slowly toward him, worked the lever to shove a shell into the breech, and began to raise the muzzle.

“Wait, Jamie!” Awasin whispered. “Don't shoot. They mean us no harm. See? They are just curious.”

Somewhat dubiously Jamie lowered the rifle. But as the shock of the encounter began to wear off he realized that Awasin was right. The wolves made no hostile moves but continued to stare with open curiosity at the two boys.

Finally the smaller of the two wolves—the female—got to her feet, shook herself like a dog, and with several slow, tentative wags of her bushy tail advanced a few careful steps toward the fire. She looked very much like an enormous and friendly husky, and the last of Jamie's panic vanished.

“I think they do not see men before,” Awasin whispered. “They do not know enough to be afraid of us. Watch now; I will throw them the bones from supper.”

Rising slowly to his feet, Awasin stepped away from the fire and picked up several rib bones. At his first movement the nearest wolf froze in her tracks, with one leg lifted, while the larger wolf got to his feet and backed off a little way.

Awasin began to make a low rumbling growl, like that of a dog who wishes to make friends with another dog. At the sound the ears of both wolves pricked sharply forward.

Carefully Awasin tossed the bones toward the wolves and then rejoined Jamie by the fire.

“They don't know what to make of us,” Jamie muttered. He could hardly refrain from chuckling, for the wolves looked thoroughly puzzled and kept glancing at one another as if to say, “What should we do next?” Finally the female timidly edged forward until she could snatch one of the bones, whereupon she turned and fled down the beach as if all the devils of hell were after her. Her mate followed close on her heels.

Awasin laughed outright.

“They will have a tale to tell their pups. Their den must be close by—perhaps in the esker. That is a favorite place for wolves to make their homes. Maybe in the morning we will have time to look.”

In the morning Jamie told Peetyuk and Angeline about the visitors, and Peetyuk grew most excited.

“
Amow
, the wolf, he my spirit-friend. All Eskimos have some kind animal for spirit-friend. Maybe wolf come visit me and I asleep. They think I poor kind of friend. I go look for house and tell I sorry.” And with that he scrambled to his feet and went loping up the steep side of the esker.

Half an hour later, when the rest of the party had broken camp and was ready to leave, Peetyuk reappeared. He was grinning broadly and in his arms was a gray bundle of fur that squirmed to be put down.

It was a wolf pup, and when Peetyuk put it on the ground the roly-poly beast scampered off on its short legs to sniff at Awasin's feet. It was not the slightest bit afraid.

“You say hello to little
amow
,” Peetyuk told his companions. “He not stay long. Must go back to house. See? Old wolf watch.” He pointed to the crest of the esker where
both adult wolves stood, nervously twitching their tails.

“My gosh! You're taking an awful risk, Pete,” Jamie exclaimed. “Even a dog will go for you if you touch her young.”

“No fear, Jamie. Wolf and me all friends. They know we not hurt. Often Eskimo boy play with wolf pup at their houses.”

“He is so nice I would like to keep him,” Angeline said, getting down on her knees to fondle the pup's ears.

“He more better stay in own country,” Peetyuk told her gently. “I take back now. You wait, I not gone long.”

Picking up the pup, which promptly began to chew at one of his ears, Peetyuk turned and began to climb the ridge. To Jamie's amazement and alarm the wolves did not back away but waited until Peetyuk passed not more than two yards from them. Then they trotted close behind the Eskimo.

“I wouldn't have believed that if I hadn't seen it,” Jamie said in awe-struck tones. “If Pete can charm wolves like that, he could charm any kind of wild animal there is.”

Awasin grinned. “That is true, but I think he charms wild Cree girls best of all.”

 

Everyone was in a good mood as they all set off that morning. Jamie even risked making a small joke on the subject of curses, which had been a taboo topic between him and Peetyuk. As the canoes rounded a point after running a short rapid, he remarked amiably:

“Looks like our luck has changed, Pete. Unless you
count the flies, we seem to have got out of range of old Elaitutna's bad medicine.”

But this was a subject that Peetyuk was still not prepared to take lightly.

“We not come to Churchill yet,” he said shortly. “Better you keep eyes open and mouth shut.”

A sharp lookout was certainly essential on Big River, which was becoming more and more like a slalom slope. Rapid succeeded rapid all day long and it was seldom that the youngsters could relax for more than a few moments at a time. But they were becoming increasingly skillful and they were making such good time that instead of camping
early they continued to run downstream until almost dusk. Jamie and Peetyuk were in the lead as they swung around a sharp bend and entered a steep, roaring chute at a point where the river narrowed. The rapid was a bad one, and the travelers would normally have halted to reconnoiter before attempting to run it, but they were full of confidence and Jamie elected to head straight into it.

He and Peetyuk had their hands full, for there was a ledge right across the river halfway down where a huge curling backwave reared up as a solid wall of water. Their canoe shot through this wall without mishap, although both boys were drenched. There was a deep pool below it,
and here the two boys held the canoe in check while they waited for Awasin and Angeline, whose canoe was not far behind.

But as he approached the wall of white water, Awasin suddenly changed course, attempting to swerve to the left where the wall looked a little less fearsome. Before Angeline could grasp what her brother's intentions were, the canoe had swung sideways. An instant later it was out of control and was flung up on the backwave broadside-to.

While Jamie and Peetyuk watched in helpless horror the canoe vanished in the boiling spume. Split seconds later it emerged below the ledge, but upside down and barely showing above the surface. To the watchers' inexpressible relief they saw that both Angeline and Awasin were clinging to the wreck.

It was only a matter of moments for Jamie and Peetyuk to reach the waterlogged canoe, grab it by the bow, and haul it to the shore of the eddy pool where Awasin and Angeline struggled ashore, gasping for breath and looking like drowned rats. Then all four grabbed the swamped canoe and hauled it high and dry.

Angeline and Awasin were nearly paralyzed with cold. Peetyuk rushed to get a fire going, using a supply of dry wood brought with them from the previous campsite. Meanwhile Jamie hastily unrolled his and Peetyuk's bedding so that the boy and girl were able to shed their soaking clothes and cover themselves with something dry and warm.

Then Jamie and Peetyuk turned to the task of rescuing
the contents of the swamped canoe. Sleeping robes and clothing were spread out to dry on paddles propped up beside the fire. The precious bundle of Viking relics was examined and it was with great relief the boys found it had proved watertight and had suffered no damage. The canoe itself had a ten-inch gash along one side, but this was something which could easily be repaired with a strip of birch bark and some melted resin. All in all it appeared that the youngsters had come off lightly from what might well have been a fatal accident.

Relief at their narrow escape made everyone a little light-headed. Awasin was even trying to make a joke about his foolishness in trying to alter course when Peetyuk interrupted him.

“I not see rifle anywhere,” he said quietly.

There was a moment of stunned silence.

“It was in the bottom of the canoe,” Awasin cried in a stricken tone of voice. “I untied it when I thought I saw some caribou on the riverbank ahead of us…and I forgot to lash it down again…”

Full realization of what the loss of the rifle might mean was slow in coming. It was Angeline who finally put it into words.

“Without the rifle we can get no more meat. And we have so little food with us that we
must
have meat!”

Peetyuk nodded his head gloomily.

“If we not able shoot deer, soon we starve. Only food left in grub-box for two, three day.”

“Look,” Jamie said desperately, “that pool below the
rapid can't be very deep. And the water's clear as glass. Come on, Pete! It's still light enough to see. Maybe we can spot the rifle and dredge it up somehow.”

Quickly the two boys shoved off in the undamaged canoe and paddled to the center of the pool, directly below the backwave. Jamie leaned over, staring into the water and probing with his paddle.

“It's no good,” he said at last. “I can't see bottom, and I can't reach it with the paddle. Pete! Tie the hatchet on the end of the mooring line and drop it overboard.”

Peetyuk lowered the hatchet over the side and when it hit bottom he hauled back the line, measuring it in arm's lengths as he did so.

His face was bleak.

“It more than ten feet deep, Jamie. I think we never find rifle down there.”

Gloomily they paddled back to shore and told the others what they had discovered. The situation seemed hopeless. Neither Awasin nor Peetyuk could swim well enough to risk themselves on the surface of the rapid current, let alone underneath it at a depth of ten feet. And although Jamie was a strong swimmer he was not able to dive, for he had suffered from mastoiditis as a child and pressure on his eardrums gave him agonizing pain. Things looked very black indeed until Angeline spoke.