Total pages in book: 81
Estimated words: 75388 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 377(@200wpm)___ 302(@250wpm)___ 251(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75388 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 377(@200wpm)___ 302(@250wpm)___ 251(@300wpm)
I wish he’d hold my hand again, but I suppose it’s my own fault that he won’t. Instead, he stalks along, avoiding anything that looks like a path. Occasionally he’ll squat down next to a set of footprints and then will indicate I should join him. When I do, he tells me about what creature passed through, how long ago, and anything else he can tell me. Some marks are crisp, which he says belong to snow-cats that lift their paws with every step. Others are more of a smear through the snow, which means a creature is dragging its belly. He points out each one and explains patiently, and when I’ve absorbed everything, he’s off again, power-walking to the next ridge.
And I have no choice but to follow.
Despite it being a little too athletic for me to handle, I’m enjoying the ‘hunting.’ The day is nice, and even though it’s cold, there’s a lot to see and I feel like I’m doing something useful. I didn’t realize how much my uselessness was bothering me until now. I guess I’m worried that when winter comes, no one’s going to want a fat, unmated human around eating all their food. If I can find my own, I can survive on my own. I won’t be dependent on anyone.
We head toward a sheer gray cliff, and as we approach, Hassen points at something. “Do you see that?”
I push my sweaty hair off my brow before it crystallizes and freezes there, and scan the snow. “What am I looking for?”
“The cave. It is a hunter cave. The cliffs have small caves in them, and there are many hunter caves set up. You should always be on the lookout for one in case you need supplies or a place to rest.”
“And do you know where all of them are?”
He nods. “I have visited them all many times. Hunters spend much of their time out in the wild.”
“It’s not all that wild out here, is it? We’re still pretty close to the home cave, aren’t we?” A few hours’ walk, maybe, but to these guys, that’s nothing.
Hassen glances at me. “It is an easy walk today, when the weather is good. On a stormy day? When the snow flies from the skies, even a short trip can be a dangerous one.”
He has a point. “So are we going in?”
“We are. We will check if it needs to be resupplied, and get you gloves.”
“All righty then. Lead the way.” I could use a break and a chance to rest my feet, though I would never tell him that. Hassen hasn’t been treating me like an incompetent fat chick and I’ll be forever grateful. Thinking about my sister and the fact that she’s out on a trip without me still stings.
When we arrive at the cave, I see there’s a weather-beaten privacy screen pushed in front of the door. “Should we not go in? Is someone here?”
He pushes the screen aside, answering that question. “A screen does not matter in the wild. It is only in the tribal cave.”
“When someone might walk in on you boning your man? Gotcha.” I guess if you have a walk-in out in the wild, it can’t really be unwelcome, because it’s all about survival.
Hassen grunts acknowledgment of my words and pushes the screen aside, then waits. I assume he’s waiting for me, so I move forward to go inside and he plants a hand over my chest, stopping me. Then he jerks his hand away as if scalded, realizing just what he was clutching. “Do not go in yet.”
“No? Is someone in there after all?”
He shakes his head and squats near the entrance, so I do the same, hunching down next to him. “You must check for predators before entering a dark cave, Mah-dee. Use your senses.”
Oh. Damn it. I hate that he’s right, and I hate that it didn’t even occur to me to check. Back on Earth, I wouldn’t trip into a dark cave without checking my surroundings. It shouldn’t be any different here. It just reminds me how pathetic my survival skills actually are. “So how do we check? I’m guessing that throwing a burning torch in probably isn’t the most practical of responses.”
His mouth crooks up on one side as he glances over at me. “Do you have a burning torch on you?”
“Nope, or else it’d probably already be in the cave.”
He chuckles, and the sound makes my insides squeeze. I feel like it’s rare that I hear him laugh, and when I do it’s…nice. Real nice. He should laugh more often. “Then we cannot send in a burning torch,” he tells me. “What do you do, then?”
What do I do? Other than have many regrets over the fact that he doesn’t want to fool around just for fun? I chew on my lip, trying to concentrate. “I…don’t hear anything?”