“Don’t get so testy,” Rose said, trying to calm him down. “Beron is our friend and is here to help.”
“Help us how? Supply us with another cave to live in?” Murdock’s sarcasm was getting surly.
“Share!” Beron flashed. Murdock knew that it wasn’t a request and flashed his agreement.
#
Rose watched as Murdock dropped as if struck dead. She knew Beron was angry with Murdock over his attitude, and she was afraid of what might be going on between the two. Beron looked like a statue. She could detect no movement or breathing from the huge bear. Rose checked Murdock as well. He was breathing deeply, as if he was asleep, but she knew he wasn’t.
Rose decided that her time would best be spent making camp here while waiting for Beron and Murdock to work out their issues, so she started a fire and ate some fish. Not being invited into the sharing was new for her. Previously, she had always been invited. Her exclusion this time meant that she was helpless to intervene in any way; she could do nothing but wait.
Rose decided to inspect the bridge more closely before it got too dark to see. She walked around the approach, feeling the deck and abutment, or as much as she could from the level of the deck. It fascinated her that the bridge was clear; it had to be crystalline.
Then, as the sun descended, the low-angle rays made the bridge visible. It appeared to be a closed spandrel deck arch, similar to pictures she had seen of old Roman bridges — except it wasn’t built. It looked to have formed naturally, through whatever means. The bridge lit up with a prismatic display in the waning light. How magnificent, she thought, “and very beautiful. She turned to say something to Murdock, but he was still in the sharing with Beron. She turned back just in time to see the bridge disappear. It was only visible for a few minutes, but its image was seared into her memory.
#
Murdock started to stir not long after sun-down. “How long was I out?” he asked groggily.
“A few hours, I think,” Rose said. “Hungry?”
“A little,” Murdock said. “I’m more thirsty than hungry.”
“This is all the fish we have left,” Rose said, handing him the fish and the water skin.
“Well, then you should have the fish,” Murdock said, trying to hand it back.
“I’ve eaten,” she told him. “I did get to see the bridge.”
“Really?” he asked around a mouthful.
“It was absolutely gorgeous,” she exclaimed.
“When did you see it?” Murdock asked.
“Just before the sun went down,” Rose said.
“Should be able to see it again around sun-up,” Murdock said. “The light’s about the same first thing in the morning and just before sunset.” Murdock finished the fish and took a big drink of water.
“Where did Beron go?” Rose asked, looking around for the big bear.
“He was hungry and went to get a fish from the river,” Murdock said. Then he looked at her, startled. “You didn’t know where he was?”
“No, why would I?” she said. “He doesn’t tell me things like that. He only talks to me when it’s something you need to know.”
“Oh. I’m sorry, Rose,” Murdock said with contrition. “I just found out that I’m jealous of your abilities.”
“You were?” she asked. “Why would you be?”
“I liked being the only one to communicate with the Oomah,” Murdock said. Rose couldn’t see him shrug but could hear it in his voice. “I was very frustrated with my lack of ability and forgot that we’re a team.”
“Beron told you that?” Rose asked, stirring the fire with a stick.
“You bet he did,” Murdock told her. “He set me straight on a lot of things. I’m still processing most of it, but that did come out forcefully.”
“What did he set you straight on?” Rose asked.
“I got told I was very arrogant,” Murdock said. “I didn’t know I was, but he told me I was when I assumed that the Oomah built anything for us.”
“Like our cave?” she asked.
“Yes. As it turns out, that cave has been used by the Oomah for several hundred generations,” Murdock told her. “So, I got slapped down about that, too. He wasn’t angry. He was more like a concerned parent disciplining a young child who doesn’t know any better. That alone will really put you in your place, if you know what I mean.”
“What about the bridge?” Rose asked.
“We humans are free to use it, but not to deface or destroy it,” Murdock said. “It’s one of the things the Oomah value. Like art.”
“I can see why,” Rose said.
“He did agree with me about sealing the entrance to the cave, but he said there’s another way in, just in case we need to use the cave again,” Murdock said.
“Can I ask why I wasn’t invited?” Rose said.
“I have no idea,” Murdock said. “I think it has to do with him chastising me, and he didn’t want to do it in front of a female or in front of my mate. I still get the difference confused, though.”
“Can I ask what else you discussed?” Rose asked.
“You can ask,” Murdock said. “I’m not finished thinking about it all yet. So, I have no idea what it all means. You can either wait until tomorrow sometime, or you can ask Beron.”
Then Murdock got comfortable. “I’m tired, and we do need to get an early start in the morning.”
“Would you rather sleep alone?” Rose asked quietly.
“Why would I want to do that?” Murdock asked, surprised. “I would like you to be clear on one thing. My issues deal with me, not you. I am very content with you!”
“Your issues aren’t just yours. They’re mine, too,” Rose said as she kissed him and snuggled next to him. “Don’t we need a guard for the night?”
“Not really,” he said. “I doubt the others know where we are, and we have no fresh game. I think we’ll be okay for tonight.”
“Okay, I’ll trust you,” she said as she lay down and closed her eyes.
Murdock closed his eyes as well, but did not sleep soundly. His instincts were such that he was never totally relaxed and never slept soundly as long as he was exposed.
The next morning, as Rose and Murdock warmed themselves by the fire, the sun rose high enough to light up the bridge. Neither Rose nor Murdock said anything. They enjoyed the light playing over the surface of the crystalline bridge, as well as all the colors.
When the bridge was once more invisible, they put the fire out and packed their equipment onto the travois. Rose led, dragging the butt end of a spear along the edge of the bridge to indicate the edge to Murdock. Murdock had never been afraid of heights, but this crossing disconcerted him. He felt as if he were stepping off into nothing, instead of onto the solid surface of the bridge deck.
Both picked up their pace as they proceeded across the bridge. By the halfway point, both were sweating and close to running; neither wanted to stop to rest. After they were both across and on firm ground that they couldn’t see through, they collapsed, out of breath.
“Glad that’s over,” Rose finally said with relief, still breathing heavily.
“It’s only the first time crossing,” Murdock corrected breathlessly. “If this is the only way to the other side, we’ll have to get used to it. That was the longest two hundred yards I’ve crossed in a long time!”
“Did you look down in the middle?” Rose asked. Murdock nodded. “It would be quite a fall if you went over the edge!”
“It isn’t the fall,” Murdock joked. “It’s the sudden stop at the bottom!” Both laughed nervously.
A few hours later, a stream crossed their path. Inspecting it, Murdock found that the stream was at the bottom of a deep fissure, but the fissure was only thirty or forty feet wide.
“Well, that tells me that we can’t go any farther that way,” Rose said as she looked over the edge of the fissure.
“Why?” Murdock asked. “It looks like the deer jump it, and probably the wolves as w
ell.” Murdock bent down to show her the tracks leading to the edge.
“We can’t jump that,” Rose complained. “Not with the cart!”
“I know, but a quick bridge wouldn’t be out of the question,” Murdock explained.
“I don’t know about you, but I’m getting hungry,” Rose said. “Do we really want to take the time to build a bridge?”
“If the deer are on this side,” Murdock began, “we just wait and get one when they cross again. Same thing if they are on the other side. It looks like they cross here a lot.”
As he looked more closely, he noticed that the difference in ground level to stream level reduced the farther up the stream he looked. He also saw what looked to be a natural salmon ladder in the stream. He started pulling the cart upstream and away from the river. Rose followed without speaking.
Within an hour, they came to a rock wall. The water feeding the stream tumbled over the rock and fell about one hundred feet in a deafening roar. A natural pool lay at the foot of the falls; the pool’s surface was only five or six feet lower than the surrounding terrain. Murdock dropped the travois poles and inspected the pool. He saw all kinds of tracks on both sides of the forty-foot-diameter pool, but none went up to the edge of the water. He saw more than a couple bear tracks as well. While still inspecting the tracks, Murdock jumped over the stream easily, although it was twenty feet wide downstream from the pool.
#
Rose, dumbfounded, watched him jump. “What was that?” she flashed to Murdock. She doubted he could have heard her over the roar of the water.
“What was what?” Murdock flashed back without looking up.
“You and I definitely need to talk.” Rose flashed to Murdock.
“Sure, but not now,” Murdock said. His attention remained on the different tracks all around the pool and surrounding area.
Rose bent down at the edge of the pool to take a drink.
“I wouldn’t do that there,” Murdock flashed. “If you must, move down toward the pool outlet.” Murdock pointed.
Rose dutifully moved downstream. After drinking the cold water, she saw Murdock searching all around the rock wall. He looked like a hunting dog on a scent, casting back and forth. After a while, he jumped back across the stream as easily as he had before.
“What are you looking for?” Rose flashed.
#
“I don’t know,” Murdock answered absentmindedly. “Something doesn’t add up. No tracks go to the pool. All the tracks indicate crossing by the outlet of the pool. It’s all very odd.”
“You have any theories?” Rose flashed after checking all the tracks she could see. She saw no tracks where she had intended to drink.
“I prefer facts,” Murdock flashed. “An unproven theory can get you killed. So, when in doubt, do what the animals do. Unless, of course, you see a bunch of dead animals or you can’t do what they do.”
“Why were you looking at the rock wall?” Rose flashed.
“Knowing what I do about our mutual friends,” Murdock explained, “I thought there might be a cave entrance that is not readily apparent.”
“I take it you found nothing?”
“Nothing.” Murdock looked into the water at the edge of the stream. He saw some nice-sized fish, so he retrieved his spear and speared both. Rose started a fire, and they sat enjoying the fish and the scenery.
“What do you want to do?” Murdock flashed to Rose after they had finished eating. “Do we continue downriver, or do we go back and see what we can find the other way?”
“Can we get the cart on the other side of this stream?” Rose flashed.
“We should be able to without too much trouble, as long as we do so at the outlet of the pool,” Murdock flashed back, “because it’s the shallowest and the narrowest part.”
“If it were entirely up to me, I’d say go farther downriver,” Rose flashed. “The river will make a good barrier for some time, and we would be closer to the pod.”
“Do you have any other reasons?” Murdock flashed.
She thought about it. “I’d say we need to keep the crystal bridge a secret escape route,” she flashed finally.
Murdock nodded. “I don’t like having only one way out of a place,” he agreed.
With some difficulty, they crossed the stream with the cart and turned back toward the river.
“Wait a minute!” Rose said at the river. “Can you jump across the stream here?”
Murdock looked at the other bank, measuring. “If I had to, probably,” he finally told Rose and started to proceed downriver. Rose grabbed his arm.
“I want to see you do it,” Rose insisted.
“And if I don’t make it?” Murdock asked warily.
“Oh, I’m quite sure you will,” Rose said. “I think there are a lot of things about yourself that you haven’t told me!”
“Are you serious about me jumping that fissure?” Murdock asked, indicating the stream.
“I am serious about your telling me what’s going on,” Rose said firmly. “You do have some explaining to do. We’re out here alone, so you have no reason not to.”
“Those are the issues I still have to work out,” Murdock said calmly. He indicated their intended direction. “Do we proceed?”
“I’m not going to let this go, Kevin,” Rose warned him. “I’ll persist until you tell me what’s going on!”
“The next time Beron and I have a sharing, I’ll insist that you be included,” Murdock promised in an undertone. “Maybe you can help explain it all to me, because I’m at a loss to explain any of it.”
Rose fumed as they walked downriver, but she kept her thoughts to herself.
18
The progress from the stream downriver was mostly downhill. Because he was pulling the nearly empty cart, Murdock had an easier time of it. Rose, who was some distance ahead, led the way as she looked for game. Because they were not in a hurry, it took them some time to go more than a few miles. As he progressed downriver, Murdock kept an eye on the river and the bank. Every so often, he dropped the cart to look at the bank. The water level was increasing, but the river appeared to cut through solid rock. He saw no obvious way down to the water yet. The water looks to be kept in by the rock, he thought. It reminds me of what a moat would look like.
He and Rose had been walking in the forest since they left the crystal bridge, but it wasn’t all thick with trees. Some areas looked more like small meadows. When he saw that the trees were thinning a bit, he decided to check the river bank. The water was significantly closer and was composed of more dirt.
“Hold up a minute, Rose,” Murdock flashed. He continued on until he was beside his wife. “I want to get a better look at the surroundings.”
“What’s up?” she asked after he was close enough.
“I want to check out the area,” Murdock said softly, “and I want you to come with me.” Rose nodded.
Murdock cast around the area slowly. Rose watched him sniff the air and then study the ground. They hadn’t been following a game trail, but they weren’t far off of one. Murdock periodically picked up a tuft of hair, poked around some droppings with a stick, checked the bark of trees, and meandered, looking at the tops of the trees. Rose didn’t know the specifics of what he was doing, but she knew enough to know that he was reading the area.
“Okay, we can go on a little farther,” Murdock said finally.
“What are you looking for?” Rose asked in a soft voice.
“This is close,” Murdock told her. “I want to build our house in the trees, but I’d like to be close to the river and lots of grass.”
Rose nodded. “I take it you’ve done this before?” she asked.
“Not really,” he said. “I have read about it, and I know the building techniques required, though.”
“Well, then, we’ll just figure it out as we go,” Rose said with a shrug.
After traveling a bit longer, Rose called a halt.
“I think we’re home,” she f
lashed. She waited patiently for Murdock to catch up.
Murdock dropped the cart and walked along the river to Rose. He took more than a passing interest in the river bank as he walked. Rose stood on a small knoll, and as he stepped up beside her, he saw that the trees were gone; in front of him lay a huge grassy meadow.
“Is this what you had in mind?” Rose asked quietly after he had taken in the view.
“I don’t think we’re going to find better,” he told her.
“What were you looking at by the river?” Rose asked.
“I wanted to be in the middle part of the river,” Murdock said. “Upriver, the water was too far down and ran too swiftly. Here, the bed is four or five feet down and the water flow is gentle.” They both stood for a few minutes taking it all in. “I think this will work nicely,” he said quietly to Rose.
Murdock began by exploring the immediate area. He cast about looking at all the animal signs, checking the tree bark, looking up at the tops of the trees. He ended his explorations at the river. He found a rather large, clear pool that gave them easy access to the ice-cold water. Not far downriver was a spot that gave him a perfect view of the water. He saw some large fish and speared one. When he returned to Rose, he handed her the fish, which she began to cook on the fire. Murdock looked around with a critical eye.
“I think the house should be back that way,” he said quietly, indicating a spot just inside a heavier stand of trees farther away from the river. “The ground is a little higher over there, and I want to use the trees to act as a windbreak and to help hide the house.” He talked out loud more to himself than to Rose.
“Are there enough trees to build a house?” Rose asked.
“More than enough,” he told her.
“How are you going to split it all into boards?” Rose asked.
“I’m not,” he said. “The most simple to build and keep warm is a log house.”
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen one,” Rose said, “except in books.”
“I’ve lived in them most of my life,” Murdock explained. “They’re very warm in the coldest winter and very sturdy against heavy winds.”
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