Spirit and the Skull

by J. M. Hayes

“Raven, The Mother has had you watched for a long time now.” He sighed loudly. “I myself watched you sleep that night. I followed you. Watched you climb that ridge to get away from the lion I scared off. You saw me in the willows. I know you only made one trip to the camp and couldn’t have killed Tall Pine. Down is unlikely to have killed him, either. She’d have had to take him completely by surprise because he was so much stronger. Why are you so sure she did it?”

  “I’m not sure.” I desperately tried to change course. “What if, at the council, I declare someone else did it? Someone who’d be no great loss to our band? Someone who values his own desires over The People’s needs?”

  Bear Man shook his head. “You couldn’t condemn an innocent man. You may think you could to save Down, but I don’t believe it. It won’t matter anyway because I can’t let you lie to Mother.”

  My head sunk to my chest. How could I save Down?

  “What if Down killed Tall Pine but had no choice?” I said. “What if she did it to save herself or someone else?”

  “Mother already told me Tall Pine was murdered in cold blood. That there was no self-defense, no effort to protect another.”

  “I know Tall Pine tried to assault Down at least twice. He’d asked Stone for her as soon as she bled. Tall Pine threatened Down. Said he’d kill Hair on Fire if she didn’t give herself to him willingly.”

  “She told you that?”

  Actually, she had. “I have eyes and ears. I kept watch on her. And on Tall Pine.”

  “You’ve explained why she had a reason to kill Tall Pine. Not why you’re sure she did it.”

  “I’m not sure, Bear Man. I believe she’s innocent, but I’m afraid the band won’t agree.”

  “Tell me, have you ever asked Down if she killed Tall Pine? Did she confess to you?”

  “Of course I asked her. And she didn’t confess because she didn’t do it.”

  “Well,” Bear Man said. “Let’s find Down. We need to know where she’s been today. I want to judge her denial for myself.”

  We didn’t have to find Down. She came around the tent from the direction of camp, carrying something wrapped in a robe.

  “What denial?” she said.

  Bear Man had the good sense to look embarrassed. I just looked stupid.

  “Whatever it is,” she said, “it can wait a moment.”

  Down hugged me with her free hand, obviously feeling much stronger.

  “I’m glad you’re finally awake,” she said. “I thought if I made you a treat, I might tempt you into waking up. I’m sorry there isn’t enough for Bear Man, too.”

  Bear Man didn’t seem to want to look at her. He obviously wasn’t ready to confront her. He fumbled with the moccasins, absentmindedly tying their laces together before he shoved them in his belt.

  Down unwrapped one of the precious wooden bowls we’d carried into this treeless country, casting the robe that covered it aside. She’d found ripe snowberries, probably on a south-facing slope where they’d gotten more sun than the bushes I’d seen. She’d crushed them and mixed them with snow rescued from a north-facing slope. This was a treat our people made for children. I remembered Gentle Breeze making it for me a few times when she was my woman and we were hardly more than children ourselves.

  Down’s pleasure at surprising me this way gleamed in her eyes. This happy girl couldn’t have just killed her father.

  Bear Man ran a massive finger along one side of the bowl, sucked it clean, and made an appreciative sound.

  “No more,” Down scolded. “Poor Raven needs a pleasant surprise for a change.”

  Bear Man nodded. “Especially today.” He looked from her to me. “I’m sorry, but we’re running out of time.” He turned back to Down. “Why did you kill Tall Pine?”

  Her jaw dropped. “What makes you ask that?”

  “Raven just confessed to killing Tall Pine, even though I know he wasn’t there when it happened. He’s saying it to protect you because he thinks the band will believe you’re the killer.”

  “You’re certain Raven couldn’t have done it?” Down seemed relieved. “You’re absolutely sure?”

  Bear Man nodded. “Mother had me watching the place Raven camped that night. He left early because he didn’t sleep well. I followed until he returned after Tall Pine was already dead.”

  Down looked at me. “I’m so glad. I’ve always been a little afraid you did it to protect me, Raven. Tall Pine was killed with that garrote you made, after all.”

  “Bear Man,” I said. “You watched me that night. Did anyone from your band watch our camp? Could someone have seen what happened?”

  He shook his head. “The Mother would have told me.”

  Down put a hand on my arm. “Eat your snowberries before everything melts. You’re going to need your strength and your wits when you face the band tonight. I know you’ll find a way to make the real murderer confess.”

  “But we can’t prove you didn’t do it, and I’m afraid we may have to do that,” I said and noticed Bear Man nod.

  “What about today?” Bear Man asked. “Can anyone tell us where you’ve been?”

  “Gentle Breeze saw me. But that’s been awhile. I’ve been gathering berries and snow. Why should I need to prove that?”

  “And how about these moccasins?” He showed her the ones with the twisted lace. “Are they yours?”

  She shook her head. “What’s going on?”

  “Your father was murdered,” Bear Man said. “Killed near the creek not long ago. We left him there because I thought we needed to clear up this confusion between you and Raven about who killed Tall Pine. Then I hoped there’d be no doubt where you’ve been today.”

  Down’s eyes had gotten very wide. “Who’d kill him and why? Was he robbed?”

  Bear Man and I exchanged glances. We hadn’t checked.

  “You’re right,” I said. “Bear Man and I didn’t search as thoroughly as we should.”

  “Show him to me,” Down said. “I know what he carries.”

  Before I could lead us from the tent, Gentle Breeze’s voice howled from down near the stream. We were too late.

  ***

  Stone’s Woman, Blue Flower, seemed inconsolable. Otherwise, it appeared the band’s ceremonial wailing was more frightened and angry than mournful. We wasted no time getting Stone in the ground. Bear Man and I had touched his body. So we prepared him and performed the necessary rituals. Then we found a spot in a rockfall several hundred paces along the ridge downstream from camp. After we planted him, I purified us and Blue Flower, whose assistance had been necessary.

  When we finished, the men called us to the council. Bear Man and I joined their circle. Down stood behind us among the women. She didn’t need to keep herself away from the men anymore. She’d stopped bleeding after she was wounded. Her time had been briefer than normal, but she was young and Gentle Breeze and I agreed the infection might have interrupted her cycle. When some members of the band objected to Down’s presence, Gentle Breeze confirmed Down no longer bled. I’d purified her since the bleeding. Her presence wasn’t a threat to men or their weapons and tools. At least, not until trickster moon winked her way back to Down’s next cycle.

  Just as we got that settled and people again took their places around the circle, The Mother arrived. Her spies really must keep a close eye on us. She walked up to the men’s circle, told two of them to make room for her, and sat where no woman had dared before. I smiled when no one challenged her. But only for a moment. A very good chance remained that my skull would soon take its place in the cave and begin waiting for Ice Eyes to find it. And Down might be joining me.

  “Well, Willow.” I made no mention of her claim to be The Earth Mother, “I gather your spies told you we’ve had another murder. Did they tell you who committed it?”

  “No. Only that it happened.”
r />   If I could diminish her in front of the band, I thought it would make Down and me a little safer. But Willow didn’t cooperate.

  “My people,” she continued, “didn’t see the murder take place. Not that it matters. I know who the murderer is. But it’s not my duty to cleanse The People or your band. The task is yours, Raven. I’m here to help you concentrate on it.”

  We sat, quiet, for longer than was comfortable. I looked around the circle and discovered most of the men looking as confused as I felt. The reason suddenly struck me. Our band leader ran these meetings and he lay under a pile of rocks, waiting for the scavengers that were sure to visit his grave.

  I stood and stepped into the circle. “We must elect a new headman. Should we do that now, or, since I’m the one Willow tasked with solving the first crime—now this one, too, I suppose—would you like me to direct this gathering?”

  “Yes,” I heard one say. “Let Raven proceed.”

  “The murders first,” another agreed. “They take priority.”

  “Does anyone object?”

  The circle and the women remained silent.

  “All right. You know we’ve just lost our leader.” I explained how he’d taken me above the stream to show me something. Told them he’d fallen, though I left out how he’d tried to kill me. Reported where Stone had been when I left to get help and how Bear Man found him only moments later. Stated how it appeared Stone, though already crippled, had then been struck on the head and moved to the water’s edge, left facedown in the stream to insure he wouldn’t survive.

  “And you remember his friend—our first murder victim. How someone strangled him with a sinew thong in the middle of the night. Two murders. Two terrible wounds to our band that do us great damage and could deeply injure all The People.”

  “Three,” The Mother said. “The boy with the red hair who died trying to kill the mammoth. Though not murdered directly, his death didn’t come by chance.”

  Hair on Fire, too? Who was The Mother accusing now? This addition to the deadly crimes I was to solve shocked me so severely that I nearly spoke Hair on Fire’s name in front of everyone. Not a good time to remind them of my tendency to scorn tribal rules.

  “Hair…,” I blurted. “Er, the boy with red hair was murdered?” I faced Willow. “Why didn’t you say so sooner? You could’ve told me when you asked me to find the first killer.”

  “It’s the same killer, every time. Only one act of vengeance is required for all three.”

  That eliminated most of the people I’d thought might be guilty. It probably eliminated me, since everyone knew where I’d been during the killing of the mammoth. But it left Down. This sudden need to explain away a third death flooded me with anger.

  “If that’s true, then why such a rush now? Why not then?”

  “Because the killer will act again soon. Very soon. Unless you prevent it.”

  “Willow, what are you saying? Do you mean unless we, the band, prevent it, or unless I prevent it? Will the killer act because I name people who might have done these deeds? I thought I knew who killed the first man. I was wrong, and I know that person couldn’t have been responsible for harming the boy with red hair or our headman.”

  “Are you sure?” Willow’s voice had gone deep and cold like the river where we lost her. I felt the chill of her words walk up my spine. Involuntarily, I raised my eyes and scanned the women until I found Down. Yes, I thought. I’m sure.

  “Tell us who you suspected, Raven.” Willow demanded. “Let your people hear your suspicions. Let them weigh the words of the accused and share what they know of these matters. Let the band decide.”

  “No. You told me I must solve this. Let me do it in my own way.” I looked into Down’s eyes, willing her to turn and slip out of the crowd. And then run.

  She met my stare and shook her head, as if she understood what I wanted her to do. Or, as if she couldn’t believe I still had doubts about her.

  I’d have to go through my suspects, one by one. Hope to catch someone in a lie. But before I began, Bear Man spoke.

  “Raven confessed to the murders.” Bear Man must have decided my plan was the best way to save Down.

  The circle turned deadly silent, some staring at him, some at me.

  “Raven only did that to protect me,” Down said. “He thinks I killed them all.”

  In the World of the Dead

  Until that moment, my only encounters with Ice Eyes had been in dreams, while I slept or was dazed after meeting Bear Man. That had allowed me to nurse a tiny element of doubt. Ice Eyes might not be real. My fate might not have been decided. My skull might not spend an eternity guarding the entrance to Willow’s secret cavern. But, even while Down’s proclamation still rang in my ears, I heard Ice Eyes’ voice in my head. And I saw in Willow’s eyes that she knew what was happening to me.

  Bone

  I blinked, and Down, Willow, Bear Man, and all the people of my band were gone. I was back in Ice Eyes’ hut. He held me in his hands and shook me and demanded that I answer him.

  “Where are you? Come back. I need you now,” he said.

  “What…?” I felt confused, lost. How could he summon me across all those years? Had I simply vanished from my place inside the circle only to become the skull in this strange man’s hands?

  He heard my baffled response. He stopped shaking and stared through those peculiar goggles into my empty eye sockets.

  “She continued digging,” he said. Actually, he used her name. The sounds were too peculiar to mean anything to me, but I knew who he meant—Second Woman. The one who’d become so upset about his rutting with Perfect Woman.

  “She discovered a cavern behind where I found you. Another shrine. And then…” this time the name he used referred to Perfect Woman…”discovered what’s back there and now both of them are in the cave, fighting. Someone will get hurt. Or the newly found artifacts might be damaged. I need your help to stop them.”

  I’d have laughed if I weren’t so concerned about getting back to my own time, my own body, and saving the woman I loved from the situation she’d just put herself in. Just…fifteen thousand years ago.

  “How do you expect me to do that?” I asked. “I have no arms, no legs, nothing but this skull. Do you expect me to think peaceful thoughts at them?”

  “I don’t know,” he admitted. “But the other skull told me to come for you. It told me to hurry. That lives depend on it.”

  “The other skull? There’s another skull? And it spoke to you, too?”

  “We’ve got to hurry.” He pushed his way through the hut’s exits. “She said only you could help.”

  “She?” For a terrible moment I feared it must be Down. That the two of us had been found guilty of the murders and punished, our skulls placed near each other in The Mother’s cave. Then I remembered. Willow told me The Mother had also seen a world with a strange new landscape. That she, too, had visited this place without animals.

  “Yes,” I said. “She’s right. Take me to them now.”

  He did.

  ***

  We found the cave empty. Silence filled the cavern behind it. And darkness, though Ice Eyes dug a torch out of his clothing. One that didn’t burn. No flame. Only a cold, brilliant light. It illuminated the chamber wherever Ice Eyes aimed it. It lit the rock I remembered. I could see the narrow crack. And, if I listened with my mind, I could hear the hiss of the mountain’s breath.

  I didn’t need the torch’s help, though. In fact, the dark no longer limited my vision at all. So I already knew what Ice Eyes meant when he whispered, “Oh God!”

  His torch focused on a pair of booted feet extending from behind the far side of the rock. Ice Eyes set me atop the great stone and dropped to his hands and knees. Second Woman lay on the cavern’s floor. He’d left me in a position where I couldn’t have seen her with my eyes because th
e rock was in my way. But I saw well enough with my mind. Ice Eyes called her name. He bent and turned her face up toward his. She had ceased to breathe and I could tell her heart no longer beat. Her face was scratched, but only because it had struck the chamber’s floor when she fell. There were no other marks on her.

  “She…” he used Perfect Woman’s name “…did this,” Ice Eyes said. “And then she must have taken the second skull and the other pendant.”

  “We need that second skull,” I told him. “The woman who inhabited it, she and I once knew great magics. She claimed to be a Goddess. If we can bring her back here, the two of us might be able to restore this woman to life.”

  I wasn’t at all sure that was true. But Willow thought The Mother had revived her. Maybe The Mother could duplicate that feat here.

  “You can’t raise the dead,” Ice Eyes gasped.

  He wheezed the words, short of breath. He was overwhelmed by the loss of his woman, even if he’d considered leaving this one for the other.

  “What are your choices?” I said. “I can’t do it alone, but maybe with the other skull’s help.”

  Ice Eyes was my only means of moving from place to place and I needed to find The Mother’s skull. If she occupied it, maybe we could help this man. And then she might send me home to complete the task she’d set for me there. Or explain why my destiny lay here and my skull must stay forever in this terrible future.

  “I know where Perfect Woman went,” I said. “She has the skull with her. They’re outside the cave. They’ve gone to that place you carried me before. Up the path to the cliff that overlooks your constructions and the snakes carrying your people’s precious fuel.”

  Ice Eyes picked me up and we stumbled along the passage that led to the spot my skull had guarded for dark and empty ages. We passed through the cave I knew so very long ago. As we went, he regained his strength.

  “There,” I pointed with my mind as we emerged into daylight. He turned onto the path that circled up around the mountain and followed it.

  ***

  They were where I knew they’d be, on the ledge above the place where the tundra once stretched far beyond distant horizons. Perfect Woman held a skull under that filthy yellow sky, looking across the gigantic huts and the lifeless landscape.