Sisters of the Wolf

by Patricia Miller-Schroeder

  “Tell him he’s ugly and stupid and I hate him.” Shinoni swallows hard. “He’s too stupid to learn Kula hunting magic.”

  “He’ll kill us both if I tell him that,” Keena says. She speaks to Haken, who grunts impatiently. “I told him you’re trying to remember but you’re weak and need food.” Keena’s lips twitch in a grin. “After all, you’re scrawny and don’t have the strength of a Krag.”

  The hunters grumble and move back, watching Shinoni warily. The woman brings her a slice of deer haunch from the fire. She hasn’t realized how hungry she is until now. She wolfs down the hot, dripping meat.

  “Haken’s losing patience.” Keena nudges her. “You’d better tell him what you know.”

  Suddenly, all around her, Shinoni hears rustling, whining, sighing, moaning. Her body vibrates with the sounds. The girl, Keena, doesn’t seem to hear it. None of the Strange Ones do. Are the animal spirits talking to her? Are they guiding her — or tricking her? Shinoni takes a deep breath, and the spirit messengers fade away. But now she knows what she must do.

  “Tell him there’s a special cave where my father painted pictures of the animals we hunt,” Shinoni says. “That’s where he must go to get the hunting magic.” She hesitates. “Spirits dwell there, and they won’t let him enter unless he carries my father’s amulet.” Is she betraying her people?

  Keena tells Haken, and he shouts to his hunters, gesturing at Shinoni. The men watch her suspiciously. Haken growls orders to Keena, who turns back to Shinoni. “He wants to know where this cave is and what he has to do.”

  “It’s on a rock ledge above my people’s camp, the camp he destroyed.” Shinoni scowls at Haken through eyelids half-closed with revulsion. “It’s hidden by bushes, but the amulet will lead him. He must enter alone or the spirits will be angry.” She watches Haken’s reaction as Keena translates.

  “He says he’s not afraid of spirits.” Keena grins slightly. “But I think he’s afraid.”

  “There’s a special rock in the cave that looks like a deer,” Shinoni continues. “He must touch it with the amulet.”

  Keena speaks to Haken, who nods and grunts.

  “He must bring this rock back to his camp and throw it into his fire,” Shinoni says. “Only then will the spirits help him.” She pauses, looking around the circle of hostile faces. “If he doesn’t do exactly as I say, the spirits won’t help him. They’ll destroy him and his men.”

  Keena tells this to Haken, and he leaps over to Shinoni. Thrusting his face close to hers, he snarls a threat that Keena translates. “He says if the hunting magic doesn’t work, they’ll throw you into the fire.”

  14

  NEANDERTHAL (KRAG)

  HAKEN’S CAMP

  SHINONI WAKES IN THE EARLY MORNING, stiff, shivering, and alone on the cold rock floor. Her hands, retied last night, are now so numb she can hardly feel them. The bearskin partially covers the opening, but she can see Haken and his hunters walking toward the forest on their quest to find her people’s hunting magic.

  “I hope the spirits keep you in the cave forever,” she whispers.

  Shinoni desperately searches for some means of escape. There’s only that one entrance, with Strange Ones on the other side. If she’s still here when Haken returns, she’ll certainly die.

  Shinoni begins to wiggle the thong around her waist, slowly bringing her pouch closer to her tied hands. She works it open, grasping her father’s gift, the flint-blade knife, between her numb fingers. It’s lucky the Strange Ones didn’t have enough sense to see what a Kula girl carries in her pouch, she thinks.

  Shinoni rubs the sharp blade against the sinew holding her wrists. “Ow—” She bites off the cry as blood drips from her thumb, sliced by the knife. No matter. She keeps hacking at the bonds until the tough sinew finally gives way and her hands are free.

  She begins to slice through the bonds on her ankles, quickening her work as footsteps clatter on the loose stones by the entrance. The same Strange One girl who had spoken to her at Haken’s fire enters the cave carrying a drinking pouch. Better not to trust her. Shinoni backs up against the rock wall, pretending her hands are still tied.

  The girl shrugs. “You can’t fool me, Kula girl. I see you’ve freed yourself. You’re bleeding.” She pulls the bearskin over the entrance and offers the pouch to Shinoni.

  Shinoni hesitates. She takes the bag and pours water on her bloody thumb, then wipes it on her leggings before drinking thirstily. She watches the Strange One carefully. This girl looks more like a bear than a person, with her short, squat body and muscular arms. Her head is large, with a brow ridge above her green eyes and a broad nose. Shinoni wants to touch her pale skin to see if it feels cold, like ice. The girl’s hair is the colour of fire, as is the hair of that hideous monster, Haken.

  Shinoni catches her breath and stops drinking. The girl helped her, but she’s still a Strange One.

  Keena takes back the water bag. This Kula girl has the same brown skin and dark hair and eyes as Sabra. She has the same gangly arms and legs, and she’s reckless like him, too. The girl would likely be dead now if Keena hadn’t been there to help her last night. Still, she was brave standing up to Haken the way she did. But she’s not Krag, so she might not be trustworthy.

  “You lied to them, didn’t you?” Keena asks.

  The Kula girl hesitates. “There’s hunting magic there, but it won’t help them.”

  “They’ll kill you, then,” Keena says. “It’s better than living as their captive, anyway.”

  “No, Krag, they won’t kill me, or keep me captive. I’m leaving.” The girl moves toward the entrance, but Keena blocks her way.

  “There are women working outside. Why shouldn’t I sound the alarm?” Keena takes a step toward the entrance while the girl watches helplessly. Keena stares back at her and makes a decision. “All right. I’ll distract them so we can crawl down the far side. It’s steeper but hidden.”

  “We?” the Kula girl stammers. “You’re a Krag. Why do you want to leave your people?”

  “These aren’t my people.” Keena’s face clouds and she stamps her foot. “Haken took me from my people in the high country.” She sits down in front of the entrance, blocking the way out. “I go with you, or you don’t leave.”

  The Kula girl sits on a rock across from Keena and studies her warily. “How is it you speak my language?”

  “A Kula hunter spent last snow time at my family’s hearth.” Keena frowns. “He was a know-it-all like you.”

  “How do I know I can trust you? You’re a Strange One.” The Kula returns the frown.

  “My people are Krags, not Strange Ones,” Keena growls. How rude and snotty this Kula girl is. “You’re strange — and you need me.” She stands and crosses her arms. “I don’t like Kulas much, but I hate Haken.”

  “Well, come if you must, but don’t slow me down,” the Kula girl snaps. “The hunters of my band were away searching for shelter when Haken attacked. Maybe I can find them.” She chokes back tears. “Perhaps some of the women and children survived and are hiding in the forest. Maybe my grandmother’s with them.”

  “Slow you down?” Keena ignores the tears and bristles. “My name’s Keena, swift mountain bird. My father’s Atuk, a great Krag leader, far greater than Haken.”

  “I’m Shinoni. My father, Shazur, is a mighty shaman of the Kula Eagle Clan.” The Kula wipes away her tears, her lips quivering. She sits up straighter and holds her chin high. “My grandmother, Reza, is a powerful healer. One day I’ll lead my people, too.” The girl gets up and rushes toward the entrance.

  “Wait.” Keena stands in her way. “Sit and look like you’re still tied. I’ll distract the women, but be ready to come quickly when I call. And don’t you slow me down, Kula.”

  Keena walks out of the cave. A woman scraping a large bison hide calls to her. “Where’ve you been, Keena?” She holds out the scraper. “I’ve work for you.”

  Keena walks past her. “I have to get more water
for the prisoner. She’s very weak.”

  “That Kula brat? Let her be. She can drink from the puddles on the floor.”

  “She’s weak,” Keena says. “What’ll Haken do if she dies before he returns?”

  “Be quick, then. I’ve lots of work for you.” The woman frowns and waves Keena on.

  Keena scrambles down the steep slope and walks briskly toward the nearby stream before. She enters a stand of willow trees, out of the women’s sight. As the branches close silently behind her, Keena splashes mud on herself, rips her tunic, and messes her hair. She waits a few heartbeats, then bursts wild-eyed out of the bushes.

  Caw, caw. Crows explode into the air, their warning cries ringing as Keena runs toward the camp, screaming. “Kulas! They’re hunting Krags. Run for the forest. Hurry! The Kulas will eat your children.”

  The Krag women shout in panic. “Iii-yeee!” They scatter, terrified, grabbing their children as they flee toward the safety of the forest.

  Keena quickly climbs to the cave mouth. “Kula, move,” she calls.

  Shinoni appears at the entrance. Both girls drop to their knees and crawl along the rock face, hidden by boulders. Keena leads the way, and soon they reach a steep side trail behind tall bushes. They slip and slide down the path. Loose shale crumbles under their feet, making the going treacherous.

  “Hurry! I told them your people were attacking,” Keena says. “They’ll soon discover there aren’t any Kula hunters.”

  Shinoni pushes her aching legs to go faster. Her secret forays into the shaman’s cave have given her a great deal of practice scrambling on slippery slopes, but who would think that this squat Krag girl could move so fast and be so sure-footed? She pauses momentarily to catch her breath. “What’ll they do when they find we’re gone?”

  “You’re not too bright,” Keena says. “What do you think they’ll do?”

  “They’re women. Will they come after us? Kula women wouldn’t.”

  “I don’t know. There aren’t many children in the band to slow them.” She pauses for breath. “But Haken will come after us.”

  “We’ve got a good head start.” Shinoni’s sides heave with exertion.

  “You don’t know how powerful an enemy Haken can be.” Keena gulps. “We’ll be safer facing the forest beasts than him.”

  They slide and stumble on the slick shale, splash through wet clinging fingers of marsh grass, then reach the trees. As the girls enter the shelter of the forest, an angry chorus of shouts from the Krag women follows them. The din disappears as they move into the green half-light world where both sight and sound are muted.

  Shinoni and Keena fall into each other’s arms, gasping with relief, then push away when they realize what they’re doing.

  “We’re free. We did it. We’ve outwitted the Krags,” Shinoni crows triumphantly.

  “Some Krags, Kula girl. We’ve outwitted some Krags,” Keena comments with a half smile.

  Shinoni points at the seemingly endless stands of conifers intertwined with thickets of poplar, birch, and willow, her eyes wide. “Now all we have to do is find my people. How hard can that be?”

  Skreeeiii. Shinoni and Keena look up. An eagle soars, lazily circling above them.

  “I think my father is saying goodbye,” Shinoni says, wiping away tears. A wolf howl echoes in the stillness.

  15

  SHINONI’S EYES FLY OPEN as she’s jarred awake from an uncomfortable sleep. Something is tickling her cheek! She squints and tries to focus on an ant meandering across her face. Shinoni lifts her hand to brush it away but smacks a hard surface above her head. Faint light filters in from a small opening near her feet. Where is she? The smell of rotting wood and rodent droppings surrounds her.

  Memory floods back. She and the Krag girl stumbling out of the forest at twilight, desperate for safety. The ancient, hollowed-out log by the stream bank offering them shelter.

  Something hard pushes into Shinoni’s spine. “Wake up. Your fat knee’s in my back,” she says, and she pushes Keena. “You smell bad, too.”

  “I smell?” Keena yawns. “You must’ve eaten too much meat at Haken’s fire. You passed stink winds all night.”

  Arms and legs thrashing, they struggle to put distance between themselves in the cramped space.

  “You’re the one who insisted on coming with me,” Shinoni says. “I’d have more room in this log and could travel faster without you.” She pushes Keena out of the opening and tumbles after her. They unfold their stiff bodies on the damp earth and stare at the icy blanket of greenery surrounding them. Frost-tinged boughs of spruce and pine trees sway in the wind. Tendrils of ice fog caress a small stream, and ducks escaping the snows in the high country splash down in the water.

  A flock of ghostly white swans swims in the mist. “Perhaps my father sent the white long necks,” Shinoni says. They bring good luck.”

  A breeze rattles the dry leaves on the willow trees by the water’s edge. Keena points, her voice low. “Leeswi’s warning us. Haken must be on our trail.”

  Shinoni squints at the swaying trees. “There’s no one there.”

  “You aren’t Krag, so she doesn’t speak to you,” Keena scoffs.

  “Maybe I can’t hear this Leeswi, but I can catch a deer. I could eat a whole one right now.”

  Keena turns over a dead log and picks fat white grubs off its underside. “Will you use your little knife? Better have some of these first.” She tosses a handful of thick wriggly grubs into her mouth. They crunch between her teeth.

  “Ugh.” Shinoni gags. How repulsive this ugly Krag girl is. “That’s food for wild beasts and Krags, not Kulas.”

  “You think so?” Keena grins, her mouth full of half-chewed grubs. “You’ll starve before you catch a deer.”

  “How would you know? You’re not a hunter,” Shinoni snaps.

  Keena practically chokes on her grubs as a sudden rustling shakes the bushes at the forest edge. “What’s that?” She gulps. An enormous grey she-wolf steps into the clearing. “Aaaaaiii!” Keena shrieks, scrambling toward the stream. “Run!”

  Shinoni recognizes the wolf! She’s the leader of the pack that treed her in the forest. The wolf steps closer, never taking her fierce golden eyes from Shinoni’s face. “It’s all right. I know her.” Shinoni speaks softly, calmly. “She won’t hurt us.”

  “Yeah, right. You know a wolf devil.” Keena doesn’t sound reassured. She picks up a stout branch. “Keep away,” she says to the wolf and backs frantically into the muddy water. She stumbles backward. “I can’t feel the ground,” she cries. The mud crawls up to her ankles, then past her calves, as the quicksand sucks her body slowly downward. “Help, I’m sinking. Help me, Kula!”

  Shinoni stares in disbelief, the wolf forgotten. The Krag girl, covered in slimy grey mud, sinks even deeper. Her body has disappeared up to her waist. Shinoni runs downstream to where a low-lying tree limb juts out over the water.

  Sluurrp. Keena frees an arm and looks around frantically. “Come back. You can’t leave me!” Keena shouts. “I should’ve known not to trust a Kula.” She struggles and sinks deeper.

  Shinoni climbs onto the branch and her weight bends it low over Keena. “Grab on. Grab it. Hurry!”

  “I can’t reach it. Lower, lower!” Keena’s eyes bulge. The mud now sucks at her shoulders. Shinoni bounces hard and the limb dips over the water. With a final lunge, Keena grips it. The limb bounces back, partially yanking her from the quicksand. Keena clings precariously, her legs still trapped as she fights against the downward pull. The muddy depths won’t let go of their prize.

  Shinoni grasps the heavier Krag girl’s hands and pulls until her own arms feel like they’ll pop out of their sockets. Slowly Keena’s legs emerge from the quagmire. She wraps them around the limb and hoists herself up. Shinoni pulls her backward along the branch and both girls fall exhausted onto the ground.

  “You’re pretty strong for a Kula,” Keena gasps.

  “Good thing. You’re heavy as a bea
r.” Shinoni gets shakily to her feet.

  The wolf trots toward the girls, ears forward, tail high. She nudges Shinoni with her snout, then brushes her body against her. Shinoni is startled but thrilled at this physical contact with the big wolf. She places her hand on the coarse silver-grey fur, feels the panting breath, and smells the strong scent of the beast. This is a real wolf and she’s chosen to come to me.

  The wolf then moves to Keena, looking into her terrified face. The wolf’s pink tongue lolls over her dagger teeth, only a finger’s length from the girl’s throat. She cringes and backs away, but Shinoni puts a restraining hand on her arm.

  “If you fall in that mud trap again, you’re on your own. I won’t pull you out twice.” Keena’s body shivers as Shinoni squeezes her arm. “She won’t hurt you. I think she’s my spirit guide. My people call them tewa, helper. You and I can call her Tewa and maybe she’ll help us.”

  “She doesn’t look that friendly.” Keena gasps as Tewa growls and grabs Shinoni’s tunic, pulling her toward the bushes.

  The sound of crashing in the vegetation announces intruders on the game trail. The earthy scent of Krags wafts on the breeze. Tewa melts into the bushes. Panicked, Shinoni and Keena roll into the dense undergrowth. A heartbeat later, Haken and his hunters break into the clearing.

  Haken sniffs the air. “They’ve been here not long ago.”

  The girls peer through the bushes, trembling.

  A hunter points to tracks in the mud near the water. “A wolf’s stalking them.” He bends to look more closely. “There was a fight here. See how the ground’s trampled?”

  “They’re mine. I’ll kill them and the wolf.” Haken snarls.

  Shinoni and Keena cower in the bushes, barely daring to breathe.

  Hissss. They aren’t alone in the undergrowth. They’ve unwittingly invaded the resting place of a large adder. It slithers by them, sluggish from the cold, its brown and grey scales barely visible in the shadows. The snake stops and coils near Shinoni, who backs away, rustling the bushes. Keena clamps a hand over Shinoni’s mouth as a deadly spear plunges into the undergrowth.