ICE BURIAL: The Oldest Human Murder Mystery (The Mother People Series Book 3) (10 page)

“
Has this happened many times, that the Great Spirit has come to a woman?
”
Zena
asked.

“
I have heard
people in
other
tribes
speak of it, but I
do not
know how many. The Leader travels to many places.
”

And so would she,
Zena
thought with stubborn intensity.

The sudden noise of a twig snapping made them both jump. Instantly, Mara extinguished the light. For a time, there was no further noise; then they heard shuffling footsteps, as if a large creature was moving through the brush under the trees. Possibly it was a bear,
Zena
speculated
, though she
was not
sure bears lived in these high mountains. More likely it was a moose or large elk. Moving cautiously, she poked her head out from beneath the heavy cover that blocked the entrance.

The sound came again, and then the creature, whatever it was, came so close she could smell its rankness. She could see only a large dark shape and decided it
must be a bear
that had reared up on its hind legs, since it was also very tall. A moment later
she thought it had dropped onto
all fours, though it w
as hard to tell in the darkness. The shape disappeared into the trees.

There were no more noises, but for a long time
Zena
and Mara dared not move, lest the creature be there still. Mara especially was
terrified
, though she tried not to show her fear. The noises had forced her to remember that terrible night and despite her effort
to be sensible
she began to shiver uncontrollably. Understanding her terror,
Zena
put a comforting arm around her shoulders.

Lief, hidden nearby in the trees, waited too. Though his eyes were well adapted to darkness, even he had been unable to identify the beast. He
had not
been able to hear the conversation, either, but he felt fear emanating from the hut. He would watch them with great care when they left
.

Finally Mara broke the silence.
“
We must go back,
”
she whispered.
“
I dare not speak more. Someone could be watching. Take my hand and follow.
”

Zena
felt in the darkness for Mara
’s
hand and gripped it, trying to instill in the grip a bravery she
did not
feel. Holding tightly to each other, they crept out of the shelter and into the thick trees. There was no sound save for their own breathing, and they saw no movement anywhere except for the slow progress of their tense bodies.

“
It is better to separate now,
”
Mara whispered when they were close to the clearing.
“
You know your way from here?
”

“
I know,
”
Zena
answered.
“
I came this way.
”

Mara drew
Zena
behind a concealing tree.
“
Good-bye, my great friend,
”
she said, looking into
Zena
’s
darkened face.
“
Take good care of my little one. And remember all I have told you. It might not be possible for us to speak again, but I will be watching and will help you if I can.
”

Impulsively,
Zena
reached out to hug Mara.
“
We will speak again many times,
”
she promised, with a confidence she was not entirely sure she felt.
“
I will remember all you have said, and will do my best to save this child. And do not fear. One day, you will be with Mara-Sun again.
”

Mara nodded.
“
I am certain it is so. Now I have hope; before there was none.
”

Someone coughed in the darkness, and they separated quickly.
Zena
watched Mara glide silently away and wished she could ask more questions. There was so much she still needed to know. Where had the Leader come from, and Korg? How long ago had Mara
’s
people begun to follow the Leader
’s
ways, and what did she think the creature they had heard could be? And who was the sister who had lost her child?

The answer to that question came the next day, when she told Durak what she had learned from Mara.

“
Rofina!
”
he exclaimed, when
Zena
spoke of the child who had been taken from Mara
’s
sister.
“
Rofina is the sister of Mara. So that is what happened to her.
”
His face twisted in anguish as he thought of the suffering she must have endured.

He told
Zena
of their meeting, of his strong feeling that he and Rofina belonged together.
Zena
was unsure what to say. She had never known Durak to react so intensely to a woman, and she believed him, but at the same time she was afraid for Rofina, who had already suffered so much. Still, Rofina clearly needed help, and Durak might be able to provide it.

Sorlin joined them and Mara
’s
story was repeated
in whispers
. Later, when Hular and Lief came into the hut,
Zena
confided in them as well.
She was worried about entrusting the information to so many, but if she was to
fulfill her promise to Mara, she would need their help
.

“
Do not speak of this aloud,” she warned them. “The people here must not know why I have come, or what I hope to do with your help.

All of them promised caution, but
Zena
’s
warning had come too late. The next day
,
they all
noticed that people looked away from
them
instead of calling out a friendly greeting as they had before
.

“They must have heard us call you Zena, and they know that name,” Sorlin reported, and described a d
isturbing conversation she had overheard among the villagers.
“
One woman said that Mara and her mother cause nothing but trouble,
and that the woman called
Zena
and the people with her would also cause trouble. The others agreed. They said that to hear the name
Zena
made people think of the old ways, and that was not good because the old ways had gone and they
did not
want to think of them any more.

“
Then a man said the Leader knew what was best for them,
”
Sorlin continued.
“
He sounded very certain, and they all agreed.
”

Hular looked at Sorlin in astonishment.
“
How did you manage to hear so much?
”

“
I hid in some bushes near the place where they gather,
”
Sorlin answered with an impish grin.
“
After all, they must hav
e done th
e same
or they
would not
have known
we are Mother People. Besides,
Zena
said to discover as much as we could.
”

“
And so you did,
”
Zena
answered, amused by her stalwart friend. Still, what Sorlin had heard was discouraging. To change these people again
would not
be easy!

“
I
f the villagers
remember the name of
Zena
,
it can’t be too long
s
ince they were
Mother People
,
”
she observed.

Durak nodded.
“
I
believe
that
Mara
’s
mother was their wise one
then.
I could feel it when I met her, even though she now looks old and afraid.
”

Zena
nodded, remembering the woman who had traced the spiral sign of wisdom for her to see. She must be Mara
’s
mother, which explained why Mara knew so much of the Goddess. She wished she could ask the woman to tell her more of what had happened here, but she
did not
dare. As Mara had warned
– and they had just learned -
Korg had ears and eyes everywhere, and
unless they were very careful,
Mara and her mother
would
be singled out for punishment.

“
But now the villagers have different ways,
”
Hular said thoughtfully,
“
ways that seem wrong to us. To kill an infant is terrible, but at the same time I can understand
why it might be done.
Through the death of one child, a child too young to
be afraid or
understand
,
many lives could be saved, great suffering avoided.
”

“
We
do not
know that,
”
Sorlin objected
, her tone scathing
.
“
I
certainly
do not
believe bad things will happen
unless a
child is killed. Even the Mother cannot prevent storms and other disasters, though She often warns us with Her signals so we can prepare. And we cannot avoid all suffering or all difficulties in our lives.
”

“
A child is a gift from the Mother,
”
Durak said slowly,
“
yet sometimes we help a
n infant
to return to Her if the infant is maimed or suffering and cannot be cured. What is the difference?
”

“
They are very different,
”
Lief
answered in his deep, soft voice.
“
One is done because of love, the other from fear.
”

Zena
looked at him, impressed once more. Unexpect
edly, desire rose inside her,
desire so strong
that
her legs began to tremble. She sat down suddenly, astonished. She had mated only a few times and the experiences
had not
been very satisfying. She had felt awkward; her body
did not
seem to know what to do, as if the impulses that seemed to come so easily and naturally to others were absent in her. But now; now she felt as if they must be there. They must be stronger than she had known, too.

Color rose in her face. How could she think of Akat when they were talking of the possible death of a child? And she
did not
even know this man, had barely spoken to him. Worse, she was almost certain he had seen her face redden and understood the reason.

“
You are right,
”
she said quickly, to cover her confusion.

Another thought came to her, driving all thoughts of desire away.
“
And when this sacrifice is born of fear,
”
she said slowly,
“
it could build on itself, so that if a storm should come, or
an
other disaster, more
children
would have to be given, then more and more and more...
”

She broke off, shuddering
.
, as
pictures of what might happen
poured into her mind, of
infants and
chi
ldren,
some on the brink of adulthood
who knew what was about to happen
,
struggling against their captors. One at a time they were
pulled away from their stricken parents
, brutally killed so that others could live, but then drought came, or floods or some terrible sickness, and still more had to die…

She closed her eyes tightly to shut out the terrible images but they
would not
stop
, and for a moment she felt faint
.

Lief
knelt
in front of her.
“
Will you drink this?
”
he said gently.
“
It is made from special grains that are fermented, and it will give you strength.
”