The Trek: Darwin's World, Book II (The Darwin's World Series 2) by Jack L Knapp Read Free Book Online Page B

Finally he woke Vlad and turned in.
    They ate the last of their food the following morning while following the tracks left by the travois.
    Two hours later Pavel stopped. There was a pile of equipment ahead but no one was around. Cautiously, he led his men up and found the travois, left beside their bedding and personal gear.
    “Pavel, they’ve dumped our sleeping equipment here. Have they thrown us out of the tribe? You didn’t say anything about that when we went after Lilia.”
    “Gregor, I don’t know what happened. But I’ll find out when I catch up, you can count on that!
    “Sort out what you want to take, leave the rest here. We can do without the furs. The weather is warm enough now that I doubt we’ll need them. We can get new ones before fall. The tribe can’t be far ahead. You three look around, see if you can kill something. Gather greens or roots, anything we can eat. I’ll scout ahead and see if the tribe’s close. Meet me back here in two hours.
    “I wish we could just rejoin the tribe, but with Lilia maybe still out there, we can’t take the chance. We have to kill her. If she gets back, we’ll have to run for it. Maybe we can join up with the mine guards. I’ve been thinking about that. We won’t have much chance of surviving, just four of us.
    “The guards won’t welcome us, but if we tell them where Robert and the tribe are I think they’ll let us join them. They’ll be mad at Robert and Colin anyway, and maybe they’ll want to raid the tribe if they know where they are. Anyway, it’s only a thought. I don’t owe the tribe anything. I wouldn’t mind teaching them a lesson, especially that little bunch that lived with Matt.”
    “How long do we wait, Pavel?”
    “That depends on what you three find to eat, Gregor. If we’ve got food, we can trail the tribe for a few more days. If Lilia’s not here within a day or two, maybe she got killed. Lions, wolves…well, she’s only a lone woman. They’d snap her up quick. As long as she doesn’t get past us, we can wait.
    “Anyway, go find us something to eat. I’ll meet you back here in two hours.”
     

Chapter 5
     
    The faint pecking sound was somehow familiar. Lilia cocked her head to the side and listened. Curious…she knew the sound, but couldn’t identify it.
    Not a woodpecker after all, but unknown things were dangerous. She stole forward, arrow on the string. Ahead was a small clump of willows, the sound appearing to come from just beyond.
    Careful to make no sound, Lilia eased through the willows and froze. It couldn’t be…but it was…
    “Matt! You’re alive!”
    Her fingers involuntarily relaxed and the arrow plopped into the dirt a few feet in front of her. She didn’t notice.
    Matt stood up in shock, dropping the rocks he’d been working on.
    He saw a woman, holding a bow and dressed in buckskin. She carried a bundled parka tied to a small backpack and a spear was slung across her back. The bow looked familiar, the recognition felt by a craftsman for the things he’s made.
    “Who are you? Do I know you?”
    Lilia had crossed the small clearing where Matt worked. Experienced eyes took in the crude lean-to and the small fire beside where he’d been working. She looked at the dirty, stretched-out, baggy deerskins. No question, this was Matt; he looked different, but she knew every stitch that had gone into making those deerskins. She also saw the bump and partially-healed cut, all that remained of the injury he’d suffered.
    “Matt, it’s Lilia. What happened to you?”
    “Lilia? Uh, I don’t know. I woke up on a sandbar. I was wet and cold.”
    Matt stopped for a moment, then resumed his halting speech.
    “I got dried off and warm. I don’t know how I got there. I’ve been…”
    He paused for a longer time.
    “I’ve been eating fish. I’ve still got some. Are you hungry?”
    “No, I killed a deer. A fawn.” Lilia paused in turn.
    “If I’d known you were here and had fish I wouldn’t have shot