She bowed her head as though suddenly exhausted. “The hunter who brought me the story said that the Nightland warriors have built an enclosure to hold the captive women. He said you can hear their cries from a half day’s walk away. They keep pleading for Windwolf to rescue them.”
Mossy looked up hopefully at him, and he shook his head. “No, my daughter. He’s not here. Perhaps he’s afraid to come by himself. We could not have asked him to bring his warriors. The Nightland scouts would have known immediately that we were plotting against them.”
“He probably thinks it’s a trap. Given the promise of safety from attack that Nashat has made, that’s what I would think.”
“As would I.”
She gestured uncertainly. “Blessed Ancestors, I don’t know what to do. Should we leave here? Find a safer place?”
He held her hand tightly. “And go where?”
“South? West? Does it matter? We can find a place far from the Nightland.”
“You and I both know that perhaps half, maybe a third, of our people would leave. The rest still cling to the belief that we have done nothing to deserve an attack. Outside of stealing a few children, the Nightland war parties have avoided any confrontation while passing through. They even leave offerings from their hunts in restitution for passing in peace.”
“That is only a diversion.”
“The rumor is that before the Prophet leads the Nightland People through the ice to the Long Dark, they will destroy anyone who believes in Wolf Dreamer to keep them from following.”
She gave him a serious look. “Is that why you’ve started hiding dried meat and skins of water in the hidden chambers? So that we can hold out here if we have to?”
“Like my daughter, I am no fool.” Lookingbill tugged on Mossy’s hand to make her rise. “Your mother would be very proud of you.”
She hugged him. For several moments they clung to each other, and he knew what she must be thinking. Two winters had done little to ease either of their hearts.
Her mother, his beloved wife, had been murdered by Nightland warriors while visiting Bramble at Walking Seal village. He had gone himself to find his wife’s mutilated body lying among the Sunpath dead. Karigi had heaped them out of sight in an abandoned lodge. He might have meant only to trap Windwolf—but had turned Lookingbill forever against him in the process.
“There’s nothing more we can do tonight, my daughter. Let’s go enjoy the Renewal Dance. I’m eager to hear you recite the Old Stories.”
They walked up the trail in silence.
When Silvertip saw him coming, he called, “Grandfather!” and ran to meet him. “It’s about to start. We have to go in.”
Turning back to Mossy, Lookingbill said, “If you can’t find anyone else, I’ll Sing.”
“Thank you, Father.” She kissed his cheek. “It will be worth it just to give Loon Spot a reason to be dead again.”
The Council cavern was a large, irregular chamber that ran back into the rocks. Silvertip’s mouth dropped open. A huge fire had been built of logs in the center of the space. It cast flickering shadows over the rockshelter’s high ceiling and the happy faces of the people. Hides had been spread in front of the torch-holding warriors. People sat expectantly; their hushed conversations created a pleasant hum.
Lookingbill guided Silvertip to a woolly buffalo hide in the back. “Can you see?”
The boy nodded. “Yes, this is a good place.”
“Wonderful. I want you to remember this day. It has been ten tens times ten summers since Wolf Dreamer fought Grandfather White Bear and found the dark hole in the ice that led to this world. It is a very special day.”
Silvertip nodded, and Lookingbill wrapped an arm lovingly over the boy’s shoulders and hugged him.
A hush fell as Mossy took her place near the central fire. She had removed her cape and wore a long black-painted dress adorned with mica nuggets; she looked regal. After clearing her throat several times to gain silence, she extended a hand to the worshipers.
“Lame Bull People, we come together this equinox night to celebrate the freeing of our Ancestors from the terrible Land of the Long Dark.”
The crowd responded, “May Wolf Dreamer be blessed forever more.”
“We come to praise the name of Grandfather White Bear, who gave his life to keep Wolf Dreamer alive so that he could find the hole in the ice.”
“Let the name of Grandfather White Bear be blessed,” the people responded.
Mossy raised a fist, and it cast a huge dark shadow against the boulders behind her. “We come to praise the spirit of Wolf, who brought a grand Dream to a boy named Runs-in-Light, a boy who would become the Wolf Dreamer. Old Man Above sent Wolf Dreamer to teach us the way to the One. It is through the One that we conquer his wicked brother, Raven Hunter. It is through the One that we find peace and harmony.”