“But what about that man who’s always around her? The visitor she came with. He’s big.”
“I’ve known men like him, tall and muscular, but too calm and mild. Have you ever seen him angry? I think he’s one of those gentle giants who are so afraid they’ll hurt someone they even avoid arguments. If we’re quick, we can grab her before he knows it, and threaten to kill her if he makes a move. I don’t think he’ll take a chance that she might get hurt. By the time he thinks about it, it will be too late. We’ll be gone and her with us.”
“What are you going to threaten her with? They’ve taken our knives.”
Balderan smiled, then loosened the leather thong that laced his shirt closed. “This,” he said, pulling the thong out of its holes. “I’ll wrap this around her neck.”
“But what if your plan doesn’t work?” another man asked.
“We won’t be any worse off than we are now. We’ve got nothing to lose.”
The next day one of the other Caves in the region arrived, and by evening, two more. The First came to see Ayla the morning of the following day. Jondalar stepped out to let them talk in private.
“We are going to have to think about how to deal with these men.”
“Why do we have to?” Ayla said. “We don’t live here.”
“But you caught him. You’re involved, whether you want to be or not. It could be the Mother wants you to be,” the First added.
Ayla gave her a look of skepticism.
“Well, maybe not the Mother, but the people here want you to be. And I think you should. Besides, we need to talk to them about your tour of their Sacred Site. You will be amazed at this cave. I’ve seen it once and I know I’m going back in. There are some difficult places, but I’ll never get another chance and I won’t miss it,” the First said.
That intrigued Ayla, and aroused her curiosity. All the walking on this Journey seemed to have improved the woman’s health, but she still had problems and needed help when they got into rough terrain. She was a more than ample woman in spite of all her walking. She carried her weight with grace and assurance, and in many ways it added to her stature, but it could make moving around in tight places with uneven footing difficult.
“You’re right, Zelandoni, but I don’t want to make decisions about him. I don’t think it’s my place,” Ayla said.
“You don’t have to. We all know what has to be done. He needs to be killed. If he isn’t, he will kill more people. The question is, who will do it and how? Deliberately killing someone is not easy for most people. It’s not supposed to be. It’s not right for people to kill people. That’s why we know he’s not right inside. He doesn’t know that, and that’s why I’m glad all these Caves are coming together. It needs to be something they all participate in. I don’t mean everyone has to kill him, but they all have to take responsibility for it. And they all have to know that it’s the right thing to do in this particular case. A person shouldn’t be killed out of anger, or for revenge. There are other ways to deal with those things. There is no other way where he’s concerned,” the First said, “but what is the best way to do it?”
They were both silent, then Ayla said, “There are plants …”
“I was going to say mushrooms,” the First said. “They could be fed a meal with certain mushrooms.”
“But what if they guess and decide not to eat them? Everyone knows there are poisonous mushrooms. They are easy to pick out and avoid,” Ayla said.
“That’s true, and while Balderan is not right, he’s not stupid. What plants were you thinking of?”
“There are two plants that I know grow around here because I’ve seen them. One is called water parsnip. It grows in water,” Ayla said.
“They are edible, especially the roots, when they are young and tender,” the First said.
“Yes, but there is another plant that looks very similar and it’s deadly poisonous,” Ayla said. “I know the word in Mamutoi. I don’t know what you call it, but I know it.”
“I know the plant. It’s poison hemlock,” the First said. “That’s our name for it. It also grows in water. So the same meal can be cooked for the whole Camp, everyone else will get water parsnip, but Balderan and his men will get hemlock.” She paused, then said, “I was thinking, they could be served mushrooms, too, edible mushrooms. They may think they are poison and avoid them, and perhaps won’t pay attention to the root vegetables, because it will look as though everybody is eating them.”
“That’s what I was thinking, unless someone can think of a better way,” Ayla said.
The woman stopped to think again, then nodded. “Good, we have a plan. It’s always good to have a plan, to anticipate, if you can,” said the Zelandoni Who Was First.
When the two women left the tent, no one was outside. The rest of their group of travelers had gone to see what was happening with the impromptu Summer Meeting, and to offer to help with the cooking or whatever needed doing. Except this wasn’t a happy coming together of relatives, friends, and neighbors; this was a gathering to pass judgment for serious crimes.
More people were arriving and the field below the cliff was filling up. But the biggest surprise was late in the afternoon. Ayla and the First were in the zelandonia dwelling when Jonayla came running in interrupting the meeting.
“Mother, mother,” she said. “Kimeran told me to come and tell you.”
“Tell me what, Jonayla?” Ayla said with a stern tone to her voice.
“Beladora’s family is here. And there is a strange person with them.”