Goldentracks

Chapter Eighteen

Sabrina approached a spot upstream from where she'd crossed paths with Una. The water was so slow it was quiet. She knew she was being overly cautious, but she couldn't shake the feeling of foreboding that had been clinging to her since the exchange of goods. Despite her desire to move quickly, she took a good look at her surroundings before getting close to the water. She sat in her hiding place for a while, trying to stretch out her senses as far out as possible. She knew that a calm, clear mind was the best way to achieve her purpose. Slowly but surely, Sabrina began to notice the little sounds and the subtle movements around her. Though she couldn't say what animals were making the sounds, she could locate them. The familiarity of the process and its successful results helped to calm her even more.

Movement came from the bank opposite her hiding place. Slowly, an antlered head poked out. As smoothly as possible for a creature of its size to move through bushes, it advanced with measured steps to the water's edge, its ears swivelling this way and that. Once completely out of the bushes, it stopped. Then, flicking its ears back, the deer bowed down its head to drink. It swallowed great gulps in rapid succession, stopping only once to scratch itself. Then, just as smoothly as it had appeared, it turned and moved back into the forest. Though not lulled into any sense of security, Sabrina was likewise confident there were no large predators or any humans nearby.

Mirthlessly smiling at the symmetry of behaviour, she moved out of the forest on as cautiously as the deer had done, slowly and alert. Intent on keeping her body calm, she focused her attention on sounds as she approached the water. Careful not to splash, she placed the cauldron in the water. It filled up quickly. Scanning around the open area again, she slowly stood up and glided back into the forest. Taking a different route, and also slowed by her wobbling load, she took almost twice as long to get back to the cave. When she arrived she found a pile of branches of all shapes and sizes gathered near the entrance. She sighed. Seeing the pile released some of the tension she'd been unable to shake off. Smiling, she sat down and leaned against the cave's outer wall. However long it lasted, it was nice to have someone to help.

The sound of a twig snapping accompanied by a rustling noise drew Sabrina's attention back to the forest's edge. Moments later, Una stepped out laden with branches. One of them snagged on a nearby bush, and she almost tippe over. Smiling at the scene before her, Sabrina looked on motionless. Una, forced to stop, tugged irritably at the offending branch. It came loose on her second attempt. She stumbled forward a couple of steps. Letting out a shrug of annoyance, she continued toward the cave. It took a few steps more for her to notice Sabrina sitting next to the wood pile. She walked faster. "Took you long enough."

Ignoring the comment, Sabrina stood up and said, "I believe we have enough wood now. Thank you for your efforts." Noting Una's embarrassment, Sabrina quickly turned to look at the pile. "I will sort them and arrange them to make a fire. Perhaps, if you are not too fatigued by your search, you could begin to peel some of the vegetables." Sabrina smiled warmly at Una. Una stared at her. "If you are too tired, that is all right. I can peel them when I am done setting up the fire."

"No," said Una a bit too quickly, "I'm fine. I can do it."

*      *      *

By late afternoon, leeks, small onions and carrots were dancing around in the boiling water. Una settled herself into observing Sabrina. She's pretty, she thought. She looks like she came from a good family. I wonder what happened to make her live her life hiding in the forest like this. Sabrina's hair was mostly untangled, and well tied up into a single braid. And though it wasn't clean exactly, it was neat. Una also noticed that, despite all her survival skills, Sabrina was still feminine—not only in her face and her figure, but also in her manner of speaking. This realization irritated her. It's not her fault I'm not as feminine as she is though, Una thought begrudgingly. Sighing, Una looked away. She picked up a stick and began to poke the ground at her feet. Well, I'm guessing she's a few years older than I am. Maybe in a couple of years I'll be prettier than her. The idea cheered her up a little.