The Longest Day Read Free Page B

busy.”
    â€œBut you promised you’d teach us to hunt when we reached the lake!” Elsu protested.
    Elki pushed past him and gazed at her father in dismay. “You said as soon as we reached the lake.”
    â€œI said go back!” Holata sounded frustrated.
    Hattack stopped. “Let them come! You can teach themhow to catch rabbits while we catch some real prey.”
    Holata scowled. “Go back to Muna!” he told the cubs.
    Their eyes clouded with disappointment. Swapping glances, they turned and trudged back to the shore.
    Shesh sighed. “If Hattack and Wenona weren’t trying to make this a competition, Holata would have let them come,” he murmured.
    â€œHolata can teach his cubs to hunt anytime.” Tuari shrugged and followed Hattack deeper into the forest.
    Toklo swallowed back a growl. “I wish Oogrook was here,” he grunted.
    Shesh walked beside him. “Things change, Toklo.”
    Toklo thought he’d seen enough change over the past suncircle to last his whole lifetime. He’d found friends and lost them. He’d hardly slept in the same den for more than a few nights. For once, I’d like everything to stay the same!
    Ahead, the swish of ferns caught his eye. A red pelt flashed between the trees. Deer!
    Wenona must have seen it, too. She charged forward, Hattack at her heels. Toklo watched them barge through the undergrowth, each struggling to get ahead. Hattack swerved into Wenona, sending the she-bear off balance. Wenona barked with anger and pushed back. The deer sprang over a fallen tree and pelted away. The two bears thundered after it, shoulder to shoulder. Toklo winced. Couldn’t they see the trees narrowing ahead of them? With a thump, Hattack’s flank hit a trunk. Needles showered down as he stumbled and fell. Reaching out, he caught Wenona’s hind leg with his frontpaw. Wenona lost her footing and tumbled over. Just in front of them, the deer disappeared through a swathe of brambles.
    Toklo felt a rush of frustration. The bears would do better if they worked together instead of competing.
    Shesh grunted. “Perhaps we should hunt alone.”
    â€œIs that how it’s going to be?” Toklo grumbled. “Each bear hunting alone because we can’t cooperate without a leader?”
    â€œOnce in a suncircle, we share territory with each other,” Shesh reminded him. “The spirits don’t ask any more than that.”
    â€œWhy not?” Toklo thought of his long journey with Lusa, Kallik, and Yakone. They would never have survived alone.
    Toklo caught the sound of running water and headed toward it, relieved to have an excuse to be by himself. “I’m going to get a drink,” he told Shesh. “I’ll catch up to you.”
    â€œNo rush.” Shesh started to amble after the others. “By the time Wenona and Hattack have crashed into every tree in the forest,” he called over his shoulder, “there will be nothing left to hunt.”
    Toklo followed a stale deer track through a thick patch of ferns, sniffing for the scent of a stream. As he smelled it, earthy and fresh, his thirst seemed to grow. Hurrying closer, he nearly tumbled into the narrow channel that opened in front of him. He dipped his snout into the cool water and drank deeply.
    Pawsteps sounded upslope. He looked up and saw Hattack heading toward him. Toklo stiffened. “What are you doing here?” he growled.
    Hattack sniffed. “I’ll never catch anything with that great lump, Wenona,” he grumbled. “So I thought I’d join you. You look like you know how to hunt.” His gaze flickered over Toklo’s well-muscled shoulders.
    Toklo shook the water from his muzzle. Why was Hattack being friendly now? Did he just want a hunting partner?
    â€œLet’s try this way.” Hattack nodded toward a patch of woodland where the trees opened up enough to let a little sunlight through. The