You mean we are going to rob them?
He grinned. Why should it bother you to rob from grave robbers?
That seemed to satisfy her sense of morality. The big problem was in convincing
Silent Woman that no one was to be killed in this or even badly hurt if it could
be at all avoided. He needed supplies and things he could trade downriver, but
he wouldn’t mind if he could give them all a treatment with a portable
mindprinter. A commonality of language would be very helpful indeed, and it was
unlikely that these people would have a Hyiakutt cartridge. He could not give
Silent Woman a tongue, but he could give her understanding.
Silent Woman had been excellent on the trip so far. Her eyes showed some life
again, and she seemed to be enjoying things. It was impossible, of course, to
know what was really going through her mind, and he wasn’t certain he wanted to
know. He was afraid he might not like some of the images there.
The old chief had been correct about her tattoos. Her entire torso was covered
with them, in many colors, and resembled an intricate design on a blanket. Cloud
Dancer, as an artist, had been absolutely fascinated, and Silent Woman did not
seem to mind the stares and obvious interest. Rather, she seemed pleased by it
and almost proud. Many tribes used tattoos for many things, but Hawks had never
seen anyone literally dressed in them. Whoever had done it had been a genuine
artist in his or her own right. It was grotesque, but it was a pleasing
grotesque, which was just as well: Even if she died old, she would die with that
design.
She had been unable to get the massive bloodstains from her dress when they made
camp, and when her tattoos were more appreciated than repulsed, she had looked
at the nearly naked couple who had taken her from the Illinois and threw the
dress into the river. It was more than a gesture; as the only thing she owned
and, aside from the shoulder bag, the only tangible remnant from the Illinois
village, she was cutting her last ties with the past and starting absolutely
clean. Anyway, from a distance, the tattoos made her look clothed.
In the middle of the next day, they spotted the archaeologists’ camp. Hawks
pulled the canoe in, and they dragged it up into the brush and hid it as best
they could.
The camp was made up of traditional mobile lodges, or tepees, some quite large,
although the dig was small and quite limited. A dozen young men and women from a
large variety of tribes seemed to be working under the guidance of an older
gray-haired man. Most were dressed as primitively as Hawks and Cloud Dancer,
although their loincloths were professionally made and hung on fine belts
equipped with loops and clips for various tools. Their project looked well
along; they were probably in the last stages before packing up.
Cloud Dancer was amazed. The sight of men and women working equally at a hard
and exacting task rather than clearly dividing the labor was unusual to her; to
see so many from such obviously different nations working and laughing together
with no suspicion or animosity was unheard of.
They had clearly decided to live close to the land, and their camp, for the most
part, was just like thousands of small tribal camps across the plains, but one
tepee, the largest, stood out. For one thing, it had been heavily and cleverly
waterproofed. For another, even Hawks had never before seen a tepee whose door
shut with a heavy zipper.
These people must have developed solid relations with the local tribes. There
was no sign of security. They lived like the natives of the area lived, and
unless one knew just what to look for, there was no evidence that this was
anything more than a transient village of some strange tribe. At the moment,
there were only two people in the camp: a young man and woman who were
ostensibly tending the cook fire but who seemed more interested in each other
than in the duties at hand. The dig was down an embankment and a good kilometer
or more away from the camp itself; the work could be heard in the distance.
Hawks began to reconsider his idea of a night attack. Even these people wouldn’t
trust that the river wouldn’t bring them some threat in the dark.
‘They probably have local tribesmen come in and guard them for the night, he
told Cloud Dancer.
She looked at the romantic pair. It would be easy to take those two now. If we
wait a bit longer, it is possible we will not even be noticed.
Perhaps. He looked at the sun. They are sure to break for a midday meal. That
is what is on the fire. Let us at least wait until after that and see their
routine. I wish no violence if it can be avoided. Those are no threats.
It appeared that there were always two people remaining in the camp at any one
time, though the intervals of the rotation were hard to judge. There was only
one random event, when the gray-haired leader and two workers returned carrying
something in a large blanket.
They have dug up a body, Cloud Dancer hissed.
The bodies in those places, if they were burial places at all, would have been
dust for centuries, he assured her. More likely it is an ancient weapon or
carving or something that only they would even recognize as such.
They watched as the workers put the find down and unzipped the big tent. The
leader cursed and came back out, fuming at no one in particular. They were using
English, one of the two common languages—Spanish was the other—of Council.
There’s no room left in there even to store this temporarily without risking
it, the leader fumed. We’re going to have to find some other place for it.
Taking it to the village is out, one of his helpers, a young woman, responded.
They wouldn’t have anything from our dig there on a bet. Probably the best we
can do for now is get some canvas, double wrap it, and stake it down and arrange
to have it taken out as soon as possible.
Well, that’s only part of it, the chief archaeologist noted. I think we can
get the rest in three or four hours. We’ll chance leaving it here, then wrap and
transport the whole.
Hawks admitted to himself that he’d love to know what they’d found, but
curiosity had already brought him enough trouble. He waited until the workers
had returned to the dig after a lunch break; again, a pair remained behind to
clean up.
Now is our time, he told Cloud Dancer. Try to make Silent Woman understand.
We must act quickly. Use the bow to cover me, and if I gesture so, shoot
convincingly but not at anyone. Be ready to aid, though, if there is a shout or
they try something.
What if that happens? she asked.
Then we silence them, grab what we can, and run. I said I wanted no bloodshed,
but if it is them or us, I choose us.
She nodded, and he simply got up and walked boldly into the archaeologists’
camp. The two there didn’t even see him at first, and when they did, they stared
nervously at him.