Sean laid his hand on Fingaard’s arm, looking up at the large, concerned face. Now that I’ve seen the site, I think there’s a chance that might have happened. I was going to come here and look before, but the accident took us all by surprise and I was delayed, what with arrangements to be made for Bunka and alland then, when we held a night chant in their honor in our village, I got a definite sense that both of them were gone. Feeling that, I couldn’t bring myself to come. Now that I have seen the tunnel, however, I get a little different sense of things. Someone could have got out, got to the other side. I owe it to myself and to the family to explore that possibility.”
They were all startled by an unearthly screeching that penetrated the thick wall of the stone house. It rose and fell, deepened and split into savage howls. Growling deep in his throat, Nanook lifted his head from his paws, and his expression was one of offended dignity and disgust. Sean started to laugh, a tuneful descant to the cacophony outside.
“Why does that awful caterwauling make you laugh, Sean Shongili?” Yana demanded. The noise was earsplitting.
Ardis gave a disgusted expression. “The village toms are courting, not that I ever remember them making that much noise before.”
Wiping tears from his eyes, Sean managed to control himself enough to explain.
“It’s Shush.” He turned to Bunny and Diego. “The McGee’s Pass cat.”
“Shush made it here?” Delighted, Bunny started to rise, only to have Sean push her firmly back into her chair.
“Don’t interfere with her right now, honey. She wouldn’t appreciate it.” And he started to rock with laughter once more.
“Sean Shongili, that’s not enough of an explanation!” Yana complained.
Unable to speak, Sean waggled his hand at Nanook who, with great condescension, spoke to Bunny. Once she got the message straight, she started to giggle, too.
“Not the pair of you!” Yana said. She felt she could use a laugh right now with the rest of them.
“Shush was the last cat in McGee’s Pass,” Bunny said, and there were no toms for her. I think she’s making up for a lot of lost opportunities!”
“Do they have to do it here, and now?” Ardis protested.
”Now, lass,” Fingaard said, grinning as he pulled his wife close to him, “you’ve sounded somewhat like that yourself a time or two when I’ve returned from a long voyage.”
Half-irate, Ardis tried to push her huge spouse away from her, batting vainly at his hands while everyone joined in the laughter. “Never like that. you big oaf!”
One more excruciating cry jarred their eardrums, and then there was blessed silence.
“Well, then,” Sean said, “let’s turn in and get a good night’s sleep. We’ve an expedition to start .. .” He turned queryingly to Ardis.
“Oh, Johnny brought all the gear you need, and rations for twice the distance,” Ardis said, flicking her hand to the outside storage shed. Then she rose, gathering plates up as she did so. Yana and Bunny were instantly on their feet, followed almost immediately by Diego.
The cottage was very shortly occupied by sleepers, so no one noticed the small orange-striped cat who crept in wearily but utterly fulfilled and curled up near the hearth.
Johnny Greene was not at all happy to leave Geedeehow could anyone lumber a child with a disgusting name like Goat-dunganywhere in the vicinity of Matthew Luzon, though he had perfect faith that she would be safe with Lonciana Ondelacy and her family.
He was especially worried because the child seemed far too content to be in Luzon’s presence, looking up eagerly when he spoke and tripping all over herself to answer his every question. Who the frag had ever said that kids could tell scoundrels from saints?
And Luzon, the old hypocrite, was a real smoothie when reassuring the poor frightened and self-deprecating kid, while conveying at the same time how fortunate she was that he wanted to talk to her. Frag, she practically apologized for breathing the same air they did.
Johnny hadn’t wanted to take Matthew along when he went to look up his old shipmate Loncie, now a grandmother and one of the community leaders of Sierra Padre. But Matthew had pompously declared that he was determined to do his duty as ranking company official in seeing that the girl had “a suitable placement,” and Geedee had looked up at him with wide eyes and clung to his hand.