C. T. Suddeth

Lord of the Caves Part 25

Later, Oh-see-hah and Ee-shee-nah lay intertwined. He sighed and didn’t care if he ever slept.

Ee-shee-nah kissed his neck. “Get some sleep. I have work to do.”

She left and he rolled over. Snoozing felt so good.

He woke—someone had pulled his sleeping fur back. He blinked. A sly grin on his face, Lol-non sat beside him.

“What happened?” Oh-see-rah dearly wanted a little sleep.

Lol-non dangled a long bone-fishhook in his slender hand. “I made this for you.”

Someone chuckled, a deep, man’s chuckle. “Let’s go fishing,” said Hah-nah-pah.

Oh-see-rah tried to see the cave’s mouth. “Is it close to daybreak?”

Hah-nah-pah laughed. “No. It’s the dead of night. If you’d rather take care of this wee lad, I can—”

“I don’t need anyone tending to me!” Lol-non stood and shouted.

Oh-koh-rah appeared. “What’s wrong?”

Oh-see-rah thought it best to speak of other things. “You going fishing, too?”

Oh-koh-rah picked up Lol-non. “This wee man can be whisker fish bait.”

“Put me down.” Lol-non squirmed.

Still dangling him in midair, Oh-koh-rah said, “Thank you for the fishhook.”

Looking bored, Lol-non quit struggling. “I hope you catch lots of whisker fish.”

Oh-koh-rah lowered him to the ground, and he scampered away.

Oh-see-rah wanted to apologize to Lol-non, but the others were waiting. “Don’t be mean.”

Oh-koh-rah put his fingers to his lips. “Shh. I did that so he wouldn’t ask to go.”

Hah-nah-pah’s eyes sparkled. “We’ll have our arms full of whisker fish. The others are waiting for us.”

Oh-see-rah and group headed for the creek. The moon blessed their little trip as a possum crossed their path but ignored them as if it were Lord of the Forest. A bevy of bats glided overhead, countless little squeaks coming from them.

They soon reached the creek, spreading out so each man had space to find whisker fish. Oh-see-rah tied string to a piece of tree branch and one of Lol-non’s hooks to the other end. He hurled the hook end in so it would sink to the bottom.

Soon, he felt a tug on his line. He hauled in a fat whisker fish and tossed it into the net they brought. This was easier than noodling and far more enjoyable. In no time, he and the others had almost filled the net they’d brought.

Oh-see-rah would have to thank Lol-non for making his fishhooks.

Hah-nah-pah came to him. “The net is just about full.”

Oh-see-rah could almost taste broiled whisker fish. “Let me catch one more, then we can go.”

WHOOOOOAN, came from a distance.

“What was that?” Hah-nah-pah asked.

“Bullfrogs looking for a mate, I expect.” Oh-see-rah realized the fog was getting too thick to see. And why were the critters fleeing the forest? “Tell the others it’s time to go.”

Thrashing arose from the creek.

Probably ducks,” Oh-see-rah whispered as Hah-nah-pah tiptoed away. Oh-see-rah tried to see in the darkness but saw nothing.

WHOOOOOAN, closer this time.

Hoh-koh-rah joined Oh-see-rah and asked, “What is that?”

Oh-see-rah wasn’t sure. “It might be a bull moose.”

“Maybe we can land a moose, too,” Hoh-koh-rah whispered.

WHOOOOOAN. A giant alligator leapt out of the creek.

TO BE CONTINUED Copyright 2021 Charles Suddeth