Baba had rested for the bulk of the day in the meadow. It was only when he heard horses approaching and the voices of brash men that he decided to duck behind a bush. Baba had spent enough time in these parts to know that not everyone who came through the wilderness had honest intentions. Not everyone had a good heart. After all, somebody had churned up this meadow without a second thought. It might be the same men who approached now.
And in fact, it was.
“I don’t want to hear another word from you!” one of them shouted over the sound of the horses.
“But—”
“The boy. The girl. You even let them take our breakfast right off the fire! You wake me up, you bring a prisoner into our camp, then you let him escape? He saw your face. He saw my face. There’s going to be trouble and it’s all because of you. It’s undoubtedly your fault that Cassius is gone now, too.”
“But—”
“Not a word!”
The marauder was not willing to be deterred from defending himself, though. “But I had nothing to do with the girl—that was all Cassius!”
“Don’t you dare blame my brother!” the voice warned. “You were left to guard the camp, and you let them get away!”
Baba felt a chill go down his back. He didn’t want to be on the wrong side of that voice.
“It’s all because of Cassius,” the sullen voice said.
Baba listened to this exchange, certain that these were the marauders who had captured Julien. If they were on the move, they might stumble upon Julien again. Baba needed to find him. No matter what it took, he had to make sure his son was safe.
When the marauders had moved on, Baba came out from behind the bush. And though evening approached and he was weak and pale, he continued walking.
