The Magic Meadow (11 page)

Excitement stirred in him as he studied the community at the top of the map. He pointed to it, and looked at Nurse Jackson. “How far away d'you s'pose that is?”

She shook her head. “Brick, there's a distance scale in the corner, but unless we knew what it meant it would be hard to guess. If it's a quarter of a mile to the turpentine still, then it must be at least sixty miles to the town, or whatever it is. Probably more, because the trail winds with the stream.”

Sixty miles. Could they ever manage to walk that far? They couldn't do it now, of course, but maybe in a week or so they'd be able to tackle short distances and camp out each night. With an unknown animal on the loose, the idea of camping out didn't exactly appeal to him, but they couldn't stay here all summer waiting for somebody to discover them. Not with the strawberries giving out, and nothing but dandelion greens to eat when the dried stuff was gone.

What had they better do?

He was studying the map again, his eye attracted by a bit of blue indicating a lake, when he heard Nurse Jackson say, “I give up. This can't be a millionaire's estate. Why, there must be a thousand square miles of wild country shown here. And there's not a single road in it, and only one tiny little town. I'd feel better if I could hear just one plane go by.…”

Lily Rose said, “Maybe they don't have planes here. Maybe, like Princess said, we really
are
on another planet.”

“Phooey!” said Charlie Pill. “How could we be on another planet with the same trees and animals and everything? That's crazy.”

“No, it isn't,” Princess told him quickly. “Haven't you ever heard of a
sister
planet, a sort of
invisible twin?
”

Diz Dobie said, “I have. It would be just like Earth, almost, only it would be in another dimension.”

“Hey, maybe you've got something,” Charlie Pill admitted. “Maybe, coming here the way we did, we sort of jumped from one dimension to another. What d'ya think, Brick?”

“Maybe that's it,” Brick said. “It sure would explain a lot of things.”

He didn't tell them he was beginning to get another idea. Only, it was such a dinger, and it sounded so crackpot, he decided he'd better keep it to himself until he'd dug up a little proof. Turning to the blanket chest, he hauled out a half dozen books and opened them upon the table. Everyone exclaimed over them because they were so beautifully bound and printed, but they were in the same language as the map—Nurse Jackson had never seen anything like it—so he learned nothing from them. Pictures might have told him a lot, but the few illustrations were of botanical subjects and no persons were shown.

He had turned back to the map when Nurse Jackson glanced at her watch, then shook her head and said, “I don't know what time it is, gang, but it sure feels late to me. Let's call it a day.”

Tired as he was, the map held him. Finally Nurse Jackson came and peered over his shoulder.

“What is it, Brick?”

He pointed to the small lake that had caught his attention earlier. “Wouldn't you say that's about fifteen miles away?”

“Something like that. But I'd allow for twenty.”

His finger touched a fish-shaped symbol beside a tiny square indicating a building. “And wouldn't you say that's a sort of camp like this one? A place where you can catch fish?”

She bent closer over the map. “Why, I believe you're right! I didn't notice that before.”

His finger moved upward, following the course of the main trail and the stream. Scattered throughout the area, some on the stream and others on side trails, were more tiny squares with symbols beside them. A few of the symbols were obvious, but he guessed that others stood for raw materials or ores. It was easy to see how the people in the village lived. When they needed something, they set out on one of the trails and got it. With comfortable camps like this one in which to stay, probably whole families went along and had fun while they worked.

He touched the house with the fish symbol again, and looked at Nurse Jackson. “W-what d'you think?”

“I'm thinking the same thing you are,” she said quietly. “If fish can be caught there, that's where we ought to be right now.”

“Then let's plan to go. When we get there, we can rest a while and catch lots of fish, then keep on going till we find people.”

“Brick, could you teleport us there?”

He shook his head. “Not unless I knew exactly what it looks like—which I don't. I'd be crazy to try it. We—we'll just have to hoof it.”

“But, Brick, we can't go anywhere till Charlie Pill can walk a little better. And Princess isn't strong enough.…”

“They'll be better in a few days. We can't wait too long.”

She sighed. “We sure can't. We'll talk it over with everybody in the morning.”

After a scanty breakfast of strawberries, tea, and some of the remaining mushrooms, they held a conference. Surprisingly, in spite of the fact that they might have to spend several uncertain nights camping out in the forest, everyone was eager for the trip except for Lily Rose. The golden-skinned girl thought they ought to remain where they were.

“But why?” Brick asked.

She shook her small dark head. “I—I don't know why. It's just how I feel.”

Suddenly Princess said, “If Lily Rose feels we ought to stay here, then we should. Don't you know that you can always trust feelings better that thoughts?”

Charlie Pill said, “Aw, phooey!” and Brick said a little grimly, “I don't want to go against anybody's feelings, but if we stay where we are now, we'll have to start killing the deer so we can eat.”

“Oh, no!” Princess cried. “I'd rather starve!” And Lily Rose added almost tearfully, “It would be awful to kill wild things. Especially here.”

“I don't see why,” Brick said. “People do it all the time in hunting season.”

“B-but not
here,
” Lily Rose persisted. “It—it would be all wrong. Don't you
feel
it?”

Brick did feel a little uncertain about hunting in this new land, but he said only, “Okay, just so long as you don't mind eating fish. When we get to the other camp, we may have to live on fish entirely for a while.”

Once the decision was made to leave, they went immediately to work. It took them four days to get ready, but when they left at dawn on the fifth morning they had enough extra food to last them at least until the third evening. The dried corn they had found hanging from the beams was their mainstay. It had been shelled and converted into meal in a hand grinder discovered in the shed, then mixed with some of the onions and baked into cakes. When the cakes were gone, they would have the remaining onions to fall back on, plus a small plastic bag of rice that had been among the things Nurse Jackson had packed in her bag at Belleview.

As they started slowly down the trail past the fence, Brick glanced back with sudden regret at the comfortable bunk-house. He wished they didn't have to leave it, but there seemed to be no other solution. They'd cleaned the place carefully and put the fine blankets back in the chest, and even laid fresh materials for a fire in the fireplace. The only articles they'd borrowed, which he hoped to return later, were necessities like spoons and some kitchenware, and the two crossbows.

They didn't dare travel without the weapons. When they made camp tonight, they would sleep under the Belleview blankets, and he and Diz Dobie and Nurse Jackson would take turns staying awake and doing guard duty. The three of them had spent part of an afternoon with the crossbows, learning how to handle them.

Brick felt his first twinge of uneasiness as they filed past the turpentine still. While he examined the meadow, dim in the dawn mist, he paused a moment to shift the new shoulder strap holding his laundry bag, then again he gripped his crossbow with both hands so he could carry it in a ready position. The weapon was cocked and loaded, the short arrow being held in place by a clip that would automatically release it when he pressed the trigger. It operated like a gun, and he knew it was just as dangerous, so he was careful to keep it pointed to the left and toward the ground. Because he was steadier on his feet than Diz Dobie, who walked ahead, he had been given the rear position, for there was less chance of his stumbling and accidentally discharging an arrow.

Up ahead Nurse Jackson, who was pushing the loaded wheelchair—it had been turned into a cart to carry their extra gear—stopped to give Charlie Pill a chance to rest. In the past few days the thin boy had learned to use his legs better, but he was forced to walk with a stick and he was much too weak to carry a bag.

As Brick studied the meadow, not liking the emptiness of it, he was suddenly aware that the sky was turning red. Remembering his first incredible sunrise, he called to the others to watch. This second one was just as awesome, and Nurse Jackson was so moved by it that she murmured in astonishment, “Great day in the morning! I'd forgotten the Lord made sights like this!”

When the great burning disc was above the trees, she said to Princess, “There's something different about it. You could be right. Maybe we really are on Earth's twin.” She shook her head. “Well, let's get moving, gang. We've got some ground to cover before dark.”

Only now did Brick see the horses in the rising mist. They were standing rigid with flaring nostrils, staring at something in the shadows on the opposite slope. He could make out nothing, but he had the uncomfortable feeling that he was being watched.

The feeling stayed with him as he trudged on after the others. A coldness began to knot in his stomach.

The coldness was still in him at midday when they stopped to rest and to eat a single corn cake apiece. He had lost count of the number of rest periods they had been forced to take.

“How far do you think we've come?” he asked Nurse Jackson.

“Possibly a mile and a half,” she said quietly.

He chewed worriedly on his lip. At this rate it would take them a week to get to the fish camp.

She said, “Just pray the weather holds, and we'll be all right. If we run out of food, I'm sure we can find enough wild stuff to do us.” She studied the sun a moment, which seemed to be at zenith, then carefully set her watch by it. “Maybe it'll work this time,” she added hopefully.

“When you check it tomorrow,” he said, “I bet it'll be an hour fast.”

“But, Brick, what's wrong? Is it only the watch?”

“Dunno for sure yet. I'm just sort of guessing.”

He still didn't have anything to prove the idea that had come to him, and it sounded much too crazy to talk about. Nor did he mention his belief that they were being followed. He hadn't been able to sight the creature, and he was beginning to believe they had nothing to fear from it till dark.

As they tramped onward, much too slowly for his peace of mind, his dread of the coming night was somewhat offset by the excitement he felt at every new turn of the trail. He knew the others shared his feeling, but Nurse Jackson's growing wonder surprised him.

“Look at those oaks!” she exclaimed once. “The
size
of them! Why, it's like a great park here.”

It was, indeed, very parklike in places, and he could see long vistas under the spreading limbs, often with deer shying away from them. Birds and squirrels were everywhere.

“Wasn't it like this in Alabama?” he asked.

“Maybe once,” she said. “But not in my day. Brick, this is all virgin country. It's never seen an ax.”

“Have you noticed any strange trees, or queer birds or things?”

“No, they're all familiar. But I do think it's peculiar that we haven't seen a rabbit yet. Or even a snake. I just can't understand it.”

Brick thought he knew the answer to that, but he said nothing.

The trail was fairly open and hard underfoot, and seldom did Nurse Jackson have much trouble with the wheelchair. The worst spot was at a rocky ledge, just before they stopped for the night. Here all the gear had to be unloaded and carried down separately. By the time this was done, they were glad to make camp and gather wood for a fire.

With the ledge at their backs and a fire in front of them, Brick felt they were safe. Even so, he slept fitfully on the hard ground after his watch was over, and every small strange noise brought him up on his elbow, listening.

The night seemed endless. But nothing happened, and in spite of muscles that were beginning to ache with every movement, he was glad to be up at dawn and help Nurse Jackson begin the ordeal of the second day.

This new section of the trail seemed only a repetition of the part they had covered already. The only noticeable differences were the rockier ground and the widening stream. By noon the rocks were making the wheelchair difficult to handle. Brick unloaded it, and with Diz Dobie to help he managed to remove the small swivel wheels at the back. Now the chair could be tilted and drawn easily like a cart.

Just before they continued their journey, he remembered Nurse Jackson's watch. As he had predicted, it was an hour fast.

She looked at him worriedly. “Brick, I'm beginning to believe you know something I don't. What is it?”

He shook his head. “I'm still guessing. Did you happen to see the moon last night?”

“No. It was too misty. Why?”

“Oh, nothing much. I haven't seen it many times in my life, and I'd sort of like to know what you thought of it.”

Princess said, “Wouldn't it be just too utterly breathtaking if the moon here turned out to be a sumptuous pink? I simply adore pink.” Then she added, “Brick, do you know how to catch fish?”

“Well, I've read about it. All you have to do is to bait a hook and drop it into the water.”

“Does it hurt the fish?”

Charlie Pill said, “Aw, phooey! Don't you know fish haven't got feelings?”