THE PASSAGE

ANGRY BIRDS

Chapter 42

After Toby goes to try out his new walking stick, Solstice asks, "How is the stew?"

"Oh, Solstice, it was so good. I don't know what gave you the idea of putting those nuts in the stew, but it's just perfect. This is my second plate."

Solstice smiles. "I am glad that you are enjoying it. We should have enough for supper, too. Did Toby eat enough?"

"Yes, I fixed him a good-sized plate of food, and he ate it all."

"That's wonderful. It makes me happy to see how quickly Toby is recovering."

Solstice fixes herself a plate of food and sits next to me. We sit in silence and continue eating, each of us buried in our thoughts.

About ten minutes later, Toby comes walking in with the help of his new walking cane.

"Ah, it feels great to get out for a bit. Solstice, this cane is the best gift anyone has ever given me."

Solstice looks at me with that pretty smile of hers, rolling her eyes at Toby's comment.

"I'm happy you find it useful. It will allow you to exercise some while you regain your strength and balance. I will need to check your wound later."

"Have you girls seen any wild hogs around here?"

"No, why do you ask?" I say.

"I was looking around at animal tracks. One of them looks a lot like a small pig's track. And there is another track that I can't identify. If I didn't know any better, I would say it was possibly a monkey."

Solstice and I both laugh and then tell Toby of our adventure yesterday with the monkeys. I tell him I will take him to the grove of fruit trees tomorrow if he feels like it.

Toby is quickly feeling exhausted from being up and also from the little bit of exercise he had walking around, so he decides to rest in bed. Solstice wants to check his wounds before he takes a nap. As she bends down, the towel slips off her shoulders, exposing her bare breasts. Either she is too occupied with what she is doing to notice, or she doesn't care. Either way, she doesn't pick the towel up.

I watch as she rewraps the compression bandage around Toby's shirtless body, her breasts pressing into his back as she reaches around him. I wonder if he is enjoying the sensation. I wonder if she is enjoying it as well. For some reason, the sight of it doesn't bother me a bit, and I'm enjoying watching her. I suppose it doesn't matter. All that matters to me right now is that we are all safe and have food to eat. Abstinence, I have to wonder how long that will last.

After Solstice finishes, I lay Cain with Toby again and let them take a nap together. Solstice had been asking me earlier about letting her try the revolver. I hate to waste any bullets, but I did promise her that I would let her try it. Plus, she needs to learn to shoot it correctly just in case she has to use it to defend herself one day.

A while later, Solstice slips on her dress, then she and I head out to do a little exploring on our own, comfortable with the fact that Toby and Cain will be okay. We decide to explore the area around the bend in the creek; both of us curious as to what is beyond. Feeling a little more comfortable with the area now, we decide to save time and cut across the woods at an angle that will hopefully put us at our destination.

As we walk, we spot several fox squirrels eating nuts up in the trees. A little farther, a group of those white crows flies over. There are also other smaller birds flying about through the trees, calling to one another in their bird language.