They sat down on the blocks of wood which were the only furniture of their home; then Lodrix watched his mother skin the deer with the sharp stone knife, and his father light the fire in the stone fireplace.
The chief was so hungry that he ate the deer meat nearly raw.
Lodrix did not care for the meat, but ate some cakes which had been made from powdered grain and cooked on the hot stones. He ate some sour cherries too, and plums which had been picked from the trees on the shore of the lake and dried.
CHAPTER III
PREPARATION FOR THE ENEMY
When the father had finished eating, Lodrix fed the horses, the sheep, and the goats that were waiting outside for their dinner.
The mother threw the bones of the deer into the lake, through the trap-door, and laid the skin in the sun to dry.
When he had made sure that everything was secure and had sent Lodrix with a message to one of the Lake-Dwellers, the chief lay down on a skin to sleep.
Lodrix hurried off to do his father’s bidding.