“I thought there were more,” Bent Arrow admitted.
“Some of the hoofprints were made by horses without riders,” Flying Arrow explained. “See, there is a difference in the prints.”
He tried to gauge how many warriors were in the party
Bent Arrow looked where his uncle pointed. Some of the hoofmarks were deeper and clearer than others.
“I thought that the deeper prints were made by horses that came at the end of the herd,” Bent Arrow told his uncle.
“That is good trailing,” Flying Arrow praised. “Even some warriors wouldn’t have noticed that there was a difference in the tracks. However, the deeper marks are made by horses carrying riders.”
“Will we catch up with the Sioux today?” Bent Arrow asked.
“Not unless they stop to hunt,” Flying Arrow answered. “They are too far ahead of us.”
When Flying Arrow remounted, he did not follow the Sioux trail. Instead, he stayed on the level ground a short distance from the riverbank. He kept his horse going faster than he had the day before. Several times Bent Arrow dismounted and ran beside his horse. He found that he was able to run farther before his leg began to hurt. The sun had sunk to the top of the western hills when the two Crows again crossed the Sioux trail. Flying Arrow dismounted to study it briefly.