Little Eagle carefully inched his way back from the top of the hill. He knew Angry Wolf was moving back too, but there wasn’t the whisper of a sound to tell him where his friend was. When he was several paces down the hill, Little Eagle rose to a stooping position so he could go faster. He darted from tree to tree. He was in the thick growth of trees at the foot of the hill when Angry Wolf hissed softly to call his attention.
Little Eagle looked around. He finally saw Angry Wolf hidden in some thick brush. Little Eagle crawled in beside him.
“We’ll wait here to make sure no one is following us,” Angry Wolf whispered.
They lay silently in their hiding place while dusk faded into darkness. At last Angry Wolf touched Little Eagle’s shoulder to let him know it was time to move. Little Eagle stepped in Angry Wolf’s footsteps as the other boy led the way from the Crow camp. Angry Wolf went on until they were many paces from the Crow camp. When he stopped, he listened carefully for signs of enemies.
“What are you doing away from our camp, Little Eagle?” he demanded as sternly as though he were a dog soldier.
A sharp answer rose to Little Eagle’s tongue. Angry Wolf was only a summer older than he, and he hadn’t yet earned the right to be called a warrior. He had no right to speak to Little Eagle in that tone of voice. Little Eagle choked back an angry answer when he realized that it was anxiety and excitement that made Angry Wolf speak so sharply.
“I felt there was something wrong about the powwow,” Little Eagle answered. “I came to see if the Crows were planning treachery.”
“It would have been better for our party if our chiefs had been as suspicious,” Angry Wolf agreed gloomily. “I slipped out of camp because I too, thought the Crows could not be trusted. Now we must get a warning back to our people.”
“It is a long trip,” Little Eagle reminded him. “If we had horses—”
“It is too dangerous to try to take horses from this Crow camp,” Angry Wolf replied. “If we failed, there would be no one to take a warning to our camp.”