Little Bear looked at the four captured horses. They were good horses. He and Grandfather had been lucky to pick out such good horses in the dark. Undoubtedly Flying Arrow would trade the roan colt for any one of the horses. Little Bear knew he and Grandfather could ride into the main Sioux camp in triumph. No other boy in the entire Sioux nation was the owner of three such fine horses. Yet it angered him to think of the Crow warrior going unpunished. The Pawnees had been punished for their attack on the Sioux hunting party. That Crow warrior should be taught it wasn’t safe to steal Sioux horses.
“Spirit-of-Water-That-Falls pointed out we could find the Crow if we went towards the setting sun,” Little Bear reminded his grandfather.
“He warned of snow,” Great Bear remembered, “and he said nothing of Pawnees. I think it was only a dream and no message from a spirit.”
“As you say, Grandfather,” Little Bear agreed, “although I think that Crow should be punished and I would like to have you get your buffalo horse back.”
Great Bear smiled proudly.
“Someday you will be a great chief, Little Bear,” he prophesied. “You have a ready tongue and the courage to do what your tongue suggests. We shall spend two more days trying to find the Crow’s trail.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
Since their supply of meat was almost all used, Great Bear decided he should get a buffalo. While Great Bear was gone, Little Bear busied himself around the camp. He took the ropes with which the Pawnee horses had been hobbled and spliced them to make two long ropes. The long ropes could be used to tie packs onto the backs of horses. He was just finishing when Grandfather returned to camp.
Grandfather had killed and butchered a fat buffalo cow. He had the meat tied in two large bundles, each bundle wrapped in half of the buffalo hide. They used one of the ropes Little Bear had spliced and tied the packs securely on the back of one of the captured horses.