Chapter 23

After the last of my passengers had taken their turn I rode Buster down to the river where the raft making was supposed to be going on. I barely made it in time for the christening. They had been working their asses off and that was no joke.

The rope they'd plaited out of the vines was tied between trees on each side and there was also a rope attached to either side of the raft and tied to trees on the other end so that the raft could be pulled back and forth if it happened to be on the wrong side when you wanted to use it. When they saw me they demanded I try it first. It worked as expected and they had even put up a stout short rail in the middle so people that weren't pulling the rope would have something to hang onto.

I went across and then back across and got one of them to help me back onto Buster. Next I rode him to the main camp to make the happy announcement. Nearly two dozen people followed me back to the river to see what I was talking about.

I left it with the crew that had built it to explain how it worked and rode back to my mates. I didn't see any sense in our sleeping here another night since things were going so well now. Surely I could cobble up a set of hobbles and ride Buster back and forth, and with the raft it would be easier to let the workmen come back and forth to eat their meals without having to undress and redress both ways.

I told my mates the plan and they agreed and began packing up what they'd need to take back while I rode out to tell the other men. They seemed happy enough about it too and said they'd come back to camp before sunset.

Lanita got the honor of riding back with me while my mates walked. They didn't mind of course, since walking was the only way they'd ever traveled up to now. They were excited when they saw the raft in action, but had to stand in line with the others that were trying it out, so Lanita and I were home ahead of them.

Matatu approached me after I'd dismounted and apparently he had come to his senses. He apologized profusely but I cut him off after a little.

"You don't owe me an apology Matatu, and thank goodness you don't owe Caloe one. Zakat will be well in a few days and everything will be back to normal.

"But next winter, or maybe the one after that, you will owe a deep apology to a mother who loses her child, or a man or woman who loses their mate, because your foolishness caused me to use more medicine on Shaton than he would have needed if you hadn't interfered.

"I have a good supply of it, but sooner or later it will be gone, and I can't make any more. That medicine came with me. What you have done is killed the first one that needs it after it is gone."

He was stunned, and he should have been, because it was exactly what he had done. We could hope that more would be provided but that was all we could do, hope. I sure as hell didn't have any idea how to make penicillin and no one else here did either.

Matatu was taking it hard though, harder than I'd expected. Tears were streaming down his cheeks and I could see that he was truly ashamed of himself now. I felt like I had to give him some relief if I could, and I thought of a way.

"Beg the spirits to replace the medicine Matatu. There is a chance that they will. They often send me things in the night and there is a chance they will send more medicine. Ask them for it."

He didn't say anything and he left right away. I didn't know where he was going and I had put it out of my mind by the time my mates arrived. We spent the time before supper making a set of hobbles for Buster and we even got them on him and showed him how they worked before it was time to eat.

Denac and Jekaycey were in our normal spot when we headed that way, but now we had the super heavy-duty furniture to sit on. She and Denac were together on a log about four feet long and there was one probably eight feet long for my mates, Lanita, and I. Lanita and I sat down while Jekaycey and my mates went to get our food.

"I am very impressed with all you've done, Carl. The raft across the river was something we could have made but never thought of, but riding the cashda was something we could have never done," he said.

"Yes, you could have done that too, but didn't think of it. I'll admit it would have been much harder for you to catch them. Hell, I lucked out myself when I did it so easily. Still, it doesn't matter who did it now that we have them. It will be much easier to catch more from the backs of the ones we already have," I said.

"I can see how it would be, but how many do we need?" Denac asked.

"I think one for every man and woman will be enough, with a few extra to pull travois or wagons."

"That seems like so many, will all of us need one?" he asked.

"No, it wouldn't be necessary for all of us, but who do you think will want to walk while others are riding, especially since those that are riding can cover so much more ground in a day?"

"I see what you mean, but that brings me to my next question. What is a wagon?"

"It is for carrying things, almost like a travois, but much bigger, and with wheels similar to my dolly. Surely you remember how much easier it is to carry things with my dolly."

"Yes, I do remember. It would have taken several men to bring the hive section of that bee tree here without your dolly, and with it the two of us were able to do it," he said.

"Yes. A wagon has four wheels and can be much bigger than my dolly. It can also be pulled by a cashda. They are very good for carrying things, but it will take time to build them. In fact, it will take time and trouble to build the wheels."

Our discussion was over then because the women arrived with the important part of the evening. Nita handed me the bowl for Lanita and I, and soon everyone was merrily chewing. Our supper this evening was especially tasty.

Caloe came to our place not long after we'd finished eating, and she looked worried. She didn't waste much time letting me know what she wanted.

"Carl, I saw Matatu talking with you earlier and now he seems to be acting strangely. He didn't even come out of his hut to eat, and he seems to be wailing and begging the spirits for something. I think it is more medicine, but I don't understand. Do you think I was too stern with him about Shaton?" she said.

"No, you were not too stern, and if you asked him now he would tell you that what you did was nothing. He came to me to apologize for his behavior earlier and he is begging the spirits because I told him what he had done. What he was going to cause."

"What will he cause?" she asked.

"He has caused it already, it just hasn't happened yet. The medicine I gave for Zakat cannot be made here, even if I knew how. I only have so much, and when it is gone it will be gone. Matatu's stunt will cause me to use more on Shaton than I would have needed to if he had kept taking it and kept resting until he was well."

I could see right away that she understood what that meant. In fact Nita, Katia, Jekaycey, and Shaeta seemed to understand too. Denac did not understand, and he had the kind of manners that allowed him to ask questions if he wondered about something. It was one of my favorite things about him.

"But why will that matter, Carl. What would make Matatu wail and beg the spirits about that?" Denac asked.

"Because my friend, after I have used the last of the medicine to help others get well, Matatu will know who he killed with his traveling tantrum."

"Who he killed. What do you mean?"

"The next one that needs that type medicine after it is gone will die, and Matatu will know he caused their death, and mostly for nothing. I encouraged him to beg the spirits for more of the medicine. They brought it here with me when I came, and they often leave things for me. I believe that if Matatu is sincerely sorry for what he has done they might replace it."

"For his sake, I hope they do. He is suffering now for his behavior, I can hear it in his voice as he pleads," Caloe said.

"Yes, he is suffering, but he is not dying of sickness. I hope the spirits replace the medicine too. Not only for the sake of one more person saved, though that is important, but also to help Matatu face what he has done and become wiser.

"When people ask you to be their leader, they do it because they think you will help them have a better life, they don't make you the leader so that they can serve your whims. I think Matatu forgot that for a while."

Well, I'd thrown a wet blanket on the earlier good feelings around the dining area, but I couldn't feel bad about it. I wasn't going to let Caloe think she had caused Matatu such grief. He had caused it himself, and even that was encouraging. It was reassuring that he was so despondent now that he learned what the long term costs of his little fit were going to be.

"Don't worry Daddy, it will come out for the good, you'll see," Lanita said, and patted my cheek solemnly, which made me grin at her.

"Things are already wonderful for me, now that I have you to hold my lap down," I said, and it made her giggle and the world seemed right again.