Chapter 114

I kept looking over the thumbs, clicking for a more detailed view on any that seemed interesting. I purposely avoided bringing up full screen views anywhere near the Neanderthal camp. I probably should have been studying them and trying to figure out some of their customs, preparing for my visit, but I didn't want to. I wanted to be surprised in person by what I found there and I intended to be.

I made another pass over Caato's old campsite. The group there was small and seemed to have only about five or six men tending to ten or twelve women. I could tell after a while the men all had only one mate and the other females must be unmated. They were young and it was possible some of them were not women yet.

I would be able to get a better idea of the situation if I watched during the time they went to sleep for the night, since I could see who slept where. If the young ones didn't sleep with parents anymore they were almost surely women now. There were no younger men in the camp. It would probably be a good place for Georgo to visit if he could be pried away from all his new mates.

I did look over the thumbs of the Neanderthal's area and of the way I'd have to travel to get there. Basically I would be going downriver and taking the first valley off to the left after I'd passed the side stream we were using in our logging operation.

The stream toward their camp was about equal to our logging side stream but its valley was wider and the traveling would be easy enough. After heading up the valley I would need to go up the second valley to the right. There was an interesting feature of the geography around the Neanderthals. They were living more than a mile up a blind canyon, sort of a cul de sac.

It was a large area though and they probably had three to four thousand acres of land surrounded by the upper plateau, except for where the valley furnished their opening. There was also a small lake, but it didn't seem to be fed from a stream, I was guessing it was fed from underground springs. The stream leading out of the lake was much smaller than our side stream.

It would be a perfect place for a small group of people to keep and try to domesticate some of the wild cattle, but I doubted any such thing was going on there.

It was a little after noon so I left my office to see if there was any food on the way. I was surprised to find the usual crowd had already eaten and left. Jaada brought me some coffee and told me after the wagons left most of the men in camp, including the new arrivals, had headed for the logging job with Georgo's buckboard and leading the big horses which were not off fetching freight.

Well at least it would keep them busy. I did wonder what in the hell we were going to do with all the logs though. If we had a big millpond we could put them there and some of them might be worth sawing up if we cranked up a sawmill later. We didn't have a millpond though and it would be a royal bitch to create one, even with an unending supply of shovels.

What the hell, the trees were down and rotting already and we could burn them up sooner or later. I hoped the men would quit it on their own before we ran out of room to stack them. If it got to be a problem I would have to think of something else to keep them occupied.

While I was eating Mundo came to the cave's entrance, but didn't enter. Ameliea went to see what he wanted and after a few seconds I saw her wave him toward me. He came up to stand near me and stopped.

"Have a seat Mundo, have you eaten?"

"Yes, I have already eaten. I have come on behalf of Karcoto, Deberto, and myself to ask about the trees which are being brought to camp," he told me after he'd taken a seat.

"What about them, do you have an idea of how we might get some use out of them besides firewood?"

"If there are enough we would like to ask if we can use some of them for carving and to make some other things," Mundo asked, but seemed almost apologetic.

"Certainly you can. We have more of them now than we need and if you can put them to any use at all you are welcome to them. It seems some of the men enjoy cutting them up and bringing them here. It would be helpful if you can think of a use and get rid of some of them so they can bring more," I said, and saw his face reflect a change of mood.

"Thank you, we will make you some type of gift from one of them to repay your kindness," Mundo said.

"If you want to I'm sure I will love it, but it is not necessary. You are not a second-class member of this camp. I am glad you wanted to join us and glad you brought the others. Do not be hesitant about walking into my cave if you want to talk to me and if you see something you want or need be sure to tell me and I will try to see you get it. Do you need whole trees as they are brought upriver or do you need for them to be cut up?"

"It would be even better if they could be cut to different lengths," he said.

"Then try to decide which ones you want and what lengths you would like them cut into and I will make sure they are cut or I will have someone show you how to use the new saws so you can do it yourself."

"I will go and talk to Karcoto and Deberto now and we will decide," Mundo said, and left after thanking me again.

I was assuming the wagons wouldn't return until tomorrow. It was a fairly long trip and there would be a lot of packing before they could start back.

After Mundo was gone Ameliea came to bring me a refill for my coffee.

"Are you going to be busy this afternoon my mate?" she asked.

"Not really, do I need to give you and the others some attention," I asked her, pulling her into my lap and sliding a hand up between her thighs.

"It wouldn't hurt anything, but I had someone else in mind who needs a little attention. Don't you think it's about time you honored Caato and maybe even some of your other leading men?" she asked.

"I suppose you are correct. Have you seen Jaadalla lately," I asked, as Dicky began to grow.

"I can find her shortly, why don't you go into your office and I will tell her you need to talk to her for a while?" she asked.

"I will be waiting there to see if I get a visitor," I said, letting her up and then standing myself.

"Don't worry, if I can't find Jaadalla I will find someone who needs attention," she said, laughing.

I sat at my desk when I entered and was looking around trying to find the video feeds from within my own cave. I found the right ones just as Ameliea and Jaadalla were coming in from the direction of the other connected quarters. They were talking together and giggling as Ameliea pointed to my office door and sent Jaadalla that way.

I left my chair and walked toward the door, reaching it just as Jaadalla entered. She smiled when she saw me and I pulled her to me for an embrace and then a deep kiss. I let my hands roam to her ass and squeezed her cheeks. She pressed herself against me when I did it and her arms went around my neck.

"We shouldn't do this John, I am mated and it is still daylight besides," Jaadalla said, as she broke our kiss.

I figured she was just giving me a little sham resistance and I was all for it. If she really didn't want to give it up she was going to have to try a lot harder. She was just turning me on more so far.

"I am the leader now Jaadalla and you know I must take you and I like doing it during the day, even though there is no light from outside in here," I said, pulling her back for more kisses and fondling.

She only pushed against me lightly as if trying to break my grip, and as our lips met again her tongue came into my mouth at once.