Time Meddlers

by Deborah Jackson

  Chapter 14

  Where the Deer and the Bear Roam

  Matt groaned and opened his eyes. There was nothing to see, of course, because they were back in the bat cave.

  “Sarah,” he said. “Are you there?” He tried to sit up, but a wave of dizziness washed over him, and he sank back down.

  “Here,” she said in a shaky voice.

  Matt fumbled around in the darkness until he found her backpack, and then slid his hand down her arm to her hand.

  “My head hurts, though.”

  “Tell me about it,” said Matt. He rubbed his throbbing skull. He tried to sit up again, taking it slowly and swallowing some bile. A sudden rustling noise in the cave made him tense. He could sense the presence of other creatures, but he couldn’t see anything.

  “Those vampire bats again,” said Sarah.

  “Fruit,” said Matt, but he didn’t feel as brave as he had the last time they were in this situation. For one thing, there was no rescue effort under way. Secondly, he had no idea how they were going to get back, or if that was even possible. Thirdly, they had no light.

  “Wh-what are we going to do?” asked Sarah.

  Matt gulped. “I don’t know. Get out of this cave, for one.” He struggled to his feet, then leaned down to help Sarah up.

  “Which way?” she asked.

  A gurgle and the mightier rush of a stream came from his left. “This way,” he said. He led her forward, shuffling to avoid rocks, grazing the side wall with his fingertips, until he splashed into some water. Sarah held back at the water’s edge.

  “I’m missing a boot,” she said.

  “Oh,” said Matt. “That’s not good. You should avoid the stream, then. It’s still pretty cold.”

  Sarah murmured agreement and gave the stream a wide berth. They walked with their arms outstretched, stumbling occasionally over scattered rocks. Matt followed the stream against the flow until the walls gave way. He blinked when he realized he could see. Diffuse light spilled from the cave mouth and reflected off the stalactites, creating wavy patterns on the ground. Relieved, they sat on a rock to rest.

  “We’re almost out,” said Sarah.

  Matt squeezed her hand.

  “What do we do once we’re out?”

  “Avoid First Nations camps,” said Matt.

  “Do you think we’re really in the seventeenth century?”

  “If Dad was in 10,000 BCE, then we’re in the seventeenth century.”

  Sarah sighed. “How do we get back?” Her eyes glittered in the ghostly light, most likely from budding tears. Matt blinked his own away.

  “We don’t,” he said. “We just have to concentrate on staying alive.”

  Sarah sniffed. “Why were we so stupid? After he warned us. . .”

  “Who warned us?” asked Matt.

  “Your dad, of course. What do you think the arrows meant? He was telling us about the First Nations, that we might end up in this time period if we kept snooping in the lab.”

  “How did he know?”

  Sarah shook her head. “For someone so smart, you sure can be dense. He’s travelling through time. If he knows what happened in the past, maybe he can also travel to the future. Then he showed us what he saw through a wormhole. Maybe he can lock onto you sometimes, because the computer has your DNA. But he couldn’t stop what happened, since Nadine has control over the computer.”

  “I suppose it’s possible,” said Matt. “After this, anything’s possible.” He coughed and cleared his throat. The cave rumbled in reply.

  “Be quiet,” whispered Sarah. “You don’t want to bring the whole Five Nations down on us.”

  “That wasn’t me.”

  The rumble occurred again, thunderous, sending vibrations through the cave and shaking stalactites from the rock ceiling. They exploded into hundreds of slivers on either side of Matt and Sarah. His heart flapping wildly against his chest, Matt met Sarah’s eyes.

  “What lives in caves besides snakes and bats?” she asked.

  “Bears,” Matt mouthed.

  They leaped up and raced for the entrance. Near the lofty archway, Matt tripped over a rock and crashed down on his left knee. A scream ripped through his head that he suppressed by biting his lip. Sarah tugged on his arm and pulled him to his feet.

  Another roar blasted through the cave. They ran faster, Sarah pulling, Matt limping, until they reached the opening and dashed through. They ran headlong into an enormous black bear rearing on its hind legs. They both ricocheted backward and fell to the ground.

  The bear opened its mouth, displaying a jagged row of sharp teeth. But it was the spike-length claws that drew their attention. Before the creature could snap their necks, or maul them with its powerful claws, something whistled through the air. It thudded into the beast, throwing it backward.

  The bear stumbled and groaned, an arrow jutting from its chest. It roared and swiped with its claws, centimetres from Matt’s face. Thud. Thud. Two more arrows struck the bear, one in the throat, the other in the chest. The creature did a clumsy dance and fell over, blood welling from the puncture sites.

  Matt and Sarah rolled away as the bear roared in agony. They looked at the forest, where a boy, no older than they were, stood holding a bow. He had braided black hair, deep brown eyes, and a deerskin shirt and leggings. He nodded to them, then disappeared into the forest.

  “Wait!” called Matt, bouncing to his feet.

  “Are you crazy?” said Sarah, standing groggily.

  “He saved our lives.” Matt nodded at the bear, which had stopped groaning and lay still.

  “But he’s . . .”

  “Probably Algonquin, like Annawan. If we’re going to survive here, we’ll need allies.”

  Sarah sniffed.

  “Do you think we can hunt and eat berries and survive without help?”

  She shook her head. Her lips quivered as she gazed at their surroundings.

  Matt understood her fear, but he didn’t know how to help her. They were encircled by a sea of trees and brush that probably swept all the way to the Gatineau River to the west and the Ottawa River to the south, although they’d have different names in this time. The trees were in full bloom, their emerald leaves shivering in the early dawn.

  “At least she didn’t leave it winter,” said Matt.

  “It’s beautiful. Except I hate it.”

  “We wouldn’t last a day if it was winter,” he said, ignoring her comment. “Especially you, without a boot.”

  Sarah looked down at her stockinged foot. The sock was damp and caked with dirt and crushed leaves. It was the same foot that an arrow had pierced less than a week ago. She kept wincing, so it must still hurt.

  “You could borrow mine,” he said. “But I don’t think we’re the same size.”

  Sarah compared his size eight boots to her size fives. “It wouldn’t work,” she said. “Besides, one injured person is enough.”

  “Hey, you didn’t see my knee.” He rolled up his pant leg. The kneecap was swollen to twice its normal size, scraped, bloody, and bruised.

  “We are a sorry pair, aren’t we?” she said.

  Matt grinned. “Might as well laugh as cry.”

  The hint of a smile touched her lips. “Okay. I’m open to suggestions.”

  “I suggest we find our arrow-shooting friend.”

  “And if he suggests that we aren’t friends,” asked Sarah, “with his arrows?”

  “Then we can cry,” said Matt.

  “Right.” Her voice sounded strong and steady. She drew up her chin and faced the New World.

  Matt joined her, taking in the view. Fire swept through his veins. He intended to make the most of this adventure and do his best to ignore the fear that bubbled beneath the surface. Besides, they could just as well have been thrown into Atlantis. This world might be untamed and wild, fraught with hazards, but it was still Canada. No tidal wave threatened to sweep them away. No earthquakes would swallow them into the sea. They were going t
o survive, if only to show Nadine that she hadn’t won the war. In fact, the war had just begun.