They gazed up at his smiling face, but his eyes were not smiling.

“You must be patient a little while longer,” he went on, “for they must await sunrise—plain daylight—before they can read our tracks, if any, within that dark scrub.”

They just stared.

“Ah! You see now! I was really cunning after all. Never mind, you will learn a lot more before they catch me. We shall see what a chase we can lead them before you have the pleasure of watching them rip out my kidney-fat. Let us see now,” he mused. “That signal fire is calling the warriors to gather now at the big rock. Soon they will be thirsting for my blood, shaking their spears, boasting that they will run me to earth like a hunted dingo!”

They gazed up at him, quiet as little ebony statues in the silence of the night.

“They must camp at the big rock tonight. In the morning the scrub will hold them up for a while; even the women will track us, but very slowly through there. When they come out into the open bushland they will dog our footsteps much faster, and won’t need the women any more. Then the foothills will steady them up again. They are rough, these foothills, and since you’ve felt my spear point a few times you’ve been quite careful not to leave obvious tracks.” He paused, grinning. “Ah well, at daylight the pack will be in pursuit. Of course, we could travel a lot faster down on the low country. But we are not going down on the low country.”

Their faces fell as this sank in.

“Surely you did not think that I would walk down into the low country into the arms of others of your friends camped to left and ahead of us! We have a fair start,” he went on grimly. “By dawn we shall have a long start. But—we have a long way to go. Should they catch up with us then it means the end of me; you may watch them fight over my kidney-fat. But remember this! If you two, my wives, do not travel as fast as you possibly can while I still live, if you do anything to help those coming behind, then it will mean the end of you, too. For I will still take you both with me. You have obeyed me, you are my wives by law as you know, once we have crossed my tribal boundary. I promise you this, if they catch me fairly then you can watch them kill me. But if you do anything to delay me, if you do anything to help them follow more easily or to catch me, then I will kill you both before I turn to fight.”

Gazing into that face, they gradually abandoned hope. They would either be his wives truly now, or they would die with him. He drew a deep breath, relaxed, pointed with his wommera into the darkness ahead.