Call of the Herald by Brian Rathbone Page A

surprised when she heard
laughter that sounded like a couple of halfwits trying to be quiet
and failing. When she opened the door, she found Chase and Osbourne
side by side, grinning like fools, and her father walked up behind
her at the same moment.
    "Good morning, boys. You're here early," he
said over her shoulder while she grinned back at the boys.
    "G'morning, Mr. Volker," Osbourne
replied.
    "Good morning, Uncle Wendel. Sorry we're
early, but we thought we could help get Catrin's chores done
faster, and then we could get an early start," Chase said, but then
he jumped as if someone had pinched him. "Oh, yeah, I almost
forgot," he twitched again and laughed, squirming. "We have a
surprise for you, Cat. Guess who is coming with us?" he asked as he
and Osbourne stepped aside with a dramatic flourish. Strom entered
the cottage smiling and bowing.
    "I'd wager you weren't expecting to see me
here," he said. "G'mornin' to you, Mr. Volker."
    "Good morning to you, Strom. It's good to see
you again. Now, you grinning scoundrels, get out there. Clean and
fill those water buckets. Catrin, you get the horses fed and take
care of your cats, and then you can go," Wendel said with a smile.
He seemed as excited about their big trip as they were.
    The group of exuberant young people gave
Wendel a mock salute and, almost in unison, said, "Yes, sir."
    They made quick work of the buckets and
feeding. Benjin wished them a safe trip and told the boys to behave
themselves or he would hunt them down like rabid dogs. He said it
with a smile, but the boys nodded seriously and said again in
unison, "Yes, sir." Benjin laughed, shook his head, and walked into
a stall with his pitchfork.
    The excited campers waved good-bye as they
shouldered their packs and started their walk down the river trail.
The false dawn had not yet shown on the horizon, but the moon was
bright enough to light the way. They had little trouble getting to
the river; once there, they turned and climbed past the shoals and
falls. They had covered half the length of the lake by the time the
sun cleared the mountains.
    They laughed and talked while they hiked,
having a generally good time of things, and Catrin began to feel
the distance between her and her troubles. A small clearing, shaded
by tall pines, seemed like a good place to rest, and they flopped
onto the bed of needles. Catrin dug in her pack for the dried fruit
and cheese, but it was Strom who got a whoop of delight from the
others when he produced four of Miss Mariss's sausage breads. Each
one was twice the size of his fist and wrapped in waxed paper.
    Strom cleared his throat and said, in his
best imitation of Miss Mariss's voice, "Miss Mariss sends these
with her best wishes to some of her favorite patrons. She looks
forward to your next visit. Her words, not mine," he added, just to
make sure Catrin understood the message was intended for her. The
subtle message surprised Catrin, as did the support from Miss
Mariss, who had always been stern with her, but she decided she
would process that information later. Today she was on a grand
adventure, and she wanted nothing more than to enjoy the sausage
bread.
    Her bottle of springwine was drained all too
quickly, and she realized she should have brought more.
    "No fears. I came prepared for just such an
occasion," Strom said, seeing the concern flicker across Catrin's
face, and he produced a bottle of springwine and a bottle of
huckles juice from his pack.
    "I knew we brought you along for some
reason," Chase said, patting him on the back. Strom elbowed him in
the ribs as he shouldered his pack.
    "Sorry about that, m'friend. I didn't see you
there," he said, laughing and pushing his way past Chase and
Osbourne.
    Catrin watched as the boys jostled and
roughhoused along the trail, meandering in the direction of their
intended campsite, but as the valley narrowed, they walked single
file. The sound of the rushing falls grew as they approached the
end of the lake, and when they