Chapter 111
Otter heard me out and strongly urged that I not take Morning Mist into my confidence, perceiving her as one who would grasp any opportunity to further her own fortunes, even at the expense of her son. Once I was gone, Otter would find himself evicted if she had her way, whereas Dog Fox would understand the place was really Otter’s so long as he saw fit to live there.
By spring thaw, Morning Mist and I were at one another’s throats daily. One or the other was constantly on the peck. She was a hateful woman who brought out the worst in me. I know not where the thing would have ended had not Stone Knife, now an old man, stopped by the Mead after the thaw. Morning Mist, at the rag-end of a thrown fit, quickly accepted an offer to join his camp since there were already a few Yanube with him. I despaired of the boy’s departure, but it was necessary at this juncture.