13 A Surprise by the Water

CHAPTER 13 A Surprise by the Water The land was rugged and the forest thick, but Hawkeye and the Mohicans knew it well. They did not hesitate to run right through the trees, with Duncan and Munro close on their heels. The stars provided direction, and they traveled until Hawkeye thought they should stop. Dew still clung to the leaves when they woke and began to walk the next morning. After a few miles, Hawkeye slowed down and became more careful. He stopped to look closely at certain

trees and always made sure the streams were safe to cross. "I see no sign of them—which makes me think we've taken the wrong path," he said. "Oh no," Duncan said. "We've lost so much time. We need to retrace our steps, look more closely." Finally Uncas found the trail. "See," Uncas said roughly, "the dark-haired girl stepped here, this is her footprint." "Magua travels as if he is the French general. They are weighed down by horses, which must be carrying the girls. They stopped here for an instant, maybe for a drink of water, but they left a mark. We have every chance of catching them now," Hawkeye said. With new hope, the rescue party carried on. Now that Hawkeye had the trail, he didn't let it out of his sight. Rocks, twigs, and branches showed them the way. But Magua had not made it easy for Hawkeye

to track him. Magua had left false trails and made sudden turns and strange footprints. This did not fool Hawkeye or the Mohicans. The horses also left tracks, which were easier to follow. Uncas left to follow a strange trail and found the animals running wild. "What does this mean?" Duncan asked. Hawkeye answered, "They are still alive, but they now travel by foot. We are close to their camp—I can smell it. We heard tell that Magua's people had come to the valleys to hunt for moose. It's dangerous ground, with the French still fighting here. We must find the path they took." Hawkeye, Uncas, and Chingachgook each looked at a small part of the meadow. They could find no trail. There were footprints leading in all different directions, but they did not make any sense. "We'll start again at the brook and look

closer," Hawkeye said. The men slowly made their way back to where they had found the original footprint. Not a leaf or a stick was left unturned. Stones were lifted up. Still, they could not find the trail. Finally Uncas found another small stream that had been covered with leaves. He brushed them away and let out a whoop—there was a moccasin print in the mud. "Good work," Hawkeye shouted. "It's the print of the singer—it's too big to be anyone else's." Hawkeye bent down and looked more closely at the mud. "They've made him go first so everyone else could step in his print." "But there are no signs of Cora and Alice," Duncan cried. "I bet Magua and his men are carrying them. We'll see a sign of them before many yards go by." The party walked alongside the little stream

for half a mile before coming to a large rock that the water flowed around. Uncas looked carefully at the shore and found a bed of moss with a footprint on it. "Let's go!" Duncan said. "We've found the path again." "Now where did they all cross the water?" Hawkeye asked. Duncan looked around, having learned much from the Mohicans. "Over there—it looks like a wheelbarrow." "That's it!" Hawkeye said. The scout walked over to take a close look at the wheelbarrow. Near it he found three sets of moccasin prints and the small steps of Cora and Alice. "They're fine," Hawkeye said. "They have sure and steady feet." The group stopped then for a quick rest and something to eat. The setting sun gave them the encouragement to keep going. They did not want

another day to go by without finding Cora and Alice. They were so close to the Huron camp by this time that following the trail was easy. Before long, Hawkeye slowed down. "Through the trees, there, is open sky," he said. "We need to be more careful now. Uncas and Chingachgook will go along the stream. I will follow the trail. If anything happens, we'll call three times, like a crow." The two Mohicans went one way, while Hawkeye, Duncan, and Munro followed the other path. When they got a bit closer, Hawkeye told Munro and Duncan to wait in the thicket. Suddenly Duncan saw a figure coming toward him, crouching on all fours. He was about to make the crow call but did not want to give himself away. Hawkeye crept up beside him. "We found their camp, but that's not a Huron. Why, I think it's one of Montcalm's scouts."