Trackers
"The tracks end right here," Cedric said to his nephew. Saul was the only one of the brood that showed any aptitude for the "family business."
Saul knelt with his uncle, watching the older tracker's eyes and hands move over the ground as if he was invoking some arcane spell of magick.
Cedric's voice was dreamy. "It's like she was walking at a normal pace, then took a leap off her right foot." He pointed to the last track, deeper than the others in the soft soil.
They both turned, facing the direction of travel, looking for a reason someone would jump.
Saul said, "She might have jumped up to that limb." He pointed to a forked tree with a low limb on the right side.
They both looked up the tree. It was empty, swaying a little in the spring breeze.
Cedric stood and walked around the tree in a circle that spiraled out. There were no other tracks from their quarry. "If she climbed that tree, she didn't come down."
They remained silent for a long moment as the birds argued.
Saul said, "Could she have back-tracked over her own steps?"
Cedric shrugged. "I don't see any evidence for that, but it's the only natural explanation." He stressed "natural."
They turned and followed the tracks back from where they started.
Ten minutes later, the portal between the tree's forked trunk glowed to life. A girl with a bruise on her face stepped out and started her own hunt.
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