Round noon Avni had left the path and climbed a short distance into the forest. He'd travelled only one-third of the journey, but he was hungry and needed a break. So he’d eaten a sandwich and rested in the shade, hidden from the path. He did not care to meet anyone.
He hadn’t met anyone. Then, in the afternoon, he’d started feeling tired from the long climb uphill, and he’d also felt concerned that he might not find the hut or that Andreas was wrong after all and it had been destroyed or vandalised. The valley could only be accessed by road from the south-east, and the invading army, advancing along the main routes from the north, had not ventured far into that natural cul-de-sac made up of a maze of foothills and canyons. The path climbed steeply into the mountains, sometimes close to the water, sometimes winding away into the forest and then back along the stream. Higher up, the brush-covered slopes were uninhabited. But even if the enemy hadn’t swept the area, they might have sent a scouting party up there, a small airborne unit or men who could find their way across the passes. And everyone knew what a bunch of soldiers could do to a place unless they had a reason to respect it or to cover their tracks.
He hadn’t met anyone. Then, in the afternoon, he’d started feeling tired from the long climb uphill, and he’d also felt concerned that he might not find the hut or that Andreas was wrong after all and it had been destroyed or vandalised. The valley could only be accessed by road from the south-east, and the invading army, advancing along the main routes from the north, had not ventured far into that natural cul-de-sac made up of a maze of foothills and canyons. The path climbed steeply into the mountains, sometimes close to the water, sometimes winding away into the forest and then back along the stream. Higher up, the brush-covered slopes were uninhabited. But even if the enemy hadn’t swept the area, they might have sent a scouting party up there, a small airborne unit or men who could find their way across the passes. And everyone knew what a bunch of soldiers could do to a place unless they had a reason to respect it or to cover their tracks.
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