On arrival at the house of Caius Muro, Beric found Berenice at home;
she received him with joy. "I am glad that you have come, Beric;
it is so dull now that father has gone away to the war. I have been
expecting you here for the last fortnight. I suppose you have been
amusing your-self too much to give a thought to me."

"I have been very busy, Berenice. I am a chief now, and have had
much to do in the tribe. Among other things we have been having
great war with the wolves."

"Yes, you told me when you were last here that you were going to
set out next day on an expedition against them."

"They began first, as it turned out," he said smiling, "and very
nearly made a meal of me that night on my way homeward."

"Sit down and tell me all about it," she said. "You know I love
stories."

Beric recited to her the story of the fight at the hut.

"And there was a woman there! How terrible it must have been for
her to be alone with her children before you arrived, and to think
of her killing wolves with the spear. How different your women must
be from us, Beric, for we are only taught to embroider, to dress
ourselves, and to care for pretty things. Why, I should be frightened
out of my life at the sight of a wolf if I were all alone and had
no one to protect me."