Hunters and Gatherers (29 page)

“Hey. Voices,” said Hegwitha.

In the distance crickets chirped—or was it the hum of telephone wires? A high-pitched twitter, an answering murmur, a question, call, and response.

“What is that?” said Martha. “What
are
those sounds?”

“Hush,” said Sonoma. “Listen. Stay tuned. Are you listening? Hear it now?”

They huddled closer together.

“I think so,” Martha said.

Francine Prose is the author of sixteen novels, including
A Changed Man
, winner of the Dayton Literary Peace Prize, and
Blue Angel
, a finalist for the National Book Award. Her most recent works of nonfiction include the highly acclaimed
Anne Frank: The Book, the Life, the Afterlife
, and the
New York Times
bestseller
Reading Like a Writer
. A former president of PEN American Center and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters, as well as the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Prose is a highly regarded critic and essayist, and has taught literature and writing for more than twenty years at major universities. She is a distinguished writer in residence at Bard College, and she lives in New York City.

All rights reserved, including without limitation the right to reproduce this ebook or any portion thereof in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of the publisher.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Copyright © 1995 by Francine Prose

Cover design by Jason Gabbert

978-1-4804-4509-3

This edition published in 2013 by Open Road Integrated Media, Inc.

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