“I expect it will occupy most of our day. Pack a lunch.”
He thought of the small pile of gear next to his cot in the cabin.
“Do I need to bring bear spray?”
“There are no grizzlies here. Black bears are glorified raccoons. I’m deterrent enough.”
He smiled and went to get his things.
Green’s sleep had been terrible. Even after the calming respite ofValentina’s cheese on toast, he woke countless times to stand and listen by the cabin door, then chided himself back to resting. What did he expect to hear?
The horned wolf had let them run from Kinkaid Cabins.
Why didn’t it kill us?
Because it didn’t want to?
Yet?
He turned the question over in his hands again and again through the night, a second acorn weighing on his thoughts.
Either it didn’t want to, echoing the conscious choice it made on the night Green heard its thoughts. Or it simply couldn’t because of some contrivance of Valentina’s, some “deterrent.”
He hoped it was the latter.
He did not like the idea that he was alive because of that monster’s whim and forbearance. It felt better to believe that he was part of an active and effective resistance to the creature’s designs.
The lingering scent of toasting bread and melting cheese looked over Green’s shoulder while he packed. He imagined the ghost of a woman in a mint green jacket sitting on the edge of his cot, watching him paw through his supplies. The ghost of a man holding a fishing rod stood by saying, “If you stick to the roads, you can’t get too lost around here.”
Green had not stuck to the roads.
He shouldered his gear and turned back to the door.
An old song ran through his rattled mind.
You can never be strong. You can only be free.
“Easy for you to say.”
He went out.
Valentina was waiting for him.
She wore her customary canvas pack and carried a knobby walking stick.
“Nice stick,” Green said.
“Thank you. It’s blackthorn. A gift from an Irish colleague. Blackthorn has some particular benefits in our line of work.”
“Mysterious. I like it.”
“Not mysterious, just not relevant today. It is my task to plan your educational meals to be nutritious, so I don’t give you random bites of empty calories until you are full to bursting without absorbing the proper informational nutrients in their proper order.”
“Has anybody ever told you you’ve got a real talent for metaphor?”
“Oh, hush, Mr. Green. It’s a three-mile hike to reach our destination. I don’t suppose you have ever walked six miles in a day.”
“Hey now, I lived in the city. My car spent most of its time in the parking garage. I walked everywhere. I’m game. Where are we going?”
