See How She Runs (The Chronicles of Izzy #1)(26)

We trudged on in silence for about three hours with me stopping every few minutes to check my orientation. The only words that passed between us were those concerning our trek. We climbed up for what seemed an eternity before heading downward toward the river itself. The daylight was starting to fade and I was wondering if we would be heading back in the dark, or if we would be staying the night out in the wilderness.

My fear of the dark was only second to my fear of small spaces. I was hoping that somewhere in my pack was some sort of lantern or something that might keep the dark at bay for a while. Ready to stop, I broke the silence between us.

“Kennan, can we stop for a while? I am getting really tired. I know we have not made it out yet, but the sun is setting and I don’t think there is any way I can do it in the dark," I sighed looking out at the river. I was stunned by its beauty. Even in the waning light, its magnificence was undeniable.

“We can stop here for the night. You need to look for a clearing to set up camp. You should look for something close to the water so that fire containment won’t be such an issue. Then you need to go and look for some dry wood to make a fire."

I looked at him like he had grown a second head. Just what in the hay was he going to be doing while I was busting my bottom?

“Okay." I drew the word out so that my irritation was evident.

Well, at least it was evident to me. I looked around and found a level piece of ground that was nestled against the rocky shore of the river. I headed in that direction, checking the clearing for critters that might crawl out of a hole and eat me while I slept. Satisfied with my choice, I set my bag down and headed out in search of firewood.

Finding dry wood on the Olympic Peninsula turned out to be more daunting than I had anticipated. With some work, I was able to find four passable pieces of wood. I carried them back to the site and noticed that Kennan was out in the water with his shirt off. That water must be freezing. But seeing as Kennan was now being a stupid head, I did not care if he got hypothermia. On second thought, I would be stuck in the wilderness alone for the rest of my short days if he died on me.

“Kennan, you are going to catch your death. What are you doing out there?" I asked as dispassionately as I could. He would not catch me caring, no siree Bob. Two could play this game.

“Catching dinner," was all he replied before reaching into the river and pulling out a fish. So, he was part bear as well. That was good to know. Maybe they didn’t have fishing poles back when he was born. I snickered to myself, imagining the first dude that invented a fishing pole and Kennan being all, "Nah I got this."

I stacked the wood and dug through my pack looking for something to light the fire with. I found a lighter buried underneath several sets of clothing. Pulling from all of the survival shows I had watched, I lit a small ball of tinder. I prayed the wood was not too damp to catch. With a little luck, and a light head from blowing on the embers, the wood finally caught. I looked up to see Kennan heading my way with several fish. He pulled a grate out of his pack on his way to the fire. After getting the fish situated, he headed back to his pack and pulled on a hoodie.

I headed over to my pack and decided to figure out what I was going to sleep on before the light faded. I saw a mat that resembled my yoga mat from back home rolled up underneath. I took the straps off and unfurled it, thankful that it was not as thin as my mat back home. I shuffled through the giant pack in search of a sleeping bag. I pulled it out of its small pouch, surprised that something so large could collapse to be so compact. Kennan spared no expense on his kidnapping supplies it would seem.

I lay it all out between the river and the fire. My logic being that no big bad critters would want to cross the fire to eat me. Well, that was my hope at any rate. I wondered if Bigfoot was afraid of fires. I dug around in my pack in search of something warmer to put on. I found a fleece jacket and pulled it on and followed it up with a fleece hat. I refused to die of a little thing like exposure. It may have only been forty something degrees, I was still cold.

I walked back toward the fire, the aroma of fish drawing me in. I suddenly realized I was famished. Kennan was dishing up the food as I arrived. I sat down as he handed me a plate, the silence unnerving me. I dug in, the food gone entirely too quickly. I looked at Kennan as he rifled through his pack. He tossed something my way. I looked down in my hands and saw that he had given me a Power Bar. Nothing to top a dinner off like a fine sundae, I mean protein bar. Alas, beggars cannot be choosers. The strawberry cake of the previous evening conjured itself in my memories like a traitorous lech. I ate the bar in silence, trying to be grateful for a full belly.

I got up and headed to the river to rinse my plate, when I returned I placed it close to the fire. I looked at Kennan and noticed that he was staring at me, a thousand emotions dancing in his eyes like the flames they reflected. I sighed, steeling my resolve. I was not going to try and mend whatever bridge seemed to have burned between us. To my knowledge, I had done nothing to deserve his change.

“Good night, Kennan," I said, as the tears threatened to break through. My resolve did nothing to soften the blow of the loss.

“Good night," I heard him mutter.

I headed to my sleeping back and curled up. I prayed that sleep would come quickly, that at least there I would find some shelter from the storm of my life. For once, my prayers were granted.





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