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“You won’t be here alone, Annie. Have you met Mandy Wheeler? She’s been staying with me for the past two weeks. She ought to be waking up pretty soon.”
Annie eyed the cabin doubtfully. “Maybe I should just go home.”
“Please don’t. Mandy might really enjoy some company. She’s a few years older than you, but you’ll probably like each other. She can tell you all sorts of things about Garrett Bluff and the people around here.”
“Well...” Annie sighed dramatically. “I guess.”
Minutes later, Jolie and Matt were headed up a path. Charlie bounded ahead with a short, child-size fishing pole protruding from his backpack and binoculars swinging from his neck.
“Any wildlife within a mile is no doubt fleeing for the next county by now,” Matt said as he stepped over a fallen aspen trunk. He raised his voice. “Charlie! Stay within sight or we go home.”
The little boy was waiting around the next bend for them, kicking at pinecones strewn across the trail. “You old guys are soslow!”
“Thanks, kid.” Jolie stepped forward and tousled his hair. “Tell me how old thirty-three is whenyouget there.”
Matt shifted the weight of his own backpack, then folded his arms over his chest. “You were a Cub Scout in Chicago, son. Tell me what you learned about hiking safety.”
Charlie kicked another pinecone and watched it arc into a rock-strewn ravine. “Have a map, and a compass, and a first-aid kit...and areallygood knife.”
“I’m thinking more in terms of behavior.”
“Hike with a buddy.”
“And?”
“Don’t run?”
“And?”
Charlie rolled his eyes. “Stay together?”
“Good enough. There could be bears up here, or coyotes...even wolves, I hear. Or other hazards you wouldn’t expect. Slow down, okay?”
Charlie gave a grudging nod, then slowly headed up the narrow trail. Within a few strides he’d escalated into a fast jog punctuated by slam-dunk leaps at overhanging pine branches.
“Getting tired of hiking?” A corner of Matt’s mouth lifted as he looked down at Jolie. “Or my son?”
“Not at all.” Jolie took a deep breath, savoring the crisp mountain air.
“You’re a patient woman.”
“Charlie’s a great kid. Full of energy, true, but he has a big heart. You’ve done a great job with him.”
After a few strides, Matt shook his head slowly. “Sometimes I’m not at all sure.” As they rounded the next curve, he held out an arm and stopped. “Look at that, will you?”
A few feet ahead, Charlie stood staring out across a steep valley. A half-dozen elk grazed on the opposite slope, while several fawns bucked and played amongst them.
“They’re probably very new,” Jolie whispered. “They’re usually born in May or June.”
“Wow! They are so cool!” Charlie exclaimed. “I wish we could get closer.”
“They’d be off and running. They aren’t nearly as curious about you as you are about them.” Jolie gestured farther up the path. “If I remember right, there may be a pond up ahead. You might see something else interesting up there, if you’re really quiet.”
Charlie gave her a double thumbs-up and moved quietly up the trail.
“I hope this isn’t going to be anything with fangs or claws,” Matt said under his breath.
“Hopefully, just furry and cute.”
