“We’ll shift.”
26
Kendra and Grayson headed down the trail that was fine to walk on, though they had to watch for bears, cougars, and wolves there too. They waved at Patrick as he went down another trail.
He waved back and disappeared from their view.
“Well, that was unexpected.” Kendra texted Amy to let her know they were out of danger.
Amy texted her: But you’re still in the forest.
Uh, yeah.
Let me know when you get to the lodge.
I will.
Then Kendra put her phone away. “Just let Amy know we were out of danger.”
“Good. Here I thought we would have a nice, relaxing walk in the woods.”
“But, hey, we’re making memories.”
Grayson laughed. They walked for about an hour before heading back to their place. “Ready for grilled steaks and sides and to watch the sunset?”
“You bet.”
“Good, because all that hiking and rescuing a couple of knuckleheads made me hungry.”
She smiled and leaned against him as they walked back along the trail. “I agree. The café is closed for the night so I guess we can have ice cream after lunch tomorrow. I wonder if those men got some good photos of the cubs after all that.”
“Well, if they did, they will be telling all their friends how they got the photos after they outmaneuvered an angry mother bear.”
“We could always give the real version.”
“We would need pictures of them,” Grayson said.
“Patrick took some.” She called his number, and he immediately answered, probably worried that she and Grayson were in trouble. “Hey, you took photos of those guys who went down the closed trail, right?” She put the phone on speaker.
“Yeah, for a report and for when they try to say they did nothing wrong and get their fines reduced or tossed out. And to share on talks with hikers about the danger that they could be in if they don’t follow the rules,” Patrick said.
“Yes! Can you share those pictures with a reporter?”
“I can. Why?”
“To educate people about how important it is to follow the rules when dealing with wildlife.”
Patrick laughed. “You want to make sure the real story gets out in case they want to make up their own version.”
“How did you know?” Kendra asked.
“We think a lot alike.”
She laughed. “Yeah, that’s what we were thinking.”
“It will be done. No more trouble on the trail?”
“No, we’re headed back to our place now. Have you had any other trouble?” Kendra asked.
