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“Well, which is it?” Riley asked. “More or less?”
Emerson pulled a book entitled The Complete Guide to Wilderness Survival from his backpack. “It’s what you’d call more of a theoretical experience.”
“For the love of Mike, Emerson. Do you even know where we are?”
“More or less.”
Riley narrowed her eyes at him. “We’re completely lost, aren’t we?”
Emerson opened the book to the chapter on way finding. “Theoretically, no. It would be a vast exaggeration to say that we’re completely lost. At worst, we’re partially lost. And that barely counts because we know where we’re going. Sour Creek Dome is the large obstruction directly in front of us.”
Vernon and Wayan Bagus crested the hill, rejoining Emerson and Riley.
Vernon dumped his backpack onto the ground. “My back hurts. I’ve got blisters on my feet, and Little Buddy won’t stop talking about my gun. I could be back at Mysterioso Manor watching reruns of Baywatch right now.”
“That’s the least of your worries,” Riley said. “We’re lost.”
“Lost shmost,” Vernon said. “We’re going to that big hill in front of us. How can we be lost if we can see where we’re going?”
“Precisely,” Emerson said. “And I have a book on the subject.”
“No man can be lost so long as he follows his Tao,” Wayan Bagus said.
“First off,” Riley said, “the Tao thing is getting old. Secondly, up until six months ago, when I got sucked into this bizarre vortex, my Tao was being a financial analyst in an office building, saving enough money to pay off my student loans, and going out for an occasional movie date on the weekends.”
“Don’t sound to me like it compares in any way to hanging out with us,” Vernon said.
Emerson offered the Complete Guide to Riley. “Would it help if I let you hold on to the book?”
“Thank you,” Riley said, “but I don’t want to hold the dumb book. I’m going to go sit over there under that tree and eat a PowerBar. Nobody mess with me for ten minutes.”
Riley sat under the tree, eating her lunch, while Emerson, Vernon, and Wayan Bagus sat on a rock eating theirs. The midday sun sparkled off a little lake in the valley below, and Riley closed her eyes, listening to the sound of the wind filtering through the leaf canopy above her. It really was beautiful here, she thought, but it was difficult to relax and appreciate the beauty when the horror of the night before was still so clear in her mind.
She had asked for ten minutes, and that’s exactly what she gave herself. She had a job to do. It would seem her life depended on it. She was going to hike to Sour Creek Dome and see for herself if something sinister was taking place there.
In exactly ten minutes she left the shade of the tree and strapped on her pack. “Let’s keep moving, boys,” she said to Emerson, Vernon, and Wayan Bagus. “We’re burning daylight.”
Vernon pulled himself to his feet and grabbed his backpack. “I guess you’re not so worried about getting lost anymore.”
“What could possibly go wrong?” Riley said. “After all, we have a book.”
—
It was late afternoon when they reached the lake on the valley floor. It was deep blue and pristine. And a lot bigger than it looked from the ridgeline.
“We only have an hour or two before sunset,” Emerson said. “I think we should camp here. According to my guidebook it’s best to get settled while there’s enough light to see your surroundings.”
Riley didn’t need a book to figure that one out. She’d done her share of hunting and camping when she was a kid. Not nearly as rough as this. They’d had a pop-up camper that they’d supplement with a tent. Still, the basics were the same. Figure out where the bathroom was located, and make sure you could get to it without running into too many critters in the dark of night.
“First thing we want to do is set up the tents,” Emerson said. “And we should get a fire started to keep the animals away.”
“Do you know how to start a fire?” Riley asked.
Emerson held up the book. “Chapter three.”
“Okeydokey then,” Riley said. “You make the fire, and Vernon and I will get the tents up.”
“I got everything pulled out of the backpacks,” Vernon said. “We got four sleeping bags and pads, a couple little pots for cooking, and two tents.”
