Chapter 3

He wished he had a bit more information to go on than the little in her file. It didn’t tell him much about her. He sat down on a boulder that the stream in the ravine had half-excavated to do some thinking. He hadn’t been expecting her to do this. She had, though, which meant there was a bit more to her than he’d first allowed. He almost regretted not grabbing her earlier as she pranced in the rain, but she was giving them a more interesting game to play.

Downhill? Well, maybe. The ground got a lot easier close to the lake, but the underbrush was a lot thicker there too. He looked up the ravine. It was rocky, very tough going, and the stream was starting to rise as the rain began draining down the mountain’s flanks. He clicked on the radio.

“Hey, Kurt…”

“Yeah?”

“Lloyd there yet?”

“He’s here.” Kurt replied.

“Okay, look. I’m at a ravine. She went into it, but didn’t come out. She can only go up or downhill. One of you head down towards the lake, keep an eye out for her there. I’m going uphill.”

“You think she went up?” Kurt asked.

“Not sure.” He answered. “She might have gone a little ways just to throw us off. I think she’s going to try to beat us to the Safe Zone, whichever way she went. So one of you has to stay put, in case she tries to get back on the trail.”

“Okay…which one of us goes, which one stays?”

“I don’t care. Figure it out yourselves. I’ll call in if I pick up her trail.”

“Roger that.” Kurt acknowledged. “I like it when they run.”

He clicked off the radio and stored it away. That climb looked rugged. He hoped she didn’t break a leg or something before they caught up to her. He stood and began trudging up the ravine.

Kimberley noted how fast the water was rising, and decided it might be a good idea to get up out of this thing and just walk alongside it. She looked around for a way out, and spotted a smaller gully that fed into the ravine. That ought to do.

It was trickier going than she’d expected. The bed of the gully was mostly loose rocks that threatened to shift under her weight, and in the end it took maybe half an hour to climb out onto more level ground. She was breathing heavily when she was done, but at least now she was safe from being swept away by the water. It was rushing through the ravine now with a constant hissing roar. The soil must not be very deep to get so much runoff so quickly, she noted. She struck out upslope, keeping the ravine to her left. Trees and underbrush sometimes forced her away from it for a while, but she could always find it again just by going towards the noise. She grinned to herself. They’d have to work pretty hard to find her now.

The water was getting too high and too fast, and he had to haul himself out of the ravine by some exposed tree roots and handy vines. Standing on the edge, he looked down at the water surging by and hoped she hadn’t gotten caught in it. He doubted she had, but if she’d gotten out on the other side it was going to be damned hard to spot her tracks from over here. Still, if she went up far enough, she’d strike the upper trail, and probably follow it for a while at least. Since it wasn’t shown on her map, she wouldn’t be sure just where it finally led. Shrugging his backpack into a more comfortable position, he moved uphill. It would be getting dark soon. Maybe he’d be lucky enough to stumble across her camp before it got too dark. He’s settle for picking up her trail.

Kimberley was feeling rather pleased with herself. She’d hiked a long way today, much of it over rough ground. She felt a bit tired now, but the good kind of tired you get from pushing yourself physically. Still...it was getting darker, and soon it would be too dark to see things she might walk into or trip over. It was time to make camp for the night.

Some time ago, one of the taller trees had toppled over, the result of wind or age and death. The opening it left in the canopy above had given a number of small pines the chance to grow. They were pretty thickly clustered, and offered plenty of cover. She eased in between them, finding a spot just big enough for her to unroll her sleeping bag. This would be perfect.

She shucked off her backpack, wincing a little as various muscles announced they had cramps, and propped it up against one of the pines. In a few practiced minutes, she had the sleeping bag laid out. She sat down gratefully on it and began to unlace her hiking boots when she paused. What if they came across her during the night? She’d need the boots for running. But, somehow, the thought of sleeping in her rather muddy boots was distasteful. If nothing else, they’d get the inside of the sleeping bag dirty. She shrugged. If they could find her in this cover in the dark, being able to run probably wouldn’t help her much. She unlaced the boots and placed them carefully close to hand, so she could find them in the dark. Her socks she kept on. It felt like it was going to be a cold night, and she’d welcome any little extra insulation she could get. The last thing she did before climbing into the bag was to retrieve her canteen and some food from her backpack. She wouldn’t risk a fire tonight.

He’d been searching the ground carefully as he moved uphill, looking for any sign that elf-girl had been this way. It slowed him down, but if he came across her trail he was sure he could catch up to her in time. Meantime, until he did find her trail speed meant nothing.

It was almost too dark to see when he came across what he’d been looking for. There in a patch of bare ground were three distinct boot prints, heading uphill. They looked fresh, they looked like hers, and in any case, who else would be out here now? He couldn’t tell how long ago they’d been made. Could be a few minutes, could be a few hours. But she was definitely heading upslope, and would probably find the upper trail some time tomorrow morning. He took out his radio. It only had enough range to reach whoever had stayed put on the trail, but that ought to be enough. Once he’d made his report he could think about where to sack out for the night. All he had for sleeping was a blanket roll, but that would be enough. When he was still in the Rangers, often he’d had to manage with a lot less.

Zippered snugly into her sleeping bag, Kimberley slept very soundly, untroubled by dreams.