“Good choice. I’ll get that right in.” She smiled again before sauntering off as if she didn’t have anywhere to be and wasn’t in any hurry to get there.
Greyson pulled out her cell phone and dialed Dawn.
A couple of rings later, Dawn’s chipper voice chimed on the line with, “Hey, did you make it to Damascus?”
“You should be a detective,” Greyson teased.
“Smart-ass. How was the trip?”
“Good. I’m grabbing something to eat before I hit the trail. I’d like to put in at least six to ten miles before I make camp. It isn’t much, but enough for the first day since I’m getting a late start.”
She heard a rustling through the phone and Dawn cleared her throat.
“Dawn?”
“Yeah, I’m here. Are you sure you want to do this alone? I mean, you know I don’t go for that outdoor shit, but I’ll come with you if you want me to.”
Greyson smiled, and her heart warmed that her friend would even suggest such a thing. “Thanks. But I love you too much to put you through something like that. Besides, you’d drive me bat-shit crazy.”
“Seriously, Greyson, I mean it. I don’t like this.”
Greyson ran her hand through her hair. “Come on, I told you there’s nothing to worry about. Just think of it as a work trip. You never bug out about me being in the woods then.”
“You have people with you then. At least someone close by if you get into any trouble or get hurt or something. That’s different.”
The waitress approached the table and placed the pizza on a small stand in front of Greyson. Greyson nodded her thanks and went back to her conversation.
“Don’t worry. I’ll call as soon as I get into Hot Springs. You’ll always have a good idea where I am, and if something happens you can be my hero.”
Greyson took a bite of the pizza. She closed her eyes in bliss as the smooth, rich cheese filled her mouth. “Mm-mmm.”
“What?”
“Sorry. Pizza. Really good pizza,” Greyson said with her mouth full. “I’ll call you in a few days.”
“All right, be safe out there.”
Greyson grinned. “I will,” she said, ending the call.
“Can I get you anything else?” the waitress asked, placing the check on the table in front of Greyson.
Greyson shook her head. “I’m good. Time to get this show on the road.” She wiped her mouth and pulled a ten and a couple of ones from her wallet. “What’s your name?” Greyson asked.
“Margaret.”
“Well, thanks for everything, Margaret. You have great pizza here. I’ll be sure to spread the word.” Greyson handed Margaret the money and the check.
Margaret smiled. “Thanks. What’s your name?”
“Greyson Cooper.”
“It was nice to meet you, Greyson Cooper. Enjoy your trip.”
Greyson shoved her wallet back in her pocket. “I plan to.”
She stepped onto the sidewalk and let out a long slow breath. From this moment onward, she would have peace. She tightened the straps of her pack a little tighter at her shoulders and tugged at the weight resting on her hips. Satisfied, she set off along the street following the signs down Main Street directing her to the AT.
Greyson stopped at the post office to register her hiking name so there would be a record of her being on the trail. Just inside the door was a stand of postcards featuring local monuments and pictures of the mountains along the AT. She picked up a couple, deciding it was a good idea to send one to Dawn so she wouldn’t be so freaked out, and it would be a good cheap souvenir of her own travels. She paused for a moment before picking out a third card. She’d drop a line to Olivia to let her know she was thinking of her. That couldn’t hurt. Greyson jotted down a quick note and dropped the cards into the mail. At last, she was ready.
Not much farther down the road Greyson stopped under the rough wooden arch marking the Appalachian Trail, and welcoming hikers to Damascus.
She took her first step through the arch. The adventure had begun.
* * *
Greyson skirted the edge of a rock cliff making her way to the precipice of a massive boulder. Her heart swelled. Stepping to the edge of the cliff was like walking onto heaven’s front porch. This was what she came to see—the world as it should be, peaceful, natural, wild. Thunder rumbled across the mountains like a long cascading drumroll making her skin prickle. It was her third day on the trail and she had only hiked ten or so miles today. She was still eight miles away from the Watauga Lake Shelter, but dark clouds were closing in fast. If she was going to have any shelter at all, she needed to make camp quick. She studied the storm clouds heading her way. She sighed in acceptance. It was about time Mother Nature flexed her muscles a little.
Greyson decided to use the rocks to her advantage, setting up her camp with a slanting rock wall to her back, like a lean-to. She took a moment to watch the curtain of rain push across the mountains below her. Based on the movement of the clouds and rain, the rocks would act as a break against the force that was headed her way.
She unpacked her tent and rainfly, making swift work of setting up camp. She wouldn’t have time for a fire, so dinner would have to be packaged tuna, wheat crackers, and a cup of blackberries she had picked along the trail. She spread out her sleeping bag and secured her pack inside. She pulled out a dry pack she had been using to secure her trash and got her dinner. She went to the edge of the rock and watched the rain roll in as she ate. Just as she scraped the last bits of tuna out of the package, a raindrop landed on her arm. That was her signal—it was time to clean up and head for shelter.
Greyson snapped the carabiner onto the dry pack and tossed it over a tree limb, tying off the rope to prevent bears or other critters from getting to the trash. She had only brought sealed packaged foods, so she wasn’t worried about attracting animals to her tent.
Greyson lay on top of her sleeping bag listening to the pat, pat, pat of raindrops on her tent turn to a thundering deluge pounding on the thin fabric separating her from the cleansing going on outside. The tent was small and didn’t offer much in the way of comfort, but it was doing the job. She was dry and safe. What little light had been left in the day had been snuffed out by clouds and rain. She folded her arms behind her head, letting the thrum of the rain lull her to sleep.
She woke to the fresh smells of earth, pine, and honeysuckle. Greyson stepped from her tent and stretched, soaking in the crisp morning air. The rain had cooled the temperature, and the valley below was blanketed by fluffy white fog. Despite the full night of rain, the trail was remarkably clean. The ground was damp, but not muddy. Some of the rocks along the path were easily dislodged making the path a little tricky to maneuver. She would have to pay even more attention to each step as she walked along the cliff, or she could take a tumble over the edge. She took time to heat water for coffee and some instant oatmeal with some nuts and a few of the blackberries she’d saved from dinner.
If she read the map right she would cross a stream sometime around noon. She was eager to wash off the sweat and grime from the past few days. If she was lucky she might even get a swim to work out some of the stiffness in her muscles.
Greyson watched a couple of squirrels play tag, running circles around a giant oak, pausing from time to time to chatter and fuss before launching into another round. A chipmunk peeked at her around a rock and made his hesitant way closer to where she was sitting. She placed half a walnut on the rock a couple of feet in front of her.
At first the chipmunk was cautious, stretching his head into the air to sniff the tempting morsel. He scurried around the rocks, peeking out at her, testing her. At last he stepped into the clearing within a foot of the nut before running for his life back to the rocks. Greyson didn’t move. He tried again, this time reaching his reward. He gave it a sniff before stuffing the nut into his jowl and sprinting away.
Amused, Greyson tried again, this time placing a small pile of mixed nuts for him. Th
e chipmunk was braver this time. He stopped at the nuts and inspected the treasure. He twitched nervously and turned his head, studying Greyson. He picked up another walnut and chewed at the edges before stuffing it into his mouth. Greyson stifled a laugh as he stuffed the entire pile of nuts into his cheeks. By the time he had them all in place, his head was twice its original size. He scratched at his side with his back foot, his leg moving so fast he looked like a cartoon on fast-forward.
The chipmunk ran to the top of a rock almost as tall as Greyson, where he unloaded his treasure and sat down to breakfast. His meal complete, he stretched out on his belly on the rock and yawned, his legs stretched out in front and behind him in the perfect sunbathing pose, without a care in the world.
Greyson did laugh this time. She knew how he felt. She couldn’t imagine a more perfect way to start her day. She was tempted to lie there in the sun with him, but the trail was waiting.
The chipmunk twitched and jumped up when Greyson moved. “Sorry, buddy, I’ve got to go. Thanks for the company.” He scratched again. He looked up at her with his beady black eyes and smacked his mouth. She took that as thanks for breakfast. She nodded and smiled.
Greyson packed her tent and gear back in her pack and set off in search of the stream. She heard the water long before she could see it. She spotted a small overgrown trail that snaked off the main path leading toward the sound that beckoned her. The air grew cool and damp as Greyson drew closer to the water. The earth was scattered with ferns and covered in a thick blanket of green moss. Each step was like walking on a sponge. She pushed through the branches of a grouping of spruce trees and stepped into an oasis.
Water cascaded down the steep mountain, battering against rocks that buffered the wild water into control as it dropped the final twelve feet or so into a rippling pool. The pool was deep and alive at the base of the waterfall but settled into faint ripples at the other end before slowly making its way farther down the mountain.
Greyson dipped her hand into the icy cool water. Periwinkles littered the pebbled floor like tiny conch shells from a fairy world. She was tempted to wade into the water and submerge her face and head to wash off the sweat and grime coating her skin, but she was patient. She knew how destructive this simple act could be to the life in the stream. The chemicals still trapped in her clothes and on her skin would contaminate the water for the wildlife as well as any hikers downstream.
She filled her camp shower bag with water and set it in the sun to heat. She then put a dirty pair of socks and a pair of shorts in a gallon size freezer bag, added some baking soda, and topped it off with water. She shook the bag vigorously for several minutes. She walked about two hundred yards away from the pool before emptying the soiled water on the ground and wringing out her clothes. She repeated this with all her laundry until she had most of the stink out of her clothes. When she was done, tree limbs around the area were decorated with socks, underwear, a pair of pants with zip-off leggings, her base layer, and a bra. She fastened her rainfly around a tree branch, making a privacy screen against a large tree, before she set up her camp shower, which was now toasty warm from the sun.
Greyson stepped behind the rainfly, then stripped off her clothes and tossed them on the ground outside her makeshift shower. The water was warm and soothing against her skin. The biodegradable soap didn’t have any scent so it wouldn’t attract insects, but at least she would be clean. She opened the valve to the shower bag and let the warm water cascade over her until she was damp all over. She closed the valve again, saving the rest of the water. She lathered soap into her hair and scrubbed her skin thoroughly before rinsing off. She used a small micro towel to dry herself before slipping into clean clothes.
It was getting late. She might as well camp here for the night. She checked the clothes hanging from branches around her—her shorts, shirt, and underwear were almost dry, but it would take a while for the socks and her base layer, and by the time she washed the rest it would be getting dark. There was no sign of a fire ring, indicating this spot hadn’t been used as a camp before. She decided against a fire. There was no point marking this spot. She wanted to make as little impact on the trail as possible. She pitched her tent, folded the dry clothes, put them in her pack, and prepared dinner. Tonight, dinner would consist of fresh water, a tube of peanut butter and jelly, some dried fruit, and a pack of beef jerky. She was beginning to understand what the waitress in Damascus had meant about the hikers having a hungry look about them. She would be more than ready for a real meal by the time she made it to Hot Springs. She would have to reconsider her food options for the next part of the trail so she wouldn’t get too burned-out on the prepackaged food.
As night fell, she slipped inside her tent and snuggled into her sleeping bag. She was tired but not ready to sleep. She lay on her back staring up through the screen in the roof of her tent. The stars were so bright she could see them through the tops of the trees.
She thought about what Dawn had said about her sharing her tent with a woman and wondered what it would be like to share this with someone else. It was strange for her to want to share experiences like this with anyone. Usually she talked to Dawn, but she knew Dawn didn’t get her need to be in the woods. It would be nice to have someone in her life who really got her. But she had learned it was best to keep to herself. She wouldn’t want someone chattering on all the time, complaining about this and that. At least Olivia had seemed excited about her plans to do this hike. She wondered if this was the kind of thing Olivia could get into. She’d admitted she’d been camping before. Maybe they could do a hike together sometime. Greyson shook her head. What was she thinking? No, she was happy keeping this for herself.
* * *
Olivia ground her teeth to keep from screaming at her mother. She wasn’t even sure why she bothered to come home at all anymore. Her mother never listened and she was tired of trying to defend who she was.
“He’s such a nice boy. I expect you to show your manners when he gets here.”
“Don’t you even want to know why I stopped being friends with him in the first place? He’s not as nice as you think he is.”
“Kids always argue. I’m sure it was all a misunderstanding—besides, that was so long ago, and you’ve both grown up since then. People change.”
Olivia sighed in frustration. She knew what her mother meant by people change. Her mother just would not give up on the idea of her settling down with a man and having babies. What was that all about anyway, like she couldn’t possibly have any other purpose in life than being a baby factory. But really it wasn’t about kids. Olivia loved kids—hello, that was her job. She just didn’t want it to be all anyone expected of her. If she ever found the right woman, she wouldn’t mind settling down and making a family of her own.
“I don’t want to change, Momma. I like who I am. I like my life. I don’t want the same things you want. Why can’t you just let me be?”
They were interrupted by the sound of heavy footsteps on the porch and her father’s deep voice talking to someone.
Her mother wiped her hands on her apron and pushed back the loose strands of her hair. You would have thought she was the one Larry was there to see.
Larry walked through the door, and Olivia hoped her surprise didn’t show on her face. He had gained about twenty pounds of muscle since she last saw him and his hairline was already receding. He certainly wasn’t the wiry boy she’d remembered.
“Hello, Mrs. Danner.” He nodded toward Olivia’s mother, then to her. “Olivia, it’s good to see you. It’s been a long time.”
“Hello, Larry.”
“Dinner’s almost ready,” Olivia’s mother said in a rush. “Why don’t you all go ahead and have a seat at the table. Olivia and I will bring everything out in a moment.”
Olivia took the bowl of mashed potatoes and the plate of chicken her mother handed her. She reminded herself all she had to do was get though dinner. She took a deep breath and followed her mother to the table.
“Everything looks delicious, Mrs. Danner. I appreciate you inviting me over.”
“Think nothing of it. We’re glad you could make it, and it’s nice it worked out that Olivia could be here too.”
Olivia stifled a groan but was certain her mother saw her roll her eyes.
Larry smiled at Olivia. “That is very nice.”
Olivia swallowed the piece of bread she had been chewing and cleared her throat. “So, Larry, what have you been doing with yourself all these years?”
“I joined the military after high school. I’m a helicopter pilot in the army.”
“Wow, that sounds exciting,” Olivia said with genuine enthusiasm. This was a big switch from the pigheaded boy who skipped school more often than he showed up. By the looks of things Larry really had turned his life around. Maybe her mother was at least right about that, she admitted. There had been a time when she’d considered Larry a good friend. But sometime in high school, everything changed. She hoped the changes Larry had made had brought him back to the friend she remembered growing up.
“It is,” Larry agreed.
“What brings you back home then?” she asked.
Larry looked down at his plate. “Well, after Alice left me, I guess I needed to come back to my roots and find myself again. I’ll only be here for a few more days before I fly out. When I ran into your momma, I’d hoped maybe you and I could spend some time together, catch up on life.”
Olivia glanced at her mother. “I’m sure Momma explained that I don’t live here anymore. I’m just visiting for the weekend.”
Olivia’s mother pushed back her chair, scraping the legs across the old wood floor. “Oh, but you don’t have to be in any hurry to get back. Since you don’t have work, you can stay as long as you like.”
“I’ll be leaving in the morning,” Olivia snapped.
Olivia’s mother huffed. “We need more tea.” She stomped out of the room.
“Pass me the cornbread and that bowl of onions,” Olivia’s father said, seemingly unaware of the drama playing out in front of him.
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