Storm Dog by Jennifer Li Shotz

Author:Jennifer Li Shotz
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2019-03-25T16:00:00+00:00

15

IN THE DISTANCE, something lay across the road. They got closer, and Matt saw that two fallen trees blocked their path entirely. The giant trees were tangled up in each other, one lying diagonally across the other. Even on their sides, the trees were way taller than Matt.

“They must have been growing right next to each other,” Luisa said. “One fell and brought the other down with it.”

Scout scrambled up onto the thick trunks, assessing the situation. The top tree wobbled under his weight. It didn’t look safe.

“Scout, off.” Reluctantly, Scout got down and walked to Matt’s side. Matt and Luisa inspected the pile. He kicked at the lower trunk with his wet foot. The whole thing tottered, and the top tree threatened to roll right off. Matt and Luisa jumped back.

They’d had enough things fall on them today already.

“We can’t go over them, that’s for sure,” Matt said. “They’re not stable.”

“Does Scout think Rosita went over them?” Luisa asked. “Or maybe under.” She checked under the trees for a gap, but there wasn’t even enough room for a mouse to wiggle through.

Scout had moved to the side of the road. He looked over at Matt, pawed at the ground, and whimpered. He wanted them to follow him.

“He’s still tracking her scent.” Matt looked at where his dog wanted to go and realized that they were on the edge of the forest. Scout wanted to leave the road and head into the woods.

Matt scanned the horizon. The forest went on as far as he could see. But something wasn’t right. Matt knew from years of hiking and camping with his dad that a forest should be cool and damp, because leaves on the trees blocked the sunlight.

But this time, there were no treetops. There was no dappled light. Matt breathed in the smell of wet dirt and tree sap, but the light was too bright and the air was too hot. He squinted, running his eyes up and up and up the tree trunks until he reached the top—and saw that there was nothing there.

The trees were stripped completely bare.

It was as if someone had plucked every single leaf off every single branch. Matt blinked a few times, as if maybe he wasn’t seeing clearly. But it was real, and it was mind-blowing. The 155-mile-an-hour winds from the hurricane had ripped the leaves off but left the trees upright.

And that was just on the trees that were still standing.

Huge swaths of fallen trees leaned on each other and lay sideways at sharp angles.

Scout was sniffing busily at the air, trying to reorient himself in this world of new odors.

“Where are we?” Matt asked.

“El Yunque forest,” Luisa said quietly.

“It’s big, right?” he asked.

“Yeah. Like, really, really big.”

Matt closed his eyes and pictured the map he’d studied before coming to Puerto Rico. El Yunque was a huge forest on the eastern end of the island—but it wasn’t just any forest. It was a rain forest, which meant it should have a thick canopy of trees, a vibrant array of greenery and wildlife, and a rich palette of colors.

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