Running Wild by Lucy Jane Bledsoe

Author:Lucy Jane Bledsoe
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Holiday House
Published: 2019-09-30T16:00:00+00:00

FIFTEEN

I WAKE UP at first light. When I climb out of the sleeping bags, the air is so cold it feels like my bones will crack. I stuff my feet into my boots and shake the boys awake.

Seth sits up. “Where’s Zhòh?”

“I don’t know. Please just pack up. Let’s go.”

“But—”

“No arguing. We need to make tracks.”

“He’s probably hunting,” Keith reminds Seth. “He won’t be far. He’ll find us.”

I wrap Keith’s frosty long underwear in the shredded tarp and stuff this lump, and the sleeping bags, into the packs. The trick will be to stay in the woods, where we can’t be seen by boats on the river or helicopters in the sky, but close enough to the creek so that we can follow the shoreline.

A ways past our camp we enter a clearing scattered with camping debris. In the dim light of early dawn, I make out buckets, two camp chairs, strewn beer bottles, and a big bear-proof food locker. Embers still glow red inside the fire ring. From the big tent comes a loud, rumbling snore.

We all stare for a moment until I jerk my head to the side, meaning that we need to keep moving. But Keith heads for the food locker. I wave my arms in a big X over my head, trying to stop him. He unlatches the bear-proof lid.

“Keith, no,” I say as loudly as I dare.

A man’s voice in the tent mumbles something.

After only the briefest pause, Keith turns back to raiding the locker. He grabs candy bars and packages of jerky. He stuffs as much as he can in his pockets. He tosses more to Seth, who looks at me and, even though I vigorously shake my head, holds on to the food. The crackling of candy wrappers sounds extra-loud in the early-dawn stillness.

I gesture for them to stop, to come on, now.

The snoring grows louder, and more irregular. Two big snogs, and then silence.

I run to the food locker as silently as possible and try to drag Keith away from the cache. The long tent zipper opens.

“What the heck?” The man’s rumbling voice sounds sleepy.

“I’m sorry,” I cry, trying to take the food from Keith’s hands. “We’ll give it all back.”

Unbelievably, Keith twists away from me, wearing his defiant face.

The man grunts as he shoves out of the tent and stands. He has long stringy hair and a big belly. “I thought you was bears.”

“I’m sorry,” I say again. “Seth, Keith, put it back.”

“You little thieves.” The man gestures at Keith’s stuffed pockets and Seth’s armful.

“Apologize,” I say to my brothers.

“Sorry!” Seth shouts but Keith tears the wrapper off a candy bar and takes a bite.

“We’re leaving now,” I sputter. “Keith. Put the food back.”

“They have a whole locker of food,” Keith says. “He’s already fat.”

“What?” the man says, slitting his eyes.

“He said he’s very sorry.”

A younger man, with shaggy hair and a big mustache, emerges from the tent, holding a rifle. “Who are they?” he asks.

The gun scares the boys into

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