Off the Grid

He glanced over to see her long legs eat up the distance between them as she jogged toward him.

She skidded to a halt. “Where are you going?”

“Back home. I have better things to do than play games,” he said.

“Whoa.” She held up her hands, palms out. “I don’t know what’s going on between you and Peter, but please don’t shoot the messenger. I’m here to do a job. One I am ready, willing, and completely capable of doing if only you’ll allow me to.”

He looked up toward the sun and breathed out through his nostrils as her words penetrated the red haze buzzing around him.

“This is my chance to prove I can do a story of this magnitude. If you send me away I’ve already lost.” Her voice wavered and her eyes grew glossy. She blinked rapidly, and balled her fists. “I cannot have that.” Her gaze was steady and she stood less than an inch in front of him, blocking his path.

She’s brave. I have to give her that.

“If we do this, you need to listen to every order I give without question, and you have to keep up.”

“I can do that,” she replied automatically.

He couldn’t tell if her answer was legit or she was full of hot air. Closing his eyes, he released a deep breath. He’d already accepted the money. He couldn’t afford to give it back. It’d been a huge hit to lose a month’s worth of pay after he recently finished paying for some of the bigger jobs in his cabin. I’m not going to cut off my nose to spite my face. “Then you have yourself a guide for a month, Lilac Fehr.”

She grinned, and he turned away, not ready to be charmed by her sunny disposition. He was pissed and as salty as a sea captain too long on the water. How could she do this?

“Thank you. If I remember correctly we work well together,” she chirped. She was like a bird tweeting early in the morning. It’s a beautiful sound when you’re up and taking in the glory of a sunrise. But annoying as hell when you’re trying to sleep in.

He grunted. “It’s been a long time since Chemistry class.”

“If I recall correctly we both got A’s,” she continued to talk, ignoring his attempt to curb her chatter as she adjusted the pack on her back.

“There are no tests you can pass with a pen and paper out here, Fehr.”

“Oh, I know. I’m reminding you that I’m a quick study.” The confidence in her tone was charming. His lips flickered upward despite himself. You had to admire a girl with spunk. “We’ll see. Let’s get a move on.” He spun on his heels, not bothering to see if she followed. It would be wrong to direct his anger at her. Still, it remained right below the surface, boiling like heated water in a tea kettle ready to blow and whistle. They descended the steep hill into the colorful forest putting on its fall display as lush greens yielded to coppers, yellows, and rusts.

“It’s beautiful out here,” she said quietly.

The reverence in Lilac’s voice surprised him. “You get out here much?”

“No, I’ve been cooped up in the office for what seems like a decade. I started to feel like a vampire. The sun almost burned me when I stepped into it.”

He grimaced. This was exactly why he stepped back from everything and never looked back. After all the time he spent alone in remote locations, there was no way a nine-to-five would ever make him happy. Sitting in a tiny cubicle, trying to make quotas, and jump when the boss told him to would drive him insane. “That’s no way to live.”

“No, it isn’t,” she agreed. “Which is why I put a stop to it. I wish I’d done it sooner. It’s all too easy to get so hung up on paying bills and reaching lofty goals you don’t see what else you’re missing out on in your life.”

He arched an eyebrow and risked a look back at the woman carefully observing the ground in front of her. “I’m shocked to hear you say that. I seem to remember you always had your head in a book.” He’d been sure she’d be huffing and puffing by now. Instead, she kept his brisk pace.

“That’s because I was trying to ace my classes and get a scholarship. College is expensive, and I was the baby of four.”

He grunted. “I’m kind of shocked you didn’t leave, get your degree, and never look back. Once you get out in the world our town seems a hell of a lot tinier.”

“Ha, are you kidding me? And what? Break Fehr tradition? You want me to be excommunicated from my family and have my ancestors haunting me? I’ll pass.”

He smirked. He knew all too well how important family tradition could be. She was funny, but he didn’t want to laugh right now. “Since I have you for a month I plan on walking you through the variety of courses I offer. It’s my goal that by the end of the month you’d be able to survive out here on your own and understand what’s necessary to live a fully sustainable life.” It was easier to fall back onto training. It allowed him to avoid the reality of his dashed plans. He wasn’t naïve enough to call what he felt for Alexa love. It was a comfortable affection they could build upon. Marriages had been made from less.

“What do you intend to start with?” she asked.

Her question drew him back out of his head. “The first thing I want to do is assess your basic knowledge of survival skills.”

“Such as?”

“If you know how to start a fire, pitch a tent, or search for water. How to stay warm when it’s cold, how to find water, food, and medicinal herbs.”