Lake busies himself cooking the fish and, together, I think we’ll have a decent dinner.
I sit down by the fire as I take good care not to burn the hell out of the pumpkin, we stuffed the top back on so it doesn’t get full of ashes, but every now and then I move it around so it cooks on all sides. So far, it’s looking like it might work out but I can’t be sure until the moment we serve it.
“How’d you learn to do pumpkin like that?” Waylen asks, sitting down beside me.
Out here, he seems less tense. Like he isn’t carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders. I swear I even saw him smile earlier when talking to Elias. Waylen takes his job very seriously—he’s always wrapped up in doing the best he can and he’s always tense and moody. Other than the one night we spent together, where I saw him unwind, I can’t say I’ve ever seen the man have fun.
“I saw a friend of mine’s parents do it a few times. It just came to me when we found the pumpkins.”
“Clever.”
“Which shelter is yours?” I ask him, nodding in the direction of all the shelters.
He grunts. “Don’t need a shelter.”
My brows go up. “You’re just going to sleep on the ground, with nothing?”
He shrugs. “Nothin’ wrong with nature, Willa. It’s a spectacular place. What do you think your little shelters are going to keep out?”
I frown. “Ummm, the weather.”
“Weather is perfect. Won’t stop snakes sliding in to find warmth. They’re more likely to go to you than me, because your shelter is much cozier for them.”
I stare at him, horrified. “Snakes?”
“What, you don’t think there are snakes out here?”
“I know there are snakes out here, but I thought the fire was meant to keep them away, isn’t that some sort of old wilderness trick?”
Waylen grins and, on him, it’s quite dazzling. “Wilderness trick?”
“Yes!” I mutter.
“It’s more to keep bigger animals away.”
“Like?” I ask, eyes wide.
“Bears, mountain lions, you know ... things like that.”
“Oh,” I squeak. “Just those.”
He smirks. “Don’t worry, I’m sure Rhett wouldn’t bring his group of campers out here if it wasn’t safe. You’ll be fine.”
I turn and glance at our shelter.
What I thought was epic before I’m not so sure about any longer.
I think I’m ready to go home now.
“THAT PUMPKIN WAS ACTUALLY really good,” Ember says, later that night as we sit around the fire.
It turned out to be quite a meal. With the fish, the pumpkin, and the fillings, we all ended up quite full by the time we were done. Eating proved to be tricky, but after washing some flat rocks and letting them dry, we made ourselves some little plates and ate with our hands. Then we took the plates down to the river and rewashed them before stacking them up for the following day.
The rocks were Marg’s idea, and although it took a bit of hunting to find flat ones big enough to use, we managed to get a good one each. They’re not perfect, but they did the job. Rhett had some pop up water containers in the packs, which we filled up with water after boiling it, and it’s surprisingly clean and nice. While it was hot, we used it to make tea—Rhett was good enough to bring a couple of essentials for us.
Vodka would have been better.
Now we’re all just chilling, talking amongst ourselves, and I have to admit it is quite relaxing.
I decide to go down to the river and have a wash before bed, feeling dirty from the days events. The girls all have one bar of soap to share and the guys have another. It’s nothing fancy, just a cheap bar from the store, but it’s better than nothing. I have to wonder how tough it would be if we really were stranded here with nothing but the clothes on our backs. Thankfully, Rhett hasn’t made it horribly difficult for us, but he is still ensuring we’re forced to live tougher than normal.
I strip out of my clothes and place them on a rock. I can’t see much but the moon is bright and lights up enough of the water that I won’t fall in. I squat down and use my hands to dunk the soap in the water and lather it up, then I wash all my bits and pieces before cupping the water in my hands to rinse off. No way I’m jumping in there, the water is freezing.
I’m just about to attempt to dry off with some of my clothes I don’t need to put back on when I hear it. At first, it sounds like rustling in the water and I figure it must be just a small ripple, but then a crackling, throaty sound can be heard. I freeze, my body going to complete mush as I stand there, terrified, listening. I take a shaky step back and the sound becomes more throaty, a growl.