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  He looked down and took in the worn jeans that were at least three times bigger than they needed to be and the rolled cuffed that still dragged the ground. She was short, barely came up to his chest and probably topped out at five feet four inches. He'd seen all kinds of camp clothes on people staying at the campground, but they usually fit a person's body.

  "Do you have something more private in full hookups? Away from other campers?" she asked.

  The woman hadn't even seen the grounds. Each spot was allotted the same amount of land.

  "Maybe over here." She pointed at the map. "Where there are lots of trees?"

  "Let me look on the registry to see if there's any available on that last row." He walked back around the counter, thumbed through the book, and tapped the paper. "Space 34A is vacant. How long did you say you wanted to stay?"

  "Um, two days?" She pulled up on the legs of her jeans.

  Reservations for that spot were already scheduled starting on Sunday. She'd be gone by then.

  He turned the registry book around. "It's yours. Just fill out the information, and it'll be twenty-four dollars a night. You can pay for the first night now, and someone will be around collecting tomorrow."

  "I'll pay for both days now." She pulled money out of her pocket. "Do you, uh, need my driver's license?"

  "Nope." He set a pen on the book and glanced up at her. "You're not from these parts."

  Anyone local understood he respected the privacy of others. As long as campers wanted to pay, they could stay. That way, they kept their nose out of his business and complained less.

  "I'll pay for both nights now." She put the exact amount on the counter and picked up the pen, writing her information quickly. "Thank you," she said quietly.

  He put the book away. "I'll show you the spot. Go ahead and pull the trailer around and follow me.

  Halfway to the All-Terrain Vehicle, he sensed her falling back and looked over his shoulder. She struggled with keeping her jeans from dragging and grabbed a fistful of material at her thighs, lifting her pant legs higher.

  Two bare feet peeked out from underneath the material. He looked up at her face. She winced with each step on the loose gravel.

  Letting her go at her own pace, he reached the lean-to and grabbed the nearest ATV. He pulled out in front of the guest and sat on the seat, while the woman climbed into the driver's side of the truck.

  Once he heard the truck start, he slowly led her to Space 34A. Hopping off the quad, he motioned her to drive past the landing pad. Then, he stood at the back of the paved space, and using hand signals, he helped her back the trailer—six times before he ran out of patience and stalked to the driver's side window.

  "Watch my hands when I'm back there. You need to turn the steering wheel a quarter turn the other way when the bumper of your truck comes up to the turn. Then turn three-fourths the other way and hold it until I hold up my fist for you to stop," he said.

  "Three fourths?"

  Reaching inside her truck, he tapped the wheel. "Here's a quarter turn. It's at nine o'clock." Moving his hand, he slapped a different spot. "Here's three-fourths. You're going to go clockwise to six o'clock."

  "Okay, I'll try," she said.

  It took her three more attempts to back the trailer into the spot before he finally called it good enough and had her stop the truck.

  He knocked on the side panel of the pickup. "You're good to go."

  Walking away, he left her to level and set up the older trailer on her own. Though, he couldn't help taking his time getting on the ATV and riding away as she continued to sit in the driver's seat. First time camping or not, she'd need to learn how to get settled on her own.

  As it was, he put her as far away from the pet area as possible in the spot she requested. Being a lone woman on the mountain put her at a disadvantage if she planned on making use of the wilderness around her. She didn't need to deal with barking dogs or worry about one of them getting out of the fenced-off area and into her camp.

  He turned and went on the second loop, avoiding the back section. The campground was one huge oblong circle with four loops zigzagging through the property, one exit, one entrance, backed by the Bitterroot Mountains, and over five hundred acres on the Clark Fork River.

  Ahead of him on the road, his longest-standing employee waved. He slowed down and waited for Jared to reach him. All his caretakers moved around the campground on ATVs, as did most of the campers who were recreational riders and spent their days on the thousands of trails in the area.

  "There are two big rigs parked in the turnaround." Jared dropped his hands from the handlebar. "Do you want me to go check them in?"

  "I'll take care of them. I'm going back to headquarters now." He looked in the utility trailer behind Jared's quad. "Did you get the two trees cleared from the path to the river?"

  Jared wiped his forehead with his hand. "Yeah, I cut the logs up. I put J.T. and Sam on splitting it all. They're going to stack the wood by the fish cleaning station. I figured someone would use it for building a fire while they're at the river."

  "Good call." He lifted his chin, rode away, and pulled in front of the door of headquarters.

  Looking around, he searched for the two parties Jared mentioned and couldn't find any sign of them. Maybe they decided to turn around and search for somewhere else to stay.

  He walked inside and went straight to his desk. Tilting back in the seat, he plopped his boots on the surface and rubbed his face with both hands. It'd been a hell of a winter and spending the last month getting ready for opening season had him feeling older than forty-six years old.

  Crossing his arms across his chest, he tucked his chin and closed his eyes. Dogs barked. He flinched, opening his eyes. Straining to hear how close they were to him, only silence came. After so many years, he got used to the visions, the imagined sounds, the reminders of his past every time he closed his eyes.

  Chapter 2

  An owl hooted outside the trailer. Katelynn stopped chewing on the stale Pringle chip. Every single time a noise came through the walls, she imaged someone approaching the door.

  At least inside, she was safe from wild animals.

  With the lack of outside lights and the pitch-black night underneath the canopy of the trees, there was no use trying to look through the windows. Afraid to light the one candle she found in the drawer under the silverware, she sat in darkness eating chips that had already been opened at one time and expired nine months ago. For all she knew, they were covered in mold or nibbled on by mice because most of the chips were broken.

  Tomorrow, if she survived the night, she'd look through the stash of food in the trailer during the daylight. She'd spotted an opener in with the forks. Hopefully, she'd find a can of beans or corn.

  Her mouth dried. She set the container on the table. Not knowing the time, she wondered when darkness usually happened in the woods during the summer.

  The guy that checked her in and took her money mentioned she'd have water and electricity. She only needed one. A big glass of cold water would keep her alert through the night. But when she'd walked around the trailer earlier, all she found was a spigot on a post. She had no idea how to get water from there to the faucet inside.

  If she would've thought about it more at the time, she could've used one of the cups she found in the cabinet and filled it up. But she wasn't going to venture outside the trailer in the dark.

  She rubbed her lips together. God, she was thirsty. When was the last time she even had a drink?

  Unable to sit still, she stood and stumbled, losing her balance as the whole trailer moved under the shift of her body. She grabbed onto the table, peeked through the window, and peered up.

  Nothing.

  The trees even blocked the moon from her view. She squinted her eyes and tried to see past the branches. When she'd arrived, she noticed other campers on the other side of the loop.

  A small light shined in the darkness.

  "Yes," she whispered, pres
sing her forehead against the glass.

  She held on to that sign of life.

  Someway, somehow, she knew the travel trailer had lights, but none of them seemed to work for her. Suspecting there was a way to hook up to electricity like the man at the office had told her, she kept reminding herself that no light would keep her safer.

  She certainly wasn't going to ask the man to help her after she had an embarrassingly tricky time parking the trailer. She'd gotten flustered when the big mountain man started rattling off math problems with his three-fourth turns, two feet this way, one foot that way lecture.

  Her heart raced, and she took her gaze off the light, trying to peer around. In hindsight, she should've asked if there was a camping spot right by the office. Knowing that guy was close by made her feel safer than she had in the last six months. He could wrestle a bear and win.

  Her idea to park at the back of the campground had felt like the smart thing to do at the time. If someone walked up to the trailer at night, they'd need to use a flashlight with no moon to guide them. She'd be able to spot anyone coming close and prepare herself.

  All her plans lately seemed to go wrong.

  Stealing the travel trailer had been her best idea. Without any money and her truck low on gas, she would've only made it about a hundred miles with the fifty dollars she found before becoming destitute. Being stranded in God-knows-where and living out of her truck would've been a new problem. At least with the trailer, she could take two days to figure out her next move, and the campground provided her security.

  Now, flat broke, she needed to come up with a new plan fast. Preferably, one that would get her out of Idaho with no money.

  Moving away from the window, she closed the curtain, knowing she'd see a flashlight through the thin material. She sat on the couch and pulled her sore feet underneath her. Despite the summer temperatures during the day, once the sun went down in the mountains, the air turned colder.

  She swallowed hard. Guilt about taking the trailer, the money, and leaving at nine o'clock that morning made her doubt herself. How was she supposed to survive on her own where she knew nobody?

  Back home, she would've at least had a city where she knew how to navigate the streets, find employment, and...

  She closed her eyes. God, she had nothing.

  All her clothes were lost to her. Her computer and phone were broken into thousands of pieces and placed in a burning barrel.

  She had no family to call on. Her stomach churned. Even if she explained she was in danger, her mom and stepdad wouldn't have anything to do with her, and she rather check-in at a homeless shelter than go back to the toxic environment of being in her parents' house.

  Even stuck in a stolen travel trailer was better than putting up with her mom's passive aggressive mental abuse and drinking.

  The last time she'd seen her mom at the store, an unplanned moment, her mom wouldn't even acknowledge her. Just looked straight in her eyes without a hint that they were related by blood.

  The truth stung. How could a mother not claim her child? That'd been five years ago.

  She trembled. It was hard for her to accept that only six months ago, she'd had a decent paying job as the customer service rep for Tigarr's Emporium and lived on her own in a cute rental house with a courtyard that looked out to the Columbia River in Vancouver, Washington.

  A rattled knock shook the trailer. She flinched, her feet hitting the floor. How could she have missed any light outside?

  Staring in the direction of the door, her heart pounded. Had he found her already?

  She whipped her gaze to the covered window. Afraid to breathe, she strained to hear any noise while leaning over and picking the knife off the table that she'd put there the moment she locked herself in the trailer.

  A thump-thump-thump knock inflated her lungs. She gripped the handle and moved to the window. Peeking out, she tried to see in the dark and couldn't make out any movement.

  "Hey, it's Quint Mathews," said a masculine voice.

  She jerked away from the window and let the curtain fall. Who was Quint?

  "I own the campground," he said.

  Oh, shit. She looked around the enclosed space. He'd found out she'd stolen the travel trailer. He probably wrote down the license plate or got a call from the police when it was reported.

  Her fingers cramped. She put the knife in her other hand.

  "Ms. Pierce?"

  She grimaced. Wanting to make it look like she knew what she was doing when she checked in, she'd given her real name out of habit.

  Holding the only weapon at her disposal, she stepped forward and unlocked the door, peeking out. "Yes?"

  She breathed through her tight chest, recognizing the man who'd checked her in. Not that she knew him or trusted him, but at least he wasn't someone trying to kill her. She'd take going to jail for stealing something that hadn't belonged to her over dying.

  "I noticed you're not hooked up to electricity or water and remembered you saying it was your first time pulling a trailer." Quint stepped closer. "If you don't mind, I'll go ahead and hook you up. No use paying for the services if you're not going to use them."

  "Oh, that's okay. I was—"

  "It's not a problem." He stepped away, disappearing into the darkness.

  She shut the door and locked it. Not knowing what to do, all her senses zoned in on Quint outside.

  She heard a thunk as if an outside door closed.

  She felt the floor tilt, knowing he moved against the outside of the trailer.

  She tasted the dry mouth of anxiety running wild inside of her.

  She smelled the fresh cooler air that'd filled the inside when she opened the door.

  The overhead light came on. She blew out her breath, her spine curving. She could see.

  "Ms. Pierce?"

  She unlocked the door and peeked out. "Yes?"

  "I suspect you have dead batteries. That's why your lights aren't working without being plugged into an electrical source." He looked over her shoulder. "Did you turn the overhead light on?"

  She shook her head.

  "Probably whoever owned the trailer before you left it on and zapped the battery. It happens. If you want, I can come by tomorrow and hook the charger up and see if the 12-volts will hold a charge. You don't want to be stuck somewhere without a way to run your water and lights," he said.

  She found herself watching his lips through this beard to follow along with what he was saying. Something told her that he wasn't a big talker, though he led the conversation. It was the way he barely moved his lips as if he'd never yelled or lost his temper before that made her believe he was sincere in helping her.

  But she'd been wrong before.

  Self-conscious over how she looked in someone else's clothes, no make-up, and dirty from walking barefoot outside, she reached up and turned off the light. "It's okay. I like the dark."

  She regretted her action. She couldn't see him in the dark.

  "Suit yourself. You know where to find me if you change your mind," he said.

  She closed and locked the door, and sunk back onto the couch. Tears came to her eyes. She hated lying. He seemed like a nice guy, despite his bushy beard and longer hairstyle.

  In the last six months, she'd gone from living a life where she interacted with others, went out of her way to be polite, and had confidence being a woman to someone who'd made the worst mistake of her life.

  She cried harder. Her natural instinct was to rush out of the trailer and admit to Quint that she had no idea what she was doing.

  She wasn't a camper. She hated the dark.

  Her sobs filled the tiny area, though there were no tears left in her. Only a deep loss. A hopelessness.

  She sat on the couch until her body stopped trembling and her panic simmered to a pounding headache. Had she fallen apart in front of Quint?

  Rubbing her hands over her face, she stopped and sighed. God, she was filthy.

  Her spine stiffened realizing
what Quint's help had done for her. He'd hooked up the electricity and water. She could wash.

  She stood from the couch and stepped over to the sink. Almost afraid to try anything and face more disappointment, she held her breath and slowly pulled up on the faucet handle.

  Water sputtered into the sink, shocking her at the same time as delighting her. After going so long without anything positive in her life, she lowered her head and drank straight from the faucet, thankful Quint checked up on her.

  Chapter 3

  The employees of Bitterroot Campground gathered around Quint. He read the list of duties, assigning people to the different areas that needed attention. Being a Friday morning, he expected a line of campers coming in all day looking for a spot to enjoy the weekend, and it was imperative the sites be ready.

  "Phil, I want you to take over the gun range. Make sure any garbage is picked up and trash cans emptied. I need you to put a sign up stating only paper targets will be allowed. We're getting too much junk being used and left there. Also, Sam and J.T, bear hunting starts on Tuesday, that means the hunters will be sighting their rifles. One of you needs to put two more metal garbage cans close to the benches. Hopefully, campers will use them to pick up after themselves, but I want both of you prepared to include the area in your daily check. Maintenance crew — I want all mowing around the entrance done before we open from now until the end of the season." He lowered his clipboard. "That's it. Meeting over. Get to work."

  He walked toward headquarters when someone called his name. He turned around and found Jared jogging toward him.

  "Thought you might like to know I spotted something in the woods on the Northeastern side of the campground, about five hundred yards from the last loop for full hookups." Jared took off his snapback and rubbed the back of his hand across his forehead. "It looked like some kind of dark colored tarp or maybe a tent."

  "That's on my property," said Quint.

  "I wasn't sure where the property line starts and ends but thought you'd like to know."

  "I appreciate you keeping your eyes open. I'll check it out." Quint looked at the clipboard for Jared's assignment and decided to switch things around. "Go ahead and take over in the office. I'll be back by lunchtime to relieve you."