Chapter 7

Brenda awoke and saw that it was already light outside. She looked toward the fire and could not see Ron. She unzipped the sleeping bag and crawled out of the shelter. She looked around and stood up and stretched. The cool morning air felt great on her skin. She looked at the woodpile and saw that only a few pieces were left. She realized that Ron had been up several times during the night and had put more wood on the fire.

"Good morning," Ron said as he walked out of the woods, "Nice body."

Brenda dove back into the shelter faster than she had last night and got in the sleeping bag. Ron came over to the shelter and brought a pair of jeans and a flannel shirt.

"Carl packed jeans and I think that you can wear Cal's shirt," he said, "Get dressed and I'll get breakfast on."

Ron went back to the fire and started preparing a MRE. Brenda got dressed in the clothes that Ron had given her. She did not put on her bra as he had suggested. When she crawled out of the shelter again she was still embarrassed that he had seen her almost totally naked. When she walked up to where Ron was he saw that her face was still red.

"I didn't see a thing, honest," he smiled, "Seriously Brenda, we have to be best friends if we expect to get out of this. I promise that I am not going to make any moves on you or try anything funny. We need each other a lot or we're not going to make it. Now take this beef stew that I made and eat as much as you can. We're not going to stop until almost dark tonight."

Brenda took her meal and started eating without answering him. He was studying the mountains in the distance while he ate. He did not want to alarm Brenda, but he knew that they had to get out of the woods fast. Winter came hard and fast in this part of the world. He knew that they were not equipped to survive a winter in these woods.

After they finished eating Brenda washed the dishes and Ron got the gear ready for the trip out of the woods. Ron had cut a few small trees and had made a small sled to drag the gear behind him. Brenda would still have to carry some of the gear on her back. They discussed what gear they were going to take and lashed it to the sled. Ron made sure the fire was out and they sat down and rested for a few minutes.

Ron pointed to a pair of boots on the ground, "Those are Carl's boots. Put them on and see how close they are to fitting you. If they are close I'll tear up a t shirt and pack the toe until they are comfortable."

With a few pieces of padding the boots fit her. Ron made her wear a pair of his heavy socks to fill in the sides of the boots. He cautioned her that the boots had to be perfect or she would pay for it later in the day.

They started out through the woods. Ron had found a magnetic compass that Cal had packed and took sightings constantly. He showed Brenda how to take sightings. He warned her to take a sighting and head for it, not to constantly stare at the compass.

Ron took the lead and set the pace. He had Brenda walk several paces behind him so that when he pushed a branch out of his way it did not come back and hit her in the face. Brenda had not realized how hard it was to make your way through the woods. They had no path to follow; they made their own path. Brenda kept looking around her and trying to see deeper into the woods.

"What are you looking for?" he asked.

"I'm checking for animals," she answered, "Aren't there bears and wolves in these woods?"

Ron started laughing, "Most animals are not curious about noise, they just wanted to get away from it. We're making so much noise that I think we're safe."

"I'm afraid of bears," Brenda said.

"Ron smiled and continued walking, "Bears are solitary animals. They don't even want to be around other bears except at mating time." He didn't tell her about what a hungry bear would do if food was scarce.

About 4 o'clock in the afternoon they came to a small stream. The stream had a small waterfall and the falls dropped into a pool that was shallow and calm. Brenda dropped her pack and sat down.

"Oh, what I wouldn't give for a bath right now," she said, "I know I'm beginning to get ripe. I can even smell my self."

"Be my guest," Ron said. "I'll turn my back."

Brenda looked at the pool longingly. She decided for and against a bath several times. For finally won.

"We don't have any towels so I'll have to come out of the water and dry in the sun," she said, "Will you turn your back?"