Silver Bound Girl

Chapter 8

“Okay, I now get why you told me to wear comfortable shoes and bring water,” Rune said, one side of his mouth quirked up.

Willow stopped and turned to grin at him. “I did warn you. This place is pretty much wilderness, so you have to be prepared.”

He glanced around again at the trees that engulfed them, ranging from the thinnest saplings to ones with trunks that both of their arms combined couldn’t reach around. Shooting up between the trees were various plants, some he recognized, like ferns, and others he had no idea. Once in a while he would spot a flower, but they were as rare as unfiltered spots of sunlight here. Only the narrow track they followed wound through the trees, providing an easier time than tramping through the vines, fallen branches, and half-hidden rocks that littered the ground.

Then Rune’s gaze fell to Willow’s belt, and the hunting knife that hung on it. “I can see you’re prepared for most things.”

Willow followed his eyes, frowning for a moment before she laughed. “It’s not for what you think. This thing wouldn’t be much defense against anything bigger than a fox. I use it to mark trees and occasionally to cut down things that get in my way.”

“Mark trees? What for?”

She started back down the path before she answered. “Various things. See, since us Byrons have been here forever, and there’s always at least one of us who works for the rangers, we’ve sort of got an unofficial agreement. They let us run wild through here, provided we do our part to help out. We mark trees as warnings or guides. You know, like this way for water, or poison ivy nearby, that kind of thing. The ranger all know our signs and we know theirs. It works well for all of us.”

Rune followed behind her, seeing nothing more of her than her bright yellow backpack, almost the same shade as his shirt, and brown ponytail. “Could you show me one?”

“There aren’t many on this trail, and most of them are near the ends of it. But there is one spot that has a couple that I was thinking we might check out. It’s one of my favourite places here and it could be a good spot to see if we can’t find the poachers’ kill. You’re not afraid of heights, are you?”

He chuckled. “No. I’m good with heights.”

Willow nodded. “Alright. It’s not too far ahead. I hope you’re a good climber, because it takes a bit to get up there.”

Rune grinned. “I’ll be fine.”

He wasn’t grinning almost an hour later, as he clambered up another steep chunk of rock. Willow stood a few feet up from him, one arm wrapped around a tree, her other extended towards him. Rune accepted it gladly, a little jealous at how easily she’d gone up the rocky approach.

“We’re almost there,” she said, waiting until he had a grip on the tree before moving up ahead of him.

The last few metres were the hardest, with no trees to provide extra grips, the ground rising almost vertically upwards. But as he pulled himself over the last lip, Rune got an idea of why this was Willow’s favourite spot.

He moved up beside her, careful on the uneven rocky ground that made up the rise they were standing on. Then he let his gaze take in everything around him. Just below them was what looked like a sea of trees, the leafy green stretching out as far as he could see in every direction. The first crowns lay just below them, before dropping away swiftly away so that they were several metres below them. Up here, the sun baked down into his skin, the heat kept from being oppressive by the breezes that wrapped around him.

Rune looked at Willow and saw the grin she was wearing. “It’s great here. You can see most of the forest from here.”

He shook his head. “This has got to be one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen.”