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"You’re welco "Now, let’s pack up and hit the trail Miles to go before we sleep"

Okay, I can do this It’s not the plan I wanted, but it is a plan One that’s been calculated and drawn on paper I like that It makes me feel less panicky I just wish it were er than I iroup didn’t leave just the corpse of Brett’s an’s and Suan purchased for this trip Guess she doesn’t intend to use theain, but holy moly, what a frivolous waste of money Lennon is mad, because all of this mess completely violates the leave-no-trace policy of the backcountry And we can’t physically take it with us: That would be impossible All we can do is pack soe a few iteene bottle A backup lighter Eco-friendly ipes Reagan’s water filter Because ofelse in s to the outside of his pack with carabiner clips What we don’t need, he stacks in a single pile inside Reagan’s tent

"We can report this stuff e get to the ranger station," he tells er to pick it up"

"If the bear doesn’t come back and destroy it all first"

"Or that," he says with a sigh

After all of this is finished, it’s late e into fresh clothes, brush etting ready, I take down my dome tent It’s harder to pack than it was to unpack And after watching fro way," Lennon finally takes pity onit inside o

As ready as I’ll ever be, anyway

We climb to the top of the waterfall, where Kendrick and Brett took turns diving the day before I still can’t believe they’re gone Or that I’m alone with Lennon This is crazy And it’s also physically de a hilly trail, as we did yesterday, is far different froiant backpack It takesof it There’s a sort of rhyth for the right handhold, taking tiet to the top, I’ exhilarated

"Goodbye, Mackenzie Falls," I say, peering down into the waterfall’s pool below

Lennon laughs "The book I found it in called it ‘Unnamed Waterfall 2,’ otherwise known as ‘Greaves River Falls’ "

"Those are terrible narees "When I writebook, that’s what I’ll name it"

"Oh, you’re a writer now? And when can we expect to see Grim’s Super-Gothy Guide to the Dark Wilderness on the shelves?"

"You re

"Of course I do I’m the one who came up with it"

He makes a satisfied noise, and we s is a little too long, so I break the connection and look away You know, before things get weird

Weirder

"Coinally used to find this place is just beyond that boulder"