Page 27 of Unleashed

Slade dropped his pack to the ground. “Okay, Chef Morgan, what’s on the menu?”

I smiled, setting down my own pack and getting to work purifying the water. “Give it a minute for the tablets to work. In the meantime, I’ve got tuna and crackers. How’s that?”

“Better than beef jerky?” he asked, holding up a strip of the dried meat.

I shook my head, laughing. “Wrong again. Beef jerky’s packed with salt. You’ll drink a gallon of water just to counteract it.”

Slade sighed, looking defeated. “I really screwed up, didn’t I?”

I rummaged in my bag and pulled out another packet of tuna along with some red licorice, my personal favorite. “Here, take this. You’ll thank me later.”

He eyed the licorice. “Not much for licorice.”

I raised an eyebrow. “It’s not for you. It’s for me.”

Slade chuckled. “How come I never knew you liked licorice?”

I shrugged. “Used to chew on the nibs back at Abbott. They’re less obnoxious than the long ones. But, yeah, I’ve got a thing for the laces.”

Slade shook his head, smiling. “You learn something new every day.”

As I was about to reply, we heard voices. A group of three hikers emerged from the trees, all tall, blond, and practically clones of each other. They waved to us.

“Hey there,” the tallest one greeted, flashing us a friendly smile. “Mind if we join you? I’m Gale, and these are my brothers, Timmy and Teddy.”

Slade was still chewing on crackers, so I answered for us. “I’m Morgan, and this is Slade.”

The brothers all shook our hands, then set to work filling their filtration system from the stream. Once they finished, theyjoined us for a quick snack. Their packs spilled out trail mix, protein bars, and chocolate, and soon, we were all talking easily.

“How far are you two going?” Gale asked, popping some trail mix into his mouth.

“Two weeks, as far as we can,” I replied. “We just started yesterday.”

“Where from?”

“Bear Mountain,” Slade chimed in. “And you guys?”

“Pennsylvania,” Gale said. “We’re from Pittsburgh. Took off before college starts back up—trying to make it to Maine before the summer ends.”

I raised my eyebrows. “When did you start?”

“Right after school ended in May,” Gale said with a grin. “But we took a detour to the Jersey Shore for a week. Worth it. I love the ocean. Want some trail mix?”

“No thanks,” Slade answered, smirking at me. “Beef jerky?”

Gale wrinkled his nose. “Nah, that stuff’s too salty.”

I stifled a laugh, turning to Slade with a triumphant smile. “Told you.”

Slade scowled but didn’t argue as we continued chatting with the brothers. After about forty-five minutes, I decided it was time to get moving.

“We’ll probably see you two on the trail again,” Gale said as we packed up. “Maybe we can camp out together later.”

“Sounds good to me,” I replied with a wave.

By the time we filled our water bladders and got back on the trail, dark clouds had started rolling in. I pulled out my phone, frowning at the single bar of service and the 68% battery left. A quick check of the forecast confirmed what I suspected—rain was on the way.

“Looks like we’ll be hiking through a storm,” I muttered, glancing at Slade.

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