Page 62 of Shine On Oklahoma

“She does,” Rob said. “We’ve been there.”

“Fourth of July Brand-McIntyre familybarbeque,” Joey filled in.

“Then she might’ve gone that way. I don’tknow, though, she’s always had the worst sense of direction. Weneed to split up. Cover more ground,” she said. She looked around,trying to sense which direction Kiley would’ve taken. “I’m goingthis way.” Kendra took off, stomping into the forest. Dax was onher heels.

Jimmy-police-chief Corona came to edge of thewoods, calling after them. “Wait, wait, just give me two minutes sowe can make sure we’re not all covering the same ground! It’ll savetime later. Kendra, Dax, come back.”

Kendra stopped, turned, went back to him,held out her hand. “I want my gun back.”

“I can’t—”

“Seriously, I don’t want to end up like myold man.”

“No.”

“Kendra,” Dax called.

She looked back at him. He tapped hisbackside. Holy shit, Dax was armed. He’d picked up the gun Phil haddropped.

She was rubbing off on him. That’s wasn’t agood thing, and she knew it, but at this moment, she was glad. Sheheaded into the woods. They were familiar. She’d been therebefore.

They were nine years old. She and Kiley hadsneaked away from a nice cabin, farther down the hillside, wherethey’d been having a camping weekend with their Dad. He said he hadpermission from the owners, but Kendra knew better. He’d had topick the lock to get them in. You didn’t pick locks when you hadpermission. But she understood her dad’s point of view, too.Perfectly good cabin sitting there empty most of the year. Richpeople didn’t have any sense.

At four a.m., barely daylight, she and Kileyhad sneaked out to go on an adventure.

“What time you think it is now?” Kiley hadasked. She was peering through the trees with her elbow over hereyes trying to see the sun, but she was looking too high up.

“It’s gotta be seven. Dad’ll be awake byeight,” Kendra told her.

Kiley dropped her arm and looked at her withwide eyes. “That’s not enough time to get back!”

“So what?” Kendra started back down the deertrail they’d followed.

“We’ll get in trouble,” Kiley said. “Ihategetting in trouble.”

“It’s not a big deal. What’s he gonna do?Ground us to our rooms when we get home? Who cares? We got TVs inour rooms.”

“We’re going on that field trip to theAstrobleme Museum Friday.”

“Riiiight,” Kendra said, slowing down soKiley could walk alongside her. “This is gonna get us out of that,for sure.”

“But Iwannago!”

“Why?”

Kiley shrugged. “Because I’ve never seen itbefore. A meteor crater eight miles wide? Come on. How can you notwant to see that? I love seeing things I’ve never seen before.”Then she hung her head. “But now I won’t get to see it. Maybe I’llnever see it.”

Kendra sighed and looked around. “Maybethere’s a shortcut. That road was really twisty.” Then she heardthe soft sounds of bubbling, tumbling water. “Streams run downhill,and streams feed the waterfall. Our cabin—”

“It’s not our cabin.”

“It is today. Our cabin is within sight ofthe waterfall. So we follow the stream downhill.” And off she went,feeling pretty damn good about herself because for once, she’d beensmarter than Kiley. Yes, Kendra was the leader, and also the bestat Jack’s lessons, but Kiley was the smart one. Most of thetime.

Turned out later she hadn’t been so smartafter all. They’d spotted the cabin and taken off running, and ithad turned into a race, and they were so damn competitive. Kendramore so than Kiley. But this time Kiley pulled ahead of her, andthen she ran right off a….

#

Kiley ran right off a cliff.

---