the roads, had to cut cross country for a few miles.”
“Luke got attacked by a goose,” Camina said.
“It was huge,” he grumbled, looking sheepish.
“Whatever, we’re all here now. How do we get inside?”
“This way,” Luke said, leading up the hill.
We couldn’t see the hideout until it was right in front of us. First we had to wade through the strong current of a wide river, then hike through a narrow passage of canyon, climbing over massive logs that had fallen inside. The final section was barely wide enough to squeeze through, I could touch both sides of the canyon walls if I stretched out my hands, and the water came up to my neck. Jazmine had to dogpaddle forward, since she couldn’t even touch the bottom. None of us really knew how to swim, but we were familiar with the concept of drowning and it didn’t appeal to us. At least the canyon blocked out most of the ash, but halfway in it started raining, large, heavy drops.
I’d always liked the rain. The air tasted fresh and cool; it was a rare afternoon when you could take your shirt off and lift your face to the sky – instead of the burning, poisonous ash you’d just get wet. The water wasn’t exactly safe to drink. Dad had taught me on a few rare excursions outside the fence that we’d never told mom about, never to drink running water after a rainstorm, because it was more poisonous than usual. The only potable water came straight up from the earth, as close to the spring as possible, or after white water rapids, and even then, it should be boiled.
“You know the elite can swim, right?” I asked, thinking back to the public swimming pool we’d seen in Fanno Creek. “Everyone could swim, before.”
“Or they could just jump over the whole damn river.”
“Yeah, but they hate to get their fancy clothes wet,” Luke responded.
I conceded there was probably some truth to that. The elite were slow to react, they moved quickly but never without purpose. They’d have to really want something before going out of their way or sacrificing their own personal comfort to get it.
If they got wet, out in the wild, it would slow them down, make them uncomfortable and vulnerable, not as immaculately smooth and polished as they usually were.
“I can hear you, you know,” Penelope said behind me. I’d almost forgotten she was with us. I turned back to see her shivering, holding the ends of her dark dress up against her mouth.
“Well you might feel differently if you actually had any fancy clothes,” I teased. “And didn’t look like a ransom note made from a fashion magazine.”
“Speak for yourself, and for the record, I think I look great.” She spun in her ensemble, almost tripping on the loose stones.
“This isn’t another mine, is it?” Camina asked, as we walked single file through the narrow canyon. “I’ve got a thing about tight spaces.”
“Relax,” Luke said. “It’s open. You’ll see.”
At the last section, the water was too deep and we had to swim. It was fresh water from the mountains, I could tell because of how cold it was, and even my teeth were chattering when we made it to the other side, where a tall waterfall pounded into the rock with such force and noise we had to shout.
“This way,” Luke said, pointing up the rock face. We had to scale, in our wet, slippery shoes, a few dozen feet before finding a path that cut between the rock. The trail led through a narrow crevice before widening into a valley, surrounded by tall cliffs and old growth trees so thick they towered over us. The valley itself was surrounded by a tall wooden fence made of sharpened pikes.
“This is impressive,” Trevor said, wiping water from his brow. “You wouldn’t know it was up here unless you were looking for it.”
Luke frowned, looking out over the property.
“This is all new,” he said. “It used to just be my uncle’s cabin. You could barely see it through trees, even if you were standing right next to it.”
“Seems like they’ve updated their security.”
“Wait, this is your uncle’s place?”
“It is, or was. Honestly I don’t know what we’re walking into. My uncle’s always been a bit weird, but I haven’t seen him for years, and I don’t know who else is in there with him.”
“Will Penelope be safe with us?” Trevor asked.
“They aren’t just going to let her in,” Luke said, “like