Raging River

Book Three of Sister Stone Adventures

Kristen Bobbitt

Bristol Emerson is determined to take her kayak guiding business to new heights, and catering to a social media influencer seems like the perfect opportunity. Along with her sister and niece, she sets out to provide the bride-to-be and her party with a glamorous, unforgettable bachelorette camping experience deep in the Canadian wilderness.

But what was meant to be a carefree, fun adventure quickly takes a dangerous turn when one of the bridesmaids goes missing. Now Bristol must navigate the wild, find the missing woman, and get everyone home safely—all while trying to save her business and keep her own sanity intact.

As tension builds and friendships unravel, Bristol realizes that the real challenge isn’t keeping the bride happy—it’s surviving the wilderness with everything she holds dear.

SISTER STONE ADVENTURES

BOOK THREE

Also by Kristen Bobbitt

Sister Stone Adventures Series

Turbulent River

Independent River

RAGING RIVER

Copyright © 2025 by Kristen Bobbitt

All rights reserved.

ISBN (ebook) : 978-1-7780520-8-8 

www.kristenbobbitt.com

NOTE: Canadian spelling is used throughout this novel. Most locations are fictional.

This is a work of fiction. Any similarity between the characters and situations within its pages and places or persons, living or dead, is unintentional and co-incidental.

No parts of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the copyright owner.

This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser. Under no circumstances may any part of this book be photocopied for resale.

Cover design by Jessica Dueck of StarsColdNight www.bookcoversrealm.com

Dedication

For Frank

Thank you for encouraging me to write

and publish my books.

Your love and support are priceless.

Chapter one

Two kayaks sped past Bristol Emerson, cutting so close one clipped her on the way by. She wobbled and tipped. Her elbow plunged into the frigid spring water. Waves crashed over the bow of her kayak, striking her face and stealing her breath. She sputtered, sucked in air, and held out her paddle to steady herself. Wasting precious oxygen, she let out a string of curses. Bristol raised her head and tracked the two kayaks that were quickly distancing themselves from her.

“You were supposed to wait!” The wind snatched Bristol’s voice and hurled it away.

She returned her gaze to the broiling white water and dug her paddle into the foaming, swirling mass. She dipped the left blade, then the right in quick, ceaseless succession. The kayak shot forward and closed the distance. Bristol’s arms shook with effort and ached with the buildup of lactic acid. Her heart pounded like a wild animal was trying to escape her chest. Her pulse triple-timed in her temples, making her head hurt. She clenched her jaw on the pain, pushed on, and caught up to her runaway clients.

“Woo-hoo!” Tina yelled as Bristol glided alongside.

Brandy’s face split into a huge smile, white teeth gleaming. She swiped wet hair out of her eyes, laughed, and waved her paddle at Bristol. “Sorry for the bump. Got pretty wild there for a minute.”

The three women fought to keep control in the white water. “This is kick-ass,” Tina yelled over her shoulder. She let out a joyous shriek into the wind.

Bristol shook her head and paddled until she was at the head of the group once again.

“Follow me, some hidden rocks ahead,” she yelled. “One last rough section, and then we’re out.” Glancing behind her, she saw they had gotten back into single file and were following her every move. Thank God.

Bristol took the V waves between rocks, gliding through easily. A couple of boulders were too close to go between. She pushed back with her paddle. The kayak kicked to the side, avoiding the obstacle. She overexaggerated her manoeuvres in the hopes they were visible enough for the two women behind her to mimic. The rapids calmed and the white water died down. Bristol twisted in the cockpit of her kayak to watch the women come through the last constriction. They slid through, smiling. Bristol back-paddled until the women reached her.

“I so would have beat you if Bristol didn’t make us get back in line,” Brandy said.

“No way, babe. I know you like me chasing you, but I would’ve definitely pulled ahead at the last minute.”

Brandy veered her boat to come alongside Tina. Brandy held on to the cockpit edge of her girlfriend’s kayak. “Guess this one’s a draw.” She leaned over and they kissed, holding on to each other as they bobbed down the river.

Bristol pulled out her phone encased in a plastic sleeve and snapped a photo of the couple. They were centred in the river with bright green trees lining the banks. The azure sky provided a brilliant backdrop for the photo. This will make a fantastic addition to my website, she thought.

She paddled closer to the women. “You two are the cutest. Check out the photo I just took.” She held out her phone for the women to see.

“Aw. That’s so great. Thank you. Send it to me. I’ll print it for our wall,” Brandy said.

“We don’t have any wall space left,” Tina said with mock irritation. “I can’t even hang my band posters.”

The women drifted along, chatting until Bristol’s Jeep and trailer came into view near the riverbank.

“Bummer. Done already,” Tina said.

“We had such a great time. The other white water kayaking trips we’ve taken were always led by some guy and the groups were filled with even more guys. This was much more comfortable.”

“I’ve been there,” Bristol said. “I’m glad you enjoyed it.” They glided onto the rocky beach. “I hope whenever you look at your moonstone necklace, you will remember your trip with Sister Stone Adventures and smile.”

Bristol let herself into Mitch’s house. Barking and the sound of scrabbling nails on hardwood greeted her. She dropped her packsack and squatted at the front door in anticipation. Her Dalmatian and Mitch’s Australian shepherd crashed into her, bowling her over and knocking her onto her butt.

“Hiya, pups. Yes, I’m back.” She rubbed her hands over the wriggling bodies, trying to pet both of them at the same time. “I know you hate it when I go on white water and can’t take you.” The Dalmatian ducked under her arm and licked her mouth. “Yuck, Summit. I missed you, too, but that’s a little excessive.” Bristol wiped at her lips, getting a mouthful of Hank’s fur as he rubbed against her face. She coughed and sputtered.

A whistle pierced the air. Both dogs froze, then turned to the man walking out of the living room. Mitch Redding yanked Bristol to her feet, where she crashed against his chest. He buried his face in her neck and squeezed her tight.

“Good thing my ribs have healed.” She laughed. “Pretty sure I felt them creak a little.”

“I missed you,” he said, hugging her again, more gently.

“I missed you, too. Don’t get too close, though, I stink.” She tried to step back.

“I’m used to it,” he said, grinning.

Bristol tried to look affronted, but ended up laughing. “I suppose you are.”

“You know what my favourite part of having such a stinky girlfriend is?”

Bristol’s eyes popped wide. “Stinky girlfriend!” She slapped him on the arm.

“The post-trip shower.” Before Bristol could react, Mitch grabbed her and threw her over his shoulder. She squealed and held on tight. He made a beeline for the bathroom with the dogs barking and following on his heels.

In the shower, while Mitch washed her hair, Bristol filled him in on her trip.

“It was fun taking some experienced kayakers out on the white water. I got to get my adrenaline rush while getting paid.” She wiped the shampoo bubbles out of her eyes. “But along with experience comes confidence.”

“Isn’t that a good thing?”

“Sometimes, it’s overconfidence. My ladies on this trip were fun, and we had a great time, but they didn’t follow my instructions very well. More concerned with competing against each other. One clipped me as she flew down the rapid. It could have capsized me. All because she was going too fast and wasn’t in control. I should have scolded her for it but we were almost done. Didn’t want to upset her. Bad for reviews.” She laughed.

Mitch’s hands had frozen in Bristol’s hair. She turned around to face him. His full lips were turned down into a scowl. She pinched his lip with her thumb and forefinger. “It’s a part of the job. Don’t be getting all overprotective now.”

He kissed her and spun her back around to rinse her hair. “I know. Still don’t like the idea of you possibly getting hurt out there. Again.”

“I’m not worried about getting hurt. It’s juggling everyone’s feelings and making sure they listen that worries me. I never realized how hard it would be to manage so many different personalities.”

“You’ve been up against a storm with a missing kayak and a raging moose that broke your ribs. I’m sure you can handle a little female drama.”

“True. That’s also why you shouldn’t worry about me, eh?”

The next Friday, Bristol was again on the riverbank. This time, instead of nerves fluttering in her belly like the wings of a hummingbird, it was excitement that filled her. She glanced from the flowing river to the dirt road, to her dog, and back around. She bounced on the balls of her feet. Summit burst through the brush, sending songbirds to the sky. The dog ran to Bristol and jumped, putting her paws on Bristol’s stomach. Bristol smiled and rubbed the dog’s ears.

The sound of tires on gravel had them both spinning toward the road. The car parked, and they went up to greet the arrivals.

“Happy Mother’s Day weekend!” Bristol said as her sister Grace Becker stepped out of the driver’s side. Grace wrapped Bristol in a tight hug.

The rear door opened and Grace’s eleven-year-old girl popped out. “Aunt Bristol. I am so excited. I’ve been wanting to go for forever.” Sophia threw her arms around Bristol and then got down on her knees to play with Summit.

“She hasn’t shut up about it since Dad told Mom he bought us a trip with you,” said a voice from the other side of the car. Bristol heard a deep sigh, and her other niece appeared.

“Hi, Stephanie. I’m so glad you could come. I haven’t seen you in ages.”

“Steph.” Her niece hauled her backpack out of the car and tossed it over one shoulder.

“Pardon?”

“She prefers to be called Steph now, not Stephanie,” Grace said in a low voice.

“Oh, of course. Are you excited, too, Steph?”

“Ya, I’m going to get some awesome snaps to send to my friends this weekend. Most of them are stuck having lame brunches with their moms.” She held up her phone to take a picture of the four kayaks resting on the riverbank. “Glad Dad had a better idea this year.” She headed to the river’s edge, tapping away on her cell phone. Sophia jumped up and followed her sister, with Summit bounding ahead.

Bristol and Grace locked eyes. “Man, I thought she enjoyed having those Mother’s Day brunches with me.”

Bristol put her hand on Grace’s back. “I’m sure she did.”

“She probably did at the time, but you never know with teenage girls, their likes change with the wind.” Grace shook her head and laughed. “Oh, well. Not lame this year at least.” Grace gathered her gear and struck off to the river. “Let’s show the girls how fun this mom can be.”

Once their gear was stowed in the kayaks and Bristol had gone over kayak safety and the plan for the weekend, she handed each of her nieces a moonstone necklace. She explained the properties of the iridescent white stone and that she had come up with her business name, Sister Stone Adventures, while on the kayaking camping trip with Grace, Harper, and Liska.

“I’m so happy to have my very own sister stone! I love the one Mom has. And now I got mine with my sister.” Sophia held up her necklace toward Steph.

Steph took a close-up photo of the crystal. “It is a nice necklace, but you sound high talking about how it can protect you and stuff.”

“Stephanie!” Grace squeaked.

Bristol laughed. “Ya, I do get that reaction sometimes, but most people still like the necklace, even with all my metaphysical chatter.” She pulled her kayak into the water. “Enough talk. Let’s get on the river.”

“Hell ya!” Steph said.

They got in and launched their kayaks with ease.

“Remember on our trip when I couldn’t even get off shore?” Grace said with a laugh, gliding on the wide, slow-moving river.

“Everyone starts somewhere. The girls seem like naturals, though. They already knew all the manoeuvres and safety tips. I was surprised.”

“They have outdoor education classes in school. It’s so neat. The kids get to try all kinds of outdoor sports, including skiing and hiking mountains.”

“Wow, wish they offered that when we were kids. I hated being stuck inside all day long.”

“I know, right? And now that I’m on my exercise kick, I can join Sophia’s end-of-the-year trip. They always need parent chaperones.”

“You’ve done so well with your fitness, Grace. It’s been a year and a half since my Divorcemoon. That trip was such a struggle, but not only did you do wonderfully kayaking and hiking up and over a mountain, you’ve maintained your exercise routine since then. It’s hard for most people to stick with it long-term.”

“I’m not going to say it’s been easy. It’s much easier to stay in the house and relax when I’m tired than to get out for my walks, but the payoff has been great. I’ve lost weight and got to go shopping for all kinds of new dresses and I’ve got so much more energy now. But lately, I’ve been in a bit of a slump.” She dropped her paddle across the cockpit of the kayak and rolled her shoulders. “I’ve been struggling with my motivation. I think that’s why Charles bought us this trip for Mother’s Day. He knew I needed some other physical challenge to get me interested in exercise again. That and some quality time with my girls.” She resumed paddling.

Bristol watched the girls ahead of them. Their bright red and orange kayaks and yellow life vests made them stand out vibrantly against the teal blue water and grassy riverbanks. They paddled in a zigzag pattern on the still water. Steph paddled to the right bank, snapped a photo of the overhanging yellow birch trees, and then to the left bank to take photos of the tall grasses lining the river. Sophia followed Steph exactly, paddling when she paddled and drifting when she did.

“Charles is a good man. I told him he didn’t have to pay for this trip, that I’d gladly take you guys out for free, but he insisted.”

Grace smiled. “Of course we would pay. This’s your career now. You deserve to be paid.”

Bristol shrugged uncomfortably. It was hard for her to accept payment for her services. Rental of her equipment she could understand, but asking people to pay for something they could do on their own for free created unexpected anxiety. She changed the subject. “It’s always fun to try new sports. I’ve taken up trail running because of Mitch. I never thought I’d be a runner, but I really enjoy it. Especially with him. Though I’ve been so busy with guiding lately, there hasn’t been much time.”

“Hey, Mama, come check this out!” Sophia’s voice broke the quiet.

“Coming,” Grace called back and dug her paddle into the water. She surged ahead and Bristol followed.

Chapter two

The girls had pulled over to the side of the river and were holding on to branches to stay in place. Bristol had a flashback to her Divorcemoon trip with Grace, Harper, and Liska. Liska had tried to reach the riverbank during a storm by holding on to overhanging tree branches. She’d almost fallen into the river, and her kayak had been swept away and lost. A chill snaked up Bristol’s spine at the memory. She shook her head, trying to shake off the feeling. This river is barely moving. It’s fine, she told herself.

“Hold on tight to the branch and keep your butt firmly in the seat. Don’t let the current pull you out,” Bristol called.

Grace glanced sharply at Bristol and Bristol saw the same memory flare behind her sister’s eyes.

“It’s okay,” Bristol said.

“Come closer,” Sophia insisted.

They moved closer and back-paddled to stay in place. Summit whined from the bank on the opposite side of the river. She stared at them, a look of concern on her spotted face.

“Yuck, what is that smell?” Grace asked, wrinkling her nose. “Smells like something dead.”

Bristol edged in closer. The scent of rotting meat hit her, and her stomach recoiled. Among the tall grasses, there was a hole dug in the riverbank. Sandy earth covered the entryway, spilling from the hole.

“We saw baby foxes!” Sophia said excitedly, delight evident on her face.

“I even got a photo before they ran back inside,” Steph said.

“Oh, cool, it must be a red fox den,” Bristol said. “Or actually they’re called fox earths, not dens.”

“Fox earths? Awesome. I can’t wait to tell Bobby and Daddy when we get home that we saw fox babies.”

“Fox babies are called pups, cubs, or kits,” Grace said in her teacher’s voice. She back-paddled away from the bank. “Now, come away from there. We don’t want the mother fox coming back with you crowding her den.”

“Her earth, you mean,” Sophia said, still clutching the overhanging branch to stay in place.

“Your mom’s right. Let’s keep going. The pups won’t come back out while we’re here, anyway.”

Sophia let go of the branch and drifted back into the river. Steph hung back and took a selfie with the fox earth in the background. She pulled herself closer by the branches with her phone in her lap.

“Steph, come on.” Grace kept back-paddling to stay near her daughter. Sweat gleamed on her forehead.

“Just a minute. I want a better picture.”

“Sophia, back-paddle to stay with us. You’re drifting too far ahead,” Bristol called, paddling toward the girl.

Grace whipped her head back downriver to see her youngest gaining distance. “Shoot. Stephanie, now!”

“Ugh, God, Mom. I’m almost done.” Steph heaved herself forward to grab the branch closest to the bank. It snapped. Her momentum carried her forward and her arm plunged into the water, soaking her to the armpit. Her paddle slid off the kayak and into the river. Grace screamed. Summit barked and leapt into the water. Grace grabbed the side of her daughter’s kayak to stabilize her. Bristol whipped her head back and forth between her two nieces. Sophia beached herself on a finger of land that’d grown from the riverbank into the water. Bristol spun her kayak around to paddle against the current to Stephanie and Grace. She scooped up Steph’s paddle as she went.

“Are you okay?” Bristol asked.

Grace kept a hold of the kayak cockpit and the two drifted in tandem downriver.

“I’m fine.” Steph held her arm out to the side. Water streamed out of her sleeve. She shook it, sending droplets flying. She picked her phone up from inside her kayak and put it back into her pocket with her dry hand.

Bristol handed the paddle back to her niece. Summit reached Bristol’s kayak. Bristol grabbed the handle on her life vest and hauled her into the cockpit. Water soaked into Bristol’s pants. She groaned. “This wasn’t supposed to be a swimming trip, pup.”

“Mom, let go. I’m fine.” Steph dug her paddle in and tried to pull away.

Grace held fast. “Stephanie Becker, that was dangerous. I told you to come because your little sister was getting too far ahead, and instead of listening, you almost fell out of your boat.”

“I didn’t almost fall in. I just got wet and Sophia is fine. She and I have both spent way more time in a kayak than you have.”

Grace frowned. “That may be true, but you still need to listen to me.”

“Yes, Mom,” Stephanie said, not looking at her mother.

“Be more careful,” Grace said and let go. Steph surged forward.

“You lost your paddle!” Sophia called, wide-eyed. “That’s the biggest no-no.”

“Mind your own business,” Steph said as she sailed past where her sister had stopped.

Grace heaved a sigh and paddled ahead. “I don’t know what to do with her anymore.”

Bristol glided alongside with Summit sitting between her legs. “Teenagers must be tough.”

“We haven’t been getting along very well. I’d hoped the hard times were behind us now that she’s seventeen, but she just won’t listen to me. Or even talk to me most days.” Grace squeezed the bridge of her nose.

They reached Sophia. She pushed off the bank and joined them with ease.

“Ya, they fight all the time,” Sophia said.

“Maybe you could try talking to her.” Grace studied Bristol. “You’re the cool aunt. She’ll listen to you. You could see what’s going on with her. It’d be good for her to have another woman to talk to. She’s just so immersed in her friends’ lives. They text, FaceTime, and send photos all day long. That damn phone is glued to her hand.”

Bristol looked at her sister in surprise. Even hinting at a swear word was rare for Grace. She was the quintessential kindergarten teacher. She must be really upset about this. “I noticed the phone. I’ll talk to her. See what I can do.”

Grace let out a long breath. “Thank you.”

“Let’s pick up the pace, ladies. Show Steph she isn’t the only one with speed on this river,” Bristol said in a hearty voice.

“Yes!” Sophia said and paddled hard.

When they stopped for lunch, Bristol focused on engaging with Steph. She had her help make the lunches, and they chatted about Steph’s friends and activities. It’s about time I got to know my niece. Guilt filled her with the realization that she’d been so focused on her own life and activities that she hadn’t made the effort to spend time with her nieces and nephew. To get to know them as people, not just as her sister’s kids. Grace didn’t even live that far away. There really wasn’t any excuse for not seeing them more. That changes here and now, she decided.

They continued on down the river throughout the afternoon with Summit running the riverbank again. The sun sparkled across the water, looking like millions of diamonds floating on the surface.

“The sunshine feels amazing after that winter,” Bristol said. She closed her eyes and turned her face up toward the sun as she floated on the lazy current.

“We might even get a suntan,” Steph said with a smile.

Grace dug into the day hatch in the front of her kayak and pulled out a tube of sunscreen. She waved it at Steph. “Here, you need to reapply. Don’t want to get burnt.”

Steph took the tube and rolled her eyes. To Bristol, under her breath, she said, “So much for getting a suntan.” Bristol chuckled. Steph took a small amount and rubbed it into her face and threw the tube to her sister.

“When are we stopping to camp? I’m so excited to camp,” Sophia said as she lathered sunscreen on her face, covering herself in white cream.

Steph laughed. “You look like a mime.”

“What’s a mime?”

“You put too much,” Grace said. “Rub it in and onto your ears as well.”

Sophia passed the sunscreen to Steph, who passed it back to Grace.

“A mime is a creepy guy with his face painted white who acts out stuff but doesn’t talk.”

“They’re actors. Not creepy guys,” Grace corrected her.

“I don’t know about that. I think they’re pretty creepy,” Bristol said.

Steph nodded. “See, Aunt Bristol agrees. Creepy.”

“Ew, I don’t want to look like some creepy white-faced guy.” Sophia swiped at her skin. “Is it all gone?”

“Yes, honey. It’s good now.”

Later in the afternoon, Bristol directed them to her planned camping spot. Summit leapt from Bristol’s kayak directly to the ground, avoiding getting wet this time. They beached their kayaks and pulled them far onto the flat bank. The riverbank was smooth, sandy, and grassy. Stands of yellow and thin white birch trees clumped together like groups of teenagers at a school dance.

They shed their life vests and piled them on the ground. Grace stretched her arms above her head and moaned. “Oh, boy, it feels so good to get that PFD off. I’m happy to have it on the water, but it does feel restricting after hours of wear.” She rolled her shoulders. “Bet I’ll be stiff tomorrow.”

“I feel great,” Sophia chirped as she unpacked her bags from her kayak’s hatches.

“That’s good, sweetie. But Mama’s got an extra thirty years on you,” Grace said with a chuckle. “Bristol, you probably don’t even get stiff anymore, eh?”

Bristol considered the question. “Huh, never realized it, but you’re right. Now that I’m kayaking most days of the week, my arms are rarely sore. Only when I do white water and really have to push myself. Then I feel it.” She straightened and rubbed her bottom. “Sitting for hours still hurts the ass, though.”

“Your job is a pain in the ass just like my summer job is going to be,” Steph said as she came back from peeing in the woods.

Grace’s mouth tightened at her daughter’s use of the word ass. “You’ll be fine. It’s only a couple of months.”

“Steph is a gopher for the summer,” Sophia said, baring her front teeth and chattering in an impressive imitation of a rodent.

“I’m not going to be a gopher. You’re so dumb.” Steph rolled out her tent and pegged it down.

“Do not call your little sister dumb.” To Sophia, Grace added, “You’re not dumb at all.” Turning to Bristol, she clarified, “I told Steph she would be a go-for. You know, the person they send running for things.”

“I see. Where are you working?” Bristol asked.

“Mom found me a job stocking shelves at a grocery store. Inside all day, every day. Just like at school.”

“It’s a small family-owned store, so she’ll need to do different tasks throughout the day. It’s close to our house so she can bike there.” To Steph, she added firmly, “It’s a great job. You were lucky to get it.”

“Easy for you to say, Mom. You like being inside. It sucks to waste my entire summer inside a dusty ol’ building, never seeing the light of day or getting a tan.”

Grace sighed. “We’ve talked about this, Steph.” She rubbed her temples. “School finishes next month. It’s too late to find another summer job. You should have looked this winter. Everywhere that accepts student applications is full already.”

“Whatever. But it’ll be your fault that your daughter ends up looking like Gollum after an entire summer inside.”

Bristol laughed at the visual of the pale, wrinkled hobbit from The Lord of the Rings. Grace glanced up at her. “Sorry. Sorry. Not funny,” she said, still giggling. She met eyes with Steph and saw an answering smile on her face.

“Where’s Summit?” Sophia asked.

Bristol glanced around the small clearing and didn’t see her dog. “Huh, she’s probably just sniffing out the area. She never goes far.”

Sophia walked into a patch of high grass and called for Summit. “Something’s moving over there.” She pointed to the right.

Bristol called the dog. She didn’t come. “Weird. She always comes when I call.” They were all standing looking at the patch of tall grass shaking from movement below. Their tents and gear were forgotten at their feet.

Still calling, Bristol made her way toward the movement, with Sophia beside her and Grace and Steph following close behind. The grass shuddered more frantically as they approached.

“I feel like I’m walking through the savannah with lions in the underbrush,” Steph said, peering over Bristol’s shoulder.

Sophia grabbed Bristol’s arm with two hands and held on.

“Summit, what are you doing?” Bristol bent down and parted the grass.

Sophia let out a blood-curdling scream.

Chapter three

A dried-out, rotten carcass lay on the ground. The skin had shrivelled, the eye sockets were empty, and fur had sloughed off all over the surrounding ground. It looked like the animal had exploded like a dandelion puff.

“What is that?” Sophia whimpered from the circle of Grace’s arms.

Summit was chewing on one long leg bone. The dog stood and planted her front paws in the dirt and yanked on the leg, trying to detach it from the body. Hardened sinew and tendons held it in place. She yanked harder, shaking her head. The entire carcass moved, releasing a fetid odour. Bristol stepped away, backing into the others.

“It’s okay. It’s just a dead deer.”

“Make her stop,” Sophia said.

The deer’s corpse skittered across the fur-covered ground with each of Summit’s yanks.

“Summit, stop!” Bristol said. “Drop it.” She grabbed the dog’s collar and pulled her away. She stood in front of the dead animal and pointed back to the tent site. “Summit, go!”

The Dalmatian looked to where Bristol was pointing, stared back at the deer, then yawned to release the tension. Her ears and tail dropped, and she slunk back to the river’s edge.

“Good thing she’s had all of her vaccinations,” Bristol said, studying the remains.

“Come on, Sophia,” Grace said, gently directing her youngest away.

Steph stepped in closer. “That thing looks nasty. What happened to it?”

“I’m not totally sure. Normally, when I see dead deer, they’ve been hit by a car. But there are no roads near here.” Bristol walked back toward camp with Steph beside her. “Could’ve been wounded by a hunter, run away, and lain down in the tall grass to try to recover. Then the hunter couldn’t find it.”

“A wolf didn’t do it? Right, Auntie? Or a bear?”

“If a wolf had killed it, it would’ve been eaten,” Steph said. “Right, Aunt Bristol?”

“Yes, it wasn’t killed by an animal. Just gnawed on by our little beastie here,” Bristol said, rubbing Summit’s back. Noting Sophia’s still-troubled expression, Bristol said, “Okay, ladies, let’s finish setting up camp and we can make some hot chocolate and play a game.”

Sophia perked up. “What kind of game?”

“Have to wait and see,” Bristol teased, throwing her arm around her niece’s shoulder. “Work first, play after.”

They quickly had the four solo tents up, water on to boil for hot chocolate, and a campfire warding off the deepening chill. Bristol directed her family through a game of charades, with Steph and Bristol on one team and Grace and Sophia on the other. They were soon laughing and cracking jokes. Even Grace and Steph had some light-hearted banter. Bristol had to call Summit back multiple times when she tried to sneak off toward the dead deer. Once the dog had eaten a meal, she settled down with the women. The strain from the day faded away from everyone like the sun’s rays as evening approached. They made supper on the campfire and sat around it in the heavy darkness.

Grace let out an enormous yawn. “Oof, I almost cracked my jaw with that one.”

“Nothing better than fresh air and exercise as a sleep aid,” Bristol said.

Sophia leaned in closer to Grace and laid her head on her mother’s shoulder. “Mama, can I sleep in your tent tonight?”

“But you’ve already set up your own tent,” Steph said before Grace could speak.

Sophia ducked her head. “I know, but I just wanna.”

“It would be pretty tight,” Bristol said. “I only bought single person tents.”

Grace pulled Sophia in closer and kissed her head. “That’s okay. My snuggle bug and I can curl up together. Wouldn’t be the first time we’ve squeezed into a little bed, eh?”

Sophia’s eyes sparkled in the firelight. “Ya! Remember on our school trip last year to Frontier Lodge? There weren’t enough beds!” The mother and daughter chuckled at their shared memory.

Glancing across the fire at Steph, Grace said, “Don’t look so incredulous. You must have forgotten how often you and I shared a bed when you were in elementary school. Remember after you watched your first Stephen King movie? You wanted me to sleep with you every night for a week.”

Steph looked away, embarrassed, but the corner of her mouth turned up as if of its own volition.

Soon Bristol doused the fire with river water, and they all climbed into their tents. It took a bit of shuffling and the tent shook alarmingly, but Sophia and Grace were able to both squeeze into the one-person tent. They’re in there, but don’t know if they’ll actually be able to sleep, Bristol thought as she zipped up her sleeping bag with Summit curled like a cinnamon bun at her side.

When Bristol exited her tent the next morning, Sophia and Grace were already up. Summit bounded into Sophia’s awaiting arms. Grace was lighting the propane stove. “Sophia collected water to boil.” Grace blinked swollen red eyes. “I really, really need coffee.” She placed the pot on the stove and plunked onto her foam sit pad by the cold fire.

Bristol winced in sympathy. “Rough night?” She squatted beside her sister.

Grace glanced at her daughter. Seeing her distracted and talking to Summit, she whispered, “The worst. My baby is almost a full-size adult now. Didn’t realize that until she elbowed me in the spleen when she tossed over in her sleep. Twice.”

“Oh, no. That sucks.”

“It was the dead deer that freaked her out. That and Steph’s talk of creepy white-faced men.”

Bristol frowned. “Shoot, we’ll have to keep the topics light today.”

“Can I have hot chocolate with breakfast?” Sophia asked.

“Sure, go wake up your sister.”

“How did you sleep, Sophia?” Bristol asked, gathering cups for their morning drinks.

“I slept great! I don’t know why they’re called one-person tents. There’s plenty of room for two.”

Grace and Bristol locked eyes and snorted, trying not to laugh.

During breakfast, Sophia rummaged in her bag and came back with a crumpled envelope. She handed it to her mother. “Happy Mother’s Day, Mama. I made this for you.”

“Aw, thank you, sweetie.” Grace opened it and pulled out a handmade card with a coloured drawing of four kayaks on the cover.

“Sorry, it’s a little wrinkled.”

“It’s beautiful.” Grace read the note inside and gave her daughter a big hug. “This’s so nice. What a perfect start to my first Mother’s Day on a river.”

“I have something for you, too, but I’ll give it to you when we get home.” Steph handed Grace a fresh cup of coffee. “Have this for now.”

“Just what I needed. Thank you.” She hugged Steph and sipped her coffee.

“I should’ve made something fancier for breakfast than oatmeal and scrambled eggs,” Bristol said.

“Not at all. I like oatmeal and eggs. Wouldn’t want to eat a big breakfast and then sit in a kayak all day, anyway. That’s a recipe for heartburn.”

Before long, they packed up their things and glided back onto the water. There was a damp chill in the air. Vapour rose from the river, creating a fog that they slid through. The group paddled continuously to stay warm and reached a good speed. By late morning, the sun had burnt off the chill, and they slathered themselves in sunscreen. They rounded a bend in the river and were met by a loud honking. Two Canada geese stood on the water’s edge, squawking and tossing their long necks around.

“They’re pretty upset to see us,” Grace said.

As the group closed the gap between themselves and the birds, they saw the source of their agitation.

Steph already had her phone out snapping photos. Summit whined from Bristol’s lap; eyes trained on the birds.

“Cool!” Sophia said. “They’ve got a nest.”

“Don’t go close to them. They’ll attack you.”

“Oh, Mom, you think all animals will attack,” Steph said derisively. “They’re birds, not bears.”

Grace’s jaw bulged as she clenched her teeth.

“Geese will attack to protect their nests and young,” Bristol said, paddling to the opposite side of the river. “Come over here to give them space. No need to stress them out.”

The others moved over to follow her. They all turned to watch the birds as they glided past. One of the geese settled back onto the nest. She ruffled her feathers and used her beak to tuck the eggs more firmly under her belly.

“They’d really attack humans?” Steph asked.

“Yup. They’ll charge at you and even bite. Typically, people get more hurt trying to escape them, though. Tripping and falling down.”

“Huh, I didn’t know that.”

“Do you see pigs in the sky?” Grace asked Bristol quietly. “Stephanie Becker admitting that she doesn’t know everything. Unheard of.”

Bristol grinned, but quickly dropped the expression when Steph called over her shoulder dryly, “I heard that.”

“You know, I’ve even heard them called cobra-chickens because of their aggression.”

Sophia burst into giggles. “Cobra-chickens, that’s so funny. I’ll never call them geese again. Wait till I tell my friends.”

“Pfft. Cobra-chickens, probably just a name Canadians made up, so we wouldn’t feel so ashamed of our national bird.”

“The grey jay is Canada’s national bird. Not the goose.”

“Oh, my God, Mom. You always have to argue with me over everything.”

“I’m not arguing with you. I’m informing you. Don’t you want to know if what you’re saying is true or not?”

Stephanie didn’t respond, just paddled harder, staring straight ahead.

“So much for a conflict-free Mother’s Day,” Grace muttered.

Over lunch, Steph showed Bristol all the photos she had taken throughout the trip. There were dozens of them. There were selfies, of course, but the majority were beautiful scenery snaps or close-ups of insects and animals. The fox pups were the cutest. She had photos of them standing alert on the riverbank and then rolling over each other, scampering to the earth hole. Some Bristol hadn’t even noticed her taking, like ones of the crackling fire or the kayaks glinting in the moonlight on the riverbank. She must have lain on the ground to get that angle.

“These are phenomenal,” Bristol said genuinely. “I’ve spent a ton of time in the wilderness, but I’ve never taken nature photos as good as these. You should be a photographer!”

Steph beamed at the compliments. “Maybe someday. I really love taking pictures.”

Getting back onto the water after a quick lunch break, Bristol said, “We’ll be at the exit point in a few short hours. I hope you girls have enjoyed the weekend.”

“Aw, man. It’s over already.” Sophia frowned. “I wanted to see more wild animals.”

“I don’t want the trip to end, either,” Steph said. “I love being out here.”

“You’ll all have to come again soon,” Bristol said. “Trips are so much better with family.”

Steph came up beside Bristol. “Can I talk to you alone for a minute?”

Bristol blinked in surprise. “Sure, let’s go further ahead.”

They paddled harder, leaving Grace and Sophia behind.

“What’s up?”

Steph took a deep breath and then spoke in a rush. “Can I work for you this summer? I could come on your trips and help out with clients. I can be a go-for you instead of for that grocery store guy I don’t know. And, since you like my photos, I could take some for your website and social media and even create a photo bundle for your clients. It could be like a perk of choosing your business. Free photos!” Her face was beet red, and she heaved for breath. “Please, Aunt Bristol. I really don’t want to be stuck inside all summer, and honestly, I need a break from Mom. I’m almost an adult. It would be good for us to spend some time apart.”

Bristol’s mind reeled. “Boy, that’s a lot to take in all at once.” She rubbed the back of her neck. Summit looked over her shoulder from the cockpit and licked Bristol’s cheek. “I see you’ve put quite a bit of thought into it.”

Steph rushed on. “You can see I’m good at kayaking. I’ve done lots of camping with school and Girl Scouts when I was little.” She stared at Bristol. “You don’t need to worry about me. I’ll help you and I’m cheap to pay.”

“You make good points. I’m just not sure if I need help right now or if I could even afford it. I’ll need to think about it.”

“Okay, I understand.”

Bristol looked pointedly at Steph. “And I’ll need to talk to your mom.”

Bristol’s mind whirled throughout the rest of the paddle. She tried to chat with the girls normally, but she kept thinking about Steph’s proposal. She didn’t mention anything to Grace. I need to decide if it’s a good idea before I bring it up.

“Bummer,” Sophia said. “There’s the Jeep.”

Her words brought Bristol back into herself. She looked up and saw her old blue Jeep Cherokee and kayak trailer parked in a clearing on the side of the river. She had been listing pros and cons in her mind and hadn’t realized they were already near the takeout spot.

“Okay, ladies, here we are. Bring it on in.”

They steered toward shore and got out. Summit ran up to the Jeep and did her inspection, sniffing each of the tires and practically lifting her leg to pee on one.

“You’re a girl dog, silly. You’re not supposed to lift your leg,” Sophia said as she carried the bags to the vehicle.

“She can lift her leg if she wants to lift her leg,” Steph said, dropping her things on the ground beside her sister’s. “She doesn’t have to conform to societal gender norms.”

“Girls, come help with the rest of the gear, please?” Grace said, stretching her back and rolling her shoulders. “This was such a nice, relaxing weekend, Bristol. Thank you.”

“A little less chaotic than my Divorcemoon, eh?”

“That’s for sure. And no hospital visit at the end. Just home to a long, hot shower and a nap.”

“I’ll get the shower, but probably not a nap. I’ve got to get my stuff ready for my next group.”

“Wow, already?”

“Yup. Tomorrow. Another family wanted to come out here for Mother’s Day as well. A mom and her four adult daughters and daughters-in-law.”

They carried the kayaks to the trailer and strapped them in.

“That’s a lot of people and gear to juggle.”

“This will be my biggest group yet. It’ll have me running, that’s for sure. But it’s a good payday.”

“See, you should have a go-for to help!” Steph said.

Chapter four

By the end of that next trip, Bristol was convinced that she definitely needed a helper. Taking care of the five women on her Mother’s Day trip left her exhausted and irritated.

“Were they making you do everything?” Mitch asked as they ate supper the night she got back. “Like not carrying their own weight at all?”

“It was just a lot of people to cater to. I had to run around setting everything up or helping them set up their tents, make the food and clean up after, pick up any garbage they left lying around, help them take everything down, and on and on for a week.” She took a large sip of her red wine, savouring the burst of flavour as it hit her tongue and slid down her throat. “And that’s not counting the actual kayaking.”

“Maybe you should stick to smaller groups?” He cut into the steak he’d barbecued. “More manageable.”

“It was such good money, though. The most I’ve made in a week so far. I could take Steph up on her offer to work for me this summer and still come out ahead financially. Help us both out. I didn’t realize how fatiguing it would be to do back-to-back kayaking trips. And the summer rush hasn’t even started yet.”

“Have you, Bristol Emerson, discovered that you are a mere mortal?”

She shook her head at him, grinning. “Oh, no. I wouldn’t go that far. But perhaps only a demigod.” She poked him in the arm. “You’re one to talk. Physical job all day and fifteen kilometre runs for fun.”

“At least I get to sleep in a bed every night.”

“That is a nice perk. I can’t wait to crawl into that king-size haven later.”

Mitch got up to get a glass of water. As he walked back, he said, “So, do you think Steph would stick with it all summer?”

Bristol considered the question. “I can’t be sure, but I feel bad for not having spent any time with her in the last few years. She’s almost an adult and I barely know her. Also, I think it might be good for her and Grace to spend some time apart.”

Mitch’s eyes popped open. “Really?”

“I mean, I’m not a mother, so I don’t know if it’s normal or not, but their relationship seems strained. Grace really didn’t seem like herself. Normally, she’s so calm and happy. Just seemed like their butting heads all the time was wearing on her. And Steph came right out and said she wanted a break from her mother.”

“Hmm. If it’d help all of you out, then you might as well do it. No downside.”

“I’ve got to speak with my sister about it, though. Not sure if she’ll agree.”

“That’s a job for another day.” He spooned more roasted vegetables onto her plate and topped up her wine. “For tonight, the only thing on your to-do list is to eat, drink, and relax. You’ve earned it.”

Bristol smiled at him over her wineglass. “You’re a smart man. No wonder I fell for you.”

“I still can’t believe Mom said yes,” Steph said as she helped Bristol haul kayaks from the trailer to the river’s edge. “This is going to be amazing!” She snapped a selfie as they walked, getting her and Bristol in the shot with the kayak between them. Summit was a white blur in the background as she ran by.

Stephanie had slept at Bristol’s apartment with her the night before. Bristol had bought a bag of the opalescent crystals in bulk for her signature client keepsakes and gave Steph the task of making them. Bristol had set the bag on the table and buried her hands in the crystals, watching the light shimmer across their surfaces. She could feel their energy flow as she shifted them through her fingers. She instructed Steph to insert a stone into a small wire cage and string it onto a black suede cord. Steph repeated the process until she’d transformed all the moonstones into necklaces.

They’d had a fun night together, yet it had felt strange for Bristol to be back in her apartment. It had been mostly unoccupied for the last few months. When Bristol wasn’t on the river, she stayed with Mitch. Even Summit had seemed uneasy in their old home, sniffing everything and then staying close to the women. To Bristol, it’d felt like the space was full of ghosts. Or maybe she was the ghost visiting her past self. Either way, she was glad to get back on the river.

“It worked out that I have some weekend trips you can join me on while you’re still in school. It’ll be good for us to create a routine before you do the longer trips.” They set the kayak down and went back for another. “You can take photos and then compile them after the trips. I’ll contact the clients and see if they’re interested in buying them. Hopefully, get you more money for your work.”

“I’m so excited. Thank you so much!”

Bristol marvelled at the difference in Steph when she was away from Grace. She wasn’t snarky or brooding. They really have been bringing out the worst in each other. She and her niece had enjoyed a fun night together, watching movies and eating popcorn. Steph seemed like a completely different kid. Well, except for her phone habit, she amended mentally.

“One more time, before the clients get here. What is your job this weekend?”

Steph straightened her spine and faced Bristol. “We have four clients. A group of four newbies that haven’t met each other. I’m going to help them pack their kayaks with their gear. Help them with their tents after you show them how to put them up. Fetch water and pick up trash. And just help make their experience and your job easier.” She flashed a grin. “Plus, I’m going to take pictures of anything cool I see and nice portraits of the clients.”

“Perfect. Here they come.”

“So li’l sis, for real, no bullshit. How’d the kid do?” Harper asked as she popped the top on a can of beer and took a hearty swig.

“She actually did really well,” Bristol said as she pulled a plate of nachos out of the oven and placed it on the kitchen island at Mitch’s house. “Not gonna lie. I was nervous. I saw how snarky she’d been with Grace. I was afraid she would be rude to the clients or too distracted by her phone, but she was great. Super helpful and never complained. It was way easier with her there to do all the running around so I could concentrate on making it a fun experience for my clients. It was exactly what I’d hoped for.”

“Well, then. Good on you for hiring her.”

“I can’t even take the credit for that. It was all her idea.” She scooped a handful of hot nachos and stuffed it in her mouth. “It’ll be really great to have help with the bachelorette group I have coming up this summer.”

“Ooh, that sounds fun! Are you gonna smuggle in some male strippers? They could be dressed up as fishermen on the river. Or game wardens. Or lost hikers!” Harper’s voice rose with each suggestion.

Summit jumped up and put her paws on Harper’s lap, excited by her jubilant tone.

“Whoa there, woman. No strippers.”

Harper groaned. “You are such a bummer. Summit thinks it’s a good idea.” She passed the dog a chip.

“Not really the right vibe for my women-only guiding business.”

“They could be women strippers.” Harper arched an eyebrow. “To each their own.”

Bristol laughed. “No strippers!”

“Oh, right, forgot about our seventeen-year-old niece being there. Next year maybe.”

“My God, Harper. I was trying to get around to asking you to come help me. But there is no easing into a conversation with you.” Bristol shook her head in exasperation.

“Aha! I knew there was a reason you were buttering me up with nachos and beer.”

“This bachelorette trip is going to be intense. They want a glamping experience and I need a chef.”

Harper held up a finger. “First of all, what in the hell is glamping?”

“Glamorous camping. Luxurious conditions while in the wilderness.”

“That’s an oxymoron right there.”

“I know, but I have to make it work. This woman is a big social media influencer. Her endorsement would set my business for life. I’m so lucky that she reached out to me. I’m renting a big fancy tent so they can all stay in it together and they want good meals. So I need a chef. I want you to come with us for the week and cook a nice breakfast and supper every day. Plus, pack them lunches.”

“Shit, Bristol. You know I’m always up for anything, but cooking for a bunch of hoity-toity broads”—she took a swallow of beer and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand—“while on a fucking river does not sound like a good time.”

“But it could be a fun challenge. Who else do you know that can do this kind of thing? But you can.” She nodded at Harper. “I know it. Plus, Steph and I will help you.”

“Aw, man,” Harper whined.

“You get to escape your job for a week. Try something new. Be in the fresh air and sunshine. Get a tan. Make some money.”

“Ugh, fine. I’ll come along and be your camp bitch for the week. Cater to all your fancy city chicks and try not to kill them.”

“Yay!” Bristol cheered. She jumped up and hugged her eldest sister. “Thank you. I owe you.”

Harper drained her can. “You owe me another beer.”

“I’m so glad you were able to come shopping with me.” Bristol wrapped her arm around her best friend as they walked into Evergreen Energy sports store.

“You say shopping and I come running,” Liska James replied. Liska looked around at the aisles of tents, camping gear, hiking boots, rain jackets, and other outdoor sporting paraphernalia. Her painted lips turned down in a frown of distaste. “Mais, a nice boutique full of dresses or a makeup counter is more à mon goût.”

“Yes, well, we’ve known since kindergarten that our tastes differ. Hasn’t stopped us before. Come on.” Bristol grabbed Liska’s hand and dragged her deeper into the store.

Liska shuffled after Bristol as fast as her heels and pencil skirt would allow. “Pas trop vite. Coliss! If you make me break a heel, I’ll break your head.”

“Now, now. You wouldn’t want to seem unladylike.” Bristol stopped in front of a wall of tents. “Okay, so what we’re looking for are glamping tents. These ladies want a fancy camping experience. You’re a fancy lady. This should be right up your ally.” She gestured to the section of high-end multi-person tents. “Help me choose a tent you wouldn’t mind spending a week in.”

Liska pressed a cherry-pink fingernail to her pursed lips. “Hmm, now where were these bad boys when we went on your Divorcemoon? You had the two of us crammed into a measly two-person tent when there were these twelve-person canvas yurts available?” She stepped closer. “There’s even a place for a stove! Imagine how fast our wet clothes would’ve dried if we’d had that.”

Bristol tapped her finger on the box. “Ya, except that one weighs 357 pounds. We never could’ve lifted that behemoth. Let alone carried it over a mountain with us.”

“I see. Yes, perhaps a tad too big. So, what are we looking for?”

“I need one that is at least six-person, under one hundred pounds, and doesn’t take forever to set up.”

They scanned the tent packaging together.

“How are you going to transport this in your kayak? You’ll tip over.”

“Oh, you can’t fit these tents in a kayak. Much too unwieldy. I’m renting a sixteen-foot canoe for Harper and Steph to paddle with all the glamping gear.”

“Look at this one.” Liska waved Bristol over.

“Sleeps eight or glamping sleeps four, and weighs eighty-five pounds,” Bristol read aloud.

“Merde,” Liska swore. “It’s over $1500!” She shook her head. “What is it, trimmed in gold?”

“Glamour isn’t cheap. You should know that, Ms. Designer Everything.”

“Oui, mais clothes, purses, makeup, that is worth paying for high quality, beautiful things. A tent? How is that worth the cost?”

Bristol chuckled. “Oh, dear, sweet Liska. We have much different ideas of what is worth paying for. Anyway, I’m not buying it. I’m just choosing one and I can rent it from the store for like a hundred dollars.”

“You’re spending an awful lot of money, time, and headache on this trip. You sure it’s worth it?”

“I know it’s a lot, and it is stressing me out, but she agreed to pay a lot for the glamping experience. Plus, she’s this big influencer. I see how impactful her social media platform is. This could set my business up for life. Definitely worth the hassle.”

“Okay, as long as you’re sure.”

Bristol turned away. “Now, let’s go look at sun-powered charging stations and portable showers.”

Chapter five

“Thank you for coming to take the Jeep and trailer home,” Bristol said as she walked Mitch back to her Jeep.

Mitch leaned against the open door frame. “You know you only ever need to ask, babe.” He pulled her in for a kiss. “I’ll have it waiting at your takeout point next Saturday.”

“Thanks. Man, I hope I have everything.” She cringed. “I’m having heart palpitations.” She rubbed the ache between her breasts. “I’m so stressed out about this bachelorette trip.”

“You’ve been planning for months. You have checked, double-checked, and triple-checked your lists. You’ve crossed everything off those lists.” Mitch placed his hands on her shoulders and squeezed. “You are prepared. It’ll all be okay.”

Bristol sucked in a deep breath and blew it out through her pursed lips. She let some of the tension release from her shoulders. “You’re right. I’m prepared. It’s going to be fine.”

“It’s going to be great. Now, give me a kiss that’ll last me a week and get to work, woman.”

Bristol fell into Mitch’s embrace with abandon.

A wolf whistle pierced the air. “Whoop woo,” Harper called out.

“Get a room,” Steph called. She and Harper nudged each other, laughing.

“There’s still time to order strippers. I could use some of that,” Harper said.

Bristol gave Mitch one last lingering gaze. “What have I gotten myself into?”

Mitch chuckled and shut the Jeep door. “Good luck.”

Turning to her sister and niece, Bristol raised her voice. “Okay, team, let’s get these boats loaded before the women get here.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Harper snapped off a salute.

They organized all the gear into piles. Summit ran through the maze, sniffing each bag.

“This is an insane amount of stuff. It’s like three times as much as we usually bring,” Steph said.

“One hell of a game of Tetris we’ve got here,” Harper said.

Bristol huffed a breath. “I know. We’ve gotta make it all fit or it won’t be the glamping experience Savannah wants. Help me lift the tent in.”

Steph and Bristol staggered over to the canoe with the tent bag between them. “Eighty-five pounds my ass. This feels like 185,” Bristol said. They plunked it down in the centre of the boat. “You’re gonna be working for your pay this week.”

“At least I’ll be going back to school in the fall with nice biceps.”

They worked methodically, and after much trial and error, they got it all packed into the canoe and Bristol’s kayak. They put individual sleeping bags and inflatable mattresses in each of the clients’ kayaks. Then they sat down to wait for the group to arrive. At first, they collapsed happily on the ground, glad the hard part of packing was done. But after an hour, they got up and paced.

“Where are these damn women?” Harper asked, lighting a cigarette.

Bristol watched Harper suck in a lungful of smoke and nicotine. “Oh, I almost forgot. Here, I got you something.” She took a small square packet out of her pocket and handed it to her sister. Harper turned it over, a sharp line appearing between her brows.

“It’s a pocket ashtray. You put your cigarette ends in there so you don’t litter.”

“I’ve got to carry my butts around with me all week?”

“Not all week. Just during the day. At night, you can empty it into the firepit and start fresh the next day.”

“That’s really cool, Aunt Bristol. Such a great idea. No one likes to see cigarette butts on the ground, especially in nature.”

“I’ll give it a go,” Harper said, zipping it into her jacket pocket. “But if I smell like a dirty ashtray all week or catch myself on fire, that’s on you.”

“It’s fireproof.” Bristol checked her cell yet again. “Ugh. I don’t know where they are. They’re really late. Maybe they got lost.” She shook her head. “But I gave her the GPS coordinates. They’re easy to follow.”

“Call her,” Steph suggested.

Bristol hesitated, but then dialled Savannah’s number.

“Hello.”

“Hi, Savannah, it’s Bristol. Is everything alright? We’re at the river. Are you having trouble finding it?”

“No, no. Everything is great. We stopped in town for breakfast. We’ll be there soon.”

Bristol blinked. “Ah, okay,” she stammered. “Well, everything is ready here.”

“Perfect. See you in a bit.” The dial tone sounded.

Bristol looked at the phone in her hand, wide-eyed. “They are having breakfast in town.”

“Well, fuck me,” Harper said. “Town’s like a half an hour from here.”

Steph flopped onto her back. “I’m taking a nap.” Summit lay down beside her.

By the time Bristol heard the crunch of tires on gravel, her anxiety had crawled right up her throat like a demon from hell. She’d paced a line in the dirt by the river and had restrapped everything down in the canoe.

“Fuckin’ finally,” Harper said, standing up and brushing off the seat of her pants.

“Harper, please. Let me do the talking. It is essential we keep them happy.”

“Yes, Mother.”

Steph looked up from her phone and grinned at Harper.

A rose-gold Range Rover SUV rolled up and parked.

Harper let out a low whistle. “Guess someone is used to luxury.” Summit ran over at the sound. Harper petted her absently with her eyes still glued to the SUV.

“Why’s that?” Steph asked.

“That machine right there costs a hundred and fifty grand easy.”

Steph’s eyes widened, and she regarded the vehicle with more interest. Bristol walked up as the doors opened and five women emerged. The driver was a young, slim woman with perfectly straight blond hair. Bristol recognized her instantly from her social media accounts. She was as gorgeous in person as she was online.

“Savannah, welcome. I’m Bristol.” Bristol held out her hand, but Savannah came in for a hug, smiling widely. Bristol hugged her back, taken by surprise.

“Did you get it?” Savannah asked.

“Pardon?” Bristol asked, then realized Savannah was talking to another blonde woman.

The woman looked at a photo on her phone and said, “Yes, looks good.”

Turning back to Bristol, Savannah said, “Hi. Sorry, gotta document every part of my bachelorette trip.”

All five women gathered around Bristol. “The woman taking photos is my friend slash assistant, Cherri. The twins are Dionne and Kendra. And this”—Savannah pulled a young woman with a brunette bob closer to her—“is my best friend and maid of honour, Ianna. We haven’t seen each other in years, but it’s been our pact since sixth grade that we would be each other’s maid of honour.” Savannah giggled. “My man proposed first, so I got to cash in on our deal first.”

“Welcome, everyone. My name is Bristol and I’ll be your guide this week. It’s a pleasure to have you join Sister Stone Adventures. Let’s get your stuff down to the river, and I’ll introduce the rest of my team.”

Savannah opened the back hatch of the Range Rover. Bristol’s jaw dropped at the enormous pile of bags wedged into the large trunk space.

“I know, right? I almost thought we’d have to leave Cherri behind to fit it all in,” Savannah said.

“Did you all go through the list I sent Savannah with what to bring? Do you have equipment in there or is it only clothes?”

“She gave us the list,” Dionne said. “I’ve only got one bag.” She pulled it from the puzzle of bags and they all toppled.

Bristol flung out her hands to keep them from falling on the ground.

“Shit. Sorry.”

Dionne helped to place the bags on the ground.

Bristol took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, ladies, but this isn’t all going to fit in your kayaks.”

Savannah frowned and tucked strands of blond hair behind her ear. “But you said you also had a canoe.”

“We do, but it is completely full of gear. Personal items have to fit in your kayak.”

Savannah locked eyes with Bristol. “Well, I want to try to fit it in. It would take all day to unpack everything now. I’m sure you can find a way.”

“Ah, okay, we can try,” Bristol said, uncertainly. She waved to Harper and Steph, indicating for them to come help. Harper let go of Summit’s collar and she came bounding up.

“Oh, what a pretty puppy. I haven’t seen a Dalmatian in so long.” Savannah squatted down to pet the dog. Summit’s tongue lolled happily as Kendra and Dionne also petted her.

Harper and Steph arrived, and Bristol introduced them. “Harper will be our camp chef and Steph will be our trip helper. They’ll also be paddling the canoe with the equipment.”

“I follow you online. Your style is so perfect,” Steph said, smiling widely.

Bristol blinked in surprise. Steph hadn’t mentioned that to her.

“Oh, you are just so sweet.” Savannah hugged Steph while Cherri snapped a picture.

“Let’s get everything down to the river and see where it’ll fit,” Bristol said.

Bristol, Harper, and Steph made it fit. They had to add to the already overloaded canoe but they got it all in. Savannah’s group took photos of each other along the riverside.

“Looks like they’re doing a photo shoot, not preparing for a camping trip,” Harper muttered as she restrapped the canoe.

Steph walked over to the women. “I can take a photo of all of you together.”

“Thank you, Stephanie. That would be great.” Steph took a few pictures with Cherri’s phone. As she handed it back, Savannah said, “If you take pics with your own phone, make sure to never post anything without my permission, okay? You can send me everything you take and I’ll post it. I’m using this trip as content. Can’t have unedited photos shared about.”

“Yes, of course. No problem.”

“Everything’s loaded. Let’s get our life vests on and hit the river,” Bristol called out.

By the time Bristol had given her welcome speech, complete with moonstone necklaces, and directed the women through manoeuvres in the loaded kayaks, it was already noon.

“We’ve never left this late before. It’s going to mess up the schedule,” Steph said as Bristol came alongside. Steph had been coming on each trip with Bristol for the last month since school finished for the summer. She knew the routine well.

“I know. Not much we can do about it, though.” Bristol examined the canoe with a frown. It sat very low in the water. Please, let nothing go wrong. “Listen, make sure you two are paddling slowly and no sudden movements. Keep it stable.”

“We know. We’re fine. Probably been in a canoe more than you have,” Harper said as she dipped her paddle in expertly. “Just got to find our rhythm.”

Harper probably has canoed more than I have, Bristol realized. Harper was ten years older than her. When she was growing up, everyone used canoes, not kayaks. Feeling better, she paddled ahead to cruise alongside each woman. The artificial scent of bubble gum hit Bristol, overpowering the natural scents of the river and forest.

“How ya doing, Kendra?”

Kendra whipped around to look at Bristol. Her thin black braids flew over her shoulder. Something fell out of her hand into the cockpit of her kayak. “Fuck! You scared me.”

“Oh, no. I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine. Just jumpy. Too many espressos at breakfast.” She felt around with one hand inside the kayak and pulled out a square pink object. “Phew. Almost lost my vape overboard.”

“That would have been catastrophic,” Dionne intoned dryly.

Kendra inhaled from the vape and stuck her tongue out at her sister as she exhaled a cloud of bubble gum vapour.

“All good, Dionne?” Bristol called to where she paddled on the other side of Kendra.

“Yup. Your dog looks so cute sitting there, like the captain of the boat.”

Bristol looked down at Summit, who sat between her legs in the kayak’s cockpit, looking straight ahead. “Ya, she’s a pro. Been doing this for years. Call out if you need anything,” Bristol said as she paddled ahead to check in with the others. Bristol grinned as she saw Cherri paddle frantically ahead and stop to take photos of Ianna and Savannah as they paddled toward her. When they caught up, she paddled ahead again to repeat the process. How many photos does she need?

Ianna and Savannah were deep in conversation, so Bristol stayed off to the side and a little in front of them. They could see her if they needed anything, but she wouldn’t encroach on their time together. Over the preceding months, Bristol had determined this to be the best position to stay in for her groups. Some clients wanted to chat with her, but others wanted to only be with their friends. So she kept her distance, available, but not bothering them. Cherri slid back beside them, listening as the other two chatted.

Bristol looked back at the canoe. They were coming along steadily. She relaxed her grip on her paddle and tilted her face to the hot July sun. She pulled a ball cap from the hatch and put it on. I should get some hats made with Sister Stone Adventures printed on it. She wished she would’ve thought of that before the trip. She, Harper, and Steph could have all been wearing them in Savannah’s photos. Damn.

“Make sure to put on sunscreen. It’s very easy to get sunburnt while paddling,” she called out to the group.

They paddled along leisurely, enjoying the sunshine and fresh air. Songbirds twittered in the grasses on the banks. Summit’s ears twitched with each note.

“Bristol, when are we stopping for the night? We’re ready to get our party on!” Savannah called across the river.

Bristol paddled closer. She looked at her sports watch. “Ah, we still have another two hours before our camping spot.”

Savannah’s mouth dropped open, and she stared at Bristol. “Another two hours? But it’s like 3 p.m.”

“I know, but we left much later than planned. There are only a few specific places we can set up the glamping tent. The next one isn’t for another two hours. Less, if we increase the paddling speed.”

Savannah heaved a sigh. “That’s disappointing.” She looked away from Bristol and called to the others, “Another two hours, unless we paddle hard. So pick up the pace, ladies. I want my celebratory champagne!” She dug her paddle in and surged away from Bristol without another glance.

“Well, shit,” Bristol muttered.

Chapter six

The kayaks made it to the designated camping spot in under two hours, but Harper and Steph lagged behind in the canoe. Bristol paddled back to check on them and then returned to join the group. She beached her boat and Summit jumped out to explore. She was bracing her arms on the side of the kayak to get out when Savannah walked over.

“How long will it take to get the tent and showers set up?”

Bristol sat back down and looked up at her client. The late afternoon sun slanted through the trees, making her squint. She put a hand up to block the sun and regarded Savannah. “We have to wait for Harper and Steph. All the supplies are in the canoe.”

Savannah looked upriver. “What’s taking them so long? We all paddled hard to get here early, but we can’t even do anything because they’re taking their time.”

Bristol gritted her teeth and hauled herself out of the kayak so she could talk to Savannah face-to-face. She opened her mouth to speak when Ianna cut in.

“Come on, Sav, that canoe is super packed. Way harder to paddle than our light kayaks. They’ll be here soon. Let’s take some photos.”

Savannah took another glance up the river, then turned to her friend. “Okay, great idea,” she said in a cheery tone that differed greatly from the one she’d been using with Bristol. “Just let me touch up my makeup first.”

Bristol cleared the tent area of broken branches and debris as she waited for her sister and niece.

“Go ask her,” Savannah said.

Cherri approached Bristol. “Um, where do we go to the bathroom?”

“Oh, you can go anywhere, really. Just don’t go too far, don’t want you getting lost,” she said with a chuckle.

“Like where, though? Did you bring a toilet?”

“No, I didn’t.” Bristol looked to Savannah. “They do make camping toilets, but I didn’t think you ladies would want to use one. They can get pretty stinky.” She walked back to her kayak. “Plus, we’re already overloaded with gear. I brought this, though.” She held up a metal spade with a fluorescent orange handle. “If you have to do number two, you make a cat hole.”

“Cat hole?”

All five women were listening to Bristol now.

“You take the spade, find a private spot in the woods, dig a hole six inches deep, then cover it back over with dirt when you’re done. Each of you has a roll of biodegradable toilet paper in your kayak hatch.” She handed the spade to Cherri. “Much more pleasant than sharing a bucket with everyone.”

Cherri looked at the spade with uncertainty. She walked back and passed it to Savannah.

“I don’t need that.” She dropped it on the ground beside them, looking embarrassed.

“Here they come,” Bristol said as the canoe approached. She walked back to the river’s edge to wait. Summit joined her to greet the arrivals.

“Too fast. Too fast,” Bristol called out.

The canoe slammed into the beach, and water splashed over the stern and flowed into the overloaded canoe.

Harper swore and stood up in the bobbing boat, dripping water. “That’s fuckin’ cold.”

“Sit down before you fall in,” Bristol admonished.

“Yes, Mom.” She sat back down and bailed out the water with a small bucket tied to the wooden thwart in front of her.

Steph hopped out of the bow. She and Bristol pulled the canoe onto the shore.

“This thing is a bitch to paddle,” Harper said, scraping the last of the water from the bottom.

Once the boat came completely out of the water, they couldn’t pull it any higher.

“She’s one heavy B, too,” Steph said.

Harper climbed out, groaned, and stripped off her life vest. She flung it onto the ground and shook each of her legs, dispelling river water. She massaged her shoulders and swore.

Steph rubbed her own shoulders and stretched. “Paddling a canoe is harder than a kayak, even with two people. I’m sore. I can’t imagine how the old aunt is holding up.” She flashed a grin at Harper’s murderous expression.

“Old aunt!” Harper pretended to throttle Steph. “Why you little—” The three women laughed.

“Can we have the tent set up now, please?” Savannah’s voice cut through their laughter.

Harper’s expression darkened. She turned to Savannah and drew breath to speak. Bristol grabbed Harper’s arm.

“Yes, we’re on it,” Bristol said.

Harper pulled away and started unpacking the canoe. Bristol and Steph bent down to help. In a low voice, Bristol said, “We’ve got to keep her happy. This is her bachelorette week.”

“Uh-huh, sure.” Harper turned around and took a cigarette out of her pack. Lighting it, she inhaled deeply and let the smoke out through her nose with force.

She looks like a dragon. I hope to God she can keep her flames to herself this week.

“Why don’t you get changed so you don’t catch a chill?”

“Wouldn’t want to keep the princess waiting,” Harper sneered.

“It’s fine. Steph and I will unpack. Get out of those wet pants.”

Harper clamped the cigarette between her teeth and hauled her bag out of the canoe. She peeled off her pants and plopped them on the rocks with her life vest. Standing in her jacket and a bright red thong, she pulled a pair of dry pants from her bag. Bristol caught sight of Savannah and the others watching and giggling. Harper flicked them a glance, then turned toward the river, bending over and baring her ass to the group as she pulled on the pants.

“Oh, Lord, help me,” Bristol said, shaking her head. She gestured to the canoe and she and Steph continued unloading the gear. They had to pull everything out of the canoe to reach the tent.

“Stowing the heavy tent first is great for stability, but sucks for unloading,” Steph said through clenched teeth as they hefted the tent bag out of the canoe.

Kendra plucked a bag from the pile on the shore. She unzipped it and pulled out two bottles, waving them in the air. “Cocktail time.”

“Where are the glasses?” Savannah asked.

Bristol stopped what she was doing and went to look through the bags for glasses. “Here you go.”

“Can we light a campfire?” Ianna asked.

“Sure. You can set it up over there.” She pointed to a spot well away from where the tent would go. “If you need help with anything, just call out.”

Harper and Steph had the tent bag opened and were pulling the myriad of poles and canvas pieces out. “Holy fuck. This thing is massive.”

“Aunt Bristol and I watched YouTube videos on how to set it up.”

“YouTube videos?” Harper scoffed. “Fuck me.”

Bristol frowned. “Because I was renting it, I didn’t get to practice before the trip. Only rented it for the week.”

“It’s fine. Here, lay the biggest part out flat first,” Steph said.

It took them forty minutes to set up instead of the twenty minutes the box quoted, but in the end they had a sixteen-foot bell-shaped white glamping tent overlooking the river.

“Oh, it’s beautiful!” Savannah said, clapping her hands together. “With lights set up, it’ll be magical. Like my very own princess cottage.”

Harper barked out a laugh and turned it into a cough at Bristol’s glare. Bristol looked around to see if someone was filming. Sure enough, Cherri was off to the side, recording Savannah’s reaction.

Later, Bristol was hauling more things to the tent when she heard a squeal.

“Ew, get away,” Cherri said.

Summit was rubbing up against her as she sat by the fire.

Bristol called the dog, and she came running. “Sorry about that.”

“Please keep it away from me. I don’t like dogs.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. I’d asked Savannah if it was alright for Summit to come along. She said it was. If I’d known, I would’ve left her at home.”

“Cherri’s just a scaredy cat. It’s a Dalmatian, not a grizzly,” Savannah said. “Come here, Scaredy Cherri. Have another cocktail.”

Bristol noted a slight slur in Savannah’s voice. Oh, boy. In a low voice to Harper, Bristol said, “We’ll finish this up. Can you get started on supper? The cocktails are hitting the girls hard on their empty stomachs.”

“Sure.” Harper picked up the food cooler. “Wish I had a cocktail,” she grumbled as she walked off.

“While we cook supper, you ladies can set up your sleeping pads and bags in the tent,” Bristol said.

Kendra and Dionne jumped up in unison. “Thank God, these mosquitoes are devouring me,” Dionne said, rubbing at her bare skin.

“Yes, hate these little bastards,” Kendra agreed.

“There’s bug spray in the bag right there.”

Harper cooked the meal, and Bristol got the plates and utensils out.

Steph dropped down onto a log by the fire. “Oh, my God, I’m tired.”

“You? Pfft.” Harper scoffed. “You’re half our age. I would’ve been ready to go clubbing when I was your age.”

“Clubbing? I don’t know what that means and I’m too tired to figure it out,” Steph replied.

Harper stared, aghast, at her niece. “Fuck me, I’m old.”

“That’s what I’ve been saying. Old Aunt.”

Steph squealed and ducked when Harper pretended to throw a wooden spatula at her.

They served the women a chicken, vegetable, and rice stir-fry around the fire.

“This smells so good,” Ianna said, inhaling the aroma before digging in.

“I’m starving. I could eat ten bowls,” Kendra said.

There was silence as everyone started eating. Summit sat beside Harper, begging for food. Harper studiously avoided Bristol’s glare and slipped the dog pieces of chicken.

“I am just so happy you could all join me for my bachelorette trip,” Savannah slurred in a weepy voice. “Especially my Ianna.” She put her hand on Ianna’s arm, then turned to Bristol. “You know, she flew here for this.”

“I wouldn’t miss it.”

“I know you probably thought you’d be the first getting married, but my Bryer couldn’t wait for me to be his wife.” She took a gulp of her cocktail. “You really should give Shane a good talking to.”

Ianna forced a smile. “Bryer must be a good one. Can’t wait to meet him.”

Bristol caught a shrewd look flash between Dionne and Kendra. What’s that about?

By the time everyone was done eating, Savannah had barely touched her food. Bristol collected Savannah’s almost-full bowl. “Was the meal alright?”

“Huh? Yup. Fine. Fine,” she said, swaying on her log.

“Hey, Sav. Let’s go back into the tent. It’s been a long day,” Ianna said, reaching a hand down to Savannah.

“Huh?” She swung her gaze from her friend’s hand to her face. “Oh. Okay.”

Ianna pulled Savannah up and then caught her as she stumbled. “Come on, ladies. Let’s get the bride to bed.”

The women all disappeared into the tent. Bristol looked around at the mess of dishes and cooking supplies. Weariness threatened to overtake her. She gathered her energy for one final push. “Almost done for the day. Just gotta get this cleaned up and then bedtime.”

“Aw, man,” Steph groaned. “We haven’t even set up our own tents.”

Bristol rolled over onto her back the next morning and lay there, taking stock. She was still so tired. She blinked to clear her eyes and looked at her watch. It read seven o’clock. I need to get up and start coffee for everyone. She ran a hand down Summit’s soft fur where she lay glued to Bristol’s side. From her bag, Bristol pulled out a yellow citrine crystal. But first, I need an energy boost. She imagined using the crystal to draw energy out of the earth and into her body, filling her from its endless depths. Once she’d completed her visual mediation, she sat up and climbed out of the tent.

She’d just got the coffee on when Dionne, Kendra, and Ianna exited the glamping tent. Bristol served them coffee as Harper and Steph got up.

“So, who heard the bear last night?” Kendra asked.

Bristol looked up from the stove, alarmed.

“I did,” Steph said, rubbing her face.

“A bear? What do you mean?” Bristol asked, passing a cup of coffee to her sister.

“Aunt Harper snored all night long. I need a cup of coffee, too.”

Harper looked at Steph like she’d grown an extra head. “I did not!”

“You sure did,” Dionne said.

Kendra laughed. “Oh, ya, you did.”

Harper scowled. “Shit, sorry.” She buried her nose in her coffee cup. “I was tired.”

Bristol gave Steph a coffee, praying that Grace wouldn’t mind. “I didn’t hear a thing. Guess I was dead to the world.”

“Don’t worry about it. Savannah sounded like a little pig in her sleep. Snorting and grunting,” Kendra said, imitating the sounds.

“And this li’l piggie went to the altar,” Ianna singsonged.

Everyone burst out laughing. The glamping tent unzipped and Dionne slapped Kendra’s arm to get her to stop. Everyone was unnaturally silent when Savannah emerged with Cherri on her heels.

“Good morning,” Savannah said, blinking in the sunlight. Cherri ran ahead and got a coffee from Bristol to give to Savannah as she sat down.

“Morning,” they all chorused.

“Everyone up for a big paddle day?” Bristol asked as she and Harper cooked breakfast.

“As long as I get to shower before we head out. I can’t believe I went to sleep dirty like that,” Savannah said. She studied a lock of her hair with a grimace.

They’d all gone to sleep without a shower. She usually went a week without a shower on these kinds of trips. But I guess it matters more if you’re on camera all day long.

“Yes, for sure. I’d forgotten about it last night while getting the tent set up,” she said. “Sorry. I’ll do it after breakfast.”

“I can do it now,” Steph said, jumping up.

“Thanks. Just fill the canister half full with river water and set the nozzle in a tree out of the way. We’ll need the stove to heat water to add to it after breakfast.”

Harper dished out the veggie, cheese, and egg scramble she’d made, and Bristol served the women.

“The shower won’t have great pressure, but it’ll freshen you up.”

Savannah used up the entire water canister during her shower, and Steph had to haul water and Bristol had to heat it twice more for the other four women to shower. Steph, Harper, and Bristol skipped the shower in order to pack up camp. Being only day two of the trip, they were quite comfortable going without.

“I had my shower when we beached the canoe yesterday,” Harper said. “At least my ass did. And that’s the only part I care about, anyway.” She bumped hips with Steph, making her giggle.

The bridesmaids rolled up their mats and sleeping bags when instructed and repacked their kayaks. They also did Savannah’s while she was showering, so Bristol could take down the tent.

“Where’s my hairbrush and makeup?” Savannah asked as she came back with a camp towel wrapped around her hair. She looked around the clearing with her hands on her hips.

“We packed it in your kayak,” Ianna said.

“You guys know I need that stuff.” She went to her kayak and pulled her bag back out.

Bristol shook her head and avoided Harper’s gaze as they removed the glamping tent poles. Harper looked like she had her tongue clamped between her teeth. I’m going to have to give her a bonus for keeping her mouth shut. If she makes it the entire trip, that is.

Chapter seven

By the time they got on the river, the calm of the morning had fled like a frightened deer. The sky turned grey. The wind picked up and made ripples on the water. Damn. They paddled hard all afternoon. Chatter between the women was subdued. They all had to concentrate on the effort of fighting against the wind. Summit let out a continuous low-volume whine the entire time, making Bristol feel like she was stuck beneath a high-voltage power line. She could feel the whine more than she could hear it, but it still unnerved her.

“These waves are getting nasty,” Harper called when Bristol paddled back to check on them.

Water lapped at the upper edge of the canoe. Bristol grimaced. It’s too fucking heavy. Steph sat at the bow of the boat with her eyes squinted in effort.

“Okay, I’ll tell Savannah that we’ll have to stop early.”

“But we mapped out our camping spots already,” Steph said, glancing at Bristol in surprise, “to have a flat spot for the big tent.”

Bristol shrugged. “I know, but we don’t have a choice. Can’t have you guys capsizing out here.” She looked ahead, trying to remember the terrain. “I’ll find somewhere usable. Just go slow and steady.”

She paddled ahead, the wind holding her back like a bungee leash.

“We’ve got to stop up ahead for the night. It’s too windy for the loaded canoe.”

Bristol prepared herself for an argument and was lining up safety reasons in her mind when Savannah said, “Okay, cool.”

Bristol blinked. “Ah, okay, great. I’ll scout ahead to find a spot. Just keep paddling.”

After a while, she found an acceptable spot. She directed the kayaks onto a small rocky clearing.

“Pull the kayaks far up onshore, away from the water’s reach.”

Bristol waited on the river’s edge to catch the canoe as Harper and Steph guided it onto the shore. Steph hopped out of the front of the boat. She slipped on the wet rocks and landed on her back with a groan.

“Careful!” Bristol exclaimed. “Are you okay?” She tried to help Steph up while holding on to the side of the bobbing canoe.

Ianna scrambled across the rocks and grabbed Steph under her arms. She heaved her up as the water slapped against their feet. “Did you get hurt?”

“I’m okay.” Steph’s face flushed red. “Shouldn’t have jumped out. I know better.” She stepped out of Ianna’s hands and fixed her jacket that had ridden up her back in the fall. She winced from the movement.

“You sure you’re okay?” Bristol asked.

“Yup. Fine.”

Harper set her paddle in the boat and timed her exit with the bob and flow of the waves. As it drifted in, she stepped one foot out and let the canoe float out from under her. Bristol held the bow, and Harper grabbed the stern as it came back in.

“Smooth, sister.”

“You know it,” Harper said with a wink. She heaved on the side of the canoe, and she and Bristol hauled the bow onto the rocks. Steph and Ianna helped pull, and they got the loaded canoe all the way out of the water.

“Can we help with anything?” Ianna asked.

Bristol looked from Ianna to the other women who sat watching.

“Um, I think we’re okay.”

“Can we light a fire? The wind is chilly,” Savannah said.

“I’m sorry, no fire as of now. The wind could spread sparks and start a forest fire.”

“Sav really wants a fire, though. She’s cold,” Cherri said.

“Trust me. Don’t light a fire when the wind is like this,” Harper said. “I forgot to douse a campfire once, and the wind tried to spread it faster than a cheating rumour in a small town.”

“When it settles down, we’ll light it. We’re going to set up your tent now,” Bristol said. “You’ll be out of the wind soon.”

Bristol had thought the second time putting up the glamping tent would’ve been easier, but the wind made it twice as hard.

“I don’t have enough hands to hold it still and get the pole in,” Steph called from one side of the tent.

“I had an old boyfriend with the same problem,” Harper said to Bristol.

Bristol grunted a laugh and went to hold the tent steady for Steph.

“It wouldn’t kill them to help us,” Steph said quietly.

Savannah and her friends huddled together behind a bush, trying to stay out of the wind. Summit inserted herself in the middle of the group. Cherri shrank away, but Ianna squatted down to pet her.

“They look like they’re in Antarctica. They’d be warmer if they helped,” Steph said.

“They are paying us to do the work,” Bristol reminded her niece.

As soon as the tent was up, Savannah dove in. “I’m so, so cold,” she whined.

“Cherri, get my bags, too, please,” Savannah called from inside the tent. “I’m too cold to go back out there right now and I need a blanket.”

“We can’t peg the tent down on the rocks, so weigh the floor down with your gear,” Bristol instructed.

The bridesmaids rushed their blankets and bags into the tent. The edges of the tent floor lifted. Wind whipped the tent fabric, making so much noise, Bristol couldn’t hear the women inside talking. Hopefully, they aren’t calling out for something.

“Ah, Aunt Bristol,” Steph said. “Look.” She pointed at the sky to the east. A huge black wall of clouds was rolling toward them like a herd of wildebeests chased by a lion.

“Oh, shit,” Bristol swore. “Of course.” She turned away. “Goddammit.”

A low rumble rolled through the air.

“Are you friggin’ kidding me?” Harper looked up from the canoe. The wind tossed her hair into her eyes. She flattened it with a hand and scanned the sky. “My first time back out in nature since your Divorcemoon and we’re gonna get hit with another thunderstorm?”

A flash of lightning streaked across the black sky, followed by a loud thunder crash.

The memory of Harper’s injury after she ran down the mountain in a thunderstorm spurred Bristol to say, “No time for our tents before the rain. Grab your stuff and squeeze into the glamping tent. It’s really going to pour.”

They each grabbed their bag from their boat and ran for the tent. Another loud crack sounded and the rain pelted them as they dove into the glamping tent. The women in the tent yelped in surprise, whether in response to the thunder or their unannounced intrusion, Bristol wasn’t sure. They scrambled out of the way as Bristol, Harper, Steph, and then Summit charged in.

“Sorry. Sorry,” Bristol said as they squeezed in. Summit barrelled over everyone, curled up in an empty spot, and promptly tucked her nose under her tail. Bristol took one last look outside and saw the rain flattening bushes with its force. She zipped up the tent and turned to the group of women huddled in their sleeping bags.

“What’s going on?” Savannah asked, her voice almost drowned out by the wind and rain.

“This storm came on so quick we didn’t have time to set up our tents. We needed to seek shelter. Sorry to intrude on you.” Bristol squished against Harper and tried to make herself smaller by tucking her knees up to her chest.

“Of course. No problem,” Ianna said.

Savannah shot her a harsh glance before grimacing into a smile. “Sure, wouldn’t want you to get wet.”

“This rain shouldn’t last too long,” Bristol said, smiling encouragingly.

“Since we’re stuck in here, we might as well have a drink,” Kendra said, pulling a bottle of champagne out of her bag.

“Or two,” Dionne said, taking out a matching bottle from her bag.

Kendra popped the top off the champagne just as the thunder banged. “Wow, this bottle packs a punch.”

The women laughed. Kendra drank straight from the bottle and passed it to Dionne. Dionne set hers on the tent floor and then each woman took a swig before passing it around the circle. It came to Steph. Bristol grabbed the bottle before Steph could.

“She’s underage,” Bristol said, handing it back to Kendra, bypassing herself and her sister.

“I’m not,” Harper grumbled under her breath.

“You’re working,” Bristol whispered back.

Savannah launched back into a conversation about her wedding, which they must have interrupted when they’d barged in.

“Just before I left, Bryer finalized the venue. He had to give a big donation to be able to have our ceremony at the cathedral I picked out. It is gorgeous. Almost 200 years old. The photos will be to die for. Normally they don’t do weddings anymore, but Bryer is very persuasive when the happiness of his bride is on the line.” She laughed. “He’s the best.”

“No one else will have wedding photos like you,” Cherri said, passing Savannah the bottle of champagne.

“Exactly. As perfect and unique as me and Bryer.”

Bristol caught Harper rolling her eyes at Steph. She pinched her sister’s arm discreetly.

Harper yelped. “Sorry, a bug must have bitten me. Little asshole.”

“You better not have let any bugs in here,” Savannah said, looking around with distaste.

The twins lifted bags and blankets out of the way to help look for scurrying insects.

“The dog probably has fleas,” Cherri said, glaring at Summit. Summit lifted one eyebrow and let out a huff.

Bristol shot Harper an exasperated look.

“No, no. Actually, I think I just sat on a rock. Wasn’t a bug.”

“So, where are you having your reception?” Steph cut in.

Bristol worried Steph had overstepped by barging into the conversation, but Savannah stopped looking for insects and smiled, seeming to enjoy having a new audience. The bridesmaids must have heard all the wedding plans by now.

“Oh, that is gorgeous, too. Of course. A golf club right on the lake. The reception area is an enormous room with an entire wall of windows overlooking the water. It’s a very selective place. You have to be a member of the club to reserve it. Bryer joined last year before he’d even asked me to marry him. He thinks of everything.” She smiled and did a little shimmy of delight.

The bottle kept making the rounds of the five women. Bristol was fascinated by how quickly they drank it down and popped the top on the second. These girls would’ve given Harper a run for her money. Thank God she made her promise not to drink on this trip. Harper would’ve taken it as a personal challenge.

Bristol kept peeking outside, but the rain continued to pound down. The humidity inside the tent was intense. Bristol unzipped her jacket and fanned herself.

“How are we going to eat supper if it’s still storming like this?” Dionne asked.

Bristol had been mulling over this question for a while. “I really thought the rain would’ve slackened by now but it doesn’t look like it’s going to. I don’t see how we’re going to be able to cook with the wind and rain coming down like it is.”

“Even if we could get a tarp set up to cook under, the wind is pushing the rain sideways. It would extinguish the flame in no time,” Harper agreed.

“There are MREs in the canoe. Meals Ready to Eat,” Bristol clarified to the women’s questioning gazes. “Prepackaged suppers that heat up in their individualized bags. I always keep a bunch on hand for these trips.”

“That means someone will have to go out in this weather to get them,” Ianna said.

“Not it,” Kendra said.

“Not it,” Dionne said, wide-eyed.

“Oh, don’t worry about that. I’ll go get the MREs. I’ll just wait another few minutes to see if there’s a break in the rain,” Bristol said.

“I’m not even hungry,” Savannah said, swigging from the bottle.

“No wonder she stays so skinny. She never eats,” Steph whispered to Harper.

Bristol heard the whisper and cringed, waiting for Savannah to explode with indignation. She tried to catch Steph’s eye, but connected with Ianna instead. Ianna shrugged, seeming to read Bristol’s dilemma. Savannah was engrossed in a conversation with Kendra about the specific songs that should be played at the wedding reception and hadn’t heard. Bristol let out a sigh of relief.

“I don’t know if you’re going to get a lull in the rain,” Harper said, her head cocked to the side, listening to the storm over the women’s chatter.

“Ya, I might as well just go. We all need to eat,” Bristol said, zipping up her jacket to her chin and pulling her hood over her head. “Keep Summit in here. I don’t want her getting all wet.” She lowered her voice. “They might not let her back in.”

She twisted around to face the door and unzipped it. Wind and rain whipped through the opening, making the women squeal. Bristol slipped through the small gap and ran into the storm.

Chapter eight

The wind buffeted her and the rain flew in sheets, blurring out the distinction between land and river. The rain soaked her within seconds, cold and all-encompassing. She ran for the canoe; the wind whipped the raindrops into her eyes like needles. She squinted and kept her head down. Her foot caught on a large rock and she flew forward and landed on her stomach on the rocky shore. The breath was knocked out of her and she fought to breathe. She lay with her mouth open and eyes scrunched tight, struggling, willing her lungs to inflate. Finally, with a gasp, oxygen filled her and the black spots in her vision receded. She got up onto her hands and knees, drawing precious air into her lungs. Rain pelted her back and made its way through the seams of her coat. Hands grabbed her arms and lifted her upright.

“Jesus, Bristol, are you okay?” Harper yelled, holding tight to her arm.

Bristol nodded mutely.

“We were watching you from the tent. Can you walk?” Steph said, holding her other arm. She had run out without putting up the hood of her jacket and the rain plastered her hair to her scalp. She looked like a half-drowned cat.

Bristol glanced down as Summit bumped into her leg. “Shit.” She placed a hand on her heaving chest. “I’m fine. Let’s get the stuff and get back inside.”

Steph held on to Bristol’s arm as they made it the rest of the way to the canoe. Harper found the bag with the food and hauled it out of the boat.

Bristol pointed at the kayaks. Two of them were being lapped by waves onshore. Steph hurried over.

“Slow down,” Bristol tried to yell, but her voice was swept away on the wind.

Steph grabbed a kayak and pulled it further up onshore away from the angry reach of the river. She did the same to the other and then ran toward her aunts. Steph slipped on the rocks, her arms flung out for balance. She twisted and caught herself before she hit the ground.

“Stop running,” Bristol admonished when Steph reached them. “You and I have both fallen on these blasted rocks already. Bad things come in threes. The third time could be really bad.”

The three women made their way back to the tent much more cautiously. Summit followed behind with her tail tucked between her legs and her ears flat to her head. They were already soaked through. Going fast wouldn’t help matters now, anyway. They unzipped the door and entered the glamping tent, bringing a flood of water with them.

“Oh, my God, you are all so wet!” Savannah cried. “You’re making everything in here wet.”

“I’m sorry,” Bristol said, placing her bag on the wet floor by her feet. She closed up the door and sat down in a puddle. Summit stood in front of her. She started to shake the water from her coat. The women screamed. Bristol launched herself at the dog and wrapped her arms around her, stopping her from drenching the entire tent.

“Can you get me my microfiber towel from my bag?” Bristol asked Steph.

Steph rooted in Bristol’s bag and handed it to her.

“Thanks.” Bristol used the towel to dry her face and hands and then rubbed it all over Summit. The dog wriggled in pleasure. “There, that will stop her from getting anyone wet.” She let her go and Summit found an empty spot on the floor beside Dionne and curled up.

“Do you mind if we get changed and then we’ll serve out the MREs?”

“Go ahead,” Savannah said, looking at photos on Cherri’s phone.

“Right here?” Steph whispered to Bristol.

“Yeah, we don’t have any other choice.”

“Don’t worry about it. We’re all chicks here.” Harper pulled off her top layers and rummaged through her bag in her bra.

The bridal party looked away as they stripped down and changed into dry clothes. They used their towels to soak up the water on the floor and sat back down, relatively dry.

“That’s better. Now, food time,” Bristol said.

Harper read the packages aloud. “We’ve got turkey chili, beef stew, or cheese tortellini. Who wants what?”

The women made their selections and Harper passed them around.

“So you can eat these meals cold, but they also come with a flameless heater which works great.” Bristol opened her MRE box, and the others followed along. “Put the meal package inside the heater bag and then fill it with about an ounce of water. Don’t overfill it. There’s a water level line on the bag.”

They used their water bottles to add water to the bags.

“Huh, this is pretty cool. I can feel the bag getting hot already,” Dionne said.

“Great for cold hands,” Harper said, cradling hers between two palms.

“Noses, too,” Steph said, holding hers against her red nose.

“Remove it from the heater bag and rip the top off the package. There are spoons in the box it came in.”

Everyone ripped their meals open and a mixture of meat and cheese scents filled the tent.

“Bon appétit,” Harper said in a butchered French accent as she and Steph dug into their meals.

Bristol watched as her clients took cautious bites with the long plastic spoons.

“Wow. That’s actually good,” Kendra said, scooping up another bite.

“It is. Let me try yours,” Dionne said. Kendra fed her spoonful to her sister. All five women shared bites of their meals.

“Not the most glamorous meal, but it does fill you up,” Bristol said, relieved to see even Savannah eat some. Though she gave the rest to Cherri and went back to the bottle of champagne.

“So, what are you guys going to do tonight?” Savannah asked. “To sleep.”

Before answering, Bristol looked outside. She frowned. Twilight had descended, ushered in by the overcast sky.

“I’d really hoped the rain and wind would’ve slackened so we could set up our tents. But, it hasn’t. We can’t set them up in the rain. We’ve already soaked one set of clothes and we can’t get another set wet. There’s no way to dry them.” She hesitated and looked around. “I’m so sorry to impose, but I think we’ll need to sleep in here tonight.”

Silence met her statement. Everyone waited for Savannah’s reaction.

“Of course, I wouldn’t kick you out into the rain.” She laughed. “It’s just, do you think there’s enough room?” She looked around at the seven women, one dog, and all their bags.

“It won’t be glamping but this tent is designed for eight people. Summit glues herself to me at night so she doesn’t take up extra room. It’ll only be for one night.”

“Okay then, that’s fine,” Savannah said, a false note in her voice.

She is so going to give me a bad review. Goddamn storm.

“I have to pee,” Kendra said.

The others nodded in agreement.

“Ya. Champagne probably wasn’t the best idea during a rainstorm,” Dionne said.

“I’d suggest you all go at once, and then you can change into your dry pyjamas when you come back,” Bristol said.

The women zipped up their jackets and pulled their hoods over their heads.

They let out a squeal as they darted out of the tent, then the wind and rain stole their breath and the squeals cut off. Harper zipped the tent shut behind them.

“You girls don’t need to go?” Bristol asked.

“No way I’m going out there again,” Steph said.

“I’ve got a great bladder from beer drinking. I can hold it forever when I’m not drinking,” Harper said. “Wish I would’ve had a smoke while I was outside, though. Gonna be a long night.”

Summit stayed curled up with her nose tucked under her tail.

“Summit looks to agree with you, Steph.”

Harper unzipped the door as the girls came running back in. She started to close it when Bristol said, “Wait, where’s Cherri?”

The women looked at each other, noticing for the first time that one of them was missing.

“Shit,” Bristol said, moving to the door opening. She poked her head out and yelled Cherri’s name. The storm grabbed her words and threw them back into her face. Bristol groaned, then grabbed her wet jacket and flashlight. “Here we go again,” she said as she braved the storm once more. This time in the dark.

She turned on her flashlight and shone it around outside the tent. The light reflected off of the raindrops, not letting her see two feet in front of her. She stepped further away and called Cherri’s name again. This is stupid. I can’t see anything, Bristol thought as she stumbled on a rock. She crept a few steps closer to the woods scanning with her light uselessly. Maybe Cherri would see it at least. They didn’t even take flashlights when they went to pee. She couldn’t have gone too far. The wind and rain were disorienting. Bristol swung back around to make sure she could still see the lights from the tent. She turned around to scan the woods with her light and a white face appeared directly in front of her. Bristol screamed and raised the flashlight to strike. She caught herself just in time as her brain placed the phantom as Cherri.

“Are you okay?” Bristol yelled through the wind.

Cherri nodded. Bristol took her arm and they made their way back to the tent. Once inside, the women bombarded Cherri with questions.

“What happened?”

“Did you get lost?”

“I just had to go,” she said.

“Go?” they echoed, not understanding.

“OMG, I had to poo,” she said as she dropped down in her spot. She buried her face in her bag, looking for clothes.

Everyone laughed. Bristol shook her head. She had gotten soaked for a second time, all because someone had a nature call. She pulled her wet pyjama pants away from her leg, grimacing. A chill snaked its way up her back. She pulled her wet pants off and sat with her sleeping bag wrapped around her bottom half.

The scent of bubble gum filled the tent as Kendra vaped. She offered it around, but everyone declined.

The talk eventually turned back to the wedding. “So, what’s Bryer doing for his bachelor party?” Ianna asked.

“Almost the same thing as us, actually. Wilderness camping, but they’re doing white water rafting instead.”

“Really? That’s rare for a couple to want to do the same thing, but separately.”

“His best man loves white water rafting, so it was his idea, and then Bryer told me to do the same thing.”

Bristol and Harper shared a glance.

“He told you?” Ianna said, frowning.

Savannah laughed it off. “Oh, he just loves me so much that he doesn’t like it when there are other men around me. He’s protective, you know? A real alpha. He researched and found Sister Stone Adventures. It’s the only guiding business around here that offers women’s-only wilderness trips. It was perfect. He could relax and enjoy his trip, knowing I would be safe.”

Bristol’s stomach dropped. That was not what this was supposed to be about. A man using her guiding business to control and isolate his woman. She rubbed a hand over her face, trying to erase the scowl she was sure had appeared.

“Hmm,” Ianna said. “I see. I’d wondered why you’d decided to do a camping trip for your bachelorette. You’d never been super outdoorsy growing up.”

“When he planned it, I thought it’d be a good idea for my business. Try something new. It’s great content. My followers aren’t used to seeing me in outdoor situations, so it’ll intrigue them. Plus, it’ll bring in new followers who like this kind of thing. I also got a lot of brand deals for this trip,” Savannah said, gesturing at the logo of her expensive-looking jacket. She studied the wet tent and the bedraggled women. “It was supposed to be a glamping experience, though. Not quite as rustic as this.”

The bridesmaids glanced at Bristol, but avoided her eye.

“I’m really sorry about all of this, Savannah. This isn’t how I’d planned your trip, but there isn’t anything I can do about the storm.” She tightened her hand around the crystal in her sweatshirt pocket. “Tomorrow will be better.”

“Of course. It’s not your fault. Everything’s fine.”

“Are there any snacks in here? I’m hungry,” Kendra said, breaking the tension.

“Yes, there are,” Harper said, diving into the food bag and coming up with trail mix, candy, and oranges.

“Hell ya, licorice,” Kendra said, holding her hands up to catch the bag.

Harper tossed it to her and everyone else helped themselves to the snacks in the middle of the tent. The smell of citrus flooded the tent.

A little later, Savannah said, “Well, I’m going to sleep. I’m ready for this day to be over, and hopefully tomorrow will be better, like Bristol said.”

She wriggled into her sleeping bag and turned out the lantern beside her.

Everyone else blinked in the sudden dimness and shrugged at each other. They got into their sleeping bags by the light of the last lantern and curled up to sleep. Bubble gum vapour overrode the scent of wet dog, damp clothes, and lingering citrus as Kendra exhaled into the stale air. Bristol called Summit to her and the dog lay between the tent wall and her owner. Bristol, Harper, and Steph squished themselves close together on the tent floor, trying to take up the least amount of room possible.

“Wish we would have grabbed our sleeping pads,” Harper said, wriggling on the rocky ground.

Steph clicked out the light.

“Hey, Harper, try not to snore like a freight train tonight,” Kendra said into the darkness.

“Oh, I hate it when people snore,” Savannah said.

Her friends giggled, probably remembering her piggie noises from the night before.

“Don’t worry, I’ll pinch her if she snores,” Steph said, then let out a squeak as Harper pinched her.

“I’ve been pinched enough, thank you very much,” Harper said dryly.

They settled down and silence descended inside the tent while the tempest raged just beyond their flimsy walls. Now that they weren’t speaking, the storm sounded even more immense and unrelenting.

Bristol held her crystal wishing stone to her lips, and prayed for a better tomorrow.

Chapter nine

Bristol awoke to the sound of wind. She lay still, listening, and willing her hearing to be wrong. No one else was moving. It must be early, she thought. She’d slept like shit, pinned between Summit and Steph and filled with worry about this potential business-sinking trip. She ached to stretch her tight muscles and work out her worries by paddling. Bristol eased out of her sleeping bag and unzipped the tent slowly, leaning over Harper. Summit stood up, yawned, stretched, and followed Bristol as she grabbed her wet pants from the floor and slipped out the door.

Wind blasted Bristol in the face. She shivered. “For fuck’s sake.” The trees swayed and creaked. Leaves tumbled past, skimming the ground. She pulled on the cold, wet pants and winced at the terrible sensation. Nothing worse than putting on wet pants in the morning, she thought. Haven’t had to do that since my Divorcemoon slog through the forest. She made her way cautiously to the river. The rocks were dry, so she walked faster. Reaching the water’s edge, she stared in dismay at the white waves rippling the churning water.

“Mother Nature, you’re really doing me dirty this trip,” she grumbled, bowing her head in resignation.

Summit dipped her head to drink from the river and sprung back when a wave struck her feet. Bristol got the camp stove and coffee out of the canoe. I have to be caffeinated before I face Savannah this morning. She braced herself when she saw the tent door open, then relaxed when she saw Harper and Steph.

“The queen and her minions are demanding coffee and breakfast,” Harper said as she came up beside Bristol.

“Ya. A real meal this time,” Steph mimicked in a snooty voice.

Bristol cringed. “Oh, boy. I see how today is gonna go.”

“This wind is gnarly,” Harper said, trying to corral her mass of red curls into a bun as the wind whipped her hair every which way.

“You look like Medusa,” Steph said.

“If only I could turn people to stone with a look.”

“I feel like a Greek goddess has cursed me, too,” Bristol said. “This weather sucks.”

“At least our clothes will dry in this wind,” Steph said.

“True,” Bristol agreed. “Can you string up a clothesline and tie our wet stuff out?”

Harper and Bristol set up the camp stove within the treeline to make coffee and breakfast so the wind wouldn’t blow out the stove flame. The trees overhead swayed and creaked. Leaves, pine needles, and small branches fell like hail around them, but there was enough shelter to get the stove lit. The women joined them among the trees as they cooked bacon and omelettes. They ate in a race against the chilling effects of the wind, which turned their breakfasts cold within minutes of serving.

“Can we pack up now and get back on the water?” Savannah asked.

“Ya, I’m going stir-crazy from sitting inside that tent,” Kendra said.

Bristol braced herself. “Unfortunately, we won’t be able to paddle today.”

“What? Why?” the women asked in unison.

“The rain has stopped, but the river is very high and the crosswinds make it much too dangerous.”

“I’m sure it’s not that bad,” Savannah said. She strode off to the river’s edge and studied the churning depths.

Bristol and the others followed her. “Do you see the waves on the water moving toward the right bank? That’s from the crosswind. It’s very difficult to manoeuvre in and will constantly push you toward the bank.”

“It’s better to stay on land where you have a tent and everything else you need than risk losing it all to the river,” Harper said.

Bristol was impressed. Harper was never one to preach safety first.

“And as one of the people hauling all that gear in a heavy-ass canoe, I can tell you, I don’t feel like flipping today.”

Savannah whipped away from the river and stared facing the woods as if the sight of the water was offensive. “This trip is really not turning out as I’d planned.”

“What I don’t understand is why we came out here if this storm was going to hit,” Ianna said. “They must have forecasted it.”

Bristol looked at Savannah, but she avoided Bristol’s gaze. So, it’s going to be like that.

“It was in the forecast, but toward the end of the week. I talked to Savannah about the risks involved if it came early and offered to change weeks. She said she didn’t mind and wanted to keep the week she’d scheduled.” I’m not going to be thrown under the bus for negligence.

The four women stared at Savannah.

“What? It was the week we’d planned for. Bryer was going on his bachelor trip this week, too. I couldn’t change mine. And Ianna, you already had your flight booked. I couldn’t have you missing my party.” Savannah had gotten increasingly shrill, waving her hands as she spoke.

“Right. So, everything is fine, and we will get back on the river and home eventually, but for today we have to stay here again,” Bristol said, trying to smooth things over.

“At least the rain stopped,” Steph said.

“And the little beastly bugs have fucked off,” added Harper.

The women murmured their agreement.

“We can’t paddle today, but we could still explore. We can do a little walk in the woods here. Get some exercise, and see if we can find anything interesting.”

“Interesting? What could be interesting in the woods?” Savannah said.

Bristol frowned. I’m trying here, woman. I’m trying.

“We could take photos in the woods. Different content,” Cherri said.

Savannah perked up. “Okay! I’m going to need to shower first, though. I look horrendous.” She walked off to the tent.

“Apparently, the only thing interesting in the forest is her,” Harper said, rolling her eyes. “Come on, Steph, guess we’re hauling water.”

While Harper and Steph hauled and heated water for the portable shower, Bristol set up their three tents. No way we’re sleeping with them again tonight, she thought.

It took almost the entire morning for the five women to have their showers. Savannah came over dressed in new clothes with her hair flowing around her face and makeup on. She looked fresh and clean. In comparison, Bristol felt like a dirty troll.

“We’re ready to go,” Savannah said.

“Follow me and stay together. It could get thick in there. I don’t want anyone getting lost.”

Savannah’s group followed Bristol, with Harper and Steph bringing up the rear. Bristol had instructed Harper to stay on the women’s asses like a sheepdog. Bristol wasn’t going to have a repeat of the walk in the woods that led to her moose attack. Summit bounded around, following her nose, excited to be finally on the move again.

The wind whistled through the trees, but the deeper they went, the quieter it became.

“It’s nice in here,” Cherri said. “Living in the city, I never walk in the woods.”

Cherri’s comment about herself surprised Bristol. Cherri never talked unless it had to do with Savannah.

“You never even step foot outside unless I make you,” Savannah scoffed.

Cherri lowered her head and mumbled, “I know.”

“The river is my first love, but the forest always feels like home,” Bristol said, trying to reengage Cherri in conversation.

Cherri just nodded and continued walking in silence.

They strolled through a field of ferns surrounded by spruce, pine, birch, and alder trees. Summit disappeared in the ferns with only the jittery movement of the plants showing her progress. It reminded Bristol of the scene from Jurassic Park. Raptors in the grass.

“Wait. Cherri, take a video of me in these ferns.”

Everyone stopped, and Savannah walked into the middle of the ferns. “Video me walking.” She made sure Cherri was ready with the phone to record and then glided through the ferns. Their dark green feather-like leaves swayed as she passed through. Savannah trailed her fingers over the tops. The wind lifted her blond hair and made it dance around her head.

Wow, no wonder she gets paid the big bucks, Bristol thought. Seeing it in person was impressive. Savannah looked like a forest nymph, ethereal and perfect.

Savannah wasn’t happy with it and made Cherri film her five more times until she was satisfied with the result.

“Anyone hungry? We made submarine sandwiches for the hike,” Bristol said, digging into her backpack as Savannah and Cherri reviewed the video footage.

“I could eat,” Dionne said, taking a sub from Bristol.

Bristol handed out the food to everyone except Cherri and Savannah, who were still in deep conversation.

“The bugs are eating us alive,” Kendra said, swatting the side of her neck.

“Ya, I actually miss the crazy wind. Least there were no biters,” Dionne agreed.

“Let’s keep going, Savannah,” Ianna said. “There’ll be more places to shoot content.”

Bristol offered subs when Savannah and Cherri joined them.

“I can’t eat anything while I’m filming,” Savannah declared. “Imagine if I did all this work and then had food stuck in my teeth."

“Heaven forbid,” Harper muttered under her breath. She rolled her eyes and tossed Summit a chunk of bread.

Cherri took a sub and unwrapped it as they walked on. Everyone ate as they moved through the forest, waving their hands around their heads to deter the mosquitoes and black flies from landing and having them for lunch.

“Pass me your sub wrappers when you’re done. Can’t leave any garbage out here,” Bristol called over her shoulder.

“Ooh, look at the vine covering that tree trunk.” Savannah pointed and started toward it. “Cherri, take a picture of me sitting at the base of the tree. Maybe I can drape the vine over me for a dramatic effect.”

Cherri looked around for a place to set her sandwich and finally held it in the crook of her elbow to focus the phone with both hands.

Bristol looked at the tree Savannah had indicated. Green leaves carpeted the ground and crawled up the trunk. “Stop!” she yelled.

Everyone froze, including the dog, who looked back at Bristol for more instruction.

“Oh, shit, that’s poison ivy,” Steph said.

Savannah let out a squeal. Everyone scanned the surrounding ground. Bristol patted her leg and Summit bounded over.

“Back away from the tree,” Bristol instructed Savannah, who stood frozen with her hands clenched to her chest, staring at the vine as if it would strike out like a viper.

She inched back until she was with the group. Her blue eyes flashed with anger and fear. “I want out of these damn woods. Now.”

“Everything’s okay, Sav.” Ianna rubbed Savannah’s back to calm her.

Bristol led the way out of the forest with Savannah right on her heels, pushing her to go faster.

“How could you lead us right to a patch of poison ivy? If I’d gotten it on me, it would’ve ruined my business. I can’t film content covered in itchy blisters. Seriously! I’d be disfigured.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know it was there. This was the first time I’d explored this area of the woods.”

They emerged into the open, and the gusting wind hit them in the face. Savannah grunted and stormed to the tent. Bristol caught her words before the wind snatched them away. “Some guide she is.”

The rest of her group followed Savannah into the tent. Bristol dropped onto a rock and stared at the still-turbulent river.

“Don’t sweat it, li’l sis.”

“I have to sweat it, Harper,” Bristol snapped. “My business is on the line here.”

Bristol saw Steph’s eyes widen and realized her mistake. “Sorry. I’m just stressed.”

Summit came up beside Bristol and licked her cheek.

“I know, but the only thing we can do at this point is keep on keepin’ on,” Harper said.

Harper was right. They were doing everything they could to make it a great trip for Savannah. Anxiety still churned in Bristol’s belly like the water in front of her. She felt hot and nauseated. While the women were in the tent, Bristol took some time to centre herself. She went through her crystal pouch and selected a purple amethyst that eased anxiety. She sat beside the rushing river with the crystal cradled between her two palms. Bristol imagined peace and calm radiating from the crystal into her body, pushing the anxiety out to be blown away on the wind.

Everything was going to be okay. These had been minor setbacks, most of which Bristol had warned Savannah about. The rest of the trip would be great, she reassured herself.

She took a deep, cleansing breath of the fresh, cool air and then went to help Harper make supper. When they called the women to come eat, Savannah stumbled out of the tent with a bottle in her hand. Her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes had a definite glaze to them.

How many friggin’ bottles of alcohol did they have stashed in their bags? No wonder the canoe was so loaded down.

The other women murmured their appreciation for the meal. Savannah picked at her food, eating very little. In the middle of the meal, she jumped up.

“Cherri, come take a photo of me by the river. Look at how orange and red the sky is. It’s a perfect backdrop.”

Cherri set down her plate and pulled out her phone as they walked to the river’s edge.

The sky looked like it was on fire, with flames stretching between the thin white clouds that streamed by on the wind.

“Wow, it’s beautiful,” Steph said, fumbling for her own phone to snap some photos.

Savannah got into position at the river’s edge, striking poses as Cherri snapped away. Savannah looked through the photos.

“It’s not a great angle. Get closer to the river so I’m framed better.”

They went back to their positions and Cherri climbed onto a boulder overhanging the river. She took more photos.

“No, that’s still not right,” Savannah called. “I want them to be perfect.”

Cherri leaned out over the rock, stretching her arm out with the phone to get the shot. Bristol leapt to her feet and strode toward her.

“Not so far—” Bristol began.

Cherri’s terrified shriek cut off the rest of Bristol’s warning as she fell headfirst toward the raging river.

Chapter ten

Bristol leapt. Throwing herself forward with her arms outstretched, she connected with Cherri’s jacket. The thin nylon material slipped through Bristol’s fingers, her hands sliding down Cherri’s back as she fell. They snagged on the waistband of the woman’s pants. Bristol clutched the material and held on as they both landed hard, belly down, on the boulder. The breath was knocked out of them and they wheezed. Cherri’s arms waved in the open air above the river.

Harper grabbed Cherri around the middle and pulled her back onto solid ground. Bristol rolled onto her back. The adrenaline surge left her feeling nauseated and light-headed. She fought to breathe and slow her heartbeat. Summit whined and licked her face. She petted the dog and pushed her away as she sat up.

The others had crowded around them on the river’s edge.

“Cherri, oh, my God. Are you okay?” Ianna asked.

Bristol looked at Cherri to see her answer. Cherri’s already pale skin was bleached white. Her eyes were wide and staring. She nodded mutely.

“Thank you,” she murmured to Bristol.

“Holy shit, that was close,” Kendra said. “Bristol looked like Superwoman over here flying through the air to the rescue.”

“Ya, that was intense,” Dionne said.

They helped the two women to their feet. Bristol put her hand on Cherri’s back.

“Are you sure you’re alright? Did you get hurt when you landed?” Bristol’s own ribs hurt. That’s twice she’d fallen on her stomach this trip. Such bullshit. I never fall, she thought. Nothing like testing out how well my ribs have healed, twice in two days.

“A little, but I’ll be fine,” Cherri answered.

“Cherri, where is your phone?” Savannah’s sharp voice pierced the air.

Everyone looked at Savannah. Bristol shook her head. That’s her first question?

“Ah,” Cherri stammered, patting her pockets like she might have stashed it away before falling. “Ah, I must have dropped it.”

“In the river?” Savannah shrieked.

Summit gave a sharp bark at the shrill tone.

Cherri looked down, desperately searching the rocky shore and boulder with her eyes. “Yes.”

“All the photos from my trip are on your phone. You’re the photographer for my bachelorette. What the hell?”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.” Tears filled Cherri’s eyes.

“It’s okay, Sav. They would have saved to the cloud,” Ianna said.

“Actually, no. There’s no service out here,” Dionne said. “I’ve been trying.”

“Oh, my God.” Savannah threw her hands into the air. “All the photos from my bachelorette trip are gone. I can’t believe this. The main reason I’m doing this stupid shit is for the content. Now, it’s all for nothing.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Sorry? The only reason I brought you out here was to take my photos. I didn’t even want you in the wedding, but Bryer said you’d make yourself useful—”

“Savannah,” Ianna tried to cut in.

Savannah ignored her and glared at Cherri. “Obviously, he was wrong about that, so there’s no point in you being a bridesmaid, now, is there?”

Everyone stared in shocked silence at Savannah.

“I’m going to go lie down,” Cherri said with trembling lips. She darted away without another word, swiping at her eyes as she went.

“Savannah, you need to sober up. That was too cruel,” Ianna said.

“I am not drunk,” she hissed. “You don’t know Cherri. She’s been hanging around me for years. Like a little puppy dog. I’ve helped her so much. If it wasn’t for me, she wouldn’t even have a career. Or friends. The bare minimum she can do is what I ask. She lost all my pictures!”

“I can’t believe you’re serious right now. I’m going to go check on her.” Ianna strode to the tent and slipped inside.

“Go ahead. All she wants is attention, anyway. Poor little Cherri,” Savannah mocked. She turned back to Bristol. “Are you going to just stand there or are you going to make a fire? It’s dark.”

The beautiful fiery display in the sky had faded to a smoky grey, and light had seeped away. Bristol flinched at the harsh tone now directed at her.

“Yup, we’re on it,” Bristol said with a nod to Harper and Steph. The three of them collected firewood. A hush had fallen over the campsite. Dionne and Kendra stood off together, talking quietly. Savannah was scrolling through her own cell phone, presumably looking for usable pictures. Cherri and Ianna stayed in the tent.

“At least the wind died down enough to make a fire,” Steph said as she cracked branches into smaller pieces for kindling.

“Can’t wait to get back on the river,” Harper said. “Too much drama out here for me.”

Bristol nodded her agreement. “God willing, tomorrow we’ll be good to go.”

“Red skies at night, sailor’s delight,” Steph said.

The twins walked over as they lit the fire.

“What’s that mean?” Dionne asked.

“It’s a rhyme to predict the weather,” Steph explained.

“Red skies at night, sailor’s delight. Red skies in the morning, sailors take warning,” Harper, Bristol, and Steph recited together.

“Our grandfather taught it to our father, who taught it to us, and our sister taught it to Steph and her siblings,” Bristol said.

“If the sunset turns the sky red, then the weather will be good the next day. Good on the water,” Steph said. “If the sunrise turns the sky red, then it will be dangerous on the water and it’s best to stay onshore.”

“Red skies at night,” Dionne said. “So that means it will be good to kayak tomorrow.”

“That’s the prediction, anyway,” Bristol said, wary of getting their hopes up.

The twins repeated the rhyme together.

“That’s cool. We’ll remember that,” Kendra said.

Savannah came and sat by the fire. “Did anyone take any good photos on this trip? Mine are shit. I was relying on Cherri.”

“I don’t take pictures. Prefer to just experience life first-hand,” Harper said.

Savannah sneered at Harper. “Well, good for you, but that is not helpful at the moment.”

Harper shrugged and threw another stick on the fire.

“How about you?” Savannah pinned Steph with a look. “Bristol said you’d be taking pictures. You must have some.”

“Ah, I haven’t really had time to take any photos this trip. My hands have been pretty full.”

“Seriously?” Savannah scoffed.

“I took a couple photos on the walk and a few of the sky tonight, but they’re only scenery pics. You didn’t really seem like you wanted me to take your picture, so I didn’t.”

“Ugh. I didn’t say not to take any.” Savannah’s voice rose. “I said I’d have to approve them.”

Harper threw a bigger branch on the fire, sending sparks flying. Savannah jumped back and shrieked.

“You might want to watch how you’re talking to our niece,” Harper said, her tone hard.

Bristol hesitated, unsure how to calm the situation. She darted a look back and forth between the two women. Oh, shit.

Savannah stared at Harper. Bristol could tell she wanted to snap back at her, but must have read something in Harper’s eyes because she tossed her hair over her shoulder and said, “Come on, girls, let’s go to bed. Nothing to stay out here for.”

She strode to the tent. Dionne and Kendra cast longing looks at the warm, crackling fire. They sighed in unison, said good night, and followed her inside.

The next morning, Bristol woke to the sound of birds chirping. The wind had stopped. Her tent was hot and dry. She rolled over and stretched, fingers and toes pushing on the nylon walls. A smile curved her lips. Nothing like a night crammed into a large tent with a bunch of strangers to make a solo tent with your dog feel luxurious. Bristol emerged from the tent to sunshine and birdsong. She lifted her face to the morning sun and breathed in the fresh scents of forest and river. Happiness spread through her. Sailor’s delight. Today is going to be a good day.

Bristol made coffee and sat to enjoy a peaceful cup with her dog. She and Summit sat side by side, gazing at the sparkling river. Bristol stroked her hand down Summit’s spotted coat and thought ahead to the end of the trip and going home to Mitch.

“I bet you miss Hank, eh, girl?”

Summit whined at the sound of the Australian shepherd’s name.

“Ya, I miss the boys, too. We’ll be home soon.”

Harper and Steph got up, and they made breakfast. Savannah’s group emerged from the tent and sat around the fire that Steph had lit to keep the mosquitoes at bay.

“Is Cherri still asleep?” Bristol asked.

“What?” Ianna said.

The group looked back and forth at each other.

“We thought she was up with you,” Ianna said.

A sinking sensation surged through Bristol’s guts.

“She’s not going to the bathroom?” Dionne asked.

“I’ve been up for over an hour. I haven’t seen her.” Bristol stood up. Summit leapt to her feet, picking up on Bristol’s unease.

“Oh, shit,” Harper said.

“Maybe she is going to the bathroom. The other night she was gone for quite a while when Bristol went to look for her in the storm,” Steph said hopefully.

“I don’t think so. It’s been too long,” Bristol said, striding to the glamping tent and charging inside. She searched the tent and then stormed back out, not zipping up the tent behind her. “Her pack is gone.”

“For fuck’s sake,” Harper said, shaking her head and pulling out a cigarette.

“The kayaks,” Bristol said, and sprinted to the shore. Summit barked and ran after her. Bristol counted the boats and then counted again. Six kayaks and one canoe. They were all there. The others had followed her to the river. “She didn’t take a kayak.”

“Where could she have gone?” Ianna said, her face contorted in worry.

“And why?” Dionne asked.

They all turned to look at Savannah.

“What? It’s not my fault she took off. We get into a little disagreement over something she did and then she sneaks off in the middle of the night. That’s on her. I told you, Ianna. She just wants attention. You babied her and held her hand last night and now look. She just wants more.” Savannah walked back to the fire, sat down, and sipped her coffee.

“This is nuts,” Kendra said.

Harper glared after Savannah. The others turned to Bristol, who stood in place, looking around. Think, woman, think.

“Wait a minute,” Bristol burst out. She strode over to Savannah. “What do you mean she sneaked off in the middle of the night? You saw her leave?” Bristol’s voice was incredulous.

“Jesus Christ, Savannah! Did you seriously see her leave last night and not say anything?” Ianna yelled.

“Don’t yell at me. I heard her get up during the night. So what?”

“She is missing! That’s what,” Ianna said.

“What time?” Bristol barked out.

“I don’t know, two-ish.”

Harper swore.

A chill snaked up Bristol’s spine. She broke out in goosebumps. “That was six hours ago.”

Ianna loomed over Savannah with her hands on her hips. “Why did you let her go? Why didn’t you say anything when she didn’t come back? My God, Savannah, she’s your friend. Weren’t you worried?”

“No. I told you. She just wants attention.”

“It’s been six hours!”

Steph’s quiet voice broke in, “Do you think she tried to take a kayak and fell in?”

They all stared at Steph and then looked out over the flowing water.

“She wouldn’t take a kayak alone,” Savannah said.

“How do you know?” Bristol asked.

“She can’t swim.”

Chapter eleven

Bristol organized a search. She instructed half the group to walk the river’s edge and half to search the treeline looking for any sign of Cherri. Dread filled Bristol. It coiled like a pit of vipers in her stomach, threatening to rise up her throat and choke her. She swallowed hard and raised her voice to give further instructions.

“Stay within shouting distance. Don’t go too close to the river, just walk along the banks and call to her. She probably didn’t try to go by river, especially after her scare yesterday, but she may have walked the riverside. So we look for any footprints or rock disturbances. Same goes for the people searching the forest. Just go a little ways into the woods. I don’t want anyone getting lost. We are just looking for signs to see if she left by river or woods.”

Bristol kept her main fear to herself. If Cherri did fall in the river, she would’ve been swept away immediately, and after these six long hours, she could be anywhere downriver. The most likely place being at the bottom.

Bristol conferred quietly with Harper. “We’ll do a primary search, and if there’s no sign of her, then I’ll use the satellite radio to call in search and rescue.” Bristol swallowed the bile that rose into her mouth, grimacing at the acidic taste. “They’ll bring in divers to search for her body.”

Harper’s eyes popped open. She swore. “Goddamn stupid, dumb broad. Couldn’t have just stayed nice and cozy in the tent. Had to go off half-cocked and get herself killed.”

Bristol grabbed her sister’s arm. “Be quiet,” she hissed. “Don’t cause a panic. That is the worst-case scenario. There’s a million other things that could’ve happened. So we search. Okay?”

Harper shook her head, still processing, and then met Bristol’s gaze and nodded. “Okay.”

“Keep them together in the woods and yell if you see anything. I’ll do the same along the river.”

They set off. Harper, Steph, Dionne, and Kendra searched the wood line. Bristol, Ianna, and Savannah searched the riverbank. Bristol put Summit on a leash and attached it to a tree.

“Can’t have you disturbing the signs.” Bristol pet the dog’s head and kissed her wet nose. “Be back soon.” Summit whined and lunged toward Bristol, tearing up the rocky earth with her claws as Bristol walked away.

Bristol spread herself, Ianna, and Savannah out three wide to search the ground and call Cherri’s name. The riverbank was mostly small rocks so footprints would be hard to see.

“Look for any rocks that looked to have been kicked or tripped on,” Bristol instructed. “It was dark when she left. I assume she took a flashlight, but it would still have been hazardous walking.”

Ianna called Cherri’s name repeatedly and loudly. As did Bristol.

“Savannah, for God’s sake. Call out to her. It looks like you’re going for a stroll, not searching for your lost friend,” Ianna exclaimed.

“If she wanted to be found, she wouldn’t have taken off,” Savannah said.

“Ugh.” Ianna resumed her calling with extra enthusiasm, as if to make up for Savannah’s lack.

Bristol’s gaze kept being drawn to the river. It flowed fast and high, with branches and debris churning in its current. If Cherri had fallen in, it would have snatched her away without a thought or remorse. The river was so loud, they wouldn’t have heard a thing, even if she had cried out or called for help. The sour taste in Bristol’s mouth was making her nauseated. She struggled to swallow and bit her lip to keep her coffee down. The coffee she’d drunk while peacefully sitting with her dog, enjoying the morning and anticipating a great day ahead. All the while, Cherri was out there lost and alone, or worse. Bristol shook her head, trying to dislodge the heinous visions that had descended on her mind’s eye like an avalanche.

The riverbank narrowed, and the three women came to an impassable collection of bushes, branches, and driftwood.

“There’s something here!” Ianna called out.

Bristol and Savannah looked at where she was pointing. There was a piece of clothing caught in the web of wood. Bristol rushed over, her heart pounding. She untangled the wet, dirty material and laid it out flat on the ground. It was a T-shirt.

“That’s a man’s shirt,” Savannah said. “Cherri doesn’t own anything that looks like that.”

She probably wouldn’t let Cherri wear anything like this, Bristol thought. She stood up and wiped her hands on her pants.

“Where did it come from?” Ianna asked.

“Another kayaker must have lost it overboard, or it blew away.”

“We haven’t seen anyone out here,” Ianna said.

“It could’ve been a while ago. The river dislodges things all the time, especially in a storm like we just had.”

“So now what?” Savannah asked, gesturing to the mass of branches blocking their path.

“Just a sec. Let me check something,” Bristol said, walking to the wood line. She inspected the ground at the edge of the woods and just inside the trees. Coming back out, she said, “If she had walked the river’s edge and came to the same obstacle, she would have entered the trees right there. I don’t see any sign. No footprints or broken branches, so she must not have come this way. Let’s go back and see if the others found anything and then we will check the riverside going upstream.”

“You think she would have gone in the opposite direction?” Ianna asked.

“Normally, instinct propels people to follow the river downstream to civilization if they’re lost. But Cherri wasn’t lost. She chose to leave, and she didn’t know what lies downriver. She could have decided to go back the way we came. Eventually, she would reach our vehicles.”

“She better not have taken my car keys,” Savannah barked out.

They retraced their route quickly, but before they reached the campsite, Steph came running down to the water’s edge.

“We found footprints!” she yelled.

“Thank God!” Bristol sprinted to Steph. “Show me.”

Harper had waited in the woods where they’d found the footprints while Steph went for Bristol.

“I didn’t want to risk losing the trail,” Harper said.

“Good thinking,” Bristol said as she squatted down to the forest floor. There was a distinct set of footprints in a patch of mud. Relief flowed through Bristol like a healing balm. “I’m grateful for the rain we had now. Without the mud, prints wouldn’t be visible.”

“We’re sure these are hers because we also found a group of different footprints in another place that must be ours from our walk yesterday,” Steph said.

“We’ve called out, but she hasn’t responded, so she must be too far away,” Harper said.

“Okay. Harp, stay here. Steph, you come with me and I’ll tell the others what’s up.”

Bristol untied Summit’s leash from the tree and walked back to the women. Ianna, Savannah, Dionne, and Kendra were sitting on the rocks discussing the footprints. Bristol slung her packsack on one shoulder and Harper’s on her other.

“Ladies, you’ll stay here with Steph. Harper and I will follow the footprints through the woods until we find her.”

“Shouldn’t we help look?” Dionne asked.

“I’m not going back into those woods and getting covered in poison ivy,” Savannah said indignantly.

Bristol ignored her and responded to Dionne. “We have a trail to follow now, so having too many people in the woods would be detrimental. We can’t have people disturbing the prints. You guys stay here and rest. Steph will help you if you need anything. Right, Steph?”

Reluctantly, Steph nodded. “Right.”

Bristol knew Steph wanted to search with them, but someone had to stay with the clients. Also in the back of Bristol’s mind was the fear that Cherri had succumbed to something in the woods. The forest could be a treacherous place for a lone person with no wilderness experience. She couldn’t let her niece stumble upon something traumatic out there.

“I need you to keep Summit here.” Bristol handed the leash to Steph. “If I bring her, she’ll disturb the ground signs. She’s not going to like being left behind, so hold on tight.”

“I’m coming with you,” Ianna said.

Bristol blinked. She had expected those words from Steph, not from anyone else. “Ianna,” Bristol began.

“I have experience tracking. I used to track deer with my grandfather. I’m coming.”

Bristol was taken aback by the thought of one of Savannah’s bridesmaids hunting and tracking deer. She’d assumed they were all city girls. We don’t have time to argue. “Fine, but stick behind me and grab your bag and water. I don’t know how long we’ll be gone.”

They trekked into the woods with the sounds of Summit’s pitiful whines filling their ears.

“What took you so long? I’ve started growing roots from standing in this spot for so long,” Harper said as Bristol and Ianna approached.

“Sorry. We can go now. Ianna wanted to help look. I told Steph to stay with the others.”

“You didn’t bring Summit? Couldn’t she sniff her out or something?”

“No, she’s not trained for that. She’d just run on ahead like she always does and mess up the tracks.”

Harper nodded. “The next print is over there.” She pointed at the ground a few feet away. “I can see it from here.”

They walked to the next footprint. Bristol tied a piece of fluorescent orange flagging tape around a branch to mark the spot. She squatted down and scanned the ground leading away. The air was thick with the fresh scents of spruce and dirt. There was no trail through the woods. Now at the height of summer, the forest was an explosion of green. Trees, bushes, grasses, and ferns created a lush maze. Man, this is going to be tough.

“I see it,” Ianna said.

Bristol stood and looked at where Ianna was pointing. She could just make out a disturbance in the natural flow of the grass.

“Ya, maybe, eh?”

Bristol crept closer, setting each foot down cautiously after ensuring she would not obscure any sign underfoot. One spot of the grass about a foot long was flattened where the rest stood straight up. A footstep could have done that, but perhaps not.

“Keep calling out periodically,” Bristol instructed. “It’s so thick in here we could walk right by her and not know it.”

Harper let out a shrill whistle through her teeth, and Ianna called Cherri’s name.

Summit’s bark echoed through the woods.

“Well, you’re loud enough to be heard from the river. I hope Steph holds on to that leash,” Bristol said as the memory of Summit following her right up to a moose on her first guiding trip flashed through her mind.

Bristol looked around from the flattened grass and saw another sign a little further ahead. This must be a footstep. She moved ahead to the next sign and then the next, tying flagging tape around a branch at each one. The progress was aggravatingly slow. Insects homed in on their body heat. Mosquitoes droned around their heads incessantly. Tiny blackflies landed silently and crawled into their hair, ears, and even the corners of their eyes, undetected until they had already bitten. The women slapped at their skin, leaving smears of their own blood behind as they killed the insects.

“I am so not made for this one-step-at-a-time bullshit,” Harper said, brushing twigs out of her tangled hair. “Why in hell would she have tramped off into the woods by herself? Did she want to get killed?”

“She was really upset last night,” Ianna said. “She told me that Savannah is the most important person in her life. Her parents never cared about her. Let her be raised by babysitters. She doesn’t have any other friends. I think she’s attached herself to Savannah and tries to do everything for her to make herself indispensable, so Savannah would never leave her like everyone else does.”

“That’s terrible,” Bristol said.

“Ya, and yesterday Savannah made it perfectly clear that Cherri was dispensable. Bringing about her greatest fear. I don’t know why she came out here in the woods, but it can’t be good. We’ve got to find her soon.”

“Well, fuck,” Harper said, then let out a series of whistles and called to Cherri with renewed vigour.

Bristol studied a disturbance of soil and pine needles. She looked ahead for the next print, then scanned the area on three sides. She stood, surveying the area, panic rising in her chest like a river flooding its banks.

“Dammit!”

“What’s wrong?” Ianna said from behind her.

“I’ve lost her trail.”

Chapter twelve

“We’re surrounded by bushes. Look. We can’t even see the ground.” Bristol stepped back so Harper and Ianna could see the wall of bushes surrounding them. “She could have gone in any direction,” Bristol said, her voice rising in her panic.

“It’s okay. Just take a deep breath, take a break,” Ianna said calmly, placing her hand on Bristol’s arm. “You’ve been hyper-focusing for ages. Just relax for a minute.”

“You’re right.” It wasn’t so much Ianna’s words that got to her, but the fact that her client was the one doing the calming. It’s supposed to be the other way around. With a heavy sigh, she collapsed onto her butt on the ground and closed her eyes. The scene of footprints, broken twigs, and disturbed earth was imprinted on her mind.

Harper whistled loudly, and Ianna stood in front of Bristol and surveyed the area. Bristol breathed deeply until her panic subsided, like a river falling back within its banks. She opened her eyes and put a hand on the ground to push herself up. She froze. Something about the bush to the left looked different. From her position on the ground, she looked around while keeping the area that seemed off in view.

“Come down here,” she said.

Harper and Ianna dropped to the ground beside her. They followed the line of her finger with their eyes.

“Does something look different about that bush?”

Harper grunted. “Just looks like a bunch of leaves and twigs to me. Same as all the rest.”

Ianna stared hard at the area, not moving, then she started. “Yes! I see it. I know what it is. I’ve seen it before with my grandfather.”

“See what?” Harper asked.

“There’s a patch of leaves in that bush that are a slightly different shade of green. My grandfather explained it to me when we were tracking a buck. As the animal—or, in this case, human—pushes through brush or high grass, the orientation of the leaves change. The undersides are a different shade than the tops. So if you see a change in the colours, it’s because something pushed through and the leaves haven’t had time to orient themselves back to the sun.”

“You’re sure?” Bristol asked.

“Yes. Cherri definitely passed through right there.”

“Or a deer did,” Harper said.

Bristol stood up and frowned. “Well, we’ve been following Cherri’s tracks and I don’t see any deer tracks, so we should be okay.” Bristol marked the spot and then pushed through the bush slowly, scanning ahead as she went.

“There are a few strands of blond hair on this branch,” she announced.

“Okay, so not a deer, then.”

They kept tracking, kept calling, kept getting eaten alive by insects.

“Listen!” Bristol said, waving a hand to get the others to stop moving.

They all stood tall and frozen, listening to the sound of something moving through the forest. Twigs snapped and branches rustled.

“That’s no deer,” Harper breathed.

“It sounds like a bear,” Ianna said, grabbing the back of Bristol’s shirt.

“Shit.” Bristol reached back and pulled the can of bear spray out of the side pocket of her packsack. She released the safety clip and set her feet wide apart with the canister held in front of her with two hands. “We’ve been making enough noise, it should’ve been scared off.”

“Unless it has babies and we’re in its territory,” Ianna said, clutching Bristol’s shirt with both hands.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Harper hissed. “On top of everything else with this trip, now we’ve got a pissed-off bear bitch.”

Branches near them swayed, pinpointing the movement of the animal heading directly toward them. Bristol orientated herself and the pepper spray bear deterrent to face the oncoming assault. She rested her thumb on the trigger, ready to blast the eyes and nose of the bear as soon as it appeared.

The bushes in front of them parted. Bristol braced herself, thumb tightening. A blonde head pushed through. Bristol’s thumb flexed and skidded off the trigger.

“Cherri!” Ianna yelled and pushed past Bristol. She enveloped the missing woman in her arms and rocked back and forth with her.

Bristol panted, adrenaline crashing. Fuck, I almost blasted my client with bear spray, she thought, horrified at the potential consequences. Acid rolled in her stomach, leaving her feeling sick. She clicked the safety cap back on the spray and tucked it into her bag.

“We are damn happy to see you, woman. Where have you been?” Harper asked, clapping Cherri on her shoulder.

“Are you okay?” Bristol asked, looking Cherri over. Cherri’s hair was a scraggly mess, with twigs and leaves embedded in it. Mud covered her clothes. The skin around her eyes and nose was red and swollen from crying and bug bites, but she was in one piece and mobile. Bristol finally felt the relief she’d been praying for since she’d first learned Cherri was missing.

“Tired and thirsty,” Cherri said in a small, ragged voice. “I ran out of water.”

“Where did you sleep?” Ianna asked.

Bristol pulled a water bottle out of her bag and handed it to Cherri. She gulped it down and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand before answering.

“I walked for a couple of hours last night but got scared when I heard animal sounds. Then I tried to run back, but I got lost. I curled up under a tree until daylight.”

“You must be exhausted. Let’s get back to the tent and you can rest,” Ianna said.

Bristol led the way, with Cherri and Ianna behind her and Harper bringing up the rear. They followed Bristol’s orange flags back, moving fast with a definite trail to take. Bristol untied each flag as they came to it and stuck it in her pocket.

“Leave no trace,” Bristol said, quoting the hiker’s guide.

None of the women demanded to know why Cherri had left. They each felt like she’d been through enough without an interrogation, but as they walked along, Cherri broke the silence.

“I just had to get out of there. I couldn’t stand to stay lying beside Savannah in her tent on her bachelorette trip when I knew she didn’t want me. It was making me physically ill. I felt like I was going to vomit. So I grabbed my bag because it had water and a flashlight. I went to the forest’s edge to throw up, but once I was out of the tent, I felt better. I remembered how peaceful it was in the woods, and I walked a ways further in. It was different at night, of course, but it still felt more welcoming than Savannah’s tent, even in the dark. I just kept walking without really thinking about what I was doing. Too caught up in remembering all the things I’ve done for Savannah over the years. I’ve tried so hard, worked so hard—” Her voice broke and she swallowed dryly. Ianna reached ahead and took Cherri’s hand and gave it a squeeze.

“The more I thought, the angrier I got. The angrier I got, the faster I walked. Until I heard an animal screech. I don’t know what it was. I’ve never heard anything like that before in my life. It petrified me and I realized how stupid I was being. I turned around, thinking I could just walk back and no one would even know I’d left. But everything looks the same out here.”

She coughed and took a swig of water. “It was like I was in the mirror room of a funhouse. Everywhere I turned looked the same, but not familiar. Even when the sun came up, it was all just green, green, and more green.”

“Ya, I thought the same when we first came out here,” Ianna said. “Like God had dropped every shade of green it had in the same patch of forest.”

Cherri held a branch aside for Ianna. Quietly, she said, “I’m scared to face Savannah. She is going to be so mad at me.” She rubbed her swollen eyes. “I’ve really ruined her bachelorette now.”

“Nah, don’t worry about that,” Harper said. “It’s only been a few hours, and it’s a beautiful day. She and the others for sure have been relaxing onshore and getting a tan since we left.”

“Ya, it’ll be okay,” Ianna agreed.

Cherri shook her head. “You don’t know her like I do,” she insisted. “You might have when you were kids, but I’ve spent almost every day with her for the last couple of years. It’s going to be bad.”

Bristol frowned, Cherri’s prediction echoing in her mind. Man, I can’t take much more of this.

“Well, I’ve had just about enough of Little Miss Savannah’s attitude,” Harper said bluntly. “Think I’m done biting my tongue.”

As the sound of the river got louder, Bristol picked up the hiking pace. We’ve still got time to pack up and get on the river. Get closer to home. God, I can’t wait to be home.

As they neared the break in the trees, Summit came barrelling at her. The dog barked and leapt into the air. Bristol caught her in her arms like a circus trainer. All four women laughed, each feeling a release after the stress of the morning.

“I wasn’t gone that long, silly dog.” Bristol set Summit down and gave her a good pet. Cherri even patted the dog’s head with a smile.

Their smiles dropped like an anchor when Steph burst into the woods. She skidded to a stop, catching herself on a tree trunk.

“Aunt Bristol. Thank God!”

“What? What’s wrong?”

“They’re gone!”

“Who’s gone?” Without waiting for an answer, Bristol ran onto the rocky beach. She scanned the area. No one was in sight. She looked at the shoreline. Three kayaks were missing.

“What happened?” Bristol said, turning back to Steph as she and the others joined her.

“They—they just left,” she stammered. “I made food. They ate and sat around and Savannah just got more and more mad as time passed. She said that she wasn’t going to waste her entire trip sitting around waiting for Cherri.” Steph stopped, cheeks flushing, and looked at Cherri. “Sorry, I’m glad you’re okay.”

Cherri nodded mutely.

Steph continued, rushing the words out. “Dionne and Kendra told her they needed to wait to make sure Cherri was okay, but Savannah said that she knew Cherri was just hiding in the woods, trying to sabotage her bachelorette out of spite. She said she was leaving, going to continue her trip.”

“Holy fuckin’ shit,” Harper cursed, dropping her bag on the ground. “What is with this stupid chick?”

“I told her she had to wait for you, Aunt Bristol. I said we had to stay together. That it wasn’t safe, and the others backed me up, but she didn’t care. Said she was going and I couldn’t stop her. She threw her stuff in her kayak and was going to just take off alone. But, finally, Kendra said they’d go with her, so she waited for them to get ready. Dionne seemed to feel terrible about leaving without Cherri, but she said they couldn’t let Savannah go on the river by herself.” Steph gasped for breath when she’d finished.

Bristol dropped onto a log and closed her eyes, mentally exhausted. Summit tried to scramble onto Bristol’s lap and lick her face, the dog’s frantic energy grating on Bristol’s frayed nerves.

“I cannot believe this shit,” she muttered. She pushed the dog away. “Get off, Summit!” The dog sat staring at her. Bristol refused to meet her eye. “I need to think.” She rubbed her temples and forehead with both hands. What do we do now?

“What do we do?” Steph’s words echoed Bristol’s thoughts.

“I knew Savannah would be really mad,” Cherri said, “but I didn’t think she’d actually leave without me.”

“Ya, it is so not cool,” Steph said. “I couldn’t believe it.”

“It shouldn’t surprise me. I’ve seen her cut people off before. She has no sympathy.”

“How long ago did they leave?” Bristol cut in.

Steph checked her watch. “Like an hour ago.”

Bristol looked around, trying to process and think of every scenario. I don’t have a choice, she thought, heaving herself to her feet.

“I’ve got to go after them. We can’t be split up like this.”

“They’ve got an hour’s head start. How’re you going to catch them?” Harper asked.

“By hauling ass.”

Bristol rushed around, refilling her water bottles and adding snacks to her bag. “Cherri, take a nap in my tent. You need to get some rest. Harper and Steph, you two take down Savannah’s tent and your own. Pack everything up. I’ll be back as soon as I can.” She loaded her stuff in her kayak. Summit stood beside the boat, prancing from foot to foot. “Keep Summit with you again, Steph. I’ve gotta paddle fast.”

“Shouldn’t we all just pack up now and catch them together?” Steph asked, hooking Summit back up to the leash.

“I have to catch them now, before they take the wrong fork in the river.”

“There’s a fork in the river?” Ianna asked. “Where does the wrong one lead?”

“A Class IV rapid.”

Chapter thirteen

Bristol pushed her kayak into the water and jumped in. The boat bobbed with her weight and almost took on water. Summit barked on the shore and pulled against the leash. Steph held on with both hands as Summit tried to scramble toward Bristol, claws digging in and overturning rocks. Poor pup, she’s not used to me leaving her behind and now it’s three times in one day.

She dug her paddle blade in and shot down the river. The water was still high and moving fast. Sticks and debris floated on and in the rushing torrent, bumping and scratching against the hull of the kayak. Shit, if they’d paddled steadily with this current, they’ll have really gone far. Her heart raced at the thought of the women coming to the split in the river. The faster moving stream would pull them to the awaiting death trap. I have to reach them before they get there. I have to, she thought desperately. She wiped her clammy hands on her legs and tightened her grip on the paddle. She carved the water with her paddle, dipping her blade left, right, left, right. Bristol cleared her mind, lowered her gaze to just in front of the bow, and found her rhythm, moving with focus and determination. The mantra find them, find them repeated with each stroke.

The afternoon sun beat down on her and reflected off the water. Squinting against the harsh light brought on an ache behind her eyes and through her forehead. She cursed herself for forgetting her sunglasses back at camp. What else did I forget? Sweat beaded on her brow and trickled down her back. Her mouth was dry from panting with the exertion. She took a long drink from her water bottle. Did Savannah even take water with her? Fuck, they’d be in rough shape if they didn’t. How had this trip turned so bad? The one trip she was relying on to promote her business was a complete disaster. It’d be funny if it wasn’t her livelihood on the line.

“Or three women’s lives,” Bristol said aloud, the words bringing back the panic that she’d temporarily set aside.

She scanned the river ahead and the banks, praying she’d see them pulled off and safe. There was no sign. The only movement was from deer drinking from the river. They bounded off when her kayak drifted closer. Bristol gathered her focus and set a gruelling pace. She had to overtake Savannah before the river split.

A patch of colour broke Bristol’s focus. She slowed her padding and squinted at the colours in the distance.

“Thank you,” she whispered as the three kayaks came into focus.

The sight gave her flagging energy a boost. She increased her pace, her gaze locked on the boats ahead. They rounded a curve in the river and disappeared from view.

In between paddle strokes, she paused. She was moving fast. Too fast. The river had picked up speed.

Bristol’s stomach dropped. The split was already here.

As she came around the curve, she saw it. The fork in the river lay straight ahead. Savannah, Kendra, and Dionne were paddling steadily, oblivious to the danger ahead. The faster-moving current was drawing them toward the right-hand stream. The dominant stream. The stream that led to Class IV expert level rapids.

“No, no, no.”

Bristol had thought she’d been paddling as hard as she could, but seeing her clients heading toward a death trap spurred her to new speeds. Her teeth clenched, her tendons stood out in her neck, her arm muscles flexed and ached, but she gained on them. As she neared, she yelled their names over and over, wasting her already strained breath. They didn’t turn. She put the whistle from her life jacket in her mouth and blew. The sound pierced the air. Kendra looked over her shoulder and said something to the others. They all looked at Bristol. Dionne waved her hand.

“Pull off. Pull off,” Bristol yelled, pointing to the left bank.

Savannah shook her head and turned back around, continuing straight. Goddamn stupid woman, she doesn’t even know. Bristol swore and blew frantically into the whistle. Savannah refused to look in Bristol’s direction. The twins looked uncertainly back and forth between Bristol and Savannah. They drifted on the swift current.

The group passed the bifurcation of the river, travelling down the wrong stream. Bristol paddled, whistled, yelled, and pointed. Black spots danced in her eyes as her oxygen levels dropped. Her chest heaved. Kendra and Dionne started making their way to the left bank. Savannah continued stubbornly straight toward the rapids.

“Get off the river!” Bristol yelled as she came up behind. Kendra and Dionne paddled to shore.

“No. I’m going home,” Savannah yelled back over the whooshing of the water.

“Wrong way!” Bristol gasped for breath. “Rapids.”

Savannah’s eyes popped wide, her eyebrows reaching skyward. She looked behind her and then ahead, where the river narrowed. Boulders and logs obstructed the water.

“Left bank. Now!” Bristol crowded close to Savannah’s kayak with her own, trying to herd her in the right direction.

The fear in Bristol’s face must have registered because Savannah finally directed her kayak toward shore. She paddled quickly, but the intense current pulled her further downstream.

“Paddle hard. Harder!” Bristol screamed, her own muscles trembling with the effort to stay with Savannah. Bristol went further downriver in front of the other woman, so Savannah could see her technique and copy it. “Left. Left.”

Savannah repeated what Bristol did, and they approached the riverbank. Bristol hit the bank and jumped out of the kayak. She threw hers ashore and ran to grab the tow handle on Savannah’s bow as she came in.

“Get out!”

The kayak bobbed and weaved. It slammed into the rocks. Bristol held on tight and pulled. Savannah clutched a boulder and heaved herself out of the kayak. Without her weight, the empty kayak leapt up and Bristol yanked it out of the water. She collapsed on the ground. Savannah stood looking at the river. Bristol fell onto her back, light-headed and weak. She panted and sucked in oxygen.

“Why in the hell are there rapids on our trip?” Savannah glared down at Bristol.

Bristol struggled to her feet. “There aren’t any rapids on the trip I planned for you.”

Savannah stared at Bristol with her mouth open. “What are you talking about? The rapids are right there.” She gestured to the river like Bristol had missed it.

“You went the wrong way. You weren’t supposed to be on this branch of the river.”

“Well, how was I supposed to know that?” Savannah placed her hands on her hips.

“You weren’t,” Bristol said bluntly. “You paid for a guided trip, so you were supposed to let me guide you, not take off alone with no idea of what lay ahead. All three of you could’ve been killed if you’d gone down that rapid.”

Savannah sputtered, taken aback by Bristol’s abrupt tone and simmering anger. For once, she seemed to be at a loss for words. Finally she said, “You could’ve warned me there were hazards on this route.” Before Bristol could respond with a counterargument, she continued. “Anyway, what do we do now?”

Swallowing her anger and resentment at being put in this position, she responded more calmly, “Now, we have to haul these kayaks around this shoreline to get to the correct and safe river branch.”

“Haul the kayaks? You mean carry them?” Savannah shook her head. “I told you I didn’t want to do any portages.”

Bristol ground her teeth together. “Yes, you did, and there aren’t any on the trip I planned, but again, you didn’t wait for me and you went the wrong way. So here we are.” She shrugged her shoulders.

“Can’t we just paddle to the other river? I don’t want to portage.”

“No, we can’t,” Bristol snapped. “We are not getting back onto that water. We’ll be swept into the rapids.” Bristol dug into Savannah’s kayak and hauled out her backpack. “Put this on and then lift your kayak onto your shoulder.” Bristol tossed the bag to Savannah, and she had to grab it with both hands to keep it from hitting the ground. Bristol drank water and put on her own bag.

Savannah put her bag on her back and then groaned as she tried to turn the boat onto its side. Bristol helped her flip the kayak. “Brace your hand on the inside edge of the cockpit and then lift with your legs. Once up, set the kayak edge on your life jacket shoulder for padding.” Savannah got it up after a couple of tries.

“It’s heavy,” Savannah said.

Bristol bit her tongue so she didn’t remind Savannah of all the extra unneeded shit she’d brought.

“Follow the shore that way.” Bristol pointed.

Savannah set off, and Bristol got her own kayak up and followed. At least mine is basically empty since all my stuff is still at the campsite.

Rocks, boulders, and driftwood covered the shoreline. Savannah cursed and complained as she walked, struggling to manoeuvre around or over the obstacles. The intense July heat beat down on them. The air was still and heavy. Sweat ran from Bristol’s hair into her eyes, stinging and blinding her. She stopped walking and wiped her face with her hand, blinking to relieve the burning. Savannah stumbled and dropped her kayak with a crunch on the rocky ground. She let out a scream, sounding to Bristol like a frustrated three-year-old.

“Are you alright?” Bristol set her kayak on the ground with a grunt and approached Savannah.

“No. I am not alright,” Savannah snapped, collapsing onto the kayak. “I am hot and tired and hungry and thirsty and this piece-of-shit boat is too heavy to be carrying around like a fucking elephant on my shoulder.” Tears rose in her eyes and she ground them away with her fists. “I can’t believe this is my bachelorette party. Stupid Bryer and his stupid ‘suggestions.’ Instead of going on a real trip somewhere where we could sip cocktails on a beach and go dancing at night, this is what I’m doing.” She grabbed a rock and hurled it into the river.

Empathy filled Bristol. She sat down on the kayak and turned to the other woman. Even though most of this was Savannah’s own doing, it really was a shitty way to spend your bachelorette. “I’m sorry your bachelorette trip isn’t going like you wanted,” she said softly.

“Ya, right.” She scoffed. “Anyway, I’m done.” She flung her loose and tangled hair over her shoulder. “I’m not doing this anymore. Call someone to come get me.”

Bristol closed her eyes, ground her teeth, and tried to gather her fleeting patience, which had scattered like a group of runaway rabbits.

“I cannot call someone to come get you.”

“You have your satellite phone. Call for help.”

“We don’t need help. We just have to get back to the other river stream and then we are back on track.”

“I do need help. I don’t want to do this anymore. Call search and rescue to come take me home by helicopter.”

Bristol’s mouth dropped open. She can’t be fucking serious. She waited for Savannah to laugh or say “Just kidding.” When she only stared back at Bristol with her lips pressed tight, Bristol shook her head. To hell with trying to please her to get a good review. This was too damn much.

“I will not call search and rescue to get a helicopter and volunteers out here to come ‘save’ you because you are tired and not used to doing things for yourself.”

Savannah’s eyes popped wide, and her frown deepened.

“The money and time and energy that it takes to coordinate a search and rescue mission is astronomical. I cannot, no, I will not,” she stressed, “waste those precious resources for absolutely no reason.”

Savannah glowered at Bristol. “That is not how you speak to paying clients. You are so unprofessional. And you’re going to regret this.” Savannah stood up, lifted her kayak, and strode off with more energy than she’d showed all trip.

Bristol lifted her own kayak. “I regret a lot of things this week.”

Chapter fourteen

They’d been walking for only a few minutes when Kendra and Dionne appeared on the shoreline ahead. The twins waved and called to them.

“You guys okay?” Dionne said when they arrived.

Savannah and Bristol set down their kayaks.

“Yes,” Bristol answered before Savannah could try to convince them they needed to be rescued. “We just have to get around the bend here and we’ll be on the correct river again.”

“Bristol, did you find Cherri?” Kendra asked. “Is she alright?”

Bristol jerked, shocked when she realized Savannah had not once asked about her friend that entire time. Cherri could still have been missing, or worse, for all she knew.

“Yes, we found her. She’s okay. She was tired and thirsty, but uninjured.”

“Thank God,” Dionne said. “Kendra and I have been so worried and talking out the possible scenarios. When you appeared, we hoped it was good news, but then we were worried that you’d come to stop us because you hadn’t found her.”

“I knew she was fine. Probably just sat inside the trees until she got the attention she was after,” Savannah said.

Bristol pointedly ignored her. “Ladies, can you help us carry our kayaks to where yours are? It’ll go faster.”

“Yes, of course,” Dionne said.

They each took an end of the kayak and the four women hiked ahead with the boats between them. It was so much easier to walk, and Bristol was grateful for the help. They reached Kendra’s and Dionne’s kayaks in no time.

“I’m glad we pulled off the river when we did,” Kendra said. “I wouldn’t have wanted to haul our boats that whole way, too.” She took a drag off of her vape, exhaling the vapour in a burst.

“Unfortunately, you’ll have to carry them a ways. We still have to get around the bend to the correct river. Not much further from here.”

Bristol helped Kendra and Dionne get their kayaks onto their shoulders. Savannah grunted and groaned, but got hers up and they continued on. Bristol heaved hers up and swayed as a wave of dizziness washed over her. She stumbled a couple of steps to the left toward the river. Black spots danced in her vision. She caught herself before she fell and scrubbed a hand over her face, blinking to clear her eyes. She stood still with her legs braced wide for balance, breathing deeply, waiting for the light-headedness to pass.

Come on, Emerson. Keep it together.

“Bristol, are you okay?” Kendra called.

Bristol lifted her head and saw the women had gotten quite far ahead. She cleared her throat. “Ya, keep going.” She waved her hand forward.

She focused on her breathing, and taking one step at a time. Gradually she became more steady and caught up with the women when they stopped for a break.

“Is this far enough?” Savannah asked.

They had rounded the point of land separating the two river streams. The calm, wide river lay in front of them.

Bristol set her kayak on the ground. “Yes, stop here.” She plunked down on the bow.

The others groaned in relief, rubbing their shoulders and stretching their backs.

“I need something to eat,” Bristol said as she dug into her bag for snacks and water. “Then I’ll go back to get the others. You three stay here and rest.”

“You’re leaving us? After all that?” Savannah demanded.

An emotional weight settled on Bristol’s shoulders like sandbags. She bowed her head. Why does every single thing have to be a fight?

“I have to go back and get the others to make sure they don’t end up in the rapids like you did.”

“That’ll take forever. We’ll just keep going,” Savannah said.

Dionne and Kendra shared a nervous look.

“No. You won’t,” Bristol said firmly. “You will stay here and wait for the rest of us.”

“But I don’t want to.”

“I’m sorry, but at this point, Savannah, it doesn’t matter what you want.” Bristol ignored Savannah’s affronted expression. “You don’t know the route. We have to stay together for safety and security. That is the only way to get home in one piece.”

“We want to wait for the others, Savannah. We want to see Cherri,” Kendra said.

“You need to wait for the tent, anyway. Where were you planning on sleeping tonight?” Bristol asked.

Savannah didn’t answer. She just sat down on her kayak and glared at the river.

Bristol ate trail mix by the handful and chugged water, trying to rally her energy. The food helped with the light-headedness and shakiness in her limbs. Blood sugar must have dropped, she thought. She pulled the kayak to the river’s edge. The water lapped against the hull with a slapping sound.

“Okay. I’m off. Stay here, rest, and wait.” Bristol regarded Savannah pointedly. “You don’t know what lies ahead on the river. It’s dangerous. Wait for me to guide you home.”

Savannah gave a curt nod and looked away.

Bristol pushed her kayak into the water and jumped in. The current grabbed the boat and pulled it downriver in the opposite direction of Harper and the others. Fuck me, this is going to be hard, she thought as she fought against the power of the river. She paddled upriver, straining with each stroke. Sweat ran into her eyes and burned. She breathed hard and could smell her own sharp body odour. She coughed. Why in the hell did I choose this torture as a career? Masochistic asshole, she cursed herself.

Bristol stuck to the side of the river where the current was weakest. She used the back flow of various eddies to help propel her upriver. She didn’t even notice the beautiful scenery along the banks in her struggle.

“Hallelujah,” she said aloud when she saw a canoe and two kayaks making their way toward her. Summit’s excited barking echoed across the river. With renewed vigour, she upped her paddling and met up with Harper and the others.

“Man, am I happy to see you guys,” she said as she swung her kayak around and continued downstream beside the canoe. “So glad I didn’t have to go all the way back.”

“Once we had everything packed up, I figured there was no reason to hang around,” Harper said. “Thought going to meet you was a better idea.”

“Thanks. I’m so friggin’ tired. The current is extra strong because of the rain.” She set the paddle across the cockpit, leaned back, and savoured flowing with the water instead of battling against it. She dipped her sweaty hands in the cool river. Her arms, back, and head ached, and her eyes were dry and scratchy. I’m probably going to be sunburned, too.

“Did you find them?” Ianna asked as she paddled alongside Bristol. Summit sat in her cockpit whining.

“Yes, barely in time. They’d entered the rapids, but I got them off safely. They’re waiting for us.”

Summit stood, placed her paws on the hull of Ianna’s kayak, and barked at Bristol.

“Hi, baby girl. I’m sorry I left you again.” Bristol angled closer and pet the dog’s head. Summit crouched and then leapt from Ianna’s boat. Her back paws kicked the boat away with the strength of her jump. Ianna screamed as her kayak swung to the right and water swamped the hull and flowed into the open cockpit.

“Shit, Summit!” The dog’s front claws scraped across Bristol’s kayak and her back end sunk into the river. Her paws curled like talons around the lip of the cockpit. Bristol grabbed for the dog with both hands. The kayak tipped to the side, and water streamed in. She got one hand wrapped around the handle on Summit’s life jacket and another under her butt in the water. She held on tight and threw herself back, hauling the dog aboard her boat into her lap. Summit shook herself, sending water drops flying and whacking Bristol in the face with her wet tail. Bristol pushed the tail down. Summit turned around and licked Bristol’s face ecstatically.

“Bristol, watch out!” Steph yelled.

Bristol pushed the dog’s face away just in time to see the riverbank and overhanging trees looming straight ahead. She reached blindly for her paddle. “Summit, sit down!” She patted across the cockpit and then the haul. Her paddle was gone. “Fuck.”

The kayak crashed into the tangle of trees. Branches enveloped her and the dog. A branch whipped across Bristol’s eyes, gouging her. She grabbed for the branches, the current pushing her further into the thicket. Twigs and sticks pulled the hair from her head and scraped her bare arms.

She heard Harper and Steph right behind, calling her name.

“Stay back,” she yelled, fighting to keep the trees from pushing her out of the boat and into the swirling river. Summit instinctively crouched in the cockpit, avoiding most of the barrage. She ducked her head and her life jacket protected her back. Bristol clamped her eyes shut and pulled herself along and through the trees until she cleared them. The kayak bumped into the riverbank and bounced back, the current she had just been savouring now pushing her wildly downriver. She had no way of controlling the craft. The river swept her into the bank again. She hit with an impact that jarred her already sore back and was bounced back out into the river.

“Here, take this!” someone yelled.

Bristol glanced behind her and saw Cherri holding one paddle out to her with another across her lap. Bristol flung her arm back, and Cherri leaned over the edge of her kayak, bringing the paddle within Bristol’s reach. Her fingers grazed the paddle’s blade and slid off the wet plastic. They each leaned further out, bobbing in the water, and Bristol got her hand wrapped around the paddle’s shaft. She had just enough time to stab the blade into the water and push forward, swinging the bow away from the shore before she hit again, this time into a pile of hull-cracking boulders.

She straightened out on the river and looked around, trying to account for everyone. “Ianna, are you alright?” Bristol asked through panting breaths.

“Yes. Wet, but okay.”

“Jesus Christ. What a shit show that was,” Harper said.

“Oh, my God, Aunt Bristol, you’re bleeding,” Steph said.

“What? Where?” Bristol looked down at herself.

“Your face.”

Bristol wiped a hand across her face and a harsh stinging above her eye made her swear. She pulled her hand away and looked at it. A bright red smear of blood covered her palm.

“Damn branch got me good.” She blinked as a red haze filled one eye.

“Shit, you made it worse,” Harper said. “You’ve got a cut in your eyebrow.”

“This is ridiculous. One thing after a-fucking-nother.” Bristol shoved Summit aside, smearing blood across her black-and-white-spotted fur. She opened her day hatch for her first aid kit, then dropped it into her lap and paddled quickly to redirect her kayak away from the river’s edge.

“We should stop,” Ianna said.

“No, it’s fine. I can fix it. I want to get back to Savannah before she takes off again because we weren’t quick enough for her.” She paddled to the centre of the river to give herself time to be hands free. Grabbing a few squares of gauze, she slapped it onto her eyebrow and held it there with one hand. Using her teeth, she pulled the end of the tape and stuck it to her forehead.

“Bristol, watch out. Paddle!”

Chapter fifteen

The steep riverbank loomed ahead. Bristol grabbed her paddle from the cockpit. The roll of tape stuck to her face, but the gauze fell into her lap. Blood filled her vision once again. She closed her compromised eye, paddled away from the bank and back into the centre. Summit sniffed at the bloody squares in Bristol’s lap and let out a whine.

“We should stop,” Ianna said again, closer now.

Bristol didn’t respond. She put the paddle down, gathered the squares, and stuck them back to her face. She held them with one hand and pulled the tape across and ripped it off. Then put another piece going the other way, making an X across the gauze. She paddled again into the centre of the river, then got more gauze to wipe her red flooded eye, wiping and blinking until the sheen of blood had diminished to a pale pink haze. Bristol stashed the first aid kit and leaned back in her seat, breathing a sigh of relief.

Everyone was silent, shocked and unsure what to say or do. They gathered around her and paddled beside and behind her, almost close enough to touch.

After a while, Harper studied Bristol and said, “You look like a pirate.”

“It’s true.” Steph giggled. “Lucky that stick didn’t get you right in the eye or you would’ve needed a real pirate’s patch.”

Bristol lifted a hand to the patch and turned to her niece with a scowl. “Arr.”

“Aye, Captain Red Eye,” Steph said.

Summit turned and licked Bristol’s cheek.

“Captain Dog Breath, more like it,” Harper said.

“Captain Klutz, to be more accurate. Or Captain Cursed with the luck I’ve had this trip.” She patted the dog’s head. “I should’ve known Summit would have tried to come to me. I wasn’t thinking,” Bristol said, shaking her head at the stupid mistake and unnecessary danger.

“Good thing Cherri hauled ass and grabbed your paddle,” Harper said.

“Yes, thank you, Cherri,” Bristol said, surprised again at Cherri’s quick manoeuvre. “All my years kayaking, I’ve never lost a paddle. It’s the number one rule: hold on to your paddle.”

“Ya, just ask my little sister,” Steph said with a laugh.

“Ianna agreed to take Summit because the canoe was so loaded. Savannah and the others left half their shit behind, so we have even more in here than before,” Harper said, slapping her paddle on the load strapped down in front of her.

“Of course she did.” Bristol shook her head in exasperation.

“Is Savannah very mad at me?” Cherri asked in a small voice.

“Ah…” Bristol hesitated. “She’s mad and frustrated, but I think it’s more because of the way her bachelorette trip is turning out.” She turned to Cherri with a half smile. “She’s more angry with me at this point.”

“That’s not good,” Steph murmured.

As the adrenaline from the lost paddle and her cut face drained away, worry set in again. She better be there, Bristol thought, repeating it into a new mantra aligned with her paddle strokes. If she took off again, I’ll kill her.

Relief flooded her when she saw the three kayaks on the riverbank in the same place she’d left them.

“Thank the universe for small favours,” she said.

Summit barked when she saw the three women standing onshore. Bristol waved toward the river and called out as they approached the group. “Let’s go.” If I stop now, I’ll never get going again. “We can’t camp here. Gotta get to a suitable spot before dusk.”

Kendra and Dionne rushed to stow their bags and push their kayaks to the water’s edge.

“Savannah, come on!” Kendra yelled.

With deliberate slowness, Savannah zipped up her bag and put it into the kayak’s hatch, pushed her boat to the river’s edge, watched Bristol and the others glide past, and then entered the river in her boat. Behind them.

Bristol looked over her shoulder, made sure the three women were safely on the river, then rolled her eyes.

“She sure showed us,” Harper said sarcastically.

Steph snorted a laugh.

As they paddled along in silence, the day’s raging river of exertion and turmoil took its toll on Bristol. Every part of her body hurt. It seemed like the ache was deep in her bones, radiating outward. Her pace slowed, her eyes drifted closed, and her head dropped to her chest. She startled awake, then nodded off again.

“Bristol, you okay?” Harper asked.

Bristol opened her eyes, shocked to see the canoe directly beside her. The others crowded around her as well. She must have stopped paddling completely.

She cleared her throat. “Yup, fine.”

She paddled hard for a bit, then drank some water. Fatigue had descended on her like an avalanche. She tried to dig herself out of it, but it seemed impossible. She dipped her hands in the water, letting the cold water lap at her wrists. Wiping her wet hands on her flushed face, avoiding the bandage, she gave herself a mental pep talk.

Not much further, just stay awake. You can do this.

Bristol felt a bump and her heart leapt in her chest.

“We need to stop,” Harper said firmly. “Now.”

She’d fallen asleep again and drifted toward the riverbank. Harper and Steph had positioned the canoe beside her, and she’d bumped into that instead of the bank.

“Shit.” She looked around at the others. Heat crept into her cheeks. “Ya, okay. Just gotta find a suitable spot for the big tent.”

They located an open space on the shore not far away and pulled off. Summit leapt from the kayak and ran into the bushes.

“Least we made some distance today,” Bristol said to Harper and Steph as she pulled herself out of the boat. She groaned. “Man, I’m exhausted.”

“Ya, you look like shit,” Harper said.

“Gee, thanks, sister.”

“What happened to your face?” Kendra asked.

Bristol touched the bandage on her eyebrow. “Oh. Ah. I had a little mishap when Summit decided to abandon ship. Just a tree branch. It’s fine.”

“Rough day for you,” Kendra said sympathetically.

“Yes. So we are all going to get the big bitch set up and let Bristol rest,” Harper said.

“No, Harper. It’s fine.”

“I’m fine, it’s fine. The whole world is fine,” Harper mocked in a high, falsely positive voice. Dropping to her own voice, she said, “I don’t care. Be fine. But sit your ass down and rest for a minute.” She turned to the group. “Okay, ladies, it has been a rough day and we need your help. Everyone is to help Steph and me set up the glamping tent and get supper ready.”

“No problem,” Ianna said. The others nodded. Savannah didn’t.

“I didn’t pay to come out here and do everything myself. Besides, I need a shower.”

Bristol started to respond, but Harper’s voice overrode hers. “Well, madam, the only way you’re getting a shower tonight is if you gather water and heat it yourself. We’re busy.” Harper turned away and unstrapped the canoe’s load.

Bristol didn’t rest. She let Harper and the others set up the glamping tent because she didn’t want to get shit from her sister. Instead, she set up her own tent, Harper’s, and Steph’s. The big tent had gotten set up twice as fast, with six of them working on it. Bristol got the camp stove out and made camp mochas for everyone. With her drink in hand, she sat down and did nothing for a moment. She sipped the mocha with her hand on Summit’s back, watching the sun dip behind the trees and listening to the birds twitter their last song of the day. She carefully kept her mind blank like a new canvas and envisioned the fatigue leaving her body, allowing the coffee and chocolate mixture to suffuse her and comfort her.

“Okay, woman. Time to get that cut looked at before we lose all light.” Harper approached with the first aid kit in her hand.

“I’m sure it’s fine,” Bristol said, patting the gauze over her eye.

“Aunt Bristol, you’ve got to clean it. It’s your face,” Steph said, horrified. “You could get an infection or something. On your face!”

Bristol sighed. Her momentary peace disappearing like a songbird at night. “Okay.”

Harper knelt down in front of her and peeled away the bandage. “Bleeding’s stopped.”

Harper used an antiseptic wash to clean the cut and soap and water to get the dried blood off of Bristol’s face. She let out a low whistle.

“What?” Bristol asked, wishing for a mirror.

The others crowded around behind Harper to study Bristol. Their cringing faces sent a wave of panic through Bristol.

“What?”

“You’ve lost a chunk of skin in the centre of your eyebrow.”

“I’ve got a hole in my eyebrow? Like, no hair there?”

Harper nodded. “And a big scratch on your cheek.”

“It’s not that bad. Maybe the hair will grow back,” Steph said hopefully.

“If not, you can always fill it in with a brow pencil. I usually do my brows every day at home,” Kendra said.

Harper put an antibiotic ointment on the cut and rebandaged it, doing a much neater job than Bristol had done.

Bristol had a flash of worry about Mitch’s reaction to her disfigured face.

“At least I still have my eye.”

While everyone had worked, Savannah had sat stubbornly away, scrolling through her phone even though they still didn’t have cell service. When the mochas were ready, she came and got one, though. She hadn’t spoken to anyone until the girls started hauling their sleeping bags to the tent.

“Cherri, do you really think you can sleep in my tent ever again after the shit you pulled?” Savannah’s sharp voice pierced the quiet chatter.

Cherri froze, holding her sleeping bag in front of her like a shield.

“I, ah,” she stammered.

“You didn’t want to stay in my tent last night. You took off like a stray dog. Ruined the entire trip. So you can go sleep in the woods again tonight.”

“Savannah—” Ianna started.

Savannah cut her off. “You can join her, too, if that’s what you want. You’re supposed to be my maid of honour, but you’ve got yourself a new little bestie. So, who cares about the bride?” She launched to her feet, grabbed her sleeping bag, and disappeared into the tent.

If there had been a solid door, Bristol knew she would’ve slammed it.

Tears ran silently down Cherri’s face. She took a deep breath that turned into a sob and ran to the river’s edge with her back to everyone, still clutching her sleeping bag. Ianna followed and rubbed her back while talking soothingly to her.

Bristol approached and Cherri turned swollen red eyes to her.

“I knew she would do something like this,” Cherri said. “I’m so stupid, I shouldn’t have made it worse. I wasn’t thinking.”

“It’ll be alright. Listen, you can have my tent for the night.”

“She’ll probably blast you if you try to sleep in her tent, too,” Ianna said.

“No, no. I don’t want to sleep in there. I’ll sleep under the stars with Summit.” Bristol gestured to the sky, which had turned a dark purple and indigo. A few early stars glittered.

Cherri dried her tears with her shirt sleeves, sniffing. “You don’t have to do that. You’ll be cold. It’s my fault. I’ll sleep outside.”

“Nah, I like to sleep in the open air. I do it all the time.” This wasn’t exactly true, but Bristol thought it would make Cherri feel better. “You need a good sleep after your ordeal last night. We’ve got a big day of paddling tomorrow.” She glanced over her shoulder and saw the others had a fire going and Harper was dishing out food. “Come get some supper. I’ll clear out my tent.”

They ate the chili that Harper had made and frozen before the trip. Its steaming heartiness was exactly what Bristol needed after that arduous day. They called to Savannah and told her supper was ready. She didn’t come out for a long time and Bristol thought she was going to forgo supper completely, but eventually she emerged from the tent. She grabbed a bowl without a word and strode back to the tent to eat alone.

“I’m surprised she came out and got it herself. Normally, she’d have Cherri do it,” Dionne said.

“Ya, well, Savannah’s going to have to learn that she can’t use people however she wishes,” Ianna said, setting her bowl down and glaring at the tent.

“Unlikely,” Kendra said.

Full dark had descended, and the bridesmaids went to the tent to sleep. Cherri entered Bristol’s tent with her sleeping bag.

“Sorry if it smells like dog,” Bristol said.

“That’s okay, Summit’s not a dog, she’s like a little human.”

It shocked Bristol to see Cherri poke her head out of the tent and rub Summit’s ears with both hands when the dog came to investigate. Summit licked the inside of Cherri’s wrist and Cherri smiled. “Good night.”

“You sure you’ll be okay out here?” Harper asked.

“Yup.” Bristol spread her sleeping bag on the grass near the fire. “At least this camping spot is not a rock pile like the last one.” She sprayed herself down with insect repellent. “Just hope I’m not an all-you-can-eat buffet tonight for the bugs.”

Harper snorted a laugh and threw a couple more chunks of driftwood on the fire. Sparks rose into the night sky to join the stars.

“Want to sleep in my tent with me?” Steph asked.

“No, no. Remember your mom and Sophia squeezing into a solo for the night? Your mom looked like the walking dead the next day. Thank you, though.”

“If you get too cold, wake me up, and we’ll switch for the rest of the night,” Harper said.

“Sure, but I’ll be fine. I’ve got my portable heater.” She patted Summit’s head. “And I’m so exhausted, I’ll sleep like the dead.”

“Good night, then,” Harper said, and she and Steph crawled into their tents.

Bristol scooted into her sleeping bag. Summit stood looking down at her. The dog whined and looked at their tent. Bristol grinned.

“Not tonight, pup. We’re open-air sleeping.” Bristol patted the top of the bag. “Lie down.”

Summit whined again.

“Oh, alright.” Bristol unzipped her sleeping bag and held it open. The dog dove inside, turned around and lay flush against Bristol’s side. Bristol zipped up the bag as far as she could, leaving space for Summit’s head. Bristol lay on her back and studied the sky. Without the interference of city lights, the sky was ablaze with stars. Bristol searched for the constellations she knew until she drifted asleep, warmed on one side by the fire and on the other by her loyal best friend.

Chapter sixteen

Bristol awoke to an intense itching on her face. She untangled her hand from the sleeping bag and scratched her forehead. Her nails caught on the gauze and pulled it away from the cut in her eyebrow. The material had adhered to her cut and a fresh wave of pain lanced her face as it ripped away.

“Ow, fuck!” She pressed her palm to her brow, trying to hold in the pain.

Summit wriggled out of the sleeping bag. Bristol sat up, eyes still closed tight against the ache in her face.

“Nice way to start the day,” she muttered.

She glanced over at the sound of a tent unzipping. Harper crawled out and came over to her.

“You okay?”

“Ya, I was scratching, and I ripped my cut open, I think.”

Harper picked up the first aid kit she’d left beside Bristol last night and knelt down on the end of Bristol’s sleeping bag. Before she’d even taken the gauze off, Harper hissed out a curse.

“What?” Bristol asked. “Do I have red streaks across my face? Infection? Blood poisoning?” She was only joking, but felt a twinge of alarm crawl up her back at Harper’s intense stare.

“You look friggin’ rough, girl. I think the mosquitoes called in the black flies and every bug in the area feasted on your face last night.”

“Ah, man. Seriously?” Bristol sat on her hands to keep from running them over her poor skin and awakening all the bites.

“The blood from your cut must have drawn them in like two-for-one beers at happy hour.” Harper removed the bandage. “Good news, though, no sign of infection. I don’t think we’ll have to amputate your face.”

Bristol scowled. “Not funny, sister.”

Harper cleaned the cut and applied a fresh bandage, putting on extra antibacterial ointment to prevent the gauze from sticking to the wound. “So, what’s the plan from here on out?”

Bristol deflated. “I think at this point, we just have to get home as quickly as possible. No one is enjoying themselves. There’s no way to recover this trip to the fun bachelorette party it was supposed to be.”

“Ya, it’s the biggest shit show I’ve ever seen. And I’ve been a ringleader in a few.”

“Hmm. Shit show ringleader. That does sound like you.”

Harper growled and gave Bristol a playful shove. Summit barked.

Laughing, Bristol shushed the dog. She smiled. It felt good to laugh after all that had happened. She climbed out of her sleeping bag.

“I’m glad you’re here, Harp.”

“Ha.” Harper barked a laugh. “Don’t hear that very often.”

Bristol frowned. “Why do you say that?”

“Nothing. Just normally, people don’t like the chaos I bring. Guess these women make my chaos look like small potatoes.” Harper stood up. “Let’s get started on breakfast and get everyone up. Earlier we leave, the sooner we get home.” She strode off to the coolers, leaving Bristol staring after her.

They made breakfast and got everyone up to eat. The women all exclaimed over the state of Bristol’s face. Her eyelids had swollen from the bites, and she regarded them through puffy slits. Each expression of sympathy made Bristol wince. She was now glad she didn’t have a mirror with her. Mitch was probably going to be horrified.

After they ate, Harper took charge of wrangling the women to set up the shower, pack up their stuff, and take down the tent. Bristol was impressed. This was a side of her sister she’d never seen before this trip. Harper had always been a woman who drifted along like a log on a lazy river, bumping into things, getting stuck, moving on, with no real purpose. This Harper was more like a motorboat with a course mapped out and a heading to aim for. Maybe the difference was due to no alcohol on this trip. Drunk Harper grated on her nerves, but sober Harper was reliable and nice to be around. Bristol wished this new sister would stick around after the trip, but experience had taught her getting her hopes up for something like that just led to disappointment and resentment. I’ll enjoy it while it lasts, she decided.

They got on the water mid-morning, the earliest they had all week. The sun shone, but was not as intense as it was the day before. Bristol allowed Summit to run the riverbank while they paddled the river. The dog loved discovering new scents and flushing out birds in the long grass, but she always kept Bristol in sight and varied her speed to keep alongside.

“Perfect paddling weather,” Bristol said to Cherri as they went along. The river had settled again in the night, back to the level it had been when they started the trip.

“Yes, it is peaceful if I shut Savannah out of my mind and just enjoy the scenery and fresh air.”

Savannah was way out in front of the group. She’d even distanced herself from Kendra and Dionne. Bristol didn’t tell her to wait; she kept an eye on her and wasn’t worried about her getting lost. She’d lied when she made Savannah wait for the rest of them to get back with Cherri. The river was a straight route to their takeout point now. The ends justify the means, Bristol thought.

A movement along the shore startled the women. They pointed as a giant slate-grey bird outstretched its six-foot wingspan and rose into the air with a lumbering grace from where it had stood fishing in the shallows. The bird’s S-shaped neck straightened out as it took flight, and its sharp bill pointed like a compass needle across the water. Summit barked and sprinted toward the bird, yapping at the sky. The great blue heron followed the river and passed above Savannah. She looked up and yelped as it flew over, casting a shadow on her. The prehistoric-looking animal continued on, undisturbed by her outcry.

“Too bad it didn’t shit on her head,” Harper said.

Cherri snickered, and the smile remained on her face for a moment. Bristol was shocked to realize she’d barely seen Cherri smile this whole trip, even before the fight with Savannah.

As they paddled along, Bristol’s mind turned to the review and social media posts Savannah was going to write. She tried to halt the ruminations, but they rose like the tide, heedless of her wishes. Bristol had been so excited when this big-time influencer booked with her brand new company. It was supposed to be a dream come true. Free marketing and huge exposure in her first summer of business. Now, Savannah was mad and disappointed, and she revealed herself to be a very petty person. This would not end well for Sister Stone Adventures.

The sky turned from dove grey to charcoal grey and a drizzle began in the late afternoon.

“Of course it’s raining,” Bristol said, shaking her head. “Everyone put your rain jackets on.”

Summit tried to shake the water from her fur in the limited space of the cockpit and whacked Bristol in the face with her tail, reigniting the insect bites. Bristol groaned and rubbed her hand viciously over her skin.

“When it rains, it pours,” Harper said, wiping the water off her face.

“What’s that mean?” Cherri asked.

“Oh, it’s another of our dad’s old sayings,” Bristol explained. “Basically, when things start to go badly, they continue to get worse.”

“When it rains, it pours,” Cherri repeated. “Sound pretty accurate about this trip.”

“Yup,” Dionne and Kendra said in unison.

The group gained on Savannah, who had stopped paddling. She must have been waiting for them to catch up because she turned and said, “When are we stopping?”

“We have another hour or so until we reach the next tenting spot.”

“I’m wet and cold. I want to stop now.”

“Sorry, but we have to go to the next spot. There’s no good place to put the big tent.”

“We’re all wet and cold, Savannah, not just you,” Ianna said. “I don’t understand why you chose to spend a week doing an activity with so many unknowns when you clearly hate it.”

Savannah glowered at Ianna and didn’t respond. To Bristol, she said, “I’m cold. I can’t paddle when I’m cold.”

“Everyone pick up speed. The increased pace will heat your body and we’ll get there quicker. One last push for the day.”

They pushed themselves, and soon everyone had warmed up. They reached the campsite quickly. Savannah strained to keep out ahead, but the entire group kept pace and they pulled up onshore together.

No one had to be asked this time. All the women, except for Savannah, hurried to get the tent set up. Savannah stood off by herself with her hood up, taking photos in the rain. Steph made mochas and everyone sipped at them while working.

“You guys don’t have to cook a meal in the rain. Just give us another of those MREs for supper,” Ianna said as they put the last of the pegs in the tent.

Gratefulness filled Bristol. She was exhausted and sore and had been dreading cooking and cleaning up supper. She just wanted to crawl into her tent and hibernate for the night. Despair crushed her like a falling boulder when she remembered Cherri would be sleeping in her tent again tonight and she’d have to sleep on the wet ground in the rain.

“Ya, MREs are fine,” Dionne said.

“Speak for yourselves,” Savannah said. “I want a real meal.”

Bristol’s head dropped to her chest, despondency threatening to swallow her.

“No, Savannah. They don’t need to cook us supper in the rain. You don’t even eat. You’re just trying to control everything.”

Everyone turned with mouths agape to Cherri, who had spoken in such an unexpectedly vehement tone.

“And you know what? I’m sleeping in the big tent tonight. Bristol needs her tent. She’s not sleeping in the rain. I paid for my own trip. You can’t kick me out.”

Savannah stared at Cherri like she was a sweet, old family dog that had just bared its teeth and snarled. She let out a squeal of frustration and annoyance and dove into the tent.

A slow grin spread over Cherri’s face. She straightened her shoulders and looked around. “Anything else we need to do?”

Later, Bristol crawled into her own tent with a feeling of homecoming. Who knew a shelter of nylon could be so welcoming? Bristol thought as she buried herself in the sleeping bag and sighed in relief.

Chapter seventeen

“Last day, hallelujah,” Bristol said to Harper and Steph as they prepared breakfast the next morning. Bristol had slept soundly the night before, damp but happy in her tent. She awoke with renewed zeal. By tonight, she would be done with this disastrous trip and be at home with Mitch.

“And the rain stopped,” Steph said, lifting her face to the fresh breeze and closing her eyes.

The women got up for breakfast, and Savannah was more chatty than usual throughout the meal, speaking to everyone except Cherri. She never glanced in her direction, even when Cherri spoke. Bristol cringed at the blatant snubbing and engaged Cherri in conversation herself to ease the awkwardness. Summit sat beside Cherri, seeming to feel her need for connection, and Cherri gave her little bits of food from her plate. Bristol smiled. Summit could win over even the staunchest anti-dog person.

They packed up their things and the tents in record time. Everyone seemed to have more energy now that home was on the horizon.

“I cannot wait to get home to my condo, my shower, my wardrobe, my makeup.” Savannah sighed dreamily.

“Your fiancé?” Ianna added dryly.

Savannah looked at her sharply. “Well, yes. Him, too.” She scrolled through her phone. “And internet and my followers. I’ve never gone this long without posting. They’ll be worried about me.”

Bristol stifled a laugh at Harper’s expression. She turned away to hide her own face.

They pushed off and joined the flow of the river. Savannah struck out ahead again, but this time allowed Kendra and Dionne to stay beside her.

Maybe everything will be okay.

“Savannah seems to be in a better mood today,” Bristol said to Harper and Steph, who paddled beside her. Ianna and Cherri were in front of them, engaged in their own conversation. “Maybe once she’s home surrounded by creature comforts, she’ll look back on her bachelorette trip in a better light.” Bristol felt around in her pockets for the blue kyanite crystal she used as her wishing stone. She had tissues, a compass, a lighter, a couple of other crystals, but no chunk of raw kyanite. Worry filled her. Holding that rough crystal in her hand as she hoped and wished for good things ahead had always given her peace. It had felt like a direct landline to the universe. Now it was missing.

“Ya, I’m sure she won’t be negative in her posts about this trip. She always seems so positive and happy online,” Steph said.

Harper snorted. “And that’s why you don’t trust people on the internet.”

Steph looked at her other aunt.

“She’s not wrong,” Bristol said.

They’d caught up to Ianna and Cherri and could overhear their conversation.

“What will you do for work now that you won’t be Savannah’s assistant?”

“I’ll wait a bit. Usually, once Savannah calms down, she reaches back out to the people she’d cut off and pretends like nothing happened.”

“She does this kind of thing often?” Ianna asked.

“She hates to be crossed or insulted and loses her temper. But after some time, she draws them back in. I’m sure she’ll want me back after a while.”

“Cherri, she seems like a narcissist. Would you really go back to her?”

“Oh, I don’t know. I’ve worked for her for years. I’m comfortable with our dynamic.” She paused. “Well, our dynamic before I lost all her photos. My whole life was on that phone, but it’s only the photos of her she cares about.”

“I never noticed when we were teens how self-centred she was. I used to follow her around everywhere. She was the queen of the school. I idolized her. Now, I wonder if she’d treated me the same way she’s treating you and I just didn’t see it. It was only once I was away from her I became my own person.” Ianna locked eyes with Cherri. “I really hope you don’t go back. You should use this trip as the catalyst for your new life.”

They stopped for lunch and Bristol texted Mitch and Grace with their estimated arrival time to the takeout point. Since Grace was off work for the summer with school being out, she’d agreed to use her minivan to help ferry the group back to their car. Mitch would come with Bristol’s Jeep and trailer.

“You have service?” Savannah said, dropping her lunch and fumbling in her pocket for her phone.

“It’s spotty around here, but texts usually go through. We’ve got a couple more hours and then my boyfriend and my other sister, Steph’s mom, will pick us up.” Bristol could tell that Savannah had heard none of that as her cell blew up with messages all coming in at once.

Bristol stood up. “Okay, ladies. Let’s hit the water. One final push.”

It took a few nudges from Bristol and the others to get Savannah off her phone and onto the water.

“I thought you were the teenager on this trip,” Bristol said to Steph after they’d begun paddling again.

“After being out here for these weeks, and especially now after seeing an influencer in real life, I realize how much you miss of the world by staring at your phone.”

“Damn straight,” Harper agreed. “Exactly why I never use mine.”

Bristol raised an eyebrow at her sister. Well, she tried, but the only one she could raise was covered in gauze.

Harper caught the look anyway. “Except for hook-up apps.” She shrugged. “A woman has needs.”

The last couple of hours sped by, with everyone keeping up a strong pace. Bristol hadn’t realized how tightly wound her nerves were until tears filled her eyes when her Jeep and Grace’s minivan came into view. Mitch and Grace stood on the bank watching for them. They waved their hands in the air when they spotted the kayaks.

A giant smile split Steph’s face, and she waved with both hands to her mother. Bristol and Harper waved, too. Summit let out a series of excited yips, jumped into the river, and swam to shore. Mitch pet her, let her lick his face, and took her life jacket off so she could roll in the sand. When the boats arrived, Mitch caught the canoe as it beached and Steph jumped out and into her mother’s arms.

“Hi, baby, I missed you, too,” Grace said with her face pressed to her daughter’s hair. Then she caught sight of Bristol. “Goodness! What happened?”

Bristol got out of her kayak and Mitch took her by the shoulders and stared at her face. “Are you okay?”

Bristol tried to duck so he wouldn’t look too closely at her ravaged skin. “It’s fine. Just a branch and some bug bites.”

“It was all my fault,” Cherri said, stepping up behind her.

“Yes, it was,” Savannah said, hauling her boat further ashore.

Mitch looked between Cherri and Savannah and then back to Bristol.

“No, it wasn’t. This was an accident. If anyone was at fault, it was Summit.” She looked at the dog, who was standing with her paws on Mitch’s hip. “And my own for losing my paddle.”

“You lost your paddle?” Mitch asked incredulously.

Heat rose to Bristol’s marred cheeks. “It’s a long story.” She kissed him and then stepped back. “Can you help me put the kayaks on the trailer, please?”

“Of course.”

Bristol, Mitch, Cherri, Harper, and Summit rode in the Jeep. Savannah, Ianna, Dionne, Kendra, and Steph rode with Grace. Bristol figured that it’d be smart to keep Cherri and Savannah separated for the drive. Normally, Bristol would’ve driven the Jeep, but she was way too tired and worried she’d fall asleep driving. Mitch had looked at her with concern when she asked him to drive. She’d just shrugged and climbed into the passenger seat.

Mitch asked about the trip during the drive, but Bristol didn’t want to speak in front of Cherri. She responded with one-word answers and gave a small shake of her head. Mitch nodded and told her about his week of construction and the runs he’d taken with Hank.

At one point, Bristol glanced into the back seat. Summit was asleep with her head on Cherri’s lap. Cherri’s eyes were closed, and she was stroking the dog’s head lazily. Bristol smiled. At least one good thing came out of this trip.

They crunched down the gravel driveway to the put-in spot on the river. Bristol grimaced as the memory of her excitement at the beginning of the trip came to her. She’d been sure this was the guiding trip that would really establish her business. She shook her head to clear the memory and hopped out of the Jeep.

The others got out of the van, and Savannah unlocked her SUV. Cherri took her bags over to the SUV, and Savannah just stared at her. Everyone stood awkwardly watching the standoff except for Mitch and Grace, who continued to carry bags over. They stopped once they realized no one else was moving.

“Come on, Savannah. You’re my ride home,” Cherri said.

Savannah looked around at the others. “Fine, but you’re driving.” She climbed into the passenger seat. “I have posts to make with the few photos I have on my phone.” She slammed the door and let the others finish packing the car with all of their bags.

Once the backpacks were all loaded, Dionne and Kendra thanked Bristol and joined Savannah.

“Thanks for everything,” Ianna said. “You made the best out of a terrible situation. You’re a real professional. Good luck.” She squeezed into the back seat with the twins.

“I’m really sorry, Bristol,” Cherri said. “Thank you for all of your help.” She gave Bristol a quick hug. “You, too,” she said to Harper and Steph. Then scrambled to the driver’s side and jumped in.

Bristol, Harper, Steph, Mitch, and Grace watched them drive away.

“What was that all about?” Mitch asked.

“Yes, that was strange. Savannah seemed like such a nice young woman,” Grace said. “She was so chatty and friendly in the van. What an odd way to end a trip.”

Bristol, Harper, and Steph looked at each other and burst out laughing.

“I’ll explain on the drive home, Mom,” Steph said through her laughter.

Harper left with Grace and Steph, so Bristol was alone with Mitch for the ride home.

Mitch took her hand and held it as he drove. “Let’s hear it.”

She started at the beginning and was only at Cherri’s disappearance when they arrived at Mitch’s house. She paused in her recounting to greet Hank the Tank. He bowled her over in his usual exuberant fashion. She ruffled the thick scruff of the Australian shepherd and laughed as he licked her. Then needed Mitch’s help to get up off the floor.

Bristol groaned as Mitch pulled her to her feet.

“It really must have been a rough one.”

“I haven’t even gotten to the shit show yet,” she said, scratching her face and neck. Hank’s affection had reignited the itchiness.

“You go shower, I’ll make supper, and then you can finish the story.”

She wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her head on his chest, heedless of her body odour. Gratitude filled her, along with the warmth of his body. She was so happy to have someone else making decisions. It was more difficult than she’d imagined being the one in charge every single week, all day, every day. Especially when her clients didn’t want to listen to her.

“Thank you.” She kissed his neck, inhaling his fresh, clean scent.

Bristol took a long, hot shower, shampooed her hair three times, and let the conditioner sink in. She scrubbed her skin from toe to hairline. After getting out, she spread ointment all over her face to help the itching and moisturized the rest of her body. She looked at herself in the foggy mirror, her hair wrapped in a towel. Her face was sunburned, spotted, and scabbed from the bites, and a chunk was missing from her eyebrow, the hole red and oozing.

She locked eyes with her reflection. “Let’s hope he loves you enough to overlook this massacre.”

Chapter eighteen

Bristol exited the bathroom in a cloud of steam and a mixture of floral scents. Mitch had supper cooked and on the table. A bottle of red wine and a full glass were in front of her plate. Tears filled her eyes. She wiped them on the back of her hand and gave Mitch a long, lingering kiss.

“You are amazing, you know that, right?”

“I know,” he said, and swatted her on the ass as she went to her seat at the kitchen table.

She laughed. “And so modest.”

He sat down and held out his beer bottle tipped toward her. “Welcome home.”

Bristol clinked her glass to his bottle. “You have no idea how glad I am to be back.” She sipped her wine, closed her eyes, and let the flavour of her favourite red flow over her tongue.

“You looked like you could use some wine.”

“A gallon of it would hit the spot.”

They ate, and she recounted the rest of the trip. Mitch didn’t interrupt except for the times he cursed Savannah or swore when Bristol went face first into a branch.

Bristol drained her glass. “Is there more wine?” She’d drunk the entire bottle during the meal. Mitch blinked at her for a moment and then went to the cupboard and came back with another bottle. He uncorked it and set it in front of her.

“Thanks.” She refilled her glass almost to the top. “So now, Savannah is going to demolish me online for ruining her bachelorette week. Instead of the rave review I was banking on, literally banking on”—she waved her glass for emphasis and wine sloshed over the rim—“I spent so much extra money on the glamping shit, and paying Harper and Steph, that I’ll barely break even, I’ll get eviscerated. Sister Stone Adventures will be dead in the water after she’s done with me.” Bristol swallowed a huge mouthful of wine. She knew she was drunk and rambling and slurring her words, but she really didn’t care. I deserve to let loose after that week.

“Savannah might not write anything. If she lost the photos, maybe she’ll just move on to another topic.”

“Pfft. Ya, right. She went on and on about her followers and how they were eagerly awaiting her posts. How they were missing her this week of being offline. No way she’ll leave them hanging.”

“Maybe she’ll be grateful that you kept them all safe after her friend took off and she almost went down a rapid.”

“Uh-uh. Nope. I didn’t see her be grateful for one goddamn thing that entire week. You weren’t there. She was so petty and mean. As soon as things went wrong, she turned on everyone.” Bristol pushed her plate away and mumbled, “I should have left her out there.”

Mitch stood and picked up their plates. “Do you want to watch a movie?”

“Nah, I’m drunk. I’m going to bed.” Bristol held on to the table and pulled herself to standing. “Thanks for supper. I’ll do the dishes in the morning. Night.” She stumbled to the bedroom, running her hand along the wall to keep her balance, leaving Mitch standing in the kitchen with the dishes in his hands, staring after her.

“Babe.”

Bristol felt a hand on her shoulder, giving her a little shake.

“Bristol. Wake up.”

Bristol groaned and pulled the pillow over her head.

“Babe, I’m sorry, but it’s late. Don’t you have to bring the stuff you rented back to the store?”

With a moan, Bristol took the pillow off her head. Bright sunlight blasted her in the face. She scrunched her eyes tight and tried to speak, but her tongue was stuck to the roof of her mouth. She coughed. “Time is it?”

“Three o’clock.”

“In the morning?”

Mitch laughed. “No, the afternoon.”

She pushed herself up and swatted the hair out of her eyes. Summit was sprawled beside her and Hank was across her legs. “Off,” she croaked, shoving on his heavy body with both hands. He didn’t move.

Mitch patted his leg. “Here, boy.” Hank and Summit both jumped up and stood in front of him on the bed. Bristol swung her legs off the bed and stood. Dizziness filled her head like a swarm of bees. She braced herself with one hand against the wall, feeling like she was standing on the deck of a boat. Her stomach heaved, and sour wine hit the back of her throat. She clamped a hand over her mouth and ran for the adjoining bathroom. The dogs jumped off the bed to chase her, thinking it was a fun new game. She slammed the bathroom door, almost hitting Summit in the snout. Bristol made it as far as the sink and hurled the wonderful supper Mitch had made and a bottle and a half of red wine into the white bowl. Tears poured down her face. She ran water into the sink, trying to flush the mess down. A cold sweat coated her face and her back prickled with it. Her head pounded with her heartbeat. She drank water from the tap and rinsed her mouth. Filled her hands with it and splashed her face. She used the toilet and washed her hands and face again with cold water. Stumbling back into the bathroom, she blinked at Mitch sitting on the bed with the dogs.

“You okay?”

“No, I’m dying.” She shut the curtains and crawled back into bed. She lay down on her side, facing Mitch. The dogs came over and sniffed her mouth. She pushed them away.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have woken you up.”

“It’s fine. Why did you though?”

“The glamping stuff you rented. Don’t you have to bring it back today? They’re only open for another two hours.”

Bristol moaned. She’d forgotten about that stuff. She hadn’t even unpacked the Jeep last night. Fatigue overwhelmed her.

“Do you want me to bring it back for you?”

“Thanks, but you can’t. I don’t know where anything is and they need my signature.” She sighed. “And I think the tent is still wet. I need to set it back up to dry. I’ll just pay for another day.” She pulled the pillow back over her face. “I’m going back to sleep.”

The next time Bristol awoke, it was dark in the bedroom. She went to the kitchen for a glass of water and saw Mitch asleep on the couch with a basketball game running on TV. Hank lay on the floor beside him. The dog lifted his head when she stepped closer. She thought of waking Mitch to come to bed, but her stomach rolled when she drank the water and she ran back to the bathroom.

She woke again in the early morning and Mitch lay beside her with both dogs at the foot of the bed, curled together like lovers. She smiled and tried to sort out what she had to do today, but her mind was so sluggish. She coughed and sniffed. Her whole body ached and her head pounded. She shivered, pulling the blankets to her chin.

Mitch rolled toward her. “Morning. Feel better?”

“No. I feel like shit,” Bristol croaked. “I’m sorry. I’ve been such a shitty girlfriend since I got home.”

Mitch laughed. “You are not a shitty girlfriend. You’re done out from your trip.”

“I don’t get it, though. I can’t still be hung over. No hangover lasts for two days.”

“I had a two-day hangover after my buddy’s bachelor party a few years, but you didn’t drink that much and definitely no Jägermeister shots.”

When he said “bachelor party,” all the memories of Savannah’s bachelorette trip came rolling back like a wave full of garbage on a beach. She closed her eyes and groaned.

Mitch reached out to touch her forehead. “You’re burning up.” He sat up. “This isn’t a hangover. I’ll get you some ibuprofen.”

When the pills hit her empty stomach, she doubled over with cramps. “Fuck me.” She stood up, trying to ease the pain, and her head swam. She leaned against the wall with her eyes scrunched tight against the dizziness and torment.

“Babe, you don’t look good. Maybe you should go to the doctor.”

“No, no. I’ll be fine. I’ve got so much to do today.”

She stumbled toward the kitchen, and halfway there her legs gave out. Mitch grabbed her before she hit the floor.

“Jesus, Bristol, you’re going back to bed.” He picked her up and carried her to bed. Like a bride, or an invalid, or a baby, she thought, chagrined. He laid her down and covered her up. “I’ll get you some toast.”

“But, I have another trip starting”—she tried to remember what day of the week it was—“tomorrow.” She groaned. “I haven’t prepared anything.”

Mitch stood above her at the side of the bed. “Look at yourself, woman, you can’t even walk to the kitchen. How in the hell are you going to organize and guide a trip in the wilderness?”

Bristol stared at him wide-eyed. “I can’t cancel!”

He sat beside her on the bed. “Babe, you’re sick. People get sick. It’s okay.”

“But, my business. It’ll look so bad to cancel last minute.”

“I’ve had to do it before. Cancel on clients when I came down with the flu. When you are your business, if you go down, the business goes down.”

She frowned and shook her head.

“Temporarily,” he amended. “It goes down temporarily. They’ll understand.”

“I’m sure I can do it.” She tried to sit up, but wobbled.

Mitch pushed her gently back down. “Bristol, you don’t have a choice. You have to cancel. Think about it. It wouldn’t be safe for you or your clients if you’re not up to par out there.”

She leaned back against the pillows and put her hand over her eyes. “Ugh. Dammit to hell. Can you bring me my phone, please? I have calls to make. I don’t even know where I left the stupid thing.”

Mitch brought her toast, tea, and her phone. She’d fallen asleep again and had to reorient herself. “What the hell is wrong with me? I never get sick.”

“From what you told me, it was one hell of a mentally and physically taxing trip. Constant stress, exhaustion, sun, rain, injury, and even frigging sleeping outside. That would take down the Hulk.”

Bristol ate a few bites of toast and sipped the tea. The toast felt like sandpaper going down her throat. Her limbs felt so heavy it was a chore to even lift the mug to her mouth. She clamped her lips shut and swallowed hard when a wave of nausea rose. She just wanted to lie back and succumb to the oblivion of sleep. Looking at the clock, she counted. Eighteen hours until new clients were supposed to be meeting her at the river. Man, this was so bad. Cancelling a client’s trip eighteen hours before it starts. Really bad. She went through her emails to get the phone number and then called.

“Hello, Amanda?”

“Yes.”

“Hi, this is Bristol Emerson of Sister Stone Adventures.”

“Oh, hi! We are so excited for our trip tomorrow. The weather is looking fantastic.”

Bristol’s heart dropped even further into her stomach. “Ah, that’s why I’m calling. I am really, really sorry, but I have to cancel. I’ve come down with a terrible flu. I’m too sick to take you guys out.”

“What? But we have everything ready. We go tomorrow.”

“I know, but I’ve been in bed since Friday night. I’m physically too weak to go. If I tried, it would put everyone in danger.”

“Isn’t there someone else to guide us?” Amanda asked, her voice rising desperately.

Bristol’s head dropped to her chest. “No, I’m sorry. It’s just me.”

“Oh, my God, if I’d known this could happen, I wouldn’t have booked with you. I gave you a deposit!”

“We can reschedule for another week. The deposit could apply for that, plus I’ll give you a fifty per cent discount on the trip.”

“So you can just cancel on us then, too? No, thank you. Send me back my money.”

The dial tone filled Bristol’s ear. She stared at the phone. Then shut it off and set it face down on the side table.

Mitch came into the bedroom. “How’d it go?”

“She did not understand.”

Mitch opened his mouth to speak, but Bristol cut him off. “I don’t want to talk about it.” She rolled over and pulled the blanket over her head. Within minutes, she was dead to the world.

Chapter nineteen

Bristol spent the rest of the day in bed. She texted Steph to tell her she’d cancelled their next trip. Steph came back with a dozen text messages in alarm. Bristol explained she had the flu and needed to rest, which prompted a flurry of texts and phone calls from her sisters as Steph relayed the news. To put an end to it, she told them she was going to have a nap and muted her phone. Her cough and runny nose constantly disrupted her sleep so she couldn’t get the rest she craved. She tried to read, but the words just swam on the page and made her head hurt worse. Summit stayed glued to her side all day. Mitch took Hank for a run, but Summit refused to get out of bed. It reminded Bristol of her time in bed with her broken ribs. Just her and her dog. And her despair.

“Mon Dieu, what have you done to yourself this time?”

Bristol rolled over to see Liska standing in the bedroom doorway with a Tim Hortons coffee in her hand. Liska was dressed to perfection as usual, every blond hair in place and makeup on point. Summit jumped up and stood on the bed, whining and wagging her tail until Liska came over to pet her. She scratched behind the dog’s ear with her long nail extensions and the dog’s back leg started thumping. The entire time Liska was scanning Bristol, seeming to do an inventory of all her defects. Bristol wished she could bury her head in the pillows again, but knew this was a pointless strategy with her best friend. Liska would just climb in after her.

“Butchered my face pretty good, eh?” Bristol didn’t actually know how her face was today. She hadn’t looked in a mirror since her first evening back. She supposed the bug bites and scratch had healed a bit by now, but guaranteed her eyebrow hadn’t magically sprouted hair from the crater she’d put in it.

Liska set the coffee down on the side table and sat down beside Bristol. Bristol slid over to give her more space.

“Harper texted me and told me this bachelorette trip was pretty awful and that you were now sick.” Liska brushed the tangled hair out of Bristol’s face to get a better look. “I see why she wanted me to check in on you.”

“I’ll be fine. Just a fresh scar to add to the collection.” Bristol started coughing. She covered her mouth and turned away, coughing until tears came to her eyes. Liska jumped up and ran to the kitchen, coming back with a glass of water.

Bristol grabbed it and took a swig. When she could speak, she said, “Better stay away. I’m probably contagious.”

Liska opened the window in the bedroom. “You need some fresh air in here.”

“I had to cancel my trip for this week,” Bristol said, lying back down on the pillows, exhausted from the coughing fit. “It’s eating me up. I pride myself on being dependable.”

“You’re sick, ma chère, it happens to the best of us.”

“I know. Mitch said the same thing. Just sucks, especially after the disaster my last trip was. God knows what Savannah is going to post about me.”

Liska’s gaze skittered away, and she turned to pet Summit, who rolled onto her back demanding belly rubs.

Bristol studied Liska’s averted face. She pushed herself higher on the pillow, apprehension filling her. “What?”

“So, when’s your next trip? You’re booked up, right?”

“Liska Céline James, tell me what you know.”

“Don’t Céline me. You’re sick, Bris. It doesn’t matter right now.” She stood and picked up the paper coffee cup and held it out. “Here, I brought you a Timmies. I’ve got to get home. Rest up, okay?”

“Uh-uh, no way. I’ll just go searching for it as soon as you leave, anyway, so just tell me.”

With a deep sigh, Liska sat back down on the bed. Summit crept over and placed her head on Liska’s skirt.

“Savannah posted about your trip.” Liska met Bristol’s eyes. “It’s bad.”

33,378 likes

Savannahgirrl Hey fam. I’ve been MIA all week because I was on my bachelorette kayaking/glamping trip. No Wi-Fi.

Unfortunately, my trip was a disaster. :( It rained the entire time. We could have made the best of it with enough cocktails and champagne, but our guide, Bristol Emerson, AND her two employees, insisted on sleeping INSIDE our glamping tent with us! So unprofessional and awkward!

Bristol also insisted on traipsing through the bug-infested woods instead of kayaking. I almost got disfigured by poison ivy!

She refused to get back on the river for multiple days. I paid for a kayaking trip. I wanted to kayak. Bristol said it didn’t matter what I wanted. You know your girrl though, no one is gonna hold me back. I went anyway, BUT she hadn’t told us about the river forking. I went down a rapid and barely escaped with my life!

My one and only bachelorette trip was horrendous. I wanted a fun and glamorous wilderness experience, but Sister Stone Adventures gave me an awkward, boring, unprofessional, and life-threatening experience instead.

Take it from me, do NOT book with Bristol Emerson of Sister Stone Adventures

Bristol lay on her side, curled around her cell phone. Reading and rereading the post. Watching the number of likes go up each time she refreshed the page. A closeup photo of Savannah sitting in the pouring rain with her hood up accompanied the Instagram post. She looked miserable. She’d even put a filter on the photo so it looked dark and ominous. The comments under the post numbered in the thousands. Bristol read each one. They were filled with outrage on Savannah’s behalf and calls to boycott Sister Stone Adventures. Bristol was called every hateful name in the book, but the worst was being called dangerous. They said she shouldn’t be trusted to take unsuspecting women into the wild. At best she was negligent, at worst a predator.

Liska had told Bristol the gist of the post. She’d tried to tell her it would blow over and to not stress about it. Bristol had nodded along mutely and then told Liska that she needed to go back to sleep. Liska left, but Bristol hadn’t slept. She’d found the post with one quick Google search. She stared at it and read the comments until her phone died, then she plugged it in and read some more.

“Babe, do you want to get up for some supper?” Mitch said, walking into the bedroom. The scent of pepperoni, sausage, and cheese wafted in with him. “I ordered a pizza. Meat lovers, your favourite.”

Bristol swallowed hard, the thought of food making her gag. She shook her head, mouth clamped shut.

“Still feeling nauseated? I thought that had passed.”

It wasn’t the flu making her sick to her stomach, but she didn’t tell Mitch that. He must have sensed it anyway, because he said, “Liska told me about the post.” He sat beside her on the bed. “What can I do?”

“Thanks, but there’s nothing to be done.”

“There must be something. I don’t know anything about influencers or whatnot, but she can’t be allowed to post lies.”

“They’re not lies. It’s all basically the truth, just without context.”

“But that’s not how it happened.”

Bristol shook her head and started coughing, probably a bit harder than she actually needed to. “It hurts to talk. I just need to rest.”

“Okay, do you want anything? You should eat. Keep your strength up.”

“I’ll have something later.”

Mitch went out and Bristol cocooned herself in bed with her phone, reading the new comments that had flooded in.

When Mitch came to bed, he put a movie on the iPad for them to watch together. Bristol stared at the tablet, but couldn’t follow the story. She was seeing Savannah’s trip unfolding on the screen, trying to see how she could have done it differently, done it better. Where she could have held her tongue or catered to her client more. After Mitch went to sleep, Bristol tossed and turned. She couldn’t get comfortable with her aching joints and her cough. Whenever she did find a good position, her mind wouldn’t shut off, and she lay there, replaying the trip yet again.

Mitch got up early and took the dogs for a run. Summit went with him this time. Bristol was glad. It made her feel less guilty for lying in bed, but she felt oddly bereft when Summit left and she was alone in the bed. When Mitch went to work, he left both dogs at home. She called them to her. They curled up on either side of her and a fraction of peace descended on her.

She awoke to a knock on the door. The dogs went mental. Bristol’s heart went from an easy resting beat to a full-out sprint within seconds. The dogs leapt off the bed, jostling her in their frenzy, and ran barking to the front door. Bristol sat up and started coughing. The knock came again. It took a minute for Bristol to regain her breath and stand up. Her lungs ached. She unlocked the front door to find Grace standing on the stoop with her hands full. The dogs ran to her.

“Summit. Hank. Stop!” Bristol croaked. The dogs ignored her hoarse voice.

Grace pushed her way into the house, past the dogs. She dropped her reusable shopping bags on the counter and withdrew two bones. They pushed closer, nosing at her hands.

“Sit.” The dogs sat. Grace handed each of them a bone, and they ran off to the living room with their mouths full.

Bristol collapsed on an island bar stool. Grace enfolded her in a warm, vanilla-scented hug.

“Oh, dear. You look really worn out. I knew you must have been feeling dreadful to cancel your next trip.”

“Ya, it’s bullshit. I never get sick.”

“That trip with Savannah was a doozy. Steph slept all weekend. I was worried she was getting sick, too, but she got up this morning and went to the mall with her friends.” Grace pulled a glass dish out of one bag and placed it in front of Bristol. Apple cinnamon filled the air.

“Mmm. Apple crisp.” Bristol placed her hands on the dish. “It’s still warm.” Bristol smiled. “You’re such a mom.”

Grace giggled. “I know, and thank you for the compliment.” She got a plate from the cupboard and served Bristol a square of apple crisp.

Bristol put a warm spoonful in her mouth and savoured the flavour. It was one of the few things she could actually taste since getting sick.

“How are you feeling?”

Bristol swallowed. “Well, this is the furthest I’ve come from the bedroom in three days.”

They chatted for a bit and then Bristol broached the subject closest to her mind. “Have you seen Savannah’s post?”

Grace nodded. “Steph showed it to me. It’s so not fair. Steph told me what actually happened.”

Bristol pulled her phone out of her sweatshirt pocket and showed the screen to her sister. “Look at all the comments. Thousands of them.” She scrolled down through them. “There are more comments coming constantly.” She froze, staring at the latest one.

“What is it?” Grace asked, studying Bristol’s face. “What’s wrong?”

“My client for this week. The trip I was supposed to start today. She commented on Savannah’s post. Said that Bristol Emerson really is unprofessional. That I cancelled, last minute, for a trip they had reserved months in advance, and that now, after reading Savannah’s post, she is glad I’d cancelled so she didn’t have to subject her family to a dangerous situation.”

“Oh, no. But you’re sick. You had a good reason to cancel.”

Bristol dropped her phone on the island with a clunk. “That’s it. I’m fucked. Her comment has gotten a ton of reactions already. Sister Stone Adventures is dead.”

Chapter twenty

Bristol went back to bed for the rest of the week. By Thursday, she was feeling better physically, but her spirit was leaden. Mitch got her up, and they went for a short walk with the dogs one evening on the dirt road by his house. The sound of crickets and frogs filled the air, creating a competing yet harmonious symphony. Bristol had directed their conversation to anything other than her business. She was all talked out. Then she remembered something.

“Ah, shit!” Bristol said, stopping abruptly midstride. The dogs turned at the harsh change in her tone and studied her before resuming their sniffing. “I forgot to take the goddamn glamping tent and canoe back. I’m such an idiot. They’ll probably charge me late fees on top of the daily rental. After that whole torturous ordeal with Savannah and I really won’t make a dime.”

“It’s okay. I brought it back.”

“What? When? Mitch, it was all wet. They’ll charge me cleaning fees and crap.”

“I took care of it. My buddy, Yusef, came by on Sunday and I had him help me set it up and dry it out.”

“Really? Thanks, babe.” She took his arm and leaned into him as they continued their walk. “You didn’t have to go to the trouble to do that. It was my responsibility.”

“No trouble. You were sleeping, so we spent the afternoon outside in the sun drinking beer. Watching the tent dry.” He laughed.

“How’d they let you return it?”

Mitch glanced at Bristol from the corner of his eye, looking sheepish. “I told them I was your husband, and you were sick, so I was returning it for you.”

Bristol’s stomach filled with butterflies at his words. She stared at him, speechless.

He cleared his throat and looked away. “I just thought husband was a more official term, you know, for legal shit. Not like they asked for a marriage license. Anyway, it’s taken care of. They only charged you one extra day.”

Bristol’s mind was still reeling. She mumbled another thank-you and changed the subject.

The next day, Bristol went through all of her camping gear. She washed her clothes and sleeping bags, which had taken on a dank, musty odour from being rolled up and damp for days. She hung them on the clothesline Mitch had installed for her at his house in the spring. When she opened the coolers, she almost puked. Gagging, she emptied all the mushy, rotten food into the outdoor compost bin. The dogs swarmed around her, trying to get their snouts into the containers, but she shooed them away and turned on the hose.

“This is what I get for not taking care of stuff right away.” She hosed down the coolers and food containers. A coughing fit came on, and she bent double with her hands on her knees, waiting for the dizziness to pass and her breath to return to normal. Hank used her inattention to grab one of the Tupperware and run off with it, head held high. Summit chased after him, barking. Bristol tried to yell at him, but her voice was hoarse from coughing. Giving up, she went inside to get a dog treat to trade with him instead. He came running when she showed him the treat and dropped the chewed plastic container at her feet.

“Geez, thanks, Hank.”

She picked up the rest of the containers and brought them into the house to wash properly with dish soap. As she set them in the sink, her cell dinged. It was an email notification. She opened it up, read the first few lines, and collapsed onto the island stool. Closing the email, she called Mitch.

“Hi, babe.”

“My client cancelled.” Tears filled Bristol’s eyes as she spoke the words.

“Which client?”

“The group I was supposed to take out on Sunday. Two days from now. She cancelled. Gave up her deposit. Didn’t say why. But I know why. I knew this was going to happen.” Her voice broke. “I didn’t realize I was still holding out hope that it wouldn’t until I got this email.”

“Maybe it was something else. Stuff comes up. You don’t know for sure.”

“I do know. It’s fucked. Everything is fucked. Listen, I think I’m going to go back to my apartment for this week. Give you your space. Bad enough I’ve been sick in your bed all week. But now that I’m feeling better, I’ll go home and get stuff done there that I’ve been neglecting. Since apparently, I don’t have a job anymore.”

“No.”

Bristol’s eyes narrowed. “What do you mean no?”

“No, you’re not leaving. You’re not taking off again when things start to go bad.”

“It’s not like that, Mitch. I’m just in a foul mood and I won’t be fun to be around, anyway. Plus, we’re used to spending the week apart when I’m working. I’ve got stuff to catch up on at my place. I might as well use this time off to accomplish something.”

Mitch heaved a sigh. Bristol could picture him rubbing his hand over his face. Bristol wavered, hating to upset him.

Then he said, “Fine. If that’s what you want.”

Something akin to excitement came over her. “I’ll call you later. Love you.”

“I love you, too.”

Bristol gathered up all the stuff she’d been cleaning and threw it into the trunk of her Jeep. She put the hose away, unpinned the trailer with her kayaks, and packed a bag with her toiletries. A frantic energy that she didn’t understand propelled her, but she refused to examine it too closely. She called Summit from the house and wavered again when Hank came running, too, with his tongue lolling and a happy smile on his sweet, goofy face. He waved his bushy tail a mile a minute, thinking they were going for a walk or a car ride.

“Shit.” Bristol thought about taking him with her instead of leaving him alone for the rest of the day, but then imagined Mitch coming home to a completely empty house. “Sorry, buddy.” She pulled the front door gently closed and locked it. Hank gave a bark from the other side. Guilt filled her.

“Oh, my God, woman. You’re just going to your own home for a bit. You’re not abandoning them for fuck’s sake.”

She dashed to her Jeep and called Summit up and in, then peeled out of the driveway like she was running away.

Her apartment smelled stale and musty. It didn’t smell like her home any longer. It had been weeks since she’d been here, what with constant kayak trips and then days off at Mitch’s. Bristol dropped her bags down on the counter and the dust that sprung up set off another coughing fit from her weak lungs. After locking the door behind her, she wandered around, looking at everything. Summit followed along, sniffing all the furniture. It didn’t feel like home any longer, either. Until she saw her bedroom. She had left the bed made up with the patchwork quilt her grandmother had made. Her immense collection of crystals sat on the side table. Summit jumped onto the bed and curled into her cozy doughnut shape. Bristol took a deep breath of the musty air that still held a hint of lavender candle. She shut the door behind her, changed into pyjamas, and picked through her crystals until she found the light blue larimar. She rubbed the stone between her palms to warm it and awaken its peaceful energy. Crawling into her own bed, she burrowed beneath the quilt, and felt the frantic energy draining away.

Bristol awoke in the dead of night. She reached for Mitch in the dark and encountered only the prickly fur of Summit. The memories that sleep had protected her from came flooding back in a wave of anger, disappointment, and despair. She flopped over onto her stomach, trying to dive back into sleep, but it had fled. She flipped over again and sat up with a curse. Summit moved away from her aggressive movements, curling up at the foot of the bed. Bristol opened her phone and swore again. One missed call and a bunch of missed texts, all from Mitch. I’d told him I would call him, and I didn’t.

“Damn.” She thought of responding now, but didn’t want to wake him up. “I’ll call him first thing in the morning.”

Summit lifted her head to see if she was being addressed and then laid it back down, used to Bristol’s mumblings. Bristol squinted at the light from her screen as she found Savannah’s post online. There were more likes and more comments. She read through each of them, all filled with support for Savannah and outrage against Bristol and Sister Stone Adventures. Why can’t it just end? She checked her email. Her heart dropped when she saw an email with the subject line: cancellation. With trembling fingers, she clicked on it. A woman who she had emailed back and forth with for weeks about her upcoming trip was cancelling. This client actually referenced the post by Savannah, saying she didn’t have the confidence in Bristol’s guiding business after such a terrible review. On top of the cancellation, she wanted a refund of her deposit.

Bristol collapsed back onto the bed and let the phone slide from her fingers to the floor. She lay with her eyes open, staring into the dark, ruminating on how quickly and easily her business had been killed before it had even gotten a chance to grow. Like clubbing a seal pup to death, she thought, destroyed before it could outgrow its fluffy white infancy.

Chapter twenty-one

As the streaks of dawn filtered through the bedroom curtains, Bristol finally fell back to sleep. She awoke to a pounding on her apartment door. Summit jumped off the bed, barking. Bristol sat up, heart galloping, and stumbled out of the bed. Fuck me. Why am I always getting woken up? As she came down the hallway, the front door unlocked and opened. She froze with her hands squeezed into fists. Harper, Liska, Grace, and Steph filed through. Bristol sagged against the wall with her hand held against the painful pressure in her chest. She sucked in a deep breath and started coughing.

Grace pushed past the others and came to her. “Oh, my goodness. Bristol, come sit down.” She took her sister by the arm and directed her into the living room. She deposited Bristol onto the couch, covered her in a blanket, and tucked it in tightly all around her.

“I feel like I’m in a womb,” Bristol said once she’d caught her breath.

“Good. Inside a mother’s womb is the most comfortable we will ever be,” Grace said, tucking the blanket tighter around Bristol’s feet and smiling over at her daughter, who sat on the floor with Summit.

“Pfft. I bet our mother’s womb has lace curtains and furniture you’re not allowed to sit on,” Harper said, dropping down beside Bristol.

The women all snickered. “No doubt,” Bristol agreed.

Liska set a carton on the table with five Tim Hortons takeout coffees. She passed them around. Bristol took a sip of her black coffee and grinned at Liska as she wrinkled her nose at her own cup. “You’re deigning to drink the coffee of peasants today?”

“Don’t you start. Harper has already dragged me about my espresso machine this morning.” Liska took a cautious sip. “See, I can drink fast food coffee.”

Bristol regarded the four women seated around her. Her tiny living room seemed to radiate with strong feminine energy. “As much as I love to see you all, you don’t normally descend en masse. What’s going on? How’d you know I was here?”

“Mitch texted me. Said you’d left and weren’t answering him,” Liska said.

“He’s worried about you, but didn’t want to come himself if you wanted space from him,” Grace added.

“He should’ve just manned up and come anyway,” Harper declared.

“Instead, he rallied the forces,” Bristol said, shaking her head. “I’m fine. I fell asleep and missed his call. Kind of an overreaction on his part.”

“Why’d you come back here, though?” Liska asked. “You’ve been sick. Why not stay with Mitch? You know he likes to take care of you.”

“I know. But my client cancelled and I have all week off, so why not come back to my own place?” Bristol retorted. “I might as well just tell you.” Bristol rubbed her eyes and squeezed the bridge of her nose before continuing. Four pairs of eyes studied her.

“Sister Stone Adventures is dead. It’s over.”

“Oh, no.”

“What?”

“No way.”

“What do you mean?”

“Since Savannah’s post, I’ve already had two cancellations. The last one even specifically said it was because of her review. They are just going to keep cancelling. We’ve all seen how social media can turn against people. Cancelling celebrities. Shutting down businesses. There’s no coming back. I’d thought taking on an influencer as a client would be a boon for my business, but it has been its destruction.”

“There must be something you can do,” Grace said. “There’s always hope.”

“Nah, I don’t have the energy. I knew starting my own business would be hard, but it’s been one thing after another since the beginning. I just want to be done. Get a regular paycheck from someone else without killing myself in the process.”

“If that’s true, then why did you come back here to wallow in your bed?” Liska said bluntly.

Everyone turned to stare at her. Bristol opened her mouth to defend herself, but Liska cut her off.

“Don’t even try to deny it. This is your MO, Bristol. This is what you do. Give up and go to bed. You’ve been doing it your entire life. Even in high school. You got dumped by Pete Havers and went to bed saying you had mono. And you did the same thing just last year. Buried yourself here and wouldn’t answer your phone.”

“I had broken ribs. I was supposed to rest. And I did have mono in high school. Pete’s the one who gave it to me!”

“Ya, and you did have the flu last week, but you use those things as excuses to not deal with life or attempt to move forward.”

Bristol glared at her best friend, heat suffusing her face.

“Liska,” Grace said.

“That was pretty harsh,” Harper said.

Liska kept her eyes locked on Bristol. “Someone had to say it.”

“Okay, Liska. You know everything. So, what in the hell am I supposed to do? The whole internet has turned against me.” Bristol’s voice broke and tears stung her eyes.

Grace squeezed between Harper and Bristol on the couch and put her arm around her younger sister.

“I don’t know,” Liska said. “But something!”

“It’s all well and good to tell me to do something. To not do what actually makes me feel better. But if you can’t tell me what I should do, then why can’t you just let me be?” Bristol’s voice rose with each sentence. “Why do you always have to try to fix me?”

Liska started to speak, but a quiet voice cut in.

“You could fight back.”

Everyone turned to look at Steph. Bristol had almost forgotten about her sitting there silently with the dog.

“What do you mean, baby?” Grace asked.

“Fight back. Online.”

“I don’t think that would be a good idea,” Bristol said.

“What do you have to lose? You said clients are cancelling anyway. Said your business is dead. So tell your side of the story. You have social media for your business. People are waiting to hear it. That’s how these feuds go online. Your response will go viral, too. You could turn the tide in your favour.”

Excitement lapped at the edges of Bristol’s consciousness, not quite breaching. “But won’t I look petty? Fighting online?”

“It could work,” Liska said. “You’d look tough. Fighting back for your name and your business.”

“Ya, fuck that bitch. Why should she get to spread lies and you just sit defenceless taking the attack?” Harper demanded.

“Contact Cherri,” Steph said. “She owes you her life. She should help you.”

After everyone left, Bristol called Mitch to thank him for checking in on her and apologize for not responding. Normally, she would’ve been angry with him for getting everyone involved, but it turned out involvement was what she’d needed and she was grateful. Look at me, growing and shit, she thought, grinning to herself. She filled him in on her new plan of defence, then got dressed and took Summit for a walk on the wooded trails by her apartment. As soon as she stepped within the trees’ embrace, peace descended. She and her dog had spent so many hours on this hard-packed nature trail after her divorce. She’d missed it. Summit zoomed around in the low bushes, sniffing and peeing. Reestablishing her dominion over the territory. The movement helped Bristol organize her thoughts. She brainstormed what to say to Cherri and the others of the bachelorette group. They’d all been there. They’d seen first-hand how hard Bristol had worked for Savannah. Hopefully, one of them would tell the truth online.

When she got back, she sat with a notebook and jotted down all the thoughts she’d had on her walk and listed what to write to each woman. Gathering her courage, she opened her laptop and wrote an email to Cherri. She appealed to her as a fellow woman on the receiving end of Savannah’s nastiness. Explained how Savannah’s post had negatively affected her business and asked for Cherri’s help. Asked her to help save Sister Stone Adventures by going public with the truth. Bristol tweaked the email multiple times, then pressed send. She crossed her fingers and prayed that Cherri hadn’t fallen back under Savannah’s control since returning home. Then she wrote similar emails to Ianna, Dionne, and Kendra. She didn’t hold out much hope for the twins having her back.

“It’s worth a try,” she said aloud as she clicked send.

After she sent the emails, a thought struck, and she swore aloud. What if the twins told Savannah, and that ignited even more posts from her? Maybe she shouldn’t have written to them. So far, Savannah had written only the one post about Bristol and responded to the comments. She’d been back to publishing her outfits of the day, wedding planning, and other “lifestyle” posts. Maybe the drama would have died down, eventually. No, she decided, anytime anyone ever searched online for Sister Stone Adventures, Savannah’s terrible post would be the first thing that came up. I’ve got to change the narrative. I must explain what really happened.

Bristol made herself a coffee and then sat back down with her notebook. She wrote out her side of the story longhand first. She thought better with pen and paper. After she’d typed it up, she read through it multiple times and was struck by how insane Savannah’s trip had been. Anger filled her head like the buzzing of bees. None of the shit that happened was my fault and I’m getting blamed for all of it. The weather couldn’t be helped. Savannah had known the storm was expected. Cherri ran off, then Savannah ran off. Bristol had done everything she could to keep everyone safe. Perhaps she should have set up their tents in the rain instead of going into Savannah’s tent, but she really hadn’t thought the downpour would last that long. She shook her head. No, it would’ve been impossible. The rain and wind were too strong.

“Ugh,” she groaned, scrubbing her hands across her face. “Fuck it.”

She tagged Savannah in the post and clicked publish. Slamming her laptop closed, she jumped up from the chair, almost knocking it to the floor. Summit leapt off the couch and ran to her. Bristol’s stomach roiled as she dashed outside to get the dirty containers from her Jeep. She brought everything inside and went into a frenzy of cleaning. She refused to open up her laptop or her phone to see the reaction her post was getting. After she’d cleaned and organized her camping supplies, she did a deep clean of her entire apartment. Scrubbing out her anger, resentment, and anxiety until she had nothing left but exhaustion and fell into bed that night with relief.

Chapter twenty-two

“Tell us everything,” Steph said as they pedalled along.

“Hold on, let me get my rhythm. It’s been a hundred years since I’ve been on a bike.”

Bristol stared straight ahead at the crushed gravel bike path. She looked at a fixed point in the distance to help find her balance on the eighteen-speed she borrowed from her nephew. Summit ran on the side of the trail in the grass. Once Bristol felt stable, she glanced over at the expectant faces of her sister and her two nieces. Grace had called and asked her to join them on a bicycle ride. Biking was not something she did, but she really needed to get out of the house.

“I published my side of the story yesterday and it has gotten so many shares and responses. Public opinion really seems to be divided, though. Some people agreed I did everything right and they’re happy I explained. Some called Savannah out for being completely unreasonable—”

A bell dinged behind them, and Steph and Sophia swerved in front of Bristol to make room for the person behind them to pedal past. Bristol applied the brakes too hard, and they screeched as she stopped abruptly. “Ah, shit.” She wobbled and set her foot on the ground to catch herself. Summit doubled back to Bristol.

Grace stopped beside her. “Are you okay?”

“Ya, just not used to this.” Bristol pushed off and got going again.

“Gotta say it’s kinda nice being better at a sport than my athletic little sister.”

Bristol smiled at Grace and then fixed her gaze back on the trail.

“So, what about the other half of the responses to your post?” Steph asked over her shoulder. “I read a bit last night, but haven’t checked this morning.”

“The other half are people saying that I’m lying. That I’m trying to save my skin by making Savannah look bad.”

“That’s bull. You never said anything that wasn’t true and you were polite in your response. If anything, you went way too easy on Savannah. She was a total bitch.”

“Stephanie Becker!”

“Sorry, Mom.”

“There’s been a quite a few nasty names thrown my way online. It’s kinda shitty. Especially coming from other women.”

“Women should support one another. There are enough men calling women names,” Grace said. “Women shouldn’t add to it.”

“You’re right,” Steph said, her voice full of contrition. “I shouldn’t have said that.”

“Kids at my school call each other names all the time. Even the B-word,” Sophia said from her place at the front of the line.

“What?” Grace said, horrified.

“Be thankful you teach kindergarten, Mom,” Steph said.

They stopped for lunch at a picnic table in a clearing on the side of the bike trail. Wildflowers grew throughout the clearing and butterflies fluttered from one to the other. The sun beat down on them. Would have been a great day on the water, Bristol thought. My would-be client is missing out.

Grace had packed a full meal in her backpack. She had homemade submarine sandwiches, cheese, crackers, hummus, celery and carrot sticks, and tiny brownies for dessert. Summit flopped down in the shade under the picnic table, panting.

Sophia tore a chunk off her sandwich and was going to give it to Summit when Bristol stopped her.

“She can’t have anything to eat when she is running hard like this. It’s dangerous. She can only have water until we get home and her breathing returns to normal.”

“Oh, okay. Sorry, puppy.” Sophia reached down to scratch behind Summit’s ears instead.

“Have you heard anything from Cherri or the others?” Grace asked.

“No, not yet. I’m afraid they’re waiting to see how badly I get massacred before they decide to join me or not.”

“That’s so not fair,” Steph said, waving her sandwich as she spoke. “They know how badly Savannah acted on that trip, and it was Cherri’s fault half of the stuff happened.”

“It’s difficult for people to make themselves vulnerable and open to attack online, no matter how much they want to help,” Grace said. “Hopefully, they’ll find their courage soon.”

“I’m not afraid, and I was there for most of it. I’ll back Aunt Bristol up.”

“Ya, me, too,” Sophia said.

“You don’t even have social media,” Steph said to her little sister.

“No, no. Don’t do that.” Bristol caught Grace’s fearful expression. “I am not having the internet blast you like it’s doing to me.”

“I don’t mind. Someone has to stand up with you. Stand up for the truth.”

“Thank you for your support, Steph, I appreciate it. You, too, Sophia. But honestly, it wouldn’t help anyway. We’re family. They’ll just say you’re lying for me.” Bristol’s voice grew fierce. “I will not have a bunch of keyboard warriors abusing my niece online.”

They finished their lunch, chatting about Sophia’s summer activities, Bobby’s basketball camp, books they’ve read, and other casual topics. They packed up their lunch and dumped the trash in a nearby bin. When they got on their bikes to head back, Bristol hissed out a swear.

“My ass hurts so much. How can you stand it?”

“You get used to it,” Steph said.

“The girls with the little behinds might get used to it, but I bought myself a big butt seat.” Grace lifted herself onto the pedals and slapped the wide cushioned seat. “I can go for hours with this thing.”

“Wow, that looks way more comfy.” Bristol lifted herself and looked back at the tiny hard wedge of the seat on her borrowed bike. “I’m going to feel the imprint of this torture device for a week.”

Grace laughed. “Ya, a teenage boy’s seat doesn’t hold great comfort for a woman.”

“Hey, big sister, I’ll race you to the next picnic table,” Sophia said.

“You’re on, brat.”

The two girls flew down the trail with Summit chasing after them.

“So things seem better between you and Steph. How’s it going?”

Grace smiled. “It is so much better. I can’t believe it. She’s my sweet girl again. Well, still moody, but so much better.”

“Ya, I noticed you guys weren’t bickering. Not like on our kayaking weekend at least.”

“She’s so much more relaxed and barely ever on her phone anymore. Except to take pictures. Honestly, I credit working with you this summer.”

Bristol glanced across to her sister in surprise. “Really?”

“Yes. Those wilderness trips cut her off cold turkey from her phone. Social media really can be an addiction. The trips made her see how much more there is to life offline. And also, that nasty Savannah woman opened Steph’s eyes to how fake the internet is. She’d really liked her until she met her.”

“That’s great. I’m glad something good came from that trip.”

It surprised Bristol how tired she was after the bike ride. She could kayak all day long and barely feel it, but cycling for a couple of hours did a number on her. It was nuts how just using a few different muscles could take it out of you. Summit collapsed onto the cool kitchen linoleum as soon as they came through the door.

“Ha. You and me both, girl.”

Bristol chugged cold water at the sink and debated checking her email and social media.

“I’m too tired to deal with that now.”

She called the dog and went to her bedroom to have a nap. She awoke to her phone ringing. The afternoon nap had zonked her out and she fumbled for the phone, not knowing what time it was or even where she was.

“Hello,” she croaked.

“Bristol?”

Bristol cleared her throat and pushed herself up in bed. “Yes, this is Bristol.”

“Hi, it’s Cherri.”

Bristol’s heart jumped in her throat and she was instantly awake, as if a bucket of cold water had been dumped over her head.

“Cherri. I’m so happy to hear from you. Did you get my email?”

“Yes, that’s why I’m calling. I don’t think I’m going to be able to help you and I didn’t want to say it in an email.”

Bristol’s stomach dropped. She sagged back against the headboard. “Why not?”

“I’m in the middle of moving away. I left Savannah for good and got a job as an assistant to a woman in Alberta. My flight is in two days.”

Bristol straightened. “That’s great news. I’m happy for you. That also means you can tell your side of the story and not have to worry about Savannah anymore.”

“I can’t. Savannah already warned me that if I say anything to counter her post, she’ll call my new boss and tell her I’m an untrustworthy liar. She has so much clout. I’ll get fired before I even start. She’ll ruin my name.”

“Like she’s ruining mine?” Bristol said with heat.

“I’m so sorry, Bristol. Honestly, I really am, but I need to get out of here. I need a new beginning. I can’t start a fight online with her. It’ll destroy me.”

“I understand.” Bristol swallowed dryly. “I know it must have been hard for you to work for her all those years. I’ll figure something out. Thanks for calling and letting me know.”

“Good luck.”

Bristol hung up. She slid down into the bed. It felt like sandbags were slowly being piled on top of her, weighing down her legs, arms, and torso, making it impossible to move.

Cherri was my only hope to get out of this, she thought as she closed her eyes and let the weight carry her down into oblivion.

Chapter twenty-three

Bristol awoke the next morning, groggy and muddled. She blinked at the clock. She’d slept all afternoon, all evening, and all night. Damn, Liska is right, she thought. I do bury myself in bed when I’m upset. I hate it when she’s right. Groaning, she forced herself to a sitting position and swung her legs to the side of the bed. Her head swam. The weight of the imaginary sandbags still clung to her. Hunger pangs squeezed her stomach, making her wince. I didn’t even eat supper last night. Summit stood on the bed and whined at her.

“Oh, no. I didn’t give you supper, either.” Guilt flooded her. Bristol placed her hands on the bed and leveraged herself to stand. “Shit, I’m sorry, baby.”

She shuffled to the kitchen. Summit streaked past her and scratched at the front door, whining. Bristol hurried over and let the dog outside. Summit barely made it off the patio stones before she squatted to pee.

“Poor girl, held that for so long.”

Summit ran back inside and pranced around the kitchen, nails clicking on the linoleum. Bristol stood, staring at the empty freezer. “You don’t have any raw food left.” Bristol shook her head. “Dammit, woman, get yourself together.” She filled Summit’s food bowl with her backup kibble. The dog sniffed it and looked back at Bristol.

“I know, I’m sorry. I’ll make you some proper meals today, promise.”

Summit turned back to the dish and ate without enthusiasm.

Bristol made herself coffee and oatmeal, then called Mitch. She told him about Cherri’s call. She didn’t tell him about forgetting to eat supper or feed her dog in response to that call.

“I was thinking of getting groceries for Summit’s raw meals and coming to your house to prepare it. I’ll make supper for us for when you get home from work, too. Is that okay?”

Mitch chuckled. “Of course that’s okay. I miss you.”

“Great, see you tonight. Love you.”

The guilt of forgetting to feed her dog galvanized Bristol into action. I can’t keep letting life knock me down and send me to my bed. I can’t control what other people say or do, but I can control myself. Enough is enough.

“First off, we’re getting back on the water.”

She grabbed her kayak from Mitch’s, loaded it onto the roof rack of her Jeep, and then headed to the river.

“I need a good workout this morning, pup. Upriver we go.”

Bristol eased the kayak into the flowing water. It started pulling her downriver backward. She dug the paddle in deep and fast to battle the current. Summit trotted along the riverbank. Bristol breathed deep, pulling the cool damp air further into her lungs. She imagined it flushing out all the germs and stale bedroom air that had settled inside of her body in the last week. Spray from her quick-moving paddle dripped and cooled her heated skin. The sun sparkled on the water. Bristol glanced over to Summit running through the high grass and smiled at the dog’s happy tongue-lolling grin. After an hour of hard paddling, Bristol angled her kayak off the river and beached it on the sand. Bristol’s heart pumped hard. Freshly oxygenated blood raced through her body, leaving her skin flushed and tingling. Summit ran to her, placed her paws on the bobbing kayak, and licked Bristol’s sweaty cheek.

“In you go, girl.”

Summit climbed into the cockpit with her. Bristol pushed off the beach and angled herself downriver. She leaned back and stretched her arms above her head, savouring the feeling.

“We needed this,” Bristol said, petting Summit’s warm ears.

Bristol paddled with the current and made it back to the Jeep in half the time.

“Short and sweet.”

Feeling revitalized and invigorated, she loaded everything back up and headed to the grocery store.

Hank was ecstatic when Bristol let herself into Mitch’s house. The Australian shepherd bowled into her as she opened the door.

“And this is why I left the groceries in the car.”

Bristol laughed as she ruffled his thick fur. Summit did a play bow to him and they took off chasing each other around the yard, leaping over Mitch’s untamed flowers, and kicking up tuffs of lawn. I really should do something about his garden now that I’m not working, she thought as she carried in the bags while the dogs were distracted. Once the dogs realized she wasn’t outside with them any longer, they zoomed in through the open front door and Bristol shut it behind them. She connected to Mitch’s Bluetooth kitchen speaker and put on her favourite ’90s playlist. As the alternative rock songs from her childhood blasted through the house, Bristol unpacked the groceries and prepared Summit’s raw meals. She danced around the kitchen island, singing along to the music, chopping up vegetables and processing an entire raw turkey. She threw chunks of carrots to the dogs as she went. They sat following her with their eyes and leaping over each other for the flying vegetables like they were the tastiest treats. Bristol smiled at their antics as a feeling of warmth and contentment filled her.

“Moving your body inevitably lightens your mood. Why do you always forget that?” Bristol said aloud, shaking her head at herself.

She separated the raw food into plastic bags for Summit’s meals for the coming weeks and froze half of them. Then put a beef roast with vegetables in the oven to cook for supper with Mitch. Feeling accomplished and happy, she sat down on the couch with her phone to tackle the next thing on her to-do list. Letting the momentum of “finishing” energy propel her through the perilous landscape of social media. Before she allowed herself to check on Savannah’s account or read any of the comments on her own post, she created an advertisement for one- or two-day kayaking trips at a discount and published it.

“Gotta try to fill the workdays somehow,” she murmured.

Going through her business address book, Bristol wrote out an email to past clients explaining the situation with Savannah, linked to her own detailed post about the trip, and asked if they would support her by leaving a review of their trips online.

“Maybe I can dilute Savannah’s impact with a flood of positive reviews,” she said to Summit when the dog came over for a pet.

Once the proactive business steps were out of the way, Bristol took a deep breath and scrolled to Savannah’s post. It had more of the same comments.

“New people keep finding it, fuck. Why won’t it just go away?”

One comment caught her attention like a fish hook in the mouth. It was a link that tagged “Sister Stone Adventures” by Ianna Davidson. Excitement and trepidation bubbled up inside Bristol as she clicked the link.

“Please be good, please be good,” she whispered.

The link opened the website for Women’s Adventure Magazine. Dumbfounded, Bristol read the title of the article aloud. “‘Bristol Emerson of Sister Stone Adventures Saves the Day and Gets Us Home Safely.’ By Ianna Davidson.” Her skin tingled, and she flushed. Bristol scrolled quickly down the full-page article.

“No way,” she whispered.

The front door opening and the dogs barking ecstatically shocked Bristol out of her reverie. She pulled her gaze away from her phone to see Mitch greet the dogs and take off his work boots.

“Hi, babe. I love having you all here when I get home,” Mitch said, walking into the living room. He stopped before reaching Bristol as she just stared at him. Worry creased his brow. “What’s wrong? Are you alright?”

Bristol sat on the couch, wide-eyed, looking at him with her phone clasped tightly in her hand. “Ianna is a sportswriter. She writes for Women’s Adventure Magazine. My absolute favourite magazine.”

“Ah, okay. Who is Ianna again?”

“Ianna is Savannah’s maid of honour. She was on the bachelorette trip.”

“Oh, crap.” Mitch sat beside Bristol on the couch and took her limp hand. “Did she blast you in the magazine like Savannah did?”

Bristol shook her head. “The opposite. Ianna said I saved the day. Actually titled the article that. She wrote truthfully about everything that had happened on the trip. Said that I was professional and an expert in guiding. She recommended Sister Stone Adventures to all women looking to get out into the wild. She even said that she was going to book another trip with me soon.” Tears filled Bristol’s eyes and overflowed. Mitch gathered her into his arms.

“I can’t believe it. I had no idea Ianna was a writer, let alone one for Women’s Adventure Magazine.” Bristol whispered the magazine name in awe. “If I’d have known that, I would have been more scared of her than Savannah.”

Mitch drew back and looked into Bristol’s red and tear-streaked face. “So, this is a good thing?”

Bristol laughed, sniffed, and wiped her eyes, grinning. “It is an amazing, incredible, wonderful thing.”

“Oh, thank God.” Mitch kissed her on the lips. “I thought someone had died when I saw your face.”

An alarm sounded, and they jumped apart. The dogs barked and ran. Bristol leapt to her feet.

“Shit!” She ran for the kitchen. Smoke billowed out of the oven. “Damn, damn, damn.” Grabbing oven mitts, Bristol pulled the smoking roast out of the oven and placed it on the stovetop. Mitch ran up with a fire extinguisher in his hands. He aimed it at the pot roast.

“No, don’t!”

He lowered the extinguisher but didn’t relax his stance.

“It’s not on fire, just very, very cooked.” Bristol turned on the fan above the stove. “Dammit. I wanted to make you a nice supper and now look at it.” The beef looked like a chunk of volcanic rock. The vegetables that had surrounded it were burnt to dust.

“And pizza it is.” Mitch chuckled and placed the fire extinguisher on the counter.

Bristol coughed and waved at the smoke in the air. “I’m sorry. It’ll take forever to get the smell out of your house.”

“Doesn’t matter.” Mitch took her hand. “Tell me more about this article. I want to see it.”

A smile jumped to Bristol’s face at the thought of Ianna’s post. “That’s what happened. I sat down to check the comments on Savannah’s review as I’m wont to do.” She looked at him sheepishly and cleared her throat. “And saw a link. One thing led to another, and I got sucked into an internet black hole. Completely forgot about the food.” Bristol pulled the article up on her phone and handed it to Mitch. As he read it, Bristol opened the windows and the front door to let the acrid smoke escape. The dogs crept out of the bedroom and came to them with their tails and ears low.

“It’s okay, pups. Mama was just cooking. Badly.” She pet the dogs and shooed them outside. From the window, she saw them shake off their anxiety and chase each other around the yard like normal.

“This is a great article. She’s a good writer. It reads like a novel, not an article. That whole trip was insane. She definitely portrayed you as the heroine of the story.”

“I know, right? And she is Savannah’s maid of honour. That’s got to be worth something in terms of unbiased reporting.”

“If Savannah is half as nasty as she sounds, I doubt Ianna will still be the maid of honour after this.”

Chapter twenty-four

“You didn’t have to do this, you know,” Bristol said as she pulled her shirt over her head.

“We are celebrating. My way.” Liska bundled her long blond hair on top of her head and tied it into a messy bun. “I know you would choose to celebrate coming back from the brink of career death by traipsing through the dirty, bug-infested woods, but some of us ladies are delicate creatures who require pampering after stressful situations.”

Harper snorted as she strolled through the changing room, completely naked, with an unlit cigarette in her mouth. “Delicate. Ya, me, too.”

Grace snatched the cigarette away and threw it in the trashcan. “Harper Jean, you cannot smoke in a spa! You’ll get us all kicked out.”

“Ya, not cool, Aunt Harp.”

Grace smiled at her oldest daughter, looking surprised, and glad for the backup.

“I wasn’t going to light it.” Harper rolled her eyes. “It was my emotional support cigarette. You just tossed a perfectly good and expensive smoke.”

“Why would you need an emotional support anything at a spa?” Liska regarded Harper in the mirror as she wrapped a white terry-cloth robe around herself. “Actually, never mind. I don’t want to know.”

“Get your bathing suit on so we can go to the hot tubs,” Grace said.

“Yes, Mom,” Harper droned, fishing a minuscule black bikini out of her bag and pulling it on.

Grace stared at her, aghast. “OMG. That thing barely covers your pubic hair.”

“I don’t have pubic hair, so it doesn’t matter.”

“We’re not on the beach in Brazil. How is that thing comfortable?”

Harper reached back into her bag and pulled out a silver flask, took a swig, and held it out to Grace. Looking stunned, Grace just clamped her lips shut and shook her head. Harper offered the flask to Bristol and Liska. They both declined. Harper shrugged, took another two quick sips, and wrapped the flask in a towel.

“Come on, ladies, let’s get out there.” Harper strolled toward the exit without a robe, carrying the hidden flask in her hand. “Grace needs the spa more than anyone. She’s so uptight, she’s likely to blow a gasket.”

They walked outside into the sunshine, pausing to take in the view and decide what to do first. A burbling stream flowed through bushes and trees on the edge of the property. The sound of the water and relaxing music mingled together. Six different pools of varying temperatures filled the area, chaise longues ringed each of the pools and a firepit, and potted flowers brought pops of colour to the tranquil environment.

Bristol took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of sunscreen, flowers, and smoke from the firepit. “This looks incredible.”

“For the ultimate thermal experience, we’ll start with the hot tub, then do a dip in the cold tub, then go to a relaxation room,” Liska instructed, leading the way. “Then rinse and repeat until our muscles are nothing but mush.” Four people were already in the in-ground pool. The women followed Liska into the steaming water.

“That’s hot!” Steph said at full volume.

“You get used to it,” Liska said in a low voice, sitting down on the bench inside the pool. “We have to speak quietly out here so we don’t disturb other people’s relaxation.”

“Oops. Sorry,” Steph whispered.

Bristol sank into the water up to her ears and tilted her head back to rest on the edge. Her skin prickled from the heat. She closed her eyes to focus on the sensation and released a sigh of pleasure as tension flowed out of her like the ebb of the tide.

“This was such a good idea,” Grace said.

They fell silent, each savouring the exquisite feeling of being fully submerged in hot burbling water.

“So how’s everything going now with SSA?” Steph’s voice broke in.

Bristol opened her eyes and sat up. “It’s going so much better. I’ve gotten bookings from Ianna’s article by experienced kayakers who want to do white water. Some from straight across Canada who want to try out the Ontario river systems.”

“Being brought to the attention of hardcore wilderness enthusiasts will only bring great things for your business,” Liska said. “And experienced people aren’t afraid to pay for the best.”

“Ya, it’s always the newbies that are cheapskates,” Harper added.

“That’s true. I can’t believe I ended up making no money off that bachelorette trip.” Bristol shook her head. “My own fault, though, I shouldn’t have taken on something so complex.”

“Do we have more trips coming up? I’d like to go again before school starts.”

“Thankfully, I haven’t had any more cancellations so we have our trip next week.”

“Sweet!” Steph said.

“I’m excited to get back to plain ol’ camping. No more glamping crap. Guiding will feel like a breeze after that.”

“Any backlash from the ‘influencer’?” Harper said with derision. She pulled the flask out from under the towel and took a swig.

“Surprisingly, no. I don’t really get it. People have been asking Savannah if it’s true what Ianna wrote, and she just deflects or doesn’t respond at all.”

“She’s bombarding her social media with wedding stuff,” Steph said. “Maybe she’s just more focused on getting married than fighting with her friend online.”

“Hope so,” Bristol said. “I still can’t believe my guiding business is featured in Women’s Adventure Magazine. I’d never even allowed myself to dream that would happen one day. And definitely not in the first year.”

“It really is so incredible. You never know what life has in store,” Grace said. “I’m always telling my kids that it’s important to stay positive and optimistic for the future. This is an excellent example of everything working out.”

“Oh!” Bristol burst out. “I forgot to tell you. I did a search for all of Ianna’s articles for the magazine online. It was Ianna Davidson who wrote the article about Divorcemoons.”

“No shit?” Harper said, leaning back and stretching her arms out along the cement edge of the pool.

“Crazy, eh? It was that article that sparked it all. Reading it made me plan our girls’ trip into the wilderness after my divorce, and it was there I decided to become a guide and start my own business. And now, because of her, I still have a business.”

“You should send her a gift to say thank you,” Grace said. “She should know how much she has affected your life.”

“True.”

“That’s so cool,” Steph said. “I wish I’d been on your Divorcemoon trip.”

The women looked at each other, wide-eyed.

“No, you do not.”

Steph regarded them with raised eyebrows when they all burst out laughing.

“Shh, shh,” Liska shushed them. “Merde. A spa attendant is coming this way. Let’s move on to the cold tubs before we get kicked out.”

The others did a thirty-second dip in the cold tubs and then went to lie down on the chaise longues in the sun. They’d gotten scolded about talking in the hot tubs, so Bristol and Steph went into the temperate pools where talking was permitted.

Bristol swam underwater. Her skin tightened and tingled from the rapid change in temperature. She surfaced and used both hands to smooth her hair back. When she blinked the water from her eyes, Steph was regarding her.

“Your eyebrow healed really well. Kinda badass having a scar through your brow.”

Bristol grunted a laugh. “I’m just glad the pirate look didn’t last long.”

Steph slid onto her back to float. “I can’t believe summer is basically over.”

“I know, eh? I feel like every year the summers go by faster. Next week’s trip will be your last one before you start back to school. It was so nice having you there this summer. You were a huge help. Especially with Savannah’s group.”

“I really loved working with you all summer. Being outside and active. I’m so tanned now, and check out my biceps.” Steph stood up in the water, stretched out her arms, and flexed. “I always wondered how you had such nice arms without going to the gym.”

Bristol chuckled and glanced at her own arms. “Thanks. Having a physical job definitely has its perks.”

Steph sank back into the water. “I’m still surprised Mom let me do this all summer. She is normally so worried all the freakin’ time. I guess she must really trust you.”

Bristol raised her eyebrows. “I never thought of it like that. I suppose you’re right. At the beginning of the summer, you said you needed a break from your mom because you guys were fighting all the time. How are things now?”

“It’s great now. I think she’s seeing me as more of an adult. She used to treat me the same way she treats Sophia. But there’s five years between my little sister and me. It wasn’t right.”

“I see how that could be frustrating, but honestly, you have done a lot of maturing over the summer. I’ve noticed a big difference. Added responsibility looks good on you.” Bristol winked at her niece.

Steph rolled her eyes and laughed. Sobering, she said, “I do appreciate my mom more now, as a person.”

“Oh?”

“The whole Savannah situation made me realize how fake everyone is. My mom is genuine. All the time. She may be a pain in the butt sometimes, but she is real and apparently, that is rare.”

Impressed, Bristol nodded. “You know, you should really tell her that. It’d mean a lot to her.”

“Ah, I don’t know. She’d just get all gooey.” Steph walked to the stairs. “Come on, let’s wake up the old ladies and hit the saunas.”

The five women chose spots on the wooden benches in the sauna. Harper spread her towel on the top bench and sprawled out on her back. “So glad there’s no one else in here. I hate having to be quiet.”

Bristol and Grace grinned at each other. “We know.”

“There are way too many rules in this place. How are rules relaxing?”

Steph used a wooden ladle to pour water on the hot rocks. Steam billowed up and surrounded the women. Bristol inhaled the cedar-scented steam and imagined it cleansing her from the inside.

“Bristol, I’ve been thinking,” Liska began.

“Uh-oh,” Harper said.

Bristol braced herself. She knew whatever Liska was about to say, she wouldn’t like it.

“Maybe you shouldn’t bring Summit with you anymore.”

“What? Why?”

“Well, she tends to get you into dangerous situations in the wilderness.”

“No, she doesn’t.”

“Mon Dieu. Yes, she does. She scared that giant moose and then it attacked you, breaking your ribs. And now your face is scarred because she jumped into your kayak and you lost control. And these are the times I know about. God knows what other things have happened that you haven’t told me.”

Bristol raised a hand to her affected eyebrow. Sweat rolled down her face. The heat in the sauna became overpowering.

“I hate to say it, but she’s not wrong,” Harper said, rising onto her elbow to look at Bristol.

Bristol bit her tongue and breathed in the hot, wet air. Instead of cleansing, it now felt suffocating. I will not lash out and run. I will not lash out and run. She relaxed her grip on the hot wooden bench and turned to regard Liska through the haze.

“I know you’re only trying to help because you worry about me. And you are probably right that I should leave Summit at home for safety’s sake. But, I’m not going to. I need her. When I’m stressed or overwhelmed with my responsibilities on these trips, she calms me. When I’m exhausted and don’t want to get up and take care of everyone, I do it, because I know she also needs to go out and be fed. When I feel lonely and miss my people while my clients laugh and enjoy each other, she gives me love and affection. And finally, a huge part of me starting this business is because I could take her with me every day. I’m not leaving her behind.”

The four women sat staring at her, surprised by her speech.

“I see you’ve thought about this quite deeply. If you need her, then you should do what you think is best. Just please be careful.”

“I will.” Bristol stood up and gathered her towel. “And now, I need to go jump in some ice water.”

Chapter twenty-five

“Let’s go to the city.”

Bristol looked up from her novel and stared at Mitch. “The city? But we aren’t city people.”

Mitch chuckled and sat up higher in bed. “I know. I’m not saying move there. I’m saying let’s go for the weekend. A getaway for your birthday. It’s cold outside now and your kayaking trips have stopped. It’s the perfect time. I wanted to book everything and surprise you, but—”

“I hate surprises.” Bristol cringed.

“—you hate surprises,” Mitch continued. “So I’m surprising you with the idea and we can plan it together.”

Bristol closed the book and leaned toward Mitch, kissing him on the lips. “You know me so well. How is that?”

Mitch shrugged. “I don’t know. I pay attention, I guess.”

“You have no idea how rare that is in a man.”

“I know you used to always go hiking around your birthday, but since we do that together often, I thought we could try something completely different to celebrate.”

“Ya, the only time I could get my ex to join me was if I called it my birthday present. And then he complained the whole time.” Bristol shook her head to dispel the heavy memories of the past.

“So, how about it? We could do museums, eat at a fancy restaurant, and pretend we’re bougie city folk.”

“I don’t have any bougie city clothes, though.”

“Go see Liska. I’m sure she’s got lots.”

Bristol laughed. “I’ll make sure not to tell her you said that.”

“So?”

“It sounds great, but what about the dogs?” Bristol reached down to pet Summit and Hank, who were sprawled across her legs.

“I’ll ask my sister to come stay over. She won’t mind.”

“Okay, let’s do it!”

The closest big city was two hours away. They grabbed an extra-large coffee for Bristol and a small hot chocolate for Mitch from the closest café before hitting the road.

“I still can’t believe I haven’t converted you to coffee after all this time.”

“You keep your bitter black sludge to yourself, woman.”

Bristol flung her hair over one shoulder. “I can’t help it if I was born so sweet that I don’t need any extra sugar in the morning.”

Mitch scoffed and grabbed her thigh. “If you say so, dear.”

They sang along to the radio all the way there, alternating between Mitch’s favourite country playlist and Bristol’s ’90s alt rock. As they entered the city, Bristol craned her neck to look at the looming skyscrapers. She jumped when a horn blared right beside them. She whipped around with her hand pressed to her chest.

“They’re not honking at us. At least, I don’t think so,” Mitch said. “Damn city people.” He tightened his grip on the truck’s steering wheel.

As Mitch drove to their hotel, Bristol stared at the myriad of humanity flowing by. People of all ages and ethnicities passed along the sidewalk, some strolling hand in hand, some rushing with a coffee in one hand and a briefcase in another, some jogging with strollers, and some stopping every few feet to let their dogs urinate on trees planted in a break in the concrete. Bristol was mesmerized.

“Oh, look, a Hungarian Vizsla.” She pointed at the smooth-coated red dog running beside a cycling woman.

“Great Dane over here,” Mitch said.

“There’s a dog walker with seven dogs on leash. That’s incredible. Well-trained dogs or super-skilled human? What do you think?”

“Magic, for sure.”

They parked at the hotel and got out with their overnight bags. The smell of asphalt, car exhaust, and garbage hit Bristol. She grimaced and coughed as the odour coated her tongue.

“Ugh, I can taste the air,” she said as they walked into the building.

Inside, the artificial scent of flowers bombarded them. Their room was on the eighth floor and overlooked the street. Bristol went directly to the enormous window and stared out.

After a minute, she said, “You know, I can count the trees here. From this window, I can only see eleven trees. And they’ve all lost their leaves. There’s no green anywhere.” She turned to Mitch, who had sprawled out on the large white bed. “You shouldn’t be able to count trees. They should be various and innumerable. And here, they have them growing out of individual squares of concrete. Reminds me of tigers in a cage at the zoo.”

“We’ll try to find you a section of woods here in the city. There must be one.”

“Ya, a zoo of trees. Corralled into one spot so they don’t interfere with the innumerable buildings.” She shook her head and sighed. “Sorry. I’m being weird.” She kicked off her shoes, crawled onto the bed beside him, and laid her head on his chest. “Just not used to it.”

“It’s okay. I get it, and it’s only for the weekend.” Mitch rubbed her back. “It’ll be nice to experience something different. And when we go home, we’ll be even more grateful for the forests right outside our door.”

That night, they took the subway to the restaurant and left the truck parked at the hotel.

“Much better not having to deal with city drivers at night,” Mitch said, as they entered the sliding subway doors.

They sat down beside each other, and Bristol stared wide-eyed at the array of humanity on the underground train. The majority of people stared at their phones, a few read, some chatted together or entertained their children in strollers.

“That man in the red coat has a dog in a backpack,” Bristol whispered, nodding her head to the right.

“No way,” Mitch whispered back, craning to see. “That’s a cockerpoo. It’s too big for a backpack. Why would he do that?”

“I think I read somewhere that dogs are allowed on the subway if they’re in a carrying bag. Maybe it’s his way of getting away with it and he’ll let the dog out of the bag at the next stop.”

“Hope so,” Mitch said, frowning.

At their stop, the backpack man got off as well. They followed him up the stairs and out onto the busy street. The man just kept walking down the street with the dog bouncing on his back. Mitch scowled after him.

Bristol bumped Mitch’s shoulder. “Don’t worry about it. City people are weird. Let’s go eat.”

They arrived at the highly rated restaurant they’d reserved. It was an intimate space filled with flickering candles. The tantalizing aromas of cooking food Bristol couldn’t identify made her mouth water as they sat down at the table for two. The menu comprised a five-course meal of the chef’s choice. Each plate was a surprise and paired with its own glass of wine.

“I’m excited and also nervous,” Bristol said, smoothing a hand across the pristine white tablecloth. “I feel like such a country bumpkin in a fancy place like this.”

“Well, you look like a superstar in that dress.”

Bristol blushed and glanced down at the body-hugging forest-green dress she’d borrowed from Liska’s walk-in closet. She took the cloth napkin and placed it on her lap.

“You were right, of course, about Liska having plenty of bougie city clothes. I swear she feels like a little girl playing with Barbies when I let her pick out clothes for me. I had to cut her off after two hours of playing dress-up.”

“Torture for you, but well worth it for me.” Mitch reached across and took Bristol’s hand. The candlelight sparkled in his warm brown eyes.

“She’ll be happy you approve. You clean up pretty well yourself.” Bristol’s gaze drifted from Mitch’s eyes to linger on the breadth of his shoulders, stretching the thin fabric of the grey dress shirt he wore.

Mitch lifted her hand and kissed it. Bristol burst out giggling. “Look at you being all lovey-dovey. Been watching romance movies on the down-low?”

Mitch bit the back of her hand where he’d kissed it, making her squeal. Bristol clapped a hand over her mouth and darted a look at the other restaurant patrons.

“Apparently, you can dress me up, but you can’t take me out.”

“For your information, I haven’t been watching movies. I’ve been reading the novels you leave on the bedside table when you go off to work. Wait and see what I’ve got in store for you later.”

Bristol’s mouth dropped open. Sexy images of Mitch reading a dark romance novel and thinking of her filled her mind. Her slew of demands for elaboration were put on pause as the server delivered and introduced the first dish.

The food was unique and magnificent. Bristol savoured each bite and sip. They left feeling full and more than a little tipsy. The meal ended just in time for the stand-up comedy show Mitch had bought tickets for. They drank more cocktails and laughed so hard, tears ran down their faces. When they stumbled back into their hotel room, Bristol felt giddy and energized. They dove into the fresh white sheets and continued their night.

The next morning, Bristol blinked at the sun streaming through the floor-to-ceiling window.

“Argh, we forgot to close the curtains,” she mumbled, dry-mouthed, staggering from the bed. She pulled the curtains closed and stood holding on to them, swaying. The beep of the door lock had Bristol whipping around. She covered her naked body with the curtains, baring her backside to the window. The world swam with the abrupt movement, and she grabbed her head with one hand.

“Looks like you could use this,” Mitch said, holding out an extra-large paper coffee cup.

Bristol looked from Mitch standing in the doorway to the bed. It was empty. Bristol rubbed her eyes.

“Man, I didn’t even realize you weren’t in bed with me.” She climbed back into the bed and pushed the pillows up behind her back. “How much did I friggin’ drink last night?”

Mitch chuckled and handed her the coffee. “More than usual, but this is your birthday weekend.”

Bristol closed her eyes and took a long sip of the coffee. “I blame all the different wines that went with that meal.”

“Sure, we’ll go with that.” Mitch sat on the bed and drank his hot chocolate.

Bristol opened one eye and studied him. “If you’ve already been out for a run while I’ve been passed out, I’ll die.”

“Nah, I’m not feeling that energetic myself. Just went to get your caffeine fix. What do you want to do today?”

Bristol laid her head back against the padded headboard. “Well, for now, I want to drink this exquisite elixir of life you have gallantly provided and pray that it does indeed bring me back from the dead. Then, we’ll see.”

Chapter twenty-six

They went for breakfast and then bought tickets for an art museum.

“Gotta experience some cultural enrichment while we can,” Bristol said as they entered the four-story building.

“Excuse me.” Mitch affected a snooty tone. “Do you mean to say that the multitude of Tim Hortons, gas stations, bars, and dollar stores at home are not a cultural experience?”

Bristol chuckled and rolled her eyes. “Well, you know I’ll never knock the access to coffee at every corner.”

The museum was divided in two, with one half being fine art and the other filled with contemporary modern art. They started with the fine arts wing, strolling the levels hand in hand. They studied the paintings and sculptures and read the descriptions aloud to each other.

“This is the perfect way to spend a hungover Sunday in the city. Slow, quiet, and peaceful,” Bristol said, wrapping her arms around Mitch’s arm and leaning against his shoulder. “Though I do miss the dogs.”

He kissed the top of her head. “We should get some art for our house. Well, not from here. I can’t afford that.” He chuckled. “But, you know, from some regular art place.”

Bristol froze when Mitch said “our house.” Pleasure filled her and a goofy smile highlighted her face. “That’s a great idea.”

“The only kind I have.” Mitch winked and pulled her along to the contemporary side of the museum.

“Wow, quite the difference,” he said, squinting as harsh light accosted them.

The walls and tiled floor were bright white, with paintings spread out on only one exhibit per section. In the fine arts side, paintings filled every available space and were lit with soft yellow light. With carpet underfoot, it felt like you were strolling through someone’s home.

“Feels like two different worlds,” Bristol agreed.

“Not sure I like this new world.”

They moved through the levels much more quickly, and soon came to the top floor. There was a buzz of activity as a photographer was taking pictures of a woman standing beside a sculpture. She was mimicking the sculpture’s pose as the photographer clicked away. Mitch and Bristol stood in the room’s entrance, watching the scene. The photographer moved and the woman’s face came into view.

“Oh, my God,” Bristol whispered.

“What?”

“That’s Savannah.” Bristol turned toward the door.

“Huh, really? Not what I expected.” Mitch studied the woman. “I thought she’d be more, I don’t know, larger than life or something. Seems pretty ordinary, well, except for the camera crew.”

Bristol grabbed Mitch’s hand. “Let’s get out of here.” A tour group coming in blocked the doorway. Bristol clenched her teeth and drummed her fingers on her thigh as people meandered into the room. “Come on, come on.” Anxiety bubbled up in her chest.

The group cleared, and she charged forward.

“Bristol. Hey, Bristol, wait.”

Bristol froze. Mitch turned, but Bristol stayed facing the exit, willing it to suck her out like an emergency exit on an airplane. Savannah glided to face Bristol on three-inch heels. She wore a dress that looked to cost more than Bristol had made in two months. Bristol stared at her, mute.

“Hi, how are you?” Savannah asked sweetly, leaning forward to meet Bristol’s eye.

This can’t be happening. All the weeks I wished to see this woman face-to-face and now she’s here, and I’m frozen.

Bristol cleared her throat and willed her body to respond. “I’m fine.”

“Imagine running into each other in the city, of all places. I never imagined you left the wilderness.” Savannah emitted a little laugh.

“Hard to kayak in December.”

“Yes, I suppose.”

Bristol heard the click of a camera and turned to see Savannah’s photographer taking their picture.

Savannah waved him away. “Give me a minute, please.” To Bristol, she said, “I’m being featured in the museum’s quarterly magazine. They’re hoping to attract a younger crowd.”

“You can get back to it. We were just leaving.”

“Wait, please.” Savannah placed her hand on Bristol’s arm and steered her away from the crowd. Bristol went, dazed. “I want to say I’m sorry.”

Bristol blinked at her.

“I shouldn’t have treated you so badly on my bachelorette trip, and I shouldn’t have written that post about you and your business. I’ve deleted it. Everything kinda went downhill for me after that trip. I was angry and wanted to lash out at someone. Cherri left, and honestly, I never realized how much she did for me until she wasn’t there. It’s so hard to manage my social media business and my life without her. I’ve gone through four different assistants. No one is as good as she was. Ianna refused to be the maid of honour in my wedding and basically called me a liar in that article of hers. We got into a huge fight about how I treated you and Cherri.” Savannah sucked in a huge breath. “She told me I was a great influencer, but a bad friend. That phrase goes through my head almost daily. I had to ask Bryer’s sister to be my maid of honour and I barely know her.” Savannah turned her face away, blinking rapidly. “I’m seeing a therapist. She’s helping me to make changes. It’s a true sign from the universe to see you here. I know I’m on the right path.”

Bristol’s mind was buzzing. She waded through everything that Savannah had said and came on to one salient fact.

“You deleted your post?”

Savannah nodded emphatically. “Yes, a few weeks ago. I’m sorry if it did damage, but it won’t anymore.”

“If? If it did damage? It almost ruined my business and damn near launched me into a depression.” Bristol startled both of them with her outburst. She sensed Mitch taking a step closer to her.

Savannah covered her mouth with her hand, eyes wide. “I’m so sorry. My therapist says that I don’t think about other people’s emotions. I’ve been working on that. I didn’t think about how you would feel about what I wrote. Only about expressing my own anger and disappointment. Are you doing okay now?”

“Yes, thanks to Ianna’s article,” Bristol said pointedly. “Will you write a retraction? Say what really happened?”

Savannah took a step back. “Oh, no. I couldn’t do that. My followers would hate me. I have my image to think about. My reputation.”

Bristol’s hands clenched at her sides. “Guess you’re not that sorry.”

“But I am, Bristol.” She placed a hand on her chest. “I really am. But it’s business, my livelihood, you understand, don’t you?”

“Ya, I completely understand having your business on the line because of social media.” Bristol’s tone dripped disdain.

Ignorant of the tone and underlying barb, Savannah said, “Oh, good. I knew you’d get it.”

The photographer waved at Savannah, gesturing her back to the shoot. She nodded at him.

“I’ve got to go. I’m so glad we got a chance to talk and clear the air. Good luck with everything.” She flashed Bristol a megawatt smile and strode off, heels clacking on the tile floor.

Bristol watched Savannah slide right back into posing for the camera as if nothing had happened while Bristol was still rooted to the spot.

“What was that all about?” Mitch asked, stepping up beside her. “For a minute, I thought you were going to take a swing at her.”

Bristol shook her head, trying to dislodge the mental paralysis. “I swear that woman was put on this earth to test me. She’s the most aggravating person I’ve ever encountered.”

Bristol took his hand and pulled him out the door, explaining as they went.

A couple of days later, Steph arrived at Mitch’s house.

“Hey, you. Whatcha doing here?”

“Hi. I stole Mom’s minivan and took it for a joyride. May or may not have sideswiped a couple cars along the way.”

Bristol shut the door behind Steph and stared at her, wide-eyed.

Steph burst out laughing. “Your face! It was a joke. Mom let me use it.”

“And the other cars?”

Steph laughed again. “Joke. Aunt Harp is the only one who gets my humour.” She shook her head. “The ol’ van is all in one piece. Well, same dents and scratches it’s had for the last ten years. Mom really needs to trade that thing in.” Steph made her way into the living room, greeting the dogs along the way.

Bristol followed her in, dazed by the energy that Steph radiated.

“I’m really hoping I’ll be able to get my own car soon. I saved up most of my summer money working with you and Dad said they’d match whatever I’d saved. Can’t wait. I literally hide my face when I go through town driving a minivan. Worried people will think I’m a teen mom or something.” She flopped down onto the couch. Hank and Summit clambered on top of her. She giggled and ruffled their fur. “Hank is so freakin’ fluffy.”

“I’m pretty sure people would just assume you’re a teen driving your mom’s minivan. As you are.”

“Ugh. That’s even worse.”

Bristol laughed and shook her head.

“What brings you by? This’s the first time you’ve ever come to visit. Everything okay?”

“I brought you a birthday present.” Steph unzipped the backpack she’d dropped on the floor.

“What? You didn’t have to buy me a gift.”

“I didn’t. I made you something.” She pulled a binder out of her bag and handed it to Bristol. “Happy Birthday.”

Bristol cradled it in her hands. The front cover had a selfie of Bristol and Steph floating on the river in their kayaks. Written in bold stickers along the top was “Sister Stone Adventures.”

“Oh, wow,” Bristol breathed. She opened the cover and slowly flipped through the scrapbook. There were photos from all the trips Steph had done with her, starting with the Mother’s Day trip. There were adorable pictures of the baby foxes and a great candid shot of Bristol and Grace sitting beside the campfire. “This is amazing. Thank you so much.”

“I printed that one for Mom, too. She put it on the fridge,” Steph said, pointing at it.

As Bristol studied each page, they chatted about the different trips they’d done and the clients they’d catered to. When she got to Savannah’s trip, Bristol cringed.

“What a pivotal trip that was. Look how excited I was at the beginning of the trip.” Bristol studied a photo of herself, smiling widely as Savannah’s car pulled into the river parking area. “Little did I know.”

“Umm, that’s another reason I came by today. Have you seen Savannah’s post?”

Bristol’s stomach dropped. “Oh, for fuck’s sake. She posted something else about me? Come on!”

The dogs nudged her, concerned over the abrupt change in tone.

“It’s okay. It’s not bad. Here.” Steph opened her phone and passed it over to Bristol.

On the screen was an Instagram photo of Bristol and Savannah at the museum. Savannah looked flawless, and Bristol looked dumbstruck.

19,740 likes

Savannahgirrl Buried the hatchet with Bristol Emerson from Sister Stone Adventures about my ill-fated bachelorette trip. She apologized for her wrongdoings and I realized the trip wasn’t as bad as I’d thought. I was in the midst of a mental health crisis when I wrote my trip recap and lashed out. Bristol really did do everything she could to make my trip enjoyable. We can’t control the weather or our friends. Do contact Bristol for your future girls’ trips. She will take care of you.

#girlstrip #womensupportingwomen #apologizeandgrow #mentalhealthmatters

Chapter twenty-seven

Bristol’s first trip of the new year was at the end of January. As much as Savannah’s Instagram post had annoyed Bristol, it had a positive effect. A flood of women reached out to her in the days following. Most of them hadn’t even seen Savannah’s first negative review, and now that she’d deleted it, no one else would. Bristol had finally received her sought-after influencer recommendation and it was having the hoped-for effect. Her summer kayaking weeks were full, and she managed to convince quite a few to try out winter wilderness camping. Contentment filled her as she looked at her jam-packed agenda. I’ll make back that lost income in no time, she thought, blocking off a three-day weekend in her book.

Bristol borrowed Mitch’s winter camping tent for her clients. The three friends didn’t want solo tents, they wanted to sleep together for warmth. So Bristol had to buy only a two-person winter tent for herself and Summit. The morning of the trip, Bristol’s stomach churned.

“I don’t know why my stomach is all upset. I know it’s my first time guiding a winter camping trip, but I shouldn’t be that stressed about it.”

“It’s probably because you know these girls found you through Savannah. Any reference to that woman always makes you anxious,” Mitch said.

“That’s true. Here’s hoping they have a better experience.”

She kissed Mitch and Hank goodbye, loaded up Summit, and met her clients at the trailhead.

“It is so pretty here,” a young woman said in a light Québécoise accent. She closed the car door and pulled a pink knitted toque with large pompom on over her dark hair. As she gazed at the landscape, the softly falling snow landed on her long black eyelashes. She blinked and stuck out her tongue to catch the flakes.

The other two friends got out laughing at her antics.

“You look like a little kid, Marie-Soleil,” the driver said. Bristol recognized her client, Amber, from the Facebook profile she’d used to book the trip.

“Try it. It’s fun,” Marie-Soleil said.

“Hi. I’m Rosa,” the third woman said to Bristol. “Don’t mind our craziness.” She gestured to her friends and then joined them. The three women stood in a circle, catching snowflakes on their tongues.

Summit jumped up and put her paws on Amber’s hip, head back and tongue lolling. Before Bristol could scold the dog, Marie-Soleil giggled and said, “Look, she’s catching snowflakes, too.” The other women laughed along. Amber scratched Summit behind the ear.

Bristol pulled out her phone and snapped a photo of the three women and the dog with their tongues out, surrounded by the brilliant white of the snow-covered forest. What a fun start to the trip, Bristol thought. These clients seem like my kind of people.

Bristol did her Sister Stone Adventures introduction and gave them each a moonstone necklace. I’ll have to order more crystals for the winter. It was exciting to think about all the women who had a sister stone from a trip with her. Spreading good energy one stone at a time. They loaded up their backpacks and strapped on their snowshoes. Bristol led the way single-file up the tree-lined trail. Heavy snow covered every tree bough and twig, and a thick white blanket covered the ground. With each step, Bristol’s snowshoe sunk four inches into the powder. Summit bounded like a jackrabbit alongside the trail, her purple down jacket vibrant among all the white.

“It looks like we’re inside a snow globe,” Marie-Soleil said. “So much more beautiful than winter in the city.”

“You’re in luck,” Bristol said over her shoulder. “We had a huge dumping of snow this week, so everything is fresh and clean. It’ll make snowshoeing a bit more work, however, unless others have packed down the trail closer to the summit.” Bristol struggled for breath as she broke the trail, making the first tracks in the snow. How am I so out of shape? She looked back at the others following along without difficulty. “Every winter, I’m surprised how much more cardio you need for snowshoeing compared to kayaking.”

The women chitchatted together as they walked. Bristol was happy to save her breath for the arduous task of breaking trail. Fatigue pulled at her limbs. What I wouldn’t give to have Steph here right now helping to haul this gear, she thought as she stopped at an opening in the trees.

“Time for a break,” she called, dropping her loaded backpack into the snow with a suppressed groan. Summit doubled back to where they’d stopped.

“That bag is huge! I don’t know how you’re doing it,” Rosa said, eyeing the seventy-litre bag on the ground.

“You get used to it,” Bristol said, trying to sound nonchalant even though she was still panting.

“Speaking of,” Amber said, holding her pack out to Rosa, “your turn to carry our tent.”

“Shit, I shoulda kept my mouth shut.” She took the bag and placed it at her feet and handed her smaller pack to Amber.

“I’m so happy to be out here doing this,” Marie-Soleil said. “I’ve always wanted to go winter camping, but never had the chance.”

“Ya, we didn’t even know it was possible to get a guide with gear for a weekend of camping,” Rosa agreed. “I thought guides were only for big excursions.”

Bristol smiled. “I specialize in small groups. My goal with Sister Stone Adventures is to enable women to get out and experience the wilderness. It’s often too overwhelming for people to plan and buy gear for a trip, especially the first time.”

“Definitely. If I hadn’t seen Savannah Claire’s Instagram posts about her trip with you, I never would’ve even considered it.”

Bristol cringed at the mention of Savannah. Please, please, don’t ask about the trip, she prayed. Bristol rose from her seat on her pack, gritted her teeth, and hauled it to her shoulders. “Well, we better get moving. We’re burning daylight.”

The women followed suit, and they plodded back up the trail. When they neared the mountaintop, another trail intersected and joined theirs coming from a different trail head. The principal route to the peak had been broken out and packed down by people from the other trail.

“Wow, this is much easier snowshoeing now,” Rosa said. “You wouldn’t think the weight of snow would make that much difference.”

“The resistance is definitely a calorie burner. Best workout I’ve had in years,” Amber said, taking her winter toque off and stuffing it into her pocket.

“Why didn’t we take that packed-down trail from the beginning?” Marie-Soleil asked.

“I wanted to give you ladies the wilderness experience. Thought you’d enjoy the beauty of an obscure trail more than a busy one. It’s not the same feeling when you’re jostling for walking space on a high-traffic trail.”

“True. Thanks. I loved seeing the untouched snow.”

The sound of voices carried on the breeze that had arisen as they’d climbed. They rounded a corner, and a group of men were sitting on their packs in the middle of the trail, eating. Summit ran over to the men as they stood to make way.

“Sorry,” the first man said as he stepped off the trail to let the women pass. He sunk up to his knees in the snow.

The other three men also moved off the packed trail, murmuring hellos or tipping their heads.

“Thank you. Excuse us,” Bristol said. “Summit, come!”

The dog left the men, where she’d been receiving back scratches and zoomed alongside the other women to rejoin Bristol at the front of the line.

“I see what you mean,” Marie-Soleil said when they’d gotten out of earshot of the men. “It is a different vibe with other people around.”

“Especially random men,” Rosa said.

Bristol glanced back at her wary tone.

“Do you ever get scared hiking alone?” Amber asked.

“No, not really. People are always respectful out here. Men typically give women a wide berth, like those guys did. Everyone is out here for the same reason.”

“I don’t know. I definitely wouldn’t hike alone,” Rosa said. “Too sketchy.”

“Well, I do take precautions,” Bristol admitted. “I used to go into the wilderness alone every week. It’s been rare since I started my business, but I always have Summit with me. I’ve taken self-defence classes, and I always have bear spray attached to my pack.” Bristol tapped the canister hanging off the side of her pack with her gloved hand. “Works on man or beast.”

“That’s smart,” Rosa said, glancing over her shoulder. “Makes me nervous knowing there are packs of roving men out here.”

“No need to worry. But I’m glad you chose a guided trip with friends. I started my business to help women become comfortable in nature. Everyone has their different anxieties, and it’s much more enjoyable with others.”

The treeline dropped away just before the mountaintop. As they ascended, wind whipped them, stinging their bare cheeks and making their eyes water. Bristol directed them to the summit cairn. The rock pile stood four feet high. Bristol rested her hand on it and raised her voice over the wind. “We’ve officially reached the peak of Mount Staryn.”

Marie-Soleil tapped a hand on the top rock. “We did it. My first mountain.”

Amber passed Bristol her cellphone, and Bristol took photos of the group standing around the cairn. She backed up to get as much of the view as possible. Mountains stretched out in all directions behind them. The women’s cheeks were red, and they held on to their toques as the wind buffeted them. They took selfies and photos of the scenery, then hastily put their phones away and pulled on their mittens.

“Shoot, I think the cold killed my battery,” Marie-Soleil said, staring at the black phone screen.

Summit leaned against Bristol’s leg with her tail tucked between her legs, shivering in her winter jacket and booties.

“Let’s go, ladies, before we’re chilled to the bone.”

“Here we are. Our home for the night,” Bristol said, opening her arms to encompass the clearing by a stream. Summit darted over for a drink of the ice-rimmed water.

“Yay, I’m so excited for this part,” Marie-Soleil said, smile wide and eyes sparkling.

Bristol chuckled. “Well, there’s lots to do, so I’m glad you’re excited.” She dropped her backpack with relief and gestured to the others to take off theirs as well. “First, we stomp down our camping areas. I’ll create the outline, and you guys follow behind me and a bit to the right. With our snowshoes, we’ll pack down the whole area so our tents will lie flat and we can move around more easily.”

Bristol walked a square in the snow and the women followed behind.

“Wow, it really works well,” Amber said when they’d finished. “Amazing how solid the snow becomes.”

“One benefit of winter camping is that you always have a nice level platform for your tent. No sleeping on an angle or with sticks driving into your back at night.” Bristol pulled Mitch’s tent out of the pack and unrolled it. She directed the women on how to set it up and use the snow stakes to keep the rainfly tight. Then she set up her own smaller tent across from them. “We’ll take a break and then we’ll collect wood for a fire.”

Bristol dug a pit in the centre of their camp and layered it with wood. The women gathered dead branches, and Bristol showed them how to make a fire using the cotton balls soaked in petroleum jelly that she always brought in her pack. They collected water from the stream, and she made them all her signature camp mochas. They sat on inflatable cushions around the campfire with their mugs cupped in their hands as daylight slid below the trees and disappeared like smoke on the wind. Bristol finished her drink and set the cup down, enjoying the peace and contentment a good day’s work in the outdoors provided. As the last taste of chocolate and coffee slid down her throat, her stomach recoiled. The mocha came rushing back up. Bristol leapt from the ground, scrambling away from the others, and fell to her knees as the drink she’d just savoured came spewing onto the pristine snow.

Chapter twenty-eight

The women jumped from their spots and gathered behind her.

“Oh, my God.”

“Are you okay?”

“What happened?”

Bristol sat back on her heels and pushed Summit away from the brown sludge she’d been sniffing. Bristol covered the mess with snow and sat on the ground. Wiping her mouth and streaming eyes, she apologized to her clients. “I’m so sorry. I don’t know what came over me.” Man, I’ve thrown up more times this year than I have in the last ten. Maybe I’ve got something wrong with my stomach.

“Don’t worry about it.” Marie-Soleil walked closer, studying Bristol with concern. “Are you feeling better now?”

“Yes, thank you. Much better.”

Amber eyed her cup of mocha suspiciously and set it on the ground. Bristol noticed and got to her feet. “It’s not the mocha. I make it all the time, and I boiled the water from the stream long enough to kill any bacteria. I wasn’t feeling great this morning. Must just be a stomach bug or something.”

Dammit, what a great impression I’m making now. They’ll think Savannah was right and I am an incompetent guide.

“Let’s gather more firewood and then I’ll get you guys some supper.” Bristol swallowed the sour saliva that filled her mouth at the thought of cooking and plastered on a smile.

They tramped around the woods with the snowshoes on and collected fallen branches and logs for their fire. Fatigue pulled at Bristol, but she forced herself to stay upbeat and energetic toward her clients.

“Hey, Bristol. Check this out,” Rosa called.

Bristol made her way over to where Rosa was studying the ground.

“Look at these prints in the snow.”Amber and Marie-Soleil joined them.

“They look like cat paw prints. But bigger,” Marie-Soleil said.

“They are,” Bristol confirmed. “They’re bobcat tracks.”

“Ahh!” Amber cried. “Is that like a cougar?” She shone her flashlight around in the darkening woods.

“No, no. Bobcats are much smaller, only like thirty-five pounds. They’re even smaller than Summit. And most importantly, they’re scared of humans.”

“It won’t attack us while we sleep?” Rosa asked.

“Nope. They’re not dangerous to humans. I’m sure it was just looking for snowshoe hare to eat. Plus, see that the tracks are mostly covered over in snow? Means it was a while ago that it passed through here. It’s long gone by now.”

“You’re sure?” Amber asked, still panning the flashlight over the snow in all directions.

“I’m sure.”

Summit came barrelling over from the stream and ran through the tracks, dispersing them in her exuberance for attention from the women.

“Summit would let us know if there was another animal around. You’ve seen how easily she spots squirrels.”

Marie-Soleil crouched down in the snow to pet Summit. “That’s right. We’ve got our own little watchdog right here. Eh, mon pitou?”

“We should have enough wood now. Let’s go back to the fire and I’ll make supper.”

Bristol’s stomach felt okay while she cooked, and she even managed to eat a few bites of supper. The women settled into their tent and Bristol climbed into hers, where she removed her boots and zipped up the door after Summit slipped inside. She took off the dog’s jacket and booties and set them by her boots. Summit plunked down on the sleeping bag and wriggled ecstatically on her back.

“Feels good to get that gear off, eh, girl?”

Bristol changed into a fresh wool base layer for pyjamas and fresh wool socks, then slid into the new winter sleeping bag. She positioned herself and then unzipped it wider for Summit. The dog dove in headfirst, turned around, stomping on Bristol in the process, and then lay flush against her side, snout poking out the top of the bag. Bristol reached over her and zipped up the bag.

“Good thing I bought a big bag.”

Bristol lay back with a sigh. She could hear the others talking and laughing in their tent underlain by the quiet burbling of the half-frozen stream. Light and shadows flickered across the shell of Bristol’s tent. She replayed the day in her mind. Other than the unfortunate puking episode, it had gone really well. I’m glad Amber wasn’t afraid to eat the supper I made. No one else had gotten sick, so that seemed to put the worry about the mochas to rest.

She stretched her legs as far as she could in the sleeping bag, trying to relieve her aching lower back. Man, this is a tough first winter trip. Hope I get used to the physical demands quickly.

“Shoot, forgot my crystals.”

She sat up and pulled her backpack closer. Summit let out an annoyed harrumph at the disturbance. Bristol reached her hand in blindly and felt around for the satin sack of crystals that she always carried on her guiding trips. She felt clothes, snacks, and other gear but no satin pouch. She unzipped the outer pockets and searched in each. Her fingers closed around a roughly sliced stone.

“What the heck?”

She flicked her flashlight on and shone it on the crystal in her hand. The pale blue stone was patchy and jagged in this unpolished form.

“My kyanite wishing stone.” Bristol stared at the stone in her hand and rubbed her thumb across the uneven surface. She thought she’d lost it on her trip with Savannah. Hadn’t seen it since then. “What is it doing here? In this bag?” Bristol had never used this large backpack while on the bachelorette trip. Hadn’t used it in over a year, actually. “Very friggin’ weird.” They say that crystals disappear and reappear as you need them. Wonder why would I need my wishing stone right now.

Bristol clicked off the light, lay back down, and snuggled in with Summit. She closed her eyes and visualized her muscles relaxing one by one. When her breath had slowed and her heartbeat had calmed to a languid thump-thump, she rubbed her fingertips across the warmed kyanite crystal. She wished for clarity, for good luck, for happiness, and let the low voices of her clients ease her into sleep.

Bristol sprung upright like a jack-in-the-box and fought to find the zipper of her sleeping bag. Summit let out a startled yip and scrambled out as the bag opened. Bristol lunged forward and battled with the tent zipper with her mouth clamped shut. Fuck, fuck, fuck, she screamed in her mind. She fell hands first into the snow outside of the tent with her back end still inside. Half-digested food flew out of her onto the packed snow at the tent’s entrance. She heaved, moaned, and heaved some more.

The women’s tent unzipped. “Bristol. Bristol, are you okay?” A flashlight beam panned over her. She kept her eyes averted.

Bristol let out an embarrassed groan. Her now-empty stomach contracted, her throat burned, and a sour taste coated her tongue. She shivered as the winter air froze the sweat on her brow. Summit eased up beside Bristol and leapt over the mess in the snow to go see the other women at their tent. Bristol wiped her eyes and looked at her clients. The three women were huddled in their tent’s entrance in their pyjamas, heads poking out, regarding Bristol with concern. Two flashlights wavered. Marie-Soleil fumbled for her boots. Bristol waved her away.

“It’s okay. I’m fine.” She swallowed painfully. “Don’t come out without your winter clothes. You’ll catch a chill.”

Marie-Soleil hesitated. “I’m a nurse. I can help.”

“No, no. I’ll just go back to bed for a bit.”

Marie-Soleil put on her boots. “I’m coming over. I won’t be able to rest until I check on you. It’s my vocation.”

Bristol bowed her head in resignation. “Okay. Watch the muck at the entrance.” She shuffled back inside, leaving the tent flap open. She crawled into her sleeping bag, shivering, and sat with it on, feeling like the caterpillar from Alice in Wonderland. Then she turned on her lamp and checked her watch. 5:54 a.m. Still another hour until daylight. She still had time to go back to sleep for a bit. Summit leapt into the tent, avoiding the vomit, and landed on Bristol. “Oof! Ouch, pup.”

“May I come in?” Marie-Soleil’s soft voice came from outside.

“Yes, not much space in here, though.”

Marie-Soleil crawled into the tent and zipped it up behind her. She’d put a jacket on over her pyjamas. The pompom on her pink winter hat brushed against the tent ceiling as she knelt in front of Bristol. Summit inched closer and licked her bare hand.

“Okay, bon. Let’s do a quick exam and then you can go back to sleep.” Marie-Soleil’s no-nonsense nursing tone differed greatly from her usual childlike inflections.

Bristol lay back onto her sleeping pad. Self-consciousness flooded her at a client administering to her.

“So, how long have you been feeling nauseated?” Marie-Soleil shuffled closer on her knees, shooing Summit away.

“Ah, a few days. I thought it was just anxiety.”

Marie-Soleil rubbed her hands briskly together to warm her skin before placing a hand on Bristol’s brow.

“Last night was the first time I’d vomited.”

The nurse felt along Bristol’s neck and used her phone to shine a light, checking Bristol’s eyes.

“Open your mouth, please?”

“My breath will be terrible.”

“Nothing I haven’t smelled before. Don’t worry.” She smiled down at Bristol.

Bristol opened her mouth and Marie-Soleil shone the light into Bristol’s mouth to look at her throat.

“How are you feeling now?”

“I’m okay now. I don’t feel nauseous. Just embarrassed.” She forced a chuckle. “The vomiting comes on so fast. Out of nowhere. I barely made it outside.”

“May I check your belly?”

Bristol nodded, pushed down the sleeping bag, and lifted her shirt. Goosebumps rippled across her flat belly at the exposure. Marie-Soleil pressed across Bristol’s stomach.

Bristol grunted. “Don’t push too hard, I might pee my pants.”

The nurse straightened Bristol’s shirt and covered her with the sleeping bag. “Do you have any other pain? Breast tenderness?”

Taken aback, Bristol frowned. What do my breasts have to do with anything?

“Um, well, kinda. I think it’s just chafing from hiking in the cold.”

“Have you been suffering from fatigue?”

“I have been tired.” Bristol hesitated, not wanting to look weak in front of her client, but Marie-Soleil’s kind eyes urged her to speak the truth. She sighed. “Actually, this trip has been really hard, physically. I am usually in great shape, but I’ve been exhausted and struggling. It’s weird.”

“Hmm. Well, I see nothing obviously wrong. Nothing of immediate concern.”

“Great. Probably just some passing virus.”

“I don’t think so.”

Bristol raised an eyebrow. “No?”

“Bristol, ma chère, have you ever considered that you might be pregnant?”

Author's Note

I hope you have enjoyed reading Raging River.

I would greatly appreciate it if you would leave a review on your favourite online retailer. Reviews are the very best way for a new author to succeed.

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Thank you ever so much.

~ Kristen Bobbitt

About the author

Kristen Bobbitt is an avid reader, writer and outdoor enthusiast. She loves motorcycle riding, kayaking, skiing, running, hiking, and more. If it is an outdoor activity, she's in!

She lives in Quebec, Canada with her husband, four children, three dogs, rabbit, cockatiel, snake, and goose.

Check out her author hub at

www.kristenbobbitt.com