Alaska Twilight Read Free Page A

hospital at least.”
    “That one was a close call,” Denny admitted. “He had a few stitches. The park rangers weren’t happy, and I had to do some talking to get us back into the park to do another show.”
    “Why does he live on the edge like that?”
    “He really believes in letting people know how important it is to connect with animals, for us to realize our spirits are connected and that we aren’t so very different.”
    “Do you really believe that?” Augusta asked.
    Haley slanted a don’t-get-started glance toward Augusta. She’d heard that too-quiet tone before.
    Denny gave a decisive nod. “My people believe everything has a spirit: the wind, the trees, the animals. We believe that animals, like humans, have souls that can think, feel, and interact. Animal spirits are no different from human spirits. We are all one, and sickness and bad fortune come when we disrespect the spirits of the forest or the animals.”
    Augusta gave her head a gentle shake. “Denny, there is only one God. Man is a custodian of the earth and its creatures. Sometimes we don’t do a very good job, but we are the only one created in God’s image. It distresses me when I hear us lumped in with every other creature on earth. God loves all his creation, but we’re God’s beloved children. We’re special.”
    Denny dropped his gaze. “We’d better get moving.” Haley sighed. Leave it to her grandmother to offend and alienate the team before they even got started. She had three months of this to look forward to.
    They gathered up the luggage. Haley let Oscar out of his carrier to walk, then got her walking stick out of her pack and unfolded it. Denny eyed it but didn’t say anything as they started off. She panted as she stumbled over rough ground with her burden. The stick saved her from a fall more than once.
    From the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of the heavy forest and averted her gaze, looking instead toward the lake. She wouldn’t look at the forbidding tree line, not yet. They passed Augusta, who paused to take in the scenery, and when she caught up with them moments later, Haley heard her sniffling.
    Haley stopped and turned. “Are you okay?”
    Mist and memories illuminated Augusta’s blue eyes. “I’m fine, darling. It’s just hard to be here and know your father won’t come striding through the trees with that booming laugh of his.”
    Haley remembered that laugh. She nodded and moved to catch up with the rest of the group. She staggered several times on the uneven ground, and her thigh began to ache in spite of the walking stick. This was going to be harder than she anticipated.
    The ground was beginning to green up. Oscar was distracted by every blade of grass. When Kipp stopped, Haley tossed her burdens on the ground, then dug out her book on Alaska’s vegetation. “That’s bog star,” she said, pointing to a plant growing in a small clump with small, nearly heart-shaped yellowish-green leaves at the base. “And I think that’s dwarf dogwood.”
    Kipp flipped his tent out onto the ground and began to put it together. “We might get some company tonight. This is a fairly well-traveled fishing trail for Natives on their way to Cook Inlet. You’ll get a good taste of some of the characters who inhabit the land around here.”
    Haley wanted to tell him this area wasn’t new to her, but it was none of his business. She itched to begin her photographic journey into the past. She watched him a minute, then pulled out her own tent. She had no idea how to put one of these things together. The instructions would surely be clear enough that she could figure it out.
    A man stepped into the clearing. “Howdy, you folks must be new.”
    The man’s suspenders curved up over a big belly covered in a wool shirt. The mud that caked his boots was a good inch thick. Twigs and spruce needles stuck out of his gray beard, but the hazel eyes above his bulbous nose twinkled with goodwill. A string of traps