Off the Beaten Path

Chapter 1-2

Friday morning, Hugh stopped by his former place of work to pick up his paycheck. From there, he went to the bank to cash it and withdraw what money he had in his savings and checking accounts. His last stop was at another bank, where he opened a new account, since he wouldn’t need to take any cash with him if everything went the way he planned. The real reason he’d closed out his former accounts was to metaphorically thumb his nose at his father, as he thought of it. When he realizes I’m gone, he might try to see if I left with enough money to support myself. As far as he’ll know, I did. Another way to keep him from trying to track me down.

One of the things he’d done on Thursday was go online to his bank to pay off his credit card. Then, with a fair amount of satisfaction, he’d cut it up and tossed it in the trash. He’d also shredded all the paperwork from what would soon be his former life, with the exception of his birth certificate, driver’s license, and social security card. While he doubted he’d need them, he wasn’t naïve enough to believe he might not, sometime in the future—just as he might need the cash that was now sitting in his new bank account.

Early Saturday morning, after doing one more check to make certain he had everything he needed, Hugh put the backpack—with the sleeping bag and tent strapped to the top—and bow case in the trunk of his car. Then, with Orion riding shotgun, they headed to the mountains.

Hugh had already planned where he’d leave the car. It took an hour to get to the campground a mile outside of a small town forty miles west of the city. It was a popular spot for people who planned to spend a weekend or a week exploring the surrounding mountains. No one would question his car sitting in the lot for an extended period of time. On the off chance they did at some point, he’d be long gone.

Being an avid reader of thrillers, he waited until nobody was around and then switched his plates for ones on a car at the other side of the lot. If I were on the run from the cops, this would slow them down. Not that I am, but if and when Dad decides he hasn’t heard from me for more time then he likes and decides to find out why, I’ll be halfway to Timbuktu…or somewhere. Or so he’ll think if he hires someone to trace my plates.

After putting on his backpack and attaching his bow case to it with a heavy-duty carabiner, Hugh clipped Orion’s leash to his collar. The dog looked at in dismay. “Hang on,” Hugh told him. “It’ll come off as soon as we’re well away from here. We don’t want some nosy parker stopping us because you’re not on a leash.” A possibility he knew, because pets were supposed to be under the control of their owners at all times in the vicinity of the campground.

And then they were off.

The day was warm, the aroma of the pines giving an extra spice to the fresh air as they hiked up the steep slope to the north of the campground. Soon, they began following a slow-moving stream which meandered through the trees. It was obvious they hadn’t been the first to do so. Hugh’s mouth tightened angrily when he saw a few discarded cigarette butts and empty beer and soda cans.

“People are so f*****g stupid,” he muttered. “No, not stupid. Lazy. It’s easier to toss stuff than carry it back with them to dispose of.”

Orion woofed in response, as if agreeing with him—or because he’d decided it was time to be off the leash. Hugh took it as both, let him free and rolled the leash up, putting in a side pocket of the backpack. With luck, he’d never to use it again on Orion, but it might come in handy for other things.

It was mid-afternoon when Hugh began looking for a place where they could camp for the night. He wanted a small grassy area along the stream, densely surrounded by the pine and aspen trees if possible. It took over an hour before he found the perfect spot. As far as he could tell, if anyone had used it before, they’d done a good job of cleaning up after themselves. Taking off his pack, he removed the tent and sleeping bag from the cords which lashed them to the top. Then he chose a spot under two tall aspens to set up the tent. On the off chance it rained, and from the look of the sky it shouldn’t, they’d offer some protection.

Next he scoured the forest floor for rocks he could use to make a fire circle. Even though, for tonight, he’d use the cooker—and eat one of the freeze-dried meals he’d brought with him—he wanted the security of knowing if anything went wrong while he was fixing his dinner the fire would be contained within the circle.

“We’re starting off slow, Orion. No hunting until we’re much deeper into the mountains. So you get dog food.”

He slit open two packs of Orion’s food, one moist, one dry, dumping the contents into the bowl he’d brought with him for Orion’s use. While the dog chowed down, Hugh boiled water he got from the stream then emptied a pack of stew into the pan. Soon, he was dining in, if not splendor, at least in comfort.

When he finished eating, he took the pan and bowls to the stream to wash them then set them on grass by the fire circle to dry. He was half-tempted to make a real fire, deciding against it because he didn’t have the energy to search for wood. Instead, he wrapped himself in his heavier jacket, since the sun was down and it was getting chilly. Leaning back on his hands, he gazed up at the sky.

“This is perfect,” he said when Orion settled down beside him. “The first day of our new life.” He pointed to the stars, saying, “There’s your namesake,” once he’d located Orion’s Belt.

They stayed like that for a long while, until Hugh decided it was time to get some sleep.

“We want to be up and moving at the crack of dawn,” he told Orion. Knowing his dog, that would be no problem since Orion was an early riser.

The last thing Hugh did before bedding down was use the LED light on his multi-tool to find a place deep in the trees to take care of business. He brought along tissues, the trash from their dinner, and the folding camp shovel, using it to dig a hole. He filled it in once he’d finished, after dropping his trash in as well.

Back at the campsite, he took his backpack into the tent, stripped off what he’d been wearing and put on the heavy sweats he’d be using to sleep in. After crawling into the sleeping bag, he was barely aware of Orion curling up beside him before he fell asleep.