Stomping around her apartment, Lucy couldn’t think. She could barely breathe. She pulled a bottle of wine from the fridge and poured herself a glass before taking a long swig. Tears gathered in her eyes but didn’t fall.

When she’d emptied the wineglass, she slammed it down on the counter so hard it broke. Shards scattered across the laminate counter and onto the linoleum floor. The tears fell then. Her mind reeled with the implications and her lack of options as she cleaned up the glass.

She had to get away.

A decision solidified in her mind, and she stomped into her bedroom and threw a backpack on her bed. She’d go to the coast and take a nice long hike. That would clear her head so she could think of what to do next. Maybe spending time in nature would give her the courage she needed to quit her job.

After packing, she emptied the wine bottle and fell asleep in front of the TV. Early the next morning, she got ready and left just as the sun rose.

Out on the highway heading west, listening to her favorite music, she already felt better. The events of the past day still weighed heavily on her mind. The hours that passed were a mess of broken thoughts and half intentions. She drove through the coastal mountains until the ocean broke through on the horizon.

Finally she pulled off the highway onto a park road that led to a trailhead. She hadn’t researched the park, but Lucy was an Oregonian. She could handle a day hike on just about any trail.

She parked her car in front of the secluded trailhead and grabbed her backpack. She had at least a gallon of water between the two bottles and half a dozen power bars. Lucy might be a curvy girl, but underneath, she was all muscle.

She slammed her car door and looked around. Moss covered myrtle, and Douglas firs lined the trail and parking lot. Ferns grew tall and wide around the bases of the trees. She took a deep breath of the misty air and let it out. The balmy scent of the rain forest filled her nose and soothed her senses.

As she pulled her backpack over her shoulders, she smiled broadly, trying to clear her mind. Her hiking boots squished through the soft soil at the start of the trail. Step after step, Lucy drew farther into the forest. Her mind became softer and mellower with each yard she walked.

Her muscles strained as she marched up a rise along the hillside. Through a clearing between the trees, she could see the ocean waves breaking against the shore far below. Taking in the spectacular sights lightened her heart. She still didn’t know what to do about Mr. Bars, but at least she felt better about herself.

She continued along the trail, taking an offshoot path that led farther up the hillside and away from the ocean. Along the way, she rested to eat a power bar. Pressing on, the more her muscles burned and the farther she walked into the forest, the farther away she felt from her troubles at the office.

Dusk settled in before she realized it. When she noticed the sunset colors falling over the sky, she began to walk back toward her car. She charged down the narrow path, knowing that at any moment, she should find the main trail that led to her car.

Instead of leading to the main trail, the path came to a dead end just as the sky went dark. Panic trickled down her back and over her chest. Her breaths came in quick gasps. Lucy pulled her cell phone out of her backpack and turned on the flashlight. The main trail had to be around here somewhere. She couldn’t be lost. No. She could not be lost. She’d been hiking all her life and had never been lost before.

She pressed the map app on her phone, trying to get her coordinates. Maybe she could find the general direction back to the road. But the red battery line blinked, and the phone went dead.

“No!” she screamed into the dark forest. She shivered, though her coat was lined and waterproof. Pressing her eyes firmly closed, she swore to herself. I won’t lose it. I won’t lose it.

It was late spring and warm enough that she could survive the night. She had matches in her backpack; she could light a fire. At least it would keep her warm until daybreak.

Stumbling through the underbrush, she grabbed sticks and dried moss, gathering it all into a pile. When she had enough wood, she lit a match and carefully applied it to a tendril of dry moss. The green lichen caught quickly and sparked below the dry branches.

Within a few minutes, Lucy had a burning fire, lighting the darkness and warming her in the cool air. Angry at herself and beginning to feel the chill even more deeply under her skin, she sat down near the flickering warm glow.