Heart thudding, Austin dropped to his knees, raised his backpack to cover his head, and sank down in the water up to his neck, the water cold against his skin. The lake was a few feet below the level of the forest, protecting him from the worst of the smoke and gases. He would probably become hypothermic, but that beat the hell out of burning alive. Breathing hard, he kept his mouth close to the water’s surface where the air was cooler and less smoky, embers landing with ahissin the water around him. If he could keep from inhaling too much smoke or heated air, he could survive.
Chaska steppedoutside the Dining Hall, made his way to the tool shed, hoping to fix the broken ice maker. He’d taken just a few steps when he heard a bawling sound.
He turned, looked behind him.
Three bear cubs ran out of the forest, followed by their mother.
They didn’t stop. They didn’t seem even to notice the children playing dodgeball nearby. They ran through camp, headed out of the canyon.
Chills skittered down Chaska’s spine.
What would make a mother bear run like that?
He caught the scent of smoke on the breeze, ran to the nearest tall ponderosa pine, and climbed its branches to get a better view.
Son of a…
Fire stretched across the horizon, orange flames rising above the tops of the trees. A crown fire. It looked like it was directly below Pinnacles now, a massive cliff of eroded rock. It was burning through Haley Preserve and headed straight for them.
“What do you see?” Old Man asked from below.
Naomi stood there, too, along with a dozen or so children.
“Why is he climbing the tree?”
“I don’t know,” Naomi answered. “I guess he wants to see something.”
He answered his grandfather in Lakota to keep from alarming the kids. “Peta.”
Fire.
He downclimbed as fast as he could. “We need to leave camp—now. There’s a forest fire headed this way.”
Naomi’s eyes went wide. “What?”
Chaska hurried toward the front porch of the Dining Hall, Naomi a step behind him. “There’s an active crown fire headed this way. Did you see the family of bears that ran out of the forest just now? They were fleeing a fire.”
“What are we going to do? We only have three vehicles.”
Naomi had picked up most of the camp counselors from the airport with the camp’s 12-passenger van, while the kids had arrived by chartered bus. The van couldn’t hold all forty-three kids, let alone the camp counselors, and the chartered bus wouldn’t be coming for them again until the last day of camp.
“We use what we have, pack as many kids into the van and into the two other vehicles as possible.” Chaska rang the dinner bell.
Counselors and kids alike stopped their activities—some were still watching the fleeing bears—and turned to look at Chaska.
“Everyone, listen!” He raised his voice to be heard. “We need to evacuate camp now. There’s no time to gather your belongings. Counselors, get your kids to the vehicles now. We’ll load as many children as we can. No time to get your things. No time for discussion. Move!”
Kat stepped onto the porch, holding one of her kids on her hip, the other two following behind her. “What’s wrong?”
Naomi lowered her voice, but Chaska could hear her fear. “There’s a forest fire headed this way.”
Kat’s eyes went wide. “Gabe took our car into town. He doesn’t know. I have no way of getting me or the kids out.”
“We’ll find a way.” Chaska set off toward the vehicles. “Naomi, do you have the keys to the van?”
“They’re inside.”
“Get them now. You’re driving. Hurry!”