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“You’re welcome.” And then she figuratively grabs that olive branch with both hands, smiles, and breaks it in two with an almighty crack . “Don’t get used to it. I don’t like you.”

My eyebrows shoot up. Okay, this is not how I thought our convo would go. “That’s it?”

“Did you expect an apology? I meant what I said, and I didn’t say anything about your dad that wasn’t true. The others seem to think we need you, but your usefulness remains to be proven.”

My arms alight with blazing pinpricks. I’m kicking myself for even bothering to reach a truce with her. Clearly, her bad attitude is not going be cured by reaching a truce with me .

What am I even doing out here? Why did I even think we could pull off this stupid, stupid quest?

Kiara has all her exes out here, and my missing dad only has me.

I can’t afford to get distracted by anyone, can’t afford to let them in or show them the most secret parts of myself.

Not even to the one person I want to the most. I get why Kiara wants to stay besties with her exes, but this whole package-deal situation makes me want to tear out my hair in frustration.

Or better yet, Tayla’s long, silky red hair.

“We’re only on the same side as long as saving Kiara is your number-one priority,” Tayla says.

I bristle. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“No distractions.” She snorts. “No flirting.”

Ugh, I’m over her cryptic bullshit. I’m here, aren’t I? I’m not even one of the group, one of the exes.

“I’m taking this just as seriously as you,” I spit.

Before she can say anything else to get my blood pressure up, I increase my pace, dried leaves and twigs crunching under my boots.

They’re so stiff that even though they’re the right size, they still feel a half size too small.

I stomp right past Kiara, zero intention of even looking at her while Tayla’s so close.

“Nova, hold up a second.” Fingers circle my wrist then release just as quickly. Her skin is warm, and a starburst of tingles explode in the spot she touched me.

Kiara flashes me a smile as she finishes unwrapping her Tootsie Pop then offers me another one. It’s chocolate, which comes second only to cherry. “Helps with the dry mouth. Mine’s terrible when it gets cold.”

“Thanks,” I say, nearly dropping the lollipop when our fingers brush.

She folds her red wrapper into a neat, tiny square before sticking it in the pocket of her hot pink hoodie. It’s a small gesture, but I like that she didn’t just drop it underfoot and keep walking like littering isn’t a big deal. “I should be thanking you,” she says. “For doing this.”

“You already did. If you want to do it again, though, save me a cherry Tootsie next time.”

She laughs—a delighted little sound that I just know will get Tayla’s hackles up—and pulls her lollipop out with a pop . I watch the string of saliva trailing between the candy and her mouth with gross fascination. “You’ve got it,” Kiara says.

Her lip gloss is shiny, the same color as the candy.

It clings to the white stick, to her pout.

She must have touched it up sometime in the half hour after we had our walking lunch of Pringles and Clif Bars.

Lip balm, okay, I’m wearing it, too. But gloss?

Shiny, sticky, megawatt crimson? It’s impractical for a hike.

Which of her crushes is she trying to impress?

The thought is so distracting that I almost forget to slip her the four-leaf clover. Almost. I’ve been waiting for an opportunity all morning, and I can’t chicken out now. I take a deep breath. “Hey, one of your compartments isn’t zipped up all the way. Mind if I…?”

“Oh my gosh, yes, please.” Kiara stops and twists so her backpack is toward me.

Okay, gotta move fast. It needs to be somewhere she isn’t constantly opening and closing, so the clover won’t fall out. Somewhere inconspicuous that she won’t use to jam a wad of trash. Good thing I already picked out the zip I’m going for.

“All good,” I announce.

She whips around to give me one of her perfect, dazzling smiles. We’re close enough that I can’t stop staring at her glossy mouth. “Thanks, Nova.”

“I’m just gonna go, uh, see what’s going on up ahead,” I say awkwardly when she keeps smiling at me. “Him using up our batteries this early is making me nervous.”

I speed walk to Keiffer, who’s at the front of the pack with Radhika, swinging the flashlight to and fro so the light shines on the path.

“I saw a snake,” he explains, accidentally aiming the flashlight at my face. “Ah, sorry.”

“Copperhead?”

“Uhhh…is that a rattlesnake?”

I grin. “No, a copperhead is a copperhead. You have no idea what one looks like, do you?”

He releases a rueful laugh. “Yeah, ’fraid not. Guessing they’re the color of copper?”

“Yeah. With darker hourglass-shaped markings.”

“Oh, no, this one was…I wanna say greenish?” He looks sheepish. “And it had a friendly face?”

“Friendly for a snake,” Radhika adds. “Because that really needs a caveat.”

“Like, it would definitely bite me, but it would look cute doing it,” he says. He zips up his Carhartt jacket and scans the ground with the kind of intensity I’ve only seen him wear on the field.

“If it was green and didn’t have a scary rawr face, then my guess is it was just a regular old garden snake. They’re not venomous nor aggressive, either, so it’s unlikely they’d bite.”

Keiffer looks marginally less wary. He even switches off the flashlight.

“Same with the copperhead?” asks Evan. They’ve overtaken Tayla and Kiara, brown cheeks rosy with the wind and headphones hanging around their neck.

I wait for Radhika to chime in, but she’s oddly quiet, nose buried in the guidebook. I would have thought she’d use this as her moment to shine, but instead, it’s Dad’s lessons coming in handy.

After another beat, I tell them both, “The copperhead is a venomous pit viper. Even the babies hatch with fully functional fangs that are just as toxic as an adult’s.”

“And here I thought you were about to say something comforting.” A curl tugs at the corner of Keiffer’s mouth. “And you come out with fangs .”

“Uhhh…well, here’s something comforting. A copperhead bite isn’t fatal.” I pause. “Usually.”

Keiffer’s jaw drops. The flashlight flicks back on.

“ That is your idea of comforting?” Evan looks like they don’t know whether to laugh or run screaming.

Okay, maybe not the best tidbit to share. But in my defense, fun facts are meant to be educational, not actually fun. “You’ll be fine! Just don’t provoke them.”

“Yeah, because that was really high up on my priority list,” they say. “How do you know so much about snakes?”

“Science project in eighth grade. The environmental impact on shedding snakeskin. Otto at the animal rescue helped. Even let me handle a couple before we released them back into the wild. That’s how I started volunteering there.”

“Whoa,” they say. “That’s pretty cool. I mean, mostly still terrifying. But you know what I mean.”

Hoping to put both Evan and Keiffer at ease, I say, “Just be observant, watch where you’re walking. Check logs before you step over them. Be careful about the roots or vines, too, make sure they don’t have eyes or patterns.”

Keiffer makes a gulping, panicked sound then pivots to an unsure laugh.

“Watch out for the rattlesnakes, too,” I say. “A bite can turn nasty if they envenomate you.”

Faintly, he says, “Let me guess, rattlesnake bites are fatal?”

“If you don’t get help in time, yeah.”

“Is there anything in this forest that doesn’t want to kill us?” asks Evan.

“Butterflies,” I say. “Try not to follow any this time, please.”

They groan. “One time, Nova. One time.”

“So glad none of us have our phones on us to call 911,” Keiffer drawls. “Super not regretting going off half-cocked on this adventure in a forest where literally everything is more dangerous than us.”

“Keif, if you’re going to be a baby, can you do it more quietly?” Tayla calls up to us.

Keiffer rolls his eyes, though he does it when I’m the only one who can see. I guess it’s good to know she isn’t solely singling me out with her sharp tongue—apparently anyone who isn’t Kiara is fair game.

“Shut up, Tayla,” Radhika calls over her shoulder.

For her bravery, she goes up half a notch in my grudging respect.

Then to Keiffer she says, “And we are not going off half-cocked. I bought flares and an antivenom kit at Bee Outdoors. I paid attention to Nova’s list.”

She squints down at the book and blinks a few times like her eyes are irritated from all the reading while walking.

“Okay, so according to this, there are signs all around us that can point us in the direction of the wishing well. ‘Signs of wonderment,’ Henry calls it. Flora and fauna naturally gravitate toward sources of magic like the well.”

“Does that include the lethal ones trying to kill us?” Keiffer asks.

“ Baby ,” someone fake coughs. My money’s on Tayla.

“Any examples?” I ask. “In case it’s escaped your notice, flora and fauna are everywhere.”

Kiara and Tayla join us, and we all examine our immediate area. I wonder how they see the world, if there’s a sparkle that Dad’s eyes always caught. My wonder is gone, and I don’t know how to get it back.

But then—

The wind carries a whisper of Dad’s voice with it: In every blade of grass, in every bug crawling on a mushroom cap, in every broken stick fallen in the dirt, in every budding flower, in every bird that’s ever been born, is the story of the earth. They want to tell you their secrets.

Look closely at everything with your own eyes, Nova girl, because when you find something that makes you question, that makes you change perspective, that’s when you know you’ve found a sign of wonder.

I close my eyes and tip my head to the sky, inhaling deep.

It should be no surprise that Dad’s voice is clearer in this place, the woods he loved so deeply, so terribly.

And yet. Being here, the past is excavated, my heart eviscerated.

His lessons are embedded into what remains, fossilized and half forgotten.

“Well, of course Henry wouldn’t write it down for just anyone to find,” Radhika says at last.

She’s using his first name like she’s personally acquainted. I resist the overpowering urge to roll my eyes. “ Henry didn’t. His notes were private. He probably never thought his descendants would publish his trail journal. How do you even know all this crap isn’t embellished to sell copies?”

Radhika looks furious for a second before her expression frosts over. “I’m literally not even going to dignify that with a response, Nova. You’re talking about my grandparents.”

“So, to clarify, Henry didn’t specify what any of these supposed signs are.”

“Oh my god, you’re not letting this go. Fine, no, he didn’t. But if you’d just keep an open mind—”

“I’m just saying that something as generic, vague, and open ended as a ‘sign’ is like looking for a leaf in”—I gesture all around us, narrowly avoiding whacking Keiffer in the chest—“yep, you guessed it! Seventy thousand square acres of forest.”

Radhika looks like she wants to scream. I almost feel bad. Almost. Am I really the bad guy here for pointing out that as noble as our quest is, without more information, it’s the equivalent of a wild goose chase?

I hold my hand out. “Can I take a look at the book?”

“You two look for signs, I’ll keep watch for snakes,” says Keiffer. “Hey, Nova, they can’t pierce our shoes, right?”

“We’re all wearing hiking boots, so we should be good. Ugh, these are killing me, by the way.”

“They’re new,” Evan observes. “Why didn’t you break them in first?”

“Didn’t exactly have a lot of time between last night and this morning,” I explain.

“Always used my tennis shoes before so my mom didn’t wonder what I needed hiking boots for.

” What I don’t explain is that buying supplies for this trip has wiped out the little bit of money I’d been saving and that I was incredibly lucky Petra generously let me have the charms for free.

Radhika hums. “What made you change your mind about helping Kiara? You never said.”

Oh, clever of her to slip that in so casually. With a bright smile, I say, “Nope, I didn’t.”

She frowns and begins to part her lips.

“Does it matter?” Keiffer asks. He shrugs. “Everyone has their reason for coming, don’t they?”

I’m getting a little sick of the mistrust, honestly, but considering the reason for this trip in the first place, I keep my mouth shut. The knot of guilt in my stomach tightens, and I brace myself for Radhika’s response.

She doesn’t look like she’s happy about it in the slightest, but for some reason, Radhika drops it. A muscle tenses in her jaw.

I throw him a smile of gratitude. Bless you, kind footballer.

That’s not something I ever thought I’d say, but I never thought I’d be trekking through the Blue Ridge Mountains to find the wishing well, either. Not without Dad anyway. But at the end of this, if I get Dad back, it will all be worth it.

“Kind of like The Lord of the Rings ,” I say.

“If you think about it, that’s us. Trying to save Middle-earth, but in our case, it’s Kiara.

Doing the right thing. Trying to help a friend.

Except we’re…oh, I’ve got it.” I wait until they’re all looking my way before pronouncing with unmitigated glee, “We’re the Fellowship of the Fling. ”

Keiffer whoops. Kiara groans.

I walk on, whistling.