Rose pulled the sleeves of her black hoodie over her fingers and used the fabric to grab the right side. Then she nodded to him.

“Okay, on three. One…two…THREE!”

They yanked back, and immediately the blood started flowing, soaking into the dark green of his pants, filling his shoes with thick wet. Once he’d pulled his foot through, Rose tossed the sprung trap into the bush.

“Who the hell leaves a bear trap in a campsite?” She was worried. Out in the woods with no meds and a deep cut from a rusty trap? It was looking more and more like they wouldn’t make it to the school, or maybe even back to the settlement.

“We would.” Derrick lay flat on his back, arms flopped out at his sides, chest heaving.

“True.” She pursed her lips and raised an eyebrow. “It’s actually kind of ingenious, now that I think about it. Even with the Indians gone, this still could have messed up a Recruiter real bad. Like bush warfare.”

After a few minutes, the birds returned to their songs, and the insects clicked and slid over the cunning green. All around, a soft drizzle fell like a reprieve.

“Derrick? We gotta do something fast. As much as we can with whatever we have.”

“I know.” He was like a little kid who didn’t want to take his medicine. He pouted and slammed his fists into the ground, but eventually, he sat back up. Rose dug through their bags for whatever she could find.

“I don’t see any gauze. Oh, even better—a clean sock.” She pulled a single black sock from Derrick’s bag and placed it on her shoulder so it wouldn’t touch the ground while she kept looking.

“I need those,” Derrick protested.

“You’re only gonna need one sock for one foot if you don’t let me take care of this now.”

He nodded, but she didn’t wait for an answer. She pushed aside items and tried to take stock.

“Water bottle…no saline…no antiseptics…”

“Great. I can already feel my jaw tightening up.” He touched his face with one bloody hand, leaving red finger marks behind.

“You can not. Quit being a drama queen.” She shook her head. “I have some salt.”

“Oh great.”

“I know, I know, but we need something to sterilize the wound.” She put the small restaurant-size packet of salt in her pocket and tied the bags back up. “Let’s get you in one of the tents. This rain is picking up.”

They dragged their stuff and themselves to the yellow tent. It was the most intact, and the zipper still worked. Rose went in first, placing their tarp on the bottom, then layering it with the sleeping bag they’d found inside and then her own. She set up the packsacks against the back wall and helped Derrick inside, leaning him against the bags. She placed her gear on top of an open plastic bag smoothed out like a medical tray and then turned, her hands clasped in her lap.