“Not so much trail as a general course, but yes, we had a route that connected Lake Olympus with the top of Mount Olympus, which would intersect with the Lost Goat Trail not far from the area where you surveyed last November.” He nodded again toward the topographic map that hung on the wall. “Come. I’ll show you.”

She and George left the SEALs to their strategizing session and crossed the dark room to the framed map he’d indicated.

George ran a finger across a section of closely drawn contour lines, indicating a steep slope. “This section is going to give you the most trouble without a trail. Over here”—his finger traced a small adjacent area—“might as well be a cliff, and the ground is too exposed. You’d be visible from a distance. This area to the north is your best bet. The ground is supersaturated. You’ll have to watch out for areas where downed trees have caused water to collect. Some parts of the hillside could be more bog than ground, but you won’t know until your foot sinks deep, because ferns will hide the water.”

She closed her eyes and tried to envision the area he’d indicated, but she couldn’t. She’d never explored that area. For the first time, she recognized her words about knowing the forest might be nothing more than bravado.

But still, even if it was bluster, she was the team’s best bet. They couldn’t spare SEALs for this, and none of them had ever visited that part of the forest either.

“Okay. Thanks. This helps a lot.”

Xavier approached from behind and offered George a thick black marker. “Draw our route, and I’ll take a picture with my phone.”

Lieutenant Flyte joined them, and George talked them through the route again as he marked the glass that covered the topo map. Audrey felt better with Xavier being part of the discussion of the route.

They could do this.

They would do this.

By tomorrow evening, she’d be safely in her Port Angeles home.

She’d call her parents and tell them she was pregnant and that she loved them and missed them. She’d tell her mother she wanted to see her more.

She’d even call her ex-boyfriend and…well, she didn’t know, really, but try to find some peace with the way they broke up. He’d dumped her the day she got the park archaeologist job, because he knew the permanent position meant she would never leave the peninsula.

It had been a blow on the day she’d achieved a goal she’d held since she was eleven years old, robbing the moment of all the joy it deserved.