“I need a freaking PhD in geology to understand these explanations, but if I’m reading it right, it’s what happens when water freezes under the road and the pavement heaves upward.”

“Apparently, there’re a lot of them around here. Signs every two minutes.” Cameron’s stomach tightened along with her fingers on the wheel of her gleaming cherry red Mini Cooper, purchased yesterday with this trip in mind. “What do you suppose I do if I happen upon one?”

“Um, I guess you hit the gas and jump it?”

“Thanks. That’s really helpful.”

His loud yawn had Cameron choking back one of her own. What should’ve been a leisurely five-and-a-half hour trek up the scenic Taconic State Parkway had turned into seven tense hours as her paltry driving experience had proven no match for the twists and turns of mountain roads.

“Are you almost there? I’m getting tired.”

“The GPS says twenty more minutes.” All at once, the phone made a series of weird clicking noises. “Troy? Hello? Ugh!” Colleagues had warned her that mountain cell phone reception was spotty at best, but she’d refused to imagine a scenario in which she didn’t have the world at her fingertips. It didn’t bear thinking about.

Cameron hit Redial on the smart phone and reached Troy’s voicemail. At least he was trying to call her back.

She put down the phone and focused on driving. In addition to the frost heave signs, the frequent moose-crossing warnings were also unsettling. What were the rules of the road when it came to moose? Who had the right of way? The questions reminded her that she had lots more research yet to do about her destination.

When the phone rang, she pounced on it. “Are you there?”

“I’m here.”

“Good,” Cameron said, relieved to hear his voice. “Reception sucks up here.”

“How long do you have to be there anyway?”

“If they hire us, and that’s a huge if at this point, hopefully just a week, maybe two. I’ll pacify my father, and then get back to civilization.” Cameron didn’t like to think about what was riding on her landing this big job.

“Sounds like a plan,” he said, yawning again.

“Stop that, will you?”

“Sorry.”

Cameron had never driven on such a dark road and had visions of missing a turn and pitching off the side of a cliff. Her fingers ached from gripping the wheel so tightly. “Talk to me,” she said.

“What do you want to talk about?”

Over the course of their ten-year friendship-that-defied-definition, they’d covered every subject under the sun. “I don’t know. Think of something.”

“You never did tell me much about the project.”