Read Online Perfect Family by Pam Lewis - Free Book Online Page B

and locked his car, he wascaught behind two women who were moving slowly. It was good trail etiquette to stand aside and let the faster people pass, but the two women didn’t seem to know about that, and he didn’t have the heart to race past. They lumbered along talking about the fact that the hike had been advertised as a B-pace when in fact it felt like a double-A. When the trail widened, he shot ahead, making his apologies. A gap had formed in the middle of the hike, and he had the trail to himself for about ten minutes, something he liked on big hikes, being alone and not alone. He caught up at a trail junction where Chris had stopped to wait. Ruth was there, and so was a guy named Alan.
    Ruth gave William a lovely smile, and he returned it.
    â€œI see you finally made it,” Alan said with a husky laugh and a quick sidelong glance at Ruth. He hopped from foot to foot the way joggers do at red lights so they don’t break their momentum. He had on a new-looking shirt and pants and one of those microfiber French Foreign Legion–looking hats with a long bill and a flap on the back to protect his neck from the sun. Several gadgets dangled from buckles at his waist—a pedometer, an altimeter, a compass, and a digital camera in a holster. Asshole.
    It took a while for the two women to catch up, and after them a couple from Mystic. The sweep finally hove into view, smacking at mosquitoes.
    â€œOkay.” Alan slung on his pack and buckled it up. “Everybody’s here. Let’s go.”
    William had to hand it to Chris—he didn’t let himself be pressured into taking off right away. He let the sweep drop his pack, sit on a rock, and take out his water bottle. The guy’s face was red. “You okay back there?” Chris called out. The sweep raised a hand in return.
    â€œHe’s fine,” Alan said. “Let’s go.”
    They waited another five minutes for the sweep to rest, then took off again. William moved easily to the front of the line, just behind Ruth. He kept his eyes on the trail ahead of him, but they strayed to watch Ruth’s muscular calves and dynamite ass.
    After a half hour, they came to a ridge that looked out over a valley to the east. They were admiring the view, pointing out landmarks, when they heard a shout. Chris told them to stay put while he made his way back. William wondered if it was the sweep. The guy was seriously out of shape.
    â€œPeople come on these hikes who shouldn’t, you know what I’m saying?” Alan said, looking to Ruth for confirmation. She gave him a polite smile. “In Tibet last year,” he continued, “we had a guy—you could hear him wheezing a mile away.”
    William looked off across the valley, trying to tune Alan out. He knew what was coming, the whole let-me-tell-you-where-I’ve-been routine. Alan had the skeevy back-door gig nailed, beginning his stories with “When I was in…” Fill in the blanks. The Dolomites, Bhutan, Torres del Paine, always told as if the place was a detail and not the main point. “Is that so?” Ruth asked with all the interest of a clam.
    The man of the couple from Mystic came back up the trail. The poor guy’s face was white. He said the sweep had collapsed. A heart attack, maybe.
    â€œJesus H. Christ,” Alan said.
    They made their way back to find the man lying on his back across the trail, exactly where he must have fallen. The trees on either side pressed in, leaving no room to maneuver. Chris was crouched over the man. Everyone was talking at once about CPR. Who knew how to do it? Alan started hauling pieces of wood onto the trail, saying they should rig up a litter of some sort and get him down. He’d seen it done in the Whites.
    William asked the couple from Mystic how long they thought it had been since they saw the man. The husband said a half hour, at least. The woman nodded agreement. William knelt and lifted the