Sam is quick, much quicker than I expected. She cuts from the side path to a dirt path and then into the woods, all without telegraphing a move. I can barely keep up with her. It’s not that she’s faster than me. She simply knows this place better. Home-court advantage, so to speak. She moves in directions I don’t expect, down paths that I can’t see until I’m nearly past them. I catch brief glimpses of her running between trees. Brief glimpses, and then nothing. Because she has disappeared. I stop and listen to her footfalls receding in the forest, trying to determine which way to go. I hear something off to my left where the trees are so dense that the sunlight is blocked out. I hesitate for a moment, and then I step off the path. I wind my way through the trees, pausing to listen for Sam every few steps. There is no sound but distant traffic outside the park. I stop and look around. I’m lost. I consider turning back, but instead I stay where I am. I project my energy outward.
