They hiked into the woods for close to a mile without speaking, using the stream to guide them as it diverted from the road. Eventually, it led to a secluded spot: a small meadow of prairie grasses surrounded by towering pines. They were far enough away from the campsite that they could no longer hear the revelry—just the soft whisper of the grass as it swished around their legs.Cora watched Clayton carefully as she considered how to start. He was agitated, a jumpy mess. She had to be careful, or she knew he’d just run again, and she wasn’t about to let him do that. Instead, she decided to approach the issue as logically as possible.“As I see it, you have two problems,” Cora said. She walked beside him, trying to keep her tone light as she swished over the top of the grass with her palms. “The first is how to keep from pulling energy you don’t want to. That one is harder, and it’s going to take more to control, so we’ll hold off on it for now.”“I can’t control that, Cora.
