Page 38 of Capture the Moment

Kate looked Maisie right in the eye, her expression soft but firm. “I believe you, Maisie. But photography ... a task like today is kind of a solo thing for me. You get that, right?”

“Yeah, I guess.” She didn’t, though. “I just thought it would be cool to hang out with you.”

“And it would be,” Kate said. “It will be. But today’s not the best day for that. How about we plan another time? I’ll teach you how to use my camera. Sound good?”

No, it didn’t sound good to Maisie, but she could tell Kate wasn’t budging. “Okay, deal. But you better not forget!”

“I won’t.” Kate gave Maisie a playful salute.

With a heavy sigh, Maisie turned her bike around. “Alright, I’ll be off, then. Don’t do anything too awesome without me!”

Kate laughed, a genuine sound this time. “Don’t worry about that. Ride safely, okay?”

“Always!” Maisie called over her shoulder, already pedaling away. Disappointed but not discouraged, she made a note to herself to hold Kate to that promise of teaching her how to use the camera.

For now ... she thought she’d go find Coop and see what he was up to. Hopefully, Frankie was with him. She pedaled faster, smiling.

The sun disappeared behind a curtain of clouds, casting a sudden shadow over the main road where Coop stood alongside fellow rangers, managing the situation with a bear and her cubs. Keeping traffic moving, keeping visitors away from the sow, keeping photographers at a distance. It was the task he dreaded most after being pulled from the backcountry. A traffic cop for bears.

This was not what he had signed up for as a seasonal ranger. He thought about complaining again to Tim but dismissed the idea. Each time he griped about getting stuck with Frankieor about getting pulled from the backcountry, Tim gave him something else he didn’t want to do. Like a ranger talk. Tim insisted it was Sally’s idea, but Coop wondered.

He noticed a bicycle out of the corner of his eye, swerving along the road as if its rider were intoxicated. Suddenly, it veered sharply in his direction, coming to an abrupt stop just before colliding with him. “Coop!” The rider pulled off her helmet. “What’s everyone looking at?”

“Maisie! Watch where you’re going,” Coop chided, his irritation softened by her familiar face.

“Sorry. I’m not very good on this bicycle.” She looked around her. “Is Frankie here?”

“Yeah, he’s around here somewhere.”

Maisie scanned the area. “Where? I don’t see him anywhere.”

“He’s probably off doing his own thing.” That happened a lot with Frankie. Easily bored, easily distracted. A tendency to wander off.

Returning her attention to Coop, Maisie asked, “So what’s going on here?”

Coop gestured toward the trees. “We’ve got a grizzly and her cubs back there. They’ve been peeking out now and then.”

She gasped. “Grizzly 399? I have to go tell Kate!”

“Hold up. Not 399. This one is called Blondie.” Coop eyed the gathering storm clouds. “You should head back to your grandfather. There’s a storm rolling in.”

“Fun fact. Wyoming has more deaths by lightning strikes per capita than any other state. Did you already know that? I read about it in Kate’s guidebook this morning while we were waiting for 399 to show up, which she never did.”

Coop glanced around. “Where is Kate?”

“She’s photographing a big waterfall.”

Concern spiked in Coop’s chest. “What do you mean? Where did she go?”

“Some waterfall on Jenny Lake. Or maybe near Jenny Lake.”

“Hidden Falls?”

“Yes! That’s what she called it.”

“She took the shuttle boat to cross the lake, right?” If so, the pilot would hold the boat at the dock until the storm passed.

“Hmm, not sure. I don’t think so.” Maisie squinted. “She said she was going to hike around Jenny Lake.”

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