The sun was our enemy now.
We had been walking for six hours. The Nevada desert stretched out endlessly—a sea of brown dirt, sagebrush, and shimmering heat waves.
We had no water left.
Caleb was carrying the diaper bag and shielding Leo from the sun with his own body. I was stumbling, my throat feeling like sandpaper.
"We need shade," Caleb rasped, his lips cracked. "If we don't find shelter before noon, we’ll dehydrate."
We spotted a cluster of large rocks in the distance. It wasn't a house, but it was a shadow.
We collapsed under the overhang of a massive boulder. It was cooler here. I poured the last few drops of formula for Leo. He drank it greedily and fell asleep.
The Clarification
I leaned my head back against the rock, closing my eyes. My anger was still simmering.
