CHAPTER 15Though Mara grew up in Oregon, the terrain they entered as they drove east looked foreign. Instead of steadily inclining roads leading to Mount Hood and the highlands associated with the Cascade Range, the narrow highway dipped into what looked like a massive bowl filled with dense leafy greenery that had a noticeable tinge of purple to it. It struck her more like an exotic jungle than a swamp. She cracked open a window, and the cool air that flowed inside carried a hint of lavender. Ginger the chobodon, who sat wedged between Mara and Ping in the back seat, raised her snout, snorted, then returned to her nap.
“That smells wonderful,” Mara said as she looked to the horizon.
“Better than the stink everywhere else,” Sam said. Sitting in the passenger seat next to his mother, he t
