Declan walked all night. He was unaccustomed to being out in the dark and was frightened. He realized that he was at the mercy of any animal that happened to come along and he had no weapon to defend himself. He did stumble and fall a few times before he figured out where to put his feet. His fear helped him to walk as quietly as he could and had helped him to stop talking out loud to himself.
It was close to sunup when he reached the top of the ridge that overlooked the river below. He had seen signs across the river that someone had camped close to it. As soon as it was light enough, Declan climbed down the ridge face. It did take him some time to pick a way down, but he finally made it without any major incidents. As he reached the base of the ridge, he drank deeply from the river and
