genuinely outrunning it. But there was no way he could keep up his current pace the whole way. For one thing, every bit of undergrowth snagged on his clothes and skin, or caught his feet and slowed him down. The bear just ploughed through like a juggernaut.

Another fallen tree loomed up ahead. A sliver of darkness showed it covered a shallow pit.

This time Josh misjudged his vault and his feet caught on the trunk, pitching him forward. He landed heavily on his hands. It felt like he stripped all the skin from his palms and that probably wasn’t far wrong.

He rolled onto his back in time to watch the bear rear up above the log. Its front paws slammed into the wood and the whole, half rotten trunkquivered.

The opening into the gap below the tree was wider on this side and Josh scrambled underneath. The bear climbed up onto the enormous tree. It let out a puff of breath through its nose and dropped down on the far side as Josh pulled his feet into the tight space. One dinner plate sized paw swiped into the gap, close enough that Josh felt the bear’s fur brush his arm.

With powerful scoops of its paws, the bear pulled the soft, root filled soil away from the opening. Josh frantically scrabbled at the far side, widening the gap enough for his shoulders. He pushed handfuls of earth aside and kicked them back towards the bear.

The bear shoved its muzzle into the gap and Josh felt its hot breath