The wagon rocked gently as it navigated a narrow dirt path through a dense forest. The smell of damp earth and pine filled the air, mingling with the faint scent of woodsmoke, which seemed to linger like a memory of the cool autumn breeze. Lila Mae Thompson adjusted her wide-brimmed hat and glanced behind her at the dust trail the wagon wheels kicked up. The forest seemed endless, a sea of trees that whispered with the movement of the wind.