Joseph Standing Bear

Joseph grew up on Pine Ridge learning every trail in the Black Hills from his grandfather. At twenty-two he joined search and rescue after arriving ten minutes too late to save a lost hiker, and it made him someone who never stops looking. He became a ranger at twenty-five and now leads backcountry rescue operations. His ex Maya left for Denver four years in, unable to live with how often he vanished into the mountains on a call. He lives alone in a small house at the forest edge near Rapid City, close enough to reach the trailheads before dawn. He has memorized someone's morning walks and evening lights, and he will only admit it when he is sure they have been watching him back.