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My friends seemed as preoccupied as I was on our hike. Maybe because we discovered a body last time. No one wanted to broach the topic, but I could tell it weighed heavily on everyone’s minds. I felt guilty for being annoyed that it had ruined our morning. Obviously, what we’d found was much worse for Jordan and his family. It wasn’t like he chose to go over the cliff. They’d found scuff marks at the top, making it likely that he’d just slipped. But it was curious that no one could figure out how he got out there or what he was doing. No truck. No boat. No one admitted to seeing him. The whole thing was odd.

Rae had packed lunch for us all, and we settled at the picnic table at the summit to enjoy it. The sun beat down, making everything painfully bright, but the wind blowing off the water kept me from taking off my light jacket.

“I might have to skip our weekly hikes this summer.” Rae popped a grape into her mouth. “I’m going to move out to Jia’s house while she’s deployed with the Coast Guard. The kids need someone at home while she’s gone.”

“You’re giving up the boat for the summer? That’s really generous of you,” Vi said.

Rae lifted one shoulder. “They’re family. Losing Jordan has been difficult enough. Jia has her orders and has to be gone for a few months. I was the easiest to uproot. Besides, I won’t be parenting alone.”

“Is your sister going to help?” I asked.

“Nope. Zach.”

Vi gasped, inhaling a bite of cracker. She coughed, hacking to clear her airway. Her eyes watered. A few sips of water, and she croaked, “MybrotherZach?”

“Yup.”

Violet’s eyes were wide. “How didthathappen?”

“He volunteered when he heard I was going to move in for the summer.”

Violet blinked as if she couldn’t quite compute her brother and Rae taking care of a couple of kids together.

“So you’re both abandoning your sailboats for prime sailing season?”

“I’ll be at the marina every day for work. I can check up on them. The kids have day camp, so Zach and I have worked it out so I’ll bring them into town, and he’ll take them home.”

“Huh.”

“Were Zach and Jordan close?” I asked, made curious by Vi’s response.

“Not particularly. That’s why I’m surprised,” Vi said.

“He’s helping me out,” Rae said it mildly, as if it were no big deal.

Lucy, Vi, and I exchanged glances. Zach was charming, but not the first guy you’d run to when you needed a favor. He was good at extricating himself from sticky situations. Uprooting his entire life for a family he barely knew didn’t seem like him at all. I could only hope Rae wouldn’t be too disappointed if he bailed.

Lucy cleared her throat. “Speaking of Jordan, any news?”

“The sheriff had us comb the cliff and the cove one last time, along with the beach where Drew harvests to see if anything new might wash up, though he’s pretty sure Jordan went over the cliff close to where we spotted his body.”

“He definitely drowned?” Lucy asked.

Rae shook her head. “Killed in the fall.”

I tucked my chin, hunching my shoulders. If Rae could remain composed while she shared the news, I could hide my revulsion.

“Was he drinking?” Vi asked.

“I don’t have access to the coroner’s report. The sheriff keeps things pretty close. But our SAR team found a few beer cans under the bench nearby. We bagged them for the Sheriff’s Office. No idea if there are fingerprints on them or not.”

Lingering questions filled the air, but none of us had the answers. Eventually, conversation moved on to lighter topics, and we packed up the remains of our lunch and headed back to the car.

The afternoon with my friends had been a lovely distraction, but the anonymous summons loomed over the rest of my day. I filled my time with mundane chores, keeping busy to avoid thinking too hard about the night ahead. Cold dread settled in the pit of my stomach with each passing hour, making it impossible to eat.

Vi left for dinner at the farmhouse with her Gran at six, leaving me alone to stare vacantly at the television, my knee bouncing and anxious lip nibbling at odds with the cozy makeover show I’d turned on. Every few seconds, I glanced at the clock. At six forty-five, I started down the hill, fear making every step heavy. My leaden feet still made good time to the park. The sun wouldn’t fully set for another forty minutes, and I took comfort in the remaining daylight.

Boats bobbed at the marina, mocking me. I picked a bench beneath a tree, knitting and unknitting my fingers, pulling at my knuckles.