Four Hands in the Frame

Summary

Our senior trip was supposed to end with a sunrise.

Five of us had rented an off-season beach house on the outer island, promising we’d be out the door by four in the morning to hike up to the coastal bluffs.

I sat waiting on the living room sofa in the pitch dark for half an hour. When I finally clicked on my flashlight and walked down the hall, the bedrooms were wide open. Lauren’s bed was unmade. Sally and Piper’s room was already stripped bare.

They had left without me.

I called an Uber to the summit overlook alone.