Violet had one more training session with Frank before he was ready to take on the bird surveys on his own, but Violet had asked him if they could postpone today’s survey. “I’m going to take Trudy with me this time,” she’d said to him this morning.

Of course he’d been okay with it. “The birds will wait. And I will too.”

Again Violet marveled at the constancy of the man, the absolute steadfastness that the years hadn’t diminished or changed. Somehow, despite all the intervening time and the secrets and revelations, he was still here.

“I know what Mom wrote in her letter all those years ago,” Trudy said suddenly.

“What?”

“The letter she wrote you. I found it one day when I was searching for something in your room.”

Violet had never had the courage to throw away the letter, though she’d wanted to.

“She made it your job to keep me safe,” Trudy continued. “To protect me. Even back then when I knew nothing but boys and clothes and lipstick, I knew it was too much for her to have asked you. You were just a girl. We both were. You shouldn’t have had to shoulder the responsibility of keeping me safe.” Trudy spoke quickly, as if afraid the words would stop again if she didn’t get them all out. A cloud passed in front of the sun, blotting out the harshness of the rays and raking shadows up the beach.

“That’s why I never wanted to talk to you about what was happening with Jay,” Trudy continued. “It wasn’t your fault and it wasn’t your job to fix it.” She paused. “Even when it was really bad, I knew there was nothing you could have done to change things. It wasn’t until you came back for me that night, until I saw you out there on the dock, with his big, ugly hands on your neck . . .” Her voice broke and her chin quivered.

Violet touched her arm. “It’s okay, Trudy.”

But Trudy shook her head. “When I saw him on you, I realized I could take care of it. I could be the one to do something about it. I knew I at least had to try.” Her voice dropped to a whisper. “I wanted to hurt him. I hit him so hard, Violet. Everything he’d done to me, all his cruelty and manipulation, I put it all into that brick and I hit him so hard.” She squeezed her eyes closed a moment, clearly remembering. “I wasn’t even scared. I knew it was going to be either him or you, and I’d choose you a thousand times over him. Over anyone.”

They’d stopped walking by now and stood close together by the water’s edge. An incoming wave washed in, then receded, dragging bits of tiny shells and sand over their feet.

“But in all the years since that night, all these quiet years, your life has been on hold. I tried so many times to drag myself out of that silence, but I couldn’t do it. Finally I guess I stopped trying. I knew you were missing out on so much, and I just let it happen. Violet, I’m so sorry.”