When was someone going to be the cheerleader for her?

Miranda was still talking. “I like your dad, but he’s all hers, so maybe don’t tell that it’s me who’s doing the botany study this year? In fact, maybe don’t tell them you met me at all.”

Rae’s inherent caution and good sense took possession of her. “I… I don’t know. I usually—”

Miranda smiled and made a gesture that meant, Pass. “No problem. I completely understand. I mean, your dad did give the okay about me being here, but you don’t want to keep things from your parents. You’re to be commended. I just thought—” she glanced around the solitude “—I might get lonely while I was here, and it would be nice to talk to someone.”

No pressure. Miranda had her reasons for wanting to avoid Rae’s mother, and they made sense. “I know. Me, too! I mean, there’s no one here, and no Wi-Fi or phone. Just the wind and the waves and the grass and the trees. It’s so boring. No TV! Just DVDs and my parents. And Dylan Conkle, who is some kind of space case, and Jamie Conkle, who acts like I have a disease.”

Miranda sat down in the sand. “I thought it was just me. When I went up to the house to check in, Jamie treated me like I was some kind of mass murderer. I mean, me! I was assigned to this island to do the annual survey, and you’d think she owned it and I was stomping on the coral reef.”

“There no coral reef here. The water’s too deep.”

“It’s a figurative coral reef.”

“Oh.” Rae felt stupid. “I knew that.” She sat, too. “My dad knows you’re here? On the island? He okayed it?”

“Huh.” Miranda scratched her head. “I thought it was him, but maybe it was a different Di Luca. Somebody did, though.”

“He never said anything, so maybe it was him and he doesn’t want my mom to know.” For a moment, the idea made Rae brighten. Then she sighed, because at rock bottom, she liked having her folks behave like they enjoyed being married, and keeping secrets didn’t fit. “Where are you staying?”

“My equipment’s up there in the rocks.” Miranda pointed toward the top of the cliff.

“I came through there. I didn’t see anything.”

“I keep it all stashed pretty tightly under the overhang. If I don’t, the wind kicks up off the ocean and my stuff goes flying!” Miranda bent her leg and rested her arm on her knee.

Her shorts slid up, and on her thigh, Rae saw a scar. It looked like the bite of a big dog. She wanted to ask what had happened.