Polly had already shot ahead to Spain, but she said okay. She lay back and saw some raptors, unidentified. It was a busy afternoon. “What kind of hawks are those?”

“I don’t think they’re hawks,” said Jane. “Vultures? Buzzards?”

Helen was crawling in front of them, pushing at Polly’s feet. They watched her pry up one rock, choose another and roll that.

“What are you doing?” asked Polly.

“Ari could be small now.”

Jane lay back on the sand and covered her face.

When the cars arrived, they set up the tables, smeared on sunblock, opened wine. Harry was beginning to relax, Merle was looking at insect husks in the shallows and listing all the smaller creatures Helen and Sam could find in or near the river over the course of the summer: stoneflies, freshwater crayfish, tiny worms. Josie and Drake were skipping around, telling Sam and Helen where and how they should divert the trickle of the upstream channel. Maude hadn’t been ready to leave the house, and Ned would win the errand of fetching her when he brought the lasagna from the restaurant.

But when the Civic bumped up, and Polly and Jane ran to it—somewhat animated after tequila, willing to forget most of the frantic, sad week—Ned climbed out, looking rattled. When Merle helped Maude out she put a hand over her face, still leaning against the dusty car, and looked straight up at the canopy of cottonwoods. Polly stared at her ancient throat, a strangler fig with a mysterious life at the center, a marvel of survival.

“Isn’t it beautiful here?” said Polly, with a hesitant edge.

“It is,” said Maude. “I’d forgotten that part. My sister loved it here. I suppose it’s possible that’s why they were on the bridge. But I think she wanted to get home, and this was the shortcut. She wanted to get out of that car, away from that person.”

“What are you talking about?” asked Polly.

“My mother died here,” said Jane. “Going off the old bridge. I wanted to see it, and Maude wanted to come here again.”

“I will admit that it’s all harder than I thought it would be,” said Maude.