Stone Point lay at the very tip of a long, craggy peninsula that stretched and curved out from the main body of the island, first heading north then bending toward the west in an arc. Isaac’s and the four other boats had disembarked from the west side of that peninsula, now cutting across the open bay formed by the main island and the long spit of rock itself. Though at the greatest distance they were probably only a couple of kilometers from land, Isaac still felt a rush of danger and adrenaline. As if they’d soon be swallowed by the immensity of the ocean and had roughly a ten-point-three percent chance of dying a horrible death. Yes, he was practically as brave as the Gladers of old.

“There’s an inlet right before you get to Stone Point,” Sadina called up to him. “We need to bank and tie up the kayaks in there so they won’t get pummeled by the waves. From there we can hike to the cliffs and the caves.”

“Sounds good,” Isaac replied, consciously keeping his voice steady. He suddenly knew, without the slightest of doubts, that he was the least brave person in this group of ten. Jump off cliffs? No cliff in sight looked like something a human should be jumping from. And there was no telling what the hell lived in those caves. Bats? Sharks? Alligators? He’d never felt so stupid in his life.

Soon enough they reached the inlet Sadina had spoken of, rough cliffs of black rock towering above them. They and the others ran their kayaks onto a low bank of pebbles and tied them to a massive tree that looked like it’d been dead since Napoleon roamed the earth. There wasn’t another sign of vegetation in sight.

“Okay,” Trish said once they’d gathered by the entrance to a cave that Isaac never would’ve spotted on his own. An overhang slanted from right to left, and the shadows it created hid a six-foot-tall opening into blackness. “Here’s the plan. We’ll squeeze through this tunnel that leads to the north side. If a wave comes rushing in, don’t panic or you’ll end up sucking down a gallon of salt water. Just brace yourself and wait it out.”

No one laughed at this, least of all Isaac. Sadina had failed to share the little part about being inside a cave while a wall of water came crashing through.

Trish continued. “Once we get to the other side, there are a couple of cool cliffs we can jump off, and then a few more caves to explore. Some of those have awesome swimming holes inside. It’ll be fun as long as no one freaks out.”

Isaac was feeling more encouraged by the second.

Dominic spoke next. “Will anyone be offended if I swim in the buff?”

This was answered with a rousing and unanimous affirmative.