She sat down, almost where Tom had been a few minutes before. He looked back down the hill. They were still all just standing in a huddle, their focus on Joel, who seemed to be above them on a box or something.

Tom sat down near her and took a small swig of water, conscious now that they would need to conserve their supply. He’d always imagined Alice being talkative, perhaps only because she was normally with a group of other girls who were more than talkative, but she seemed happy to sit in silence.

The two of them watched as nothing happened below, as the landscape whispered and hummed around them, as the sky remained relentlessly empty.

They’d been there a few minutes before she finally said, “What do you think we should do?”

It hadn’t really occurred to him until now. He’d already accepted that a rescue wasn’t likely, that they’d probably have to make their own way out, but he hadn’t given any thought to how they might do that or if it was even possible.

“Make a camp, I guess. Wait here for a day or two, maybe three, just in case. Then make a plan for getting out.”

From the corner of his eye he could see her nod, then she said, “Think the others will see it that way?”

As she asked the question, Joel’s raised voice reached them, apparently bringing order after one of those brief crescendos of noise from the group.

Tom shook his head. “I don’t care what the rest of them do. I’ll give it three days tops and I’m heading out.”

“If you do, I’ll come with you.” He turned and looked at her, surprised that she would want to go with him. She shrugged, looking embarrassed in some way, though he wasn’t sure why. “It’s just… we have to get out.”

“Okay. It’s a deal. Three days.”

“Three days.”

Chris emerged from the group down below, not drifting away as they had, but walking with purpose. After about twenty paces he stopped and looked up before waving for them to come back.

Alice waved in acknowledgment. She stood then and turned, waiting. Tom stood too, but for some reason he felt the need to let her know that he was deadly serious.

“Three days, no more.”

She nodded, and they set off down the slope.

CHAPTER 7

They stopped on the way down and Tom retrieved his backpack from the burst container. Alice’s was one of those that had fallen onto the slope and she picked it up, checking it for insects before slipping it over one shoulder. Tom stopped a second time, scooping up the carton of bottled water.