Mark’s POV

I sat a few feet from the river, elbows on my knees, staring at the slow ripple of water as if it could tell me what to do next.

Rissa slept, or tried to, bundled in her blanket, back turned to both of us. Her shoulders were tense even in rest. She had been holding everything inside for too long, and tonight pushed something in her past its limit. I could see it in the way she curled forward, protecting herself even from sleep.

Josh leaned against a tree on the opposite side of ...