Chapter 72

“I remembered you said that this was…an alleviate point.” I shot him a quick glance, walking up the hill. “That this is where the sediment—”

“Is the richest.” Hank’s voice broke. “Where the river reveals itself. Tells you where it’s been. What it carries within its heart.” At the top of the slope, near our cars, he stopped me, putting his hand on my shoulder. “Did you tell my old man who you were to me?” he said, pressing my face between his hands. “That you were my alleviate point.”

“In so many words, yes,” I breathed against his fingers. “Let’s go to the motel, Hank. Get your dad cleaned up. Bring him over to my house and we’ll all have dinner together.”

Hank furrowed his brow. “After what happened tonight? We’re just gonna sit down to dinner?”

“We’re a family, right?” I pulled my door open. Something told me that this was a bend in the river, and how we handled the next few hours would define the rest of our journey. “We’ll eat. We’ll talk. We’ll work it out.”