Alone, On The Wild Side Of The River

Abbie Joules, 32, is writing the memoirs of her deceased brother, Ben. The last chapter is to be an account of canoeing the South Nahanni, a river that flows 370 miles through the wilds of northern Canada. As adolescents she and Ben planned to paddle it together until an accident cut his life short. Abbie, blaming herself for his death, is determined to fulfill that dream at all cost. The costs, however, prove higher than she--or her companions--bargained for.

Svea and Elliot watched Abbie paddle her boat away until she and her canoe merged as a single thought on the river. They stood at the very place where their own boat and gear had been lost only yesterday, and like their friend Justah, who lay injured in a tent in the woods, they could do no more than wait for Abbie to find help. All they had to do was survive until help arrived. Perhaps they forgot about the grim legends of the Nahanni.

Abbie eddied out behind a rock before the first curve, and waved a final farewell. The canoe emerged and rose on a wave as silver spray washed over the bow. They returned her salute, and then she was gone, having told them nothing about the secret burden that she carried.