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through the trees glowed against their faces with a radiant summer warmth. Backtracking toward the north, they came back out of the woods onto the lakeshore. They were greeted by the sound of waves crashing against the rocky embankment that separated the land and the water.
    Here, the water had no beach to buffer against. A few spots along the different picnic areas had no sandy beaches, which were manmade constructions to encourage tourists that wanted a dip in the cool water. When the site had been cleared down to flat land, the park’s buildings were erected and sand was brought in to line about a mile and a half of shoreline. The rest of the shore earned large boulders making a break wall to prevent erosion.
    The lake had become a bit rougher since their morning swim. During summer the water was often calm and welcoming. The weather for the area was generally mild for the season. Every so often a storm would roll in and the lake would become a turbulent broiling mess. The water would churn and the shallow waves would turn to white caps. The boulders along the shore would instead act as a breaking point sending huge splashes of water into the air and all over people on the lakeside walkways. Jess loved the freshwater spray sprinkling down on her after so long in the sweltering woods.
    They returned to camp with sweat and lake spray in their hair and pores, tired from their long walk, hungry and ready to eat the lunch they had skipped. They couldn’t hear anything from the nearby campsite. Jess dared a voyeuristic peek between some bushes and was pleased to report they were alone. Next door, the tent and truck were vacant.
    As Chris started the campfire, Jess prepped the burgers. The sound of sizzling meat was enticing and they gorged on macaroni salad while they waited. The site next door was blissfully quiet.
    “They’ll be gone in the morning,” Jess reminded Chris with a huge grin when she caught him looking in that direction, not realizing he was staring toward their blue car.
    “Thank God. I couldn’t take much more of them,” he said snapping out of his trance. As soon as Jess snuck off to shower and brush her teeth for the night, Chris slipped into the car and popped another pill before he started to feel really sick. It had been too long since his morning dose.
    After dark, they could hear the DVD player starting a new movie from Steph and Mark’s site. It was as loud as the night before, but at least it wasn’t the shouted vulgarities they had come to expect being thrown around.
    By morning, Jess was well rested, her head against her husband’s chest, their bare skin pressed against each other. Chris was still snoozing as Jess threw on her clothes and left the tent to use the bathroom.
    Rubbing her eyes, she was about to step up off the grass onto the road when a figured moved into her path. She looked up straight into the eyes of her roadblock.
    Mark was staring down at her, looking tired and a little angry. He’d had dark circles under his eyes before, but now they were like deep bruises of navy and purple.
    “Where the hell is my girlfriend?”
    “What? I don’t know,” Jess said taken aback at his wild-eyed appearance.
    “Well, she didn’t come back last night, so she must be with you guys. She just fucking adored the two of you, so where is she? The tent?”
    “No, she’s not in the goddamn tent. Have you lost your mind?”
    Jess went to step around him, but he moved in front of her again. She glared up at him attempting to appear at least a bit menacing, but it was difficult when her head only came up to his chest. She hadn’t realized until now what a big guy he was until she stood facing him. He was bulky, but most of it was muscle.
    “I don’t know where Steph is.”
    Mark took a couple of steps toward her. She retreated the same amount only to find her back against a maple tree on the edge of the road. She went to turn and move around it when his hand shot out and blocked her path.