Rennie’s Log Slide Dream (What Happens Next): Part Two

Her daughter came in April for Rennie’s birthday. They drove to Marquette and had dinner in a restaurant on the top floor of the big hotel there. Rennie felt like she had been brought to New York City, the place was that thick with people. What she wanted for her birthday was to sit on the edge of the dune and hold sand in her hands. She didn’t tell her daughter this. She said nothing about Peter and her daughter didn’t ask. It was their pact. It made for long silences but kept the fences in good repair.

            “Did you hear about the guy they found at the bottom of Log Slide?” Her daughter speared a chunk of lettuce dripping with bleu cheese dressing.

            “Oh yeah. I saw it on the news. Quite something.” Out the window, Rennie could see the harbor lights.

            “To die like that, all alone at the bottom of Log Slide. That’s really grim. Grim, grim, grim.” Her daughter laughed, just a little laugh, uncomfortable like snapping gum at a funeral.

            “Maybe that’s what he wanted. To be alone down there. Who knows?”

            “He was pretty old. He probably just fell over and died. You know?” The server brought their dinners – steak for Rennie, duck for her daughter. Rennie wondered how much dinner would end up costing. She kissed her hand and put her hands over her face.

            “Mom, what is that? I’ve seen you do that a bunch of times on this trip. Kissing your hand and covering your face. What’s that about?”

            “It’s just a thing I’ve been doing. Sort of an observance thing. Hard to explain.” She leaned over her plate seeming to inspect her steak. She carved a small piece and examined it on her fork. Her daughter asked the server for a sharper knife for her duck. It wasn’t falling off the bone, but it wasn’t supposed to. Rennie cooked duck once. It was supposed to be pink. She remembered Peter taking the tiny bite of the granola bar. He had been done eating, with wanting to eat.

            “Mom – I want to try Log Slide this year. Want to do it together? You’ve always wanted to. How about it?”

            Rennie shook her head. “Too old, but you go. I’ll cheer you on.”

            They ate. Cleaned their plates like Yoopers do. Dinner was good, they both thought so, and the server knew to bring a birthday cupcake. There was a single candle.

            She decided to go back down Log Slide in May. By then, H-58 would be open but the tourists wouldn’t have descended. And the dune would be hardpacked from the winter, the sand firm and easier to navigate both going down and climbing back up. If she didn’t go in May, she’d have to wait until fall. She couldn’t wait. There was too much to retrieve.