vol. 1 - part 1

​as the girl pulled the canoe out of the water her foot caught on something hard and she tumbled into a nearby tree. she regained her footing, got her canoe ashore, then shimmied free from her life vest. catching her breath she looked around and noticed a tan rectangle peeking through the ferns.
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she heard tires crunching on gravel as she walked closer to the river. a wooden slat box, two feet wide, sat on bent and broken ferns. the box smelled of pine and its metal hinges were shiny grey. 

twigs snapping made the girl glance up; her sister stood a few feet away. 

"look," said the girl as she turned to the box. 

she pushed aside ferns and revealed the tan slats; painted on them in thick fresh black strokes was a six and a four.

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