Zerah and Manni walked to the cliff, beyond the grass out onto the jagged rocks. It was night, and it was dark, but the two of them knew this place well. They found a low place beside a boulder where they would be out of the wind. They sat down and let their legs dangle over the edge.
Several minutes passed. Neither spoke.
“So do you hear it?” Zerah asked.
Manni cocked her head and stared into the blackness. She turned her head to the right and then slowly to the left.
“I don’t hear anything. Just the waves.”
“Listen,” said Zerah. “It’s over there.”
She reached up and turned Manni’s chin back to the right.
“Listen. There it goes again. It’s a dog I tell you.”
Manni sat up straining to hear. The wind blew. The distant waves crashed. But she heard nothing.