A few minutes later, Joshua pulled a flashlight out of the old mildewed bench that sat on the boat deck. The night was dark and motionless, and he realized he should steer back and dock his boat while there was still some visibility left but he couldn’t make himself do it. He needed to finish reading the letter. His mother’s words were essential, vital to that part of him that had always been so desperate to understand why she’d left him alone as a young child. And so he began to read by flashlight.