Chapter Thirty-Five
Mathias stood on the platform that overlooked the shoreline, his sleeves rolled up and a pair of binoculars against his eye sockets. His skin wrinkled at the corner of the metal rims as he scanned the beach. Thin red circles about his eyes gave him the look of a bird stalking surprised prey when he lowered the binoculars and pointed along the shore.
“There!” His voice rose in excitement. “On the edge of the tall grasses.”
Alfred took the binoculars and adjusted the lenses. Two large birds walked the sandy dunes in the morning sunlight, their necks pulled back in sharp curves and their oversized beaks pointed toward the sand. One flapped its wings, sending the other into a small dance as the grasses bent with their weight.
“Brown pelicans,” Alfred announced as he han
