As you pick up the card, the entire image comes into view. Your eyes widen. This landscape is like nothing you’ve ever seen before. An idyllic valley, brimming with blue-green pines and bright leafy trees. A single waterfall flows from the surrounding gray cliffs, while a hazy mountain peak is just visible in the distance beneath the blue-to-orange gradient created by the setting sun. You stare at the image, entranced for some time, before eventually returning to the reality of the rickety kitchen chair on which you sit. It is then that you notice the words, printed in red ink across the top of the image: Yosemite Valley, California.

Curious who your aunt and uncle know in California, you turn the card over. In the space reserved for the address, you expect to find your aunt’s name. Instead, you see your own name, written in an unfamiliar hand. Curious, you read the message inscribed on the left half of the card.

Dear cousin,

I hope this finds you well. I was sorry to hear about your loss. So much time has passed since I last saw you. How’s the East coast? Come visit me in California, if you can. The sunshine is to die for.

—Celia

You stand still for a moment, contemplating the message. But a few seconds later, you hear the front door open and close, followed by the sound of approaching footsteps. You . . .