Nicky stashed her bike behind the house, and was surprised to find Josie and Clete in the kitchen. He sat in a chair by the table, bathed in sunlight, sipping from a glass of orange juice. Josie looked up when Nicky came in.

“Where have you been?” she asked.

“Out at the mill,” Nicky said.

Clete glanced up at her. “Why’d you go out there?”

“Because I wanted to tell Sven’s brother that he’s making a mistake.”

Josie squinted at her. “He was down at the town hall, trying to get people to vote.”

“I know. Uncle Cliff was out there. He gave me a tour.”

Josie laughed, nodding. “I’ll bet that was fun. Maybe he’ll give you a chainsaw for Christmas.”

“The trees,” Clete said. “We lost, Nicky. They’re cutting them.”

“What?” Nicky sat on the couch across from him.

“The vote,” he said. “My mom just told me. Lars is getting the land. I don’t want to be here when this happens. I’ll go to school down south with family in Washington. Maybe I’ll become a wilderness guide. Or a park ranger, or something. I just can’t stay here.”

“What about the Three Guardsmen?” Nicky said, her voice rising. “The Old Yellow Cedar? The grove?”

“What are you guys talking about?” Josie snapped. “Is that what you do on your secret expeditions? Come up with fantasy names for trees?”

Clete ignored her. “I don’t want to come into town each day, to look up from the harbor and see the valley gone,” he said, still addressing Nicky. “To know my father did that. It’s too sad.”

“Maybe we should climb the trees and not come down,” Nicky said, her mind on fire as she thought of solutions. “Or put nails in the trunks, to break the chains of their saws.”

Clete shook his head. “None of that works here. The vote is in. It’s getting dark earlier. I gotta get back out to the island before sundown.”

When he left, Josie continued to stare across the table at Nicky. “I thought I knew you,” she said.

“What are you talking about?” Nicky said, rising to pour herself a glass of water.

“It’s one thing to stand around, daydreaming or whatever. Actually going to the mill, to the scene of the crime? If you love trees so much, why go watch them get sliced up?”

Nicky drank. She didn’t know how to respond.

“What’s with you and the trees anyways? You and Clete talk like they’re your friends, like you have some special connection. They’re just trees. All of this, it’s not even about trees, like I told you this morning. It’s about the whole earth, and our future.”

“No, it’s not,” Nicky said, standing. “This is about the trees, and this valley. It’s about people in Jackson Cove. It’s about the island. You wouldn’t understand, because lately you can’t even take two seconds to walk in someone else’s shoes. You’re just so…selfish.”

Josie’s nostrils flared. She glared at Nicky, then shook her head. “Sometimes I can’t even believe we’re twins. I don’t even like you anymore.” She went down the hall and closed the door to the television room behind her.