Chapter 13

A smile of satisfaction and relief spread over Eliza’s oval shaped face when she opened her almond shaped, rich chocolate eyes and realized that she was snuggled in her own bed and still wearing the pajamas she’d donned the night before. Pulling her hair from the bun that she’d fashioned for sleep, she grabbed a hairbrush and smoothed the tangles from her long, wavy dark brown locks before pulling it onto a ponytail and securing it with an elastic hair tie. After a quick visit to the bathroom for her morning preparations, she rushed back to her room and quickly dressed in clothes suitable for a day of mountainside hiking.

The sound of her parents rousting themselves from slumber could be heard over her head as she popped a bagel in the toaster and grabbed a cup of freshly brewed coffee that had just finished dripping into the pot.  She heaved a sigh of gratitude for her parent’s consideration in setting the timer on the coffee maker so that she&rs