Ana, the protagonist of this story, sits in a college classroom. She is preoccupied as the lecturer, Samantha Brown—a young woman “with a Ph.D. from an East Coast school Ana has never heard of”—speaks to the class (194). Brown recounts the story of a man who, in 1875, struck silver while digging a grave for his brother in Leadville. The man immediately abandoned his brother’s body to a snowbank and claimed the mine: “What this story demonstrates is the absolute depravity of the West,” Brown says (194-195). A student named Colleen, who sits in the front row, raises her hand to inquire about the legality of what the man did: “Brown graciously answers Colleen’s question with a comment on lawlessness” (195).

Ana checks her phone for word from her boyfriend, Clifton, but only finds a text from her mother, whom the narrator refers to as “Mom”: “Haven’t heard from C. Had a job for him. Dinner tonight?” (195). Ana replies and continues to sit distractedly. Last Thursday, Clifton told her that he was going to visit his grandparents near Shiprock in New Mexico: “There’s no cell service in their corner of the reservation, a convenient excuse because Clifton often disappears.