PART 1 Ali Truwit gathers her gear as she stands on the deck of a boat floating off Turks and Caicos in the Atlantic Ocean. It's a warm and sunny day in May, ideal for snorkeling. Sophie Pilkinton, her former Yale swimming teammate, asks her to pose for a photo.
Ali grins. What a perfect life. Ali ran a marathon with her mom in Copenhagen 10 days ago.
Two days ago, she graduated from Yale. Now, she is celebrating with her best friend, about to dive into the crystal clear, blue tropical water. As they put on their masks and flippers, Sophie grabs Ali's hand.
"Ali," she asks, "are you sure there are no sharks here?" "Soph," Ali says. "This is where we come all the time. We never see anything here.
" She peers into her friend's eyes: "Don't worry," Ali says. Sophie relaxes. Together, they jump.
ALI AND SOPHIE leisurely swim next to the boat for a few minutes, acclimating themselves to the water and their equipment. Then they venture farther away, looking for fish and the coral reef -- 20 yards first, then 50, then 100. Thirty minutes pass.
They spot a few fish. That's when Sophie sees it. A massive gray shark.
Swimming toward Ali. "I was looking the shark dead in the eyes," Sophie says. Ali, who is facing toward Sophie, doesn't notice it approaching from her right.
"Ali, Ali, Ali," Sophie yells into her mask. Her name sounds funny underwater. She pokes Ali's arm.
Ali looks at Sophie, and that's when she notices a presence next to her. Oh, that must be a dolphin. She'd seen some d.