Mosquitoes of Summer

by Julianna Kozma

  Over an hour later, two exhausted and wet girls dragged themselves out of the water. Long blades of brown sea grass clung to their legs and hair, and their eyes were rimmed red from the salty water. Emily sported a bright pink welt on her upper thigh where a jelly fish’s tentacles had brushed up against her skin. Rubbing wet sand on the wound helped a bit, but the sting was still unpleasant.

  “I’m starving,” panted Emily as she pedaled home, her short legs pumping twice as fast as Hannah’s while covering the same distance. In the best of times she was a bottomless pit when it came to food. Hannah could not understand how her sister could shovel so much food into that teeny tiny body and not get fat. And she ate everything! Fruits and vegetables too. Yuck! Hannah had no interest in such things. They were much too good for her.

  “I hope we go to Pizza Delight tonight for supper,” she yelled back to Emily who was steadily falling behind.

  “Course we will. It’s tradition,” huffed a breathless Emily. “We always go on our first night in PEI.”

  Hannah agreed that tradition had to be maintained, at any cost! The first leg of the ride home was on a red dirt road. After a heavy rain PEI public works usually scraped it down smooth, getting rid of the “washboard” surface that made for a bumpy ride. However, they also added a lot more gravel. Cars loved it, but the bikes did not and today the gravel was super fresh and made for a difficult ride home.

  “Hannah, I see another car in the driveway,” stuttered Emily as she thankfully eased her bike off the gravel and onto the paved and smooth part of Lower Darnley Road.

  Arriving in record-slow time, both bikes skidded to a stop in the grass-lined driveway. The tent trailer was already opened up behind a stand of pines, sheltering it from the gusting winds that regularly ripped through the north shore.

  As soon as the girls freed their kickstands, the front door opened and a pretty blond girl ran out to greet them.

  “LUCY!” yelled Emily as she ran towards the tall 13-year-old. “It’s been ages since we saw you. The last time was in March during the sugaring off season. Where’s Meg?”

  Just at that moment, a black and white border collie came bounding around from the back of the house, a stick already clamped tightly in her mouth.

  “Meg!” Hannah went up to the dog and gave it a quick hug. Not having much time for girly affection, Meg got down to business and dropped the stick at the girls’ feet. Tilting her head to the right, she gazed up at them with intelligent eyes and wondered who would throw the stick.

  “We’re going to Pizza Delight,” gushed Lucy. “Your parents asked me to come along too. I just love that place. And we have so much to catch up on.”

  The girls screamed with joy and the dog barked impatiently (the stick was still sitting in the grass). Finally, after saying quick hellos to Lucy’s parents, everyone piled into their cars and left the house.

  “Wait till you hear what happened in French River this year,” said Lucy as she settled into the middle of the back seat. Hemmed in on both sides by Emily and Hannah, she had a hard time not giving in to their relentless demands. “It’s really exciting. And Hannah, we might even have a mystery to solve, just like in your favourite Nancy Drew books.”

  Hannah was drooling. Lucy was one of her best friends, even though she lived in far-away Vermont, USA. She was super smart, funny, and sweet. What more could you want? And she usually came down to PEI at the same time as Hannah. Lucy loved all the same things that Hannah and Emily did, which included picking seashells, boogie-boarding, collecting bottles, and reading mysteries. The girls were inseparable.

  “This was turning out to be a really amazing and wonderful summer,” thought Hannah. She could hardly wait to hear more.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  SECRETS REVEALED

  Pizza Delight was filled to capacity this Saturday evening. Nestled in between Cows Ice Cream and Roots Canada, delicious smells of garlic and baked bread escaped from its front door. A tourist hotspot, it was located on the popular Cavendish Boardwalk and was minutes away from the heart of PEI tourism.

  “When are we going to eat?” demanded Emily, impatiently waiting in line to be seated at one of the wooden booths.

  As soon as they were all seated and the grown-ups were studying the menus, Hannah turned to Lucy. “So, what’s going on in French River?”

  Sitting forward and leaning across the table, Lucy started whispering her news to a rapt audience of two. “In the spring PEI was hit by some big storms. There was snow, rain and very heavy winds. The sea was really crazy. There was one particular storm in April that was a doozy. After two days of scary winds, something washed up on the shore at Arrowhead Beach.”

  Dramatic pause …. Lucy sat back and pretended to examine the menu. The tension was mounting. Hannah struggled not to tackle her friend across the table. No nonsense as usual, Emily came straight to the point.

  “What was it?”

  “You know how we always look for artifacts buried in the sand or the cliffs at Arrowhead,” continued Lucy, her multi-coloured braces glinting in the restaurant’s warm lighting. “Well, a lot of things like the arrowheads we found came from the Native American settlement that was there hundreds of years ago. But we also found tons of pottery pieces and rusted nails, beads and bones in the water. Those came from shipwrecks.”

  “We know all that,” said Hannah, showing her frustration by accidentally knocking her cracker to the floor. “Ten second rule,” she cried as she bent to pick it up.

  “Well, with that super-duper storm blowing in, something washed up on the beach, something much bigger than pottery pieces” continued Lucy. “Ready for this? It was a shipwreck.”

  “Wow!” sighed Emily and Hannah at the same time.

  “Jinx,” said Hannah. Emily glared. Now she couldn’t talk until someone said her name. This was torture. She gestured wildly with her hands, trying to get her parents to pay attention. No luck. She quickly took a crayon supplied by the waitress and wrote out her question:

  “Did it have people on board?”

  “No,” said Lucy, shaking her blond head slowly, savouring the moment. “The wreck came from a long time ago. It was really OLD. It was the front part of a big ship. My parents say it probably went down during the Yankee Gale.”

  “Yankee Gale?” Hannah scratched her head, trying to remember why this sounded familiar. Before Lucy could continue however, Emily shocked both girls.

  “The Yankee Gale was this big storm that blew into PEI in the 1800s and lots of boats sank around the island,” she lectured to an open-mouthed Hannah. “Remember when Mom and Dad bought that map of all the PEI shipwrecks? There was a bunch in this area that went down during that storm. And by the way, Mom just said my name when she told everyone about how I licked your nose while you were sleeping in the car.”

  “Ewwww!!!!! That’s gross,” yelped Hannah, frantically rubbing her nose. “I hope you got some boogers out. And by the way, I still have my cold from February.”

  Emily continued, unaffected by her sister’s hysterics. “There were hundreds of shipwrecks drawn all over that map of PEI we got. It was really cool.”

  Excitedly, Hannah recalled that the north shore had a great number of shipwrecks. Unconsciously, she rubbed her nose again until it was red, trying to rid it of all traces of Emily spit.

  “But wait! Here is where the mystery comes in.” Looking around to make sure no one else was listening to their conversation, Lucy told them about the fresh scratches she found inside the hull of the ship.

  “While everyone was looking at the outside of the boat, I crawled underneath and inside it. It was like a small cave, and I pulled myself in to the tip of the wreck. The planks let in quite a bit of light so I could see pretty well in there. And that’s when I saw it! Deep scratches.”

  “The scratches could have happened during the storm as the wood got dragged across the reefs,” said Hannah doubtfully, disappointment beginning to dampen her excitement. “I don’t see anythin
g mysterious in that.”

  But Lucy was not deterred. “There was a small secret compartment too. It looked like a hiding place built into the wood. Many boats used to have it. And that is where I found the scratches, as if someone forced it open. And there were a bunch of footprints there in the sand, and … ” Lucy leaned in closer, “some fresh blood.”

  Hannah reconsidered her theory when she heard this new tasty tidbit of information. “What do you think the secret compartment was for?” asked Hannah.

  “Treasure, of course,” said Lucy. “And someone took it that night the ship washed ashore!”

  “You don’t know that!” Emily knew that both Hannah and Lucy had very active imaginations and saw crimes in the most ordinary things.

  “But I have proof,” Lucy shot back. “You know Wayne Simpson, the guy who takes care of our house when we’re not there? He told my parents he saw a light the night of the storm, coming from the beach. He thought he was seeing things, but I think it was the thief. And they found the wreck the next day. Coincidence? I think not!”

  The three girls continued to chatter about the mysterious light and the wreck right through supper. The pizza was amazing. Pepperoni with extra cheese, and wonderful garlic fingers. Yum!

  “Finger-licking good!” smacked Emily, her mouth smeared with tomato sauce.

  “That’s Kentucky Fried Chicken, you dope,” scoffed Hannah.

  “It was still delicious,” said Mom, gathering everyone’s coats and sweaters from the abandoned chairs. She missed seeing Emily’s dirty face. The little monster was already heading towards the door.

  So stuffed were the two families they were hardly able to waddle through the busy restaurant. They stepped outside into the warm evening air. By unspoken consent, everyone started making their way left along the covered boardwalk, trying to sidestep the numerous tourists along the way.

  Crocs of all colours and sizes were lined up outside a store right next to Pizza Delight. Those popular rubber clogs that came in various styles were the rage the previous summer. Everyone had to have them. It seemed this year was no different, thought Hannah, as she squeezed through a family with four kids trying to find the right size.

  “So when do we start investigating?” asked Hannah. Lucy stopped in front of Cows (voted Best Ice Cream by Reader’s Digest) and took a deep breath. The homemade waffle cones smelled so delicious.

  “It depends on how quickly you can come down to French River,” she replied. “The Maritime Museum of somewhere wants to study the wreck. I’m not sure when they want to take it away, so the sooner you get there the better. We definitely want to beat all those nosy tourists. We have to sit down and make an action plan.”

  “I’ll get a pad and pencils at the dollar store,” said Hannah. “I’ve brought along my tape recorder, and we’ll need to interview Wayne again and get more info. I also have my fingerprinting kit. Who knows, it might come in handy. I got it for my tenth birthday and it works really well.”

  “Sounds good,” said Lucy, hungrily eying peoples’ ice cream cones.

  “When are we going to go exploring?” demanded Emily, breathlessly joining the other two a few minutes later. No one noticed that the Emzo had been missing in action. A tad bit obsessive about all kinds of footwear, she couldn’t resist the call of the Croc.

  After trying on about 12 pairs of Crocs, Emily realized she was alone and came running.

  Being far superior teenagers, Hannah and Lucy looked at each other and shook their heads. Nonetheless, Hannah grabbed Emily’s small hand and held on tight.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  FRENCH RIVER

  Hannah woke to a foggy day. Dull light seeped in through the tinted windows of the camper. It was supposed to be sunny. Island weather forecasts were always wrong! Fighting to disentangle her arms and legs from all the stuffed animals in her bed, she slowly opened the curtains on her side and noticed a soft mound next to the bed. Emily was curled up on the floor.

  “Rolled out of bed again,” thought Hannah, shaking her head. “Oh well, at least she dragged her sleeping bag with her this time. It cushioned the landing.” Looking at the pale face peeking out from behind the tangled mass of hair, Hannah felt an unexpected pang. Emily was a major pest and was hard to live with, but still …. Hannah pulled the sleeping bag up to Emily’s chin and gently tucked in her sister’s stuffed dog, Sally.

  Quickly making her way to the house, Hannah noticed that George, their new neighbour, had cut the grass yesterday. She had been too tired and preoccupied to notice when they came home last night. Piles and piles of hay covered the yard. Hannah wondered who was going to rake that. Definitely not her!

  Once inside the Blue Lobster, Hannah uncovered Mr. Bean, went to the bathroom (with the Bean) and then asked Mom and Dad what they had planned for the day.

  “Shopping, like we always do on the first day,” said Mom.

  “Poop Mr. Bean,” interrupted the bird.

  “You already went in the toilet,” said Hannah to the Bean. “Now hush!” Turning back to her mom, Hannah continued, “But I thought we’re going down to French River.”

  “Later, if we have time. We need to get groceries or else we have nothing to eat. We only brought enough food to tide us over for breakfast. Speaking of which, we have some leftover Timbits or cereal.”

  After a not so exciting breakfast, Hannah and Emily got ready to go into town with Mom. Dad was staying behind, already working in the basement. There was a lot of junk downstairs that was left with the house and he was slowly going through it, deciding what was worth keeping or throwing out. The garbage pile was huge! Maybe she could hide Emily in there without anyone noticing.

  “Yes! The old Hannah is back, thank you very much,” whooped Hannah.

  The drive into Summerside was uneventful. Mom did not want to do her shopping in Kensington, which was closer. She thought she would find better deals in the larger stores of Summerside. After carefully maneuvering through a new roundabout near the town, Mom drove straight to Granville Street, Summerside’s main shopping strip. As Hannah looked out the back window, she noticed that a blue minivan was driving through the roundabout for the second, and then third time. Some people just did not get the concept.

  First stop was the dollar store. Hannah whipped out her wallet and started filling her basket with essentials. Paper, pencils, assorted paint colours, beads, wire, and more came off the shelves. She looovvved this store. The girls then made their way next door to Canadian Tire, where Mom bought a few items needed for the bathroom plumbing.

  Across the road from Canadian Tire was the very crowded Wal-Mart. Here they stocked up on toilet paper, canned food, chips, cookies, snack cakes, bacon, pizza and peanut butter. Good food. The sun was beginning to break through the fog cover, and by the time they finished stocking up on fresh meat, fruits and vegetables from the Atlantic Super Store, it was getting hot.

  Back home, after a quick lunch of nutritious macaroni and cheese, Hannah and Emily helped their mom unpack all the clothes. The sisters had to share a dresser in their parents’ bedroom, but there was more than enough drawer space for all their clothes. And it certainly beat last year’s system. Shorts, t-shirts, bathing suits, and sweaters were stored in laundry baskets in a small tent next to the camper. What a mess that was. When it rained, her pants and underwear got soaked. Wet underwear made her walk funny.

  “Can we go see Lucy now?”

  “First you have to make me a sign to put out in the driveway,” said Dad as he hauled broken chairs, tables, lamps and bikes to the side of the road. “We need to get rid of some of this junk and maybe some people driving by will want it. Take this board along with your new paints and write out ‘Please take – Free.’ That should get some attention.”

  Hannah chose a dark blue for the letters and then painted a bright red border around the outside of the sign. Artistic! She was done in no time.

  “Ready!”

  Pulling Mom away from raking up the hay in the yar
d, Dad found Emily playing with her dolls out on the back picnic table. Hannah was already waiting in the car when the others joined her for the drive to Lucy’s house.

  “Are we still FFAs?” piped up Emily from the back seat.

  “FFAs?”

  “You know, what the locals call people who aren’t from here – Folks From Away,” explained Emily. “Now that we have a house, we live here, so we’re not from away. Right?”

  “That’s brilliant,” Hannah cut in sarcastically before either of her parents could answer. “We only live here for the summer and then we go back home. So that means we are still from away.”

  Emily stuck her tongue out at Hannah.

  “I knew I should have put you out with the garbage,” grumbled Hannah.

  Lucy’s parents owned a house in French River, a 10 minute drive from Hannah’s new digs in Darnley. And like Hannah’s family, the Smiths were also FFAs and drove up from Hartland, Vermont, their full-time home.

  Driving along the picturesque north shore the family passed through the small (and pricey) communities of Sea View and Park Corner. Many tourists flocked to this part of the island because of the breathtaking views of the ocean. Park Corner’s claim to fame is the Lucy Maud Montgomery Museum and the Lake of Shining Waters, which was originally the home of the famed author’s aunt and uncle. Montgomery was married in this beautiful century-old wooden house, and many tourists come to get married in this scenic setting.

  Just past Park Corner is French River and Lucy’s house. The gorgeous white A-frame was trimmed with dark green gingerbread. Hannah always thought it looked a lot like the Anne of Green Gables house. The driveway climbed at a steep angle to the back of the house, and overlooked a charming bunk house to the right, rye fields facing the back door, and a small tree house nestled among the large branches of a lone maple.

  Named after the original owner, the Buzzel House was one of those buildings that had to be moved from its original location. When the Smiths bought it nine years ago, it had no basement and was tiny. Now the house had a large two-storey extension in the back and sat on a solid foundation with a real basement. Beautiful purple and pink clematis climbed the white siding, and the back porch was surrounded by flowering day lilies, hollyhocks and poppies.