McKenzie

by Shari Barr

  “How could he not see us?” McKenzie asked. “It’s hard to miss this skimmer with its bright sails. And he didn’t even stop to see if we were okay.”

  McKenzie squinted into the distance. The motorboat was idling about a half mile away. The driver appeared to be standing and watching them through binoculars. Was he checking to make sure they were okay? If so, why didn’t he just come back and ask? She scanned the cove but only saw a cloud of haze on the horizon.

  “Let’s swim this thing to shore,” Alex suggested. “We’ll never be able to turn it right side up out here.”

  The girls had entered a narrow inlet near Sea Lion Harbor on the Oregon coast. The nearest shoreline was an isolated beach about 100 yards away. Kicking their legs, the girls slowly towed the sailboat to shore.

  A few minutes later, McKenzie felt sand beneath her feet and stood in chest-high water. The girls flipped the sailboat right side up. Then they tugged it onto the sandy beach, far from the incoming tide.

  McKenzie flopped onto the sand. Glancing around, she noticed nothing but a small sandy beach along the rocky coastline. “I wonder where we are,” she said, slipping out of her life vest. She flung it to the ground.

  “I think we’re near your Aunt Becca’s beach house,” Alex said, brushing sand from between her toes. “I try to pay attention to landmarks. Dad taught me to always watch my surroundings. I haven’t gotten lost yet. If we get out of this inlet, we’ll be able to see the house just south a little ways, I’m sure.”

  “I’m glad you know how to sail.” McKenzie wrung water out of her dripping curly auburn hair.

  “My grandparents’ home in San Francisco is on the beach, so my parents take my brothers and me sailing about once a month,” Alex said, tucking her dark, shoulder-length curls behind her ears. “I didn’t realize the ocean is so much rougher up here, though. No wonder we don’t see any more sailboats out here. The water’s colder too.”

  “I have no clue where we are. I was just looking for the sea lions.”

  “Aren’t sea lions cool? I’ve seen tons of them near my grandparents’ home,” Alex said.

  McKenzie picked up a seashell and examined it. “Are they Steller sea lions?” she asked, glancing at her younger friend.

  “Yes. Most of the sea lions along the Pacific coast are from the Steller family.”

  “Why is this kind called Steller?” McKenzie asked.

  “They’re named after the guy who first studied the animals back in the 1700s,” Alex explained. “They’re usually larger and lighter in color than other sea lions, the California sea lions. Sea lions are my favorite animal, and sea lion pups are so cute. I can’t wait to find those two you were talking about—Mario and Bianca.”

  “Yeah, it’s really weird,” McKenzie said. “They’re always with their mom, Susie. I saw them last night after my plane got in, before you arrived. But no one’s seen them since. I want to put them in my video report.”

  “I can’t believe this report is really going to be on TV. Can you?” Alex asked, shielding her eyes against the sun.

  “Not really,” McKenzie said. “I about freaked out when the public TV guy called and told me that I had won the essay contest about endangered animals. I couldn’t believe it when he said I’d also won a trip to Sea Lion Harbor to film my report.”

  Alex smiled at her friend. “I am so glad you asked me to come up here and run the video camera. We’ll have a blast.”

  “Mom and Dad would never have agreed to let me come if Aunt Becca wasn’t already working out here at the resort. They’re too busy on the farm to take a vacation right now, so this is perfect. And it would have been no fun to spend every day alone while Becca’s at work,” McKenzie said, digging a broken seashell from the sand and tossing it aside. “Though it’s cool to have an aunt who’s a private airplane pilot with a company connected to a resort!”

  She stood, hopping across the sand until the waves washed over her toes. This was her first visit to the ocean, and she absolutely loved it. The Oregon coast was a long way from her parents’ farm in Montana. The salty air mixed with the scent of pine trees was so different from the woodsy smells back home.

  Last night, after Aunt Becca had picked McKenzie up at the airport, she had taken her to a spot farther down the coast so McKenzie could see the Pacific Ocean. The roar of the waves had practically hypnotized her. She had never heard or seen anything like it. The water here at Sea Lion Harbor, though, was calm compared to the way the ocean had been the night before.

  “Let’s go exploring,” Alex said, interrupting McKenzie’s thoughts.

  Alex had already started down the short stretch of sandy beach that lay between two craggy rock formations. McKenzie followed her, wet sand squishing between her toes. Alex hurried to the nearest rock and scurried to the top.

  “Come on up.” Alex motioned for McKenzie to follow. “You’ve got to see this.”

  The rocks were rough and hot beneath McKenzie’s feet, but she scaled the rock to stand beside Alex. Below the girls lay a narrow sandy inlet that stretched into a gaping hole in the side of the cliff.

  “Wow!” McKenzie exclaimed. “Look at this cave.”

  McKenzie climbed partway down the rock before leaping the last few feet. She fell to her knees, reaching her arms out to keep from falling on her face. She stood and brushed the sand off her legs. The sandbar was cool here, shaded by the craggy rocks towering above the opening to the cave.

  McKenzie turned as Alex leaped off the rock beside her. The girls moved closer together. They stared into the opening of the cave that yawned like a huge mouth.

  Alex’s blue eyes gleamed with wonder. “Look how tall it is. You could drive a truck through there. That is, if you could get a truck out here.”

  McKenzie took a few steps forward. She approached the opening and felt the cool, damp air inside. She wrinkled her nose. “Pew! It smells like something died in there.”

  “Are you going in?” Alex sniffed the air with a look of disgust.

  “I’m a wimp. You go first.” McKenzie gave Alex a gentle shove forward.

  “Why me?” Alex said, taking a step backward. “You’re a whole year older than I am.”

  McKenzie sighed as she shook her head. “Okay, okay. But you’re coming with me,” she said, tugging her friend’s arm.

  McKenzie stepped inside the cave, letting her eyes adjust to the darkness. Nothing but a black hole loomed before her. She had no idea how far the tunnel reached into the cliff. She glanced downward and noticed a paper fast-food cup lying on the sand at her feet.

  “Hey, look. Somebody’s been here.” McKenzie pointed at the cup.

  “Maybe it’s been here awhile,” Alex said as she bent over and picked it up.

  “I don’t think so,” McKenzie answered. “The cup hasn’t even started to get soggy. I think someone was here not too long ago. Or maybe somebody is still here.”

  McKenzie shuddered as she spoke the words. Standing in the cave without a light was starting to give her the willies. She turned to make sure Alex had followed her. I’m thinking this isn’t exactly the place I want to explore without a guide. On the other hand, maybe I don’t want to explore it at all.

  “Maybe this isn’t such a good idea,” Alex said. “We can’t see where we’re going without a flashlight.”

  “I agree. I’m not about to get lost in this place. It’s way too creepy for me. Besides, my feet are cold,” McKenzie said, rubbing the goose bumps forming on her arms. Her wet swimsuit felt icy against her skin. Eager for the warmth of the sun outside, she hurried toward the entrance. After stepping from the darkness of the cave, she stopped in her tracks.

  A thick blanket of fog was creeping across the smooth surface of the cove toward them. The sun that had warmed them earlier had disappeared behind the haze.

  “We’d better go before the fog closes in on us.” Alex sprinted toward the rock piling and quickly climbed to the top. “I want to be able to see our way back.”


  Dashing back to the beach, they hurried into their life jackets. Then they carried the Sea Skimmer to the cold water’s edge.

  “Hop on,” Alex said as she steadied the boat. “I’ll tow us out into deeper water.”

  McKenzie pulled herself up, the boat teetering as she climbed aboard. Alex waded out a little farther, pulling the boat behind her. A few seconds later she pulled herself onto the deck of the boat, tipping the skimmer slightly. McKenzie gripped the sides praying Alex wouldn’t tip the boat over.

  “I’ll teach you to sail sometime,” Alex said, grabbing a stick that was fastened to the floor of the sailboat. “But not today.”

  McKenzie watched in amazement as Alex’s hands flew back and forth. “What is that thingy?” she asked, pointing to a sticklike device attached to the floor.

  “It’s called a tiller. It’s connected to the rudder so I can steer the boat. It will even let us sail against the wind,” Alex answered. “But barely any breeze is blowing now. We’re not going anywhere very fast.”

  Alex turned the tiller, trying to catch what little breeze they could in the orange, yellow, and blue sail. Turtles can swim faster than this, McKenzie thought as Alex steered the skimmer into deeper water.

  Minutes later they sailed out of the inlet into the open waters of the cove. McKenzie focused on the fog pressing closer and closer. The water shimmered like an aquamarine stone, an occasional breeze causing slight ripples on the surface. Alex caught every puff of wind, no matter how small, and slowly sailed the boat toward home.

  McKenzie had never sailed before. She had only ridden in speedboats and rowboats on lakes near her home in Montana. She gazed toward the shore, noting the unfamiliar landmarks. Nothing but pine trees and steep bluffs lined the shoreline.

  “Are you sure you know where we are? None of this looks familiar to me. Shouldn’t there be houses along the beach?” McKenzie’s grip on the side of the boat tightened.

  Alex kept her hand on the tiller and gazed at the overcast sky. She looked up and down the mainland. Then she brought her free hand up and chewed on a fingernail.

  Alex’s eyes looked worried. “I thought I paid a lot of attention earlier, but I don’t recognize anything. Those trees aren’t familiar, and I don’t see the resort. I’m not sure where we are. I guess maybe I was watching for sea lions more than I thought.”

  McKenzie felt her stomach lurch. “What do you mean? We aren’t lost, are we?”

  Alex fixed her gaze on the mainland, struggling to keep the sailboat from going too far into the open cove. “I’ll figure it out in a minute,” she finally said.

  Uh-oh, McKenzie thought as she stared at the isolated shoreline. I sure hope she figures it out, because I have no clue where we are.

  “Alex, I just had an awful thought,” McKenzie stammered. “Aunt Becca was already at work when we left. I forgot to tell anyone we were leaving.”

  Alex blinked her eyes nervously. “We were supposed to tell Mr. Carney if we went sailing, weren’t we?”

  Mr. Carney, or Mr. C. as the girls called him, rented the cabin next door to Aunt Becca. He was an elderly man who, he said, had rented the same cabin every summer for the last twenty years. Since Aunt Becca had rented the same cabin for the previous three years, the two knew each other well. Mr. Carney had volunteered to keep an eye on the girls if they needed anything while Becca was at work.

  “Nobody knows where we are,” McKenzie said, her voice trembling. “Aunt Becca won’t know we’re missing until she gets home from work. That won’t be for hours yet.”

  “Mr. C. will notice that our sailboat is missing,” Alex said, trying to sound reassuring.

  “What if he’s not home?” McKenzie asked, growing more worried by the minute.

  Alex didn’t answer. The girls sat in silence, watching the fog roll toward them. It settled over them like a cold vapor. McKenzie could barely see past Alex on the other end of the boat.

  The sails of the little sailboat hung limply as the breeze died. The Sea Skimmer bobbed idly. McKenzie shut her eyes briefly, feeling the gentle rise and fall of the boat. Dear God, she prayed. Keep us safe and help us find our way home.

  “Have you figured it out yet?” McKenzie asked as she cautiously opened her eyes.

  Alex turned to McKenzie, her voice faltering. “I…I…can hardly see anything through the fog. I don’t know where the homes and the docks and the resort are. Oh McKenzie, I think we’re lost!”

  Kidnapped!

  A shiver ran down McKenzie’s spine. “Shouldn’t we just try to reach shore?” she asked, her voice higher than normal.

  “The shoreline here is mostly rocks,” Alex pointed out. “So there could be lots of underwater rocks to get caught up on. We don’t want to get too close until I know just where we are.”

  The little sailboat floated listlessly. Only a few minutes earlier, the sky had been clear. Now dense fog had settled over the cove, surrounding them in a white, swirling mist.

  “What are we going to do?” McKenzie asked fearfully.

  Alex chewed her bottom lip as she surveyed the situation. “Look!” she exclaimed, pointing at a flash of light cutting through the fog. “There’s the light from the Heceta Head Lighthouse up the coast. We have to head back to our left to make sure we stay in the cove. I sure don’t want to get out in the open waters.”

  McKenzie wasn’t used to the ocean. The thought of being swept out into the rough waters scared her. “You don’t think…we’ll get washed away…” Her voice cut off.

  “Oh, of course not,” Alex said with a smile.

  A fake smile, McKenzie thought. She’s trying not to scare me. She doesn’t want me to know we’re in big, big trouble. McKenzie’s hand clutched the sides of the sailboat until her knuckles turned white.

  “We can’t even see where we are.” McKenzie’s voice trembled. “How will we know if we’re being pulled out to sea?”

  “The tide’s coming in. It’ll push us into the shore not away from it,” Alex reassured her.

  “It’ll push us into the rocks, you mean?” McKenzie shivered. Why, oh why, didn’t we tell Mr. C. we were going sailing?

  “I think we’re just in a little pocket of fog. The sun is trying to break through,” Alex said as she turned the sails, trying to catch what little breeze she could.

  A seagull cried overhead, and a motorboat puttered in the distance.

  At least someone else is out here. If we could only see, McKenzie thought, then we could ask for help.

  “I’m really sorry I didn’t pay more attention. I’m the one who got us lost,” Alex said softly.

  McKenzie smiled slightly. “It’s not any more your fault than it is mine. I shouldn’t have been gawking around so much. Anyway, I can’t believe God would let us get lost at sea. I’ve been praying.”

  “Yeah, I have too.” Alex sighed. “I guess we have to trust Him.”

  McKenzie nodded. Though she still couldn’t see the shoreline, she felt more relaxed than she had earlier. As she peered into the fog, a sleek gray object slid through the water beside her. She jumped. A whiskered nose popped through the water. For a second, McKenzie couldn’t speak, then she cried, “Susie! Boy, am I glad to see you.”

  The sea lion spun in the water, twirling like a ballerina. Her flippers flapped up and down as she performed her water dance.

  “Alex,” McKenzie turned to her friend, “this is the sea lion I was telling you about.”

  “You mean her pups are the ones that are missing?” Alex asked, working the tiller.

  “Yes,” McKenzie said, relieved. “We can’t be too far from Sea Lion Harbor.”

  Aaarrr! Aaarrr! Susie barked as she splashed the water with her flippers. With a final spin, the sea lion slipped away from the boat.

  “I think she’s calling for her pups,” Alex said. “I hope she finds them.”

  A cool breeze brushed McKenzie’s face. The bright sails snapped as they caught the breeze that suddenly rolled in across the cove.

/>   “Hey, we’re moving now.” Alex grinned at McKenzie.

  “Look.” McKenzie pointed at Susie, barely visible in the fog. “Maybe we should follow her.”

  Alex steered in Susie’s direction. The sea lion swam slowly, as if waiting for the sailboat to keep up.

  “I think the fog is lifting. I see some trees on the shore.” Alex brushed her damp hair out of her eyes.

  McKenzie relaxed her grip on the sailboat and breathed deeply. She saw the vague outline of one of the resort’s beach homes. “God must have heard us. He sent good ol’ Susie to show us the way back.”

  Minutes later Susie had disappeared, but the girls had sailed out of the cloud of fog. Alex steered the boat toward Becca’s boat dock, clearly visible in the emerging sunlight. After Alex hopped onto the dock, she tied up the boat.

  McKenzie’s knees wobbled as she tried to stand. She flailed her arms back and forth like a windmill as the skimmer teetered from side to side.

  “Here, grab my hand!” Alex cried.

  McKenzie grabbed Alex’s fingertips and leaped onto the dock. “I’ve never been so glad to touch dry land before.”

  “I told you we’d get back okay,” Alex said as she started up the dock. “I’ve never lost anyone yet.”

  McKenzie shook her head teasingly. “Okay, I’ll never not trust you again.”

  As the girls approached their beach house, a voice called. Turning to the neighboring house, McKenzie saw Mr. Carney sitting in the shade in his lawn chair. A glass of iced tea sat in a wire cup holder beside him. The white stubble on his balding head contrasted with his black skin.

  “Hi, Mr. C.,” McKenzie called out, jogging over to him. “This is my friend Alexis Howell, but everybody calls her Alex. She came from Sacramento to spend the week with me.”

  Mr. Carney stood and shook Alex’s hand, his teeth flashing a wide smile. “Nice to meet you, Miss Alex. You’re quite the sailor.”

  “Thank you. I’ve had quite a bit of practice, except I don’t like sailing in the fog.”

  “You girls had me worried. I was about ready to call the Coast Guard. But then I saw your little skimmer. That fog can be tricky.” Mr. Carney scratched his head with his pinkie finger. “And girls, this ocean is too rough to take a sailboat out of the protected bay and into the ocean.”