by Karen Day
Dad scooted over and the four of us squeezed together. I should have been angry that she and Dad had been talking about me. But I felt as if I’d confessed, let go of a guilty secret. Although I wasn’t exactly sure what the secret was.
Julia broke a cookie and handed half to me. We sat, eating cookies and listening to the crickets chirping and bugs hitting the screen.
The next morning I walked over to Ian’s house and rang the doorbell. Mrs. Richards answered. “Hello, Lucy, come in!”
“Is Ian here?” I asked.
“Out back.” She led me through the house. Ian sat cross-legged on the dock, fishing. He wouldn’t look at us as Superior and I walked up.
“What are you fishing for?” I asked.
“Bluefish,” he mumbled.
I nodded and scratched behind Superior’s ears. She closed her eyes, happy. The water was still and calm, the sun dull behind gray and white clouds.
“I feel awful about what Allison said.” My heart beat faster. “That night we played chase, I was in the tree and saw you take the drill out of the shed. But I didn’t know for sure if you broke it. I shouldn’t have said anything.”
“Yeah, well, thanks a lot.” He yanked on the fishing line.
“She kept asking me about what you’re like in class. I was mad about the rubber bands at the marina and how you let your dad think that the kids broke his drill. Then, when she said you told your dad that I broke the rope swing with you …”
“I never told my dad that! Is that what she said?”
“Yeah.”
He snorted. “She’s such a liar.”
“I believe you. And I’m sorry I told on you.”
“I was gonna tell my dad, you know. I was just waiting for the right time. But Allison had to beat me to it. Typical.”
“Was he mad?”
“Of course he was mad! Especially because of the tree swing, too.”
“Both were accidents,” I said. “They could’ve happened to anyone.”
He scowled at me.
“You stopped her from shooting the bottle rockets at us. I just stood there.”
“Ha! For once you didn’t know what to do.”
“You should’ve been at camp this week. The kids messed up the grass at the Big House. And I can’t stop Peter and Becca’s fighting.”
“You gotta let them both win. They’re supercompetitive with each other.”
I nodded. He understood this better than I did.
He reeled in his line, then flung it back into the water. “Did you know Allison skipped a grade because she’s so smart? She reads something once and knows it.”
“One day she told us this stuff about raccoons that I’d never heard before,” I said. “I didn’t know how she remembered all of it.”
“I bet she wasn’t shy, telling you everything she knows. But she’s usually right.” He lowered his voice. “She thinks I’m an idiot. You think so, too.”
“No, I don’t.”
He glared at me, then turned. It was low tide and patches of seaweed swayed just below the surface. Ian was lots of things. Impulsive. A big tease. But not an idiot.
“Just go away,” he growled.
I sat there awhile longer, but he wouldn’t even look at me, so finally I walked back up to the house. Mrs. Richards opened the door and I went inside.
“Any luck with the fish?” she asked. It was dark in the house, but I could see that her eyes were still full of rain clouds.
“Nah, not a bite.” I glanced at the photos. My eyes had adjusted to the dark, so I saw them clearly. Ian and Allison. Mrs. Richards. And her mom, standing in front of the lighthouse. I liked them, but if this were my house, I’d keep just a few on the wall. I’d spend more time outside, with the sun, grass, flowers, trees and water.
“I want to talk to Allison,” I said. “Is she here?”
“No, she’s working at the marina.”
“Thanks.”
n the way to the marina, Superior and I walked by the Big House. Mr. Richards and Mr. Ramsey stood next to the porch, talking. I waved and Mr. Ramsey called me over.
“Know anything about these?” He held a handful of blown-up bottle rockets. “I found one of them on the porch.”
If I told the truth, everything would change between Allison and me. I took a deep breath. “Allison shot a couple at the Big House.”
Mr. Ramsey raised his eyebrows. “You know you aren’t allowed to have fireworks, especially around the Big House.”
“It was Allison, not us, and Ian tried to stop her.” I turned to Mr. Richards. “The reason I didn’t tell you about your drill was because I didn’t know for sure if Ian broke it. I wasn’t sure what I saw and I shouldn’t have told Allison.”
Mr. Richards frowned.
“But we all saw her shoot the bottle rockets,” I said.
“Sorry about this, Joel,” Mr. Richards said. “When I finish here, I’ll speak to her.”
“Okay,” Mr. Ramsey said. “Thanks, Lucy.”
I nodded and then Superior and I took off. The path through the woods was well trampled now. Above me the leaves on several trees had started to turn yellow. Soon, our summer up here would be over.
When I had first met Allison, I’d thought she was cool. I liked that she paid so much attention to me. Maybe she did that so she could boss me around. Maybe all along she’d planned to get something out of me about Ian.
My legs started to shake as I crossed the parking lot and looked in the store window. Mary was behind the counter. Down below, Pete was working on a boat. Then I saw Allison leaning over a dinghy on the last dock.
Once we reached the dock, Superior trotted ahead. Allison looked up as I stopped in front of her. A cleaning brush, rags and a spray bottle were at her feet.
“You’re just in time to help.” She pointed to the dinghy. “Can you believe this is what I have to clean today?”
I was afraid that I’d wimp out, so I didn’t take my eyes from her face. “What you did the other night was awful, making fun of Ian in front of everyone. Then scaring us with the bottle rockets. And you lied. Ian never told your dad that I broke the swing.”
“Please. You’re just mad because I told Ian what you said.”
“Maybe, but sooner or later I’d have figured it out.”
“Oh, come on.” She laughed and held out a rag to me. I crossed my arms and she frowned. “You’re just like me.”
I shook my head. “No, I’m not. And Mr. Ramsey asked me about the bottle rockets, so I told him and your dad. Don’t try to blame that on Ian.”
I turned and walked up the dock, shaking.
As the week wore on, I didn’t see Ian. Was he still angry? And I avoided the marina. I wanted to talk to Kiki, but I was afraid of what Allison might have said to her.
By Saturday afternoon—the day of Jake’s party—I couldn’t stand it. I walked to the marina but Kiki wasn’t working. Superior and I wandered back to the Big House. She’d have to show up sooner or later. I sat on the swing, kicking my legs under me.
A couple of weeks earlier, I’d sent my eagle drawing in a letter to Mrs. Jonas. Today I got a letter back. I took it out of my pocket and read it again. She told me about her summer, then wrote this: I was happy to hear from you and hope we continue to write. Your drawing was magnificent! I’ll miss you next year. The library at Taylor won’t be the same without you! Please stop in and say hello sometime.
What a great letter!
Just then Kiki pulled up to the Big House and got out of her car, paper bags loaded in her arms. “Hey, Lucy, could you give me a hand?”
I put my letter in my pocket and ran. I took a bag and followed her up the stairs.
“Have you seen anyone yet?” she asked. “They’re supposed to help set up.”
“No, I just got here. But I can help.”
“Okay, thanks!” We moved the couches around the fireplace. I blew up balloons while Kiki set the other decorations on the table. I watched how she car
efully hung the streamers, how she paused every so often to study the room. She was sure and calm and I imagined that this was what she was like no matter what she did.
She stood back and sighed. “Allison thinks this party is so lame, because Jake is turning twenty. But if my birthday was in the summer, I’d want a party here, no matter how old I was. Wouldn’t you?”
I grinned. “The Big House is one of my most favorite places, ever.”
“Me too.”
“And so is the Point.”
“Mine too.” She smiled. “Maybe Allison would appreciate it more if she’d grown up here, like us. We’re a big family, don’t you think?”
Here was my chance. “Allison and I kinda had an argument.”
Kiki laughed. “That wouldn’t be hard to do. She’s a little too cynical for me.”
“And mean?” I watched Kiki closely.
She tilted her head. “Well, I just think she’s lonely. You know? Anyway, don’t worry about her. She went somewhere and won’t even be here tonight.”
“Where’d she go?”
Just then the door flung open and Danielle and Tonya hurried in, followed by Mr. Pollard and Mr. Ramsey. Everyone talked at once as they put drinks in the refrigerator and stacked food on the counter.
After that, I didn’t talk much to Kiki—there were so many people around—but that was okay. She was right: we were family. And nobody seemed to mind that I hung out, helping, listening.
By the time Jake and his friends arrived, everything was set. I watched from the kitchen as Kiki and the others jumped out from behind the couches, yelling “Surprise!” Then some of the families stopped in to wish Jake a happy birthday.
When the cake had been eaten and the families had gone, Jake, Kiki and the others sat on the couches, listening to music and talking. Since it was just the older kids now, Superior and I headed home.
It was completely dark by the time we got back to the cottage. We walked to the edge of the yard and looked down. In the moonlight I saw Mr. Steele and a man on the dock, looking at the kayak. I ran up to Mrs. Steele, on her porch.
“Is that man with Mr. Steele thinking about buying the kayak?”
She nodded. “He called twice.”
The Steeles’ kayak was three years old, with scratches across the hull. Such a beaut, Dad had said when Mrs. Ramsey had paddled by in her kayak. But Dad didn’t really care about new things. And a two-person kayak would be fun for all of us.
“I want to buy it,” I said. “I started camp so I could make money to buy my dad a kayak for his birthday. I don’t have enough to buy a new one, and yours is pretty great.”
“Lucy, are you sure? It’s a bit beat-up.”
“I’m positive. I really want it.”
“Well, I’d certainly love for you to have it but I feel funny charging you money. You’re practically family.”
I stood straighter. “No, I want to buy it. That’s only fair.”
“Let’s get down there before Walt sells it.”
he next morning I found Ian in his garage, throwing a tennis ball against the wall. It was a good sign when he caught the ball and said to Superior, “Come here, girl!”
I smiled and nodded at her. She walked next to him and closed her eyes as he scratched behind her ears. I glanced at Mrs. Richards’s car in the driveway, its trunk open.
“We just got back from my grandma’s, up north,” Ian said. “Allison’s still there.”
My grandma would have a whirlwind of things planned. “That’s great for her,” I said.
“You haven’t met Grandma.” He grinned.
“Oh.”
“Thanks,” he said. “For talking to my dad.”
“It’s okay.” I didn’t really want to talk about Allison anymore. “Guess what? I bought the Steeles’ kayak.”
I told him about how I’d started camp to make money for Dad’s kayak. He listened as he scratched Superior’s ears.
“So, now that you own it, let’s go look for the eagles’ nest,” he said.
“Yes!” We took off.
Down on the Steeles’ dock, Ian held the kayak while I got on. It tipped when he lowered himself; then it settled. Superior jumped on between us and we pushed off. We got into a rhythm quickly, our strokes matching.
The kayak bobbed. I glanced over the side but couldn’t see the bottom, only cloudy water filled with patches of seaweed. My heart pounded and I shook the hair out of my eyes. Every inch of me felt nervous. Excited. Alive.
We passed the common property and the old lighthouse. It was hard to see the details of the shore from our speedboat. But now I saw how close the trees grew to the water’s edge, how sparkly the rocks were. A long, fallen birch tree reached toward us, the underside rotting. I’d stared at this tree so many times but had never known what was underneath.
Superior tried to stand but kept slipping, so finally she just sat, watching.
My shoulders burned as we reached the end of the Point. The wind changed, blowing through us, and we paddled harder. We passed the rocks, and the water calmed. The beach was beautiful from out here, water rushing at the rocks, wind bending the tree branches.
We looked up. The eagle nest sat high in the elbow of a tree.
“It’s gigantic!” Ian said. The nest seemed solid and strong, with sticks woven through it. But it was so exposed. How did eagles protect their young during a storm? “Are you sure the eagles are still there? Maybe they left the nest.”
“They work pretty hard on their nests and come back to them every year,” I said. We held our paddles across the kayak, staring at the sky and waiting.
Every day we met after lunch and took out the kayak. We didn’t see the eagles, but we didn’t tip over, either. Each day was easier for Superior, too. Sometimes I thought about how Annie might be with Ian—flirty, talkative. Then I’d get quiet, remembering everything that had happened between us.
But mostly we had fun. We paddled all over the Point. Superior and I showed him the path to town. And we caught stripers off the rocks at the beach.
The following week, Ian showed up on our last day of camp. Peter beamed and walked over to stand next to him. We played kickball and rescue princess and it was a lot easier with Ian helping.
At noon the moms arrived with cider and doughnut holes.
“To Lucy, for a wonderful camp.” Mrs. Dennis raised her glass and everyone cheered. “Will you do this again next summer?”
“Maybe.” Next summer I wouldn’t have a kayak to buy.
“You and Ian could run it together,” Mrs. Avery said.
“Yeah!” Peter said. Ian and I glanced at each other, then smiled.
After everyone left, I walked to Ian, waiting on the swing. “Thanks for helping.”
“A lot of work.” He laughed. “I’m glad it’s over!”
We were quiet as we walked back to my cottage. School started next week.
At the cottage Dad made grilled cheese with Goldfish crackers inside; then the three of us sat on the porch and ate. Afterward Ian had to go home but we made plans to meet later. Dad and I watched as he started down the road.
“Mr. Richards stopped by,” Dad said. “He’s pretty sure the water damage at the Big House hasn’t gotten any farther. Looks like we made the right decision, just to go after the porch.”
“Yes!” I said.
“Ian’s a good kid. Complicated, huh?”
I nodded. Would we still be friends when school started?
ucky and I hung streamers from the porch rafters. Kiki had given me the leftover ones from Jake’s party. Then Bucky, Julia and I made Dad’s birthday dinner while he sat outside calling, “What’s going on? What are you making?”
The pasta wasn’t cooked enough and the broccoli was cooked too much. But everyone liked the chocolate cake Bucky and I made. I kept glancing out the screen at the dark clouds. I couldn’t wait to give Dad his present. Finally, after Bucky gave him a grenade made out of papier-mâché and Julia gave him books, I
jumped up. “Come outside!”
“This is certainly mysterious,” Dad said, following me. The air was cool and more leaves had started to change.
“Close your eyes.” I led Dad to the edge of the yard. Ian and I had brought the kayak over to our dock.
We stopped. “Look down, on the dock.”
He opened his eyes. “The Steeles’ kayak.”
“Not anymore. I bought it. Happy birthday.”
“Whoa!” Bucky said.
“Lucy.” Dad hugged me. “What a present! How? With camp money? You worked so hard. It must’ve taken every cent you made.”
“It wasn’t that much.”
“What a thoughtful gift,” Julia said.
“Thank you!” Dad said.
“What are you waiting for?” Julia asked. Dad grinned and took her hand, and we all went down the stairs. On the dock he put on a life jacket, then handed one to me. I gave it to Julia.
“Are you sure?” she asked. I nodded.
Bucky and I sat on the dock as they paddled toward the end of the Point. Twenty minutes later they were back and Dad climbed off, handing me his life jacket.
“Come on,” he said. “We saw an eagle.”
I yanked on the jacket and got on the kayak behind Julia. Superior jumped between us. We paddled, instantly getting into a groove. The water was rough as we rounded the Point. I looked over the side at the rocks and took a deep breath.
“Okay, this is where we saw it.” She stopped paddling.
The sky was gray, and the wind strong, but the eagle nest didn’t move. We were quiet. The water rocked the kayak. She turned to me.
“Did you know eagles mate for life?” This was the only thing I could think of to say.
“You know a lot about eagles.”
She kept looking at me, so I said, “Did you know they always come back to the same nest? And that they keep making their nests stronger?”
“They’re good at remodeling.” She laughed. I held my breath. I’d been trying to forget about what had happened on the campout. But I knew she hadn’t forgotten, either.
“Lucy, remember when I told you that I knew what it felt like to lose someone you love? That happened to me. My husband died.”