“Do you boys live in this barn?”
I looked up to see Mr. Martin fix him with an indignant gaze.
“Professor, my son lives on this land. He has every right to let his friends hang out here.”
“Of course, Mr. Martin. Of course. It just caught me off guard to see them here again today. I thought I would be able to search without kids getting in the way.”
Mr. Martin shook his head but didn’t say anything
“I’ll just begin upstairs and work my way down. I may have to disturb your rest, boys, when I get down here.”
It seemed like Professor Raleigh was making fun of me, but no one would have been able to tell from his words or tone.
“That’s no problem,” I replied.
He nodded and moved on. Chace’s dad glanced at us and then followed. Will rolled his eyes, and we all chuckled, relieving the stress a bit.
It seemed like forever before Professor Raleigh and Mr. Martin came down the ladder from the loft. When they did, the professor scoured the lower level, bending down, looking in the hay and placing anything from stray lint to small dirt clods in a bag. Finally, he made his way to where we sat.
“If you will excuse me, boys, I would like to see everything here, including the contents of your sacks.” He pointed to our lunch bags sitting around.
“No, sir,” Mr. Martin said irritably. “You’ve reached the limits of my patience and my hospitality. The boys’ things don’t have anything to do with lizards. You won’t bother them. I’m sure any lizard would’ve skedaddled out of the way of being sat on.”
The professor looked like he was going to argue, but one look at Mr. Martin’s expression silenced any further complaints. Instead, he nodded and started poking around the rest of the room.
At the back of my mind, a question had been building, much like a wave out to sea. It started small and far off, easy to ignore, but now it had come crashing in on the shore of my mind. Before I could think better, I blurted it out.
“Professor Raleigh, when you first stayed at our house, you said you were a professor of geology.”
“That’s right.” Chace nodded. “You were looking for thundereggs.”
I picked up my question, glad Chace understood my thinking. “If you’re a professor of geology, why are you searching for lizards? That would be biology.”
Professor Raleigh straightened and seemed to tower over me, sprawled in the hay as I was.
“Very astute, my boy. Very astute. What you could not know is that certain creatures, especially lizards, need specific minerals to keep their metabolism going. Those minerals are found in specific rocks. I am still looking for rocks; I’m just using biological means of finding them.”
He gave me an infuriatingly condescending smile that may as well have been the words: ‘Don’t bother; I have more intellect in my pinky toe than you ever will have.’
I must have made some noise of assent, because he finished the smile with a patronizing nod, then rummaged through the whole area. All the while he fussed and marveled over bits and pieces of things that appeared utterly insignificant. I couldn’t fathom what an arbitrarily chosen bit of straw could tell him, but he put it in his bag with a lot of excited muttering. I suspected it was all staged for Mr. Martin’s benefit, but I stayed quiet. Finally, he straightened up.
“Well, Mr. Martin, I believe I’ve found everything I can find here. I would like to search outside now.”
“It’s all right this once, with me along, I suppose,” Mr. Martin said, “However, if you trespass on my property again, I’ll call the cops. You’ve been rude to my son and inconsiderate of my time. So, today’s it. Is that clear?”
Professor Raleigh seemed shocked. “I am ever so sorry, Mr. Martin. I meant no harm.”
“That’s my decision, sir. You’d best abide by it.”
Inwardly, I cheered Chace’s dad and something in my chest relaxed that I hadn’t realized was tense. Steria’s haven was secure again. Or at least, it was for as long as she could stay there.
Chapter 14: An Independence Day Celebration
“Harley,” Mom called from downstairs that evening, “You have a telephone call.”
I wrinkled my nose. Who’d call the house to talk to me? I shrugged and raced down the stairs. Mom’s expression was one of curiosity and surprise, touched with a hint of suspicion. I shook my head to indicate I didn’t know anything about the call. She shrugged and handed me the phone.
“Hello?”
“Hi, Harley, this is Mr. Behr. I heard back from my friend at the university.”
Everything else around me no longer mattered.
“You did? What did you find out?”
“She doesn’t know of any place to keep a predator, but she’ll keep looking. She did tell me that Professor Raleigh may be a professor, but he doesn’t teach anything at UC Berkley.”
“What? But he said. . .” I trailed off.
Mr. Behr followed my trail and picked it up. “Exactly! He claimed to be a Professor of Geology at UC Berkley, but there’s no professor, nor any students or former professors, with that name.”
I stood staring blankly at the kitchen around me with its blue walls and the sun tea steeping on the windowsill.
“What now?” I finally managed to ask.
“Be very careful. I’d prefer that you kids not be around him at all.”
I related what Chace’s dad had mandated earlier that afternoon.
“That’s good. I don’t want you or Karis following him around.”
I agreed. We chatted for a while longer and then said good-bye.
“What did Mr. Behr want, Harley?” Mom looked up from wiping the table as soon as I hung up.
“Chace, Will, and Cherise and I are still doing research with our project. Mr. Behr just wanted to check in.”
“Since when does an eighth-grade project go into the summer?” Mom’s hands on her hips showed her disbelief.
I shrugged. “We really got into it, and Mr. Behr said we could keep researching on our own if we wanted to.”
Mom stared me down, but I held her gaze. At last, she turned away.
“You’re up to something, Harley, but we’ve known Mr. Behr long enough to know he won’t lead you astray. As long as Karis is with you and I know where you’re at, I’m okay with this. The moment I find out it’s dangerous, you’ll be off the project like that!” She snapped her fingers.
I believed her. In our small community the rumor mill worked too well, and Mom could keep tabs on us more than we liked to admit.
***
I met Will the next morning at the crab shack and told him what Mr. Behr had told me. We were trying to figure out what to do when Cherise showed up. Of course, we had to fill her in on everything that had happened since school let out. Her dark hair brushed her shoulders every time she shook her head, as we told our tale. When we were done, she leaned back, crossed her arms, and stared out over the river.
“You know what I think?” When neither Will nor I answered, she continued. “Steria needs a home away from people where she can have access to food without stealing.”
Will turned back to organizing lures on a shelf while I shared that Mr. Behr was looking into finding a place for Steria.
When I finished, Cherise changed the subject. “Are either of you going to be in the Fourth of July parade?”
I nodded. School sports wanted a float, and I’d agreed I’d be on it for track.
“Carl wants me to be on the crab shack float,” Will said, referring to the business owner. “I get to throw the candy.”
“Sounds fun,” I grinned. “I’m just walking the parade route. What about you, Cherise?”
She shook her head. “Nope, not me. I get to collect candy. Maybe Chace will keep me company.”
“Are either of you staying for the dinghy races or beach volleyball?” I asked.
“I can,” Cherise said.
“Me, too.” Will moved to a different set of lures to o
rganize.
“Why don’t we do the barbeque at the square and then hang out until the fireworks?” I suggested.
Cherise and Will agreed.
***
The parade had gone smoothly, and Cherise and Chace had picked up enough candy for themselves and Will and me to share.
The dinghy race was exciting, even though everyone knew who the likely winner was. Carl had convinced Will to join him as the third person on the crab shack’s team, and they were first out into the waves, leaving the other two teams struggling against the breakers that pushed their dinghies sideways. The crowd cheered and shouted encouragement, but Carl was already halfway to the buoy by the time the others made it beyond the surf line. One boat, driven with powerful strokes by a guy who had the meatiest arms I’d ever seen, managed to make up the distance. He drew neck and neck with Carl’s craft as they circled the buoy and came racing back toward the shore where their teammates were waiting to trade off. Will had waded waist-deep into the water, and the moment the bow was in reach, Will grabbed on and started working in tandem with Carl to get the prow pointed back out to sea. The surging waves made it hard going, but at last Will clambered aboard and took off for the buoy once more, still evenly matched with the second team. Will passed the third team as they came in, flying across the rough water even while they struggled with the exchange. “Look at him go!” I exclaimed to Cherise and Chace, who were watching just as intently as me. “He pulls as strongly as the grownups.”
I was honestly impressed with my friend. Stroke by stroke, he pulled ahead of his competitor, giving a little breathing room to his last teammate. In a heart-pounding moment, we watched as the second team’s boat capsized in the surf while they struggled to get back to the open water. The rower bounded back up, but the dinghy had already foundered in the waves. They had to drag the vessel up to the shore to empty it, and by the time they were back in the water, the third team had caught up with them and the crab shack’s team was turned back toward shore.
Cherise was jumping up and down beside me, and I wasn’t much more dignified. I was excited for Will. Normally, he’s just a quiet guy with a shy smile, but when the final rower pulled in, he pretty much became a celebrity. The team celebrated as the crowd cheered. As we came up to Will, I overheard Carl exhilarating over their win.
“Will, you were amazing out there! I wouldn’t fear handing you any of my boats. As soon as you turn sixteen, remind me to change your job description. I’ll let you take people out crabbing.”
“Thank you, Carl.” Will looked at his bare feet in the sand, and I saw the red seep into his cheeks along with the telltale lines of a shy smile.
We whisked him away before he could be further embarrassed. We hadn’t been able to get lunch yet, so we headed back up to the square where there were hamburgers and hot dogs for sale. Once we made it through the line and had greeted everyone from school, as well as all the community members who’d known us all our lives, we headed back to the beach to eat. The weather was perfect, no wind to speak of. I couldn’t remember a Fourth of July in my fourteen years that hadn’t been windy. The beach was crowded with people, both wading in the surf and playing or beachcombing on the shore. Shortly after we sat down, the teams formed up for volleyball, and we watched my dad drive home enough aces for me to have some bragging rights by proxy. I grinned and cheered him right through to the finals.
***
By the time people had gathered on the beach and the cliff behind it to watch the fireworks, we’d met up with my family. Mom had brought several blankets and sweatshirts for us to wear. Any other year I would’ve begged to have both, but this summer, I didn’t need either of them. We all commented on how strange it was.
“Congratulations on winning the dinghy race,” my dad told Will.
Will waved it aside. “It wasn’t anything special.”
Dad disagreed. “From what I hear, you rowed better than the adults. Carl says he wants you on his team every year, and he’s trying to figure out a way to let you out in the boats this summer. He knows you’re not old enough yet, but he’s still scheming to get around it somehow.”
Will shrugged bashfully; I knew he wasn’t used to the attention. I wondered where his folks were. At least Chace’s dad had greeted us before he left to sit with his own friends, but, as usual, Will’s parents were nowhere to be seen. Cherise’s mom and dad had stopped by the volleyball tournament and checked in with us, but they both had to work the next morning, so neither of them had stayed for the fireworks.
With the singing of the national anthem, I was sure we’d had the best Fourth of July yet. As the song wound to its spectacular end, which was punctuated by the first volley of fireworks, a sensation buzzed through my mind that I hadn’t felt for several days. I tried to push it aside and just enjoy the evening, but it persisted. I noticed Will’s head searching the skies, and not just where the fireworks were going off. Cherise’s eyes were wide with wonder as she looked to the east away from the fireworks, but Chace had his head in his hands. My sister pointed to the east.
There, coming over the mountainside, was Steria. I groaned. Why? Her spread wings and serpentine neck covered what seemed like a gratuitously large portion of the sky. She paused before getting too close to the crowds sitting on the cliff and beach, but I could tell she was interested in what we were watching.
Go home! I thought toward her. As I did, I realized that was what Chace was doing: talking to Steria.
Another explosion in the air caught my attention, but not before I saw a red flame leap from Steria’s jaws. As the flame spread away from her it turned to a vibrant purple that matched her amethyst scales, then faded into the night sky.
“Did you see. . .?” I asked.
Will nodded.
“She’s a dragon after all,” Cherise said, in her way of stating the obvious.
The next eruption of light was greeted by another splash of crimson and violet fire. Chace wasn’t even trying to enjoy the fireworks show. In the light of the next volley I saw his hands pressed against his forehead, and for the first time in my fourteen years, I prayed for the show to be short, though I knew it to be futile. The citizens of Myrtle Beach loved their Fourth of July celebration and prided themselves on having a full hour of fireworks. Each explosion brought another splay of fire from our dragon.
The grand finale was a spectacular, brilliant, anxious nightmare. Steria sprayed her flames joyously, diving and barrel rolling through the air, and I ground my teeth and hoped that everyone else was too entranced with the lightshow to notice her. Once the last firework had faded from the sky, she finally turned and headed back to the mountain and up Myrtle River. I felt the reluctance emanating from her; she was overjoyed with her discovery, disappointed that her own celebration had been so brief, but I sighed with relief to see her go, then started wading into the annual chaos of people heading back to their cars. I wondered anxiously who else may have seen her cavorting through the night sky. She certainly hadn’t been making much effort to be surreptitious.
Yawning a little as I mused, I wound through the trail that cut its way up the bluff when I bumped into someone. As I apologized, I looked up and recognized the face of Professor Raleigh.
“Harley,” he greeted me. “Did you enjoy the show?”
I nodded, my heart in my throat and my voice offline.
“I especially enjoyed the purple and red ones,” he said.
My mouth must have hung open. Karis, further up the path, turned and called, “Come on, Harley. Mom and Dad are waiting.”
I nodded to the professor in a perfunctory show of politeness and took off, shaking.
When I caught up to Karis, she asked, “Anything to be worried about?”
I told her what’d happened.
“Oh no. What’re we going to do?”
“I don’t know.”
I didn’t like the sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. We had to figure out something, and quickly. Odds were excellent tha
t someone else had seen her, and the ensuing search could easily turn up her location, what with how big she was getting and all those missing animals. But where could she go?
Chapter 15: An Afternoon Upriver
With Chace upriver without a driver’s license and Will working at the crab shack, I didn’t have anything to do. I roamed around town on my bike, pointedly avoiding Seashore B&B, hoping to avoid any further run-ins with Professor Raleigh. I was bored enough that I decided to swing by Cherise’s house and see what she was doing. Just my luck—she wasn’t home.
For lack of any other ideas, I headed over to the market, vaguely thinking that maybe I could get a sandwich. As I opened the door, the smell of hot dogs and homemade mustard filled my nostrils. The sound of the customers’ chatter was dampened by the closely spaced shelves and the stuffed cougar, elk, and bobcat mounted on the walls and rafters.
“Hi, Harley,” Stacey greeted me from behind the counter. “Here for some lunch?”
“Sure.” I shrugged, then looked around and asked, “Where’s your lunch rush?”
“You beat it, but not by much, I think. Give it a few minutes and we’ll be busier than a bee.”
I smiled. The market was known for its delicious deli sandwiches and hot dogs, both with a spicy, homemade mustard that gave them their signature taste. It wasn’t uncommon for the lunch rush to last from eleven thirty until as late as four o’clock.
“So, what’ll you have?” Stacey asked, already washing her hands.
“Hi, Harley,” Ben, a friend from church called.
I waved, then turned back to Stacey and ordered the cranberry turkey sandwich. While she worked on it, I chatted with Jack, a life-time resident of the area. He was eating his lunch and shooting the breeze with the workers behind the counter. Laughter and joking filled the air. When my sandwich was ready, I sat down at one of the round tables in the small section between the frozen foods and the breads and crackers.
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