Alaska Adventure

by Cynthia Baxter

  “Of course, I haven’t done a lot of drawings of plants. I’ve pretty much stuck to the still lifes you get stuck doing in art classes. Or landscapes. I’ve tried my hand at those a few times. I’d like to tackle some animals while I’m up here. As you can see, I’ve tried a few drawings of birds, but it’s hard because they never stay still for very long.”

  “Yes,” Dr. Wells said slowly, handing her sketch pad back to her, “I think you should do birds. The plants, as well. And everything else you come across.

  “As a matter of fact,” he said, looking her straight in the eye, “I’d like to assign you a special task.”

  “What’s that?”

  “I’d like you to provide documentation of the flora and fauna of this ecosystem.”

  Cassie just blinked.

  In response to her apparent confusion, Dr. Wells laughed. “What I mean is, we’re here to describe the plants and animals living around Wolf Lake. But our findings will be much more meaningful if we can back them up with detailed drawings.”

  “What about photographs? Wouldn’t they be better?”

  “Photos have important uses, of course. But they simply can’t capture structural detail as well as drawings. Here, look at this one.” He pointed to the last picture he’d studied, the drawing of the clump of lupine. “See how you’ve drawn these fine lines to show the vein pattern on the leaves here? It would be difficult for a camera to pick up such fine detail. That’s particularly true when you’re looking at something with a lot of color—like the dark green surface of this leaf—since color can overwhelm anatomical detail.”

  “I see what you mean,” Cassie said, nodding.

  “So how about it? May I start considering you the project’s official artist?”

  “I’d love it,” she blurted out

  “Good,” Dr. Wells said with a smile. “Consider it done. What I’d like you to do is make drawings of particular specimens I point out to you, but also to take it upon yourself to go around the lake, doing these careful detailed pictures of whatever catches your fancy. If something looks interesting and unusual to you, chances are that it’s something worth taking a closer look at. Does that sound acceptable to you?”

  Cassie just nodded. She didn’t want to let on that for the first time since she’d found out she was going to be part of this research project, she finally felt as if she belonged.

  Chapter Twelve

  “Where are you going today?” Danny Torvold asked anxiously, skipping alongside Trip, Laurel, and Russ as they trudged from the cabin down to the lake. They were all laden with equipment and provisions for the day’s outing. Russ was carrying a particularly cumbersome load, a huge telescope that was balanced across one shoulder. Trying to be helpful, the nine-year-old boy insisted on holding one of the fish traps. It banged against his leg with each step he took down the rugged dirt path.

  “Out on the lake, my man,” Trip replied. “Where else is there?”

  “Can I come, Trip?” Danny pleaded. “I won’t be any trouble, I promise. Maybe I could even help! I know my way around this lake better than anybody else—except my mom and dad, of course. I could show you some really cool places—”

  “Not today, pal.” Trip barely glanced at Danny. Instead, he focused on loading the fish traps he’d been juggling into one of the canoes. “Want to give me a hand over here, Russ?”

  With dismay, Laurel noticed that the boy looked crestfallen. She was about to offer him some consoling words. But before she had a chance, Russ spoke up.

  “Tell you what, Danny,” he said cheerfully. “I know we’ve already been up here for a while, but I bet there are still some ins and outs we have yet to discover on our own. How about giving me my own personal guided tour of this lake? I’m sure an expert like you could show me some great things.”

  Danny brightened immediately. “You got yourself a deal! I’m ready any time you are.”

  “How about tonight, after we get back?”

  “Sure! Catch you later!”

  Danny dashed off. Instead of the forlorn expression he’d been wearing only moments before, he looked as if he’d just been given a wonderful present.

  “You certainly have a way with children,” Laurel commented, setting down the armful of equipment she’d hauled to the lake’s edge.

  Nestling the day’s lunch in the back of one of the canoes, Russ shrugged. “I was just like him, once. Living on a preserve, alone most of the time.... Besides, it’s good for any kid to be made to feel important. Everybody knows that.”

  “Not everybody,” Laurel commented, casting a meaningful look at Trip.

  A moment later Cassie came hurrying down the path.

  “Sorry I’m late,” she said. Her apology was directed at Trip.

  “No problem,” he replied. “Her Majesty has yet to put in an appearance, anyway.”

  By the time Mariah appeared—a good ten minutes after the time the group had planned to get going—the canoes were packed and everyone was ready to go.

  ‘That girl has an uncanny sense of timing,” Trip muttered. “The second we finish all the dirty work, she makes her grand entrance.”

  Glancing up, Cassie’s expression changed to one of astonishment. “Where does she think she’s going?” she demanded. “A photo shoot?”

  As Mariah grew closer, Laurel saw what she was talking about. Not only was Mariah dressed in an outfit that looked as if it had come off the pages of a fashion magazine, but she was wearing quite a bit of jewelry. In addition to a pair of gold earrings, glinting in the sunlight, she sported a long, dangling necklace and a thick gold cuff bracelet.

  “I didn’t know formal attire was required for today,” Trip commented.

  “Maybe you’re content to dress like somebody who was raised by wolves,” Mariah shot back. “But some of us like to feel human every once in a while.”

  “At least she’s here,” Russ said pointedly. “Now we can get started.”

  “Who’s going with whom?” asked Laurel.

  Russ shrugged. “I’ll take Mariah.”

  Trip leaned over, a smirk on his face. “Better you than me, pal.”

  “Cassie?” said Laurel. “Want to share a canoe?”

  Cassie shrugged. With an air of complete indifference, she said, “Fine.”

  “I guess that makes me the odd one out,” said Trip.

  “You mean you’re just figuring that out now?” Mariah commented dryly.

  Once the three canoes had left the shore and were drifting purposefully across the glassy surface of the water, Mariah asked, “So what are we doing today?”

  “I thought Dr. Wells’s briefing last night made that pretty clear,” replied Russ.

  “I was too tired to listen. Something about animals, wasn’t it?”

  Russ shook his head slowly, as if he couldn’t quite believe what he was hearing. “We’ve got to check the live traps and the fish traps from yesterday. And we’ve really got to work on identifying the species of birds living around Wolf Lake.”

  “I get it. That explains why you’re lugging that big telescope out into the wilds. And here I thought you were just getting nearsighted in your old age.”

  “It’s called a spotting scope, and it’s the best thing for observing bird behavior. As soon as I find a good place to set it up—” Russ suddenly stopped. “Hey, look at that red-throated grebe!”

  “Fascinating,” Marian muttered. “Just fascinating.”

  After that, she had little to say. A few hours later, as the group paddled into one of the deeper parts of the lake to collect aquatic insects with long-handled dip nets, Laurel realized she’d barely said a word all morning. In fact, Mariah rarely interacted with the others— not only today, but every day. Yet instead of resenting her, Laurel actually found herself feeling sorry for Mariah. In a strange way, Mariah reminded her of Jim Whitehorse. Both of them lived in a kind of isolation— quite different in most ways, to be sure, but not completely without similarity. She wondered why
Mariah was so difficult to get along with ... and why she was so difficult to get to know.

  After a while, her mind wandered away from the other girl’s odd behavior back to the beauty of the lake. Just like all the other times she’d been out on the lake, it was hard not to become completely absorbed by it. She let all other concerns drift out of her head as she allowed herself to be hypnotized by the rich colors, the sweet air, and the musical sounds that completely surrounded her. As far as she was concerned, she’d be happy to stay out here on the lake forever. It was so peaceful, so idyllic…

  “My bracelet!” Mariah suddenly cried, her voice shrill.

  Startled, Laurel glanced over in her direction. She saw the stricken look on Marian’s face.

  “It’s gone! My bracelet’s gone! It must have fallen into the lake!”

  “Lesson number two hundred seventy-three,” Trip muttered. “Never wear jewelry from Tiffany’s, Cartier, or other exclusive, overpriced Beverly Hills boutiques while paddling a canoe—”

  “You don’t understand. That’s not just any bracelet. It was—I have to get it back.”

  Russ was about to voice his protest when Mariah suddenly jumped to her feet, leaning over the side of their canoe and peering into the water below.

  “Look out!” he yelped.

  It was too late. The canoe tipped over, sliding effortlessly over the smooth surface of the lake and turning over one hundred eighty degrees. Russ and Mariah were thrown into the lake, along with the nets, the day’s provisions, the logbook, the telescope, and all the other gear that had been stashed inside for the day’s research trip.

  Mariah sat in the lake, water up to her chin, the tops of her knees barely breaking the surface of the lake. The expression on her face was one of total astonishment.

  “The equipment!” Laurel exclaimed, horrified.

  “And our lunch,” muttered Cassie.

  “Good going, Mariah,” Trip said under his breath.

  Russ was the angriest of all. He’d fallen into the lake right along with Mariah. Standing knee-deep in water, he gasped, “Of all the thoughtless things you’ve ever done—”

  “It’s not here!” Mariah gasped. “I still don’t see my bracelet!”

  Trip shook his head. “Boy, are you hopeless.”

  Mariah attempted to stand, her eyes still fixed on the bottom of the lake. But as she struggled to find firm footing, she let out a whoop and slid right back into the water. She plunged down even harder this time, her head slipping beneath the surface of the water. When she finally managed to pull herself up, she was coughing and spitting out take water. Her wet hair hung over her head like a shiny black veil.

  “Somebody—get—me—out—of—here!” she sputtered.

  Russ stuck out his hand. “Just promise me one thing, Mariah,” he said from between clenched teeth. “From now on, whenever we go out on the lake—”

  The shriek Mariah suddenly let out kept him from finishing.

  “Get them off! Get them off!”

  It took only a split second for Laurel and the others to understand what had happened. Marian’s slender arm, once sporting a stylish gold bracelet, was now covered with black squiggles.

  “Leeches!” Cassie cried, her eyes wide.

  “Oh, Mariah.” Laurel was transfixed by the repulsive sight.

  Trip was less sympathetic. “Oh, for heaven’s sake. A few leeches never hurt anybody.”

  “Get them off me!” Mariah’s voice was shrill with panic. Her face had crumpled into a look of total despair.

  Russ grabbed her arm and began methodically picking off the slimy black shapes. Laurel couldn’t tell whether the scowl on his face was due to his disgust over having to deal with the bloodsucking worms ... or Mariah’s hysteria.

  “Look!” Mariah suddenly exclaimed. “I’m bleeding!”

  “That’s what happens when you pull off a leech,” Russ explained calmly. “It leaves behind a calling card.”

  He had almost finished when Marian cried, “I just thought of something. More of those ... those horrible things could be attaching themselves to my legs as we’re standing here in this horrible lake! Let’s get out of here now!”

  Russ glanced around. They were fairly far from shore. But the small island they’d explored days before was only a hundred yards away. “That island’s our best bet.”

  “Help me onto it—please!”

  “Why don’t you climb into our canoe?” Laurel offered.

  “Oh, no you don’t,” Cassie insisted. “The last thing I want is for her to topple ours, too. Thanks, but an armful of leeches is not my idea of a good time.”

  Marian was sobbing as she crawled onto the rocky shore on her hands and knees. When she was finally on firm footing, she sank to the ground. Anxiously she examined her legs. When she saw nothing out of the ordinary, she buried her face in her hands.

  “That was horrible!” she sobbed. “And my bracelet’s lost forever!”

  “Losing our lunch was horrible,” Trip muttered. “Dr. Wells wants us out on the lake until eight or nine tonight. By that time, we’ll all have starved to death.”

  “We don’t have to starve.” Cassie had been silent for some time, and the sound of her voice was a surprise.

  “All our food fell into the lake,” Russ reminded her.

  “I brought along some of my own.” She unzipped her backpack and began rummaging through it. Her cheeks were pink as she held out her stash of candy bars, cookies, and chips. “It’s not much ... but it’s better than nothing.”

  “All right!” Trip had already pounced upon a bag of chips. “Cassie, I love you!”

  Her cheeks grew even redder. “Anybody else want something?” She gestured toward the pile of snacks.

  “I’ll take this for later.” Laurel helped herself to a candy bar. “Thanks, Cassie. You really saved the day.”

  “Great,” said Marian, “Here we are trapped on Gilligan’s Island, and all we’ve got to eat is junk food. Chocolate, potato chips. ... Do you have any idea how many grams of fat are in those?”

  “Gee, Cassie,” Trip said, his voice dripping with sarcasm, “the next time Mariah throws all our food into the lake, make sure you pack a well-balanced meal. Salad, tofu, a few bean sprouts—”

  “I’ll scout around the island,” Russ offered. “Maybe I can find some wild berries.”

  “Make sure they’re organically grown!” Trip called after him.

  As Russ wandered into the wooded area further inland, Trip turned to the girls. “Look, we’ve still got a long day ahead of us. As soon as Russ gets back, we should get back into the canoes and head further out on the lake.”

  “Who put you in charge?” Mariah challenged.

  “Mariah,” Laurel said evenly, “we’ve got a job to do. Just because you’re a little wet—”

  “I wonder how you’d feel if you’d just fallen into a lake and gotten covered with leeches!”

  “Laurel’s too smart to stand up in a canoe,” countered Trip.

  “Maybe you should take one of the canoes and head back to the cabin, Mariah,” Cassie suggested. “I’m sure the rest of us could manage—”

  “Trip! Laurel!” From inside the wooded area came the sound of Russ’s voice. And it was filled with alarm.

  When he emerged from the woods, the expression on his face matched his tone.

  “What is it?” demanded Trip.

  Russ took a moment to catch his breath. “I think I’ve just found another casualty.”

  “What are you talking about?” Mariah asked crossly. And then she froze. “Not another bear.”

  “I’m afraid so.” Trip’s face was drawn into an earnest expression. “Anybody care to take a look?”

  “I will,” Laurel said bravely.

  “Me, too,” said Trip. He’d already headed toward the woods.

  Following the two boys, Laurel braced herself for what she knew she was about to see. Sure enough, on the other side of a dense growth of bushes lay a larg
e dark mass. This carcass was in the same shape as the other one. Someone had shot a bear, cut off parts of it, and left it to rot after covering it with willow branches. The smell was also the same. Even though she’d known what to expect, she grabbed hold of a tree branch to keep herself from getting dizzy.

  Trip stood over the dead animal, shaking his head in disgust. “Just like the other one.”

  “Let’s be careful not to touch anything,” said Laurel. “We’ve got to tell Dr. Wells.”

  “And we’ve got to tell Fish and Game,” Russ insisted.

  “Hey, look over here!” All of a sudden, from somewhere behind them, Cassie’s excited voice cut through the woods.

  “What now?” Trip muttered.

  “Come see what I found!” Cassie called once again.

  Laurel went first, with the boys close behind. She found Cassie a few yards away.

  “What is it?” asked Russ.

  “Look at this.” Cassie was pointing to something bright red, hanging from a tree.

  At first Laurel thought it was a flower. But as she looked more closely, she saw it was a scrap of fabric. Her heart began to pound.

  “Maybe this tore off the poacher’s clothes!” said Cassie.

  Mariah, who was standing closest to the tree, reached up as if she were going to take it down.

  “Don’t touch it!” Russ warned. “Cassie’s right. This could be an important clue.”

  “Let me see that.” Laurel leaned forward to study the scrap more closely. It was a piece of coarse wool, red fabric edged with black. ‘This looks like it’s from one of those hunters’ jackets. You know the type: red-plaid wool, with black lines that form a checkered design.”

  “I know exactly the kind you’re talking about,” Trip agreed. He paused, a meaningful look on his face as he glanced around at the other members of the group. “And isn’t it a coincidence that somebody who lives around here happens to own one.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  The group was silent for a long time.