by Farheen Khan
“Yeah,” laughed George. “No one else knows there’s a maple leaf on the Canadian flag!”
“Some of the other ones aren’t so easy,” warned Mr. Barnell. “It would be wise to consult the library.”
“Any questions before we say good night?” asked Mr. Parker.
“Why is this place called The Haunted Lake?” asked George. “My brother said it’s a true story.”
“Well, tell your brother he shouldn’t believe everything he hears,” said Mr. Parker. “Now, if there’s nothing else I guess we’ll call it a night. See you all in the morning. Breakfast is at 8.00.”
With a wave to the children, Mr. Parker headed to his cabin.
“It’s been a long day,” said Mrs. Morris, with a yawn. “Everyone to your cabins, please.”
“Would it be okay if the boys help me put out the fire,” asked Billy, who had started to clear up for the night.
“Sure,” agreed Mr. Barnell. “I’ll see you boys back at the cabin.”
The children began to scoop sand into a large bucket for Billy to pour over the fire.
As the girls, Mrs. Morris and Mr. Barnell headed to their cabins, Billy Jones turned to the boys.
“Do you want to know why they say this place is haunted?” he asked.
“Yes!” yelled Ali, before anyone else could reply.
“Well, have a seat then,” said Billy, bringing his voice down to almost a whisper. “Long ago… almost 50 years ago today, there was a class camping here at Camp Chimo. It was a group of children much like yourselves. They had been over the rules and knew not to wander alone in the forest. But one young man, on a dare by his friends, decided to do something very foolish. At the stroke of midnight, as his friends looked on from the top of that very hill behind you, he walked to the lake below, got into a canoe and rowed out to the middle of the water. The full moon lit the entire forest, so he could clearly be seen by all those watching. However, instead of rowing back he just kept going. His friends who had gone out with him shouted out to him, but he was too far to hear. The next morning, when he had still not returned, search parties were sent out but the young man was never seen again. People assume that he drowned. Some folks say his ghost still visits this forest. If you listen closely, you might hear the paddle of his canoe rowing on the lake behind you!”
Instinctively all the boys turned to look down at the lake.
“Sleep well, boys,” whispered Billy Jones, with a hint of a smile.
Both frightened and excited, the exhausted boys headed to bed.
CHAPTER FIVE
Early Morning Scare
“Zayn! Wake up,” whispered Ibrahim. “It’s fajr, get up!”
“Huh? How do you know?” asked Zayn, groggily. “It’s so dark.”
“I have all the salah times set on my watch,” said Ibrahim. “Now hurry up and do wudu before you miss it!”
As Zayn shuffled to the bathroom, their classmates Ali and Yusuf plopped down beside Ibrahim.
“How are we going to figure out what direction to pray?” asked Yusuf.
“I have just the thing,” said Ibrahim, rummaging through his bag.
“You brought your brown sack with you?” asked Ali. “I thought you guys only used that when you’re on a case.”
“Well, you never know when you might need it,” said Ibrahim, pulling out a small compass.
Once they were done praying, the boys decided to sit on the small front porch of their cabin. The sky was still dark grey, and the morning fog hung thickly in the air. Suddenly the boys heard a soft moaning coming from the trees.
“What animal is that?” asked Ali. “I don’t think I’ve heard it before.”
“That’s not an animal,” said Ibrahim, getting up. “Zayn, grab some binoculars from the sack. There’s something out there.”
Before Zayn had a chance to go in, the moaning became even louder. Then, from behind a group of low bushes, rose a white billowing figure. It floated in the air for what seemed like several long minutes before disappearing.
The frightened boys stood for a moment, staring at the spot they had seen the figure before they all ran back into the cabin.
“It’s the ghost of that boy Mr. Jones told us about!” shouted Ali.
“Except it didn’t look like a boy anymore!” yelled Yusuf.
“That moaning was so creepy, I still have goose bumps!” said Zayn.
“What boy? What moaning?” asked Mr. Barnell, who had just woken up and had no idea what was going on. “Would you boys please keep it down? Ibrahim, can you please tell me what’s going on?”
“Well, sir,” said Ibrahim, trying to gather his thoughts. “As Muslims, we know there’s no such thing as ghosts, but there is something strange going on.”
All four boys took turns recounting the story they’d heard the night before, and what they saw and heard this morning. The more they talked about it, the less frightened they felt.
“Let’s just keep this between us for now,” advised Mr. Barnell. “I don’t want the other children getting scared. If you see anything else, let me know.”
The boys agreed to keep their eyes open and their mouths closed, but before the end of the day, somehow almost everyone had heard of the incident.
***
“So, does this mean that Ali and I are detectives too?” asked Yusuf at breakfast that morning.
“Sure, you guys can be our assistants,” said Ibrahim, carefully eyeing Ali, who was sitting at the next table with George. “I just hope this isn’t one of George’s practical jokes. Ali and George are good friends.”
The table fell silent as the promised breakfast of ‘hot oatmeal and wild berry surprise’ was passed around.
“This actually wouldn’t be that bad if the burnt smell wasn’t so strong,” said Zayn, licking his spoon.
“Alhamdulillah, it’s good to see you eating something other than those sugary snacks you brought,” said Ibrahim.
“Yeah, but I hope Mr. Jones learns his way around the kitchen soon,” said Zayn, looking worried. “I’m already running low!”
Banging a ladle to a pot, Mr. Parker got the attention of all the diners.
“Today’s activities include canoeing, fishing and swimming, but I would suggest you get started on your scavenger hunt if you hope to win.”
“I’m sure the Khan boys will get right to work,” laughed George. “We wouldn’t want to have any fun, would we?”
Zayn just scowled at George, but Ibrahim was smiling.
“That’s not a bad idea,” said Ibrahim to his group. “We could be done with our list before anyone else gets started.”
“Oh, come on!” groaned Zayn. “Canoeing looks like so much fun.”
“It’ll be even more fun when our work is done,” said Ibrahim.
“What do you guys think?” Zayn asked the other team members, who were sitting at the table with them. To his dismay, everyone agreed with Ibrahim.
CHAPTER SIX
Scavenger Hunt
“Zayn, would you please get to work?” Ibrahim asked his cousin for the fourth time that morning. “Mariam, Yusuf, David and I are all looking up our items. You need to work as part of the team.”
“Okay, okay,” said Zayn, reluctantly getting off his chair in the dimly lit library. The library was actually a cabin, similar to other cabins at Camp Chimo, but instead of being full of beds, bookshelves lined the walls, filled from end to end with dusty books. In the middle of the room was a round wooden table, surrounded by worn leather chairs. There were several lamps around the room, but heavy curtains prevented the natural light from coming through the windows.
“I wonder if we’ll find any arrowheads?” Zayn mumbled to himself, making his way to where the others sat.
“Finally,” said Ibrahim, when he saw that his cousin had opened a book at last. “ ‘The Mystery of the Haunted Lake?’” asked Ibrahim, when he noticed the title. “Zayn, you’re supposed to be solving your scavenger hunt riddle, not reading ghost
stories!”
“No listen,” said Zayn. “It says here—”
“I don’t want to hear what it says,” Ibrahim snapped. “The rest of us have figured out our items and are ready to go canoeing. When you’re done, you are more than welcome to join us.”
Surprised by his cousin’s outburst, Zayn simply stared as the rest of his team walked out the door, leaving him to read his ghost story and finish his work.
***
That afternoon’s lunch was a very bright green ‘Pot-o-mush,’ and both the vegetarian and meat options were suspiciously similar looking. Though the Khan boys sat together, neither one spoke to the other.
“Are you sure this stuff is even food?” Zayn asked Yusuf, making sure Ibrahim knew he was ignoring him. “I can’t tell if it’s animal, vegetable or mineral!”
“Well, it’s approved as part of our vegetarian meals so it can’t be animal,” said Ibrahim, with a smile. “I’m sorry for yelling at you, Zayn,” he apologized. “You were in that library all morning. I should have come back and helped you.”
“I forgive you,” said Zayn, smiling back. “You know I could never stay mad at you for long. It actually didn’t take me that long to figure out what my item was, but I did find some interesting reading material.”
“Zayn Khan reading on vacation,” Ibrahim laughed. “That’ll be the day! Now, come on guys, let’s finish our lunch so we can splash around in the lake.”
“I think I’ve had all I can eat,” said Yusuf. “When is Billy going to make something edible? I’m already running low on Halal Hassan’s Marshmallow Treats.”
“You brought Halal Hassan Treats?” yelped Zayn. “And this is the first I’m hearing of it?”
“I thought you brought your own snacks!” said Yusuf.
“I’m on my last few,” said Zayn. “I’m going to need to restock soon!”
“However did you convince your parents to give you all that junk food?” asked Ibrahim.
“I think they were just sad I’d be gone for so long,” said Zayn. “Also, I was supposed to share with everyone else, but with all these food disasters, it’s all I have to survive!”
“It is a little odd that a trained chef would make as many mistakes as Mr. Jones has,” said Ibrahim. “I guess it takes time getting used to a new kitchen.”
As the boys cleared their table, they didn’t notice the figure standing in the shadows of a nearby pine tree, listening in on their conversation.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Another Morning Scare
After fajr the next morning, the Khan boys found themselves back on the front porch of their cabin. Yusuf and Ali had gone back to bed after saying their prayers, to catch up on some more sleep before breakfast.
“Do you think we’ll see anything unusual?” asked Zayn.
“I hope so,” said Ibrahim.
“Yusuf and Ali are pretty scared,” said Zayn.
“I know,” said Ibrahim. “I’m starting to think George has nothing to do with this.”
Once the early sunlight began to filter through the trees, Zayn grew impatient.
“Let’s wake up Yusuf again and go down to the lake,” he suggested. “I have to catch a fish for my scavenger hunt item.”
“Your scavenger hunt item is a fish?” asked Ibrahim, in disbelief.
“Yeah, why? What’s yours?” said Zayn.
“‘A smooth, hard, flattened sphere, found by a lake, a beach or a pier’,” said Ibrahim, pulling a small grey pebble out of his pocket.
“Well, mine is a fish,” said Zayn, getting up to grab some fishing poles.
Reluctantly, a sleepy Yusuf agreed to join them.
“It’s only 5.30! We don’t need to be up until 7.00,” he said. Looking down the hill, he added, “Doesn’t the lake look creepy with the fog hanging over it?” rubbing his hands together for warmth.
“I think it looks cool,” said Zayn. “Like the Sherlock Holmes mysteries Ibrahim’s reading all the time.”
Getting into the canoe, Ibrahim slowly rowed out to the middle of the lake. Zayn, who had put some bait at the end of his fishing rod, tossed his line out.
“It really is peaceful out here,” said Ibrahim. “It’s nice to not be scared of this ‘ghost’ fellow. We know Allah is our Protector.”
Not five minutes had passed when the boys heard a familiar moaning sound, along with splashing noises by the shore they had just left.
“What’s that?” asked Yusuf, panicking.
“I see something,” said Zayn, squinting thought the mist. The thick fog made it difficult to see the shore.
“Careful, guys,” warned Ibrahim. “You’re rocking the boat.”
“It’s the ghost!” yelled Yusuf, quickly standing up. The sudden motion made the canoe flip over with a loud splash, landing all three boys in the cold water. Yelling and screaming, the boys finally made it to shore.
“Where—Where’d he go?” asked Yusuf, out of breath.
Instead of a ghost, the boys found Mrs. Morris, Mr. Barnell and Billy Jones staring down at them.
“What in the world do you boys think you’re doing?” asked Mrs. Morris, with her hands firmly on her hips. “It is 6 o’clock in the morning!”
“I—we—,” Yusuf tried to explain.
“We were trying to catch my scavenger hunt item,” said Zayn.
“But we saw something– that thing that’s been pretending to be a ghost,” said Ibrahim. “We panicked and tipped over the canoe.”
“Scavenger hunt item?” asked Mr. Barnell. “What were you looking for in the middle of the lake?”
“The fish!” said Zayn. “You know, the thing with overlapping scales that’s open when dry and closed when wet.”
“That’s a pinecone!” said Ibrahim, Mr. Barnell and Yusuf, all at the same time.
“Oh…” said Zayn. “Sorry.”
“Well it is the best time of day to catch fish,” said Billy Jones, who was laughing so hard his belly shook. “You boys had better get into some dry clothes before you catch a cold.”
Before the group left the water’s edge, they heard more splashing.
“Who’s there?” asked Mrs. Morris.
“Hello,” said Mr. Parker, coming out of the water in his swimsuit. “Are you boys enjoying a cool morning swim, too?” he asked. “You might want to try it without the jeans next time; it’ll help you float better,” he chuckled.
Grabbing his towel, Mr. Parker wrapped it around his waist and headed in the direction of the camp.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Moonlight Hike
“Why would Mr. Parker want to scare off visitors?” asked Zayn, munching on some blackberries from a nearby bush.
“It doesn’t make sense,” said Ibrahim. “Unfortunately, he’s on top of my list of suspects.”
“Who else is on it?” asked Yusuf, who had been taking his job as assistant detective very seriously.
“It’s a short list,” said Ibrahim, biting his lip in frustration.
Ibrahim and Zayn had been to the areas where the ghost had been seen, but they hadn’t found any clues. The forest floor near their cabins was covered mostly with loose pebbles and pine needles, which didn’t seem to have been disturbed, and the sandy beach at the lake’s edge had too many footprints to make any sense of them. It was the afternoon of their second day at camp. Most of the children were swimming in the lake or canoeing on it. Ibrahim, Zayn and Yusuf were sitting close to the water under the shade of a large, black walnut tree.
“How does the ghost know we’ll be out there?” asked Yusuf. “We keep seeing him right after fajr. If we weren’t awake, no one would have seen it.”
“And if no one had seen it, there’d be no one to spread fear to the rest of the campers,” reasoned Ibrahim.
“Guys,” said Zayn. “I think we’re being played.”
“By someone who has access to information about us,” said Ibrahim. “The forms our parents filled out when we registered had our prayer schedule, along wit
h our vegetarian meal requests!”
***
A moonlight hike though the forest was planned for that evening. As the children gathered around, Mr. Parker arranged them all in a line.
“This will make it easier to move along the narrow trail. Remember who’s behind you and who’s in front of you,” he advised. “I’ll lead, while Henry will make sure no one’s left behind.”
The children, who were a little nervous about going into the forest at night, moved a little closer to one another.
“It’s a special treat to be here during the full moon,” said Mr. Parker. “It’s a spectacular sight. If we don’t make too much noise, we might be able to see some of the nocturnal creatures that live here.”
It wasn’t long before the kids forgot their fears and began to enjoy their surroundings.
“Look up,” said Mr. Parker. “There’s a male Snowy Owl. Unlike the female, they are almost completely white. On some nights it looks like a ghost is flying around.”
The children laughed nervously as they followed their guide.
“Look! A flying squirrel,” said Mr. Barnell, from the back of the line. “Notice the wing-like membrane of skin that extends between their wrists and ankles. They don’t actually fly, but glide from tree to tree.”
The time flew by, as the students whispered and pointed to the night creatures. Mariam almost stepped on the tail of a black-footed ferret, but Kathy’s grabbed her arm just in time.
“Those were once believed to be extinct,” explained Mr. Barnell. “In 1986 a small group of eighteen was discovered. A lot of work has been done to help increase the black-footed ferret population. Now there are around 750 in North America!”
Coming to a small clearing in the woods, Mr. Parker turned to the group.
“Let’s take a five minute break before we head back,” he announced. “I’m just going to fill my water bottle from a stream up ahead. It’s truly the best water you’ve ever tasted.”
The children sat in a small circle as they waited for their guide to return.
