by Annie Bryant
It seemed like nothing could ruin the Beach Barnacle’s perfect mood. That is, until they heard a muffled noise starting to sound from Avery’s beach towel.
“EARTH TO BARNACLES, OVER!” suddenly blared out of the walkie-talkie.
Avery stared at the walkie-talkie like it might detonate and blow up into a million tiny pieces. Kiki’s eyes danced with mischief and she dove for the little yellow device. “Hi, Mrs. Moore!” she sang. “Ooover!”
“Are my young Barnacles discovering many a clue?” asked Mrs. Moore in her version of an Old English accent.
“But of course!” Kiki gushed. “We’re on fire, Mrs. Moore. I think the Beach Barnacles might even win.”
Avery gave her a look. She didn’t mind evading the truth a little bit, but Kiki was doing more than just evading. They’d spent the entire day playing and hadn’t found a single clue! There was no way they could win.
“That is mooo-arvelous news,” replied Mrs. Moore, switching back to her comfort zone of cow talk. “I had a feeling this mission would be udder-ly perfect for you Beach Barnacles. “Haven’t lost anyone yet, right? Ha ha ha, I’m only kidding, of course. Okay, well, I’ll see you at your place in an hour, Kiki. Over and out.”
After Kiki put down the monitor, she took a gander around the beach. “Come on, we’ve got to get back to my place! So…where’s Chelsea?”
“Um, did anyone see her leave?” Ben’s volleyball-victory expression drained away as the Barnacles glanced guiltily at one another with Ben and Avery looking guiltiest of all. Avery felt bad that Kiki Underwood, Empress of Mean, had noticed that Chelsea had gone missing before she had. Ben felt even worse because Chelsea was his own sister, and he was supposed to be in charge.
“Geesh! Where did she go?” Avery demanded.
Ben scratched his head. “Um, I thought she was just wandering around her with her camera. Maybe she went for a walk, but I didn’t think she’d go that far….”
“Okay everybody, stay calm,” Yurt ordered. For a tiny boy, the president of the seventh-grade class had a way with demanding trust and attention. “She’s gotta be on this beach somewhere. We just have to find her. Avery, you and Ben go left. Kiki and I are going to go right.”
Avery chuckled. Poor Yurt—he had a huge soft spot for the glamour-type girls, no matter how atrocious their personalities. Then she remembered. He did go to the Valentine’s Dance with Betsy who was sooo serious. That kind of ruined her Yurt/glamour-girl theory.
Ben was starting to get frantic, so Avery jogged beside him as he ran hollering Chelsea’s name up and down the beach. Both were silently blaming themselves for having fun and totally forgetting to look out for Chelsea.
“I’m, like, the worst chaperone and the worst brother rolled into one,” Ben confided to Avery.
“Don’t worry, we’ll find her!” Avery picked up the pace, even though her throat was aching from half an hour of screaming nothing but “Chelsea! Chelsea! CHELSEA!”
Suddenly, Avery noticed a jetty of large boulders with a small pool of water siphoning in and out just ahead of them. “Hey, isn’t that a tide pool?” she managed to shout at Ben. “That’s one of the thingies on our bonus list.”
She and Ben ran over to get a closer look. As they rounded the jetty, a flash of yellow sweatshirt caught Ben’s eye. “Chelsea?” he blurted.
Chelsea, in a much better mood after her day of strolling the beach and taking pictures, looked up and smiled. “Oh, hey, guys! You won’t believe how many bonus items I got.”
Avery stood still as if she was staring at a ghost. Ben ran up and grabbed his sister in a giant bear hug. “What?” Chelsea laughed. “You guys are being so weird.”
“Chelsea, we’ve been worried sick!” Avery exclaimed. “The whole team’s running around the beach looking for you!”
Ben stopped hugging Chelsea and suddenly grew stern. “How could you disappear like that and not even tell me?”
Chelsea’s mind was boggled. “Are you kidding me? All I’ve been doing all day is trying to help our team. All you two have been doing is goofing off and having fun and now…you’re getting on my case?”
Avery couldn’t really argue that—she’d had a fantastic day surfing, swimming, and kicking a major win in beach volleyball.
“What’s wrong with having fun?” Ben asked.
“It’s okay, but we are supposed to be solving clues for a certain scavenger hunt. I thought you’d be happy that I’ve been working! Geesh!” Chelsea muttered.
Ben, who still looked guilty that he hadn’t noticed Chelsea’s absence, confessed, “I am happy, Chels; it’s just…”
Chelsea began to storm back to the team, where she was greeted by a whole new slew of frustrated and angry faces.
“Geez, Chelsea, it’s bad enough that we had to lie to Mrs. Moore in the first place, but now you made us late for the barbecue! We’re never going to get away with this!” Kiki moaned.
“What?” Chelsea said defensively. She was the only one who had stuck to scavenger hunting and now everyone was blaming her! Plus, she had never lied to a teacher in her life—except for bending the truth to get out of gym, and she was sure that couldn’t possibly count. I mean, she thought, I think there’s some kid universe rule that getting out of gym is considered okay.
“You all did nothing all day…and lied…to a teacher,” Chelsea accused the whole team.
Yurt shrugged. “Well, we didn’t exactly lie…just kind of stretched the truth.” He pulled his gum out of his mouth into a long, blue string on the word “stretched.” Everyone, even Chelsea, cracked up. “Chels, we didn’t want her to get mad at us for blowing off the scavenger hunt thing and not getting any points.”
“It just wasn’t the whole truth,” Avery pointed out.
Chelsea shook her head. “Well, it was stupid. “’Cause what are we going to say at the barbecue when people ask us what we did all day? Did anyone even think about that?”
Obviously, no one had, because the Barnacles just looked at one another sheepishly.
Ben grumbled. “We should have said something else!”
Chelsea bonked her brother on the head with her sweatshirt sleeve. “Totally, dude. But, the day is not completely lost. I got a bunch of points while you slackers were playing beach bunnies.”
“You did?” Yurt exclaimed. “How?”
“Bonus points…” Chelsea replied.
“Well, just how many could you have possibly gotten so that it would even make a difference?” Kiki demanded in a haughty tone.
Chelsea took an envelope out of her backpack and a list with nine checks. “All but one!” she declared proudly. “There’s even a street on the other side of the beach named after an animal—Deer Path, and someone actually had a towel covered with foxes. I figure that is close enough.” Now it was Chelsea’s turn to be haughty.
No one said anything for a second. Everyone knew that if it weren’t for Chelsea, the Barnacles would be toast!
Ben gave her a huge bear hug while the team let out a loud cheer and took turns slapping Chelsea high fives and patting her on the back—except for Kiki, of course. Unfortunately, there wasn’t any more time for celebrating. The Barnacles were already running super late.
“We have to get to the barbecue fast or we’re gonna be in so much trouble!” Avery concluded.
Kiki smiled. “You forget…it’s at my house!”
“Sooo…” Avery insisted on pulling it out of her.
“Soooooo, I know a shortcut!” she said curtly.
The Beach Barnacles finally pedaled away from the beach, dreaming about (or desperately needing, in Ben’s case) some delicious grilled grub dripping with barbecue sauce. Only Chelsea was still wondering what she would say when Mrs. Moore or Charlotte and Nick asked her about their day at the beach. She could lie…or as Yurt put it, stretch the truth. But somehow neither felt right.
Part Two
The Race Is On!
CHAPTER
11
; Yo Ahoy Ahoy What Up?
The sun, turning from bright yellow to warm honey, fell onto the trees like a giant beach ball. Everyone on the set was sipping iced tea, and congratulating one another on a hard day’s work on the set.
When Mr. Moore buzzed through on the walkie-talkie to tell the Cranberry Boggers it was getting close to dinnertime, Maeve felt a little sad. She had been daydreaming about Ozmond asking her to stay on as a full-time member of the cast.
“Why, Ozmond, dear,” she would say after he asked her to expand her part. “I’d be delighted!”
She had already planned out how she would decorate her dressing room: all pink with lots and lots of sparkling jewels and feathered boas. Hey, she’d throw in a top hat too, just for good measure.
Even though she’d gotten a huge glob of superglue on her new sneakers when she and Patrick were assembling the wetu, Isabel had enjoyed every moment of her day as well. It was worth it just to have gotten to contribute to a real movie set. Isabel decided to cherish that little glue glob as a free souvenir.
Poppy gave the Boggers directions back to the bike path, which, as it turned out, they had actually been riding alongside the whole time! As the team headed out on their bikes, they heard someone running behind them.
“Hey there!” It was Bethany. “You guys wouldn’t be interested in shooting again with us tomorrow? We have one more crowd scene, and it would totally help me out.” Bethany looked like she was about to get down on her knees and beg them to come back.
“Bethany! It would be our honor!” Maeve blurted before anyone else could say anything. She covered her mouth when she realized she had spoken for all the Boggers. Seeing their shocked faces, she backtracked a bit. “I mean…I guess.”
“But Maeve, don’t you think tomorrow we need to start working on this scavenger hunt?” Isabel prompted. “I don’t want to get in trouble…or let Nick, Charlotte, and Chelsea down. They worked so hard at putting it together.”
But everyone paused for a moment to think about Bethany’s offer. “Well, Isabel…this is, like, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” Danny offered.
“You know, we can always do a supercharged clue hunt when we’re done,” argued Betsy, who believed in the power of planning. “Bethany, will this crowd scene take place first thing in the morning?” she asked.
“No prob, Bets,” Bethany assured the film’s historical accuracy consultant. “I’m sure Ozmond would agree to that. I’ll tell him you kids can only do it then,” she said with a wink.
After almost gagging at Betsy’s pleased-as-punch smile, Maeve grabbed Isabel’s hand and gave it a squeeze. Izzy was the sweetest girl, and she didn’t want a fellow BSG to feel bad about the team’s decision.
“Where are you shooting?” asked Fabiana, taking out her map.
Bethany showed the Boggers the location—two miles up the coast.
“Hey, isn’t that on our scavenger hunt route anyway?” asked Betsy, who had spent some time carefully mapping their path.
“You’re right!” Danny exclaimed. “Always on target, Betsy.”
Maeve whispered playfully to Isabel, “I think Danny and Betsy could be the best love match since ‘Isabel and Danny in the Museum.’” Isabel made a face and yanked one of Maeve’s curls.
Fabiana agreed that since the location was on the way, they could afford to squeeze in “a few more hours of movie time…but no more than two!” she warned. After carefully taking down the directions from Bethany, she placed the map safely in the side pocket of her bag.
“Would you like me to be in charge of the map this time?” Betsy volunteered.
Maeve was proud of how Fabiana coolly replied, “Thanks, Betsy, but I got it covered.” And then Nick’s sister did the funniest thing.
“Cranberry Bogger alert! Everybody check out where I am stashing the map! Map in the pack,” Fabiana sang as she waved her hands around like a bandleader.
“Map in the pack,” she beckoned for everyone to join in. Betsy looked at her as if she were an alien. “Hi-ho, the derry-o, the map is in the pack!” the team sang. At the close, there were high fives all around. No way was Fabiana going to lose another map.
“Well, I guess that should do the trick,” Betsy said sarcastically.
Wow! Betsy cracks a joke, thought a bemused Isabel.
“Ha ha, Betsy!” Danny slapped his knee. “You are too funny!”
On the ride to Kiki’s, Maeve regaled Isabel with all the details of what it was like to be filmed on a real movie set. “I personally enjoyed it,” she noted, “but Annabella did not.”
“Who’s Annabella?” asked Isabel.
“Oh, my character…her childhood was very difficult, you know.” Maeve’s voice dropped to a whisper. “I think she might be afraid of crowds.”
“Oh,” Isabel said. At this point in her friendship with Maeve, she knew that sometimes the best way to deal with Maeve’s fantasy worlds was to just go along…as though everything that came out of MKT’s movie-star-in-training mouth actually made logical sense.
“Yes,” Maeve continued as they rode along. “Annabella is a very complex character. I really have to work at remembering her issues when I scrub the deck. I mean, should I scrub with vigor or with regret?”
Isabel, who had other things on her mind besides Maeve and Annabella, nodded vaguely. She was still feeling a little guilty about how the Cranberry Boggers had spent their day. No one on the team had gotten a single clue. Not one. The only points they’d earned were the few items from the bonus list that she’d found on the set.
“Hey, look,” Riley suddenly shouted. “Squirrel Lane. Isn’t a street named after an animal one of the things on the bonus list?” he asked.
“Riley, you get an A plus!” Isabel said with relief. She quickly hopped off her bike to snap a photo. A little while later they found themselves riding alongside the lovely ocean shore, and Isabel captured a shot of a sand dune. In total she had four bonus-point items—the prop fox, the pirate-themed thing, the street, and the sand dune.
Still, Isabel only felt a smidge better about the team’s predicament. It was the same sick-to-her stomach feeling she got when she left a big paper to write the very last night before it was due. No bueno! She knew she would feel terrible the minute she saw Charlotte. Would she have to lie to her friend?
“So when everyone asks us what we did today, just what exactly are we supposed to tell them?” she asked Fabiana who rode up alongside her.
“We tell them exactly what we did. We had fun…found a lot of bonus point stuff…and we’re going to concentrate on clues tomorrow.”
“It is the truth…sort of,” said Betsy, who caught up on Isabel’s other side.
But the truth, Isabel knew in her heart, was that no one wanted anything to get in the way of their being in this movie. Maeve and Fabiana were thrilled to be in a real live movie with Orlando Plume and Simon Blackstone. Even Betsy and Danny were getting a feel of the stardom rush—Danny with his role as an extra and Betsy as Ozmond’s preferred historical consultant. And Isabel had to be honest. She loved hanging out with Patrick and Poppy…much more than trying to win a scavenger hunt.
Only Riley would have probably been just as happy to never put on that goofy costume or makeup again, but he was so easygoing that he wasn’t complaining. Instead, he and Maeve were laughing hysterically as they rode their bikes next to each other and belted out a rap song that Riley was making up on the spot.
I’m hanging out with pirates, yo ahoy ahoy what up?
You better look out, mates, ahoy, or yo, I’ll steal your cup!
My mates are kinda raggy, hey, but that’s just how we row.
The captain’s all ‘What up, homies? The landlubbers lie down below!’
“Well, one thing’s for sure,” an adamant Isabel said to Fabiana and Betsy. “We can’t tell the Adventure Club leaders that we blew off the hunt they’ve been working so hard on—I mean, Charlotte would be totally crushed if she knew we skipped out on scavenger
hunting today.”
Overhearing the conversation, Maeve stopped rapping to solemnly concur, “Yes, you’re so right, Isabel. We have to think about their feelings.”
“That’s really nice of you guys,” Betsy said, sounding surprised.
Maeve and Isabel looked puzzled. “Well, obvi—that’s what being friends is all about,” said Maeve, who didn’t go on to say that that was what being in the BSG was all about. She didn’t want to seem cliquey. But from the expression on Betsy’s face, it was clear that Betsy had no idea what the BSG was all about. Maybe in Betsy’s mind the BSG were like the Queens of Mean. That would be terrible, worried Maeve.
After all, cliques are sooo yesterday, she reasoned, remembering how a group of girls in third grade made fun of her red hair and wouldn’t sit with her. She flashed her best megawatt smile at a dazzled Betsy.
“Maeve.” Isabel leaned in so no one else could hear her. “Do you think we are really lying?”
“I don’t think so,” Maeve said, then thought for a minute before adding. “We’re just not telling the whole truth to spare our friends’ feelings.”
“I guess so,” Isabel responded. But if it was okay, why did she feel so upset about not telling Char what they did all day?
Salty Cods and a Seaside Mansion
Katani was hot again. Really hot. The sweat was pouring down her face and her back. She couldn’t understand what kind of bad luck had fallen on her that she got stuck in the group that insisted upon riding their bikes at absolute super speed to every single destination. She could understand if she were on Avery’s team or something, but the person mostly responsible for this constant torture was her very own flesh and blood—Patrice—her competitive, intense sister.
Katani had to admit, however, that all the extra effort came in handy when they rolled up to a mailbox with Kiki’s address number and balloons on it at five o’clock sharp—right in time for the barbecue. She couldn’t wait to slurp down tall lemonade and collapse in a chaise lounge. Katani loved the sound of “chaise lounge.” When she had her own house, she promised herself that she would have a hundred chaise lounges…in different colors!
