“Good luck on the contest!” Bailey said as the families parted. “We’ll be rooting for you!”
“Thanks!” Grandpa Perkins replied. “I’ll need all the help I can get!”
The Changs found a hot dog stand and ordered five hot dogs and drinks. The aroma had tempted Bailey since they arrived. She loaded her dog with ketchup, mustard, and relish.
While they ate, they watched Native American dancers perform. Bailey was enthralled by the unusual dance style—the silent tap, tap, tapping of their moccasin-clad feet and the leaning and swaying of their bodies. They moved to the beat of a tom-tom drum, its leather top being struck hard, then soft, to make different rhythms and sounds.
A medium-skinned man with a long ponytail of black hair streaked with gray sang in his Native American language. The young dancers especially impressed Bailey. Some of them looked much younger than her. She clapped hard when their performance ended.
“Trina and I are going to run to the restroom before going to the bugling contest,” Mrs. Chang told the girls. “Do you want to come?”
“I’m okay,” Bailey said.
“Me, too,” Kate agreed.
“That sounds like a good idea,” Mr. Chang added. “You girls stay right here until we get back.”
Kate grabbed Bailey’s arm when the family left. “Look!”
The Perkins family was down the street, and Justin and Joe appeared to be telling their parents something. Then the boys ran toward one of the hills surrounding the town.
“Looks like they’re going to do some hill climbing.” Bailey frowned. “I wonder if they picked up their ‘walking stick’ from the area they hiked yesterday.”
“You mean gun?” Kate snorted. “Those guys are either avid hikers or they are up to something. What time is it?”
Bailey checked her watch. “Twelve fifteen.”
“Their hike will have to be short, or they’ll miss their grandpa’s bugling performance.”
“And Joe seemed excited about seeing it.” Bailey remembered Joe’s unexpected smile. “I don’t think he’d want to miss it.”
“Justin, however, is another matter.” Kate pushed her glasses up. She dug in her pocket and pulled out her camera-pen. Holding it horizontally, she twisted the pointed end to zoom in as close as possible. Justin and Joe’s image got larger on the metal clip. She quickly clicked the end. Bailey joined in with her camera-watch.
“Between the two of us, we should have some good shots to share with the Camp Club Girls.” Kate returned her pen to her pocket.
“Are we ready?” Mr. Chang said when the family met up again.
“Ready!” the girls shouted in unison.
“Let’s go cheer Grandpa Perkins on!”
The Changs sat in the grass near the front and sipped on their sodas. A magician entertained the crowd gathering for the bugling contest.
“I need a volunteer,” the magician said. “Who will help me?”
Bailey’s hand was up like a rocket.
“You, there, in the red sparkly shirt.” The magician pointed to Bailey.
“He’s pointing at you, Bailey!” Kate pushed her friend to her feet. “If there are talent scouts out there, they’ll all see you on stage. It could be your big break!”
Bailey ran up to the stage, her family applauding her all the way.
The magician asked Bailey her name and age. Then he looked confused. “Hmm. That’s unusual,” he said. “What?” Bailey asked.
“You seem to have something on the back of your shirt.”
“I do?” Bailey twisted to see.
The magician reached behind her and pulled out a bouquet of flowers. “Oh, I’m sorry. I hope I didn’t spoil the surprise you were hiding for your mother.”
Bailey squealed and clapped.
The magician handed the flowers to Mrs. Chang. “Let’s hear it for my lovely assistant, Bailey! Thank you for your help, miss.”
Bailey curtsied grandly and took her seat. “Do you think anyone famous saw me?” she asked Kate.
“If they were here, they totally saw you,” she replied.
Soon, the contest began. A panel of judges sat in front of the stage and took notes on each contestant’s bugling ability. Bailey scanned the crowd a short time later and spotted the Perkins family, including Justin and Joe, sitting on the other side of the bugling area.
“I guess they made it back in time,” Bailey whispered to Kate. She nodded in the boys’ direction.
“Guess so,” Kate said. “And Justin actually looks almost happy.”
“Amazing!” Bailey joked.
Grandpa Perkins’s name was announced, and he went to the microphone. “I’ve been in this bugling contest five years running and only won once, two years ago. But this is the first time I’ve ever had two cheering sections.” He waved his arm toward his family and then the Changs. They all yelled their loudest. Grandpa gave them an informal salute then cleared his throat and got down to business. He let out two low, resonant tones that quickly rose to a high-pitched squeal, followed by three deep grunts. He sounded just like one of the elk!
The crowd went wild. Even the elk in the park stopped and looked. Grandpa bowed before waving and taking his seat on the stage with the other contestants.
Bailey clapped wildly. “Grandpa Perkins was fantastic!”
Kate nodded. “I bet he wins the grand prize.”
The bugling contest continued, but after about the fifth person, Bailey thought she felt a slight tremor. She looked at Kate, who looked back at her, questions in her eyes. The shaking increased and soon people were on their feet running and yelling, “Stampede!”
Elk ran through the crowd on their long, knobby legs, more elk than Bailey had ever seen at one time before. Dust flew and parents snatched small children to safety. When the rumbling and shaking ended, Bailey noticed some people lying on the ground injured.
“The Perkinses! Where are they?” Bailey wondered aloud. As much as she didn’t like Justin and Joe, she didn’t want any of them to get hurt. The dust cleared and she caught sight of them. “There they are! By the stage.”
Mr. Perkins was helping a shaken Grandpa Perkins off the stage. “They look like they’re okay,” Kate said. “We’re lucky we weren’t hurt.”
Bailey listened to conversations around her.
“What do you think caused the elk to run through town this time?”
“I bet it was the bugling contest. Probably drew them right in.”
“They’ve never done that before.”
“Had some mighty good buglers this year.”
“They’re probably nervous with all these people around.”
“They’re trying to protect their young.”
“Protect their young? They were born in May, five months ago.”
“I think they’re aggressive because it’s mating season.”
“Could be. Peak mating is September and October.”
“But they’ve never been this aggressive in mating season before. Something got them stirred up.”
“Seems like they show up only to charge lately. They don’t roam around as freely as they once did.”
“True enough. And they seem to come out more in the evenings than they used to.”
“Where did they come from?”
“From that hill,” one said, pointing to where Bailey and Kate had seen Justin and Joe hiking.
“That’s the opposite direction from when they came out of the woods last time.”
Bailey looked at Kate as they took in all the talk. “What do you think, Kate?”
“I don’t know,” she said thoughtfully. “I think we need to talk to the other girls. Seems when we work together, things come together faster.”
“Two heads—or six—are better than one!” Bailey agreed.
As the people gathered, leaders announced that the bugling contest would resume in an hour and the winner would be declared shortly after that. The Changs walked over to where the Perkins family s
tood.
“Everyone all right here?” Mr. Chang asked.
“Yes, a bit shaken, but not injured,” Mr. Perkins answered. “Your family okay?”
“We’re fine, too,” Mr. Chang replied.
“Mr. Perkins,” Bailey said to Grandpa, “you were awesome!”
“Yeah, you sounded like a real elk!” Kate agreed.
“I bet you’re going to win.” Bailey grinned as if she’d just won a prize herself.
“Of course he’ll win,” Justin said, surprising Bailey. “No tourist should win the local contest.”
“Well, now, I wouldn’t say that,” Grandpa said, patting his grandson’s back. “The best bugler should win, wherever he’s from.”
“A tourist doesn’t know the elk bugle as well as the locals,” Justin maintained. “They should just give up and go home.”
Bailey almost laughed until she saw how serious Justin was. No hint of a smile crossed his face, no look of pride in his grandpa. Just the usual anger. Was it her imagination or was that jab at tourists targeted at her and her family?
“Come on, Bailey,” Kate said, hooking her arm through her friend’s. “I’m so sure Grandpa Perkins is going to win, we may as well go see some more of the Elkfest.”
Bailey glanced at her mother. “Is it okay, Mom?”
“Sure, go have fun,” Mrs. Chang replied.
Target Practice
When Bailey and Kate returned from the Elkfest that evening, they made a conference call to the other Camp Club Girls. Leaving Trina to watch TV in the hotel room, the two friends sat on an overstuffed couch in the lobby. Biscuit, on his leash, sat quietly between them. After all the girls were on the line, Bailey explained the children of the night mystery. Kate supplemented the story with technical details.
“You were right about the hidden switch, Alex,” Bailey told her. “Kate found it under the hallway carpet.”
“But what we hadn’t counted on,” Kate added, “was that it was on a timer, so it didn’t go off immediately when stepped on.”
“Wow! You guys are awesome!” Alex exclaimed. Bailey imagined her doing a backflip with her typical cheerleader enthusiasm. “Scooby Doo would be proud. Next thing you know they’ll be asking you to be on their show!”
McKenzie giggled. “Now that I’d like to see! Bailey and Kate as cartoon characters!”
“Anything to report on the elk research, Syd?” Bailey asked.
“Yeah. Hold on. I’ve found out a few things.”
Bailey heard papers rustling, and then Sydney continued.
“The elk in the Estes Park Rocky Mountain area are called wapiti elk. Wapiti means ‘white rump’ in the Shawnee Indian language.”
Bailey laughed. “Yep. That’s them, all right.”
“Like I mentioned before, adult elk have an awesome sense of smell, but they also have excellent hearing and can run up to thirty-five miles an hour. They’re well equipped to avoid the cougars and bears that prey on them. Strong animals like elk don’t need much cover except during extreme weather, to avoid hunters, or when they’re harassed.”
“Harassed?” McKenzie asked.
“You know, if people or other animals bother them,” Sydney explained. “They’re very social animals and live in herds most of the year. They’re mostly active at dawn and dusk, but when it gets hot or when they’re harassed, elk may become more active at night. When they’re not being hunted, elk get along well with humans so lawns and golf courses become some of their favorite restaurants.”
The girls giggled and Biscuit joined in with happy barks.
Sydney continued reading. “September and October are good months to observe them because the boy elk—or bulls, as they’re called—are battling over the girl elk, so they aren’t as worried about being seen. You’ll hear the bull’s bugle usually near dusk or dawn. You should be careful around the male elk during mating season, especially in areas where they’re used to being around people, because they tend to be more aggressive.”
“So maybe it is because of mating season that the elk have been acting so strange,” Kate said. “We heard someone say that at the Elkfest today.”
“But from hearing the townspeople talk, it seems they’re more aggressive than usual this year.” Bailey sighed.
“Sydney said they become more active at night if they’re harassed,” Elizabeth added.
“Good point,” Bailey said. “We overheard someone mention that after the elk stampede today.”
“But who or what is harassing them?” McKenzie asked.
“That’s the question.” Kate stroked Biscuit, her face thoughtful.
Silence filled the phone line for a moment.
“Not to change the subject, but have you seen those boys anymore?” Alex asked.
“Yeah, we’ve seen them a couple of times,” Bailey answered. “They went on a hike yesterday.”
“With a very unusual walking stick,” Kate added, concern clouding her face.
“Oh yeah.” Bailey’s eyes sought Kate’s. “We didn’t get a good look at it, but Justin, the older boy, had something hidden in his coat. When we asked him about it, he said it was his walking stick.”
“But it looked like it was made out of metal,” Kate chimed in, “and though it was sort of long, it was still too short to be a walking stick.”
“Then we saw them out the window as they left the hotel and walked to a wooded area. Justin’s walking stick was in plain view by then and it turns out…” Bailey paused dramatically, “…it was a gun!”
The other girls gasped in unison.
“What kind of gun?” Elizabeth asked.
“It looked like an air pellet gun or whatever those are called,” Kate said.
“It’s called an airsoft gun,” Sydney said. “My older brother has one. It’s kind of like a BB gun, but smaller, and the pellets can sting but not do serious damage.”
“But get this,” Bailey’s voice rose in excitement. “When they came back, they didn’t have it with them. When we asked them about it, they said they got tired of carrying it and left it behind.”
“Well, they said they left their walking stick behind, since they just claimed they had a walking stick,” Kate said.
“Yeah, right!” McKenzie said. “That doesn’t seem likely.”
“Bailey, you and Kate have to be careful around those two,” Elizabeth warned. “Avoid them if you can. First Corinthians 15:33 says, ‘Do not be misled: Bad company corrupts good character.’ Don’t take any unnecessary chances.”
“We won’t,” Kate assured her.
Bailey stood and stretched. “We’d better get to bed. But if any of you think of anything that could help us, let us know. And Sydney, thanks for the great info on elk. Keep up the good work.”
The next morning, Bailey and Kate started out on their hike with Biscuit, taking their secret cameras, water, cell phones, binoculars, and some trail mix. Both girls wore hoodies to ward off the early morning chill.
Rather than taking the free shuttle, Bailey and Kate decided to hike into town. They passed the rock shop and lots of cute restaurants they hoped Bailey’s parents would take them to before their vacation ended. The girls lingered outside the fudge and ice cream shop, their mouths watering. They enjoyed seeing the sleepy town wake up, its stores just opening.
“Hey, look! A miniature golf course!” Kate pushed her glasses up.
“Want to play a round before we head up the hill?” Bailey asked.
“Sure!” Kate reached down and picked up her dog. “Reminds me of the day we found Biscuit at Camp Discovery!”
The two grinned and rubbed the wiggling fur ball.
“You were so cute,” Kate cooed to him.
“And dirty and stinky!” Bailey plugged her nose at the memory.
Kate covered the dog’s ears. “Don’t you listen to her.
You’ve always been a prince.” She set Biscuit back down.
Bailey paid the man at the counter for the round of golf and they
chose clubs that were just their sizes.
“What do you think Justin and Joe are up to today?” Bailey asked.
“Probably still sleeping.” Kate stepped up to the first hole and teed off.
Bailey looked at her watch. “I guess it is only nine o’clock.” She took her turn.
“Look at that huge elk!” Kate pointed to the street. Biscuit barked and pranced around Kate’s feet.
Just as Bailey turned to look, the elk raised his head and let out a shrill bugle.
“Wow! He sounds just like Grandpa Perkins!” Bailey said seriously and then laughed at how it must have sounded. “From what we just heard, I bet he won that bugling contest yesterday. We’ll have to find out today.”
Bailey and Kate moved to the next hole, a miniature Rocky Mountain peak with tunnels for the ball to go through in the middle of the base, and one on either side.
Kate stuck out her neck and squinted through her glasses.
“What are you looking at?” Bailey asked when she realized her friend was looking into the distance rather than at the golf tunnels.
“I think I’m looking at Justin and Joe,” Kate replied, pointing toward the hill they hoped to hike later. She pushed her glasses up and squinted to get a better look.
Bailey’s head swung in the direction Kate’s finger pointed. She snatched the binoculars out of their case and peered through them. Focusing in, she found the boys. “That’s them all right, and it looks like they got to the ‘walking stick’ before we did.”
“Really?” Kate sounded disappointed, but then her voice perked up. “Can you see the ‘walking stick’ clearly?”
“Very clearly, and we were right—that’s no walking stick.”
Kate grabbed the binoculars from her friend and looked. “No, it isn’t. That is definitely a gun, and it looks like they’re doing some target practice.”
“What are they shooting at?” Now it was Bailey’s turn to squint.
“Looks like they have empty soda cans lined up on a tree stump,” Kate said. “It’s hard to tell since the trees are so thick there.” Kate lowered the binoculars.
“So we were right,” Bailey repeated, her hands on her hips.
Bailey’s Estes Park Excitement Page 5
