Chloe's River Rescue Read online

  The lady waves her walking stick around. ‘It’s rubbish. You’ll be doing me a favour.’

  Before anyone can blink, Bella is loading up a rusty trolley with old fence palings.

  ‘Is that a bike under those vines?’ Grace asks.

  The lady puts her glasses on. ‘Ah, yes,’ she says. ‘Haven’t ridden that in about twenty years. If you can untangle it, take it.’

  I spy an old plastic chair under a shrub. ‘Bella, could you use this?’

  She claps excitedly. ‘Yes! It could be the driver’s seat!’

  ‘What else do you need, Bella?’ Emily asks. ‘A steering wheel of some sort?’

  Bella scans the yard. ‘No need for a steering wheel,’ she says. ‘That rope will do nicely.’

  The lady looks like she’s about to doze off in her rocking chair.

  ‘What’s your name?’ Bella asks her.

  She opens one eye. ‘Joan. Like Joan of Arc.’

  Bella jumps onto the porch and shakes Joan’s hand. ‘Well, you’ve certainly saved my day,’ she says. ‘You’re a saint, just like the real Joan of Arc.’

  Emily is buying a bag of fairy floss at least three times the size of her head.

  ‘That will be two dollars, please,’ the stallholder says.

  ‘How much money do you have left, Emily?’ I ask.

  ‘Eight dollars,’ she says. ‘Enough for four more bags of fairy floss – my favourite food. The fair only runs for another four days, so we could come back for another bag each day.’

  Grace points at a wall of balloons. There’s a boy throwing darts at them. ‘You should use some of your money for that, Emily. You’ve got an eye for angles and precision. Plus, five straight days of fairy floss might turn you off your favourite food for life.’

  ‘The carnies rig those games,’ Emily says. ‘I won’t be wasting my money on them.’

  ‘What are carnies?’ I ask.

  ‘People who travel from town to town following the fair circuit,’ Emily says. ‘They never stay in one place long enough to get caught for rigging the games.’

  The boy’s final dart bounces off a balloon and falls to the ground. We edge closer and watch another boy hand over two dollars.

  The carnie passes him three darts. ‘Take your time,’ she says. ‘If you pop a balloon, you win a teddy bear.’

  The first dart misses the balloons altogether. The second hits a balloon but it doesn’t bust. ‘Drats,’ the boy says. ‘I’ll throw the next one harder.’ He pulls his arm back, as though he’s pitching a softball, and throws the dart with all his might.

  It hits a balloon right in the middle of the wall, but again it doesn’t budge.

  The boy stomps his foot in frustration and calls out to his mum, ‘I need more money!’

  ‘Why didn’t the balloons burst?’ I whisper in Emily’s ear.

  Emily pulls two dollars from her pocket. ‘Okay, here goes,’ she says. ‘Let me show you the problem.’

  The stallholder gives her the same three darts the boy used.

  Emily holds the first dart up to her eye and shakes her head. ‘This won’t work. The tip of the dart has been broken off.’

  The carnie snatches the dart from Emily. ‘Here’s another.’

  Emily takes the second dart and runs her finger over the tip. ‘This won’t work either. It’s been filed down. Darts are supposed to be sharp.’

  A few more kids and parents are gathering around. The carnie is getting flustered. ‘Pipe down, will you,’ she says out of the corner of her mouth. ‘Try this one.’

  Emily inspects the third dart, then looks up. ‘This dart is pointy enough,’ she says. ‘But there’s also a problem with the balloons.’

  ‘Okay folks, I’m calling it a day here!’ the carnie shouts to the growing crowd. ‘Be sure to come back tomorrow!’

  She grabs the third dart from Emily’s hand and gives her back her two dollars. ‘Buzz off,’ she hisses. ‘You’ve made your point.’

  A boy speaks up. ‘What’s wrong with the balloons?’

  ‘They’re not blown up properly,’ Emily says. ‘Under-inflated balloons will deflect most darts even if you throw them well. The chances of winning a prize here are very low.’

  ‘We want our money back!’ yells the boy who tried his luck before Emily.

  We quietly step away as the crowd erupts.

  ‘Wow,’ I say. ‘I wonder how many of the games here are dodgy.’

  Emily hands me her fairy floss and takes a notepad from her pocket. ‘You’ve just inspired my mission for the trip,’ she says. ‘What do you think of this?’

  Mission Carnie Cracker:

  Expose the fair’s tricksters.

  Something about Emily’s mission makes me feel a little uneasy. ‘Do you think they deserve it?’ I ask. ‘I mean, they’re not really hurting anyone.’

  Emily’s bottom lip drops. ‘I thought you’d support me as a scientist, Chloe. The beautiful thing about maths and science is that they rely on accuracy and truth – not lies and hocus pocus like these carnie games.’

  I nod. I guess the carnie folk could still do their jobs honestly.

  ‘All in favour?’ Emily asks.

  Grace, Bella and I raise our hands.

  ‘Good,’ Emily says. ‘By the time this holiday is over, the Pacific Palms Unfair will be the fairest of them all.’

  I smile as I feel Yiayia’s fingertip on my forehead.

  She likes to wake me up by tracing heart shapes around my face. ‘Rise and shine, paidi mou,’ she whispers. ‘Twenty minutes until sunrise.’

  I stretch my arms above my head. ‘I’ll wake the others.’

  I enjoy sleeping in sometimes, but there’s nothing like watching the sun rise over the ocean. When I was younger, Yiayia used to take me to the beach every morning on our holidays. This year I promised the anti-princesses we would all head down to the sand at least once before the sun came out.

  ‘I’m up,’ Grace whispers from across the room. ‘I’m used to early starts for athletics practice.’

  Emily wakes with a startled snort. ‘Is it time already?’

  I roll over to Bella and lift her eye mask. She needs to block out every speck of light to sleep properly. ‘Morning, Bella,’ I say. ‘Time to go to the beach.’

  Bella pulls a pillow over her face and asks in a muffled voice, ‘Should we wear our swimsuits?’

  Grace leaps out of bed and pulls on her boardshorts. ‘Great idea, Bella,’ she says. ‘An ocean dip first thing in the morning is excellent for getting the blood pumping.’

  I grab a beach towel and tiptoe into the kitchen. There’s a basket on the table.

  ‘Look inside,’ Yiayia says quietly.

  I open the lid and start drooling. There’s a fruit salad, a huge tub of yoghurt, five cinnamon doughnuts and a thermos of chamomile tea.

  ‘A breakfast picnic,’ I whisper. ‘What an awesome idea, Yiayia.’

  ‘We can go the lake after the sun comes up,’ Yiayia says. ‘The seagulls must be wondering why we haven’t visited yet.’

  I pass the basket to Grace and take a couple of torches from the cupboard. We follow Emily out the back door.

  Every bird in town seems to be singing the dawn chorus.

  ‘Listen to that,’ I say. ‘It’s mostly male birds singing loudly to show off to potential mates. It’s like they’re telling all the female birds that they’ve woken up strong and healthy.’

  I take Yiayia by the forearm to help her down the stairs. ‘Watch your step, Yiayia. It’s still pretty dark.’

  She clutches the handrail. ‘I may not be a male bird, but I have woken up strong and healthy, paidi mou.’

  I let her walk on her own, but by the time we reach the hard sand near the water’s edge I notice she has broken out in a sweat. I lay out my towel and help her sit down.

  ‘Don’t worry, Yiayia,’ Grace says. ‘Walking across soft sand is a workout for all of us.’

  I wink at Grace to thank her for trying to mak
e Yiayia feel less self-conscious.

  We sit in silence as a glint of pink appears on the horizon. Shades of red, purple and orange slowly swallow the black until the sun peeks over the edge of the ocean and floats into the sky.

  ‘Beautiful,’ Bella says. ‘I wish I had some paints and a canvas here to capture it.’

  The sky turns to blue and I can’t resist another scientific fact. ‘You know, the sun appears to rise above the horizon and circle the Earth,’ I say. ‘But it’s actually the Earth that’s rotating while the sun stays still.’

  ‘Well, I can’t stay still any longer.’ Grace kicks off her thongs. ‘Last one in the water is a rotten egg!’

  Bella and Emily take off after her.

  ‘Do you want me to sit with you, Yiayia?’ I ask. ‘I don’t mind.’

  Yiayia shoos me away. ‘Don’t be silly. Go!’

  I run into the water at full speed. I’m feeling brave, so I swim out a little further than the others. I duck dive, and as my head breaks through the surface of the water I look back.

  Grace, Bella and Emily are madly swimming to the shore.

  I squint beyond them at the sand and see Yiayia.

  She’s lying in a heap.

  I kick frantically and bodysurf the next wave in, crash-land next to Grace and push her out of the way. Yiayia’s eyes are open but she doesn’t seem to see me. I gently tap her cheek and she blinks three times.

  ‘I think I need a doughnut,’ she says.

  Grace hugs me quickly. ‘I’m going to head back to the house and get your parents.’

  Yiayia frowns as Grace takes off. ‘It’s nothing,’ she says. ‘It happens when you get to my age.’

  It’s my turn to frown. ‘Enough, Yiayia. Fainting is a big deal.’

  Emily and Bella look at each other awkwardly. They’ve never heard me be so stern with Yiayia.

  ‘How about I fetch the tea from the picnic basket?’ Emily asks. ‘Come on, Bella, you can help.’

  I rest my chin on top of Yiayia’s head and wrap my arms around her shoulders. ‘You scared me,’ I say. ‘Don’t do it again, you hear?’

  Yiayia’s fast asleep with Mum by her bedside.

  ‘I’ve made a doctor’s appointment for her,’ Mum whispers to me. ‘She probably just overdid it. Sometimes she can walk for miles, but other days she just doesn’t have the energy.’

  I hang my head. I feel responsible for Yiayia’s fainting.

  ‘It’s not your fault,’ Mum says. ‘Go back to the beach with the girls. The lake will have to wait again.’

  I kiss Mum and Yiayia and head outside. Grace is waxing her surfboard while Emily rubs sunscreen on Bella’s back.

  ‘Is Yiayia all right?’ Grace asks.

  I nod. ‘Let’s go to the beach.’

  Grace groans when we reach the sand. Kailani, Taylor, Ash and Tex are already in the water. ‘They’re in the best position,’ Grace says. ‘I won’t catch anything now.’

  A couple of men, about the same age as our dads, are paddling out to the same spot.

  ‘You’ll be okay, Grace,’ Emily says. ‘Those adults will pull the kids into line if they give you any trouble.’

  Grace bends over and touches her toes. ‘You’re right. At least it won’t be four against one like it was the other day.’

  Bella, Emily and I follow Grace into the water to swim in the shallows as she paddles out to where the waves are breaking.

  One of the men launches onto a wave and does an impressive turn before flicking off.

  ‘He’s a great surfer,’ Bella says. ‘Doesn’t look like he’ll be taking any nonsense from the jerks out there.’

  Tex gets into position to catch the next wave. Just as he is about to jump to his feet, the other man drops in on him.

  ‘Ooh, that was close,’ I say. ‘They nearly collided.’

  Tex sticks his middle finger up at the man and makes way for Ash to take off. The other man drops in on him too.

  Then it happens to Kailani, and again to Taylor.

  Kailani, Taylor, Ash and Tex are yelling and making rude hand gestures at the men.

  ‘Looks like those older guys are even bigger jerks than the local kids,’ Bella says. ‘They won’t let anyone get a wave.’

  Grace paddles into the line-up and gets ready to try her luck. But, sure enough, one of the men cuts her off.

  The swell dies down for a moment and the seven surfers are all bobbing next to one another. Kailani thumps the nose of her board and screams at the men, ‘The next one’s mine!’

  One of the men splashes water into her face. ‘No one owns the ocean, kid,’ he says. ‘It’s not our problem if you’re too slow to take off before us.’

  Ash grabs a clump of seaweed floating by his board and hurls it at him, only just missing. ‘Go back to where you came from! This is our beach!’

  The men put their heads down and start paddling towards him.

  Grace does the same and lines up her board to act as a barrier between the kids and the adults. ‘Cool it!’ she yells. ‘Someone could get hurt out here.’

  The men are fuming. One has his chest puffed out and fists clenched and the other has veins pulsating in his forehead and neck.

  Grace turns to Kailani and Taylor. ‘Let’s head in,’ she says. ‘The waves aren’t that great anyway.’

  Surprisingly, the girls listen to Grace and paddle back to us with their brothers in tow.

  ‘That’s the way!’ The men start laughing. ‘Back home to your mummies and daddies, grommets!’

  Grace and the other kids reach the sand and pull off their leg ropes. They dump their boards and sit staring out to sea.

  Bella, Emily and I join them. I’m not sure who should speak first. We’re still not exactly friends with Kailani, Taylor, Ash and Tex.

  Taylor breaks the silence by bursting into tears.

  ‘There’ll be more waves later,’ Grace tells her. ‘It’s not the end of the world.’

  ‘You don’t get it.’ Ash pegs a shell into the water. ‘You’re stupid tourists just like them.’

  I stand up and put my hands on my hips. ‘Now listen here. If it wasn’t for Grace, you may have got your head punched in by one of those guys.’

  Kailani stands up and meets me eye-to-eye. ‘Every holidays, you tourists swarm into town and take all our waves.’

  I step back from her. Kailani’s worked up and a little too close for my comfort. ‘You need to get your facts straight,’ I say. ‘Grace is the only one of us who even surfs.’

  Taylor is next to rise. ‘Well, your friend can’t just turn up and take our waves. That’s not how it works.’

  Grace jumps up with Bella and Emily behind her. ‘I don’t want to take anyone’s waves,’ Grace says. ‘There are plenty for everyone if we just follow the rules.’

  ‘You really don’t know what you’re on about,’ Tex scoffs. ‘There are no rules in surfing, stupid.’

  Grace pauses for a moment to think. ‘You’re actually right, Tex,’ she says. ‘I always thought that taking turns on waves was a rule…but it’s not. It’s just good manners.’

  Kailani, Taylor and Ash look shocked, like they didn’t expect Grace to be so considerate, especially after Tex called her stupid.

  ‘Do you play any other sports?’ Grace asks.

  Tex nods. ‘I play soccer.’

  ‘I play soccer too,’ Grace says. ‘And you know what makes it work? Rules. Otherwise it would be a big mess of people running around a field like chooks with no heads.’

  I’m not sure where Grace is going with this, but the jerky foursome is softening up. Tex and Ash shuffle closer to her, and Kailani and Taylor are actually smiling at her.

  ‘I’d like to propose a mission,’ Grace says. ‘I think we should come up with a surfers’ code of conduct. We can put a sign up on the paths to the beach with a list of rules for everyone to follow – locals and tourists.’

  Emily grabs a stick and writes into the sand.

  ‘All in favour?�
�� Emily asks.

  Grace, Bella and I raise our hands.

  Kailani, Taylor, Ash and Tex look truly baffled, but they stick their arms in the air too.

  ‘Can one of the rules be no tourists allowed?’ Tex asks.

  Grace ruffles his hair like she does to her own brothers. ‘Very funny,’ she says. ‘And no.’

  Tap, tap, tap. Tap, tap, tap.

  Bella started working on her billycart as soon as we got back from the beach. So far, she’s detached the wheels from the bicycle and trolley we salvaged from Joan of Arc’s yard. Now, she’s nailing the fence palings together.

  ‘Thank goodness your parents had a toolkit in the house, Chloe,’ she says. ‘All I brought along was a wrench and a tape measure.’

  I hold a paling steady as Bella hammers another nail into the wood. ‘Do you think you’ll be ready by Saturday?’

  ‘Of course I will. The cart I’m making is basic – with a couple of special additions.’ Bella picks up a brick in each hand and smiles mischievously. ‘I found these under the house. They’re my secret weapon.’

  I take a brick to feel how heavy it is. ‘Great idea,’ I say. ‘From a physics perspective some added weight should make you go faster, especially if there aren’t any corners and your cart isn’t very aerodynamic.’

  Emily and Grace emerge from the house, still in their swimsuits.

  ‘Check out Bella’s billycart,’ I say. ‘It’ll be finished soon.’

  Grace looks doubtful. ‘No offence, but it still looks like a pile of junk.’

  Emily elbows Grace in the ribs. ‘I see what you’re doing,’ she says. ‘The fence palings are the frame.’

  We all huddle around and watch as Bella makes axles out of two metal rods from the trolley. She fixes two small trolley wheels at the front of the billycart frame and two bigger wheels from the bike at the back.

  ‘Smart move,’ Emily says. ‘Bigger wheels at the back will cause an effect where the rear wheels try to catch the front ones. You’ll go faster that way.’

  Bella gives Emily the thumbs up. ‘That was my plan. Now, guys, step away for this next part.’ She pulls on some safety goggles. ‘Mrs Karalis!’ she yells. ‘I need to use the drill now!’