Alaska Adventure by Cynthia Baxter Read Free Book Online Page B

bathroom?”
    “The outhouse is off to the right, about a hundred feet into the woods,” Dr. Wells replied matter-of-factly as he stepped inside. “Okay. Before everybody starts putting their stuff down, I’ll give you your room assignments. Russ and Trip, you take the loft. I’ll take the bedroom off to the left, the smaller of the two. Cassie, Laurel, and Mariah, you three’ll be sharing the other back bedroom. In it are a set of bunk beds and a cot. You can battle out who gets which. But don’t worry; with your sleeping bags spread out on them, you should all be pretty comfortable.”
    “Three to a room?” Mariah protested.
    “Hey,” said Trip, brightening, “if any of you ladies feels too crowded, you’re welcome to—”
    “Spare us,” Laurel broke in. “I’m sure we’ll manage just fine.”
    She glanced over at Cassie, wanting to give her an encouraging smile. But the woeful look on her best friend’s face told her it would take a lot more than that to cheer her up.
    * * * *
    Dr. Wells had been correct in his assessment of how long it would take everyone to unpack. Spreading out her sleeping bag on the top bunk and hanging some of her clothes up on the hooks on the wall took Laurel less than five minutes. Leaving Cassie to wrestle with her sleeping bag on the bottom bunk and Mariah to agonize over how little storage space there was for all the clothes she’d brought, she went into the kitchen area to find something to drink.
    Dr. Wells had beat her there. “I’ve mixed up a pitcher of iced tea,” he informed her cheerfully. “We even have ice. That refrigerator might be small, but thanks to the magic of propane it works as well as any other.”
    Laurel accepted the cold drink he offered. Perching on the edge of the couch, she was about to ask him about the first steps the team would be taking the following morning when a stranger’s voice called, “Knock, knock!”
    Standing in the doorway, holding back the mosquito netting, was a tall, gaunt man with a ragged beard and bright blue eyes. At his side was a small boy, probably no older than eight or nine. Like his father, his dark blond hair looked as if it could use a trim. His blue eyes were also exact copies of the older man’s. One thing that was noticeably different, however, was the scattering of freckles across his nose and cheeks.
    “I’m John Torvold, the station manager of the Wolf Lake Preserve. And this is Danny. Is Dr. Wells here?”
    “I’m right here, John.” He emerged from the kitchen area, his own glass of iced tea in hand.
    “Ethan! Great to see you!” The two men exchanged a hearty handshake.
    “Same here.” Dr. Wells tousled Danny’s hair. “Hey, Danny. How’s that insect collection going?”
    The little boy looked surprised. “You remembered!”
    “Of course I remembered,” said Dr. Wells. “You’ve got one of the most impressive collections I’ve ever seen.”
    Danny was beaming. “I’ve got more than a hundred species!” he reported proudly.
    The sound of footsteps out on the front porch caused them all to look out. A woman in jeans and a T-shirt was hovering behind them, smiling shyly.
    “Come on in, Lucy,” said John. “Dr. Wells is back— and he’s brought a whole new group of students.”
    The sound of unrecognizable voices brought the others out of the sleeping areas and into the front room.
    “Let me introduce all of you,” Dr. Wells said, suddenly sounding strangely formal. “Lucy and John Tor-void, meet Laurel Adams, Cassie Davis, Trip Raynor, Marian Burke, and Russ Corcoran. John and Lucy take care of things here on the preserve. Their son, Danny, knows more about this place than anybody in the world.”
    “I learned a whole bunch of new stuff, too!” the boy asserted, wearing a wide grin.
    “There’s somebody else living on the preserve,” said John. “Jim Whitehorse helps me with some of the heavy work around here. He’s kind of a loner, living off in the woods in his own