Treasure Beach: Chapter Two, Part Five

Not sure why you're here or what to do?  Visit this page for enlightenment and instructions.  It's not too late to read along.  And don't forget to visit quilter Pat Sloan's website to sew along on the Happiness Key quilt that goes along with the series.

Chapter Three begins next week.  Do you prefer to read  in one big gulp instead of having the story doled out in parts?  Here's the pdf of Chapter Two .  Look for pdfs on the last Tuesday of each month.

Treasure Beach: Chapter Two, Part Five

Tracy had pulled out of her driveway and backed into Alice's by the time Olivia came out the front door. She got in beside Tracy and fastened her seatbelt. "This is such a neat car."

"When it's time for you to learn how to drive, I'll give you Bimmer lessons."

"That's awesome."

"So what have you been doing since camp ended?"

"Nothing."

That surprised Tracy, who had expected Olivia to say she'd been hanging out with friends. The girl had been voted the most congenial of campers. "Are you afraid to go out because your grandmother's been sick? You know we'll watch out for her if you're not around."

"I haven't felt like hanging out with anybody."

"Really? You were one of the most popular girls in camp."

"Want to know why I'm going to Randall's?"

Tracy knew a change of subject when she heard one. "Sure." She listened as Olivia told her all about the bottle with a message in it that she'd found, and how she was going to see if anybody at Randalls could tell her who regularly bought SunDrop soda.

"Wow," she said when the girl had finished. "Wicked."

"I thought the message might be from Lizzie. You know. But Wanda says no chance."

"Wanda the Wise."

"But what if somebody is being held against their will? I mean, isn't it up to us to figure out if it's true?"

"I think we can safely assume somebody's just fooling around."

"Well, it would be awful if we didn't do anything, and it was true. Wouldn't it feel terrible to be that person, all alone and powerless, with nobody who cared?"

Sometimes Tracy wished she could still be the airhead she'd been when she was married to CJ. But she wasn't, not anymore, and she heard what Olivia was really saying.

"Are you feeling kind of lonely yourself?" she asked the girl. "Now that Lizzie's gone?"

"Not really." Olivia turned as if she was fascinated by the view out her side window. "I'm getting used to people leaving me."