Kate’s Vermonth Adventure (6 page)

All of the girls started chatting about Sydney's trip. When they ended, Elizabeth suggested they all pray together. She typed her prayer for all of them to see.

As she signed off of the Internet, Kate thought, once again, about Nancy Drew and the movie they'd just watched. If Nancy could solve a crime…surely the Camp Club Girls could figure out who was sabotaging the Mad River Creamery!

The following morning—bright and early—Sydney came in the kitchen door, her cheeks flushed pink. She shook the snow from her jacket and pulled off her scarf. “Oh, it's beautiful out there!”

“How far did you run today?” Kate asked. Seemed like every day Sydney exercised a little more and ran a little farther!

“Only two miles.” Sydney shrugged as she pulled off her scarf and gloves. “I'm out of shape. Been eating too much of your Aunt Molly's good cooking. I'm really going to have to be careful once I get back home or I'm never going to stay in tip-top shape!”

“Oh, posh!” Aunt Molly laughed. “As much as you exercise, you could stand to eat even more. Never seen anyone eat as healthy as you. Well, no one your age, anyway.”

“It's important! I want to do well in the competition on Saturday.” Her eyes sparkled as she added, “And you know, I want to compete in the Olympics someday, too.”

“She's already been in the Junior Olympics, Aunt Molly,” Kate explained. “Sydney is a serious athlete.” She stressed the word
serious
.

“Well, that's wonderful.” Aunt Molly patted her own round tummy and laughed. “I could stand to be more athletic. These days I just work out in the kitchen, not the gym.”

“Cooking?” Sydney asked.

“No,
eating!”
Aunt Molly let out a laugh that brought Uncle Ollie in from the next room.

“What's so funny in here?” he asked.

“Aunt Molly is just telling us how she exercises,” Kate said with a giggle.

“Aunt Molly…exercises?” Uncle Ollie looked at them with a funny expression, as if he didn't quite believe them.

Aunt Molly giggled and lifted a fork. “Like this.” Opening her mouth, she pretended to eat. “I exercise my jaw.” She closed her mouth and everyone laughed.

“I hope I'm as funny as you when I'm…” Kate stopped before finishing.

“When you're old, honey?” Aunt Molly laughed. “It's okay to say it. I'm no spring chicken.”

“Did someone say something about old people in here?” Kate's father entered the room, yawning. “I'm feeling old and stiff. These cold mornings are really getting to me!”

“I could use a cup of coffee, myself,” Kate's mother said, entering the room behind him. “Good morning, everyone!”

“Good morning, Mom.” Kate reached over and gave her mom a huge hug. “We were just talking…”

“About me being old,” Aunt Molly threw in. “But that's okay. I don't mind admitting it. Maybe I don't work out as often as I should, and maybe I can't ski like I used to when I was young, but I can certainly pay the entrance fee for Sydney to do so.”

“W–what?” Sydney gave her a surprised look.

“That's right. I paid the twenty-five dollar entrance fee for you this morning,” Aunt Molly said. “I prayed about it last night and felt a little nudge from the Lord to do it. Hope you don't mind.”

“Mind? Mind? Oh, Aunt Molly!” Sydney threw her arms around Kate's aunt and gave her a warm hug. “Of course I don't mind! How can I ever thank you? My mom will be so grateful!”

“Just go out there and ski the best you've ever skied.” Aunt Molly patted Sydney on the back. “But take care of yourself. It's cold out and you'll be in unfamiliar territory.”

“Where do we go?” Sydney asked. “Where's the best skiing around here?”

“You need to ski the Rat,” Uncle Ollie explained. “That's where the competition will take place, and it's great for skiers at every level.”

“The…what?” Sydney looked stunned.

“The Rat,” he repeated. “That's the name of the most famous ski run around these parts.”

“Ooo!” Sydney let out a grunt. “Why did they have to name it
The Rat?
Of all things!”

Uncle Ollie laughed. “I see your point. But don't let the name stop you. It's a great ski run. And if you make it from the top to bottom without falling, they give you a T-shirt.” He went into another room and returned a few minutes later with a brown T-shirt in his hand. “I got this one back in the eighties when my ski legs were still strong.”

“Wow.” Kate laughed as she looked at the shirt that said T
HE
R
AT
P
ACK
on the front. “That's really cool, Uncle Ollie.”

He turned it around and showed them the picture of the rat on the back.

Sydney shuddered. “I never dreamed when I said I'd compete that I'd have to ski on…a rat!”

“It's just a name, honey,” Aunt Molly said. “And besides, you'll never overcome your fear of rats without facing it head-on. So, if you're going to teach Kate to ski, the Rat is the perfect place.”

Kate shook her head. “No thank you. No skiing for me, thanks. I'll just hang out here and work on my super-sleuth blogsite.”

“Oh, come on, Kate,” Sydney implored. “If I can overcome my fear of rats, you can overcome your fear of skiing! And you can work on the blogsite anytime! We're on vacation now!”

“I've been a member of the Rat Pack for years,” Uncle Ollie added. “We've got to keep the tradition going in our family.”

“I–if I have to.” Kate trembled, just thinking about it!

“Aw, don't worry,” Uncle Ollie said. “I wish I could go with you girls, but I've got a project going in my workshop. Should I send along your Aunt Molly as a chaperone?”

Aunt Molly laughed. “A great one I'd be! I'd probably tumble right down the hill.”

“Well, maybe I could…” Kate's mother started the sentence, but didn't finish it.

“Could what, Mom?”

“Well, it's been years since I skied,” her mom said, “but I'm willing to give it a try. To help Sydney out, of course.”

“Woo-hoo! We're going skiing!” Sydney began to squeal, but Kate's insides suddenly felt squishy!

Less than an hour later, she and Sydney arrived at the ski lift, along with Kate's mom.

“Let's put our skis on before we go up,” Sydney instructed.

Kate didn't have a clue how to do that, but with help from her mom, she got the long, skinny boards strapped onto her feet.

“Now what?” she asked. She wrapped her scarf around her neck as the cold wind sent an icy shiver down her spine.

“Now we go up!” Sydney pointed up the hill.

“And we have to go up…in
those?”
Kate felt sick to her stomach as she looked at the little chairs.

“Oh, it's a lot of fun,” her mother said. “Something you'll never forget as long as you live.”

“I'm sure you're right about that!” Kate said. Somehow she knew this whole experience was something she would never forget!

“This is the coolest ski lift ever!” Sydney said. “Like something out of the past. It's so cute.”

“Cute?” Kate shook her head. “Doesn't look cute to me. Looks scary.”

She stared up at the contraption, trying to figure out how it worked. After a minute or two, she relaxed. “It's really just a pulley system, isn't it? I know how pulleys work, so we should be safe.”

“See! You just have to look at this like you do one of your science experiments, Kate,” her mom said. “I'll help you into a chair, then I'll be in the one right behind you.”

“Let's do it the other way around,” Kate implored. “You two go first and I'll follow behind you.”

“No way!” Sydney laughed. “If we do that, we'll turn around and you'll still be standing on the ground. We need to make sure you actually make it to the top of the hill.”

After a groan, Kate agreed. “Just help me, okay?”

“Of course.”

A few seconds later, Kate was in one of the chairs, rising up, up, up into the air.

“Wow!” she hollered, her voice echoing against the backdrop of snow. “It's beautiful up here!” She looked around, mesmerized. Everything was so white…so perfect. “I can't believe I never did this before. It's so fun!”

She reached inside her pocket and pulled out her tiny digital camera. Unfortunately, she quickly learned that taking photos from the air—especially when the ground was covered in glistening white snow—was almost blinding! She put the camera away and held on for dear life.

When they reached the top of the hill, Kate carefully scooted off of the chair, doing her best not to fall as the skis slipped and slid underneath her. It was so hard to balance!

“Now what?” she asked, as Sydney's feet hit the ground.

Her friend offered a playful grin.
“Now
your mom and I teach you how to ski.”

“I can't promise I'll be a very good teacher,” Kate's mom said, looking down the hill. “It's been awhile since I've done this. Skiing is a little scary for me, too! I'm pretty wobbly!”

“I'm sure we can teach Kate what she needs to learn to make it from the top of the hill to the bottom,” Sydney said. “And before long, she'll be as fast as lightning!”

“Hmm.” Kate shook her head as she looked at Sydney. “I doubt that. Have I mentioned that I'm no good at sports?”

“Only a thousand times. But don't think of this as a sport.” Sydney's eyes lit with excitement. “I know! Think of yourself as one of those robots you and your dad like to build down in the basement at your house in Philly.”

“Huh?” Kate gave her a curious look. “Me? A robot?”

“Sure.” Sydney grew more animated by the minute. “If you had to build a robot that could ski—one that could get from the top of a hill to the bottom without falling down—how would you build him?”

“Well…” Kate demonstrated by putting her feet together and bending her knees. “He'd have to be really flexible. And he'd have to be able to shift to the right and the left to get the right momentum going, so his knees would have to bend. And he'd have to have a way to come to a quick stop, so I'd have to build him ankles that turned so he could stop in a hurry!”

“Exactly!” Sydney giggled. “You've got it! Just pretend
you're
that robot.”

Kate laughed. “Okay. So what would you name me?”

“Hmm.” Sydney paused, deep in thought. After a moment her eyes lit up. “I know! We'll call you Snow-Bot!”

“Snow-Bot it is!” Kate nodded. “So, show me what to do, O Sports Star, you!”

Sydney looked at her with a grin. “I can't believe I'm saying this, but let's hit the Rat!”

Kate looked down at the track winding alongside some trees. “Where does it lead?”

“Who cares?” Sydney called out. “That's half the fun… finding out! So, c'mon! Let's go!”

Just as they started to push off, a boy whizzed by them. He wore a red jacket and cap, but looked familiar. Kate watched as he soared down the hill, faster than anyone else.

“Oh, look Kate!” Sydney pointed with a worried look. “It's that boy…Michael.”

“I wonder what he's doing here.” Kate frowned. Hopefully he wasn't really going to enter the competition. Sydney needed to win, after all!

“He's a great skier.” Sydney watched him closely as he zipped down the hill, moving gracefully around every curve. “Doesn't look like he needs the practice.” They watched him ski all the way from the top of the hill to the first curve, where they lost sight of him. At that point, Kate groaned.

“Wow.” She didn't know what else to say. Michael
was
good.

“I'll bet he already has his Rat Pack T-shirt,” Sydney said with a sigh. “He probably has a whole drawer full! Let's face it…I'll never win that competition on Saturday if he skis.”

“Don't say that,” Kate's mother said. “I'll bet you're just as fast!”

“Probably even faster,” Kate added. “I don't know anyone who can run as fast as you. So surely you're just as fast on skis!”

“Only one way to know for sure.” Sydney's expression brightened. “Let's go!”

She pushed off and led the way. Kate looked down, took a deep breath, said a little prayer, and then inched her way forward with her mother at her side.

To her surprise, she went slip-sliding down the tiny hill without falling. In fact, she went even faster than her mother, who tumbled into the snow at the first big curve.