White Water (4 page)

W
HILE
T
IA FED CARROT PIECES
to the four horses in the barn, Kara explained what had happened with Ryan's remote control car
.

“Wow!” Tia exclaimed. “That could have spelled disaster. Is your dad really mad?”

“I don't know,” Kara sighed. “I haven't been up to the house yet. And Colin and Greg are trying to get out of dinner altogether—the cowards.”

Tia rolled her eyes. “Well, if everyone's in a mood, I guess I could call Pops and have him come get me.”

That's probably a good idea
.
But Tia looked so disappointed, Kara didn't have the heart to tell her what she was thinking. Instead she said, “Let's go see. Maybe everything's quieted down by now.”

“Yea. Like, maybe your little brother is grounded 'til he's twenty-one.”

Kara had to laugh. Tia was right. Ry was always getting into trouble. Mom had called him “an accident waiting to happen.” But Kara sure hoped he'd outgrow it before he turned twenty-one.

They went around to the back door and found Anne in the kitchen, taking the roast out of the oven.

“Tia.” Anne smiled as she spooned carrots, potatoes, and onions out of the pan into serving bowls. “There is plenty.”

Tia and Kara grinned at each other. Leave it to Anne; she was always prepared. Kara noticed the table was already set. “Sorry I wasn't around to help,” she said.

“You were needed elsewhere.” Anne adjusted her colorful shirt, pulling it down over her too-snug jeans. “For six months I move like the grasshopper. Now I must work like the ant.”

Kara and Tia both laughed. Anne had gained some weight while her broken leg was healing. She was trying to work it off, but Kara knew the older woman still had bouts of pain in her leg when she was on her feet too much.

“We'll clean up,” Kara offered. Tia nodded in agreement.

Dad and Ryan came through the kitchen door. Ryan took his place at the table and wouldn't look at anyone. Dad greeted the girls, but Kara noticed the sparkle that had been in his eyes for the past few days was gone.

“Uh,” she said, “Colin and Greg said to tell you they might not make it to dinner.”

Dad frowned. “Where are they?”

“At the bunkhouse.” Kara grabbed Tia's arm and dragged her toward the kitchen doorway. “We'd better go wash up.”

When they came back down ten minutes later, Anne was alone in the kitchen, and all the serving platters were covered with aluminum foil.

Tia groaned. “Where'd everybody go? I'm starved!” She reached for a homemade roll, and Kara nearly lost it when the quiet, unflappable, Nez Perce woman actually tapped Tia's hand with the back of a serving spoon.

“We wait,” Anne said calmly.

Tia's mouth dropped open. Then she looked at Kara, and they both burst out laughing.

“What's so funny?” Ryan bounced into the room, followed by Dad, Colin, and Greg.

Kara threw Tia a look of relief.
They must have settled it
. After the blessing, Dad started a conversation about their trip to Phoenix, and Kara knew she was right.

Kara let the conversation flow around her. It was too bad Grandpa and Aunt Peg couldn't be here, but it was so nice to have the rest of the family together at the table. She buttered a roll and felt a sense of contentment that she hadn't felt in a long time.

The talk died down, and everyone was busy eating. While eating her own meal, Anne passed the serving dishes as soon as someone was out of food. Only Ryan kept up a constant chatter between bites of roast beef smothered in catsup
.

Colin had taken off his hat, and Kara had to smile at the lock of damp, brown hair plastered to his forehead.
He must have just washed it
. She wanted to reach over and brush it away from his eyes. There was a nick on his chin from his razor, and he'd missed a few tiny hairs right along his jaw. Instead of shoveling in food like he usually did, he kept one hand on his lap and ate slowly, one bite at a time. He was quieter than usual, too, and Kara wondered if he felt uncomfortable after the episode with Ryan. Maybe she should say something; start another conversation.

Before she could think of something to say, Colin looked up and flashed her a grin that caused deep dimples in his cheeks.
Tia's right. He really does have a killer smile
.

“Wakara, is something wrong? You've barely touched your food.” Dad's voice seemed to echo through the now silent kitchen.

Kara jumped. “What? No. I mean, it's great. I guess I'm just not very hungry.” Everyone was staring at her. Her fork clattered against her plate, then fell to the floor. The heat spread from her stomach to her neck and face, and she wanted to crawl under the table.

“I'll get it.” Ryan jumped out of his chair, whacking her shin with his cowboy boot.

Instant tears stung her eyes.
This is not happening
, she thought as her little brother scooted underneath her chair, nearly knocking her over, then scrambled out again and handed her the fork.

“Don't cry, Kara. Just wipe it off with your napkin, and it'll be good as new.”

That was exactly what Mom would have said to him
. Everyone laughed and went back to eating, but Kara still felt like she was living a nightmare. Worse, Dad was still watching her with that thoughtful,
What's-going-on-with-her?
expression on his face. More than anything she wanted to ask to be excused, but that would only draw more attention, which was exactly what she wanted to avoid!

A gentle hand squeezed her shoulder as Anne handed her a clean fork. She managed to eat a few more bites of dinner, but the beef tasted stringy, and her carrots were cold.

Ryan swallowed the last of his milk and jumped to his feet. “Hey, everybody, hurry up. We get to see the movie now!” He ran from the room, and Kara could hear him rummaging through the tape drawer below the VCR. She started to call out and tell him to wait, but Dad held up his hand
.

“I'll get him in a minute.” His voice was quiet, but firm. “Anne, Ryan is to clear the table and load the dishwasher for a week.” He shook his head. “I'm sorry, I know it means more work than if you did it yourself, but I'd appreciate it if you'd supervise him.”

He cleared his throat and looked at Kara. “Wakara, please see to it that he makes his bed and puts his clothes in the hamper every morning before he goes to school. And I mean
he's
to do it. Don't give in and do it yourself, even if it takes more time. Deal?”

“Deal.” She sighed. “But what if it makes us late for school?”

“If he doesn't get it done, you both leave for the bus on time, and I'll take care of it when he gets home.”

Kara glanced at Tia, but she was examining the ceiling as if she'd never seen one before, and Colin kept his head down, concentrating on his empty plate.

Dad's gaze switched to Greg, and her older brother let out a groan. Dad smiled and laid a hand on Greg's shoulder. “He has to learn some responsibility, Son. And since you're training that high-spirited colt of yours, I think you're the one to teach him more respect for horses.”

Greg looked as shocked as Kara felt. Up 'til now, it had been her responsibility to teach Ryan to ride and groom the horses. She had started his lessons last fall, but then he took Star out without permission and lost his riding privileges.

Dad must have read her mind. “I don't mean I want him riding Lyman. Wakara can handle the riding lessons with Star. But it won't hurt him to learn how to lead and back up a horse. Just once a week or so, until he gets the hang of it. Use the round pen—it's safer.”

“Hey, you guys, come on.” Ryan raced in and grabbed Colin's arm. “You gotta see this movie; it's awesome.”

Kara could tell Colin was trying not to laugh. He ran one hand through his hair, brushing the stray lock off his forehead, then used his best Texas drawl. “Well, Partner, I think you've got some chores to finish first.”

Ryan followed Colin's arm as it swept over the table full of dirty dishes. His face crumpled, and Kara was sure he was going to cry. Instead, he sighed and handed the tape to Dad. “Oh. I forgot.” He turned to Anne. “I'll do dishes tonight, Anne. You'd better sit and put your foot up so it don't get sore.”

D
AD WAS RIGHT, OF COURSE
.
The film was not nearly as exciting without the special screen and 3-D projector. But Kara still felt the thrill of flying high over the Grand Canyon, plunging deep into the churning river, then floating through the misty shadows into brilliant light
.

“Outrageous!” Tia shouted when the film was over.

Everyone stared at her, and Kara laughed. “Outrageous?”

Tia just grinned. “Sure. And if you don't know, Miss 4.0 student, it means amazing, marvelous, impressive, and sensational!”

“It also means shocking, monstrous, and excessive,” Kara grinned back. “I had the same vocabulary track in English last year.”

Tia rolled her eyes. “Whatever.” She looked at Kara's dad. “Have you ever flown over something that awesome, Mr. S.?”

Dad shook his head. “No. I would have liked to, but no one's allowed to fly over or into the Grand Canyon anymore except for rescue helicopters.”

Tia still had that dreamy look that came over her when she latched onto an idea. “Can you imagine exploring a place like that? I mean, like, I wouldn't want to mess with the scorpions and snakes and stuff, but it would be so awesome to go in there just for a couple of days and see how those people lived, you know?”

“I'd take my raft in.” Colin's voice rang with almost as much excitement as Tia's. “Man, what a rush!”

Kara shook her head. “That would be a rush, all right. I don't see how any of those explorers survived. Those rapids were worse than class five. I'll bet they weren't even on the chart!”

Colin laughed. “Rapids probably weren't even rated back then. Now it's one through five—ripples through raging white water.” He shook his head. “Threes and fours are good enough for me. Only a crazy man would tackle a class five.”

“You could hike in,” Ryan piped up. “There's a trail for angels, but they let mules and people use it too, I saw!”

Kara reached over and ruffled his hair. “You mean Angel Trail?”

“Yeah.”

“Angel is the name of the trail, Ry. And they take mules down almost every day.” She sighed. “It looked like fun, but we didn't have time.”

“Too crowded,” Tia insisted. “At least it was when Pops took us a few years ago. We went to Mesa Verde too, and I saw how the Anasazi Indians lived. They built homes right into the sides of the cliffs and farmed the flat spots up above.”

“The Anasazi disappeared.” Everyone turned to look at Anne, who was sitting in the far corner of the room next to her loom. “Hundreds of years they live in the canyons, then they are gone.” Her face was calm, but Kara could hear a trace of sadness in her voice.

Tia nodded. “Yeah. They just vanished overnight.” She looked at Kara. “Wouldn't it be awesome to find out why?”

“Some things only God can know,” Anne said as she rose and headed for the kitchen. “I will bring the pie.”

“I'll help.” Kara uncurled herself from the couch where she'd been sitting beside Ryan and Greg.

“Me too.” Tia jumped up from her spot on the floor. “What kind of pie?”

While Tia got down the plates, Kara rummaged through the dishwasher for clean forks, and Anne cut into the deep-dish apple pie. She handed two plates to Kara, then held out two more for Tia to take into the family room, but she didn't let go of them right away. “Wakara's grandfather called while you were at the barn, Tia. He would like to read your paper on the Northern California Indian tribes.”

Kara couldn't wait to talk to Tia alone, but by the time they finished dessert, Tia's dad had arrived to pick her up.

“Your grandfather is looking for something, just like we are!” Tia whispered when Kara walked her to the front porch.

Kara nodded. “I think he already knows more than he's telling.” She frowned. “It's frustrating. He's had months to go through Great-grandfather's papers. If he knows something new about my great-grandmother, I wish he'd tell me.”

“Maybe he just wants to be sure first. You know, like, have all the facts before he tells you.”

Kara shrugged, then gave Tia a quick hug. “Thanks, friend.”

“Hey, no prob. See you tomorrow.” Tia grinned and hurried to the car.

Kara drew in a deep breath of the cool night air and tipped her head back to study the stars.
The night sky—another one of God's masterpieces
. “Outrageous,” she whispered to herself, then she chuckled. Tia could be weird sometimes, but no one could ask for a better friend.