The Barnstormer (Chapter 1 Beginning)
Belle of the Glades book #3
The girls’ bait, pieces of stale bread, floated on top of the pooling water before the large fallen tree trunk. Hungry minnows nibbled at the easy meal. Barefooted Belle and her Indian friend Summer waded into Lake Okeechobee. Shoulder to shoulder, each one held their own tree branch. Fishnetting stretched between the two branches. Uncle Arden had helped pinch small lead weights along the lower side of the netting and positioned floats at the top end. She and Summer dipped the weighted end of the netting beneath the hungry minnows and let the other end float on the water’s surface. They stood as still and quiet as statues…waiting. Belle nodded, and together they lifted their minnow net upward.
Both girls grinned with pleasure to find they’d caught several good-sized minnows. Carefully, so they wouldn’t lose any, they walked up the bank and set the net on the ground.
“Your ducks will feast today,” Summer said.
“Yes. Blick, Flick, Glick, Snick, Plick, Wick, Quee—”
“You’ve named every one?”
“Certainly. How can I call them if they don’t have names?”
Summer’s eyebrows rose as she shook her head. “Here ducky, ducky?”
Belle giggled. “I read about the play Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in a newspaper article. It listed the names given the dwarfs; they didn’t have names in the Grimm’s Fairy Tales my mother read to me. But this is 1919, and I guess the actors needed stage names. Anyways, I thought they were perfect for my Peking ducks.”
“But you’re missing two names,” Summer said.
“Dilly and Dally. My names for the remaining two, who are always the slowest and at the back of the group.”
Both girls bent to catch the shimmery, flipping minnows and put them in their empty soup can.
“You’re truly happy here at your uncle’s fish camp, aren’t you?” Summer asked.
“Coming to live with Uncle Arden was a huge change for this city girl, but I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else now. I’d have never met you, or Sam (like a mom), or Fernan, and my dog, Hog--wherever he is.”
“Yeah, we got near the shore, in the lake even, without Hog splashing and bathing us in water. I knew you seemed quieter, glum.”
“I haven’t seen Hog since he walked me to school three days ago. I thought he’d show up all scruffy and filthy that evening. Uncle Arden has passed the word to keep an eye open for him. We’ve looked for him every day, but he seems to have disappeared without a trace.”
“Yeah, I know he’s with you every moment you’re not in school. I’m so sorry, Belle.”
“He’ll be back. I know he’ll be back,” she said. She sniffled and wiped at her watery eyes.
“I know that, too,” Summer said, as she leaned forward and tilted her head to look up into Belle’s lowered eyes. “It’ll be okay.”
Belle sighed and nodded. “Let’s get a few more minnows for my ducks.” She didn’t want to think about Hog. It hurt too much to think she might not see her buddy again.
They tossed more bread crumbs before the minnows, grasped their ends of the net, and waded into the shallow water. Again, they pulled up a dozen or more minnows, put them in the can, and headed up the slope toward Belle’s “little farm.”
She loved calling her Peking Ducks and Rhode Island Red chickens to dinner. The ritual was rewarded by the birds’ hustle to get to the tin food pans. Ducks and chickens trampled over one another to get there first.
The Barnstormer (Chapter 1 Beginning)
Belle of the Glades book #3
The girls’ bait, pieces of stale bread, floated on top of the pooling water before the large fallen tree trunk. Hungry minnows nibbled at the easy meal. Barefooted Belle and her Indian friend Summer waded into Lake Okeechobee. Shoulder to shoulder, each one held their own tree branch. Fishnetting stretched between the two branches. Uncle Arden had helped pinch small lead weights along the lower side of the netting and positioned floats at the top end. She and Summer dipped the weighted end of the netting beneath the hungry minnows and let the other end float on the water’s surface. They stood as still and quiet as statues…waiting. Belle nodded, and together they lifted their minnow net upward.
Both girls grinned with pleasure to find they’d caught several good-sized minnows. Carefully, so they wouldn’t lose any, they walked up the bank and set the net on the ground.
“Your ducks will feast today,” Summer said.
“Yes. Blick, Flick, Glick, Snick, Plick, Wick, Quee—”
“You’ve named every one?”
“Certainly. How can I call them if they don’t have names?”
Summer’s eyebrows rose as she shook her head. “Here ducky, ducky?”
Belle giggled. “I read about the play Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in a newspaper article. It listed the names given the dwarfs; they didn’t have names in the Grimm’s Fairy Tales my mother read to me. But this is 1919, and I guess the actors needed stage names. Anyways, I thought they were perfect for my Peking ducks.”
“But you’re missing two names,” Summer said.
“Dilly and Dally. My names for the remaining two, who are always the slowest and at the back of the group.”
Both girls bent to catch the shimmery, flipping minnows and put them in their empty soup can.
“You’re truly happy here at your uncle’s fish camp, aren’t you?” Summer asked.
“Coming to live with Uncle Arden was a huge change for this city girl, but I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else now. I’d have never met you, or Sam (like a mom), or Fernan, and my dog, Hog--wherever he is.”
“Yeah, we got near the shore, in the lake even, without Hog splashing and bathing us in water. I knew you seemed quieter, glum.”
“I haven’t seen Hog since he walked me to school three days ago. I thought he’d show up all scruffy and filthy that evening. Uncle Arden has passed the word to keep an eye open for him. We’ve looked for him every day, but he seems to have disappeared without a trace.”
“Yeah, I know he’s with you every moment you’re not in school. I’m so sorry, Belle.”
“He’ll be back. I know he’ll be back,” she said. She sniffled and wiped at her watery eyes.
“I know that, too,” Summer said, as she leaned forward and tilted her head to look up into Belle’s lowered eyes. “It’ll be okay.”
Belle sighed and nodded. “Let’s get a few more minnows for my ducks.” She didn’t want to think about Hog. It hurt too much to think she might not see her buddy again.
They tossed more bread crumbs before the minnows, grasped their ends of the net, and waded into the shallow water. Again, they pulled up a dozen or more minnows, put them in the can, and headed up the slope toward Belle’s “little farm.”
She loved calling her Peking Ducks and Rhode Island Red chickens to dinner. The ritual was rewarded by the birds’ hustle to get to the tin food pans. Ducks and chickens trampled over one another to get there first.
GCWA Contest Winner/Children's Story 2012
BELLE OF THE GLADES by Cheryl Abney
Lake Okeechobee, Florida 1918
“The glades must have its own Marshall. It may be the last frontier in Florida—in these United States even—but it need not remain a hideout for criminals!”
“It won’t be easy finding a civilized man to brave outlaws in this rugged lake country. Why, you need carry a machete just to cut trail ahead of you through the sawgrass, and the mosquitoes eat you clean up if you walk out at night. There’s neither electricity nor plumbing in most places! Some are living in tents and shacks!”
Isabelle’s fascination was interrupted by Captain Zeke as the Glades Runner left the canal behind and entered a lake you could not see across. "Ladies and gentlemen, this is truly the last bit of uncivilized territory remaining in America."
Isabelle shivered as she stared out at the vast lake. Only sky and water surrounded her. She watched the water grow choppy and heard the waves hammer the side of the boat. Dark, threatening clouds moved across the blue sky. The breeze grew stronger and Isabelle took off her hat and clenched its rim in her fists.
Mrs. Zeke pulled rain slickers from the storage box and handed them out. As she placed a black slicker about Isabelle’s shoulders, its size swallowed her up. Mrs. Zeke chuckled and gave her a comforting hug. “Don’t worry none. Captain Zeke knows this lake well.”
***
As the Glades Runner pulled along side the dock at Ritta, Isabelle saw stacked crates, mailbags, and a handful of people. Roughly hewn out boats were shoved up on the narrow beach. Indians, people she knew only from picture books, stood beside the boats in their brightly striped, zigzag patterned shirts.
Isabelle fumbled to open the locket that hung around her neck. Her eyes flitted to the dock and back at the locket picture of her Uncle Arden. I don’t see him. She swiped at the tears she had suppressed the entire trip. Now they stung her eyes and she ran to the gangplank, searching the strange faces. Would I recognize him if I saw him?
“Some storm, hah? Captain Zeke?” shouted the only woman on the dock.
“Sure blew in fast. Had to take shelter between Torry and Little Kreamer Islands.”
The captain patted Isabelle’s shoulder as she stood in the aisle beside him. “You all seen Arden today?”
“I saw his fishing boat go out early this morning” said the woman. She removed her neck scarf and swiped the sweat from her matted red brow.
“Early this morning, hah Sammy? Well, this young gal expected to see her uncle waiting at the dock to welcome her. Do you think you could take Isabelle up to your place until Arden arrives?”
Sammy stood with hands on her hips surveying Isabelle’s pin-tucked blue blouse, navy pleated skirt and her several bags and boxes.
“Looks like she might be here for more than a visit, don’t you think Cap?” She extended her hand to Isabelle. “Come on, hon. Your uncle will be here shortly.”
Hearing the Glades Runner’s engines as she and Sammy started up the path together, Isabelle glanced back over her shoulder. She stumbled over a stick in the path and Sammy hauled her up by her arm. Both stood to watch Captain Zeke’s boat pull away from the dock. Isabelle blinked repeatedly to stop the flow of tears. She didn’t want Sammy to see her cry, but a sniffle escaped her. Sammy squeezed her shoulder gently and the two turned back inland.
“That’s my place there.” Sammy pointed toward a gray wood building that stood on stilts. Its steps climbed to a screened door beneath the large red letters S-A-M-S. “This here is store, meetin place, and post office.”
The solitary store didn’t help calm Isabelle’s fears as she climbed the stairs after Sammy, one heavy step at a time.
“My stomach is growling for food. Is yours Isabelle?”
“No, Maam.”
“Well, you can sit here on the porch and watch for your Uncle, while I fetch us a small bite to eat.”
Alone, Isabelle’s thoughts raced when she saw the Glades Runner just a speck in the distance. What to do? What to do? If I really hurry, I could catch up to Captain Zeke’s boat and he’ll take me back home. She fled around the porch corner, down the steps, and toward the twin wheel ruts through the tall weeds. The uneven ground caused her to stumble and trip again and again. Tired and out-of-breath, she dropped down to her knees to rest.
Then Isabelle saw some large rocks along the shore and thought they might give her a better view. Perched on top of the largest rock, she heard the sound of approaching footsteps. Who might that be? Maybe the bad men those gentlemen were talking about? Her sudden movement to get down and hide in the tall grass sent her shrieking into the shallow water.
She heard the saw grass scrunched down by rapid footsteps and before she had time to get to her feet, strong arms grasped her around the waist and lifted her to firm ground. She stood dripping water and covered with muck. She tasted the salty tears that ran down her cheeks. She could contain them no longer. Her heart pounded within her as she gasped for breath.
Wiping the muck and tears from Isabelle’s face with his hanky, her rescuer revealed a freckled nose and cheeks beneath pale blue eyes. “Isabelle?”
Hearing her name from this stranger, she stared back at eyes as blue and questioning as her own. “Uncle Arden?”
“Yes. I’m sorry I wasn’t at the dock to meet you. I never received word you were coming. Captain Zeke met me on the lake and I came as quickly as I could. None too soon I see.”
He removed his over-shirt and wrapped it around her shoulders, picked her up in his arms and headed back towards SAMs. Isabelle leaned into the warmth of his chest. Uncle Arden whispered, “With your pluck, you’ll get along here just fine. Tomorrow I’ll show you around your new home, Belle.” She smiled at the nickname. Belle. She liked it. Though far from the only home she had ever known, she felt safe at last.
Lake Okeechobee, Florida 1918
“The glades must have its own Marshall. It may be the last frontier in Florida—in these United States even—but it need not remain a hideout for criminals!”
“It won’t be easy finding a civilized man to brave outlaws in this rugged lake country. Why, you need carry a machete just to cut trail ahead of you through the sawgrass, and the mosquitoes eat you clean up if you walk out at night. There’s neither electricity nor plumbing in most places! Some are living in tents and shacks!”
Isabelle’s fascination was interrupted by Captain Zeke as the Glades Runner left the canal behind and entered a lake you could not see across. "Ladies and gentlemen, this is truly the last bit of uncivilized territory remaining in America."
Isabelle shivered as she stared out at the vast lake. Only sky and water surrounded her. She watched the water grow choppy and heard the waves hammer the side of the boat. Dark, threatening clouds moved across the blue sky. The breeze grew stronger and Isabelle took off her hat and clenched its rim in her fists.
Mrs. Zeke pulled rain slickers from the storage box and handed them out. As she placed a black slicker about Isabelle’s shoulders, its size swallowed her up. Mrs. Zeke chuckled and gave her a comforting hug. “Don’t worry none. Captain Zeke knows this lake well.”
***
As the Glades Runner pulled along side the dock at Ritta, Isabelle saw stacked crates, mailbags, and a handful of people. Roughly hewn out boats were shoved up on the narrow beach. Indians, people she knew only from picture books, stood beside the boats in their brightly striped, zigzag patterned shirts.
Isabelle fumbled to open the locket that hung around her neck. Her eyes flitted to the dock and back at the locket picture of her Uncle Arden. I don’t see him. She swiped at the tears she had suppressed the entire trip. Now they stung her eyes and she ran to the gangplank, searching the strange faces. Would I recognize him if I saw him?
“Some storm, hah? Captain Zeke?” shouted the only woman on the dock.
“Sure blew in fast. Had to take shelter between Torry and Little Kreamer Islands.”
The captain patted Isabelle’s shoulder as she stood in the aisle beside him. “You all seen Arden today?”
“I saw his fishing boat go out early this morning” said the woman. She removed her neck scarf and swiped the sweat from her matted red brow.
“Early this morning, hah Sammy? Well, this young gal expected to see her uncle waiting at the dock to welcome her. Do you think you could take Isabelle up to your place until Arden arrives?”
Sammy stood with hands on her hips surveying Isabelle’s pin-tucked blue blouse, navy pleated skirt and her several bags and boxes.
“Looks like she might be here for more than a visit, don’t you think Cap?” She extended her hand to Isabelle. “Come on, hon. Your uncle will be here shortly.”
Hearing the Glades Runner’s engines as she and Sammy started up the path together, Isabelle glanced back over her shoulder. She stumbled over a stick in the path and Sammy hauled her up by her arm. Both stood to watch Captain Zeke’s boat pull away from the dock. Isabelle blinked repeatedly to stop the flow of tears. She didn’t want Sammy to see her cry, but a sniffle escaped her. Sammy squeezed her shoulder gently and the two turned back inland.
“That’s my place there.” Sammy pointed toward a gray wood building that stood on stilts. Its steps climbed to a screened door beneath the large red letters S-A-M-S. “This here is store, meetin place, and post office.”
The solitary store didn’t help calm Isabelle’s fears as she climbed the stairs after Sammy, one heavy step at a time.
“My stomach is growling for food. Is yours Isabelle?”
“No, Maam.”
“Well, you can sit here on the porch and watch for your Uncle, while I fetch us a small bite to eat.”
Alone, Isabelle’s thoughts raced when she saw the Glades Runner just a speck in the distance. What to do? What to do? If I really hurry, I could catch up to Captain Zeke’s boat and he’ll take me back home. She fled around the porch corner, down the steps, and toward the twin wheel ruts through the tall weeds. The uneven ground caused her to stumble and trip again and again. Tired and out-of-breath, she dropped down to her knees to rest.
Then Isabelle saw some large rocks along the shore and thought they might give her a better view. Perched on top of the largest rock, she heard the sound of approaching footsteps. Who might that be? Maybe the bad men those gentlemen were talking about? Her sudden movement to get down and hide in the tall grass sent her shrieking into the shallow water.
She heard the saw grass scrunched down by rapid footsteps and before she had time to get to her feet, strong arms grasped her around the waist and lifted her to firm ground. She stood dripping water and covered with muck. She tasted the salty tears that ran down her cheeks. She could contain them no longer. Her heart pounded within her as she gasped for breath.
Wiping the muck and tears from Isabelle’s face with his hanky, her rescuer revealed a freckled nose and cheeks beneath pale blue eyes. “Isabelle?”
Hearing her name from this stranger, she stared back at eyes as blue and questioning as her own. “Uncle Arden?”
“Yes. I’m sorry I wasn’t at the dock to meet you. I never received word you were coming. Captain Zeke met me on the lake and I came as quickly as I could. None too soon I see.”
He removed his over-shirt and wrapped it around her shoulders, picked her up in his arms and headed back towards SAMs. Isabelle leaned into the warmth of his chest. Uncle Arden whispered, “With your pluck, you’ll get along here just fine. Tomorrow I’ll show you around your new home, Belle.” She smiled at the nickname. Belle. She liked it. Though far from the only home she had ever known, she felt safe at last.
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