Page 30 of Alice & Meg: Summer Vacation
“Not me,” Reva called from the edge of the pool.
“And not me,” Cyn added.
Meg squinted at the little turtle.“Then where in the hell are you coming from?”
“I found three on the back of the toilet,” I added helpfully.
“Yeah, I found two on my beach towel yesterday,” Adley chimed in.
The table buzzed with confusion.Where were these tiny turtles coming from?Was this some quirky marketing scheme from the Flamingo Inn?But why turtles?You’d think it would be flamingos.
Meg stuffed the turtle in her pocket.
King reached out and pulled her into his lap, wrapping his arms around her waist.“Relax, babe.”
She sighed and leaned into him.“Mini turtles are haunting me.”
“Sounds about right for things that would happen to you,” he chuckled.
Meg pouted.“I’m usually the one doing this kind of thing, not the other way around.I bet it’s Greta,” she mused.
King snorted.“Too obvious.Maybe it’s Adley or Reva.They’re quiet.Stealthy.”
Meg watched Reva, who was tucked under Hero’s arm, and Adley, sitting on the edge of the pool with her feet in the water.
“I don’t know… they don’tseemlike turtle bandits,” Meg whispered.
“Could be Alice,” King offered.
Meg looked at me.“Youwoulddo something like this.”
“Maybe,” I smirked.“But it’s not me.I’m mad because I didn’t think of it first.”
King laughed.“That tracks.”
As the conversation mellowed and plates emptied, Glenna and Dottie stood.
“We’re heading home in the morning,” Glenna said.“Want to beat the weekend rush.”
“You sure you don’t want to stay and go mini-golfing with us?”Greta pouted.
Dottie shook her head.“We’re not getting caught in Falls traffic on a Friday.We love you all, but we love an empty highway more.”
Meg walked over and handed them a jar of her salsa.“For the road.And if you find more turtles, don’t blame me.”
Glenna hugged her.“You’re a peach.We’ll be back next summer, and you better be here.”
“We will,” I promised.“Same week.Same motel.Same flamingos.”
They waved their goodbyes and disappeared into their room.
As the tiki lights buzzed overhead, the rest of us cleared the table.Tossed plates, packed up the leftovers, and started trickling off toward our rooms.
I hung back with Meg as she rinsed out her big salsa bowl at the outdoor sink.
“You still thinking about the turtles?”I asked.
Meg nodded.“You bet your ass I am.I’m gonna find out who’s behind it.”
