She slowly opened her eyes again. The bright swirls got bigger. The forest light blended the greens together into trees, swaying against the blue sky. Lee sat up. Alex wasn’t anywhere to be seen. He must still be running up the hill. Fine. Let him go on alone, she thought. She didn’t even want to call out to him.
After a while the pain became less intense. She felt the lump again, but didn’t think it was bleeding. No blood showed on her fingertips or in her brown hair, draped in front of her eyes.
When Alex didn’t come back, Lee slowly stood up and started down the hill. By the time she reached the beach, her head had cleared. But what was this?
The camp was at the edge of the trees. In front of it was a dim fire. Or…was it a fire? Lee saw smoke. She rubbed her eyes. Instead of two campers she saw only one, but it was a trailer, a strange contraption, unlike any trailer Lee had ever seen.
“What are you doing?”
Lee whirled around, startled, and put her hand to her head.
“I fell,” she told Alex, who stood before her, a puzzled look on his face.
“What’s that?” He pointed to the campsite.
Lee tensed. “You mean, you see it too?”
Alex nodded. “That’s the gonkiest trailer I’ve ever seen. What’s that green and brown thing by the smoke?”
“I don’t know. It’s alive. It moved.” Lee took a few steps down the beach.
Alex followed. “We must be camped around the bend or something,” he said. “I don’t get it. I thought we could see our camp from here. And this…this…gonky set-up wasn’t here when we left.” He frowned, his grey eyes narrowing in concentration.
“Let’s walk around it, back to our camp,” Lee said, touching her head again. “This lump hurts.”
The creature by the smoke screeched. Its chain rattled. The animal turned its back to the fire, sidling up to the warmth. Two eyes gazed at them while it called, “Woo, woo, woo.”
“It has a little face,” Alex whispered, staring.
“It’s a monkey.” Lee took several steps forward. “Come on Alex. It’s cute. Look at its bright little eyes, and it’s wearing a little dark-green dress.”
They hurried across the beach until they got to within a few steps of the monkey.
“It might be wild.” Alex hesitated.
The monkey looked at them, turning her eyes from one face to the other. She sat chained to a low bench, her behind warmed by glowing coals between two bricks. On the bricks sat a grate and a steaming kettle of water.
“Do you think I could pet it?” Lee’s headache was completely forgotten. The monkey fascinated her. She wanted to touch it, pick it up, but caution stopped her. What if it scratched, or bit? The monkey called, “Woo, woo,” then yawned, the inside of her mouth showing rows of sharp little teeth.
“Better watch out,” Alex warned. “My dad doesn’t like me going to strangers’ places.” He backed up a few steps.
From inside the trailer first one dog, then several dogs, began barking. A woman’s voice called to them to quiet down. They continued their ruckus. Someone with a heavy step walked around inside. The trailer wobbled, shaking the patched tarps that hung like a sagging old tent off one side. A sheet, pillow case and dish towel quivered on a line that hung under an awning on the opposite wall. A broom, leaning against the wall by the door, fell over.
Slowly, with a loud squeak, the door of the trailer swung open. Lee and Alex stood rooted to their spot as several small, brown dogs streaked out. They tumbled over each other in their excitement at sniffing and jumping up at strange legs.
In the doorway stood a heavy, short woman with blue-grey eyes in a round face. A black band around her head held a net over her hair. Wild, frizzy tufts of grey hair stuck out at both sides, hiding her ears. She wore a dress that hung down to her calves. Or was it a night gown? No, it was a dress, made of the same green material as the monkey’s. The woman looked about as old as Natasha’s grandmother.
With a wriggling little dog under one arm, she teetered for a second on the threshold. Regaining her balance, she set one foot, in a flat, heavy shoe, down on a lower step.
“I’m glad you got here.” Her voice was warm but stern.
The woman called the dogs back before she said, “Woo messed up the trailer. That’s why she’s out here.”
Unhooking the monkey’s chain, she cuddled the little animal in her arms. “You naughty thing.” She stroked her pet, saying, “She’s usually very good.”
Lee glanced at Alex, then looked at the woman. “When did you get here?” she asked.
“A few days ago. I’m here for my usual fall outing. I’ve been expecting you. Your father said you’d come for a lesson some day.”
Alex looked as puzzled as Lee felt, his mouth gaping in surprise. “A lesson on what?” he said.
“Don’t be smart, boy. Did you bring easels? I guess not.” The woman disappeared behind the tarp flap. Lee could hear her rummaging around.
“She’s nuts. Let’s get out of here,” Alex whispered.
They ran along the beach for a few feet before Lee stopped.
“It’s all changed.” Scratching her head, she remembered her lump. Even though it no longer throbbed, when she touched the area, it hurt.
Alex whistled through his gapped front teeth. “Man, this is really gonky. The trees are gone. It looks like somebody logged here.”
Lee nodded. “We should’ve passed our campsite by now. There’s the dirt road,” she pointed, hardly believing her eyes. They’d come down here every summer for as long as she could remember, but she’d never seen this area. Some tall, skinny trees reached high up into the air. Shrubs and dead branches covered the rest of the ground. Lee saw stumps, stumps of what must have been huge, old trees, with roots like the one Lee had fallen over, but bigger, much bigger. Some stumps had been pulled up, leaving huge holes.
“I don’t get it,” Alex said. “Did we miss our campsite?”
“I think so. It’s almost like….” Lee didn’t want to say it. She didn’t even want to think it. But from the old homestead trail to their camp was the same distance as…. She slapped at a mosquito on her arm. “That woman,” she said hesitantly, “her trailer is in our spot.”
“That’s what I thought.” Alex sat down.
“So, where are they?” Lee sat beside him on a stump as big around as a table.
“How should I know?” Alex muttered.
How could everything be gone, as if by magic?
“This is stupid.” Lee smacked the stump with her heal and glared at Alex.
“Don’t get mad at me,” he said.
“I’m not.” Lee jumped up. “Let’s ask her.”
“That woman? No way.” Alex shook his head, shocked.
“She’s all right. She’ll know where our campsite is. She’s been here for a few days.” Lee frowned. “I wonder why we didn’t see her before.”
“You go.” Alex stayed on the stump, but by the time Lee reached the beach she heard him running after her.
“Let’s check for tire marks.” He pointed to the old dirt road.
The path leading from the