sister was melting. “A Hummer with Utah Jazz seat covers and its own television and VCR inside.”
Steven laughed. “You got it. I’ll make it a red one. Meet me out front, guys.”
CHAPTER FOUR
It turned out to be a white Ford Taurus, just like most of the other rental cars—not that Jack had expected anything racier.
Ashley wedged herself into the middle of the backseat between Jack and Lucky. Jack had to peer around his sister every time he wanted to say something to Lucky. That didn’t happen often, because Olivia kept up a steady stream of talk.
“Isn’t this a beautiful place? It’s a lot more mountainous than Jackson Hole, although I think they’re close to the same altitude. Which reminds me, Jack and Ashley, both of you have to write reports since you’re missing school. Ashley, yours is to be on an animal that lives in Mesa Verde, right?”
“Uh-huh.”
Olivia turned around from the front seat. “There are a lot of interesting animals in this park—coyotes and badgers and lots of mule deer and elk. Have you ever stood next to an elk, Lucky?”
When Lucky shook her head no, Olivia slipped right into her lecture mode. She loved to share information about her job at the National Elk Refuge. “Well, let me tell you, they are huge! A lot bigger than you might think. My head stops right at a bull elk’s shoulder, if you can picture that.”
“Mom, I don’t want to do a report on elk,” Ashley broke in. “What else is there? Give me something with teeth.”
“OK, how about a black bear? They have them in Mesa Verde. And, of course, the cougar. Did you know the cougar is also called a mountain lion and a puma? They’ve got several names for the exact same animal. That might be interesting to mention, Ashley, if you do your paper on Felis concolor, which is, as you can probably guess, the scientific name for a cougar.” Olivia was growing excited. “Hey, really, cougars would be great for you to write on, since I’ve already gathered a lot of information. I could highlight some of the data….”
Ashley rolled her eyes at Jack to show she did not want to talk about school reports. Jack agreed. What was the use of getting a couple of days off if they had to worry about homework right from the start? Homework could wait. School would be over at the beginning of June—just two more weeks.
“How do you know about all those animals, Mrs. Landon?” Lucky asked.
“It’s my job. I specialize in endangered and threatened species. You heard about the cougar attack I’ve been called to investigate?”
Lucky nodded. “I heard a little, but not much. What’s going on?”
Running her fingers through her hair, Olivia sighed. “It’s really tragic, Lucky. Last week a little boy was walking with his family down a trail, and he got too far ahead of them. There was a scream. When the parents came around the bend….” She paused, shaking her head. “It’s not the way cougars usually behave. That’s what’s so frightening.”
“Was the boy all right?” Lucky asked.
“He had quite a few bites around his face, but I understand he’ll make it. The park hunted down the cougar and caught it. I was asked to examine it, to check for disease or age or any other cause that could explain such an attack.”
Olivia turned back toward the front of the car but twisted around again when Lucky said, “I bet it took lots of years in school to learn all that you know about animals.”
“Uh-huh. A whole bunch of years,” Olivia admitted. “But it doesn’t seem long when you’re doing something you love.” She paused, then asked, “Where do you go to school?”
Lucky didn’t miss a beat. “Home schooling.”
“Where’s your home?”
Lucky shrugged and smiled. “Wherever.”
“Do you travel a lot?” Olivia pressed.
“Mom!” Jack protested. Talk about a grilling! His mom was sounding like the FBI. Next she’d be pulling out the truth serum. “Lucky doesn’t have to answer that,” Jack said.
“Actually, I’d rather not,” Lucky murmured, very polite and still smiling.
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