Aunt Louise inspected the brochure more closely. “Cape Cod, huh?” She passed the brochure to my mother. “That’s just a few hours south of here, right, Dinah?”
My mother nodded, slowly turning the pages.
“We’d be happy to pay for Truly to go along and keep Mackenzie company,” said Uncle Teddy. That was his polite way of saying, I know money is tight in your family—let me help out. Uncle Teddy was really generous.
This was one time that I wished he weren’t, though. I shook my head violently at my mother behind his back, drawing a finger across my throat and then pretending to stick it down inside for good measure. Didn’t she understand that I had no interest in learning to be a mermaid? None! But my mother pretended not to see me.
“Well, it would certainly be a nice opportunity for her,” she said, glancing over at my father. “And for us, too, don’t you think, J.T.? Just imagine! All five of them away at once!”
I couldn’t believe my ears! She was trying to get rid of me! What about all our plans for pedicures and shopping and day trips to Boston?
“What about me?” I asked indignantly. “Don’t I have a say in this?”
“Really, Truly,” said my father, frowning. “You could be more gracious. Your aunt and uncle are offering to do something very nice for you.”
For you, you mean, I thought, but for once I didn’t put my size-ten-and-a-half foot in my mouth and say so. I cast around frantically for another reason not to go. “But you need me at the bookstore!”
My father wasn’t budging an inch. “Your aunt and I can handle things just fine without you. Right, True?”
My aunt nodded. There was no support there, either. They were all traitors!
“Who’ll take care of Bilbo?” I said, playing my trump card. “You need me for that—Lauren has to go back to Camp Lovejoy tomorrow.”
That would definitely get me off the hook. No way would my mother want to deal with changing ferret litter.
“I’m sure Belinda will watch him if I asked,” she replied calmly.
I opened my mouth to retort and shut it again. There wasn’t much I could say to that. My mother was right. Belinda Winchester was very much like my sister Lauren when it came to animals. At least in the kitten and cat department, which was pretty close to the ferret department.
“What on earth are you two going to do without any children underfoot?” asked Aunt Louise in mock horror.
My mother didn’t even hesitate. “Sleep. Go to the Fabulous Fifties film series with Rusty and True. Not have to cook for anybody, or do laundry for anybody, or drive anybody anywhere.”
My father reached over with his good hand and gave hers a squeeze, smiling. “Sounds like heaven.”
And just like that, my perfect summer flew out the window.
CHAPTER 8
The rest of the Fourth of July passed in a shell-shocked blur. After the clambake, my father loaded us all into the school bus and drove back to Lake Lovejoy for the fireworks. I sat slumped in my seat in a daze as Mackenzie prattled on about Sirena’s Sea Siren Academy. My perfect summer hadn’t just been whisked out from under me—it had been turned inside out and flipped end to end. It was enough to make anybody’s head spin.
Things only got worse when we reached the lake. The beach was packed with people in lawn chairs, happily anticipating the fireworks to come. My friends spotted our bus as it pulled in and came over to join us.
“Any news?” asked Lucas, screeching to a halt in front of Mackenzie. Scooter was right behind him.
My cousin smiled her Gifford sunflower smile. “About what?”
“The missing trophy.”
Mackenzie looked over at me.
I shrugged. “Don’t look at me—I don’t know anything.”
His main reason for conversation exhausted, Lucas dangled there, growing pinker by the minute until my cousin took pity on him.
“We do have a bit of news, though, don’t we, Truly?” she said.
I shook my head grimly. “Nope. We do not. No news at all.”
She turned to my friends. “Truly and I are going to mermaid camp!”
Lucas was rendered even more speechless, if that were possible. Scooter and Calhoun stared at us. So did Cha Cha and Jasmine, before they started squealing so loudly that they attracted a herd of my younger cousins, who came charging over to see what was going on.
“What the heck is mermaid camp?” asked Scooter.
Mackenzie took out her cell phone and showed our friends the video ad she’d found online for Sirena’s Sea Siren Academy. It sent the boys into gales of laughter—and sent Cha Cha and Jasmine running off to ask their parents if they could go too. The result was that in nothing flat all four of us were signed up and would be heading together to Cape Cod.
“I can’t wait!” exclaimed Jasmine happily. “C’mon, Truly, how could this not be fun?” she added, noticing the sour expression on my face.
Let me count the ways, I thought bitterly. First of all, it turned out that it wasn’t just a camp for teenagers; it was for adults, too, which meant we were going to be spending a week with a bunch of seriously deranged people obsessed with mermaids. Second, I was going to have to wear a stupid clamshell bra, or at least something that looked like one. Competitive swimmers didn’t do bikinis. Okay, maybe some of them did, but not me. And then there was the tail!
Aunt Louise had called the number on the brochure right after dinner. “You girls are in luck—they still have a few open slots this week,” she told us. “Sirena says we’ll have to rush-order mermaid tails for you, though. I’ll have them shipped directly to Cape Cod.”
This was rapturous news to Mackenzie, who had begged my mother to
