Free Secret at Mystic Lake by Carolyn Keene

his seat, turning on Dagger. “Whose fault? I tried my best here, okay? You took a turn reading the map wrong too, if I recall.”
    â€œThe difference is, I’m not one of the leaders of this trip.”
    Henry turned pink and shoved a finger toward Dagger as though he were going to shout something back, but Zoe cut him off.
    â€œYou guys both got us lost, okay? You were both trying to be king of the mountain or whatever, and neither one of you handed off the map until we were good and lost already. I can’t believe this!”
    â€œLike you were so helpful!” Henry spat, turning on Zoe. “All you’ve done since we left the inn is complain! Why are you even on this tour?”
    â€œGuys!” Bess cried, holding up her hands in a big trucesign. “Who cares whose fault it is? Have you forgotten that Caitlin is still missing? Every hour we sit here yelling at each other about it is another hour that she doesn’t get help!”
    Bess’s pronouncement was greeted by a shamed silence. After a minute or so, Zoe cocked her head.
    â€œDo you guys hear that?”
    I tried to focus, but I couldn’t hear anything. Maybe I was too zonked by the ride.
    â€œIt’s, like, burbling,” George said, looking into the trees on the right side of the road.
    â€œI think it’s a stream,” Zoe said.
    Henry let out a sigh of relief. “Well, that’s something,” he said, dismounting from his bike and grabbing his water bottle off the underside of his seat. “We can at least take a break and refill. I do have water purification tablets in my pack. Maybe we can even take a dip, if it’s deep enough.”
    â€œYes,” Dagger agreed, climbing off his bike too. “Let’s take a break and regroup. Then we can talk about what to do.”
    We left our bikes on the roadside and followed Zoe through the trees into the woods. It took a few minutes, but soon we found ourselves on the bank of a clear, bubbling stream, just deep enough for wading. We all eagerly refilled our water bottles. Henry pulled off his sneakers and waded in. After I’d wandered into the woods to answer the call of nature, I came back out and took off my shoes too. When I dunked my toes in, I gasped—the water was cold enough to take your breath away. But it felt kind of good after the hot sun. I waded in a little deeper, then splashed some water on my face.
    Bess, George, Dagger, and Zoe had all dispersed, either using the bathroom or resting in the woods or filling their bottles a distance away, so I found myself alone with Henry.
    â€œI just can’t stop thinking about my sister,” he said in a quiet voice, before I could say anything.
    â€œI’m sure we’ll find her,” I said, trying to look optimistic, though it was getting harder and harder as the day went on.
    Henry nodded. “I hope so. I keep thinking—whatif she just wandered off to, like, see a different part of the lake or something, but then she came back and we weren’t there?”
    I raised an eyebrow. “Henry, are you sure you two didn’t fight before she disappeared?”
    Henry sighed and shook his head. “For the last time, we didn’t. But, you know—Caitlin gets mad at me a lot. She always says she feels like she has to work so hard for everything, and I just kind of bob along in her current, you know? We fought a lot before we left for the tour, honestly, because she felt like I wasn’t pulling my weight.”
    I wasn’t sure what to say to that. “It sounds like you guys are really different.”
    Henry nodded. “We are.”
    â€œBut if you guys didn’t fight, why would she just run off like that? Dagger said—”
    â€œDagger’s an idiot!” Henry suddenly burst out, poking his finger in my face. “Seriously! You believe that guy?”
    I stared at Henry, trying to remain calm. “I haveno reason not