Free Alaska Adventure by Cynthia Baxter

surroundings—even though she suspected her copilot, panting behind her, was working much too hard to be having any fun.
    “How’re you doing back there?” she called over her shoulder.
    “Fine,” Cassie puffed. “This is a lot more work than I thought. In the movies, it always looks so easy.”
    “Make sure your paddle is straight up and down as you dip it into the water—like this.”
    “It’s no use,” Cassie insisted. “I’ll never get the hang of this. It’s too hard.”
    Once again Laurel decided not to argue. In the long silence that followed, she contentedly drifted back into her reverie, shutting out all thoughts except for her appreciation of the moment. She luxuriated in the feeling of the warm sun on the back of her neck, the cool breeze rising up off the lake as their canoe veered off to the left, following Dr. Wells’s lead....
    “Laurel?”
    “Yes, Cassie?”
    “I’ve been meaning to ask you something kind of ... personal.”
    The strain in Cassie’s voice immediately put Laurel on guard. “Shoot.”
    A few more seconds passed before Cassie asked, “Are you interested in Trip?”
    Laurel was so shocked by her question that she nearly dropped her paddle into the lake. “What on earth are you talking about? Me ... interested in that jerk? You’ve got to be kidding! I don’t think I’ve ever met someone with a male ego that big. In fact, it’s all I can do to keep from giving him a piece of my mind. But since we all have to work together, I figure that wouldn’t do anybody any good.” Peeking at Cassie over her shoulder, she added, “Why do you ask?”
    “Oh, I don’t know,” Cassie said. “I guess I just noticed the two of you hanging out together a lot.”
    Suddenly another thought occurred to Laurel. “Don’t tell me you....” In a gentler voice, she asked, “How about you? What do you think of Trip?”
    “Oh, he’s okay, I guess,” Cassie replied, her tone just a bit too casual.
    Laurel was tempted to ask more questions—a lot more questions. While she was debating whether or not that was wise, a shriek suddenly cut through the tranquil silence of the lake.
    She turned and saw a look of horror on Marian’s face.
    “A bear!” she screeched, “I just saw a bear!”
     

Chapter Seven
     
    While Laurel told herself over and over again that there was probably nothing to be afraid of, she was gripped by a fear unlike any she’d ever known before. She sat frozen in her canoe, her heart pounding, her mouth dry, her stomach in a tight knot. Glancing down, she saw that she was holding her wooden paddle so tightly that her knuckles had turned white.
    “Calm down,” Dr. Wells instructed the group, his voice surprisingly calm. “You heard what John Torvold said. If there really is a bear on shore, he’s probably more frightened of us than we are of him.”
    “I knew coming on this stupid trip was a mistake!” Marian cried. “We’ve got to get out of here—fast!”
    Cassie’s voice was reduced to a whimper as she cried, “He won’t come into the water after us ... will he?”
    Before anyone had a chance to answer, Russ cried, “That’s no bear! It’s a man!”
    Sure enough, a long figure had suddenly emerged from the woods and into the dense growth of long reedy grass edging that portion of the lake. Laurel let out a deep sigh of relief.
    While she could see how someone with an overly active imagination could have been confused about the identity of the large, hulking mass moving through the shadows, in full view it was clear that it was, indeed, a man. He was tall and broad shouldered, with jet black hair, dark leathery skin, and piercing eyes that burned like two pieces of coal. He was dressed in ill-fitting jeans and an oversize jacket made of coarse red-plaid wool. Slung over his shoulder was a rifle, and a long knife in a sheath hung down from his belt.
    The man stood near the shore, gazing out in their direction. But Laurel grew uncomfortable as she