Free Hit the Beach by Laura Dower Page A

what he said to me.
    Ann modestly accepted Will’s compliment and went right on talking about “manateeth” (which was what she called them) and other bodily facts and functions of the manatee. Madison wondered how Ann could have possibly known about how the animals held their breath, but she did.
    “Does anyone know why manatees sometimes have a green glow in the water?” Leonard asked the group.
    It was a tricky question that stumped even Ann. But Madison had a pretty good guess. She raised her hand.
    “Is it because algae live on the skin?” Madison was answering Leonard’s question with one of her own.
    “Yes!” Leonard said as he pumped his hand in the air. “Now, what do they eat?”
    “Mickey D’s!” cried some boy from the back of the crowd, somewhere among the Crabs.
    Everyone laughed.
    “Although I am sure a manatee would just love a Big Mac, I’m afraid that’s the wrong answer. But you get a C for effort,” Leonard joked.
    Madison knew the answer. It had been on the work sheet they had read back at the ELC. But she wasn’t quick enough with her answer: about seven other kids had their hands up, eager to respond.
    “Manatees eat sea grass,” one kid said.
    “And other aquatic plants,” said another.
    “Yes,” Leonard said. “And what’s important about manatees for Florida is that they eat up all sorts of floating vegetation and plants that can build up and clog the waterways.”
    Just then, a few of the manatees pushed through the water and made a splash. Everyone raced to see.
    “Why do they hang out at a power plant?” someone asked.
    “The water is always warm here,” Leonard explained, “by the outflow pipes. Manatees can find warm water here anytime, especially in winter.”
    A loud, squawking bird flew overhead. Madison looked up. She saw an egret, too, in the air. Then she noticed another egret alighting upon the water in the canal several yards away.
    “Look,” Madison whispered to Will. “Our namesake.”
    Teeny heard what Madison said. “Go, Egrets!” he yelled. The birds flew off.
    “Good one,” Logan grunted. “Zarloff of planet Zoltan would have loved you.”
    “What?” Will had no idea what Logan was talking about. No one did. Logan’s geekiness quotient was skyrocketing with each new comment that came out of his mouth.
    Suchita, however, laughed out loud in a gentle way at everything Logan said. Madison noticed that although she didn’t speak much, she had a great sense of humor. Suchita reminded Madison a little of Lindsay, except for the not talking. Lindsay was a bigger-than-big talker.
    “Here’s something for you to mull over,” Leonard said. “Before we head back to the ELC, see if you can’t observe more of the manatee’s anatomy. I know it’s hard to see much in the murky waters here, but manatees have some interesting body parts. See what you can find out.”
    “Like what?” a kid asked.
    “Like fingernails,” Leonard said.
    “So, do they get mana-cures ?” Madison joked under her breath.
    Ann heard her. “That’s hysterical,” she told Madison, slapping her on the shoulder and faking an outrageous, nasal laugh.
    Will had heard Madison’s dumb joke, too. “It was funny,” he admitted in a low, low whisper so that only Madison could hear what he said.
    The groups stood by the manatee-viewing area for another half hour or more. Then they loaded back on to their buses and headed for the ELC again. Parents would be coming back soon to pick everyone up for the day.
    Once again, Stephanie showed up solo to get Madison.
    Back at the apartment, Stephanie grilled Madison on day two at Camp Sunshine. She asked about the cute boy, of course, but Madison tried to avoid that subject. When Dad still had not returned by dinnertime and Stephanie couldn’t get him on his cell phone, she and Madison decided to order take-out Mexican food from a restaurant down the street.
    After the food arrived, Madison noshed on quesadillas while Stephanie