Return to Hollow Inn by Tara Ellis

Author:Tara Ellis [Ellis, Tara]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-02-27T22:00:00+00:00

11. STILL A LEGEND

Sam is doing her best to enjoy the commentary her uncle is giving during the tour, but it’s hard to get her mind off all the questions tumbling around in her head. Twisting on the back-bumper seat of the cart, she stares momentarily at Tori, who’s driving. She’s leaning over to say something to the small girl next to her. The two younger Mileys are in the cart with Sam and Ally while their parents ride with Bill.

After starting off at Florence Lake, they traveled a few miles along the gravel road that winds up the hill behind Hollow Inn. They’ve now stopped in front of the old, boarded-up entrance to the gold mine.

“Established by Shawn Hollow in 1898,” Bill reads from a sign near the entrance. “Closed in 1901 after the tragic deaths of three men that still lie within.”

“Cool!” the young boy, Thomas Miley, shouts from the back seat of the cart. He’s sitting behind Tori and in front of Sam. “Can we go inside?”

“No,” Sam answers for her uncle. “It’s too dangerous, Thomas. That’s why there’s a bunch of boards and a Keep Out sign.” Sam smiles crookedly at Thomas when he rolls his eyes. Last summer, she’d pressured Ally into exploring the mine with her, and they barely avoided a disastrous incident.

Mr. Miley shakes his head at his son. “We can’t go inside, but if we come back later this summer like I want to, we’ll make time to go hiking. Mr. Clark tells me there are several trails up here.”

Thomas looks disappointed, but he knows better than to argue with his father. “Do we have to leave tonight?”

“After dinner,” Mrs. Miley confirms. “I’ve got to get back to work tomorrow.”

“Next up is our last stop, Michael’s Peak,” Bill announces, putting his cart in gear. The engines are quiet enough that he can talk to them all without having to yell.

Sam turns back around so she’s watching the mine recede as they speed down the hill. “You know,” she says to Ally, who’s been quiet for most of the tour. “The lake is named after Florence, the lookout after Michael, and the creek after Thomas.” Thomas Creek was the first stop on the tour. It’s a small, glacier-fed stream that feeds into Florence Lake. Thomas was thrilled to discover a Hollow Inn landmark that shared his name. “I know Shawn intentionally didn’t name anything after Joseph, but I don’t ever remember hearing about a landmark for Christopher. He was their oldest son. You think he’d be the first to be memorialized.”

Ally frowns and then attempts to push back her red locks of hair being blown in her face. “Huh. You’re right. I’m sure there’s something we don’t know about. Sam,” Ally continues in a lowered voice, looking sideways at her friend, “are we still going to talk to Kevin about things?”

Sam hesitates. She wants to honor her aunt’s request, but she can’t help but feel that Ally was right earlier and Kevin might know something helpful.

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