The Mystery Traveler at Lake Fortune by Cathie Pelletier

Author:Cathie Pelletier
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Down East Books
Published: 2023-06-05T00:00:00+00:00

17

A joke had been played on the city slickers, Maine-style.

Lake Fortune was as pretty as a town on a lake should be. Houses and craft shops dotted the roadside. There were small stands that sold everything from homemade jams and jellies to firewood and fish bait. Charlie’s bike followed Clarissa’s as they pulled into the first stop on their list. The Lake Fortune Pizza Parlor. The air was filled with the smell of baking crust. It was still just 9 a.m., but the lunch buffet was at 11 o’clock. The aroma made Charlie’s mouth water.

“We could come back later for the buffet,” he suggested.

Clarissa shook her head.

“Mom is making lunch,” she said. “She wants us back at noon.”

Charlie thought about this as he stared at his list.

“We need to hurry then,” he said. “The restaurant and the café are on the other side of town. Dad says they sit right on the lake.”

“That sounds like a good view to me,” said Clarissa. “So why are we visiting a pizza place?”

“Because it smells so good,” said Charlie.

Clarissa followed him inside. No one named Harry worked there. There was, however, a Larry, which didn’t help.

And no one who worked at the Dairy Queen was named Harry. But Charlie and Clarissa took the time to eat a Banana Split Blizzard each.

“Don’t mention this to Mom,” said Clarissa.

At the Subway shop, a man with reddish hair was behind the counter. He had freckles, and a sunburn, and a big smile.

“Harry?” he asked, when Charlie said the name. “Sure, good old Harry.”

Charlie glanced at Clarissa. Now maybe she understood why he’d made a list of every possible place. This was just their third stop, and already they’d found Harry.

“Is he working today?” asked Clarissa.

“Nope,” said the man.

“Will he be in tomorrow?” Charlie asked then.

“I don’t think so,” said the sunburned man. His smile was now bigger.

“What about the next day?” asked Clarissa.

“Probably not,” said the man. “Harry died about ten years ago.”

Charlie knew what had just happened. A joke had been played on the city slickers, Maine-style.

“Good one,” Charlie said. What else could he do?

They went to Mack’s Restaurant first. It sat on a point of land that jutted into the lake. The café was a stone’s throw on down the road, also on the lake. Mack’s was already busy. Breakfast was over, but lunchtime was served early in Maine towns. Waitresses were filling the large salad bar with items. A pretty girl with dark curly hair noticed Charlie and his sister at the door. She wiped her hands on a towel as she came over to greet them.

“We open in ten minutes,” she said, smiling. “You want a Coke or something while you wait?”

“No thanks,” said Charlie. “We won’t be staying.”

“Does someone named Harry work here?” asked Clarissa.

The waitress shook her head.

“I know a couple of men in Lake Fortune named Harry,” she said. “One of them is Harry King, who owns the Laundromat. And the other is Harry Perkins, who drives a truck for the lumber company.

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