Lena's River Read Free

cooler?
I’m getting mighty thirsty out here.” Sala had a big grin on her face as she
hauled in yet another seventeen inch Coho.
    Mary whooped: “Wow! Nice one, honey!”
    “Okay Sala you can go sit on the bank for awhile and
give the rest of us a chance.” Gina gave her thumbs up.
    “No way, I’m in the zone out here. These are only the
little guys. Lena, just toss it!”
    “Okay, if you say so Sal.” Lena waded part way out into
the water and threw the can of beer softball-style in Sala’s general direction.
She was careful to aim it a bit upstream just in case. Sure enough, the can
fell short about five feet but Sala watched until the can bobbed along in the
current near her, then waded over and grabbed it.
    She pulled the tab and took a big gulp. “Ah, that’s
what I’m talkin’ about. Lena, thanks - but you throw like a girl.”
    Lena laughed. “Yeah, I know. Isn’t that weird?”
    ****
    Back at camp Lena cranked open the windows in her
camper, made a veggie sandwich and sat down outside at the picnic table with a
book. There was a light breeze off the river but the sun was warm despite the
high canopy of cedar and fir trees around her campsite. It was peaceful here.
Just the way she liked it.
    No sooner had she begun eating but someone attempted to
pull a brand new Airstream into the campsite next to where Mary and Sala had
parked their vintage Boler 17. There was a lot of revving of the engine, reverse
stopping and braking before they gave up and moved further up the loop to find
a larger spot. Lena sighed with relief and returned to her book.
    After a few minutes she had this unsettled feeling she
was being watched. She took a sip of her tea in a can and glanced around. There
was no one there. She shrugged and went back to reading when something caught
her eye on the ground near her left foot. A small black dog, of mixed breed,
looked up at her with huge brown eyes. It gave her one, sharp bark which shook
its whole body. A “ Hey, do I have your attention?” kind of bark –to the
point and efficient. Then he sat back on its haunches staring at Lena.
    “Hi there! Who do you belong to, little cutie?” Lena
let the dog smell of her hand. Bad idea, since whatever was on her hand it
started licking with abandon.
    Lena looked around for the dog’s owner while patting
its head. There was no one in sight. The dog was well-cared for and not a
stray, she could tell that. Maybe those people in the Airstream forgot to read
the campground rules about dogs on a leash at all times .
    “All I want to do is read my book and take a damn nap.”
Lena said aloud and annoyed.
    She strolled out to the edge of the narrow lane which
wound through the campground. The dog followed her. They walked all around Loop
B. There were no campers who looked like they’d lost a dog though she asked a
couple people. Most of their loop was empty. She tracked down the shiny
aluminum Airstream in loop E. No, they were not missing a dog.
    By this time the little dog was tired and plopped
itself down in the grass near a trail which led into the woods. “Great.” Lena
said considering the panting pooch. “I guess the search ends here.”
    The dog considered her in return but had nothing to say
for itself. Lena chewed on her lip deciding what she should do. There was a
rustle of willow branches to their right and off the woodland trail stepped a
guy in a Mariner’s cap with a small backpack slung over his shoulder.
    Lena recognized him right away. It was the cute man
who’d asked about her wheels the day before at The Junction . He stopped
in mid step and stared at her. Then he saw the dog. His face lit up.
    “Hey Pascal!” The dog leapt up and the tail started
going wild. The man lifted the dog up in his arms and smiled at Lena in between
face licks by Pascal. He said: “Hey there, thanks for finding my dog! I’ve been
looking since this morning.”
    Lena figured he hadn’t noticed that it was her. She
waited a few moments