The Alaskan Adventure Read Online Free PDF Page A

said.“There’s not much to eat here. We’ll have to lay in some groceries. I’ll make a list.”
    Frank stirred his tea to cool it, then cleared his throat and said, “We still don’t know how the fire started. But we do know the log didn’t fly through the window on its own. Somebody threw it. Any idea who?”
    â€œIf I knew for sure,” Peter growled, “I wouldn’t be sitting here. I’d be going after him.”
    â€œA lot of things like this have been going on,” Justine said. “Crazy things. Things that shouldn’t happen.”
    â€œThat’s true,” David said. “People in town have been having more accidents than usual. And it’s getting worse.”
    â€œSo you’re not the only targets?” Frank asked.
    Justine gave him a serious look. “David told us about you and Joe,” she said. “He said you’ve solved all kinds of mysteries. Do you think you can solve this one?”
    â€œWe don’t have a police department in town, any more than we have a fire department,” Mona said, looking up from her grocery list.
    â€œIf we need the police, we call in for state troopers,” Justine added. “But we never need them.”
    â€œWe’ll do our best,” Frank promised them. “What about the accidents? Is there any pattern to them?”
    â€œLife isn’t easy out here in the Alaskan bush, Frank. You’ve already seen that,” David said. “We’re always near the edge of disaster. And we don’t have a lot of the safety nets you’re used to in the Lower Forty-Eight. No water system, no hospital or doctor for a hundred miles or more.”
    â€œWhat David’s getting at,” Mona said, “is that we shrug off things. We don’t even remember them a week later. But if somebody set our cabin on fire, that’s not something we can shrug off.”
    â€œCan you think of anybody who has a grudge against you?” Joe asked.
    â€œWilly Ekus,” Mona and Justine said promptly.
    â€œHe’s been fighting with Peter over that trapline for ten years or more,” Mona added.
    Peter looked troubled. “Willy’s crazy enough to do it,” he admitted. “But I don’t think he’s got the nerve. He’s all talk. What I’m thinking is, you make a lot of money if you do well in the Iditarod. And if David here is upset about what’s been happening to us, he’s not going to do as well in the race.”
    â€œYou think Gregg’s doing this?” David asked. “If he is, he’d better look out. I’ll settle him once and for all!”
    â€œWait,” Frank said. “Peter, I get the idea you’re the leader of the group that’s against the theme park plan. Do you think that might have something to do with this?”
    â€œI don’t know,” Peter said slowly. “It’s pretty clear that Curt Stone’s got a lot riding on this plan of his. But I’d hate to think he’d try to burn us out because we’re on the other side. He seems like an okay fellow, except for wanting to ruin our town. And even there, he probably thinks he’s doing us a favor.”
    â€œMaybe Frank and I should do a little poking around,” Joe suggested. “Since we’re not from around here, maybe people will talk more freely.”
    David grinned. “You’re right—nobody will pay any attention to a couple of cheechakos. ”
    â€œThat means newcomers, right?” Frank asked. “I remember it from a guidebook I was looking at.”
    â€œRight,” David told him. “And once you’ve wintered over at least once, you become a sourdough. That comes from the old-time prospectors who made bread from a mixture of flour and water and sourdough starter instead of yeast.”
    â€œSpeaking of bread,” Mona said, “would you mind picking up a few supplies