Giant Lurking.

Northern Pike

The wildest thing happened our first morning here. Dhani, Ray-Ray, and I found a canoe and paddled across the lake. Near Osprey Island, this huge fish swam right up to the surface of the water and, I swear, made eye-contact with Dhani. It was like it knew or recognized him.

Ray-Ray freaked out because he saw how big this fish was and that it had teeth.

Then we heard someone yelling at us about the canoe and, turns out, it belongs to Grady, the groundskeeper. We had taken it without permission and he was kind of pissed. I talked him out of turning us in, which would have sucked on the very first day, by bargaining. If he didn't report us, we'd tell him where to find this giant fish. When we described it and showed him how big it was, his jaw just about hit the ground.

"Northern pike. That big?" He was almost drooling. "Where?"

"Do we have a deal?" I said. You don't get through foster care and juvenile detention without knowing how to make deals.

Grady said, "You're good. We have a deal. But don't ever take my canoe without permission. And remember this lake is ninety feet deep in the middle. You fall in and drown and it will take a long time to find your body." He doesn't know that wouldn't matter to me, since I don't really have a family that would care.

Okay, he made an impression and he stuck to his promise. I like him. He's also going to show us some cool mountain views I can sketch.