Five or more labeled you hopeless.
While resetting the pegs for a fresh attempt, Kendra saw what she had been waiting for. Dale was walking along the perimeter of the yard with a pie tin. Setting the peg game on a table, she hurried to intercept him.
Dale looked mildly distressed at her approach. I can't let Lena see you talking to me like this, he murmured in low tones. I'm supposed to put the milk out on the sly.
I thought nobody knew you put the milk out.
Right. See, your grandfather doesn't know, but Lena does. We try to keep it our secret.
I was wondering what the milk tastes like.
He looked nervous. Didn't you hear me last time? You could get... shingles. Scabies. Scurvy.
Scurvy?
This milk is a bacterial stew. That's why the insects like it so well.
I have friends who have tried milk fresh from the cow.
They survived.
I'm sure those were healthy cows, Dale said. These cows are... never you mind. Idea is, this ain't just any milk. It's highly contaminated. I wash my hands good after even handling the stuff.
So you don't think I should taste it.
Not unless you're aiming for a premature burial.
Would you at least take me in the barn to see the cows?
See the cows? That would be breaking your grandfather's rules!
I thought the point was we might get hurt, Kendra said. I'll be fine if you're with me.
Chapter Six
Your grandfather's rules are your grandfather's rules.
He has his reasons. I'm not about to go breaking them. Or bending them either.
No? Maybe if you let me see the cows, I'll keep your secret about putting out the milk.
Now see, that's blackmail. I'll not stand for blackmail.
I wonder what Grandpa will say when I tell him at dinner tonight.
He'll likely say you ought to mind your own affairs.
Now, with your leave, I have chores to do.
She watched him walk away with the tin of milk. He surely had acted defensive and strange. There was definitely some mystery surrounding the milk. But all the talk about bacteria made her reluctant to try it. She needed a guinea pig.
Seth tried a flip off the boulder into the pool, but landed on his back. He never could quite make it all the way around. He surfaced and stroked to the side to try again.
Nice back-flop, Kendra said, standing beside the pool. That was one for the blooper reel.
Seth climbed out of the water. I'd like to see you do a better one. Where have you been?
I found out a secret.
What?
I can't explain. But I can show you.
Good as the lake?
Not quite. Hurry up.
Putting a towel over his shoulders, Seth stepped into his sandals. Kendra led him away from the pool through the garden to some flowering shrubs on the outskirts of the yard. Behind the plants lay a large pie tin full of milk where a crowd of hummingbirds were feeding.
They drink milk? he asked.
Yeah, but that isn't the point. Taste it.
Why?
You'll see.
Have you tried it?
Yes.
What's the big deal?
I told you, try it and you'll see.
Kendra watched curiously as he kneeled by the tin. The hummingbirds dispersed. Seth dipped a finger into the milk and put it on his tongue. Pretty good. Sweet.
Sweet?
He lowered his head and puckered his lips against the surface of the milk. Pulling back, he wiped his mouth.
Yeah, sweet and creamy. A little warm, though. Looking beyond Kendra, his eyes bulged. Seth jumped to his feet, screaming and pointing. What the heck are those?
Kendra turned. All she saw was a butterfly and a couple of hummingbirds. She looked back at Seth. He was turning in circles, eyes darting around the garden, apparently perplexed and amazed.
They're everywhere, he said in awe.
What are?
Look around. The fairies.
Kendra stared at her brother. Could the milk have totally fried his brain? Or was he messing around with her?
He didn't appear to be faking. He was over by a rosebush gazing at a butterfly in wonder. Tentatively he reached a hand toward it, but it fluttered out of reach.
He turned back to Kendra. Was it the milk? This is way cooler than the lake! His excitement seemed genuine.
Kendra eyed the tin of milk. Drink the milk. If Seth was playing a prank, his acting skills had suddenly improved tenfold. She dipped a finger and put it in her mouth. Seth was right. It was sweet and warm. For an instant the sun gleamed in her eyes, making her blink.
She glanced back at her brother, who was creeping up on a small group of hovering fairies. Three had wings like butterflies, one like a dragonfly. She could not suppress a shriek at the impossible sight.
Kendra looked back at the milk. A fairy with hummingbird wings was drinking from her cupped hand. Other than the wings, the fairy looked like a slender woman not quite two inches tall. She wore a glittering turquoise slip and had long, dark hair. When Kendra leaned closer, the fairy zipped away.
There was no way she was really seeing this, right?
There had to be an explanation. But the fairies were everywhere, near and far, shimmering in vivid colors. How could she deny what was before her eyes?
As Kendra continued to survey the garden, startled disbelief melted into wonder. Fairies of all conceivable varieties flitted about, exploring blossoms, gliding on the breeze, and acrobatically avoiding her brother.
Roaming the pathways of the garden in a daze, Kendra saw that the fairy women appeared to represent all nationalities.
Some looked Asian, some Indian, some African, some European. Several were less comparable to mortal women, with blue skin or emerald green hair. A few had antennae. Their wings came in all varieties, mostly patterned after butterflies, but much more elegantly shaped and radiantly colored. All the fairies gleamed brilliantly, outshining the flowers of the garden like the sun outshines the moon.
Rounding a corner on a pathway, Kendra stopped short.
There stood Grandpa Sorenson, wearing a flannel shirt and work boots, arms folded across his chest.
We need to talk, he said.
The grandfather clock tolled the hour, chiming three times after the introductory melody. Sitting in a high backed leather armchair in Grandpa Sorenson's study, Kendra wondered if grandfather clocks got their name because only grandparents owned them.
She looked over at Seth, seated in an identical chair. It looked too big for him. These were chairs for adults.
Why had Grandpa Sorenson left the room? Were they in trouble? After all, he had given her the keys that ended up leading her and the guinea pig to sample the milk.
Even so, she could not quit worrying that she had discovered something that was meant to stay hidden. Not only were fairies real, but Grandpa Sorenson had hundreds in his yard.
Is that a fairy skull? Seth asked, pointing to the flat-bottomed globe with the thumb-sized skull on Grandpa's desk.