The Phantom at Alligator Bay

By Ann Westmoreland

Sara and Jackie were so excited to be going on a three-day, two-night field trip to the Georgia coast.
Two days before they left, they heard from another group that just gone the week before that there was a strange man lurking around the campground. Sara and Jackie decided not to tell their parents about the man for fear that they might be kept at home.
Find out what adventures the girls had and if the man was dangerous. Discover the surprise ending.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Sep 22, 2014
• ISBN: 9781496937193

Ann Westmoreland

Ann Westmoreland lives near a small town west of Atlanta, Georgia. She grew up in Northern Illinois, graduated from Rockford College with a master’s degree in elementary education, and taught elementary school in Illinois, then moved to Georgia, and taught until she retired. She is married with four children, six grandchildren, and two great-grandsons.

Book preview

CHAPTER ONE

It was the end of April. A light rain was falling as Jackie walked out of the school to the school bus stop. She’d been up late the night before packing for the fifth grade school field trip, three days and two nights at Alligator Bay Environmental Center near the Georgia coast. One of those three days was to be spent on Cumberland Island, hiking through the woods, lying on the beach, splashing in the surf, and seining for fish. The bus trip would take six hours each way. Jackie had packed candy, chips, drinks, her favorite CDs, and portable player. She was so excited that she was bubbling when she boarded the school bus.

Are you packed yet? Jackie asked Sara breathlessly when she plopped down next to her on the school bus.

Packed? Sara asked. It’s only Friday. We don’t leave until Wednesday.

I know, but Mom bought all these cool new clothes and I couldn’t wait to pack them.

New clothes! You know Miss Morris told us to take only our oldest clothes. She said they’d get ruined at Alligator Bay.

The trip consisted of a series of outdoor activities, one of which was to wallow in the salt marsh mud. The marsh mud smelled like sulphur, which smells like rotten eggs. Miss Morris had brought some sulphurous material to class for the students to experience the obnoxious odor.

But, Jackie protested, there’ll be boys there. She pushed her wavy brown hair up to primp it.

So? You see boys all the time.

So, I don’t want the boys to see me in my oldest clothes.

Are you going to wear new clothes into the salt marsh, too?

No, but I’m not going to wear rags in there either, Jackie answered. She turned away from Sara and looked toward the front of the bus.

Who cares? Sara asked. You’re just going to throw them away when you get out.

Jackie turned toward Sara and put her hand on her chest. "Oh, I’m not going to get muddy."

Sara put her arms out with her palms up. Miss Morris said that everyone gets muddy, and smelly too, even the teachers and parents.

"Well, I’m not." Jackie turned away from Sara. She knew that she would not lower herself and get dirty like everyone else. She always stayed neat and clean. Alligator Bay wouldn’t change that.

Suit yourself. I’m going to wear my oldest clothes, Sara told her. I’m even bringing last year’s bathing suit for the salt marsh. Sara didn’t care what others thought of her clothes. She only cared if people liked her for herself.

For real? Jackie scrunched up her nose. "Everyone’s seen my old suit. I could never wear it in front of anyone again."

You won’t be wearing it in front of anyone. You’re just supposed to put it under your swamp clothes so you will have something on when you throw your old clothes away.

I told you, Jackie protested, pointing to her chest and shaking her head. "I’m not getting muddy."

The bus arrived at school and everyone started pouring out. It was still raining, so Sara and Jackie ran for the school door and dropped their conversation for the moment. Sara, however, thought that Jackie was crazy for taking new clothes on the three-day field trip. Miss Morris had repeatedly told them to wear their oldest clothes, for they would be ruined, and they probably would want to throw them away before they came back. Sara’s mom didn’t make very much money, so she knew if she ruined new clothes; it would be a long time before her mom would be able to buy her any more.

Sara had been looking forward to this Fifth Grade trip since last year when her friend, Andrea, had told her about it. Andrea came home with all sorts of stories of the fun she had for three days in the marsh land of Georgia and the day trip to Cumberland Island. Sara had listened with rapt attention about wading through black, sulfur-smelling mud, throwing mud on the other kids, and even on the teachers. The teachers and the parents didn’t even get mad, they just threw some back at her. She heard how you could look at little water creatures through microscopes and have their images flash on a TV screen. Andrea told her about holding snakes that didn’t bite, about the night walk without flashlights when Andy held her hand in the back of the group, and about the grits they served for breakfast that molded to the shape of the plate when they cooled off. Some of the boys had picked the molded grits up in one piece with their forks. Andrea had also told her about the boat ride over to Cumberland Island, the sand dunes, and seeing the ocean for the first time.

Sara had seen the ocean, twice. Once when she was six, her family stayed on Cocoa Beach and then visited the Kennedy Space Center. Another time they vacationed on Tybee Island, just outside of Savannah, when she was eight. She still thought the trip would be wonderful, especially with a busload of other kids. She’d already bought candy for the trip and put aside some travel games to play and CDs that she wanted listen to on the bus. But, she wasn’t packed yet. She knew just about everything she wanted to bring, including some old sneakers with holes in them to wear in the swamp.

Sara arrived at the classroom door still thinking about the trip. She hung up her coat and sat down. Miss Morris had some early morning math for them to do, so she started working. The boys behind her were talking about the upcoming trip, so she had a hard time concentrating. Finally, Miss Morris told the boys to hush and get busy. Then Sara could work.

After the Pledge of Allegiance, Miss Morris passed out an updated list of what to bring on the trip, and what not to bring. Jackie whispered across the aisle, Do you believe this?

Believe what? Sara asked.

"She said not to wear make-up or hair spray."

So? Sara looked confused.

"I don’t go anywhere without lipstick and hair spray."

But, Sara protested, she said that hair spray attracts insects. The list says to wear a hat to keep the ticks off your head. If you wear a hat, you won’t need hair spray.

It says a baseball cap Jackie scrunched up her nose. I look terrible in a baseball cap.

No, you don’t, Jackie, Sara laughed. You just think you do.

I do, Jackie said with conviction. "I’m not