Chapter Two

“Hi, Eva. What flavour coffee have you got on today?” Aunt Sophie asked as they entered the café. She tossed her bag onto the counter and made a beeline for the coffee perk.

“Bavarian cinnamon. I thought it would go great with my gooseberry scones, fresh out of the oven.”

“Mmmm. Butter one up for me, would you?” Aunt Sophie grabbed a chipped green mug from the tray by the coffee and poured a steaming cup. The smell of cinnamon filled the room.

As Eva and her aunt chatted, Alex turned away to roam through the aisles of the general store section of the café. It was strange coming from Halifax, a city, where there were separate stores for clothes, food, and pharmacy stuff. Everything here was jammed together on neatly stacked shelves. Tomato soup sat next to rubber boots, diapers, and playing cards.

“Has Gus been in?” Sophie asked.

“Not yet,” Eva said. “But I expect him any time. Thinking of going out today?”

“If he’s not booked up with paying customers,” Sophie said. “The fog and rain have cleared off, so it’s a good chance to get some photographs of the humpbacks in the bay. I hear there have been some new arrivals.”

“Yes, that’s July for you,” Eva said. “Here you go. I topped it off with my field berry jam.”

“Wow, Eva, this is amazing!”

“Hi there, dear. Would you like a scone too?”

Alex was examining a tiny sewing kit, filled with mini spools of all different colours of threads.

“Alex?” Aunt Sophie said. “Eva is talking to you.”

Reluctantly, Alex put the kit back on the shelf and walked over to the counter. “Sorry,” she mumbled. She stared at the scones. Steam was still rising from the fluffy biscuits filled with bright berries.

“Try one,” Eva said. “You’ll think you died and went to heaven.”

Alex gasped and backed away from the counter. She whirled around to flee and smacked into the movie rental rack. DVD and VHS cases tumbled to the floor as she tripped, falling to her knees.

“Dear lord, I didn’t mean—”

“It’s okay, Eva.” Aunt Sophie knelt down beside Alex and grabbed her arms. “Are you all right?”

Alex shook her head and pushed her aunt’s hands away. Tears blurred her vision.

The jingle of the hummingbird wind chimes over the screen door made her jump. Huge scuffed work boots stopped in front of her. Alex blinked and looked up. Golden hazel eyes stared back at her, surrounded by a mane of bushy brown hair speckled with grey.

“Morning, Sophie. I take it this is your summer visitor?” The man’s voice was deep and gravelly, like the low growl of a lion.

“Hi, Gus.” Aunt Sophie stood up, tugging Alex with her. “This is Alex. Alex, this is Gus.”

“Pleased to meetcha.” A hand the size of a plate stretched out towards her.

Alex was mesmerized by the thick digits and unexpected perfectly trimmed, white fingernails. Lions had claws, didn’t they? She didn’t move.

“Bogs!” Gus grabbed her hand and pumped it up and down.

Alex’s teeth chattered as her whole body vibrated.

“So, want to see some whales, eh?”

“Whales?” Alex turned to her aunt. “What’s he talking about?”

“Don’t be rude,” Aunt Sophie said. “Yes, Gus, we do, if you’ve got room.”

“Yup, only two booked in ’cause of the weather lately—plenty of space.” He turned away and plunked a large travel mug on the counter. “Eva, fill ’er up with some tea, would ya? Normal leaded tea, now. None of that herb crap.” He bent down over the scones and sniffed. “And toss a couple of these biscuits in too.”

“Crap indeed!” Eva muttered as she went about getting Gus’s order packed up.

Alex trudged along behind Gus and Aunt Sophie as the three of them crossed the road and walked the short distance to the dock. She carried a paper bag filled with scones that Eva had insisted she take. “You’ll get hungry out there,” she had said.

They passed fishing huts that extended out over the shoreline. The tiny buildings looked like old wooden garages on stilts, towering above the rocks. Their criss-crossed support beams were covered almost entirely with seaweed and barnacles. Alex was shocked. The tide didn’t go that high, did it?

She trod carefully on the wharf where Gus’s boat was moored. The wooden planks were uneven and many didn’t seem to be nailed down. She almost fell twice when her loose sneakers caught on a beam that popped up when she stepped on it.

Her heart beat faster and her footsteps slowed as she approached the boat, bobbing on the water. It was shiny and looked new. An older couple was standing there waiting. Alex’s attention was drawn back to the boat. She had never been on one that small before. The ferry had been bad enough, and it was much bigger.

Her brother Adam’s teasing voice echoed in her head. Hey, wuss, you don’t swim so great, remember? Don’t fall in!

She stumbled on the first step and froze, staring down at the dark water as it lapped between the vessel and the dock. Her breath caught in her throat.

It seemed like a big gap to her—too big.