Spring Break Secret by Holly Rayner
Chapter 1
Louisa
2011
Louisa sighed in frustration as she pulled her little hybrid car into the parking lot at La Vega Beach. There was nowhere to park, and all the spots were taken up by massive SUVs or flashy sports cars. It was spring break, and she knew the beach would be packed with people today—in fact, that’s why she was heading there, to try and take advantage of the crowds to drum up interest in a beach cleanup that needed volunteers. Still, Louisa hated to see her hometown taken over by wealthy newcomers looking to take advantage of its gorgeous beaches and balmy weather.
After finally finding a place to squeeze her car into, Louisa grabbed her sun hat and clipboard and headed down toward the beach. The ocean air was a familiar sensation as it blew through her hair, catching the few red wisps that managed to escape both her braid and sun hat, and Louisa smiled despite her earlier annoyance in the parking lot. She had been far from home for the past semester, studying ecology at UC Berkeley in California, and she’d missed La Vega terribly. Coming home for spring break was a great chance to reconnect with her favorite beaches and maintain some old traditions. She had never missed a spring break beach cleanup with the La Vega Sea Turtle Conservation Center before, and she wasn’t about to start now.
Louisa straightened her sun hat and made her way onto the beach, sand slipping through her flip-flops as she walked. There were tons of people on the beach today, so she hoped to get plenty of signups for the beach cleanup.
“Excuse me, hi!” Louisa approached a family with a handful of kids splashing around at the shoreline. They were about the same age as Louisa had been when she first got involved with the Sea Turtle Conservation Center. Kids made great volunteers, Louisa knew. They had plenty of energy, loved an opportunity to spend a day outside, and they often cared more deeply for the environment than the adults around them.
“Hi,” their mom said, squinting at Louisa over the rim of her sunglasses. “Can I help you?”
“Yes, actually!” Louisa put on her brightest smile and held out her clipboard. “I’m with the La Vega Sea Turtle Conservation Center, and we’re hoping to recruit some volunteers for a beach cleanup. Do you think your kiddos would be interested in helping out the sea turtles?”
“Nah,” said the mom. “We’re only here for a few more days.”
“That’s perfect, actually! The cleanup is tomorrow.”
The woman shrugged, clearly not that interested. “We’ll think about it.”
“Thanks,” said Louisa, leaving her with a flyer from the conservation center. “We’d love to see you there!”
Louisa kept walking down the beach, keeping an eye out for anyone who seemed like they might be interested in a volunteer day. When a frisbee landed at her feet and a massive golden retriever came bounding over after it, she chatted with the dog’s owner for a bit. He also agreed to take a flyer but made no commitment to attending the beach cleanup.
Wandering into the surf to cool off a little, Louisa continued on down the beach. She did her best to drum up enthusiasm for the beach cleanup, but after a few hours of asking around, she only had three confirmed signups on her clipboard, and two of those were from people who were already involved in the conservation center and would likely have helped out anyway.
The sun was high in the sky, and Louisa was getting thirsty. She dragged herself away from the cool waves she’d been walking in and up toward the La Vega boardwalk. A strawberry lemonade from her favorite drink shack would do the trick. As she headed toward the green-and-white-striped umbrella that always promised sweet, frosty treats, she saw Ellen Little, the founder of the La Vega Sea Turtle Conservation Center, up on the boardwalk talking to the owner of a carnival stand.
“Hey, Ellen!” Louisa jogged a bit, catching up to Ellen as she was about to leave. “What are you doing out here?”
Ellen sighed, looking down at Louisa’s clipboard and the paltry number of signatures. “I was asking if local businesses wanted to donate money, drinks, or snacks for the cleanup tomorrow. I think we’ll have a few corn dogs, but it’s not easy to get people to give us something for free these days.”
“Well,” Louisa said as the two wandered over toward the drink shack, “the good news is, I don’t think that many people are coming, anyway. So we’ll probably have enough food even if it’s just a few hot dogs.”
“You always were an optimist,” Ellen said, waving away the younger woman’s attempts to pay as she bought them both some ice-cold strawberry lemonades. “We miss your happy energy around the center these days.”
Louisa smiled, taking a seat beside Ellen on a wooden bench as they sipped their drinks and looked out over the crowded beach. “I miss you guys too. But I’m having a great time out in Berkeley.”
“I bet! Still studying ecology?”
“Yep. I’m going to become a marine biologist and do everything I can to keep understanding and helping sea creatures.”
Ellen threw an arm around Louisa’s shoulders in a maternal gesture. “Atta girl. We’ll hold down the fort out here till you can ride back in and save the day.”
Louisa slurped up the last bit of her strawberry lemonade, feeling dejected at the prospect of heading back out to try and convince more people to spend part of their spring break cleaning up trash. “I don’t know about that. I can’t even get people to sign up for a beach cleanup.”
“Don’t get down, squiddo,” Ellen said, jostling Louisa’s shoulder as she used her old nickname. “You just need a few good people. That’s all it ever takes.
Louisa smiled, her frustration forgotten. Spending time with Ellen always helped clear her head and cheer her up.
Louisa’s parents were best friends with Ellen, and Louisa had been hanging around at the conservation center ever since she was a little girl. Her curiosity and devoted focus to the mission of the conservation had earned her the nickname “Squid.” When she graduated from high school, Ellen and her parents had presented her with a silver pendant in the shape of a squid, which she wore all the time on a long silver chain. After moving to the other side of the country, it was a nice reminder of home.
“Well, I’d better get back to the center,” Ellen said, finishing her own lemonade. “Good luck finding some kind souls to help out tomorrow.”
Louisa fingered her squid pendant as she headed back towards the crowds, determined to convince at least a few more people to show up for endangered wildlife.