Chapter 9

CHAPTER 9 Ten minutes later, Aunt Cassie and Mel pulled into the parking lot at the Lake McDonald ranger station. It was just a small log building, about three miles from the cabin. They waited in line behind a young man with a mop of brown hair and a beard. He was paying for a trail map.

When he was finished, Aunt Cassie stepped back and gave Mel a little nudge toward the counter. Mel stepped up. The ranger gave her a kindly smile. He didn't look much younger than Pops. "What can I do for you, young lady?" Mel felt nervous, like when her teacher called on her. But she took a breath and looked the man in the eye. "I live down the lake, in one of the

cabins," she said. "A grizzly bear came out of the woods last night and followed me up to the cabin, and then it smashed the window and tried to break down our door and —" The ranger held up his hand. "Let me guess. Skinny bear? Light brown. Long claws?" Mel glanced back at Aunt Cassie, who raised her eyebrows in surprise. "That's the one," Mel said. "How did you know?" "We call that bear Old Slim," the ranger said. "People have been complaining about him all summer. A real troublemaker. Been raiding campgrounds. Making a mess of people's garbage cans. Stealing people's food. Harmless, though." Mel felt her cheeks turn red. What was this man saying? Hadn't he heard what she'd just told him? "Harmless?" Mel said. "That bear almost ripped our door off the hinges, and…" The memory of the grizzly's paw only inches from Kevin's face

flashed across her mind. She pinched her index finger and thumb close together. "And it got this close to tearing my little brother to shreds!" Aunt Cassie put a hand on Mel's shoulder. Mel realized she was on her tippy-toes, leaning over the counter. She let out a breath and took a step back. She didn't want to be rude. But she needed the ranger to understand. The ranger nodded. "That Old Slim's a real rascal. A few days ago he chased a couple of boys at the Trout Lake campground. Wrecked their tent. Bit right through some cans of chili. Ate a whole pack of wieners in one bite." The ranger chuckled. "Excuse me," Aunt Cassie said, stepping closer to the counter herself. "I'm not sure what's funny about this grizzly." Mel heard something over her shoulder and noticed that the young man was lurking just inside the doorway, listening. Were she and Aunt Cassie making too big of a fuss?

"The rangers need to do something about this bear," Aunt Cassie went on, her voice rising sharply. The ranger's cheeks turned pink. "There's nothing I can do, miss. I'm just a volunteer." He pointed to the symbol on his shirt and shrugged. "Most of the the rangers are dealing with the fires." He patted Mel's hand. "I'm sorry you were scared, kiddo. But I wouldn't worry about that grizzly." Mel's temper flared up again. Because she was pretty sure she should be worried. "Can you at least tell us why it was acting like that?" Mel asked. "Do you think I could have done something?" "I wasn't there," the ranger said. "But from the other stories, it sounds like this bear's just a little… off. Like I said, I wouldn't worry about it." Then he stepped back from the counter; he was done with this conversation.

Mel was fuming as they walked back to the parking lot. They were almost at the car when a voice called to them. "Wait!" It was the young man with the beard. He hurried over. "You're right about that grizzly," he said to Mel, catching his breath. "It's dangerous. Very dangerous." Aunt Cassie and Mel waited to hear more. "And it's not just that one bear. There's a big problem here at Glacier. If something isn't done soon, someone's going to get killed."