Allie's Bayou Rescue Read online

“I’ve been okay most of the time.” I tried not to show any signs of being out of breath, even though I was.

  “I beg to differ. This machine tells all. Your numbers are really low and . . .”

  He reached over and pulled the skin down under my right eye with his thumb, just like my mom does all the time.

  “You’ve got some nice dark circles under your eyes, which is unusual for a kid.”

  “Thanks. I was looking for an excuse to get to use some makeup.”

  “You don’t need makeup, you need your airways to open up. Something is causing them to shut down.”

  “Is it mold?” Mom sat on the edge of her chair over in the corner.

  Dr. Snow flipped through the pages of my file and shook his head a few times.

  “Could be,” he said. “It’s the only new thing that cropped up on the latest allergy tests. It’s been extra wet around here lately, and after the latest flood, I have been seeing a lot more of my mold sufferers here in the office.”

  Dr. Snow reached for the computer keyboard and began typing.

  “I’m going to start you with an inhaler.” He handed me back the air-flow device.

  “Use this three times a day to start. If the numbers register below this red line, take two puffs on the inhaler. And of course, when you have an attack, take two puffs. I’m thinking that you’ve been dealing with this for a while, and you might not even realize that you are low on air.”

  “She looks tired all the time.”

  “Thanks, Mom.”

  “That sounds right to me.” Dr. Snow finished typing and then spun his chair around to face Mom. “It’s very tiring when you can’t get air. From what I can tell, Allie’s gotten to the point of having out-of-control asthma. Imagine a glass filled with water right to the top. Every drop sends water spilling over the edge. That’s her bronchial tubes right now. Any little allergen is closing them down. She needs to give her body a break for a while, so she can get to a place where she isn’t so sensitive and things can calm down.”

  Dr. Snow began typing again, and spoke while he clicked with a mouse.

  “I’m going to print out some instructions for mold-proofing your house. It’s a daunting task to get to it all at once, especially if your house is over twenty years old. You already live in a damp climate which is working against you.”

  Mom glanced over at me, and I could read her thoughts.

  Arizona would be better.

  Dr. Snow stopped typing and walked over to the printer, where he pulled out about ten sheets of information. He handed the stack to my mom.

  “Start with Allie’s room and the rooms where she spends most of her time.

  “Don’t let Allie clean out anything at this point. If there are any mold spores anywhere in there, we don’t want her inhaling them.”

  Mom began to read the printout. “Remove all stuffed animals and decorative pillows?”

  Dr. Snow nodded. “They’re the absolute worst.”

  “You are taking away my happiness right now,” I said.

  “Remove carpet if possible?” Mom scratched her head. “This is going to be quite a project. Our house was built in the 70s.” She continued to read through the printout.

  Dr. Snow sat back down on his chair.

  “Try not to be overwhelmed. Just do what you can, and we’ll check back with you in two weeks and see how things are going.”

  I was relieved that he wasn’t writing a prescription for Timbuktu . . . yet.

  “But . . .”

  Uh oh. Here it comes.

  “Bring her right in if she has any more serious episodes.”

  He turned to me. “You can add the breath measurer and the inhaler to your Allie-Kit.” Then he winked and reached over to pat me on the side of the shoulder.

  Great. At the rate I was going I was going to have to start carrying a full-sized backpack just for all my medical needs.

  “Do you ladies have any questions for me?”

  My questions at this point were not for Dr. Snow. They were for God. Well, I only had one question really.

  WHY is this happening right now?

  “I have one, Dr. Snow,” Mom said. “Allie and her cousins have a sleepover planned at their grandparents’ house tonight. As you know, it’s right next to the river, and with the weather the way it is, I was wondering if we should reschedule.”

  Oh, whoops. This couldn’t be happening. My mind went into overdrive trying to figure out what to do if Dr. Snow told us I couldn’t go tonight.

  “Hmmm.” Dr. Snow stroked his chin and looked into my supposedly glassy eyes with the dark circles. “It gets pretty swampy out there, Allie.”

  “It’s really important that I go,” I said.

  “It’s more important for you to breathe,” Mom said.

  Dr. Snow must have seen desperation in my eyes, because he winked again.

  “I’ll be right back,” he said, and he jetted out of the room.

  “Mom . . .”

  She cut me off before I could plead.

  “Allie, this is not up for debate. Whatever Dr. Snow says goes. Case closed.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” I slumped my shoulders and prepared to call the whole initiation thing off and pack my bags for Arizona.

  Dr. Snow charged through the door right then, which caused me to almost slide off the slippery-papered exam table. He had a box in his hand, which he opened to reveal an inhaler.

  “Here you go. I had one sample left. I’d like you to take a couple of puffs right now and see what happens.”

  Dr. Snow instructed me to do just the opposite of what I had done with the air-flow measuring device. This time I was supposed to breathe out all the way, then inhale the contents of the inhaler, hold my breath a second, then relax my breath out.

  I did it twice. The propellant felt cold and weird going down my throat.

  Mom and Dr. Snow stared at me like I was going to turn colors or something.

  Instead, I just got a little shaky.

  “Are you okay, honey? How do your lungs feel?”

  “It could take her a few minutes to notice anything. But, take a look at her face, Maggie.”

  Mom looked at me and put her hands up to her cheeks. “What?”

  “You’ve got some color goin’ on, sister.”

  “What color? Green? Purple?” I snuck a look down at my fingertips. They looked okay.

  “It’s more like rose,” Dr. Snow said. “How you should look.”

  “Does that mean it’s working?” I prayed and prayed without saying a single word out loud. God knew what I was asking for.

  “I’d say for now, you’re going to be okay. Take two puffs on the inhaler tonight before bed, and stay out of the rain, and you should be okay at your grandparents’ house.”

  I wanted to jump off the exam table and hug Dr. Snow. But that would have looked suspicious. So, I just stayed still—well, except for my hands that were still jittering.

  “Thank you,” I said.

  “You’re welcome. You know that you’re my favorite celebrity patient, so I don’t want to take away ALL your happiness in one visit.”

  “Ha! I’m probably your only celebrity patient.”

  He laughed. “Yep. Pretty much. None of the other Carroway kids seem to get sick much.”

  I was highly aware of that.

  “Well, have fun at the sleepover, and call or email me if you have any questions.”

  “You got it.”

  “Great.”

  “Thanks, Dr. Snow,” Mom said.

  “My pleasure.” And with that, my favorite and best doctor in the whole-wide-world departed into the hallway, and I hoped I wouldn’t be seeing him again for a long time.

  CHAPTER 15

  The Trouble Begins

  The windshield wipers on our SUV could barely keep up with the rain on the way home from the doctor’s appointment.

  “Allie, can you call Mamaw and ask her what it’s like out at their place?”

 
; Mom squinted to see out of the window, and slowed the car down a little.

  Mamaw answered in a flash.

  “Please don’t be callin’ me sayin’ you’re not comin’. I’ve been making food all day, and I have snickerdoodles in the oven.”

  I smiled. Snickerdoodles, yum.

  “Mamaw, is it raining out at your place? It’s pouring here.”

  I put her on speaker so Mom could hear.

  “Oh, what’s a little rain? It’s not gonna hurt anything.”

  That didn’t sound good.

  “Kat, is the river rising? I’m worried it’s gonna flood out there.”

  “It’s coming up a little bit. But Papaw says the storm is going the other direction. He’s been watching it all day, he hasn’t gone to get sandbags, and he hasn’t moved any machinery yet. That’s a good sign. You know how he is about that.”

  “Well . . . it’s pretty bad up here right now.”

  Mom drove through a deep puddle and then had to pump the breaks to stop at the red light.

  “I’m gonna see what Jake says and I’ll let you know.”

  “You tell him that his mama wants to eat cookies with her grandkids.”

  “Yeah, Mom,” I said. “Don’t forget to tell Dad about the cookies.”

  “See you soon, Allie-gal,” Mamaw said. “I got some new board games for us play too.”

  I just love my Mamaw Kat. She always has fun stuff for us to do when we go to her house. Only this time, we needed her to not be so fun so we could conduct Hunter’s initiation.

  Mom pushed the remote for the garage door, and as it opened, it revealed Kendall, Hunter, Lola, and Ruby standing there with overnight bags at their feet. Mom pulled in halfway, leaving the back of the car exposed to the rain.

  “Mom dropped us off so you wouldn’t have to waste time coming to pick us up.” Kendall adjusted her eggplant-colored choker and hummed a little tune.

  Dad popped his head out of the door that lead from the house to the garage.

  “Oh, good, you’re back.” He smirked. “These kids showed up and are driving me nuts. You need to take them a long way away from here.”

  Dad came all the way out and pushed Hunter halfway across the garage until they began to wrestle a little. Then he put him in a headlock.

  “You can leave Hunter if you want, but take all these giggly girls to Mamaw’s.”

  Hunter grinned as he fought to escape. “Papaw Ray needs me to fish with him, remember?”

  Dad let Hunter go and brushed off his shirt. “Oh, yeah. Then I better not damage you. He’s gonna need someone to clean up all the fish guts.”

  Dad picked up the bags and began throwing them in the back of the SUV from the second seat since the tailgate was hanging out in the rain.

  “Jake,” Mom said. “Do you think it’s safe to take the kids out there? It’s raining pretty hard.”

  “It’s safer than dealing with Mamaw if we don’t.” Dad walked over and gave Mom a kiss on the forehead. “I’ll drive ’em so you can go wrap up in a blanket by the fire.”

  Mom sighed. “Bless you.”

  “Okay, kids, get in the car! If we don’t get a move on, we’re gonna have to paddle out to Mamaw’s.”

  “I need to get my stuff,” I yelled, and I ran into the house for my suitcase.

  Mom pulled me close and kissed me on the cheek. “Remember to stay inside, and don’t let that inhaler out of your sight. If you have any problems, tell Mamaw and then call me right away.”

  “Yes, ma’am. Thanks for letting me go tonight.”

  “You’re welcome, sweetie.” Mom hugged me again. “I love you more than anything.”

  “I know. I love you, too.” I grabbed my suitcase from her and met everyone else back in the garage.

  “Hang on,” Ruby said. “I need to put our snack cooler in.” She walked over to a far corner of the garage and grabbed a beat-up, blue ice chest.

  “I’m sitting by you,” I said. “I’m starving.”

  Ruby giggled. “I call the way-back seat.” Then she turned to me and winked.

  “Hunter, do you want to sit up front with my dad?” I didn’t know what Ruby had in that cooler, but if she was winking, I figured it must be good.

  “Yeah, Hunter,” Dad said. “Guys up front.”

  Hunter jumped in the front seat and buckled up. Lola and Kendall took the second seat, leaving me and Ruby in the way, way back.

  “Hope y’all brought your life jackets!” Dad said. Then he started up the SUV and pulled out of the garage.

  Before we even got out of our driveway, I pulled the cooler onto my lap.

  Ruby’s eyes grew wide, and she shook her head.

  “Aw, come on. I want to see what you brought.”

  Ruby put her hand on the lid and held it tight.

  “It’s a surprise,” she whispered. “One that you don’t want yet. Trust me.”

  “O . . . kay.” I wedged the cooler back down on the floor between us. A hunger pang reminded me that I hadn’t eaten lunch. “Dad, can we run through a drive-thru and get some burgers?”

  Dad glanced at me in the rearview mirror. “Now that’s a good idea!” And instead of stopping at any of the regular fast-food choices, Dad stopped right at the edge of town at the Bomb Burger Barbeque—home of the famous Kablooey Burger. A burger that is so messy you practically have to eat it with a spoon to keep it from exploding into your lap.

  “Okay,” Dad said, “Everybody out. We’ll get our food to go. If Mr. Dimple is in there, try not to get into a conversation with him.”

  “That’s next to impossible,” Lola said.

  “Just don’t make eye contact.” Kendall put both hands up next to her face. “Look straight ahead. No turning left or right.”

  “Focus,” Ruby said.

  “But he’s so nice,” Lola said. “And I like hearing about his latest inventions.”

  “He’s an inventor?” Hunter asked. “That sounds interesting!”

  “It is,” Dad said. “But we don’t have two hours to sit and listen to every detail today.”

  He swung the door open.

  “Well, hello, Carroway family! How are you all on this wet fall day?”

  Mr. Dimple sat in the right corner booth, munching on something messy.

  “Hello, Rex. How are you doin’?” Dad walked over and shook Mr. Dimple’s hand and then kept moving toward the ordering counter. We all followed along, as did Mr. Dimple.

  “Why, I’m doin’ just fine. Tryin’ to figure out a way to keep my chickens dry.”

  “You could build them a house,” Hunter said.

  Oh. No. Hunter. You did not just say that.

  Mr. Dimple grinned and put his hand on his chin.

  “Well, it’s quite a coincidence you should say that, young man. Let me show you what I’m designin’ right now . . .”

  Mr. Dimple took out a notepad from a big pocket in his one-piece, green work suit, and started flipping through the pages.

  “We’ll have six Kablooey combos with iced teas to go,” Dad said to Wanda at the counter. Wanda raised her eyebrows. “Are you eating them in Maggie’s car?”

  Dad nodded. “Better gimme lots of napkins.”

  “You got it, Jake.” Wanda grabbed about fifty napkins and shoved them in a bag of their own. “Where you headed with this crazy bunch in a storm?”

  “Just out to my folks’ house. Dropping them off for a sleepover with my mom.”

  “Sounds like a fun time. But aren’t you worried about a flood? This rains comin’ down pretty hard.”

  “Nah. Ray’s got it monitored. He says it’s headed east.”

  “Let’s hope. I’m still drying out my furniture from the last flood.”

  Louisiana was having a tough year. The massive storm just a few weeks earlier had caused a flood that destroyed businesses and displaced many families from their homes.

  “Burgers are up!” Wanda shoved several foam boxes in a large bag, and stuffed drinks in two carriers
. “Be careful out there.”

  Dad grabbed the bag, and Lola and I took the drinks.

  “Okay, gang. We’re outta here.”

  The rain had let up just a bit, so we swung open the door and jogged to the car. Ruby opened the back door so I could hop up with the drinks and slide into my seat.

  I had to step over the mysterious ice chest that was somehow calling to me to open it.

  “Where’s Hunter?” Dad looked around the parking lot. “Is he still in there talking to Dimple?”

  Kendall shrugged. Dad sighed and got back out of the car.

  As I sat down in the back seat, I lost my battle with curiosity, and I opened the cooler.

  “Noooooo!” Ruby yelled.

  Something big and green leaped out of the cooler and onto my hand holding the drink carrier.

  “Bullfrogs!” Kendall squealed, as two more jumped out and pounced around on the car seats and backs.

  “Catch them!” Lola flopped down on the floor of the SUV and tried to trap one of them. “You guys need to help me!”

  One of the frogs jumped from the back seat to the middle seat, knocking over the bag with the Kablooey burgers.

  “Got one!” Ruby held the big thing up.

  “Allie, open the cooler, but not too much. I don’t want the others to get out!”

  I did, and Ruby squished him in.

  “I got one!” Lola rolled around on her back on the floor, holding a chubby frog up above her head. She somehow managed to do a sit-up and crawl over to the cooler to put him in with his slimy friends.

  “Where’s the third one?” Kendall leaned over to look in the front seat. “Uncle Jake and Hunter are coming!” She picked up the burger bag, straightened the boxes inside, and set it on Hunter’s seat.

  “Here, froggy, froggy!” Lola scoured the floor like a vacuum, looking under seats, and poking her nose into every corner of the SUV.

  “Get back in your seat. They’re coming back.” Kendall grabbed Lola by the sleeve and pulled her back up next to her just as Hunter and Dad got to the car. Lola’s hair covered her whole face. She looked like a mop with a pink streak. “Everybody just act normal.”

  We all tried to keep straight faces. But act normal? How do you act normal when a bullfrog is loose in your car?

  CHAPTER 16

  Rocky Road