Season Solvings- Winter Wipeout

Chapter 5

  When I looked back at our room I was surprised to see a short moustached man with a bunch of keys in his pocket trying to peek into our room through the eyehole in the door. I studied him for a little longer, but he seemed to have given up. He could have just been staff but he reminded me of someone. I soon forgot about the man when Lainey came back to us proudly clutching six small packets of chips.

"They're handing these out at the hotel's convenience store and I grabbed six!"

"How convenient!" I joked half-heartedly.

"What!" JC exploded. "And you're not ashamed?"

"No. Well, what should I have done? Left them there?" Lainey asked confused.

"No! You should have taken more!"

We all burst into laughter. As we sat at a picnic table in front of the hotel, I shook my head at my two friends who were currently stuffing themselves with chips.

After the small bags were empty, I paused, remembering the funny short man.

"You know what, that just reminded me. There was this funny guy in the hotel who was peeking into the eyehole of our door. He had a bunch of keys in his pocket. I don't know, but he looked really familiar."

Lainey made a funny face. "He had a moustache? Maybe he was Mr Moustache Guy in Uncle Fred's postcard! I mean his nephew!" she quickly added, seeing the disapproving look on JC's face.

JC rolled her eyes but mine widened.

"You know, he really did have a similar moustache!"I said.

While Lainey was celebrating her new found mind reading skills, JC and I talked.

JC exclaimed "Just because he has a moustache, it doesn't mean it's Uncle Fred's nephew!"

I was about to reply when I noticed Dee, coming out of nowhere, creeping up to Lainey's chair.

"BOO!" Dee screamed, grabbing hold of Lainey's shoulders.

"HEY!" Lainey shot up and tickled the squealing and giggling Dee. Then the rest of our family came up the hill, hands full of shopping bags. Even Paul and Janie were carrying one each on their laps. Though Paul didn't look very happy about it, and Janie was digging through her bag eagerly as if she was a starving dog and there was promised food inside, almost causing the contents to spill out of the corner of the bag.

We helped our parents lug the cargo into the kitchen, while Jamie, Bluey and Dee raced ahead. Well when I say raced, I meant climbed as slowly tortoises. Each stair was up to their knees in height. I panted as I dragged myself upstairs too. Who designed these stairs anyway?