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Aunt Jane and the four Alden children, Violet, Benny, Henry, and Jessie, hurried out of the Miami Airport. They had arrived in Florida to visit Aunt Jane’s friend, Kay Kingsley.

Grandfather’s sister, Aunt Jane said, “Hurry, children.” She smiled to herself. She was lucky to have married a man like Andy Bean. He was most understanding and had urged her to visit her friend and stay as long as she liked. Grandfather Alden had agreed that she take her nieces and nephews with her for a Florida vacation.

As they came out into the hot August sunshine, Jessie said, “I miss Watch already.”

“Oh, our dog is happy keeping Grandfather Alden company,” Henry reassured¹ her. “You wouldn’t want Grandfather to be all alone, would you?”

Jessie shook her head, but she felt sad.

“Look!” Benny shouted. “Palm trees!”

Aunt Jane laughed. “You’ll see stranger sights than palm trees in the Florida Everglades,” she said.

Benny squinted² up at her. “What are the Everglades?” he asked.

“The Everglades are a huge national park in Florida. The park has lots of waterways and swamps with all kinds of wildlife, from alligators³ to pelicans,” Violet said. “I’ve read about it.”

Henry grinned. “Just wait until we see it.”

Benny’s round face lit up, and his eyes grew big. “Alligators?”

“Alligators,” Henry echoed. “You might not see one, though, because there are not as many now as there used to be.”

Jessie hurried forward. “That must be Kay Kingsley in the blue dress. She’s hugging Aunt Jane.”

The four of them ran forward.

Kay Kingsley stopped talking. Her dark eyes admired the four Aldens lined up in front of her. “Jane! Are these the Alden children?”

Aunt Jane smiled proudly. “Yes, indeed.” She placed her hands on Benny’s shoulders. “This is Benny, the youngest.”

“I’m six years old,” he said proudly.

Aunt Jane touched him under the chin. “So you are, Benny.” She motioned the others forward. “This is Henry, the oldest.”

Politely, Henry shook Mrs. Kingsley’s hand. He was fourteen years old, of medium height with brown hair.

“This is Violet,” Aunt Jane continued. “She’s ten, and as you can see, she loves the color of her name.”

Violet’s face turned pink, but she smiled when she glanced down at her lavender T-shirt. Shyly, she said, “Hello, Mrs. Kingsley.”

Kay chuckled⁴. “Please. Call me Kay.”

“And last but not least,” Aunt Jane said, stepping to one side and drawing Jessie forward, “this is Jessie Alden. She’s twelve.”

Jessie’s eyes twinkled. “Hello, Kay.” A blue ribbon tied back her brown hair.

“Jane, I have so much to tell you,” Kay said happily, putting her arm around her friend. “All of you,” she ordered pleasantly, glancing back, “follow me!”

Kay, her blue skirt rustling⁵ slightly in the warm breeze, walked to a white van. She opened the driver’s side and paused. “Oh, Jane, it’s so good to see you and these darling children.” There was a catch in her throat. “I was lonely in my empty motel.”

Jane gave her a quick look. Kay sounded as if she really needed someone. “Is your motel empty?” She couldn’t hide the surprise in her voice.

“Almost,” Kay answered. “Out of ten units I only have two rented.” She slid into the driver’s seat. “But you’ll soon see for yourself.”

The Aldens couldn’t wait to see the motel and the swimming pool and the tennis court they’d heard Aunt Jane talk about.

The ride to the motel was fun. The children’s eyes were glued to the tall cypress⁶ trees and the marshy⁸ grass. In the distance long fingers of water, dotted with clumps⁹ of reeds, reached into the mangrove¹⁰ forests.

Cranes screeched¹¹ as they walked along the marsh⁷ on skinny legs. Peering into the muddy water, the big birds waited for a fish to appear.

“Florida is sure different from Greenfield,” Benny said.

Violet laughed. “You’re not lonesome, are you, Benny?”

“Not me,” Benny said firmly.

After a forty-mile ride, Kay arrived in the small town of Lyndale. She drove a few more miles until she came to a narrow lane that led to her motel. Large cypress trees shaded both sides of the road. When the car stopped, the Aldens glimpsed a long building nestled among the trees, but it didn’t look very inviting¹². The motel, a dark brown, had peeling paint and a roof with missing shingles¹³. One door hung from its hinges and a few of the windowpanes were broken. All in all it was a pretty gloomy sight.

“Is that the motel?” Benny asked, wrinkling his nose.

“That’s my Cypress Motel,” Kay said sadly. She realized the bad shape it was in. “I inherited the motel a number of years ago. It wasn’t in great shape then, and I guess I’ve let it get even worse. I just didn’t want to put much money in it. However,” she said in a more cheerful tone, “the white house on the hill is where I live. There’s room for all of us. Unless,” she hesitated, “you children would rather stay in one of the motel units. There’s a kitchenette,” she added.

“Oh, we want to stay in the motel,” Jessie said, not hesitating a second.

“Right,” Henry agreed. “We’re used to taking care of ourselves. Aren’t we?”

“Yes, we are!” Benny and Violet said together.

“Then Jane and I will stay in the house and you children will be on your own. Of course, you’ll have dinner with us tonight. Next to the end unit is a bicycle shed with all sizes of bikes. You can choose one that you like.” Kay looked at Jane. “Is that satisfactory?”

“Oh, my, yes,” Jane answered. “The four of them like to be independent.”

“Where’s the pool?” Benny asked, wiping his forehead. “It’s hot.”

“I’m sorry,” Kay answered. “The pool is empty. It needs a good cleaning before being filled with water.”

“Cleaning. That’s where we come in,” Violet said with a smile.

Henry glanced around. Even the tennis court was overgrown with weeds and vines. But it was a lovely place, he thought. Kay’s white house stood on the hill, and the motel was at the foot of it. The cypress trees and the crooked¹⁴ lane leading to it all added to the Cypress Motel’s charm. It was too bad that it was so run-down.