"What do we do?" asked Lela more firmly than before. "We still have to find Mack and Brady and now we have Les Camembert to worry about."
"We'll think of something," said Tanner softly, tugging on her hand to pull her closer. "We always do." He placed a kiss on her forehead before suggesting that everyone move into Big Momma's so they could form a plan.
Everyone began moving in twos and threes towards the hangout. Chee Chee and Struts led the way, Sea Cat and Lugnut following close behind. Lela watched as her brother put his arm around Giggles as the two of them made their way inside. She smiled despite everything. She was glad her brother had found someone.
She and Tanner were the last ones to enter, hurrying inside just after Kiki and Rascal. The room was noisy for a few minutes while the bikers and surfers found their seats, but eventually the group quietened down and looked at Lela and Tanner expectantly.
"So," began Lela once the room was silent, "does anyone know how we are going to defeat Les Camembert? We can assume he's probably hiding out in the lighthouse again."
The group was silent for a few minutes as everyone racked their brains for an idea of how to defeat the man who had been trying to outwit them for as long as any of them could remember.
Butchy shifted slightly in his seat as he thought back to what Lela and Tanner had told the bikers and surfers just over a week ago when they had burst into Big Momma's and first brought Les Camembert to their attention.
"Big Momma's!" he said suddenly, causing Giggles to jump slightly. "Sorry," he said quickly before standing up and turning to face his friends. "Lela, the last time you and Tanner burst in here and told us about Les Camembert you told us that he planned to level the ocean and rust our bikes so that he could buy Big Momma's and turn it into a resort right?"
Lela nodded, a look of clarity dawning on her face as she realised what it was her brother was suggesting.
"Are you saying we can use Big Momma's as bait? To lure Les Camembert out of the lighthouse and get him to meet us here on our turf?" she asked. Butchy nodded, looking to his friends for confirmation that it was a good idea.
The group immediately began nodding and murmuring their agreement.
"But what about Mack and Brady?" asked Kiki. "Rascal and I haven't seen them. So either they never came back here or-"
"Or Les Camembert got them," finished Butchy, a hard look on his face. "He must want revenge on them getting in the way of his plans the first time."
"If we're going to do this we should do it soon," said Tanner. "We all need answers from Mack and Brady and I don't think any of us like the idea of Les Camembert hanging around."
"We need a plan," said Lela firmly. Everyone nodded and began working together to form a plan. Eventually the room was buzzing with conversation as everyone suggested their ideas. It didn't take long before they had a plan and began putting it into action.
The plan was fairly simply. Les Camembert had given Big Momma a business card with his number a while back, telling her to call him if she should ever have a change of heart about selling the shack. The plan was for her to ring him and to set up a meeting at the shack, therefore getting him out of the lighthouse and allowing Lela and Tanner to sneak inside to find Mack and Brady. The rest of the group would wait at the shack with Big Momma for Les Camembert.
"Excellent well I'll see you then," Big Momma was saying into the phone. "Yes I'm glad I've had a change of heart as well." Big Momma rolled her eyes at Lela who was listening to the conversation intently. "Okay yes I'll see you soon. Goodbye." She hung up the phone and gave the group two thumbs up.
"Now what?" asked Lela.
"Now you and Tanner make your way down to the lighthouse. Hide nearby and wait for Les Camembert to leave before you go inside. Remember, you're not just there to find Mack and Brady, you're also there to find and destroy the weather machine," replied Butchy. Lela nodded. She made her way over to him and threw her arms around him.
"Please be careful," she whispered.
"You too sis," he replied. The siblings broke apart and Butchy watched as his baby sister took Tanner's hand and left the shack. He felt a hand sliding into his and knew that Giggles was standing beside him.
"She'll be okay," she said quietly. "Your sister is one of the toughest people I know. If anyone can destroy that weather machine she can." Butchy didn't reply. Instead he wrapped his arms around Giggles and placed a kiss on the top of her head. It wasn't just Lela he was worried about anymore.
Lela and Tanner walked hand in hand down the beach. Under any other circumstance they would have found it romantic, but neither of them could think of anything other than Les Camembert and the idea that two of their best friends may have been lying to them.
They walked in silence until they neared the ruins of the lighthouse. Neither of them had been out this way since it had been destroyed. They'd left for Mack and Brady's world almost immediately after Les Camembert had been defeated.
Tanner pointed to a pile of debris a small distance away from the lighthouse.
"We can hide there," he whispered. Lela nodded and they settled down in their hiding spot, making sure they could still see the lighthouse.
"How long do you think we'll have to wait?" asked Lela. Tanner looked up towards the sky. The sun was getting low on the horizon, indicating that dusk was approaching. Les Camembert was supposed to meet Big Momma at the shack just after sundown.
"Not long," he replied. They sat in silence for awhile, each pondering how they would find Mack and Brady or the weather machine in the lighthouse when Lela spoke.
"You don't really think Mack and Brady were lying to us do you?"
Tanner studied her for a moment before replying. He could see below the surface of the tough biker, down to the hurt and worried girl she was trying to hide. He reached out and took her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze.
"If they did we'll find out soon enough," he said trying to sound hopeful.
"Mack was the first person to ever tell me that I could do anything I wanted. That girls can do anything boys can do. If she knew who I was then she could have been tricking me, moulding me into the person she wanted me to be which is exactly what people have been trying to do my whole life. I don't want her to be one of those people."
"You don't know that's what she was doing-"
"Why else wouldn't they tell us that they knew who we were? Think about it Tanner, it explains so much!"
Tanner was silent as he thought about what happened when Mack and Brady first arrived. About how Brady seemed to know everything that was going to happen before it did. How Mack was determined to make the girls see that they could do anything boys could do. What if Lela was telling the truth and Mack and Brady were trying to manipulate the bikers and surfers into doing things they didn't want to do.
"Let's just focus on rescuing them and destroying the weather machine for now okay? We can ask them why they lied to us once this is finished," he said finally. Lela was still for a moment before nodding in agreement.
"Okay but we ask them as soon as this is finished."
"Deal," agreed Tanner quickly.
"But if it turns out that they knew who we were all along, I'm not sure anything will be the same."
The two of them sat in silence after Lela's comment. Tanner didn't want to admit it but he agreed with her. There was no way anything would ever be the same with Mack and Brady again if it turned out they'd been lying.
The silence didn't last long, as just before the sun went down they began hearing noises coming from the lighthouse. Crashes and screeches that sounded like someone was trying to open a door.
Lela and Tanner crouched behind their pile of debris and watched the lighthouse closely. They watched as Les Camembert emerged from the debris, talking to someone they couldn't see. After a few minutes he nodded and began to make his way down the beach.
Tanner made to stand up but Lela grabbed his hand and pulled him down, shaking her head. She whispered to him that they wait five minutes before going in, to make sure Les Camembert was a decent way down the beach.
When the five minutes were up Lela stood and looked to see if she could see Les Camembert. Satisfied that he was far enough away she held out her hand to pull Tanner to his feet.
"You ready?" she asked him.
"Only if you are," he replied. She smiled and gave him a peck on the lips before they clasped hands and made their way towards the lighthouse, unsure of what it was they were going to find.