Read Online Last Summer in Louisbourg by Clare Mowat - Free Book Online

waves collided with offshore rocky islands. Even if there had been no Fortress of Louisbourg, Andrea imagined that it would have been a fulfilling experience for tourists just to stare at the ever-changing Atlantic Ocean. She never got tired of looking at it herself.
    Andrea turned back towards the town, where a busload of visitors could be seen crossing the drawbridge by the Dauphin Gate. Suddenly she noticed Justine in front of Lartigue House. She was talking to a nice-looking guy, chatting to him in a way that suggested she knew him, that he was more than a visitor asking for directions. Did she have a crush on someone else? What about Cory? Andrea ambled slowly towards them, curious to get a better look at whoever he was. Eventually Justine saw her and waved enthusiastically.
    â€œAndrea, come on over!”
    Andrea approached nonchalantly, not wanting to appear too eager.
    â€œSurprise, surprise. This is my brother Marc. Marc, this is Andrea.”
    â€œH’lo there,” said Marc shyly, with a quick half-smile.
    â€œHi,” Andrea greeted him. Marc was a large, imposing-looking fellow, dressed in a new pair of jeans and an oversized, white T-shirt. He had short, dark hair, the same colour as Justine’s. He had dimples when he smiled.
    â€œSo guess what?” asked Justine, without stopping long enough for Andrea to guess anything. “Marc drove up to Sydney airport to pick up a couple of exchange students from Quebec and it turned out they missed their connecting flight out of Halifax, so now they won’t get here until this afternoon on another flight. Meanwhile, Marc had to hang around, so that’s why he came over here.”
    â€œHelps to pass the time,” explained Marc.
    â€œWell, yeah, there’s lots to see,” Andrea agreed.
    â€œYou gonna stay for lunch?” Justine wanted to know.
    â€œNah, I better be on my way. I can get a sandwich at the airport,” said Marc.
    â€œAnyway, we should go too. Almost performance time. I’ll see you in a few weeks,” concluded Justine.
    â€œSee ya,” said Marc, and then, as he walked away, he turned and added, “Nice to meet you.”
    â€œSame here.” Andrea smiled.
    Every morning at 11:30 when the weather was fine the children performed for fortress visitors. A trio of boys played tunes on a recorder, a drum, and a tambourine, while a circle of girls danced a traditional French step vaguely similar to the square dancing of today. Visitors loved it. They always gathered around to watch and to take lots of photographs.
    One sunny morning it dawned on Andrea that this little performance hadn’t been invented for tourists. This had been the reality in the days before people had television or videos or amplified music. In this distant outpost people had had to rely on themselves for entertainment. It occurred to her that little children would have enjoyed this uncomplicated dance and simple music the way they enjoyed taped music and movies today. Was it possible they could have enjoyed it more? In this fortress community the performers and the audience would have been acquainted with one another. If anyone had a special talent, then everyone else would have known about it. No one would have had to wait a lifetime to be discovered.
    â€œYou want to know something?” Andrea confided to Justine as they observed the children. “I once thought about becoming a video star—well, maybe not a star exactly, but doing some professional acting or singing.”
    â€œYou did? So did I,” admitted Justine.
    â€œI was in a play at school,” Andrea reminisced. “It was called
Lady Windermere’s Fan
. It was a lot of work, but I didn’t mind because I enjoyed doing it. There were four performances, and after the last one there was a terrific party. I didn’t get to bed until two o’clock in the morning.”
    â€œI was in a play at school too. It was a drama to teach