“And for bats, of all things!” another voice replied.
Were they referring to Aunt Elizabeth? Nancy wondered. And what kind of bats? The ones that flew or the ones you hit a ball with? What could they possibly mean?
Before she could hear any more of the conversation, the band behind Aunt Elizabeth struck up a rousing tune, signaling the start of the ceremony.
“There’s John Stryker, the town manager,” George said to Nancy with a nudge of her elbow. Pointing to a distinguished-looking man in a business suit stepping up to the microphone, George added, “He’s the bane of Aunt Elizabeth’s existence.”
“How so?” Nancy asked.
“He’s always trying to kill her projects by telling her the town doesn’t have the money,” George replied. “But Aunt E. just holds a fundraiser and gets around him.”
“Shhh!” Bess whispered. “I want to hear!”
John Stryker took the microphone and gave a long-winded speech praising Mrs. Porter for her hard work and determination. Then he shook her hand and gave her an engraved plaque along with an enormous smile.
George gave Nancy a knowing look and rolled her eyes. “Politics,” she whispered with a sigh.
Now it was Aunt Elizabeth’s turn to speak. Her speech was short and to the point and ended with a joke about how her work had never felt hard—because it had always been exactly what she wanted to do.
The crowd applauded appreciatively.
Nancy was about to whisper to George what she’d overheard the two people behind her say, but the band began to play again. Aunt Elizabeth graciously accepted a bouquet of flowers from a little boy and was then escorted down the gazebo stairs and into a crowd of well-wishers.
Nancy watched as the townspeople of Fairport clustered around Aunt Elizabeth, laughing and hugging her exuberantly. But before George could join her aunt, Nancy pulled her to one side and told her what she’d overheard.
George frowned. “I can’t imagine what that’s about,” she said. “Aunt Elizabeth has a habit of getting people riled up, but in the end she always wins them over to her side.”
Bess interrupted. “Look,” she said, pointing to a little girl carrying an ice-cream cone. “Do you think that’s part of the celebration?”
Nancy nudged George and the two laughed. Bess had a serious sweet tooth.
“I think I’ll follow that cone,” Bess said, heading after the little girl. “I’ll find you two later!”
The crowd around Aunt Elizabeth thinned out enough for Nancy and George to approach her and add their own congratulations. Aunt Elizabeth’s face shone with happiness.
“Aunt E., what’s this I hear about you and some bats?” George finally asked when the last well-wisher had left.
The smile abruptly disappeared from Aunt Elizabeth’s face. “How did you hear about that?”
“I overheard someone in the crowd saying something about it,” Nancy explained.
“Well,” Aunt Elizabeth said, “we’ve got a bit of a predicament here in Fairport. And I’m afraid I’m in the middle of it.”
“Tell us,” George said. She led her aunt off to the side of the gathering to keep their conversation private.
“It’s complicated, but I’ll try to explain,” Aunt Elizabeth began. “You see, there’s an old road that leads from the town green to the outskirts of Fairport. It’s narrow and winding—a typical country road.
“There have been several accidents on that road over the years,” she went on. “They usually happen at night. If people aren’t familiar with the turns and they’re driving a bit too fast, they miss the curves and end up tipped over an embankment or bending a fender on a tree.
“But last year there was a terrible accident. A driver hit a bicyclist—a boy named Tommy Connor. He was killed.”
Nancy and George sucked in their breaths. “But what does that have to do with bats?” Nancy asked.
“I’m getting to that,” Aunt Elizabeth said. “Some people think the road should be widened to protect drivers and cyclists. They’ve filed a petition with the town to begin the work.
“I’m all for saving people’s lives, of course,” Aunt Elizabeth continued, “but the problem is, there’s an endangered species of bat that lives in a grove of trees right on one of the most dangerous turns. If we widen the road and take down the trees, we’ll destroy their habitat and the bats will die.”
Nancy nodded. “I think I can see where this is leading.”
“The road wideners have also filed a petition with the federal government’s Fish and Wildlife Service to allow them to take the trees down,” Aunt Elizabeth continued. “So I’ve gathered together a group of people like me, who want to protect the bats. We need to come up with evidence that proves the bats will die if the trees are taken down. If we can prove that, the federal government will forbid the road widening.”
“I’ve read about this kind of thing in the paper,” Nancy said. “Sometimes the disputes get so complicated and difficult that they have to be settled by the United States Supreme Court.”
Aunt Elizabeth sighed. “We’re hoping to avoid that. But we don’t have much time. Our dissenting opinions have to be filed in two days, and I’m not at all sure we have everything we need to make a convincing case. But you can find out all about it at the town meeting we’ve called for tonight,” she concluded.
“A town meeting!” George exclaimed. “I’ve heard about them,” she said, turning to Nancy. “They can get pretty heated.”
“Do you have a sense of how most of the people in Fairport feel?” Nancy asked Aunt Elizabeth.
“Folks are pretty much split down the middle,” Aunt Elizabeth admitted. “Bats aren’t the most warm and cuddly of animals, so most people don’t care for them. Some are actually scared of them. They don’t understand the important role they play in the natural world.”
“I’ve never been afraid of bats,” Nancy said. “But I can’t say they’re my favorite member of the animal kingdom.”
“Well, there you have it,” Aunt Elizabeth said with an understanding nod. “I hope you can handle all of this,” she said, “because I’m about to become the Batwoman of Fairport.” She laughed heartily.
George poked Nancy with her elbow. “Oh boy!” she whispered out of her aunt’s earshot. “Aunt E. is at it again.”
“But enough of this,” Aunt Elizabeth said. “I see there’s ice cream, and since it’s all in my honor, I’d like to get some before it disappears.”
