Lori Weber - Lightning Lou

Thank you to the CBC for producing the series Hockey: A Peoples History . Episode 3 (Empires on Ice) provided the spark for this book in the form of Ada Lalonde, a seventeen-year-old player discovered by the coach of the Montreal Westerns in rural Quebec. Ada was supposed to rival Albertine Lapense and Eva Ault, but turned out not to be the right fit for the team. She did, however, set my imagination flying. Id also like to thank the generous financial support of the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Qubec. Thanks also to the town of Taos, New Mexico, for being so artistically inspirational and scenically beautiful; it was there that the bulk of the book was written. Finally, thanks once again to my family who always encourage me to lace up my metaphorical skates and get out there on the ice and write, even on days when the ice seems thin. I couldnt do it without you.

L ou emerged from the washroom and took a minute to look around. This place was magnificent, with high stone walls, marble floors, and gold fixtures. He felt like he was in a palace. A tall, elegantly dressed woman was standing near the stairs he had come up a few minutes earlier, looking left and right, like she was expecting someone. Could this be his chaperone? He pulled back his shoulders and slowed his pace, taking smaller steps. Francine had told him girls didnt take such huge strides, once she had started talking to him again. Hed have to remember that, and all the other advice shed given him out on the ice before he left.

Madame Oliver? he said.

Lou Lou? Oh my, where did you come from? I was starting to worry. Monsieur Robichaud said you were a quiet one. I didnt even see you coming.

Im sorry. I had to go to the washroom. Well, it wasnt a lie.

Okay, lets go. I have a car waiting.

A car! This would be Lous first real car ride. He and Francine had sat in one once, at the train station, when no one was looking. It must have belonged to someone who had come to do business at the sawmill. But he had never ridden in one.

Out on the street, Lous mouth fell open. All around him were tall buildings. Cars, horses and buggies, and people all moved together between them. It seemed like everyone was in a rush. He had worried that people would notice him and point and whisper, but no one even looked his way. He was like a tiny ant in this crowd. He had an impulse to grab Madame Olivers hand so he wouldnt get lost. But what would she think? Monsieur Robichaud had said Lou would be the youngest on the team. Normally he didnt take anyone under fourteen, but Lou had such talent. Maybe Madame Oliver would just think he was a baby.

She sat beside him on the high-backed seat. The driver nodded, then moved to the front of the car and turned the crank. The engine sputtered and began to chug. The driver jumped in and steered the car smoothly away from the curb. If only I could write to Georges , Lou thought. Hed be so amazed to hear about this .

The car twisted and turned through busy streets until they were in a quieter neighborhood. Trees hung over the roads like an archway, touching in the middle. Out the window to his right Lou saw a mountain.

That is Mount Royal, Madame Oliver said. Pretty, isnt it? Youll see the cross at nighttime. Now Lou remembered Brother Simon talking about the famous cross on Mount Royal. Somewhere near it was a big church called Saint Josephs Oratory.

Youll see it all in time, Lou Lou, with the other girls. This time, when she spoke, Lou noticed a trace of an English accent. Maybe Papa was wrong. Maybe some English people could speak French. He didnt want to ask her. He was trying not to say much. He had decided it was best to establish himself as someone who spoke little. Monsieur Robichaud had already started that rumor. If he continued it, it would be easier not to say something wrong. Besides, he felt a bit silly every time he talked in that low whisper, like it wasnt his own voice.

Finally the car stopped beside a tall stone house with a wooden door at the top of a wide staircase.

Were here, Lou Lou, said Madame Oliver.

Lou took a deep breath. Behind the upstairs windows, three girls looked down on him. His stomach roiled. Three girls! Would they really accept him as number four?

And would he really be able to accept himself?

"E veryone, come meet Lou Lou, called Madame Oliver, removing her feathered hat and laying it over a hook on a carved wooden stand in the hallway. You can leave your coat here, on this hook.

The sound of three girls running down the stairs shook the chandelier over Lous head. It was an electric one, not gas or candle. Lou had never flicked a light switch before. He wondered if hed be allowed to flick this one, in time.

Girls, girls, said Madame Oliver. Youre not at the rink now. Remember what we talked about? Boys on the rink, girls at home. I expect perfect ladylike behavior at all times. You know what most people think about girls playing hockey. We have to prove them wrong. Youll have no trouble with that, Lou Lou, I can tell. She smiled at him, showing the most perfect white teeth he had ever seen. He cringed inside. Was he really ladylike? What would Papa say if he heard that?

Suddenly the girls were all around him, like they wanted to pick him apart, the way the chickens at home circled around the crust ends of Mamans molasses bread. They said their names all at once, so that all he heard was a blur of syllables.

Madame Oliver clapped. Against the wall, everyone. Not you, Lou Lou. You come stand by me.

The girls did as they were told, standing with their hands behind their backs, trying not to giggle.

Lou Lou, I present to you Claire, Bernadette, and Danielle. Everyone, this is Lou Lou. One by one the girls curtsied or waved. They wore their hair loose, floating over their shoulders. They had sparkling eyes of various colors, and they smiled at him as if he were a treasure.

Lou was sure they would see the sweat breaking out on his forehead and palms.

Weve heard so much about you from Monsieur Robichaud, said Claire, who was the prettiest of the girls. She had clear blue-green eyes, the color of the lake at home in summer.

Coach says youre the best skater hes ever seen, said Bernadette.

He says youll save us, said Danielle. Well, you and Claire. She looked at Claire and smiled. Lou thought he detected some annoyance in Claires expression.

I play right wing, Claire said. But how can I be a strong winger without a strong center? Ill be very happy if you turn out to be that perfect center.

All Lou could do was nod. He was afraid hed stammer if he tried to speak. He had never been paid so much attention by three pretty girls all at once. For the second time since getting off the train at Windsor Station, Lou worried about pulling this off. He hadnt given a moments thought to how hard it would be to be surrounded by girls, how it would make his heart race and his knees quiver.

Show her the room. Help her get settled, ordered Madame Oliver. Lunch in ten minutes.

Claire pulled Lou up the stairs by the hand, the other two pushing from behind. It was like they couldnt stop touching him. Francine was right. Girls were different! A group of boys would never swarm him like this or actually touch him. How could he tell them not to?

We have these two rooms, said Claire. Ive been alone for weeks, while Danielle and Bernadette share that one. Some nights they let me in, other nights they dont. But now I wont need them because Ill have you. She linked her arm around Lous and pulled him into the room they would share. He sighed with relief when he saw two small beds, one against each wall, with a small table between them.