Beneath a Summer Sky

by A. R. Perry

  A groan of frustration rumbles in his chest. “There are discrepancies with the food order. Every other year Helen does it but…I didn’t realize we had five extra sign-ups this year and we won’t receive another food delivery until the halfway point.”

  “Need me to run to the general store? It will be more expensive, but at least we won’t have another dessert disaster.”

  This brings a smile to his face. When other people are around, he puts on a nice show, but I know the stress he’s under with the camp and his wife gone to help his mother-in-law. I told him he should have canceled this year, but he wouldn’t hear anything about that.

  “Great idea. Bring one of the early birds with you. Tell them I’ll give them extra brownie points or something.

  I force a smile and step backward onto the porch. Choices are limited. There’s no way I’m asking one of the bros. And Lyla in a car with me, alone, is a terrible idea. Even if I need to apologize for how I acted earlier. Locking myself in the tiny cabin of my truck with her will be too much of a temptation. So, I’m left with going alone.

  On the trek down to the designated parking lot, which is a dirt lot that never had cabins built on it, I notice there are a couple more cars here.

  Good. Maybe I’ll have some help after all.

  When I near the parking lot, I pause next to the giant sign with Camp Whispering Willow painted in red as a girl giggles. No, not just any girl. Lyla. She’s leaning against her beat-up Beetle, laughing at the ground as her friend elbows her in the ribs. Right away I notice it’s the same stupid car she fought tooth and nail to buy, even though Jay and I warned her it would end up being more money and trouble than it was worth. To be honest, I’m surprised the thing is still running.

  I pick up the pace and jog down the hill and round a tree, coming into full view. Not a soul glances in my direction. In fact, both of the guys from my cabin have inched closer to the girls. Jason tugs on the end of Lyla’s braid and I swear it’s as if someone set a fire underneath me.

  In a few long strides I’m standing behind Jason glaring a hole through the back of his head. It takes a second, but Lyla is the first to notice me. Her spine snaps straight as she leans away from her car. Her friend’s gaze flicks to me and I don’t miss the hint of irritation mixed in with the same longing I saw on her face earlier.

  “Hey…” Lyla says, her voice wavering.

  I hate that she feels so uneasy around me now. But I deserve it. I caused it.

  “I need someone to run down to the market with me,” I speak as if I’m talking to the group, but my eyes haven’t strayed from Lyla’s face.

  Her bottom lip slips between her teeth as her posture becomes more and more uneasy. “I guess I could help…”

  “Cockblock much?” Jason mock whispers.

  All of us swing our attention to him, making him front and center just like he wanted. His friend Dax shakes his head. Lyla’s friend tries to suppress a nervous giggle. And Lyla, well, her eyes bug out and her mouth opens and closes several times with no words making their way out.

  My smile is tight as I take a step toward him. “Don’t you have to go sign in?” I grit out, keeping a loose grip on my temper. It’s one thing I wish I’d grown out of, but I’ve always been a hothead.

  “Come on, dude.” Dax shoves Jason forward with his shoulder.

  With one last glare, he moves away from Lyla. “Yeah, whatever. See you girls later,” he calls over his shoulder as they make their way back to camp.

  “What’s later?” I ask the second they are out of sight.

  “There’s an, uh, a—” Lyla fumbles over her words and I know it’s because of the look I’m giving her.

  “A bonfire,” her friend finishes for her. Apparently, my anger has no effect on her.

  “No.” I cross my tense arms over my chest and Lyla casts a nervous glance at her friend.

  “Okay, Dad,” her friend laughs, which loosens Lyla up a bit.

  “It’s just a bonfire.”

  “And leaving the camp without permission is against the rules.” My stony glare once again locks Lyla up. I don’t know what’s wrong with me, but I can’t seem to turn it off. Something took over the moment I saw that guy’s hands on her and now I’m like a man possessed. This isn’t me at all.

  “Like anyone will care. The kiddies will be all tucked in tight. Why not blow off a little steam?” Lyla’s friend raises an eyebrow. Goading me. She’s not fazed in the slightest by my growing anger.

  “Scarlett, it’s—”

  “No.” She turns to Lyla. “It’s not okay. He’s not the emperor of this camp. We’re eighteen. We can do what we want.”

  Lyla’s gaze bounces between me and her friend, uncomfortable with how this situation is playing out.

  “There’s a curfew. If someone finds out you’re breaking it, you’ll be sent home.” I let the implication of my words hang in the air. I’m not above breaking up this little bonfire if it means keeping Lyla safe. Those guys are up to no good and I can’t even imagine what the rest of them will be like.

  She’s too innocent for the things guys get up to with pretty girls in the dark.

  “Jesus, who shoved a stick up your butt? It’s a bonfire. It’s a party, not the end of the world.” Scarlett latches on to Lyla’s hand and tugs her toward camp.

  “You’re not going.”

  I see the exact moment Lyla’s defenses go up. Her whole body tenses, and her chin juts out the same way it did when Jay used to tell her no or say she was too young to be hanging around us.

  I overstepped, and I know what her next move will be. She’ll do the exact thing she was forbidden from doing just to prove a point.

  “I have some unpacking to do and I don’t want to miss orientation. Have fun at the market.” Her icy gaze slides right over me as she focuses on her friend. “Come on, Scar.”

  I stare after their retreating backs, kicking myself. If there is one thing I should have remembered about Lyla Underwood, it’s that she hates to be challenged. I’ve just ensured she is going to that bonfire.

  Fantastic.

  Hours later, I’m still vibrating with anger. Screw cliff diving or any of the other dumb things Scarlett has talked me into. Nothing can compare to the overwhelming adrenaline rushing through my limbs.

  “You’re not going,” I mock in a snotty voice that is more fit for a child than an adult. But whatever. My reaction is matching his. “Who the hell does he think he is?”

  “A douche?” Scarlett finishes applying her bright red lipstick in the mirror. The rest of the counselors have already left for the bonfire, but Scarlett had to make sure her makeup was perfect. Her outfit too, which meant many, many hours in front of the mirror. Why she brought a bunch of sundresses to a summer camp is beyond me, but it appears they came in handy. She looks smokin’. The pink number she has on hits midthigh and highlights her muscular cheerleading legs.

  This isn’t the first time she’s been invited to an after-hours party. I avoid them, being the obedient girl my mom raised me to be. But now? Now I’m going out of spite.

  Shane and I used to be close, but that doesn’t mean he’s my boss. I don’t need a second brother. One is plenty.

  Scarlett clears her throat as she tosses her lipstick into the oversize makeup bag she lugged up here and shoots me a nervous look. “To be fair, you don’t go to these types of parties. And you said no until he showed up.”

  “Okay, fine. But he doesn’t know that.”

  “It was oddly possessive of a stranger.”

  My mouth drops open then snaps shut. For a second I forgot Scarlett has no idea how far back Shane and I go. Now might not be the best time to tell her. I’m so amped up I swear my toes are shaking and if something goes down or if he ends up ratting us out, I don’t want Scarlett throwing our history out there for everyone to know. Shane seems to be the golden boy up here with Mr. River and I don’t need everyone else walking on eggshells afraid I’m some Goody two-shoes that will get t
hem in trouble.

  This is my last summer of fun and I won’t let him ruin it.

  “Whatever.” I brush off her words and head toward the door. “Let’s go have some fun.”

  Even as the words leave my mouth though, I can’t get the image of Shane’s disappointed face out of my head as I walked away earlier. He didn’t come back to camp until the end of orientation, and even then, he avoided my gaze at all costs. For two people who grew up together, we couldn’t feel further apart.

  Scarlett, the master of sneaking out, stuffs another pillow under her sheets and leaves a strand of her extensions hanging out of the blankets before tiptoeing to the door. When she cracks it open, we’re met with a warm summer breeze and nothing but the sound of insect nightlife.

  She motions with her head, taking the quietest steps known to man. I follow, shutting the door with an almost silent click before we race down the front stairs, avoiding step number three, which we discovered earlier makes a horrible noise. Scarlett is proficient. She even figured out all the areas we could sneak back into camp without being seen.

  This afternoon I assumed the party would be on the lake next to camp. But those were shut down super-fast in the past, so they moved it farther down the shore. So, I have to drive. Not something I had in mind. Sunshine is hit-or-miss when it comes to, well—driving.

  When we settle inside my car, I send up a prayer and turn over the engine. For the first time since I bought the thing, it starts right away. Scarlett grins at me, and I know she’s thinking what I am. This is a sign we made the right choice. If the universe didn’t want us going, my car would refuse to start.

  Tonight, the universe is on my side.

  Those thoughts don’t help to calm my nerves though. What Scarlett said earlier was right on the money. I am a rule follower. Out of my brother and me, I’m the one who is least likely to break my mom’s rules. I haven’t been grounded since I was thirteen and that was because I tore down Jay’s tent when he and Shane refused to let me camp out with them in the backyard.

  My fingers roll against my thigh as I pull to the side of the dirt road where a line of cars sits empty. Dax told Scarlett they would be one exit up. From what I know of the grounds, several campsites are separated by stretches of lake that no one owns. The one farther up is the type that people can rent out. My family stayed there one summer, and that’s how I found out about Camp Whispering Willow.

  Seems to me we’re in the right place, but maybe I should have paid more attention to what Dax and Jason said. I was too busy glaring a hole in the side of Shane’s face as he chatted up Mr. River, never once glancing my way. It was like the moment I defied him, I no longer existed and it made me wonder if that’s what happened between Jay and him. Was he so petty that one minor disagreement meant you were dead to him?

  Scarlett’s hand lands on mine where I have a death grip on the steering wheel. “Hey, you okay? If you’re uncomfortable we don’t need to go.”

  “Yeah.” I force a smile and relax my fingers. “Just annoyed.”

  “The guy is a colossal ass.”

  I nod, my eyes wide. “I’m not imagining his level of douchery right?

  She nods along with me. “For sure. If anything, you are underestimating his douchiness. But screw him. We’re here to have fun, so let’s go have fun.” She gives my hand a final squeeze before turning toward the door.

  I give myself an extra minute, taking in a deep breath to calm my anger and nerves before I follow her out into the pitch-black night. At least we were smart enough to bring our cellphones for light, otherwise I have no idea how we would find our way.

  “We need to be back by midnight,” I remind her. One of the guys who was a counselor last year warned us they do bed checks a little after midnight and aren’t above sending people packing for being a poor example to the younger kids.

  Scarlett winks at me. “Promise.”

  A few minutes later an orange glow lights up the night and we no longer need our phones to see where we are going. Scarlett skips ahead of me, more excited than I am to be breaking the rules. I don’t blame her though. Her parents have such a tight grip on her I’m surprised she hasn’t rebelled more.

  After all, there were talks of tattoos last year, but I got her to change her mind by reminding her she wants to model. A giant fairy on her back might be hard to cover up.

  By the time I reach the warmth of the fire, I can tell the party is in full swing. I didn’t think we were running that far behind, but as a girl who introduced herself earlier as April stumbles past me, I can tell that alcohol has been flowing freely.

  Scarlett waves me over from where she stands next to Jason, a red cup already in her hands. We talked about it and she promised not to get plastered and thrown out of camp because I don’t think I can handle three weeks of Shane all by myself.

  Dax saddles up next to his friend and passes me a red cup. I have no intention of getting drunk. Been there, done that. Alcohol and my stomach don’t mix well and I don’t want to spend all of tomorrow yacking up every ounce of bile my body produces. But not wanting to seem ungrateful, I smile and cradle the cup to my chest.

  Awareness tingles up my spine, and before I can even glance over my shoulder, I sense an angry presence.

  “There you are,” someone snaps from behind me.

  In the next second, the cup is pried from my hands and shoved into Dax’s chest, spilling beer down the front of his white shirt.

  Shocked, I whirl around only to be caught off guard by the furious expression on Shane’s face.

  “Here I am,” I snap, trying to match the annoyed tone of his voice as I make a move to walk around him, but he catches my arm.

  “You shouldn’t be here.”

  “Okay, Dad. Newsflash, I’m not some dumb kid.” Without thinking about my actions, I reach out and shove his chest.

  Mistake.

  Huge mistake.

  It didn’t hurt him. Based on how much he and Jay used to roughhouse I can’t guarantee he even felt it. One time, Jay threw Shane out of a tree and he got up as if nothing had happened even as I stood there with my heart thundering, afraid he was dead. A tiny shove won’t do much. What’s frightening though is the way his eyes narrow, the black of his enlarged pupils reflecting the light from the fire making him appear dangerous. Evil, even.

  A shiver runs down my spine, causing goose bumps to pop up all over. In all these years, he’s never acted this way. It’s unnerving.

  “You shouldn’t be here,” he growls in my face. No idea when he stepped closer, but his proximity does nothing to ease my frayed nerves. In fact, now I’m overheated. “Newsflash,” he mocks. “You’re still in high school. These boys are nothing but trouble.”

  I tear my arm out of his bone-crushing grasp and step backward, clearing the fog from my brain a bit. “Please. What you and Jay got up to in high school was a lot worse than a bonfire.”

  His nostrils flair. “We have an early morning.”

  “And I’ll be up with the sun, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.”

  “And what happens if Mr. River catches you?”

  “He won’t.”

  “You’ll be sent home. He doesn’t mess around.”

  “I won’t get caught.”

  His jaw ticks once as he glares. All of a sudden, I’m very aware of how quiet everyone else is and the fact that they are listening to our every word.

  “Consider this a team bonding exercise. We’ll work better together if we’re better acquainted. So, grab a beer and try to remove that giant stick wedged up your behind.”

  Scarlett’s muffled gasp and the stiffening of Shane’s posture tells me I went too far. Earlier Mr. River announced that since his wife wouldn’t be here this year, we should all consider Shane second in command. His words are to be treated as if they came straight from Mr. River. Seems Shane was willing to let the whole bonfire and breaking curfew slide, but he drew the line at major sass.

  He reaches, but I step away. “
Let’s go.”

  “No.”

  Yes, I sound childish, but I’m only reacting to his ridiculous attitude. So what if he used to be my brother’s best friend? So what if for one summer he was put in semi-control? That doesn’t mean that control extends to everything I do. For crying out loud, I get enough of that at home.

  “Lyla,” he grits out and takes another step forward. This time I refuse to back up or back down.

  “I’m staying.”

  “You’re not.” His fingers wrap around my wrist and he tugs until I turn with him toward where I parked. “Everyone better be in bed by midnight,” he calls as he unceremoniously drags me away as if I’m some toddler who refuses to go to bed.

  “Guess we’ll be a counselor short tomorrow,” someone mumbles as we walk away.

  I glance over my shoulder and shake my head at Scarlett as she takes a step to follow. No need dragging her into this mess. Besides, now is the perfect opportunity to talk and figure out what the hell crawled up Shane’s butt.

  “I’ll catch a ride with someone!” she calls.

  The moment we are out of sight, I shove at his side. “What is wrong with you?” He doesn’t answer. Since it’s so dark I can no longer read his expression. But judging from the death grip on my arm, he’s still seriously pissed.

  Once we’re almost to the cars he stops. “What’s wrong with me?” He spins around, his hot breath hitting my face like a slap. “Those guys wanted one thing. Do you know what they were saying earlier? Because I do and there’s not a shot in hell I’m going to let my friend’s little sister get screwed over by some bro.”

  Little sister.

  Didn’t I grow out of that when I turned eighteen, for crying out loud?

  “God, stop!” I rip my hand away, and this time he lets me. “I’m not the same little kid chasing you and Jay around. I’m an adult and I can make my own choices.”