Reunion #21

by Melissa J Morgan

  And now they knew. Her secret was out. Maybe they weren’t saying anything yet, but they knew. It was so obviously just a matter of time. She’d seen the looks that they’d been giving her: in the mess hall, at the waterfront, at evening activity each night. The Lakeview girls weren’t going to let her lie go—it was just a question of when they were going to bring it up and throw it in her face.

  As if suspicions weren’t high enough with the game going on. Every nerve ending in Sarah’s body felt electrified. She was petrified at what would happen when her secret finally came out to Avery and the rest of the Walla Walla girls.

  So far, Natalie hadn’t been tagged in Assassin. Which meant that someone, somewhere, was probably out there trying to find her spoon at that very moment. Possibly even Avery.

  And while Natalie had—blessedly—decided to stay mum on certain details of her life since she’d arrived at camp, there was a high probability that she’d have trouble keeping things under wraps once whomever had her for a target kicked it into high gear.

  So, yeah. Sarah was worried. Right about now, the only thing that she had going for her was the fact that Natalie didn’t seem to want people to know who her father was any more than Sarah wanted that information out in the open. But that couldn’t last forever. The truth always found a way out.

  Grr. She’d been filing at the same pinky nail for at least twenty minutes now. People were bound to notice that she was acting a little weird. Edgy. She glanced around her tent. Everyone was perched on their respective bunks, engrossed in some appropriately quiet activity. So that was something. Maybe she couldn’t control or keep tabs on the whole entire camp, but at least her own tent was accounted for.

  She sighed, finally setting the emery board aside. It wasn’t as if she really cared about having smooth, even fingernails, anyway. She’d just wreck them during archery, softball, or the ropes course again tomorrow.

  “I’ll be back in ten minutes. Twenty.”

  Sarah looked up to find one of her tentmates, Shawn, negotiating with their counselor, Tara, for a brief reprieve from quiet hour lockdown. Sarah immediately set her nail stuff aside. “Where are you going?” she asked, wishing that her voice didn’t sound quite so squeaky and awkward.

  Shawn looked at her strangely. “I just have to . . . get something.”

  Sarah’s heart leaped into her chest. What if Shawn was heading over to the Oak tent to do some Assassin recon? What if Shawn had Natalie as a target?

  Even if she didn’t have Natalie as a target, any kind of poking around could turn up some info that Sarah didn’t want uncovered. “I can come with you,” she offered haltingly. “I could use some fresh air.”

  “I thought you were dying after swim drills,” Hailey pointed out.

  Right. That. “Yeah, but I have to walk it off or I’ll cramp, you know? I need to stay loose.”

  Good cover. Not.

  “I’m, uh, just going to the rec hall for, like, a minute. It’s really not worth you coming.” Now Shawn was starting to sound downright irritated.

  “Sure, okay. Whatever.” Sarah flopped back down on her bed. She knew when she’d been outmaneuvered. Who knew what Shawn was up to? Maybe nothing. Certainly it could have been totally unrelated to Assassin, anyway. And now Sarah had just acted like a total weirdo for no good reason.

  But it’s not “no good reason,” she mused to herself, staring at the springs of the bunk above her. It’s an excellent reason.

  It’s just not a reason that I can let anyone else in on.

  Ever.

  The counselors were off at a post-lights-out meeting again, which Natalie didn’t mind one bit. She was taking the opportunity to catch up on her snail-mail exchange with Hannah. But she was struggling. She angled her flashlight in the crook of her neck so that it was aimed toward her notebook, which kept shifting in her lap. She felt as twisted as a trapeze artist, and her neck was starting to pinch.

  She was just about to try and make a go of it one last time when her exercise in futility was interrupted by the sound of someone tiptoeing toward the front of the tent. It was Chelsea.

  “Where are you going?” Nat called, teasing.

  Chelsea smiled shyly. “I told Connor I’d go meet him by the big rock.”

  At that, all of the girls broke out into a chorus of whistles, as quietly as they could so as not to be overheard by anyone outside.

  “Ew, stop it,” Chelsea protested, but it was easy to see from her face that she was loving the attention. Or maybe that was just crush-glow. Either way, Natalie decided, it suited her.

  “Seriously guys, give it a rest. So she’s not, like, five years old like the rest of you are. Big deal,” Avery said, stepping forward toward the door herself. “Some of us have lives, you know.”

  With that, she turned and left the tent.

  “Well, I guess Avery has a life, then,” Natalie quipped.

  Chelsea flashed her friends a blank look and then followed Avery out, calling “see ya!” over her shoulder as she left.

  For a moment, no one said anything. Then Priya broke the silence.

  “You know what that was about, Joanna,” she said. “Now’s our chance!”

  “Hell-o-oh!” Natalie exclaimed. “Speaking in riddles? Not helpful. If you know something, you must share!” What on earth was Priya going on about? And since when was she so chummy with Joanna?

  “It’s not my information to share,” Priya said. “Sorry.”

  “Well, whose is it, then?” Jenna chimed in, sounding every bit as exasperated as Natalie was feeling. If there was something secret going down after hours at camp, the girls wanted to know!

  “Actually, mine.”

  It was Joanna. Literally the last person in the entire world that Natalie would have expected to want to share dirt with the Lakeview girls. But Nat wasn’t one to turn away a new friend. Especially not if there was a good story behind it.

  “What’s going on?” Natalie asked, finally rousing from bed and indicating that the rest of the girls should join her in the middle of the tent. She settled herself on the floor and looked at Joanna expectantly.

  Joanna glanced at Priya, who nodded reassuringly, and then back at the group. “We have to follow her,” Joanna said. “I can explain on the way.”

  “Ooh, drama!” Brynn squealed, hopping up and slipping her feet into her sneakers. “I’m in!”

  The girls quickly got themselves together and made their way out of the tent, trying to keep their commotion to a minimum, with Priya and Joanna leading the way. After a brief survey, they realized that Avery had headed off in the direction of the waterfront.

  Jenna and Brynn wanted to know all about what Joanna knew, and why they were trailing Avery. Which, of course, Natalie herself wondered, too. But just then Sloan popped up, a questioning expression on her face.

  “Can I talk to you for a minute?” Sloan asked, placing a hand on Natalie’s arm and looking extremely concerned.

  “Sure,” Natalie replied, a little bit confused.

  “It’s just—” Sloan bit her lip, looking conflicted about something. “Jenna and I have been talking—do you think it’s weird the way that Brynn is suddenly so interested in Reed?” she blurted. “I mean, we know that he came to camp to be with you, and you guys are, like, together and stuff, and yet, she’s kind of . . . always hanging all over him and stuff!” She took a deep breath. “I’m sorry. I would never think of her as the kind of girl who would go after someone else’s guy. But it’s weird. And we’re worried about keeping the peace among the Lakeview girls. So what gives? Are you worried at all? You don’t seem worried at all. So I—we—Jenna and I, I mean—we just don’t get it.”

  Natalie took a moment to gather her thoughts. Then, suddenly, her mouth split into a smile and she burst out laughing.

  “It’s not funny,” Sloan protested, miffed. “Come on.” She looked extremely put out that Natalie wasn’t taking this intervention seriously. Especially since it had obviously been t
he subject of much debate between her and Jenna.

  “No, okay, sorry. It’s totally not funny.” Natalie straightened her arms at her side and rearranged her features into a more serious expression. After a moment, though, the corners of her mouth began to twitch again.

  Her friends were looking out for her. How cute was that?

  Sloan sighed.

  “Sorry!” Natalie said again. “Look—this is me, being serious. But there’s nothing to worry about. Brynn and I totally talked about it. It’s just kind of a secret, is all.”

  At the mention of a secret, Sloan’s eyes lit up. Everyone loved a good secret.

  “The reason that Brynn’s been stalking Reed is because . . . he’s her Assassin target!”

  Sloan’s mouth dropped open. She looked utterly stunned.

  “I mean, we didn’t want everyone to know, ’cause it’s a competition and stuff, but yeah—that’s what’s been going on.” Now her eyes did turn solemn. “I’m so sorry that you got the wrong impression. Maybe we should have said something to you, so that you guys wouldn’t have to worry about all of our friendships—”

  “No,” Sloan said, cutting her off. Her own mouth started to twitch at the corners, too. “I can’t believe how badly Jenna and I overreacted. I hope you’re not mad at us for butting into your business.” She slapped her palm to her forehead. “Oh my gosh, we’re such dorks. We were so worried. I can’t believe it never even occurred to us that Reed would be Brynn’s target.” She giggled. “Okay, I’m not the most competitive person. But Jenna lives and breathes games and that kind of stuff. She should have realized. She has no excuse.” She bit her lip. “So, are you mad?”

  “Are you kidding?” Nat asked, laughing even harder. “I’m just lucky I have friends who are always watching my back.”

  “That’s us,” Sloan confirmed. “Back watchers. We’ll keep an eye on Reed’s back, too—just for Brynn’s sake. And we won’t tell anyone that he’s her target.”

  “Good,” Natalie said, patting Sloan on the shoulder. “And I won’t tell Brynn that you thought—even for a millisecond—that she was a boyfriend stealer.”

  They shook hands jokingly. “It’s a deal,” Sloan said.

  Natalie laughed again. She had the best friends in the world. Nothing would ever change that. And maybe that’s why she didn’t have the energy to be really mad at Sarah. Because Sarah didn’t have such great friends in the Walla Walla girls. And that was just . . . sad.

  Sloan glanced ahead toward the rest of the group. “Wait up, guys!” she whispered as loudly as she could. She looked at Natalie. “We’ve gotta run.”

  Natalie grinned at Sloan and grabbed her hand as tightly as she could. “Let’s go.”

  “Are you sure we’re still on the right trail?” Sloan asked, flexing her leg muscles as the group made their way down the slope to the waterfront. She was still a little sore from all of the hiking they’d done over the weekend, though without a doubt, her legs were way stronger then they’d been at the beginning of the summer.

  Still, ow.

  “I can’t see Avery at all,” she whined. I can’t make out her aura in this dark. And it’s not like I have a divining rod or anything.”

  “Some of us who are less psychically gifted rely perfectly nicely on good, old-fashioned instinct,” Priya teased, reaching out for Joanna’s shoulder to help keep her balance.

  “You are referring to what’s known in the New Age woo-woo community as vibes,” Sloan countered. “And I’m sorry, but I’m just not getting any.”

  “Shh!” Joanna cut in. “Look—she’s right there. We’ve got to make ourselves scarce.” She looked at Sloan. “You may have vibes, but I’ve been going to camp with Avery for years. I have history.”

  “You also have a loud whisper,” Priya chided. “We need to disappear. We can duck behind the swim shack,” she suggested. “We’ll be able to see who she’s meeting.”

  “I can’t believe she’s had her boyfriend here all summer and managed to keep it a secret from everyone!” Sloan mused. The whole thing really blew her mind. Especially the part where Joanna was, in fact, kind of awesome. Kind of really awesome. She wished they’d all known this earlier. For now, they’d just have to make up for lost time. “I’m usually pretty good at picking up on that sort of stuff.”

  “Vibes,” Priya said, nodding. They both giggled. Joanna and Priya had filled everyone in on the letters that they’d found in Avery’s trunk on the way down to the waterfront, and of course the Lakeview girls were all about the latest fact-finding mission.

  Natalie, Brynn, and Jenna caught up to the group and joined them in a cluster behind the swim shack. The night air was chilly against Sloan’s skin, but her anticipation kept her too hopped-up to notice. She watched, breathless, as Avery crept slowly to the edge of the water, dipping a flip-flop-clad toe in, looking eager.

  Even Avery could look eager and happy under the right circumstances, Sloan noted. She added that to her list of unexpected Walla Walla discoveries: Avery looking happy, peaceful, friendly.

  “Someone’s coming!” Jenna whispered. The girls tensed, grabbing at one another’s arms eagerly.

  Sure enough, someone was coming. Footsteps made soft padding noises against the sand. Avery turned, her face lighting up.

  And then Avery ran and hid.

  Whoever her boyfriend was, he wasn’t in on the secret, either. Avery’s crush was obviously only from afar.

  Her visitor pivoted, throwing moonlight across the planes of his face. He had some friends with him, two other boys. The three of them were laughing and enjoying the cool night hair, tossing a football back and forth as they wandered closer to the edge of the water.

  Sloan realized who he was at exactly the same time as the other girls did.

  She could tell, because they all gasped together. (As quietly as they could.) Fortunately, Avery was too involved in her visitor to hear them.

  “Oh. My. Wow.” Natalie breathed, noiseless as a butterfly’s wings.

  Sloan couldn’t have agreed more.

  chapter THIRTEEN

  “I still can’t believe it,” Jenna said, squinting into the bright sunlight as it bounced off the surface of the lake.

  She, Sloan, Natalie, Priya, Brynn, and Joanna were sitting in a rowboat in three rows of two, doing their best to keep the boat moving forward in a straight line while simultaneously rehashing their big-time discovery of the night before.

  The identity of Avery’s quote unquote boyfriend , that was.

  “I know,” Priya said, shaking her head as if to show just exactly how much she, like Jenna, was in disbelief at the information. “I mean, Jackson? He’s so old! I think he’s, like, in high school already!”

  Jackson. C.I.T. Jackson of the ropes course, and Tucker’s (admittedly adorable) assistant. He was funny, he was athletic, and he was definitely cute.

  Unfortunately, he was a C.I.T. And way too old for Avery.

  “Yup,” Joanna confirmed, looking grim. “You guys, I know you’re not exactly Avery’s biggest fans, but this is so sad. She has a huge crush on someone who totally doesn’t know she’s alive. She follows him around, spying on him. It’s . . . pathetic.” She looked sorry to have to admit it.

  Jenna wasn’t wild about Avery, sure, but this new development had activated her pity button. Here Avery was, pretending as if she knew everything about everyone, and meanwhile, she was pining away for someone who was completely out of her league. “Pathetic” was definitely the word for it.

  Jenna was sympathetic. Sort of. It wasn’t like she was going to run around spreading this news or selling it to the highest bidder like tabloid fodder . . . but that being said, it wasn’t like she and her friends couldn’t use this information to maybe, um . . .suggest that Avery take a kinder, gentler tack with the Lakeview crew than she’d been doing so far. Suddenly they had leverage, in the form of a really juicy secret. Avery would die if she thought anyone knew she’d been sneaking around, trailing Jackson
like some sort of silly schoolgirl.

  The first question was whether or not to use their newfound knowledge. Then the next questions became: how, when, and, of course, the most vimportant question of all: what would they get for their troubles in the end?

  Jenna kind of couldn’t wait to find out.

  “I can’t believe we didn’t realize,” Natalie said, breaking into Jenna’s thoughts. “I mean, she’s always trying to get his attention and stuff during ropes, and when she was bugging him with the marshmallows? On the Outdoor Adventure Weekend?”

  Jenna shrugged. “Maybe we should have realized. But even so, we know now.” She grinned mischievously. “And you know what they say: Knowledge is power.”

  Rowing worked up an appetite, Natalie realized, as she and her tentmates made their way to the mess hall. Whatever lunch was, it was bound to be inedible, but that didn’t stop her from—could it actually be?—looking forward to it.

  I’ve officially been here too long, she thought to herself. That, or I’m a victim of mind control or something like that.

  Or maybe she was just wasting away from all of the outdoor activity and stuff. Either way, she was pushing forward with the crowd through the just-opened doors as if she hadn’t eaten in months.

  Jenna reached their table first and waved to Natalie and the others to hurry up. Chelsea turned to Natalie, though, to explain, “I’m just gonna say hi to Connor quickly. Save me a seat.”

  “Will do,” Natalie said, enjoying how gushy Chelsea got whenever Connor’s name came up in conversation.

  “Ugh, throwing yourself at a guy? Pathetic,” Avery sniffed, passing by at just the right moment to spread her own personal blend of sunshine.

  Natalie steeled herself against making her own nasty retort, or worse. After all, Avery was the queen of throwing herself at a guy who didn’t even know she was alive, wasn’t she? But Natalie also realized at the very same moment that Avery had to be stopped. The girl was impossible and needed a healthy dose of her own medicine.