“Thanks!” Lafonda said, happily.
Angela paused to look at Alan again. “What are you doing, Alan?”
“Texting,” he said.
“Texting who?” she asked.
“Oh – just a few people,” responded Alan. He had a huge grin across his face. “This is big news!”
Quickly, Angela took Alan’s cell phone out of his hands. “Give me that!”
“Hey,” protested Alan, ardently. “Give me back my cell phone!”
Angela and Lafonda laughed. “Later!” she chuckled and Angela pocketed his cell phone.
“What’s the big deal!” he pouted. “It’s big news and other people will want to know.”
“Yeah?” retorted Angela. “But what kind of people?” She folded her arms across her chest. “Probably not anyone that actually cares about Leah.”
“Go ahead and give it back to him,” sighed Lafonda, while rolling her eyes.
Angela frowned, but gave Alan his cell phone. “Thank you!” he rejoiced.
“So, is everything okay?” asked Erin. “I mean – I didn’t know her, but – I heard about what happened.”
“Yes,” said Lafonda, softly while nodding her head. “Everything is fine. Leah said the doctors want her to relax and gave her a clear bill of mental health; they are calling it stress-induced hallucinations.”
“What does Leah think about that?” asked Nathan. “Does she think it was just stress?”
Lafonda paused and then glanced at her cell phone. “She didn’t say,” she said. “But her mom is talking about keeping her home for a semester.”
“That sucks!” commented Erin. “Well – at least she is okay and gets to go home.”
“I agree,” said Lafonda, with a nod. “I think Leah is just glad to get out of that place. She’s ready to put the whole ordeal behind her.”
“Ooh,” uttered Angela. “And – if she comes up for the closing ceremony, she gets to relax and hangout with us. Isn’t the ceremony going to be outdoors and in the evening too? She’ll get to see the fireworks!”
“I know,” said Lafonda. “We talked about doing some shopping at the mall down there to pick out some dresses.”
“Shopping too?” exclaimed Angela with a smile. “Gosh – I wish I was going. I haven’t gone shopping since camp started.”
Alan abruptly stopped texting and smirked at Angela.
“What? I said went shopping,” she said. “The Internet doesn’t count.
Angela rolled her eyes, but suddenly looked concerned once she was facing Lafonda again. “What’s wrong?” she asked. “I know I won’t be there, but you can still text me pictures of dresses so I can see.”
Lafonda responded with a half-smile. “That’s not it,” she said, appearing slightly gloomy. She forced a small chuckle followed by a quick wink. “Oh, and don’t worry, I’ll still send you pictures.”
“Then – what’s wrong?” Angela asked. “You look down all of a sudden.”
Lafonda’s smile disappeared and she seemed hesitant to speak. “It’s about something Leah mentioned on the phone,” she said. She lowered her voice and leaned in closer to the table. “She said she hadn’t spoken to Amanda since the night she was admitted to the hospital and that Amanda hasn’t returned any of her phone calls.”
“Oh – that’s it!” spouted Alan, gesturing dismissively with cell phone in hand. “Maybe she just hasn’t had time to return her phone calls.”
“No – there’s more!” explained Lafonda. “I’ve tried calling Amanda too and haven’t gotten anywhere. The last time I saw her was at my birthday party.” She began to whisper. “And this is where it gets weird; Leah said Steve’s parents called looking for him. They said he’s been missing for over a week now and they can’t reach Amanda or her parents.”
Angela reached over to take Alan’s cell phone again, but he moved out of the way. “Alan?” she groaned. “This is not the time.”
“What?” he protested. “This is news – and you never know – someone might know where Steve is or where to find Amanda.” He held his phone in the air so that it was out of her reach. “We should let people know, Angela!”
Lafonda tossed her long black hair over her shoulder and sighed. “Go ahead and let him,” she said. “Maybe somebody knows something.”
Alan’s cheeks became a deep red and he smiled widely. A spark of passion beamed from his eyes. “I’m all over it!” he said.
“Whatever Alan,” protested Angela. “You’re such a gossip king.”
“Thanks!” he said, over a flurry of thumb movements. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”
Nathan looked on and laughed as Alan continued to text feverishly. He also thought about Leah and how great it was that she would be finally going home. I wonder what it will be like to finally meet her? he thought to himself. I wonder if she will even like me? His palms began to sweat. It feels weird the closing ceremony will be the first time that I actually meet her. I feel like I know so much about her already.
Over his thoughts, he could hear Lafonda discussing Amanda and Steve’s disappearance again. “It’s strange that they would go missing,” he muttered. “Their disappearances have to be connected to each other.”
“Hey, Nathan!” called a voice over the cafeteria chatter. Nathan caught a glimpse of someone waving. He looked up to find Jonas standing behind Angela and Alan. “Hey, Nathan!” Jonas called again. “Can I talk to you for a second?”
“Sure,” Nathan responded, feeling slightly embarrassed. “What’s up?”
Jonas fidgeted with his basketball a little before securing it underneath his arm. “It’s about last night,” he said.
Nathan sprang from the table and grabbed his tray. “Hold that thought,” he said. He could feel Lafonda’s gaze and everyone else’s at the table. To his surprise, even Alan stopped texting a second to look at him. “How come I can go unnoticed on some days, but not when I want to?” he muttered.
Nathan headed over to the corner of the cafeteria that was seldom used and Jonas followed. Nathan looked over Jonas’s shoulder to make sure they were out of earshot. He was certain Alan would still try to read their lips. Nathan cleared his throat. “About last night,” he said. “Have you said anything to anybody?”
“No,” Jonas responded, while continuing to fidget with his basketball. “I’m not even really sure what it is that I would say.”
“Good,” he whispered, softly. “We should definitely keep this to ourselves for now.”
Jonas nodded, but then suddenly looked confused. “Why?”
“It’s probably safer that way,” he said. “Until we figure out what’s going on and the deal with those creatures, we probably shouldn’t tell anyone.”
“Oh, okay.” Jonas paused to look back at one of the cafeteria tables. Christina Williams smiled back at him. “Have you told anybody?”
“No, I haven’t,” Nathan said. He smiled at Jonas reassuringly. “I know this is a lot to handle and believe me, I totally understand what you’re going through.” He grinned. “You know, Jonas, now that I am thinking about it, you are the first person that actually knows about my ability.”
Jonas smiled and Nathan leaned in. “I’m actually relieved to finally be able to talk about this with somebody,” Nathan whispered. “And not just with anybody, but with someone that has an ability too.”
Jonas relaxed his shoulders, he looked more at rest. “Yeah, I can see how that would be a relief. I couldn’t imagine going through all this by myself. Those little hairy monsters alone make my head spin.”
“Yeah, I know what you mean,” said Nathan.
Jonas suddenly had an excited look on his face. “And what kind of ability do I have anyway? It’s definitely not as cool as yours. I can still see you blasting those hairy guys into the air!”
Nathan glanced quickly over Jonas’ shoulder to see if anyone heard him. “Keep it down,” he chuckled.
Jonas cringed slightly. “Right,” he said, lowering
his voice. “I still think what you can do is amazing.”
“Your power isn’t too shabby either,” said Nathan with a smile.
“I guess so,” Jonas responded with a shrug. “I’m still not quite sure what it is that I did.” He looked confused. “Where the heck were we, Nathan?”
Nathan stared at his table again as he mulled over an answer to Jonas’s question. Across the room, Jonathan appeared to be having an in-depth conversation with Erin. “I’m not exactly sure,” Nathan said. “But I think I know where to find out.”
Jonas stared at him curiously, but nodded. “Last night, you mentioned something about this not being the first time that you’ve used your powers – what did you mean by that?”
Nathan looked down and fidgeted with his hands. “I figured I would have to tell you eventually,” he said. “I just didn’t think it was going to be today.”
“Oh, okay – it’s all right if you don’t want to.”
“No, no, it’s cool.” Nathan swallowed drily. “See – I sort of can see the future or the past through my dreams.”
“Whoa, that’s cool!” marveled Jonas. He had a huge smile on his face. “Really?”
“I guess it’s cool,” said Nathan. “It probably depends on what you are dreaming about or what you see. In one of my dreams I sort of used my powers.”
“Well – I think that’s cool,” said Jonas with a nod.
“Well,” continued Nathan, while scanning the room. “It looks like everyone is getting ready to leave the cafeteria.”
Jonas turned around. Campers were lining up in their groups.
“Besides,” added Nathan. “I’m tired of holding this tray.”
Jonas laughed.
“Aren’t you guys scheduled to work in the computer lab today?” asked Nathan.
Jonas forehead wrinkled beneath his long black curls. “I think so,” he said. “I think we start work on our final projects today.”
“Sounds good,” said Nathan.
“Nathan – wait,” Jonas called. He started to fidget with his basketball again. “There’s one other thing.”
Nathan turned back around. He looked confused, but smiled reassuringly. “Yeah?”
“I didn’t say anything at the time,” stuttered Jonas. “And this is probably going to sound silly, but last night I had this strange feeling like my brother was there or something.”
“Your brother?” asked Nathan
“Yeah, my little brother,” he said. “At first I thought it was just my nerves, but this morning it didn’t go away. Somehow I feel like my little brother was there – in that place.”
“Are you sure?” Nathan asked. “I mean – did you see him?”
Jonas shook his head and glanced downward. “No,” he said. “I know it sounds crazy – it’s just a feeling I keep getting and I'm starting to worry about him.”
“Have you tried calling home? To see if he’s all right?”
Jonas shook his head again. “No,” he said. “I was afraid of what I would find out.”
Nathan smiled reassuringly again. “It’s probably nothing,” he said. “Just call home and check on your little brother. I’m sure he’s all right.”
“Okay,” said Jonas. “I’ll call before we go into the lab.”
Nathan winked. “Cool. And I’ll cover for you so that Lafonda doesn’t yell at you for being late or for ditching out to talk on your cell phone.”
Jonas smiled and looked cheery again. “Oh, and Nathan. Thanks for staying in my room last night. I felt safer having you there with me – you know – with the monsters and stuff.”
Nathan chuckled. “No problem,” he said.
14
RAINED OUT
Nathan was staring out the large window with his cell phone at his ear. It had rained all day and fog circled the base of the floor-to-ceiling glass windows in the lobby of Lawrence Hall. It had rained practically all week and Nathan and the campers spent most of the time in doors; only braving the rain to attend leadership classes. Many of the campers were excited that the week was almost over and didn’t mind spending the extra time indoors to work on their final leadership projects. Nathan couldn’t believe that camp was drawing to an end and that there was only one week left before it was all over.
“Hello,” said a familiar voice on the phone.
“How’s it going old man?” he said.
“Nathan! How many times do I have to tell you that I may be your grandfather, but I am not old!”
Nathan laughed. “Sorry Grandpa. I forget how young you are.”
“You know I would much rather you call me Roy,” he said and he laughed. “I guess I should be happy that my grandson finally remembered to call me.”
Nathan paused. “Yeah – about that,” he said. “I’m sorry that I waited so long to call. I had planned to, but a lot of unexpected things kept – popping up.”
“Oh really?” laughed Roy. “Does a girl have anything to do with this?”
Nathan chuckled and then shook his head. “No, Grandpa,” he said. “Where did you get that one?”
There was a brief silence on the phone. “Nowhere. Just trying to figure out what’s captured all my grandson’s attention.”
Nathan paced in front of the large windows. He looked up when Lafonda entered the lobby. “Lafonda,” he said, underneath his breath.
“What?” asked Roy. “Is Lafonda there?”
“Don’t give me that innocent routine,” Nathan said with a frown. “You must have heard something from Lafonda.”
Lafonda looked Nathan’s way and smiled.
“Grr!” he groaned, while quickly diverting his eyes.
Roy chuckled. “That is true,” he said. “I do hear from her. In fact, I think she calls to chat at least twice a week.”
“Whatever. What did she say this time?”
“Nothing that I recall,” answered Roy. “Then again, we do speak often and with my old age it’s hard for me to remember everything.”
Nathan rolled his eyes. “Okay Grandpa.”
“So,” said Roy. “How is setting up the bonfires going?”
“Uh – what?” stammered Nathan. “What do you mean?”
Roy paused to clear his throat. “LaDonda mentioned that you were setting up the bonfires out at Lake Charleston on Friday nights and I was curious to how that was going.”
“Oh,” responded Nathan. “Everything is going okay, I guess.” He suddenly stopped pacing. “What? Did LaDonda say something?”
“Relax son,” he laughed. “Not everyone is keeping tabs on you.”
Nathan paused. He caught a glimpse of Lafonda, Alan, and Angela setting up additional chairs in the lounge area. “Good,” he said. “Because at times it definitely feels like it.”
Roy continued to laugh. “So are you managing getting the fires started by yourself?” he asked.
“By myself?” said Nathan. “No, another counselor from camp is helping me.”
“Oh,” responded Roy. “And how is that going?”
Nathan grinned. “Good, for the most part,” he said. “At times he can be a pain, but he’s all right – underneath it all, I think he’s a good guy.”
“Good. Sounds like you might be making a new friend at camp.”
Nathan laughed. “I wouldn’t go that far as to say that. Let’s wait until the end of next week. Camp isn’t over yet.”
Roy laughed. “Speaking of next week,” he said. “What are your plans after camp is over? You’ll have an entire month off before school starts up again.”
“Uh – I’m not sure,” Nathan stammered. “I haven’t really thought about it.”
“Once camp is over, do we need to make an appointment to check on your hands? How’s that rash coming?”
Nathan felt his face turning red. “Rash!” he groaned. “What rash? My hands are fine.”
“So – you’ve been using the ointment then.”
Nathan paused. “Uh – yeah,” he muttered.
“So, if the ointment is working for you,” continued Roy. “Why am I looking at it right now on your dresser?”
Nathan felt embarrassed. “Everything is fine! I just didn’t want you to worry. Seriously – Grandpa – my hands are fine.”
“Uh-huh,” uttered Roy. “Don’t forget you’ll be home in a week and I’ll get to see for myself.”
Nathan watched as Jonas and Christina emerged from the cafeteria and joined Lafonda and the others. Samantha and Eva Marie joined them shortly after. “Okay, Grandpa,” he said. “I’ll see you in about a week.”
“Or sooner,” commented Roy.
Nathan continued to watch Lafonda and the others. He was curious as to why they were setting up so many chairs in the lounge area. “I’ll talk to you soon,” he said.
Roy laughed. “I’m sure I’ll see you first before you call again.”
Nathan laughed. “Have a good evening.”
“You too,” said Roy. “And be safe.”
Nathan closed his phone and placed it into his pocket. What did he mean by sooner? he thought.
“Well about time you got off the phone,” whined Alan. He had a labored look on his face. “We need your help setting up for tonight’s wonderful activity.”
Nathan scanned the room. “What is he talking about?”
Lafonda stopped setting up chairs and laughed. She wiped the sweat from her brow and placed her hair into a ponytail. “Whew!” she said. “My grandmother is showing a video here tonight and she asked us to help setup more chairs and tables.”
“Oh – okay,” said Nathan. He paused to look around the lounge again. “But why?”
Lafonda shook her head. “Seriously, Nathan,” she said. “You need more friends, you’re starting to sound like Jonas.”
Alan let out a big laugh.
Lafonda rested her hands on her hips. “Because of the rain, we are going to watch a video my grandmother wants us to see,” she said. “She said the video has something to do with inspiring leadership.”
Alan laughed. “Didn’t you notice that it’s still raining outside?” he asked. “I mean it’s practically been raining all week. Did you honestly think we were still going to have a bonfire with all this rain?”
The Legend of the Firewalker Page 19