I don’t want to praise Lillian and Rebekah for what they’ve done here, but all hail girl power. I wish they would just use it for something good.
Rebekah might not be involved! I remind myself.
“What if we go out there and she has a gun?” I ask.
“How would that be revenge?”
“Isn’t that, like, the definition of revenge?”
“No, and you don’t believe it is either. You’re letting fear talk now. She doesn’t want to kill anyone; she wants to screw us up and turn us against each other. We’re already divided: half want to go to the cops and the other half are scared to.”
But Lillian must have an end game. In four weeks, we leave.
“What are we supposed to do with that, Olly? We need to do something. She could be out there now sacrificing more animals or writing threats all over the cabins!”
“I’m going outside.”
“Bad. Idea.”
He takes my hand. “Come on, let’s look through the window and see if we can spot her.”
The cabin is drenched in darkness. I can barely see an inch in front of me.
Olly and I shuffle forward. I reach my free hand out to feel. When it touches the wall, we move sideways. The window is only just visible, a thin strip of dull light around the dark fabric blind.
I hook the blind with one finger, wincing as I shift it out of the way. Olly’s temple touches mine as we lean closer and look out.
My heart seizes and I jump back, letting the blind fall shut as a scream rips from my throat.
Olly makes a sharp bah sound and grabs hold of me, pulling me closer.
Lillian and whoever her accomplice is are outside, dressed head to toe in black, hoods up, facing us.
“Oh my God, they’re out there!” I mutter.
“Okay. It’s okay. Hey, look at me, Esme.”
I can just about make out his face and meet his eyes.
“Don’t panic.”
“They’re out there and they know we’re in here! I am panicking! What are they doing? Waiting for us? To do what?”
I don’t ever want to see Lillian again.
“Hey, shh. Nothing bad is going to happen to us. They’re two girls our age. It’s going to be fine.”
“Y-you think we should go out there and talk to them.”
“Yes.”
Taking a breath, I place my clammy palms on his chest and focus on not freaking collapsing.
“All right,” I say, and then regret it instantly. “Finding out what she wants is the only way to stop this.”
“We go out together, but stay behind me. Please.”
Holding my hand, he leads me to the door.
My pulse skitters as he pulls the door open.
Should we grab a weapon? There are plenty of bats in here. Though I’m hoping there won’t be any need for that.
We step out onto the porch.
“They’re gone,” I breathe, doing a three-sixty to try to see where they went.
Olly creeps forward on the porch to peer around the side of the cabin. I do the same on the other end.
My footsteps are too loud, though I’m practically on my tiptoes and walking like a sneaky cartoon character. I place one hand on the corner of the cabin, my fingers digging into the rough wood. I peer around the corner and see nothing but darkness.
I turn to Olly.
Only, he’s not there.
“Olly!” I whisper. Where the hell did he go?
I pad lightly along the porch, my side practically scraping along the cabin wall. “Olly?”
What is going on?
I strain my ears, trying to hear his footsteps, but I can only hear my ragged breathing. No matter how much I try to control it, I can’t.
My stomach clenches.
I’m leaving tomorrow.
“Olly, where are you?” I whisper.
Please say she hasn’t hurt him.
It’s still dark out. I don’t even know where the circuit box is to turn the electricity back on. That’s what they’ve done, tripped the circuit…I think. It must be in the staff cabin. If I can find it, I can turn on the outside lights and find Olly.
“Esme?”
I startle, my body almost leaving the damn porch floor.
Pressing one hand over my pounding heart, I snap, “Jesus, Olly!”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“Where did you go?”
“Around the back of the cabin. They disappeared so quickly, I thought they went that way instead of around the lake. I couldn’t see anyone, though.”
I shudder. “It’s so creepy knowing they’re out here.”
Not that I’ll be doing much sleeping from this point on.
“The cabins are locked,” Olly says.
“They have a key,” I remind him.
“Which they wouldn’t use with the campers inside. They seem to have a conscience when it comes to that, at least.”
“What do we do now?”
“Andy.”
We traipse back to the staff cabin again. I don’t know what time it is, but I don’t think we’ll be seeing the sun anytime soon. It’s not quite light enough.
Something catches my eye as we walk past the lake. “Olly, there’s something in the lake.”
I can just make out lumps of…something floating in the moon’s reflection.
“Andy will have a flashlight,” Olly says. “Stay where I can see you.”
I wait while Olly runs to get Andy. When I say wait, I mean that my legs won’t move anyway. My eyes strain as I try to see what’s floating out there. It looks like a few small objects.
Andy comes rushing up with Olly a heartbeat later.
They take the steps quickly. Andy trains his flashlight on the lake.
“They were outside?” he asks.
A shiver rips through my body. “Yes.”
“What were you doing in the multiuse cabin?”
“I needed to talk to Esme,” Olly replied.
“I was freaking out a little,” I add to give our story more weight.
The flashlight catches something that makes me lose my footing. “What the hell is that?”
Andy gasps.
“Oh my God, it’s a doll,” Olly says.
A doll.
No. It’s not just one doll. There are five.
“Why?” Andy whispers.
“This is hideous.” Five naked plastic dolls float on the lake. “There’s something on two of them. Can you see?” I ask.
“Yeah,” Andy replies. “I can’t make out what.”
“We need to go and get them,” Olly says.
I knew that was coming. Of course we need them to be gone by the time the campers wake up. Can’t say I’m particularly looking forward to fishing these out of the water.
“Esme, you hold the flashlight,” Andy says. “Olly and I will retrieve them.”
They wade into the lake and I shine the flashlight on the five dolls.
As I raise the light, it bounces off them and I can see clearly what’s on the ones that are marked. Eight big black crosses over their eyes.
43
Creepy. Disturbing. Sick.
Five naked baby dolls, four with their eyes crossed out.
Who do they represent?
Me? Kayla?
Lillian?
Jake and Olly too?
Lillian was the one who was harmed that night.
“Are they American Girl dolls?” I ask.
Olly and Andy look up at me with identical frowns. Yeah, they wouldn’t know.
“It’s a brand. I had a couple of them when I was little. There are much cheaper dolls they could have used. Either they belonged to one of t
hem or they spent a fortune to chuck these in the lake.”
“What are we going to do with them?” Olly asks.
Andy huffs. “I’ll bag them up and put them in my office. Once summer is over, we can go to the cops.”
“Shh,” I scold. “If they’re watching, and I have a feeling they are, they’ll hear you. No cops, remember?”
“God,” Andy breathes. “This is out of hand.”
“The next time we see them, we go for it,” Olly says.
“Go for what?”
“Grab them, tie them up, hold them somewhere.”
That sounds fun.
Olly’s eyes meet mine. “We can take them.”
“I think a woman is doing this. Or at least one of them is,” Andy says.
Wow, he is several chapters behind.
“Why do you think that?” I ask, playing along with his great discovery.
“The dolls. Would a man think to use dolls?”
I shrug. “Maybe. Dolls aren’t just for girls.”
“Perhaps not. But it’s most likely a female.”
“Yes,” I say. He’s not wrong.
“Let’s get the dolls inside.” Andy looks Olly and me over and seems to make a decision. “You are both going to help me go through the staff files. We’re looking for someone with the initials LC. Even better if we find a woman with those initials.”
“Are CITs allowed to look at staff files?” Olly asks.
I want to punch him in the throat. I’m sure we’re about to break all sorts of confidentiality laws, but who cares?
“Not technically, but I need help here,” Andy says. “The faster we find out who LC is, the better.”
“Can we please get some coffee before we start?” I ask as we walk to the staff cabin, each of us holding plastic dolls.
Andy nods. “That might be a good idea. It is five-thirty in the morning.”
Fab, I’ve had about an hour of sleep. Will this night never end? Lillian’s ramping up, her taunts coming thick and fast now.
Grumpy Esme will be coming out to play tomorrow. Or rather later today. Not that I’m planning on staying at camp.
We drop the dolls in the staff cabin.
“Would you two go make the coffee? I’ll get the files out and we can get started,” Andy says.
The last time Olly and I were alone in a cabin…
Olly senses my unease. “I’ll go. It’s probably best if Esme stays with you.”
Andy’s eyes drift to me and then Olly. “I agree. Take this radio and let us know if you have any trouble.”
I have no objections. I don’t want to go back out there. I want to sit in here, snoop through staff files and wait for my coffee. Maybe we won’t find an LC in these files, but I might get some information on who Lillian’s accomplice is. I’m pretty sure it’s Rebekah, but I need evidence.
Olly takes the radio and clips it to his jeans. “I’ll be right back.”
“The files are in here,” Andy says, leading me into his office. “Let’s take them into the staff room and put them on the table. We’ll need the space.”
“Do I have a file?”
He smiles and unlocks the metal cabinet. “Yes. It’s not very thick.”
“Is that good?”
“This is your first year with us and you haven’t done anything wrong, so I’d say yes, it’s good.”
“Does anyone have a thick file?”
Smirking, Andy says, “Take these to the staff room.”
He stacks a bunch of files into my waiting hands and I carry them to the table. In the staff room there are two comfortable couches, a vending machine, a battered foosball table and a CD player. Yep, CDs. I don’t think I’ve ever owned one. This room is stuck in the nineties.
“Do you think Olly is okay?” I ask.
“He would radio if he wasn’t.”
Olly has only been gone a couple of minutes. The coffee probably hasn’t finished brewing yet.
I flip the first file open and stifle a yawn.
Misty Allen.
She’s too old.
“Not this one,” I say, putting the file on the floor. That can be the No pile.
“Nor this one. I remember her, lovely girl,” Andy says.
I look at Andy over the top of the next file. “Please tell me you’re not basing this on who you remember liking?”
“Her name is Sandie. No LC.”
“Okay.”
Andy leaps up to unlock the door as Olly returns. It’s locked again straightaway. Olly comes into the room holding three cups of coffee. They’re stacked on top of each other and his chin is resting on the top one.
Andy jumps up and helps him.
The second I thank Olly, I take a sip. Wonderful caffeine-laced liquid burns my tongue. Fatigue has begun to set in, and I need a pick-me-up badly.
Olly sits next to me.
“You okay?” I ask.
“Tired but ready to find our hugely unwelcome friends.”
Me too. “I suggest we look for someone who’s been here in the last few years,” I say. “Things change at camp, and this person knows our current routine. And remember, this LC isn’t alone, so we can’t limit our search to just those initials.”
“Why do you think only those initials were left?” Andy asks.
Olly clears his throat. “Maybe they didn’t have time to write the other ones? I don’t know. We shouldn’t rule anything out, though, right?”
“Agreed.”
I put my coffee down and open the next file.
Rebekah’s file.
My face falls.
I pull the folder closer to my chest and scan it. I quickly find what I’m looking for—her home address. It isn’t in Kansas. It’s in Texas. In this town.
I close the file with a racing heart and put it in the No pile, but not before I memorize her address.
“Not this one,” I say out loud.
Slowly, we make our way through the files. Even though I’ve found what I was looking for, I continue, which is tedious, but I need to keep up the pretense. I don’t want Andy to know yet.
I’ll tell Olly when I get him alone.
I roll my neck and yawn.
“It’s six,” Andy says. “We should try to get an hour of sleep.”
“I really like the sound of that,” I reply, covering my yawn with the back of my hand.
Olly stands and stretches. “All right, let’s put these away first.” He looks at me out of the corner of his eye. I pick up my stack of files and stand. Does he know that I’m hiding something? Hopefully he will understand that it’s because of Andy.
By now he must know I’ll tell him. I hope.
Andy locks the cabinet and we part ways. He goes into his room; Olly and I head out.
We walk to my cabin and I stop on the porch. “Go to yours and we’ll head inside at the same time.”
His lips quirk, amused. “You worried about me?”
“Yes. I’m worried about all of us.”
I have so much to tell him, but right now all I can think about is sleep. Olly seems to sense this.
His fingertips trace my jaw. “Get some rest, Esme.”
“I’ll try.”
I’m sure he’s going to kiss me, but he doesn’t. Instead he bites his lip, drops his hand and turns. I watch him walk along the trodden path to his cabin. He looks over his shoulder when he opens the door.
I do the same and we both slip inside.
44
An hour later, I wake with a foggy head but a clearer mind.
I found out that Rebekah is from this town. That at least gives me somewhere to start. This is something. I finally don’t feel so far behind Lillian. We’re closing in.
“Morning,” Kayla says
cheerfully.
I roll over and see her head peeking over the top of my bunk.
Whatever. It’s been morning for what feels like five days already. I think I managed to get about forty-five-minutes’ sleep. It’s almost seven.
Groaning, I rub my tired eyes. “Morning. I need coffee.”
She laughs. “Let’s go get some then. Whoa, babe, you look awful.”
“I didn’t sleep well.”
“No shit. Your eye bags are suitcases and you’re washed out.”
“Thank you.”
I sit up and slide my legs over the ladder. Twisting, I climb down and stretch my arms over my head.
Do I tell her?
She’ll find out. I don’t think Andy and Olly will keep last night’s insanity a secret.
We both get dressed and then head to the food hall for breakfast. Some of the girls are dawdling, getting ready slowly and messing around with their hair. That’s pointless, we’re swimming today.
In the lake of dolls.
Which I’m glad to see is American Girl–free.
The lake looks peaceful, as if it’s frozen in time.
“Let’s eat lunch outside today,” I tell Kayla.
“Huh? It’s hotter than lava.”
“Trust me, Kayla.”
She does a double take. “Why are you so tired? Oh my God, is it Olly-related?”
“Nothing like that.”
“Then, what?”
“Not here. Too many people around.”
Her eyebrows knit together.
“I’ll fill you in on everything then, I promise.”
“Okay,” she says slowly. “Let’s get you fed.”
Olly is sitting at our usual table with a big plate of bacon and eggs. He’s gulping down a mug of coffee like it’s air.
I load up a plate with croissants and fruit. Then I get my beloved coffee and take a seat. Kayla has opted for a big cup of tea.
She didn’t spend most of the night running around dodging Lillian’s every move.
“Morning,” I say to Olly.
He looks sideways with guilty eyes. “How are you doing?”
“I’m exhausted. You?”
“Same.”
I sip my coffee.
“We need to talk today,” he says, keeping his voice low so that the others won’t hear. They’re engrossed in their own theories about the person in the woods anyway.
The Lake Page 20