Part 9 (1/2)
Jalen muttered something to himself and turned away. I wondered what was up with Leech, but soon my thoughts returned to Colleen, to the blood. It all played over and over in my mind. It seemed so weird that a little human could just drop dead like that-could stop being, right in the middle of everything.
Dr. Maria's words played through my mind again: It's okay, everyone.... No one needs to worry. It's okay, everyone.... No one needs to worry.
And I realized that was weird too, because why would would we need to worry? It had been such a random thing, why would any of us ever think that it could happen to us? Unless... we need to worry? It had been such a random thing, why would any of us ever think that it could happen to us? Unless...
Unless she she thought it could. thought it could.
It's because of this place, Lilly had said.
My fingers brushed at my neck, feeling the subtle indentations of what this place had already done to me. What else was it capable of?
Chapter 8
SOMEHOW, DESPITE THE DEATH ON OUR MINDS, we were expected to keep the camp spirit burning bright throughout another perfect day of friendly suns.h.i.+ne. I felt like there ought to be some more discussion about Colleen, some more worry, and I thought maybe I saw some on Todd's face, but he just took us to the archery range over on the back side of the playing fields like everything was normal.
Ten round targets were lined up against the trees. A rope was laid out on the ground, indicating where we were supposed to stand. We walked over to a small wooden shed.
Evan emerged, a black guard strapped to his arm, a bow in his hand. ”Hey,” he said to us all.
”Evan's here to give us some pointers on shooting,” said Todd.
Evan looked over us all like he barely knew what we were, and barely cared. When his eyes swept past me, I nodded a little to him, but he didn't seem to notice. I hoped that was because he didn't want to reveal our secret connection, but I worried it was because he didn't approve of me being part of that connection in the first place.
We all got bows and quivers of beat-up plastic arrows. Evan had a nicer set, a polished bow and wooden arrows with tricolor feathers on the back. He fired a few with lethal accuracy, spearing the yellow center of the target each time. ”Like that,” he said. ”It's all about the power when you draw the bow, and the discipline. You have to keep everything still.”
He walked up and down the line giving advice, but right by me without a word. I got one arrow into the red target area, a couple into the blue, and the others ended up flying past the target or landing in the gra.s.s in front of it.
After archery, there was some court time playing tetherball, which I did a little better at, then lunch, where no one died, and then the awkward electives hour, when Beaker and I joined the Lemurs at Craft House (Beaker had also failed the swim test, though without drowning). We made leather bracelets, stamping in designs and then putting snaps on their ends. The little kids were doing basic shapes and nicknames and code words from their cabin. I stamped DAD DAD into mine, thinking maybe it would be a good gift for him. Not that he'd ever wear a bracelet. But still. I'd have to hide it though, 'cause it was kind of childish to make a present for your dad. into mine, thinking maybe it would be a good gift for him. Not that he'd ever wear a bracelet. But still. I'd have to hide it though, 'cause it was kind of childish to make a present for your dad.
”Check it out,” said Beaker, who was right there across the table from me again, like we were connected by a magnet. He was holding out his own bracelet. Awkwardly s.p.a.ced letters spelled out AASGARD AASGARD. When I didn't really react to it, he pointed up behind me. ”Like that.”
I turned to see an old wooden sign hanging in the rafters, CAMP AASGARD CAMP AASGARD whittled into it in big blocky letters that had once been painted bright red, but only a few chips of that color remained on the gray board. There was a date in the corner: 1993. whittled into it in big blocky letters that had once been painted bright red, but only a few chips of that color remained on the gray board. There was a date in the corner: 1993.
”I tried to do that cool logo, but it was hard,” Beaker added.
I saw what he was talking about. To the right of the name was a symbol of triangles and concentric circles:
I wondered if it was Viking, or just something that kids a century ago had come up with. It could have meant anything. But it was kinda cool, so I grabbed a little paring knife and tried to reproduce it, too. It came out okay. When it was finished, I put the bracelet on. I wondered if it was a silly thing to wear but then decided I didn't care.
When we were done, we walked down to the lake and had to wait while the rest of our cabin came in from sailing. Lilly was out on the main dock, watching free swim. If she saw me arrive, she didn't show it.
Beaker and I walked over to the boathouse, beyond the swim area. It was an old red building with two docks sticking out from it. There were kayaks and rowboats tied up here, as well as the camp motorboat. Our cabin had the sailboats out. We sat at the end of a dock and watched them tacking back and forth, shooting ahead whenever they caught the wind. At one point, a boat capsized. They were close enough for us to hear the laughing from Mike and Noah, who'd done it on purpose. The other boats circled around until they were righted, then finally everyone heeded Todd's calling from a nearby boat to come in. On the way back to our cabin, they all laughed and joked about their sailing adventures while Beaker and I walked a few paces behind.
Paul was at flagpole before dinner, and began by addressing us all. ”I know everyone has been worried about what happened this morning,” he said. He didn't sound particularly worried. It was more like he was fulfilling a duty. ”So I just wanted to let you all know that little Colleen from the Pandas is doing okay. We sent her over to the city medical facility, and the doctors there say she is recovering. She had a severe allergic reaction. Extremely rare. Naturally, we're going over our food protocols and cross-referencing your files to be sure we have your safety first in our minds. But n.o.body needs to worry.”
”Yeah, right,” muttered Marco late that night as he bounded into the dark, flipping and slicing into the black lake.
I had just told them about Paul's speech.
”He's full of it,” Aliah added. ”It was probably those stupid syntheggs that got her.”
”Dude, they're better than real eggs. Did you ever have one, b-freeze?” said Evan. I'd learned by now that, among the CITs, b-freeze b-freeze meant before they'd all been Cryoed. meant before they'd all been Cryoed.
”I liked eggs,” said Marco, hauling himself back onto the raft. ”I heard they still have them, in Indo-Australia.”
”That was the only chicken population that didn't have to be slaughtered because of the strain-three avian flu,” said Lilly. I was also learning that she was bursting with facts like these. ”EdenWest claimed that their chickens were immune, but that was another lie. I heard they took them out a few kilometers from here and ga.s.sed and burned them.”
”Come on!” Evan groaned.
”What were the real ones like?” I asked. ”Eggs, I mean.”
”Mushy,” said Aliah with a frown, ”you know, like eating any unfertilized embryonic tissue.” And I'd learned that Aliah tended to have opinions like this.
”Ugh! What is with you and saying things like that all the time?” Marco moaned. ”It's gross.”
”They were good with salt,” Lilly added. ”And with real pancakes-like, made of wheat, not that millet stuff.”
”I thought that the Edens were supposed to have all the pre-Rise ingredients,” I said. ”I can get millet pancakes at home.” We hadn't seen wheat again since the first night, though there had still been some vegetables: tough string beans and some thick greens, and also some fruit, which apparently grew okay in the hydroponics towers over in the city.
”Yeah, they did, but not anymore 'cause things are going to h.e.l.l,” said Lilly. ”And there's a reason why all the fruit is peeled and cut up all nice. If you go back in the kitchen, you'll see those things do not not look as good as you remember. It's the increasing radiation, and I've heard it's toxins in the water, too. And all that's just the tip of the iceberg for this place. But back to the dead girl...” look as good as you remember. It's the increasing radiation, and I've heard it's toxins in the water, too. And all that's just the tip of the iceberg for this place. But back to the dead girl...”
”Paul said she's alive,” I reminded them. The CITs just looked at me. ”What? You don't think she is?”
”Doesn't matter if she is or not,” said Aliah. ”You saw her. She didn't look like she was going to 'recover.' And why believe that that when everything else Paul says is so ridiculous?” when everything else Paul says is so ridiculous?”
”Well, yeah.” I agreed that it seemed crazy that Camp Eden had been so careless with us, first with my drowning, then Colleen's allergies, but it still seemed kind of hard to believe that Paul and the camp were actually behind these things, or even making making them happen. them happen.
We were sitting around the edge of the trampoline, legs extended toward the middle, like spokes of a wheel. Little waves slapped against the thick rubber of the raft, making hollow, smacking sounds. Lilly sat to my left, then Evan, and around to Marco, then Aliah. The breeze had been turned up tonight, making the hairs on my arms and legs stand up among fields of goose b.u.mps. The CITs were all wearing rash-guard long-sleeve tops, looking like a team of high-tech warriors, and I felt like the rookie. Lilly's was all black with thin white seams.
Going to bed hours ago with the rest of my cabin, after another chapter of Pym Pym from Todd, I had wondered how I'd wake up, but then I just did, my gills burning softly, gently nudging me out of sleep. from Todd, I had wondered how I'd wake up, but then I just did, my gills burning softly, gently nudging me out of sleep. Time for care and feeding of your new parts Time for care and feeding of your new parts, the new technician pleasantly reminded me.
This time, as I'd sneaked out of the cabin, I left one of my socks wedged in the door to keep it from latching. Walking down to the lake, I'd been nervous. Sure, Lilly had invited me back, but would the rest of the group really want me there? Then, when I arrived they were already out there and Lilly was like, ”Hey, O!” and my name was still a single syllable and now here I was, among them again, one of them, the nocturnal sea monster clan.
”Besides,” said Lilly, ”Colleen wasn't the first, just the first that happened in public.”
”Other kids have died?” I asked.
”Three or four over the last couple summers,” Marco reported. ”We'd just heard the secondhand stories, though. A boy that didn't wake up one morning-”
”Or probably ever,” Aliah added.
”Right,” Marco went on, getting up and starting to bounce in the center of the raft. ”But Paul said that kid got better over at the city hospital.” He vaulted out into the water, sending a big splash back over us.
”Uh,” Aliah groaned.