The Murder At Summer Camp (Clara Young Series Book 4)

by Renee Marski

  Clara shook her head. "Maddy's just a kid. A misguided kid who's had a rough life. I don't think she did anything to Gretchen."

  Denise turned onto her side and traced the wood with her finger. "So, what do you think happened?"

  Clara shrugged. "I'm not sure yet. Maybe Gretchen, hurt as she was, limped to the clearing because it was closer, thinking someone would find her soon. When no one did, she couldn't limp back to camp, so she spent the night there. Maybe an animal got to her, or exposure?" Clara blew out a breath. "But what happened to the body?"

  Screams pulled their attention to the floating dock. The older campers were swimming away from it in a hurry. Clara stood and shielded her eyes with her hand as she watched them. The only one not swimming away was Diamond, who was tugging on something underneath the dock. Clara hopped into the water and swam past the girls as she headed toward Diamond. Clara could hear her grunting before she reached her. "Diamond, what have you got there?"

  "I have to get her out. She's stuck." Diamond tugged on something again, grunting with the effort.

  "Who?"

  "Gretchen." Diamond took a deep breath, then dove under the water, slipping beneath the dock. Clara followed her, bracing herself for what she was going to find. She almost let the air in her lungs escape when she joined Diamond underneath the dock. Strapped to the bottom was a body, hair floating around a skeletal face. From what she could see, it looked like the crabs and fish had eaten away most of the flesh. Clara wasn't a medical examiner, so she didn't know how long the body had been there, but her best guess was since last summer. Diamond struggled with the bindings, but couldn't get them loose. Clara motioned for her to follow and kicked away, back to the surface. When she looked over at the wood dock, she saw the girls huddled with the other counselors, shivering.

  "Hannah, I need a knife." Hannah nodded and bent down to pull one out of Clara's bag. She hopped into the water and swam to Clara with the knife in her hand.

  As she passed it over, she asked, "Is it her?" Clara nodded. She popped the knife open and turned back to the floating dock. "Call 911. Tell the deputy we found her."

  "He won't want you to touch her."

  Clara hesitated at that, knowing Hannah was right. But Gretchen was in the water. There wasn't going to be much evidence. Even now, she wasn't much more than a skeleton and hair. Looking at Diamond, Clara shook her head.

  "I know, but Diamond isn't going to leave her there either." Clara ducked back under the dock and sawed away at the straps holding Gretchen in place. Once the skeleton was freed, Diamond pulled it to her and hugged it as she pulled it out of the water. Clara could see tendons holding it together-probably the only reason it hadn't fallen completely apart. Diamond swam to shore and pulled it with her. Clara sighed, wondering how they were going to get the body away from Diamond.

  They sat on shore with the body until the cops showed up, Deputy Bianchi at their head. He nodded at Tracy and gave her a small smile before asking Diamond to let go of the body. She glared at him and grasped the skeletal hand harder. The deputy crouched down, one hand resting on hers. "Young lady, I have to take her with me, okay? I can't figure out what happened to her if you don't let her go."

  "You promise you'll figure it out?" Diamond's voice quivered.

  "I promise." She must've believed him because she let go of the hand and scooted away. He nodded at the medical examiner's team, then stepped over to where Clara and the other counselors stood and pulled out his pad and a pen. "Okay, ladies, care to tell me how she was found?"

  Clara glanced at the campers knotted near the body, Diamond now in the middle of them. "They were swimming out by the floating dock. One of the girls said that the hair brushed her foot. She freaked out and dared one of the others to swim underneath it to take a look. When that girl did, she saw the body. While the others swam away screaming, Diamond tried to free it. I helped her." Clara looked at her toes, knowing that she'd been wrong. But if she hadn't freed the body, Diamond would have.

  "So, no one noticed her down there before?" He sounded skeptical, like it was hard to believe she was only just found.

  "The girls aren't the strongest swimmers. They don't really learn until they get to camp. The older girls have more experience, so they hang out at the dock, but going under it isn't really something they do." Hannah tried to keep her voice light, but Clara could hear the edge to it as she defended the girls.

  He tapped his pen on the pad. "Anything else I should know?"

  Denise nudged Clara, who took a step forward. "There's a clearing. It's halfway up the hiking trail, near where Gretchen turned back last year after she twisted her ankle. I can show it to you." He nodded and followed her away from the group. The other girls gathered up the campers as they finished giving their statements to the other deputies, then took them back to the house to let them process what had just happened.

  Deputy Bianchi didn't say much as he followed Clara around the lake. She kept her eyes on the ground and looked for the spot where she and the other girls had found the clearing the day before. She led him into the woods. Sticks and leaves crunched under his boots. Clara headed to the clearing, then stopped at the edge of it to give him time to catch up. It didn't look any different than it had the day before. The three bowls still sat on the stone altar.

  The deputy stepped into the clearing and turned in a circle to take it all in. He pulled out his phone to snap pictures of the pentagram, the stone altar, and the bowls. "How did you find this?"

  Clara stuffed her hands into the pockets of the shorts she'd put back on while still wet. "We wanted to see where Gretchen may have disappeared to. We didn't know exactly where that might be but we decided to search anyway. We found some cloth stuck to a log and that led us to this clearing."

  "Any idea who did all this?"

  "One of the other counselors said it used to be her, another girl, and Gretchen. That they'd come out here and pretend to be Wiccan or something. She said that last year she stopped because it seemed too childish. She thought Gretchen and the other girl were still coming out here."

  Deputy Bianchi turned to her. "Except it's not in her journal." Clara looked at him in surprise. He shrugged. "I read it all the way through. She never mentions the clearing."

  Clara nodded. "I know. I've read it too. I don't think she was coming out here last year either."

  "Which leaves only the one girl." He sighed and pulled off his cap to run a hand through his hair. "And where is she now?"

  "Out in town with the other three counselors. It's their off day." He nodded and turned to head back to the lake. Clara followed, not sure what else she could say. None of this proved who had hurt Gretchen.

  Back at the house, the deputy thanked the girls for their help, then left. They stood on the porch. Clara turned to the others, sadness etched across her face. "Where are the girls?"

  "I made them popcorn and sat them in front of a movie. Lord of the Rings. They'll be there a while." Hannah grinned, bringing a smile to Clara's face.

  Denise leaned against the railing, her hands behind her for support. "So, what did the deputy say about the clearing?"

  Clara blew out a breath. "Exactly what I did. That there's no mention of it in her journal. I think he's going to try to talk to Maddy, since it now seems she was the only one going out there still."

  "It's weird, ya know? Her body turning up after all this time?" Tracy rubbed her arms like she was cold.

  "It was strapped to that dock really well. If her hair hadn't touched that girl's foot, she might not have ever been found."

  Hannah shook her head. "Maybe eventually, once the rest of the tendons and stuff dissolved. But then she would've been just bones."

  "She's practically bones now. How are they going to determine what happened to her?" Denise looked at Clara as she asked the question, like she expected Clara to have the answer.

  "Maybe she was bludgeoned? That would leave a mark." Clara sighed. "I don't know. I think right now we should l
eave it in the deputy's hands. Let's check on the girls."

  They spent the rest of the afternoon distracting the campers by taking them out to the barn to ride the horses. Then they made a huge pizza dinner. The night ended with the biggest game of Uno that any of them had ever played. When they all headed out to the cabins to bed, Clara was surprised to find that the other counselors hadn't returned yet. She thought about texting Stacy but then decided not to. Let them have their fun. She curled up in her bed in the cabin, thoughts of Gretchen flitting through her mind as she fell asleep.

  10. THE ACCIDENT

  T he next morning, Stacy shook Clara awake. The sun was barely up. Clara sat, rubbing her eyes and glancing around. All the campers in her cabin were asleep, their snores filling the room. Stacy looked a mess, her hair a tangle around her head. She motioned for Clara to follow her out, so Clara climbed out of bed, shivering slightly when her bare feet hit the floor. She followed Stacy outside, where she wrapped her arms around herself in the cool early morning air. "What's wrong?"

  Stacy kept her back to Clara and looked over at the big house. Clara didn't see the van anywhere, which struck her as odd, but she refrained from asking. Stacy clearly wanted to tell her something. "There's been an accident."

  Clara's mouth fell open. "What kind of accident?"

  Stacy turned and Clara was finally able to see her for the first time. Her clothes were wrinkled. They were the same ones she'd worn the day before. Bags under her eyes indicated that she hadn't slept. "The van. It crashed."

  Clara stepped forward and took Stacy in her arms. "Were you in it?"

  Stacy shook her head and pulled away. "No. Katy, Savannah, and Maddy were. I don't know who was driving but they were coming around to pick me up. I stayed with all the bags so we wouldn't have to carry them so far. I waited twenty minutes before I realized that the sirens I'd been hearing weren't going away. When I got around to where we'd parked, it was there, crashed into a stone pillar in the garage, smoke pouring out of the busted engine. They took the girls to the hospital."

  "Are they okay?" Clara placed a hand on Stacy's shoulder, wanting to offer comfort.

  Stacy shook her head. "Katy and Maddy are pretty banged up, but fine. Katy broke her arm, Maddy's face is a mess. But Savannah's in a coma. She's not waking up. Her head took a hard hit and the doctors aren't sure if she'll ever wake up."

  "Stacy, we found something yesterday."

  Stacy turned, her eyes searching Clara's face.

  "We found Gretchen, tied under the floating dock. The cops came out and took away the body. I showed the deputy the clearing."

  Stacy sighed. "We talked about the clearing yesterday. Maddy seemed angry that we'd gone there but Katy had told her it wasn't a big deal, that she wasn't a real Wiccan anyway. Savannah hadn't said anything but she looked annoyed by the topic of conversation. I'd brought it up only to gauge reactions."

  Clara nodded. "The deputy will probably want to talk to Maddy once she gets back since it appears she's the only one still using the clearing."

  Stacy sighed. "That should be today. I got a cab to bring me out here. Katy said that she and Maddy would get their own once they were released." Stacy looked down at her clothes. Shock crossed her face, like she was seeing them for the first time. "Guess I'd better get cleaned up."

  As she turned to leave, Clara pulled her into another hug. "I'm glad you're okay."

  Stacy snorted. "Me too."

  Clara watched as she headed to the big house. Fear tugged at her heart. The van crash seemed too perfect. Gretchen's body was found and the people who may know something ended up in an accident? Clara shook her head, then went back into the cabin to grab a couple more minutes of sleep before the campers awoke for the day.

  ***

  When Katy and Maddy returned to camp that afternoon, they looked pretty banged up. Katy's arm was in a purple cast, which all the campers wanted to sign. Maddy's lip was busted and her face was scratched up pretty badly. "I got hit with a lot of glass," was all she said about it. Maddy locked herself in their room, not coming out except to eat. Clara wanted to remind her that it was her night in the cabin, but decided to sleep there instead, letting Maddy have her space.

  During free time, Katy sat around with the girls, a cup of coffee in hand, and told them what had happened. "Maddy was driving. I don't normally let the other girls drive but she really wanted to and I didn't think it would be a big deal. She and Savannah were in some kind of fight and I don't think her full attention was on driving. A car came whipping around the corner and she overcorrected, slamming into the pillar." Katy took a sip of coffee and winced at the bitter taste. "I don't blame her. She's doing enough of that for the two of us."

  "And Savannah?" Clara's heart clenched at the look on Katy's face.

  "She hadn't been wearing a seatbelt. We were just going around the corner, no big deal. She got thrown around in the back pretty bad, hit her head a couple of times. They aren't sure if she'll ever wake up." Tears brimmed in Katy's eyes. Clara reached across the table, grasped her good hand, and squeezed it. Katy sniffed, squeezing back. "My mom is gonna love this."

  Clara tilted her head. "Will she have to come out here?"

  Katy nodded. "Any press is good press in her mind. She'll come out to do the interviews and handle that sort of thing. Got to make sure we don't lose our sponsors." Katy sounded bitter about it, like she resented the attention the camp would get from her mother. Clara gave Katy a sad smile. Some parents just had different priorities.

  "The deputy is going to want to talk to Maddy." Tracy said this while looking at her phone. The light from the screen washed out her pale face.

  "Really? We gave statements at the hospital." Katy took another sip of coffee and winced again.

  Tracy nodded. "It's not about the crash. It's about Gretchen." Her eyes met Katy's. "She was found."

  Katy set down the cup. Clara realized that they'd been so busy distracting the campers all day that they hadn't had time to tell Katy and Maddy about Gretchen. "Her body was found yesterday, strapped to the bottom of the floating dock."

  Katy's hands flew up to her mouth. "Oh my gosh. That poor girl." Her eyes scanned Clara's face. "Do you think she drowned?"

  Clara shook her head. "I don't know yet. She could've been placed there after she was dead, as a way to hide the body. The medical examiner will know more."

  Tears finally spilled down Katy's cheeks. "That poor girl. I prayed she'd just run off with some guy or she'd started a new life. I never believed she was actually dead." Her eyes flitted over to where Maddy stood with a group of girls, giggling together. "Poor Maddy. After what happened to Savannah, this is going to crush her. Those three were thick as thieves."

  Clara followed her gaze, an idea occurring to her. "Thick as thieves? Did they go into the woods a lot together?"

  Katy nodded. "All the time. Before they were counselors they loved to explore the woods for hours on end. We had to put a stop to that after Gretchen disappeared."

  "What about last summer? Did all of them still go into the woods? Before Gretchen disappeared, I mean?" Clara could feel the other girls staring at her, wondering at her line of questioning. Clara knew that if anyone had noticed who went into the woods and who didn't, it would be Katy, whether she realized it or not.

  Katy shrugged. "Gretchen and Maddy did. Savannah hung around the house more. She didn't seem as interested in being out there anymore. Gretchen went out there the most, but I suspect she was meeting a boy."

  Clara's eyes flew open wide. "Really?"

  Katy nodded and gave Clara a sad smile. "She seemed really happy at the beginning of summer, like a young girl in love. Before she disappeared, that happiness was gone. Something must've happened." Katy yawned, then stood and stretched. "I'm gonna hit the sack, ladies. I'm beat." She waved to Maddy as she headed out of the room. Maddy watched her leave, then briefly made eye contact with Clara before going back to the girls.

  "I feel bad for Maddy." Stacy le
aned forward and rested her head in her hands.

  Clara looked at Stacy. "You like her?"

  Stacy nodded. "She's very sweet. Hangs on my every word right now. Not sure why, but it seemed to irritate Savannah a bit. Maddy wanted to follow me around today, not hang with Savannah."

  "Maybe she was trying to hurt Savannah?" Denise looked at the surprised faces and shrugged. "Teaching her a lesson. Savannah wants to leave, so Maddy is going to pretend she already has?"

  "Well, that's unfair." The derisive tone of Hannah's voice made Clara wince, but she tried to hide it. Hannah was right, no matter how abrasive she was.

  "Do you think we should tell Maddy?" Tracy's nose was still stuck in her phone. She was probably talking to the deputy.

  Clara sighed. "She's my roomie. I'll talk to her." She stood and said goodnight, then walked over to Maddy. "Hey, I think we need to talk. Come with me?" Maddy nodded. She wished the campers goodnight, then followed Clara up to their room.

  Once inside, Maddy flopped down on her bed and crossed her arms over her head. "So, what did you want to talk to me about?"

  Clara leaned against the ladder and looked down at Maddy, sadness tugging at her heart. "I know this will be a lot to take in but they found Gretchen yesterday."

  Maddy sucked in a breath, her eyes closing. "Oh no."

  "Yeah. Bad, right? She was under the floating dock, strapped there."

  Maddy's eyes fluttered open. "Who would do such a thing?" She rolled to her side, her arms wrapping around her body. Clara sat next to her and patted her shoulder.

  "I don't know, but the cops are going to find out. They want to talk to you about it, maybe tomorrow, if that's okay?"

  Maddy nodded. "Sure. That's fine. Anything to help Gretchen."

  Clara bit her lip. She decided to finally ask the question that had been haunting her. "Why did you act like you barely knew Gretchen when I first asked about her?"