The Girls of Firefly Cabin

by Cynthia Ellingsen

  Jade and Archer crowded around as Lauren doled out the tasks. Isla hung back, squeezing her hands. Lauren seemed pretty nervous about getting it all done, and Isla hoped she still planned to send Isla to the boys’ camp.

  “Blueberry Lane has fifteen questions,” Lauren said as if reading her mind. “You’ll need help.”

  Jade raised her hand. “Isla and I can partner up.”

  Good. Jade wouldn’t tease her too much about Jordan.

  “Okay.” Lauren gave a vigorous nod. “There are no rules, other than no Internet. So, let’s do it. Zap!”

  The Fireflies brought it in for the secret handshake. Then Lauren hopped on a bicycle, racing across the wooden pathways. Archer stomped toward the lake like she was about to take someone prisoner. Isla and Jade headed to the parking lot, where a large van waited to shuttle teams back and forth.

  “Scavenger hunt?” the driver asked, and they nodded.

  Isla’s heart pounded as she climbed the steps.

  I’m minutes away! Jordan going to be so surprised to see me.

  “Are you nervous?” Jade asked as they settled in.

  “Yes.” Isla pushed her bangs out of her eyes. “I can’t wait to see him, though.”

  Jade propped her knees against the seat in front of them. “You’ll be fine. Once he figures out girls are descending on his turf, he’ll keep an eye out for you.”

  Oh, I hope she’s right.

  It was one thing to talk to him on the phone. To see him again in person?

  The thought was too thrilling for words.

  Isla practically pressed her nose against the window when they pulled into Blueberry Lane. There were groups of boys walking across the main area, but no Jordan. He had told her he liked to eat half a grapefruit and three bowls of cereal every morning for breakfast, so maybe he was busy doing that.

  “Pickup is every half hour,” the driver said as the girls filed out. “Last pickup is eleven. Don’t miss the van. You wouldn’t want to stay at the boys’ camp.”

  Jade gave Isla a sidelong look. “Wanna bet?” she murmured, and Isla giggled.

  “All right.” Jade stood to the side of the parking lot and held up the list. “Let’s crush this or Lauren will disown us.”

  Isla nodded. They were supposed to do a bunch of silly things like take a picture of the boys’ cafeteria with an instax mini camera, collect a signature from a camper in each age category, and even get one of the boys to give them a sock from their uniform. (Gross.)

  “We’ll need to divide and conquer.” Jade clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth. “I’ll take the picture and do the history stuff. You can do this puzzle with the main sign, get signatures from the boys, and collect the things we need. Jordan would definitely give you a sock.”

  Isla broke into hysterical giggles. “Yuck!”

  Jade smiled. “Let’s meet back at the flagpole every hour to check in. Good luck. Go get him.”

  Isla felt the first twinge of panic as Jade took off, studying her paper as she went. Would it seem totally weird to Jordan that Isla was here, as if she were following him around? Her brothers complained about that with girls all the time.

  But I have a real reason to be here.

  Plenty of her fellow campers were on the camp’s grounds and had already started approaching the boys. It wouldn’t seem strange to be one of them, right? It was all so confusing.

  Focus on the scavenger hunt. Then worry about Jordan.

  Isla looked down at her tasks. The first read “Solve the mystery of the welcome sign. What does the secret message say?” and listed a series of numbers and letters, along with a space for her to fill in the blanks and unscramble a word.

  The main sign was right next to the parking lot. Isla joined the cluster of girls already hovering around it. She tried not to listen as the other girls puzzled it out, because the different ages had different questions, and besides, that would be dishonest. Instead, she studied the sign, which read BLUEBERRY LANE, followed by a brief history of the camp.

  She had to find the fifth letter in the first row of the camp’s history, the twenty-seventh letter in the third row, and so on. It took a few minutes, but the right number of letters finally filled the blank spaces. The only remaining task was to unscramble them.

  AFRCEMPI

  Finally, she saw it. “Campfire.” She covered the paper with her hand. “Good. Only seven tasks left to go.”

  Then I’ll go find him, no matter what.

  The next task proved simple, as she quickly found a pen branded with Blueberry Lane. The questions became more challenging when she had to gather objects or information from the boy campers, because they were all in the middle of their daily activities.

  Isla had to wait by the ropes obstacle course, the swim area, and the soccer field. It took forever to get the next three questions on her list completed, but she finally pulled it off. Before she knew it, it was time to meet Jade, and she rushed across the camp’s grounds.

  The boys must have just ended their first round of activities because the pathway was suddenly packed. Isla spotted one of Jordan’s friends, the blond boy with the spiked hair, and her heart nearly stopped. Jordan’s friends traveled in a pack, so he was here, somewhere, in the chaos.

  I’m going to see him. I’m finally going to see him. I’m…

  The thought froze, along with her heart. Jordan stood beneath the overhang of the staircase of the performance pavilion. The very place where she and Lauren had waited for him. And he was hugging another girl.

  How could this happen? Isla had talked to him on the phone eleven times. Eleven!

  She’d told him things that she had never told anyone else. Like the time her mother had given her money to give to the doorman and she’d used it to buy a hot cocoa instead. And that her biggest fear was that her business would fail and she wouldn’t be able to pay her parents back for the supplies she’d bought to start it.

  She’d shared because she’d trusted him. Now, she couldn’t believe her eyes.

  The girl took a step back. Sally Stephens. She was older than Isla, a Cardinal, and had a loud laugh. Isla had always liked her…until this very moment.

  How humiliating. What could she do? What should she say?

  Jade. I need to find Jade.

  Jordan turned and saw her. He said something to Sally, then jogged over.

  “What are you doing here?” he said, smiling.

  “Why were you hugging her?” Isla squawked.

  “Sally?” Jordan looked surprised. “We’re friends from back home. She was upset.”

  Isla squinted at him in the sun. Was that true? It was hard to know what to believe anymore.

  Sally walked past. The flounce in her step did not give any indication she had ever been upset. “I’ll call you.”

  “She’ll call you?” Isla whispered, outraged.

  What would Archer do? What would she say?

  Isla took in a shaky breath. “You suck,” she said, and rushed away.

  The tears were blinding and the trees seemed to blur by. Her skin was hot with humiliation or sunburn; it was hard to tell which. Had she really been so caught up in Jordan that she’d forgotten sunscreen? She needed to get out of there.

  “Isla, wait,” Jordan called.

  Isla yanked on her hat and sunglasses. He would not see her cry. The parking lot was steps away, and Jade waited by the flagpole. Isla walked right past her, straight for the van.

  “Hey,” Jade called, waving.

  Isla took the steps two at a time. That wasn’t safe, but she was too upset to care. Moments later, Jade joined her.

  “Hey.” Jade slid her sunglasses back on her head. “What happened?”

  Isla didn’t answer. Instead, she leaned forward, grabbed Jade, and burst into tears.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Lauren sat in the tiny lobby of the administration building, twisting her hands together. She’d set up a meeting with Carol Kennedy, the director of Out
reach Services, to discuss the possibility of working in the kitchen next year. The meeting was during Indoor Rec, which was hardly good timing.

  Isla was a mess after what had happened with Jordan. She needed all the Fireflies by her side. Lauren hated that she couldn’t be there, but if she succeeded at this meeting, she could be there for years to come. If she didn’t…well, that was too painful to consider.

  Not to mention the pressure the Fireflies were now under in the Faces of Blueberry Pine competition. They didn’t even place in the scavenger hunt because they had seven wrong answers.

  Seven.

  Isla had left the boys’ camp after the thing with Jordan, and Jade hadn’t had the time to finish without her—she had four blanks. Then the Fireflies missed three other answers.

  Lauren wasn’t mad at Isla for leaving Blueberry Lane. But their lead was now at risk. They only had 440 points, and the Bluebirds were now at four hundred, and Lauren seemed to be the only Firefly upset about it.

  Am I the only one taking the contest seriously?

  “Lauren?” A woman with a stern expression and bobbed gray hair walked into the waiting room. “I’m Carol Kennedy. It’s nice to meet you.”

  “Hi!” Lauren leaped to her feet and shook the director’s hand. “Thank you so much for awarding me the scholarship. I absolutely love it here.”

  “Wonderful.” The woman shook her hand in return and led her down the hallway. The administration building was small and rustic, like most buildings at Blueberry Pine, with wooden walls and hardwood floors. “The administration was intrigued by your request. We’re looking forward to discussing it with you further.”

  Lauren’s heart pounded with excitement.

  Mrs. Kennedy led her into a small meeting room that smelled like cologne, where two women and an older man were seated. They greeted her with friendly smiles.

  “We appreciated your proposal,” the man said, once introductions had been made. “Why don’t you tell us more about what you’re picturing?”

  Lauren wiped her hands on her trousers. “Well, the girls in my cabin have become like my family.” The adults nodded. “I’ve been trying to figure out how to come back. I thought that, next year, I could volunteer in the kitchen for two hours each day, helping Chef prep the meals, in exchange for attending camp. It would help me develop skills in cooking, which is a personal passion, as well as afford me the opportunity to continue my time at Blueberry Pine.”

  The adults looked impressed. Good. Chef had helped Lauren with the wording on that part.

  “Wouldn’t you miss having that time with your camp mates?” one of the women asked, adjusting her spectacles. “You say that you love the relationships you have with the girls in your cabin. How can you maintain that if you’re volunteering in the kitchen?”

  “My friends and I are apart for many of our electives,” she said. “It’s no different.”

  One of the women shook her head. “But aren’t you concerned that it might wear you out? How can you enjoy camp if you’re tired?”

  Lauren started to feel nervous. Were they looking for reasons to say no?

  “I have a lot of energy. Two hours of work is nothing to me, really.”

  “There’s also a confidentiality issue,” Mrs. Kennedy pointed out. “We don’t reveal scholarship winners to avoid an economic divide. Yet the other girls might notice if you’re helping in the kitchen.”

  Lauren pressed her hands against the table. “I guess that’s a small price to pay if it means I get to see my friends again.”

  The man nodded. “Well said, Lauren.”

  She leaned back and crossed her fingers as tightly as she could under the table. “Does that mean I can do it?”

  Mrs. Kennedy got to her feet. “There is still a lot to discuss. You certainly have given us food for thought. We’ll let you know when we come to a decision or if we have further questions. Thank you for taking the time to meet with us.”

  Lauren’s mouth felt dry as she left the building. Outside, she leaned against the side wall and stared up at the sky.

  Please. Please let them say yes.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Archer slid down to a sitting position in a broom closet and pulled out her phone. A message was waiting, and she paused. What if Makayla didn’t want to meet Paolo? Letting out a breath, she clicked on it.

  I would love to meet you. How, though? When? I can’t wait to hold you in my arms.

  Archer leaped to her feet and did a victory dance.

  Revenge! It’s finally happening. But when?

  The counselors were having this big group bonfire on the second to last week of camp. Everyone was talking about it, even though it was supposed to be a secret. That would be the perfect time to sneak out without getting caught. No one would try to stop her but Jade.

  Archer’s black nail polish flew over the keys: I have a modeling gig booked in Detroit—not this Monday, but next. I’ll come up to camp. Meet the Bluebirds. Show everyone what true love looks like.

  Archer stopped typing. Thanks to Jade, she sometimes worried that pranking her sister really was heinous. But the reasons that Makayla deserved it flashed through her mind: Makayla spreading rumors, destroying her painting, treating her like the scum of the Earth.

  Enough is enough.

  Actions had consequences. It was time for Makayla to learn that.

  Send it.

  The message pinged through and she felt light-headed. Then Makayla’s sneering face flashed through her mind.

  No mercy.

  There was a noise outside the door, and Archer jumped. Feeling restless, she slipped out of the broom closet and jogged to the Lodge to get her cabin’s mail.

  Isla, Jade, and Lauren had letters, which she tucked into her back pocket. As she headed toward the main room, a squealing group of ten-year-olds practically ran her over. The mail scattered across the floor.

  “Animals!” Archer yelled at them. “Have some respect for your elders.”

  The girls ignored her and raced down the hall.

  Irritated, Archer stomped around, picking up the mail. Lauren’s letter was hanging out of its envelope, and the letterhead caught her eye: “Shady Acres Home for Girls.”

  Huh?

  Curious, Archer skimmed it:

  Dear Lauren,

  It certainly hasn’t been the same here without you. The younger girls ask for you nearly every day and can’t wait for your postcards. We’re counting the days until your return…

  Footsteps approached, and Archer shoved the note back into the envelope, heart pounding. She headed back toward the rec room, mind racing.

  What was the Shady Acres Home for Girls?

  The rec room bustled with activity, and she half waved to the Butterflies before ducking into the bathroom off to the side. There, she leaned against the door and googled “Shady Acres Home for Girls.”

  It was a group foster home. Maybe Lauren worked there or something? But the note had sounded pretty familiar, so…

  Archer slid it out and read the whole thing. Her hands were shaking by the time she finished. She couldn’t believe it—Lauren lived in a foster home.

  The strange things about Lauren suddenly clicked: the way she was ridiculously excited about camp, how she was so weird about waste, the moments she seemed fascinated by everyone’s families…

  Archer sucked in a sharp breath.

  What about Lauren’s family? Her perfect parents? The brother?

  Lies. All lies.

  This letter is going straight back to the mailbox.

  Even though she couldn’t believe Lauren had lied to them, Archer did not want to reveal her secret. Without her, the Fireflies wouldn’t exist.

  The thought was too scary for words.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  When Jade walked into her therapy appointment that Friday, the room smelled like Starbucks. Her therapist sipped coffee from an enormous mug.

  Jade glared. “I don’t want to be here. Just
so you know.”

  For the past two days, the mood in the cabin had been a total bummer. Lauren was still upset about the loss of the scavenger hunt, and Isla had a broken heart. Archer was intermittently upset and then upbeat, which meant she was probably about to do something terrible to Makayla.

  The therapist nodded like she knew all about it. “It seems like you might have something on your mind.”

  “I keep thinking about Catalina,” Jade admitted. “Kiara’s sister.”

  Jade didn’t mean to say it. She’d done a good job of sitting quietly for the majority of their sessions. But after the nights of depressing silence in the cabin, she was ready to talk.

  “Oh?” Instead of picking up a notebook, Mrs. Anderson just sipped her coffee as if they were having a normal conversation.

  Jade squinted at the blue pattern on the tissue box. “I think it’s because my friend Archer is fighting with her sister. Cat was mean to Kiara, too, but at the end of the day, they were sisters. The fact that Cat killed her—”

  “The accident killed her.”

  Jade paused. “Cat has had a rotten time.”

  “So have you.” The therapist nodded. “Have you reached out to her?”

  No. She was terrified.

  “You could call her,” Mrs. Anderson suggested. “Say what’s on your mind?”

  How many times had she dialed Kiara’s home number during the years of their friendship?

  “I can’t,” Jade whispered. “I wouldn’t know what to say.”

  “How about a letter, then? You wouldn’t have to send it, but you could express some of these feelings. What would you say in a letter?”

  I’d say I’m sorry. The accident wasn’t your fault—it was mine. Kiara looked up to you every day. She always talked about you, wanted to be like you…

  The words felt like they came from another place, maybe from Kiara herself.

  “Would you like to write a letter?” Mrs. Anderson pressed.

  “Is this supposed to be a healing exercise?” she demanded. “Something to make it all better?”

  “Do you think writing a letter will make this all better?”