Camp Wacko: The Drones of Summer

by Faith Wilkins

  Trying my best to suck it up, I left my seat at the computer to go look out the window. I had a pleasant view of the campus. The grassy hills gave me the strong urge to run and keep on running until I found home. If only Creepy Anderson hadn’t caught me. I let out a tired sigh. Part of me could not believe that I had let this happen to me again. However, the other part of me had known what was coming all along. I had just wanted to pretend that I was safe.

  There was a knock on the door. I opened it warily, expecting another tightlipped man in a suit come to dictate more orders. To my relief, it was only Casey. Seeing her up close, I realized that she was younger than I had assumed. She couldn’t have been any older than seventeen or eighteen. Balanced on her right hand was a plate of food. In her left was a glass of juice.

  “Thought you might be hungry after all that sneaking around,” she explained, handing me the stuff with a teasing grin.

  Casey placed herself on a cushioned chair across from the bed. While I ate, she chattered about the school and her job. Casey was in charge of greeting new students and admissions stuff. Students would come to her with any problems with scheduling classes or navigating the campus.

  I asked her how she came to know about me. She explained that Dustin would get bored and come over to talk to her. He told her the basics of how we had met, leaving out the kidnapping of course.

  “Do you know why I’m here?” I inquired.

  She nodded. “Why, of course. You’re here to visit Dustin and to attend the camp.”

  I stared at her. “That’s the reason you were given?”

  “Well, yeah.” She blinked. “Am I wrong?”

  I leaned in to whisper, “Don’t you know what’s really going on here?”

  Casey frowned, furrowing her eyebrows. “I’m not sure I know what you mean.”

  Realizing it wasn’t worth it, I decided not to go into it any further. She obviously had no idea what I was talking about. Or maybe she did, but pretended not to. Either way, I quickly came to the conclusion that it would be too risky to press her about it. I immediately changed the subject.

  Too soon Casey’s break was over and she had to go back to work. She collected my empty plate and cup, waving a cheerful goodbye.

  After her departure I busied myself with unpacking my bag. I didn’t remove everything since I would be migrating to a different building after the school semester ended. So I just took out a few pictures, hair care products, favorite books, and other essentials. I also unpacked the batteries for the recording device and extra tape for the wire. I decided to keep these close to me at all times, just in case anyone decided to search my bag.

  Unfortunately this only took a few minutes to complete. I was forced to spend the rest of my day staring up at the ceiling or trying to find other lame ways to keep myself occupied. Feeling like a prisoner more than ever now, I debated whether to contact Agent Cooper again. There really was no point in doing so since I hadn’t even come up with any kind of evidence yet. Closing my eyes, I promised myself that I would get myself out of this situation one way or another. I just needed to find the right opportunity.

  The following days fell into a rhythm: breakfast, Casey, free time, lunch, Casey, more free time, dinner, and finally bed. I became used to this schedule, spending my free times either trying to find a loophole in the computer system or staring out the window. Sometimes I’d try on more clothes.

  Dustin never visited. Too busy with school, I guessed. Still, it wouldn’t have hurt to pay one short visit. Not that I wanted to see him. I just thought it was a little rude. I mean, he could have at least come to chastise me about my leaving the building unattended.

  Imagine my surprise when I woke up one morning to find that almost all my stuff had disappeared from the room. Jumping out of bed, I ran to the window. The grounds were completely deserted except for a few kids lugging large duffel bags. School staff carried bags full of golf clubs and other sports equipment.

  For a few minutes, I stared out the window in disbelief. I almost smiled when I heard a familiar knock on the door.

  I opened it to find Casey standing there grinning. “School’s out. Time to move to your new place. Get dressed and let’s go!”

  I nodded and quickly dressed in the one outfit that remained in the closet. I took out the wire from its hiding place under my mattress. I had become a pro at taking the wire off and on, concealing it under shirts that flowed away from the midsection. I decided to keep it off for the moment. Nothing interesting had happened so far. I would put it on as soon as I became situated in my new room.

  Once I was ready, I joined Casey, who stood waiting for me outside. She led me across the school grounds. When I asked her where we were going, she told me that I would be staying in one of the dorm buildings.

  “Don’t worry, though. Other kids should be arriving very soon to attend the camping program here.”

  Camping program? Yeah, right, I thought to myself.

  We came to one of the girls’ dorm buildings. There were four floors, and, apparently, my room was on the top floor. Up three excruciatingly long flights of stairs.

  By the time we reached my room, I felt as if I was going to pass out. Casey was out of breath but otherwise unfazed. Did every building in this place have such long flights of stairs? Was I the only one that found myself wanting to die after I finally hit the top?

  All of my belongings were on one side of the room. The other side was completely bare except for a nice double bed. The burgundy walls and coffee-colored carpet made the room resemble a sophisticated hotel room. After a few parting words, Casey left me to explore my newest home. Everything was set up almost exactly like my other room. Except something was off. My family portrait. I searched everywhere for it, but it was nowhere to be found.

  I stood in the middle of the room, trying to grasp what this meant. They already knew where my house was located. Why did they need a picture of my family? Whatever the reason, it couldn’t be good.

  I was sitting on my bed, contemplating this, when someone entered the room. I looked up and nearly jumped out of my skin. Standing in front of me was an old friend that I never thought I would see again.

  She flipped back her long sandy hair and put her hands on her hips.“Well, aren’t you gonna say hello?”

  “True, what are you doing here?!” I exclaimed, getting up to give her a hug.

  “Isn’t it obvious? Looks like we’re roommates again. Just like old times.” She grinned, hugging me back with vigor before plopping down on her bed. I took a seat on my own. The room was spacious, so we ended up being a good six or seven feet apart. I moved to sit next to her. True kicked her duffel bag over to make room for me.

  She sighed, lying back to stare at the ceiling. “Well here we are again. Guess our escape last year was a little too good to be true. When Dustin showed up out of nowhere to tell me that his dad wanted me back, I swear I nearly—”

  There I stopped her. “Wait, Dustin came to tell you this?”

  She nodded like it was nothing. “Uh-Huh. Anyway—”

  “He swore to me he wouldn’t work for his father anymore.” I said softly. The hurt in my voice surprised me. I was suddenly reminded why I had been angry with him to begin with.

  True patted my hand. “I’m afraid he lied to you, Hon. Big surprise there. Anyway, are you going to let me talk or do you have something else to add?”

  I shook my head. “No, sorry. You may go on.”

  “So anyway, he told me that I only had forty-eight hours and that he was very sorry. I tried not to believe it, you know. After he left I went on with my life like that conversation had never even happened. Of course, I couldn’t keep pretending it was a lie after my time was up and a limo came to take me away. I put up a good fight, but my kidnappers were stronger.” She glanced around the room. “So here I am.”

  When I told her that the same thing had happened to me, she didn’t seem to be very surprised. She had suspected as much. Secretly I wondered
if True could be surprised by anything. Probably not, I thought to myself. Well, except for one thing. Could I tell her I was working for the FBI?

  We switched the conversation over to more pleasant things, like school stuff and friends back home. Focusing on positive things was the best way to avoid the fact that we would probably never see our friends or family again. Of course, I had different plans, but I didn’t think it was the right time to let True in on my real reason for being here just yet. Though we had much to talk about, we soon became silent. True busied herself with unpacking while I analyzed our room. Noticing a closet similar to the one in my previous room, I curiously took a peek inside. Sure enough, everything was there, including an additional set of new outfits, presumably for True. She came over to check it out.

  “Now, that’s a wardrobe,” she said with a low whistle.

  Before we could explore our own personal boutique, there was a knock at the door.

  It was Casey again. “Dustin wishes to see you immediately. He’s in the boys’ dormitory.”

  Boundaries

  TRUE AND I exchanged a look. This should be interesting.

  “We’ll be there in a minute,” I replied.

  Casey nodded and left. “It sounds like he’s summoning us or something,” True commented.

  My eyes narrowed. “I don’t like being summoned, but it sounds like it’s important. I wonder what he wants.”

  Before going down to meet him, I decided to change into a cooler outfit of shorts and a T-shirt. My friend surprised me by picking out a rather…well, attractive outfit. I pointed this out and she merely shrugged, explaining that she wanted to see how the guys would react. I couldn’t see how this could possibly be the time to try to get attention from boys, but decided not to say anything.

  Dustin met us at the lobby, which was also the lounge area. Boys of every shape, size, and color were either playing video games, listening to music, or just hanging out. They lounged on big blue and green sofas and beanbag chairs. Some stopped to stare at us, the intruders, while others remained oblivious. Most of the guys staring were looking at True. She smiled and waved, obviously pleased with her little experiment. I raised an eyebrow and turned my attention toward Dustin, who took one glance at her attire but otherwise had no reaction. To my great annoyance, I found myself relieved.

  He quickly led us out of the dorm. He explained to us that his dad wanted to see us; well, me, to be exact. True let out a whoosh of air in relief. I shot her a glare. Trying to contain her joy, she patted my shoulder sympathetically. However, he added, his father still wished to speak with True after he was done talking to me. This time I patted her shoulder. We were to be at the pavilion by seven o’clock sharp.

  “So, is that all you wanted to see us for?” I asked, anxious to get back to our room.

  Dustin shook his head. “No, I asked you down here to show you around. Of course, you already had a mini-tour of your own already, didn’t you, Lily?”

  I stared at him. Of course he knew about that. Why wouldn’t he?

  “Why, I haven’t the faintest idea what you’re talking about,” I replied, batting my eyes innocently.

  He looked like he was about to give me a lecture, but then he simply shook his head, a grin spreading across his face. “Yeah, sure.”

  So we roamed the grounds. There was a lot to see. From the gigantic pools to the large richly green golf courses, the place was a full-blown resort. Kids just arriving for the summer camp enjoyed the free time by checking out the basketball and tennis courts. The soccer and football fields seemed to go on forever.

  He showed us where the pavilion was located, which was conveniently placed just to the right of The Mansion. By the capital letters you can guess who lived there. That’s right.

  The big man himself, Dustin’s father. Although Dustin had rooms there, he preferred to live in the dorm. As a compromise for not living with his father, he was forced to join him for dinner every night.

  “Is he really that bad?” True asked.

  Dustin didn’t answer. I guessed that was a yes.

  By the time we returned to the boys’ dormitory, they were headed out for lunch. Everyone walked across campus to the cafeteria. We blended in with the crowd.

  True hung back to mingle with the new campers, especially the guys. She acted completely out of character, laughing loudly and boldly flirting with hardly any effort at all. I made a few polite conversations with some of the campers too, but I didn’t make nearly as big of an impression as she did. At lunch she sat with them, completely at ease.

  I ended up sitting across from Dustin at a different table. And it was then that I noticed that something was missing, or rather someone.

  “Where’s Marcus and, you know, the rest of the rescue team? You told me you’d find a way to save them. Or did you just lie about that too?” I quipped, making a mini-pool of ranch dressing in my salad.

  Ignoring my last snarky remark, he calmly answered, “Back in Pennsylvania. He’s been doing a fairly good job of keeping an eye on things. As for the others, Cattie’s mother found out about what had happened to her daughter and had her removed immediately. The rest had been released by the time I went back to the school. I made sure to check that they were OK. None of them were harmed, but from what I understand they are all being watched very closely. I think my dad may have done something to their parents. No attempts have been made to remove them from the school. Not even for the normal vacation periods given in the year.”

  Satisfied with my salad now, I took a bite. Delicious. “Sounds like your father is tightening his hold on his students. When you say Marcus is keeping an eye on things, what do you mean exactly?”

  He leaned in close, like he was afraid someone would overhear. “He’s trying to see if there’s been any weird disappearances like before.”

  Scrunching my eyebrows, I froze mid-chew. “Well, have there been?”

  Dustin absentmindedly picked at his burger. The big room was filled with chatter. Somewhere in the background, I heard True giggle loudly. I continued to stare at him, but he refused to meet my gaze.

  Finally he said in a low voice, “Yes.”

  The food turned to dust in my mouth. “How many?”

  He rested his head in between his hands. “At least two every week, sometimes four. They never come back, either. If they keep it up, the disappearances will become obvious to everyone.”

  I swallowed, letting my fork fall with a clatter onto my plate. “We really did fail, didn’t we?”

  Dustin’s eyes slowly made their way to mine. His lips parted and he took a breath to say something, but nothing came out. He didn’t know what to say. He didn’t want to admit this was true, but we both knew it was. We had meant to save innocent kids from his father’s experiments, but we hadn’t been able to do it.

  The room suddenly felt stifling. I had to get out of there, think about something else. I surveyed the room. There weren’t any guards around. Only the lunch ladies were there, tending to the kitchen. As far as I knew, there were no locks on the doors, or alarms. I even spotted a few others getting up and walking right out, taking their lunches with them. Was the campus really this open, or were there guards lurking in the bushes, waiting to catch someone attempting to leave, like Anderson? Maybe that’s why nobody tried. Or was that because most were here for a summer camp? The thought of invisible danger brought back memories of that force field encircling the Pennsylvanian campus. Was it the same for this place, or had the crazy headmaster come up with something even more painful than an invisible force field?

  Biting my lip, I decided to check it out. Besides, I needed a backup plan in case the FBI couldn’t come through with their side of the deal. What if I somehow found myself stuck here with no one to help me but myself?

  I shot a quick glance at Dustin. He had gone back to picking at his food, showing no sign of even noticing my presence anymore. Face drawn and eyes downcast, he had receded back into his own world, and frankly it
kind of scared me. But I couldn’t worry about that now. There were other matters to attend to first.

  I quietly pushed back my chair, threw out my lunch, and marched right out the door.

  Outside, people sat on the grass either eating their lunch or chatting with friends. Their nonchalance made me wonder if they really were here for summer camp. I waved. Many waved back, while others smiled and nodded. A few even beckoned for me to come sit with them. The offer was tempting, but I had to find out what I was up against. So I moved on.

  Remembering that the administration building was near the driveway, I headed in that direction. The walk wasn’t that long and I kind of enjoyed it. The sun shone bright and the sky was a beautiful shade of blue, lightening my somewhat darkened mood.

  Soon I had passed the administration building. Now I could see the driveway. I picked up the pace, adrenaline pushing me forward. However, I was careful not to run. The driveway wound downhill until it came to an abrupt stop at the tallest gate I had ever seen. The metal barrier was a nasty concoction of curving designs and tall spires ending with pointed spikes. Chain-link fencing topped by barbed wire was attached to either side of the gate. From as far as I could tell, the fence surrounded the entire area.

  I was debating on whether to try to climb it or not when

  I heard someone coming up behind me. Quick as a whip, I whirled around in a spinning kick, knocking whoever it was clear off the ground.

  He fell on his butt with a soft thump. “Oof!”

  When I saw who it was, I laughed, helping him up.

  “Thanks,” Dustin joked, breathing hard. “I needed that.”

  “No problem,” I shot back with a smile.

  He wiped the grass off his butt. Eyes following the span of the fence, he frowned. “What are you doing out here, anyway?”

  I turned back to the fence. “Just trying to find a way out.” With that said, I reached for it.

  Dustin grabbed my arm before I could touch it. “Don’t.” His grip was surprisingly strong. I couldn’t shake him off.