“It’s Benjamin, right?”
Benjamin nodded.
“I wasn’t too sure about you, kid, but I think you’re a natural. Good job.”
Benjamin thanked the counselor and silently enjoyed the pat on the back. It wasn’t often that he was singled out for doing something good when it came to physical fitness.
Emily said goodbye and promised to find him at free time later that night. Benjamin stowed his life jacket and walked down a new trail to his next class: Wilderness Discovery.
+++
The instructor for Wilderness Discovery was a very fat man named Jeremy. He told the campers that he’d been a counselor for twelve years. Benjamin wondered how the man could be so large if he spent his summers outdoors. Maybe it was all the good desserts in the chow hall.
“Today we’ll be taking a little hike. I want you all to stay quiet and just keep your eyes and ears open. Soak up the forest. Let it speak to you. I’ll point out a few things as we go.”
Some of the other campers rolled their eyes and snickered.
“Shhh,” said Jeremy, his eyes twinkling with excitement. It looked like he was really into the discovery part of wilderness. He looked out of place for what he did for a living.
For the next forty minutes, they followed the counselor down the meandering path. Birds sang and chipmunks scurried away through underbrush as the campers passed. Just as they were going to turn around and head back, Benjamin glimpsed something in the distance. He squinted and shaded his eyes from the sun with his hands. It was a cabin on a hill. A shiver ran down Benjamin’s back. Was that the old hermit’s place?
Before he could investigate further, Jeremy announced, “Back the way we came, campers.”
He scooted past Benjamin with rosy cheeks and panting a bit from the exertion. None of the campers seemed out of breath.
Benjamin took one last look at the cabin and followed the others.
+++
After dinner the campers were allowed to have free time when they could roam around camp, swim in the lake, buy things from the camp store or just hang out.
Emily found Benjamin and his friends in the camp store, which smelled like leather and peppermint. He introduced her to Nathan and Aaron.
“We were in Mrs. Tabberson’s first grade class together, right?” asked Nathan.
“Uh huh,” answered Emily.
Benjamin paid for his candy and soda. Emily picked out a bag of Jolly Ranchers and a Gatorade.
They all left the bustling shop and looked for a place to sit. Dusk was falling and campers lounged everywhere. Benjamin dodged a Frisbee as they walked.
“Sorry,” an older boy said.
Benjamin waved back.
Nathan pointed to a short stone wall up ahead.
“Dibs on the end,” he said.
They all sat down and dug into their goodies. It felt like real freedom to all of them. For Benjamin and Nathan, it was their first time away from home without a family member. Instead of being homesick, they were excited and giddy. They chatted about their favorite parts of the day while stuffing their mouths full of sweets and treats.
At one point Nathan laughed so hard that soda came out of his nose. It was almost contagious as the others snorted along with him.
“All campers have ten minutes to report back to their cabins for night prep,” came the voice over the camp-wide speaker system.
Everyone around them responded with a moan. Benjamin didn’t mind. He was tired from the day and the lack of sleep the night before.
“See you tomorrow,” said Emily. The three Tomahawks waved to her and headed in the opposite direction.
Chapter 20: The Call
Benjamin had just fallen asleep when he woke with a start. His fellow tribe members had been asleep for over an hour. What woke him and no one else? He sat listening. Suddenly there was a sound outside. It was faint. It sounded like a baby crying. What was a baby doing at camp?
Benjamin laid his head back down and tried to fall back to sleep. The sound came again, “Waaaa…” It sounded louder this time. Why wasn’t anyone doing anything about the baby? He plugged his ears with his fingers and closed his eyes tight. “Waaa…” It was even louder!
Looking around the room, Benjamin was amazed that no one else heard the noise. He swung his legs off the bed and silently crept over to the screen door. Tomahawk Tony was snoring loudly on the bunk closest to the exit.
Benjamin peered out into the darkness.
“Waaa…”
He almost jumped at the sound. Steadying himself against the door, he tried to pinpoint where the sound was coming from.
“Waaa…”
Benjamin was almost positive that the noise came from the woods. He cocked his head.
“Waaa…”
He was right. It wasn’t coming from the permanently lit area around the chow hall and staff building.
“Waaa…”
The crying seemed to become more and more urgent.
Benjamin walked over to where Tony was sleeping. He bent down and nudged the counselor. Tony kept snoring. Benjamin shook Tony’s shoulder. Still nothing. Finally he whispered, “Tony.” Tony didn’t move.
Benjamin snuck back to his bunk, stepped up on the ledge and tried to wake Nathan. The same thing happened. He wouldn’t wake up.
“Waaa…” came the incessant call.
Why wasn’t any of the camp staff doing anything and why wasn’t anyone else waking up?
Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Benjamin slipped on his shoes and grabbed a flashlight. He normally wasn’t so brave. Something about being at camp away from the real world emboldened him, or was it the fact that he had a ‘gift’?
Benjamin tried to rouse Tony one last time. Nothing. Weird.
Glancing back one last time, Benjamin clicked on his flashlight, opened the screen door, and stepped out into the darkness.
+++
“Waaaaaaa! Waaaaa!”
It was easy for Benjamin to follow the crying. Not only did it come at regular intervals, it also seemed to be getting louder. He crept forward slowly, shining his tiny flashlight all around. At some point he picked up a sturdy stick that could be used as a weapon if needed. Benjamin didn’t know how effective it might be with his hands trembling.
“Waaaaa!”
His little flashlight didn’t cut that far into the night. Unfortunately, the clouds covered the full moon as he walked farther and farther into the woods. Dodging branches and logs Benjamin did his best to maintain a straight course. He lost all track of time and realized he didn’t have his watch on.
“Waaaaa!”
Just as he stepped around a large oak tree, using his hand to guide himself around, the clouds parted, revealing the moon. The moon’s light shown down and what Benjamin saw made him inhale sharply.
Now illuminated by the celestial night were two forms, some kind of animal (it was what was making the horrible crying sound) and a huge man. Benjamin could only see the man’s back. He seemed to be doing something to the animal. With the added light, Benjamin could see that it was a baby deer.
“Are ya just gonna sit there, or are ya gonna come help me hold this poor thing down?” the large man called.
Benjamin looked all around. Who was the man talking to? He couldn’t be talking to Benjamin.
“Well?” the man asked, turning. He looked straight at Benjamin. Lit by the moon, the man’s features looked spooky. He wore an unruly thick beard that complimented his shaggy hair.
“Come give me a hand, will ya?”
For some reason Benjamin didn’t run. Maybe it was because the man, although he looked wild, didn’t actually appear threatening. Maybe it was because Benjamin was curious. Most surprisingly, the boy found that he was no longer scared.
He marched over to the man and said, “How can I help?”
Benjamin could now see that the man was fiddling with the deer’s leg. There was something attached to it and the leg was covered in blood that
looked black in the night.
“Help me hold it down. It keeps kicking and I can’t get this darned trap off.”
Benjamin liked animals, but he’d never touched a wild animal, unless you counted the fish and crawdads he’d caught the summer before with his dad. Avoiding the fawn’s head, he placed his hands gently against its torso.
The scraggly giant mumbled to himself as he worked. “Darned cuts…stupid youngsters…have to talk to the director…” The murmuring and the fiddling continued for a couple minutes until finally the man exclaimed, “Got it!” With a yank, he pulled the remaining cord away. His hand was bloody. He didn’t seem to care.
“Okay. On the count of three I want you to let go and jump back. I don’t want this thing to buck you. It’s young but they still have hard heads and hooves.”
Benjamin nodded.
“One, two, three!”
Benjamin let go of the animal and it sprang up. Without any sign of a limp, the deer bolted out of sight.
“Will it be okay with the cut on its leg?” asked Benjamin, his eyes wide with wonder.
Standing, the man took out a rag and wiped the blood from his massive hands. “She’ll be fine. How about I thank you with a nice warm cup of hot chocolate?”
Normally Benjamin never would have said yes to such a request. The man was a stranger and possibly dangerous. His mom would freak if she knew he was out in the woods alone, talking to a bearded giant that looked like he lived in the hills.
“I…I’m not sure I should.”
“I understand. After all, you’d be crazy to listen to a mountain man like me, right, Benjamin?”
Benjamin froze at the sound of his name. He slowly backed away, putting one foot behind the other.
“Now hold on. I didn’t mean to scare you, Benjamin.”
Benjamin moved faster at hearing his name a second time. Who was this hulking man?
“Kennedy told me you were coming.”
Benjamin stopped. Had he heard right?
“What?”
“I said Kennedy told me you were coming.”
“That’s impossible. How did he know?”
The man chuckled deeply. “How do you think your parents found out about camp? We know how to get what we want, Benjamin.”
He’d said it matter-of-factly, like you might say, “I’m going to the bathroom,” but to Benjamin the thought of someone else manipulating his life raised goosebumps all over his body. Who were these people?
“Now don’t worry your little head. I ain’t gonna hurt you. We just thought it’d be best to have someone nearby to keep an eye on you.”
“Why do you need to keep an eye on me?”
The man’s grin faded for a moment, and then reappeared.
“I…uh…I mean we know how hard it is when you first get your gift. It’s important to have someone close by just in case, you know?”
Benjamin didn’t look convinced. Maybe it was the man’s hesitation that had him feeling suspicious.
“What about Kennedy?”
“What about him?”
“I thought he was my teacher.”
“Well, he is, but seeing as how I live the closest…”
“Are you going to teach me?” asked Benjamin, his eyes glittering in the moonlight.
“Err, no. I’m not a destructor like you and Kennedy. I’m a…”
“You’re a healer!”
“You picked that up did you?”
Benjamin nodded. “I saw the deer’s leg. It was all cut up. You helped it, didn’t you?”
“I did. It’s what I do. This one got caught in some new poacher’s trap. Haven’t seen this kind in these parts before. Reminds me, I need to tell Mr. Hendrix to let his campers know. Don’t want any young kids getting snared.”
“You know Mr. Hendrix, the camp’s director?”
“Sure, sure. Me and Mr. Hendrix go back a long ways. I remember when he was only a counselor. We share a pot of tea every now and again. So how about that hot chocolate?”
“But you haven’t told me your name yet,” said Benjamin.
“I haven’t? Where has my mind gone?” He bowed at the waist. “Wally Goodfriend at your service.”
Benjamin giggled. He couldn’t help it. He’d assumed the giant man had a tough name like Crusher, Bansif or Maximus.
“Goodfriend? Is that your real last name?”
“It is,” Wally smiled. “Passed down through my daddy’s side of the family. Used to be Godfreid when they first moved to America. Changed it to Goodfriend when my great granddad opened a bakery in New Orleans: Goodfriend’s Goodies. I can still smell the caramel rolls.”
Wally closed his eyes and sniffed the air. Benjamin giggled again. The tall man looked silly sniffing the air like a happy puppy.
Chapter 21: Hot Cocoa and Company
It turned out that Wally owned the log cabin where Benjamin had seen the flickering light coming from on the walk the day before. Outside it looked a little rundown. Inside was anything but. Cozy oversized leather chairs (a must if you were as big as Wally Goodfriend) sat in front of a large stone fireplace. It smelled homey with a mix of herbs and chocolate. In the corner was a modern flat panel television currently showing a muted episode of some National Geographic special. The rest of the one story cabin was filled with a large dining room table made out of the trunk of some huge tree. By the number of rings in it, Benjamin knew it had been a very old tree.
All along the walls were pictures of Wally throughout the years. Most were taken outdoors with animals. There was one of Wally with a group of shaggy horses that bore a striking resemblance to the big man.
Wally told Benjamin that he’d chosen a personal path of helping animals. He loved them and they in turn loved him. Wally said there was even a family of black bears that came to the cabin before hibernating to get bit of his famous blackberry pie. Benjamin shivered at the thought. He couldn’t imagine coming face to face with a bear.
They settled for the first, then a second cup of creamy hot chocolate. Benjamin had never had anything like it. It was like drinking a milky chocolate bar. Delicious.
“So how did you end up here, Wally?” asked Benjamin, wiping away another hot chocolate mustache with a soiled cloth napkin.
The huge man took a large swig of his drink (his mug was three times the size of Benjamin’s) and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
“I barely remember. Some years ago, I was travelling the country on foot, working odd jobs as I went. A lot of farmers took me on for my size. I could bail hay like nobody’s business. Pretty soon they’d find out that I was good with the animals. Saved quite a few cows, goats and even a couple horses. More than one farmer asked that I stay on full time. It’d save them the money of having to go to the vet. Anyway, I wandered for a couple years and made it up here probably twenty years ago. Built this place with my own two hands.”
“How do you make money?”
“All kinds of ways. I’ve bred animals, sometimes I do some work for the camp with the horses. But mostly I make money on the internet.”
Benjamin almost spit out his drink.
“What?” he blurted.
“You’d be amazed at what you can find out in the woods, antlers, pelts, all from animals that are already dead, of course, even found some gold once in one of the rivers a couple miles away. That kept me fed for almost a year! I’m pretty handy with carving too. Have a small shop in the back where I do all my woodwork. I get some great pieces of wood and make all kinds of things out of ‘em. Have one gentleman that’s bought almost twenty of my duck carvings. He’s a collector.”
Benjamin stared at Wally with wide eyes. Working on a farm he could believe, but making a living on the internet seemed impossible.
Wally made to pour some more hot cocoa for them both, but Benjamin waved him away as he yawned.
“I should probably go.”
The big man looked up at the wood clock.
“Oops! I better walk you down
there. No tellin’ what’s out right now. Don’t want you gettin’ lost either.”
The way Wally went it only took fifteen minutes to get back to the camp. They parted ways at the edge of the woods overlooking Benjamin’s cabin.
“You may want to keep this outing to yourself, Benjamin. I wouldn’t want you getting into any trouble.”
“Don’t worry, I won’t.”
He stuck out his hand and Wally enveloped it with his.
“It was a great meeting you, Wally.”
“And you too, Benjamin. Have a good night.”
Wally turned and disappeared in the night.
All of Benjamin’s creeping into the cabin was wasted because everyone was still fast asleep. He crawled into bed and looked up at the wooden slats above. Benjamin was happier than he’d ever been.
That night he slept better than he had in a long, long time.
Chapter 22: The Mohawks
The next morning Benjamin was the first to get up and dressed. He was ready for the day. For some reason, instead of being tired from the events of the night before, he was energized and clear-headed.
Benjamin could see dark clouds on the horizon as they walked to the chow hall. He wondered what camp was like during a rainstorm. Maybe they’d have indoor games. He hadn’t seen a television yet so he doubted there’d be a movie day like they had at school sometimes.
The boys smelled the bacon as they approached the squat one-story building where they ate.
“I’m gonna eat a whole plate of just bacon,” announced Nathan.
Benjamin and Aaron laughed.
+++
After getting their fills of pancakes and bacon, Benjamin excused himself to go find Emily. He’d seen her from across the large dining hall. Nathan and Aaron exchanged knowing glances, but didn’t say anything. Benjamin didn’t notice the looks.
Maneuvering through the throngs of campers either still eating or getting up to clear their plates, Benjamin caught Emily’s eye and waved. She smiled back. Benjamin’s stomach flipped. He gulped as he drifted closer, trying to look nonchalant.
Benjamin Dragon - Awakening (The Chronicles of Benjamin Dragon) Page 7
