“I was past the boat house, headed for that extra-dark area where the light can’t get through the treetops. There’s no sound at all; everybody in camp is dead asleep and there’s not a single light on anywhere. I stop walking and just look out at the lake. There’s not even a ripple of a wave. Everything’s still.”
Barry looked at his arm and scratched a mosquito bite, then went back to staring into the fire. He nodded very gently a few times, as if pondering what to say next.
“I don’t know if any of you guys ever heard this—they keep real quiet about it around here—but maybe forty years ago a canoe tipped over in that lake at night. It was one of those quick-rising storms like we had a few days ago, and these guys—they were just a little older than we are—got swamped by a wave. Or by something. Or some
one
. I think it was Maynard. They were way out in the deepest section, fishing for bass. A couple of hundred yards from any shoreline.
“Nobody wore life jackets back then. And these guys couldn’t swim. Nobody even knew they were out there; it was before this was a camp. It was just a lake in the woods.
“So, needless to say, they all disappeared. The canoe washed up on the shore, but nobody ever found a trace of those guys. Not a sneaker or a skull or anything.”
Riley swallowed hard. Barry caught his eye and looked down.
“So I’m standing there last night, minding my own business, and I see this
very
faint blue light coming toward me from the lake. It’s three separate lights actually, but they’re not lighting anything up, you know? Just these forms floating toward me above the surface of the water. And as they get closer, I see that it’s three people, and they’re moving really slowly, but they’re frantically stroking with their arms and churning their legs, as if they’re trying to sprint as hard as they can, but they’re barely getting anywhere.
“But they
do
keep moving toward me, clawing at the air. And as they’re getting closer, I can tell that they’re kids—kids our age—and they’re choking and gasping but not making a sound.
“It’s those drowning guys, desperately trying to get away from the lake and failing. They get twenty yards from shore, and then they vanish. I see the blue lights sinking under the water and a bigger
violet
light rising from below. And when I get a clear look at it, it’s a guy with a giant hole ripped through his throat.”
Barry bit down on his lip and slowly shook his head. He started to speak, then stopped. He looked around the circle, first at Eldon, then at Kirby, Diego, and Riley.
“Yeah, Maynard. And those three kids,” he said, his voice dropping again to a whisper. “They must be stuck there, constantly trying to save themselves and never quite making it. Forty years those kids’ve been struggling. Can you imagine that?”
Riley’s mouth was hanging open and his lips were dry from the heat. He licked them and shivered, then inched closer to the fire. Nobody said anything for a long time.
“Think Big Joe ate ’em?” Eldon asked.
Barry shut his eyes quickly and nodded. “Why not? They were dead, right? Might as well make a meal out of ’em. They had no use for their bodies.”
“Not even a trace of them, huh?” Diego asked.
“Not even a trace.” Barry stretched his arms over his head and yawned. “Any of you guys want to wander down there later … Well, maybe it’s a once-a-year thing. Who knows? I ain’t going back, but … that lake is a powerful place.”
Riley nodded. No one seemed eager to go down there, and he certainly didn’t need to. He yawned. He was tired. They all were. But nobody moved. They stood by the fire for another half hour, just watching as it burned down to the embers.
Dinnertime
Friday, August 13
DAWKINS NAMED CAMP MVP
All-Stars Selected in Major Sports
Johnny Rios, Danny Avila, Lionel Robertson, Tony Maniglia, and Vinnie Kazmerski have each nabbed spots on two all-star teams along with the camp’s Most Valuable Player, Kelvin Dawkins of Cabin 4.
Dawkins led his team to the basketball and water-polo titles. Earlier in camp, he won his section of the swim-marathon qualifier, helped his cabin to victory in the tug-of-war, and was a high finisher in free-throw shooting.
The Stars
| Softball | Basketball | Water Polo |
| 1B: B. Monahan (3) | G: Rios (5) | Goalie: Rivera (4) |
| 2B: Rios (5) | G: Dawkins (4) | Forward: Dawkins (4) |
| 3B: Castillo (4) | F: Avila (5) | F: Alvarez (1) |
| SS: Maniglia (3) | F: Shields (1) | F: Kazmerski (3) |
| P: Avila (5) | C: Robertson (6) | F: Maniglia (3) |
| C: Robertson (6) | Defense: Singh (2) | |
| OF: Kazmerski (3) | D: T. Hiller (6) | |
| OF: Sullivan (2) | ||
| OF: Medina (1) |
Cabin 4 Holds Lead; Fighters Poised for Victory
Cabin 4’s second major championship of the season this afternoon vaulted them into the lead for the Big Joe Trophy. The Fortunes knocked off the Tubers to win the water-polo championship, 3–1. But with only the swimming marathon remaining to be contested, second-place Cabin 5 has an excellent chance to claim the overall crown.
Based on the qualifying races, Cabin 4’s only realistic hope for big points tonight is Kelvin Dawkins. Cabin 5 has a couple of contenders in Danny Avila and Johnny Rios.
Cabin 3 sits in third place after winning the water-polo consolation match this morning. With five qualifiers for tonight’s swim—more than any other cabin—the Threshers have an outside shot at the title.
Defending champion Duncan Alvarez of Cabin 1 is the favorite to win the individual championship.
Big Joe Standings
Cabin 4
146 points
Cabin 5
138
Cabin 3
122
Cabin 2
79
Cabin 1
70
Cabin 6
62
187 points still up for grabs!
Tonight’s winner will score 30 points for his cabin, with the runner-up gaining 25 and third place nabbing 20. The top fifteen places count.
Here’s the allocation, starting with first place:
30 25 20 18 16 14 12 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3
Who’s got the Camp Olympia spirit?
I
n the minutes before the race, Riley couldn’t keep still.
Steady your breathing
, he kept telling himself, but it was no use.
He glanced around the dock at the other swimmers. Duncan Alvarez looked so strong and confident. Why wouldn’t he? He’d won this race last summer and was the overwhelming favorite to repeat.
And then there were guys like Danny Avila and Avery Moretti. They looked like men compared to Riley, with muscular shoulders and square jaws and scowls.
Riley’s own teammates were equally quiet. Vinnie was pacing the dock; Tony was sitting with his legs dangling in the water, rapidly drumming his thighs with his fists. Eldon and Colin looked scared.
A counselor picked up a megaphone and said, “Two
minutes, boys. Any physical contact with another swimmer will mean immediate disqualification. There are counselors in rowboats about every hundred meters.” He gestured toward the water. There was a long string of boats leading all the way to the totem pole. “If you get in trouble, just raise your arms overhead and tread water. There are roving canoes out there, too, so you’ll be rescued within seconds. Any questions?”
No one said anything.
Riley shut his eyes and took a few deep breaths. His fingers were tingling from nervousness, and sweat was dripping down his face. He unwrapped his orange headband from his wrist and pulled it down toward his ears.
Suck it up
, he thought.
This is what you’ve been working toward. You want this
.
He stared across the lake. There was more of a breeze tonight, but nothing much to speak of. It’d be in their faces on the way out. The sun was setting behind them, but there’d be plenty of light for at least another hour.
“Go, Cabin Three!” Barry hollered from the shore. The non-swimmers weren’t allowed on the dock until the race was under way.
“Do it up, Kelvin!” came another shout. The spectators all began yelling.
The counselor stepped to the side of the dock and raised
his arm. “Ready,” he said. “Get set.” He blew his whistle sharply and Riley and the others dove off the dock.
His urge to sprint was almost uncontrollable, but that would be lethal at this point.
Settle down
, he thought. This race was almost twice as long as the trials.
Riley stayed with the crawl in the early going, knowing that he could switch to the breaststroke whenever he needed a breather. For now, he needed to stay in contact with the pack.
He could already tell that some swimmers were starting too fast. Within a minute he was twenty meters behind the leader, and only three swimmers were in back of him. But the biggest group was just a few strokes ahead, including Vinnie and Tony.
“That’s Avery Moretti with the early lead,” came an announcement over the loudspeaker. “The defending champion is right with him.”
The water in front of Riley was all churned up by the many kicking feet. He counted nine swimmers immediately ahead of him, spread out over four or five meters. Colin was just to Riley’s left, and basketball star Johnny Rios was to his right.
You’re in contention
, Riley thought.
Long way to go. Be patient
.
He decided to shut out the distractions for a few minutes
and just swim comfortably before assessing whether to make a move. So he put his head down and moved steadily, counting fifty strokes with each arm before looking ahead.
Rios remained beside him, and the line of swimmers in front had stretched out a bit. Moretti appeared to be holding on to the lead, but Alvarez was still with him. There was a small gap to the next group of three and then a bigger space, and all but those five leaders were still within striking distance.
Vinnie and Tony were in that next group. Riley and Rios were eleventh and twelfth at the moment, but they were just a couple of strokes ahead of Colin and the next bunch.
You’re way ahead of last time
, he thought.
No puking in the water tonight
.
By the time they reached the yellow buoy where they’d turned around in the trials, Riley and Rios had joined the large group that included Vinnie and Tony. There were eight of them now. Everyone looked steady; no one was struggling yet. He was the smallest one in this pack by far.
They were still about a quarter mile from the midpoint of the race. The five swimmers out front were way ahead of them.
Nearly everybody in Riley’s group had finished at least a minute faster than he had in the qualifying heats. Now he
was right here with them, and he was feeling great. He knew he was riding the edge and that fatigue could overtake him anytime, but he’d never wanted anything more than to hang in there and beat some of these people.
He switched to the breaststroke for a few minutes, steadying his breathing. Everyone was swimming hard, but no one was making any decisive moves just yet. It was a battle of endurance for now.
Before long he heard another announcement: “Moretti continues to lead at the midpoint, with Alvarez a body length behind. Both swimmers are well under record pace.”
As the leaders passed him heading for home, Riley counted the seconds between them and the next group of three. There was at least a twenty-second gap. Kelvin Dawkins was right in the mix.
That trio was a good minute ahead of Riley’s pack, which still included eight swimmers. Several of them picked up the pace as they neared the turnaround point. Riley swung wide and passed Troy Hiller and Omar Ventura, moving into tenth for the moment.
Homestretch
, Riley thought.
Halfway there! Top ten is yours for the taking
.
The next group was coming toward them now, still heading for the turn. Riley looked for his teammates. He spotted Colin in a pack of four. Eldon had moved up and
joined him. They were more than a minute behind Riley but very much in contention for some points.
“Cabin Three!” Riley called.
“Looking good!” Eldon yelled back.
The exchange with Eldon gave him a lift.
Time to make a move
, he thought.
String out this pack and see who’s a real contender
.
He quickly found himself abreast of Vinnie and Tony. Vinnie looked shocked when he noticed Riley, but then he grinned. “Where’d you come from, Liston?”
“I’ve been right behind you the whole race,” Riley said, his words coming in between puffs.
“We can do this,” Tony said. “Big points if we hold these spots. More if we can pick off a few guys.”
Cabin 2 teammates Ryan McDonald and Nigel Singh were just ahead of them, so the trio from Cabin 3 was sitting 8-9-10, with Johnny Rios a half stroke back. Ventura and Hiller were beginning to slip farther behind. It was a long way ahead to the leaders.
Work with these guys
, Riley told himself.
Forget about the top five. The race is right here
.
If he could drop one more swimmer, he’d be assured of a top-ten finish. And despite being tired, he still felt awesome. No cramps, no pain. They were all doing the breaststroke now, saving energy for the final push.
Fifteen more minutes and this would be over. Riley could already see the yellow buoy up ahead.
The breeze had shifted and was blowing across the lake, coming from the swimmers’ left. A shadow to his right caught Riley’s attention, a darker spot in the water that seemed to be moving toward them.