hair and gray-green eyes—and people always knew instantly they were mother and daughter. Amy, however, was self-possessed in a way that Lake hadn’t been at her age—because of the birthmark she was deeply ashamed of.
As the two girls reached her, Amy threw her arms around her mother’s waist.
“Wow, it’s so good to see you,” Lake said, hugging her back and kissing the top of her head.
“Mom, Mom, this is Lauren,” Amy said, smiling at the red-haired girl with braces standing next to her. “She’s from Buffalo. We’ve been there, right?”
“Yes, on our way to Niagara Falls. Hi, Lauren. It’s very nice to meet you.”
“Well, it’s really a suburb,” Lauren said. “Amherst. Have you ever heard of it?”
“Yes, of course,” Lake said. “So tell me about the plan today, girls. The swimming races are first?”
“Yes, and then lunch and then we’re doing a talent show,” said Amy. “Lauren and I are singing. Will is doing an animal dance—he’s a skunk.”
“A skunk—perfect! So where is he?” Lake needed to set eyes on him as soon as she could.
“He’s playing soccer, I think,” Amy said. “He’s probably already filthy. I swear, it’s embarrassing—he’s always covered in dirt. Do you want a tour, Mom? I don’t think you saw everything the day you dropped us off.”
“I’d love one. Are your parents coming, Lauren?”
“Yeah, in a while. They’re always late for everything.” She added an eye roll for emphasis.
They began to ascend the hill, with a few other parents straggling behind them. Jack must not be here yet, she thought looking around, or Amy would have mentioned it.
“Are you looking for Dad?” Amy said, reading her thoughts in that uncanny way of hers.
“Is he here?” Lake asked, trying to sound casual.
“No, he’s not coming now,” her daughter said.
“What?” Lake said, stopping in her tracks.
Amy shrugged and let her shoulders droop.
“The counselor told us,” she said glumly. “She said Dad called the director and told him he’s not going to be here. He said something came up.”
10
THAT MADE NO sense, Lake thought. Why wouldn’t Jack come? Maybe it had something to do with the Boston trip he had alluded to. Or was he trying to avoid her? Her mind flashed back to Smokey. Had Jack shaved him—or sent someone to do it—and now he didn’t have the guts to look her in the eye? Was he trying to screw with her mind in general? There’d been that call in the middle of the night, too. If Jack was responsible for what happened to Smokey, he might have been behind the call as well.
“Are you, Mom?” Amy whispered, breaking through Lake’s thoughts.
“Am I what, sweetie?”
“Are you upset? About Dad not coming.”
“Oh no, honey, I’m not upset. I—I was just curious.”
The three of them finished the climb to the main grounds of the camp. There were dozens of parents and kids up there, already congregated on a grassy expanse worn bald in spots from endless use. Will was there, too, dressed in swimming trunks and devouring one of the many doughnuts that had been laid out on a weathered picnic table. He spotted Lake, waved like he was trying to flag down an airplane, and then ran over, flashing his crooked grin. She almost cried when he wrapped his dirty arms around her.
“You’re already suited up, huh?” Lake said, tousling his silky blond hair.
“It’s probably because he’s lost his camp shorts,” Amy said.
“Shut up, Amy—you don’t know anything. Mom, I’m swimming in all four categories. There’s this kid who’s better than me in the freestyle but I think I’m gonna win the butterfly. And maybe the backstroke.”
“That’s awesome,” she said.
“Did you bring Smokey?” Will asked.
She nearly winced. “No, Will, Smokey had to stay at home.”
“But you said you’d bring him,” he said, furrowing his soft, luminescent brow.
“I did? When did I say that?”
“The day we got here. You said when you came for parents’ day, you would bring Smokey.”
“Oh, I’m sorry, honey. It’s just so hot. He wouldn’t have liked being cooped up in the car. But you’ll be home in a few weeks—you’ll see him then.”
What would she tell them, she wondered, when they saw him still without most of his fur?
The morning was a blur of events—swimming races, soccer, archery, a lunch of soggy sandwiches and lukewarm lemonade—and she was grateful that little was demanded of parents beyond being herded from one spot to another. Her mind where it was, she couldn’t imagine what it would have been like to have to participate in some tug-of-war