Shadow Lake Vampire Society - Wendi Wilson Page 0,12

uncomfortable.

“Well, Camp Shadow Lake is a haven for the lonely, messed-up dregs of society. The kids are mostly homeless, orphaned, or both, and the counselors are teenage mental cases in need of a break from reality.”

“I am not a mental case,” I breathed, feeling my hackles rise.

“Whoa. Sorry,” she said, shooting upright and lifting her palms toward me. “I was joking. Well, sort of. What I meant was, we all have something—some tragedy or downfall—we’re working through. My parents died in a car accident three summers ago. I had to move in with my uncle who knows more about whiskey and bourbon than he does about raising a teenage girl. He found this place online and got me the job here last summer. Two glorious months without me.”

“I—I’m sorry for your loss,” I muttered, then cringed at the words.

So many people said that to me after Dad was killed, and I hated it each and every time. It was so impersonal, like I’d lost my wallet or my house burned down. Dad dying wasn’t merely a loss. It was a devastating event that changed my life drastically, molding me into a completely different person than I was before.

“Sorry. I don’t know why I said that,” I blurted, feeling my face warm with embarrassment.

“No worries,” True replied, cocking her head to the side and softening her voice. “Who did you lose?”

“My dad,” I found myself saying. “He was killed by a… bear on our last camping trip.”

“Oh my God,” True gasped, her hand snaking out to wrap around mine. “That’s awful. We don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to. Or if you do, I’m a great listener.”

A weight lifted off of me with her words and inherent kindness. She could have brushed off my devastation, pointing out that, unlike her, I still had one of my parents. But she didn’t do that. She took my pain at face value and gave me the best response a person could—no pressure, but an offer to be there if I needed it.

I sniffed back the emotion and squeezed her fingers before extricating my hand from hers. I leaned back to copy her previous position, and True took the hint and relaxed back into the casual pose.

“So, you were here last year? Do you know any of the other counselors?”

“I know them all,” she said, then cocked her head. “As well as you can know people who stick to themselves and refuse to open up their ranks to let you in. That’s why I’m so glad you’re here, Piper. I need a squad, and you’re it.”

She shot me with a finger gun and winked, making me chuckle. I had a feeling I was going to enjoy being True King’s only squad member.

“Wait,” I said, sitting upright. “Are you saying I’m the only new counselor this summer?”

“Yep,” she said, popping the p at the end. “Just like I was the only newbie last year. And no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t get those gorgeous jackholes to be friends.”

“Were they mean to you?” I asked, thinking of the dark stalker in the woods.

“No. Not at all. It was more like they were reserved,” she explained, her expression turning thoughtful. “They’re always polite, but never…open. Does that make sense?”

“Aloof,” I supplied.

“Yes!” True exclaimed. “That’s the perfect word to describe them. Aloof. But not in a “my shit don’t stink” kind of way. They just seem content to keep to themselves and never tried to include me, despite my sparkling wit and magnetic personality.”

“Oh, I was a goner from the word hi,” I quipped, widening my eyes to feign pure innocence.

True chuckled, and my own laughter spilled out to join hers. Even if the other counselors were jackholes, as she called them, I knew I’d found at least one friend. And the fact that we were partners and would be working and living together as leaders in the same cabin made it that much better.

“I saw a few of them crossing the street today. They were…”

“Hot? Perfect? Unattainable?” she supplied when my words trailed off.

“Interesting,” I said, settling on the vague word. “It seemed like they were having fun, except for this one guy.”

“Ooh, wait. Don’t tell me,” she ordered before I could say more. “Dark hair, broody, muscles for days?” She gestured to her thin shoulders.

I nodded, and True made a swoony face while a sigh purred from her lips.

“That’s Levi Kass. The only time he doesn’t look grumpy is when he’s