Shadow Lake Vampire Society - Wendi Wilson Page 0,18

all times, unless swimming. Swim trunks must be well-fitting. No speedos.

Rule number twenty seven: All campers and counselors shall be fully dressed in proper attire before exiting cabins, restrooms, or sports grounds.

True: “We should streak naked through the camp at midnight under the light of a full moon.”

I ignored her ridiculous idea. “Are you trying to get me fired before I’ve even started?”

“You’re not going to get fired. Now, come on, rule nerd. I’m starving. Let’s go eat.”

I nodded in agreement, and we hurried outside, running into another counselor on the path.

“Hello, ladies,” the guy said, and I waggled my fingers as I frantically searched my mind for his name.

N-something. I’d remembered it during the meeting with Dean Purty, but his sudden appearance outside our cabin had shocked it from my memory.

“Hey, Naveen,” True answered, saving me from embarrassment. “Headed to the mess?”

“Yep,” he said, his onyx eyes sparkling with mischief. “I’m so hungry, I could eat a cow.”

His white teeth sparkled in the late afternoon sun as he gave us a wide smile. True laughed, and I forced a grin to my face, but something felt… off.

I looked over my shoulder at the path behind us. Where had Naveen been coming from? The boys’ cabins were just ahead of us, on our way to the mess hall. Nothing lay behind us but Shadow Lake and those big teepees.

And Rule Number Eight strictly forbade us from entering those.

And the fact that he was joking about eating a cow a few hours after I saw one with what looked like a bite taken from its neck?

I shook my head to clear it. I was being ridiculous, letting my paranoia run away with me again.

“You guys should sit with us today,” Naveen said, pulling me from my thoughts.

“I don’t know, Naveen,” True hedged. “Sarah—”

“Won’t be at dinner,” he cut in. “Come on, it’ll be fine. We can all get to know our new friend, Piper.”

He headed up the steps into the mess hall, but True stopped me with a hand on my elbow. Once Naveen disappeared through the doorway, she leaned in close.

“What do you think?” she asked. “Should we sit with them?”

“Why wouldn’t we?” I asked, pushing away the vision of Levi and his creepy, woods-stalking behavior. “And what’s the deal with Sarah?”

“I told you she’s the queen, right?” At my nod, she continued. “Well, last summer, I tried to sit with them without being invited. Bitch straight up told me to leave.”

“What?”

“Yeah,” she said, nodding. “She said I had terrible manners, and I would henceforth—I kid you not, that’s the word she used—sit elsewhere until she personally invited me.”

“What did you do?”

“Well, my first instinct was to call her on her crap and tell her this is a free country. I can sit wherever I want. But something in her eyes… I don’t know, Piper. It scared me. She’s a freaking force of nature. Like a tornado. Or a tsunami. I moved to another table and sat with the campers the rest of the summer. I still haven’t been invited.”

“Well, Naveen just invited us, so let’s go,” I said, linking my arm through hers and dragging her up the steps.

I had no clue where this burst of confidence came from. Maybe it was loyalty to my new friend. Maybe it was my repugnance for bullies.

And it seemed Queen Sarah was a top-notch tyrant, spending her days trying to terrorize those she deemed below her.

Oh, I’d no doubt feel the fear if she were in my face, ordering me to sit somewhere else like one of those nineties’ teen movies filled with mean girls who tormented geeks and ended up on top. But Sarah wasn’t going to be here, and the thrill of sitting at her table in defiance was too good to pass up.

Plus, I wanted to feel out the others. To see if I’d react to them like I did to first Levi, then Naveen, with a touch of fear and suspicion churning in my gut.

True and I grabbed our trays—pepperoni pizza, today—and headed for the table where a few of the counselors sat. Thankfully, Naveen reintroduced me to Ian, Micah, Miranda, and Lars, then explained that Sarah and Analise weren’t hungry and had decided to skip dinner.

“What about Levi?” I asked before taking a bite of gooey, hot pizza.

“What about him?” Micah asked, her naturally impish face twisted with aggression.

Before I could reply, Lars jumped in, answering my question. “He doesn’t eat with us.”

“Why not?” I asked, obviously