Shadow Lake Vampire Society - Wendi Wilson Page 0,39
of us cramming into the room with a desk, bookshelves, filing cabinets, and chairs. The walls held photos of Camp Shadow Lake, both past and present. Black and white pictures faded with age were hung next to colored photos of more recent times. I wondered, in passing, if I might find my dad in one of those.
“Now, Piper, please tell me what it is you saw.” Dean Purty sat in the cracked leather chair behind his desk and steepled his fingers as Levi and I settled rigidly in the two chairs across from him.
I took a deep breath before letting it all out. I told him what I’d seen in the mess hall, Sarah and Chloe conspiring, the dark storage room, and the strange way they were treating the boy. He listened with impassive seriousness until I was done.
“And then you fell,” the dean added.
“Yes, but—”
“And hit her head,” Levi added.
Dean Purty nodded.
I glanced between them, anger flaring. “I didn’t make this up. I swear.”
As I was speaking, the dean got up and opened the door. He called to someone down the hall, “Can you come in here?”
Footsteps headed in our direction. I turned, expecting to see Chloe or Sarah and wondering what I would do if they arrived and started lying. I steeled myself, ready to stand my ground. Badass Piper doesn’t back down.
Instead, Johnny walked into the office, looking chipper and healthy.
The dean put his hands on the boy’s shoulders. “Hello there, son. Having a good time?”
The boy stared up at the big man, his eyes round. He nodded before answering. “I was just going to go to the campfire.”
The dean smiled. “That’s nice. Can you tell me about dinner tonight? Did anything happen that you’d like to talk to us about?”
The boy dropped his eyes and shook his head. “The hotdogs were kinda gross, but I liked the peaches.” Then his eyes darted back up. “Did I do something bad?”
The dean patted the boy’s shoulder. “Oh no. I was just wondering if you had a talk with Chef Chloe today? Or the counselor who goes by Sarah?”
The boy shook his head slowly. “Are you gonna tell her I didn’t like her hotdogs?”
“Of course not.” The dean reached into his pocket and pulled out a chocolate candy bar. “This is for you. Don’t eat it before bed, or you’ll have nightmares. You can go.”
The boy palmed the bar, his eyes going wide with excitement, before turning and running down the hall. I heard the door thwack as he exited.
I sat stunned, not sure what to make of what had just happened. The boy seemed fine with no recollection of being with Chloe or Sarah, and, if they had done anything to him, I didn’t see a single mark. Had I really hit my head and imagined it all?
Reaching up I touched the bump on the back of my skull and winced.
“Sir, I think Piper should be sent home.”
I whirled around, realizing that Levi had stood. He towered over me as I sat, but his eyes were on the dean as he continued.
“She shouldn’t be here. She’s fainted twice. Frankly, it’s getting too difficult to protect her.”
“I don’t need your protection,” I barked, but he ignored me.
“She should go home, sir,” he repeated, his voice firm with conviction.
Well, no room for equivocation there. He wanted me out. He’d wanted me out since the moment he saw me, and it seemed that he might actually get his wish.
The dean sucked in a deep breath before his kind brown eyes found mine. “Piper, do you want to go home?”
That was a good question. Did I want to go home? Things had been weird. Hard. Even dangerous. But did I want to run home with my tail between my legs and just give up? Did I want to let Levi drive me off? Did I want to just forget something I was almost sure I’d seen with Sarah and Chloe, curl up in my bed, and watch bad TV all summer?
No. That wasn’t who I was anymore.
“No, sir, I don’t want to go home.”
The dean nodded, but Levi wasn’t done. He lurched forward, the calm gone from his voice. “She’s going to get hurt!”
But Dean Purty remained calm. “I spoke to her doctor when you told me what happened, Levi. She assures me Piper can handle it. And you can, right, Piper? Can you handle it?”