She hesitated, then nodded. “I don’t want us to be enemies. But I can’t do more.”
“I know.” Some wounds were too big to get over. He believed that. They finished the meal in silence. When his plate was empty, he stood. “Thanks for dinner,” he said. “I’d better go. Let me know if you run into any problems.”
“I’ll call and let you know what I find out from the kids.”
She walked with him to the door. He turned, and started to kiss her good-night, the way he had so many times when leaving her place. Instead, he brushed his lips to her cheek. Not exactly the way he would have kissed his sister, but close enough she couldn’t object.
Then he slipped out the door, a picture fixed in his mind of her standing there, one hand to her cheek, staring after him—almost as if she regretted him leaving.
Chapter Twelve
Mrs. Mason greeted Willa when she arrived at camp Friday morning. “Mr. Sprague is sorry he can’t be here,” she said. “The poor man is spending all his free time searching for Olivia. He’s running himself into the ground, he’s so worried about her.”
“It’s an awful situation,” Willa said.
“You’ll need to sign these.” Mrs. Mason handed her a sheaf of papers.
Willa read and signed the documents, which indicated she was not being paid for her services and agreed to comply with a long list of rules for interacting with the children and other camp policies, such as no smoking and no alcoholic beverages. Paperwork complete, she followed the older woman to an open pavilion, where a dozen girls sat at picnic tables.
A counselor, Veronica, sat with the girls. “I can help with anything you need,” Veronica said. “I was a life guard in high school and had to take CPR and stuff.”
“Thanks.” Willa turned to face the children. She had suggested starting with the oldest children first, which meant Olivia’s group. She had learned that children older than thirteen attended a sister camp across the lake. “First, I want to learn all your names.”
The children took turns introducing themselves, each saying her name and where they were from and if there was anythingin particular they wanted to learn. Most didn’t have much to say in this regard, though one girl—Kenya—announced that she wanted to learn how to bandage people like a mummy.
Juliet, in her purple cast, was there. And Stella, Olivia’s closest friend in the cabin, her ankle no longer wrapped, her brown hair pulled back in a ponytail. Stella wanted to learn how to stop people bleeding. Was this because of the wound of Olivia’s that had left blood on her shirt?
Willa began by passing out some basic first aid supplies and letting the girls examine them—bandages, slings, splints and ice packs. They talked about the kinds of accidents they had encountered in camp—burns, cuts, sprains and breaks. “Rodney Carpenter fell face-first on the rocks and knocked out three teeth,” one girl volunteered.
“Accidents can’t always be predicted,” Willa said. “But some can be prevented. The best first aid is the kind you never have to give. What are some of the things you can do to avoid being hurt?”
The girls shared their ideas, from watching where you were going to listening to adults when they told you not to touch things like hot stoves and knives.
“I think we can agree the best way to avoid being hurt is to stay out of dangerous situations,” Willa said. “That includes things like wearing a seat belt, not crossing a busy street against the light and wearing a helmet when riding a bike. But it also includes learning to recognize people we should avoid.”
“Like people playing with fire and stuff,” Juliet said.
“My mother told me if I have a bad feeling about someone, I should stay away from them,” Stella said.
“Your mother is right,” Willa said. “Not everyone is a good person, so if someone makes you uncomfortable you should stay away from them. And tell an adult you trust.”
“If you tell, the bad person might hurt you,” Stella said.
“If you tell a person you trust—like your mom and dad—they’ll protect you,” Willa said. What had prompted Stella to say this? How could Willa find out?
“Can we practice with the bandages now?” a girl asked.
“Yes. I want to be the patient,” someone else shouted.
“I want to be the doctor,” another girl said.
Willa had to let the moment pass. But she kept a close watch on Stella as the girls took turns fastening slings or trying out the flexible metal splints. Was the girl speaking from personal experience, or remembering things Olivia had told her?
She didn’t have a chance to speak to Stella again before her time with this group was up. Willa spent the rest of the morning repeating the experience with younger groups of girls, finishing up with a class of six- and seven-year-olds who had a loud discussion about how awful shots were and the importance of washing your hands after you touched boys because of cooties.
The last session ended at twelve thirty and Mrs. Mason presented Willa with her own green Mountain Kingdom T-shirt and thanked her for coming. Willa headed back to her car. She was passing the mess hall when the back door opened and a small figure with a tail of brown hair darted out, then disappeared behind a tree.
Willa looked around. No one else appeared to have seen the girl, who she was sure was Stella. Moving cautiously, hiding behind trees as much as possible, Willa hurried after the girl, whose figure she could just make out ahead of her.
