“I’ll do my best,” Paige said, though she sounded dubious. “But Conleth, I don’t think this plan is going to work.”
“You just concentrate on your mom. I’ll handle the rest.” He brushed a quick, reassuring kiss against her forehead. “Trust me. Everything’s going to be fine.”
CHAPTER 35
“We have to do something,” Beth hissed to Estelle and Finley a few hours later. “This is a disaster.”
“Not for you,” Estelle muttered into her cup of juice. “At least some ofyourfamily is here.”
Beth flushed, glancing guiltily at her mom, who was trying to keep Otis from clambering onto a scale model of the camp made out of paper mache and popsicle sticks. The dining hall had been converted into a makeshift showcase of camp life, with posterboards on the walls and exhibits about the various activities. Excited campers pulled their parents from table to table, while staff members smiled indulgently and answered questions.
She turned back to her friends. “We’re all disappointed that the crew got called away, but we can’t sit around moping about it. Conleth and Paige need our help. Justlookat them.”
The kids collectively surveyed their counselors. Conleth was in constant motion; one moment reassuring Nancy’s parents about some safety issue, the next darting through the crowd to steer Lord Golden away from Buck and Honey. His smile was as bright and confident as ever, but his hair was starting to look distinctly crumpled.
In contrast to her mate’s incessant energy, Paige was a pale, worried shadow. She stuck close to her family, occasionally murmuring to her mom as Archie dragged them both from table to table. She kept glancing at Conleth, and then quickly away again, as if looking at him was somehow against camp rules.
“Uncle Conleth’s not gettinganychance to talk to Paige’s mom,” Beth said in frustration. “Every time he starts to head in that direction, he gets called away by someone else.”
“So?” Estelle said, as Conleth dashed away from Hetta’s dad to intercept a giggling Otis before the toddler could pitch himself out a window. “It’s not like Paige is going to tell her mom about Conleth in the middle of all this. She’ll wait for a private moment.”
“That’s just it.” Beth twisted the end of her braid in agitation. “If this doesn’t go well, maybe she won’t tell her at all. Don’t you see? She clearly wants to find out what her mom thinks about him before she reveals they’re mates. That’s why Uncle Conleth set up this whole Parents’ Day.”
“You’re saying Conleth organized a gigantic last-minute event that involved persuading hundreds of people to travel here from all parts of the country just to try to make a good first impression on his mate’s mom?” Estelle considered this for a moment. “Yeah, that tracks.”
“It does sound like the sort of thing Conleth would do,” Finley conceded. “But if this is all part of a deeper plan to make her mom like him, I don’t think it’s going so well.”
Estelle scrutinized the family with newfound interest, diverted from her own woes. “Yeah, Paige’s mom does seem kind of on edge. She looks like she’d rather be anywhere else on the planet right now.”
“Let’s hope that’s just because Archie’s been talking at her non-stop ever since she got here.” Beth wrung her hands. “Oh, this is bad. Did you hear what Paige’s mom said to Uncle Conlethwhen they met? She thinks he’s a terrible counselor. That’s not the sort of person she’s going to want as her daughter’s mate. We have to show her she’s wrong about him.”
“Okay, but how?” Estelle asked. “I mean, what do you want us to do, just go over there and start randomly talking about Conleth?”
“No, that’s too obvious,” Beth replied. “But there’s got to be some way we can help.”
A whistle split the air, cutting through the chatter. At the front of the hall, Leonie stood on a table, waving to attract everyone’s attention.
“All right, everyone!” she announced as the crowd settled down. “There will be plenty more time later to keep looking around the camp, but we have an action-packed schedule of games and events for you to enjoy. To kick things off, we have Camp Thunderbird’s very first inter-pack toga?—”
In a blur of motion, Conleth appeared at the head counselor’s side. He muttered something into her ear.
“That is, tug-of-war tournament!” Leonie corrected herself. “Any campers who’d like to participate, find your packmates and report to me. Parents and other spectators, please follow our junior counselor helpers to the field.”
“That’s it!” Beth exclaimed as the crowd started to disperse. “We have to win the tug-of-war tournament!”
Finley’s brow furrowed. “How is that going to help Conleth and Paige?”
“Because right now her mom thinks he’s a bad counselor, and winning one of the pack competitions will prove that he isn’t,” Beth said impatiently. “That’s bound to make her see him more favorably.”
Estelle looked dubious. “Maybe, but do you really think we can beat the other junior packs at tug-of-war?”
“It’s better than our chances of winning anything else,” Beth replied. “It’s the only competition that doesn’t involve shifting, so we won’t be at a disadvantage. Finley, go get Rufus. He’s the strongest out of all of us.”
Finley hesitated. “I’m sure he’d want to help, Beth, but I’m not sure it’s fair to drag him out in front of a noisy crowd right now. He doesn’t like being the center of attention at the best of times, and he’s still really upset about his parents not being here.”
“Estelle, you go find Rufus,” Beth ordered, pushing the other girl toward the door. “You can always calm him down. Use your power if you have to, just get him here. Where’s Ignatius?”
“And suddenly, I am filled with an immense feeling of impending doom,” Ignatius observed as he joined them. “What are you idiots planning now?”
