Shocked silent and blinking rapidly, I spent the next several seconds clearing my throat. “No, it’s not like that between us… we, uh, we don’t even like each other… ” Realizing how ridiculous I sounded, my words dwindled and I quickly changed topics. “Yeah, so about earlier—you guys were right to be cautious. I’m sorry I was being a dick.”
She laughed lightly. “Apologies aren’t your forte, I’m guessing? Look, I’m not in any position to be holding someone’s emotions in a time of crisis against them. As long as you’ve got yourself under control now, I think we’ll be fine… ” she trailed off, tilting her head to one side. “You know, I’ve just realized, I haven’t even asked you your name.”
“Logan,” I offered.
“It’s nice to meet you, Logan—my name is Liesel. And now that we’ve been formally introduced, I’d like to officially welcome you and Willow to Silver Lake, formerly known as Silver Lake Summer Camp for Youths.”
“Yeah, thanks,” I replied. “… you seem to have a really nice setup here. I haven’t seen anything like it in… ” I trailed off as I realized I hadn’teverseen anything quite like it. Most of the camps we’d come across had been shoddily thrown together with no real sense of order. Fanatics or hopeless cases seemed to be all the world had left to offer.
Leisel flashed me a wry smile. “Exactly. So you can understand our caution when it comes to newcomers, yes?”
“Yeah. I get it.”
“Good, and now that that’s settled, Davey will be showing you to your cabin.” Stepping aside, she waved Davey forward.
“My cabin?” Startled, I looked at Willow. “Can’t I just stay with her?”
Leisel pressed her lips together, her gaze hardening. “I’m afraid not. This isn’t just our doctor’s office, it’s her home too.”
She said nothing else, though the rest went without saying—I was still a stranger who still posed a threat, and they were going to continue taking every necessary precaution.
“Is this cabin nearby?” I asked. “I’d like to be close to her.”
“It’s a small camp; everything is close. However, you don’t need to worry. If Willow’s condition changes in any way during the night, someone will come for you.”
Glancing again at Willow, I rubbed anxiously at the back of my neck. They weren’t going to hurt her—I felt that in my gut. But I still couldn’t fathom leaving her, especially after everything I’d gone through to get her here. Yet,ifI wanted these people to trust me, I knew I needed to trust them first.
“Alright,” I said reluctantly.
“Good.” Liesel clapped her hands together. “Logan, Davey, I’ll leave you to it.”
Davey stepped forward, eyeing me contemptuously. “You comin’ or what?”
As we passed through an area cluttered with cabins, a dozen different smells assaulted me—burning wood, cooking meat, and the fresh damp scent of a nearby body of water.
Counting twelve cabins in total, Davey led me to the last in the row, the seemingly worst of the bunch, with a thin, rickety door and a crumbling front step. While Doc’s home merely had the outward aesthetics of a log cabin, the smaller structures on this side of camp were actual cabins, each with a suspended floor and a crawl space underneath.
Upon entering, Davey flicked a switch and two wall-mounted lantern lights flickered on. The cabin consisted of two rooms—the room I was standing in, and what looked to be a small bathroom. Two sets of wooden bunk beds, along with two small dressers, adorned each corner of the room. A lamp sat alone in the center of the room, missing both bulb and shade. Near the entrance, a dust-covered wrought-iron stove had been fitted with piping that crawled up the wall and out through the roof, serving as a chimney. All above me, exposed beams crisscrossed beneath the peaked ceiling, draped with cobwebs.
“Don’t be keepin’ the lights on all night—we run on solar power here,” Davey said. “And don’t be leavin’ the cabin either until someone comes for ya. We got patrols going round the clock and the guards at the gate can see the whole place at any given time. Ain’t nobody does nothin’ without someone else seein’, ya get me?”
“What if I have to piss?” I asked, deadpan. “Should I just pick a corner?”
“The whole camp runs on well water,” Davey retorted. “Got a septic tank, too. You can piss in the toilet—you can even flush it.”
I blinked in surprise.
Smiling smugly, Davey turned to leave. “Welcome back to civilization, shithead,” he said, slamming the door behind him.
I hurried to fasten the lock—a single hook-and-eye latch, where one good shove would render it useless. Turning, I faced the room with skepticism. Was this place for real? Lights, a doctor, and running water?
Dropping my bag, I rushed inside the small bathroom. It was nothing special—an old toilet with exposed piping and a porcelain sink set atop a small cupboard, its metal fixtures rusted and flaking. A mirror hung above the sink, cloudy and speckled with spots. Twisting the levers on the sink, my breath hitched as clear water sputtered from the rusty faucet.
I might have run my hands beneath it if they hadn’t been bandaged; instead, I dropped my head beneath the stream, swallowing mouthful after delicious mouthful. Having drunk my fill, I flushed the toilet merely to see if it would. As water rushed into the bowl, quickly spiraling down the drain, for several seconds, I could only stare.
Making my way back into the other room in a daze, I eventually wandered to the nearest window. Pulling back the torn swathe of fabric hanging there, I pushed open the cracked and cloudy glass-paned window and peered outside.
The lights were on inside the cabin closest to me and I could see figures moving in a way that seemed like they were dancing. Although faint, I could hear music—a familiar song that had me quickly closing the window and staggering back. Backing straight into a bunk bed, I sat down hard, the unexpected feel of the soft mattress beneath me had me shooting back up to my feet.
“Fuck,” I whispered, swallowing hard.
This was the kind of place I’d always hoped to find; somewhere safe for Lucas and Willow, where they could carry on being careless and reckless and completely self-absorbed, and I wouldn’t have to constantly worry about them. A place where I could finally fulfill my promise to Willow’s mother.
Unshed tears burned behind my eyes; what sort of cruel cosmic joke was this—finding the answer to my prayers just days after losing Lucas, and with Willow barely hanging on? I couldn’t be here alone. This wasn’t right; I didn’t deserve this without them—this place with electricity and running water. Without them… none of this meant anything.
I heard a noise—a weak, anguished sound that had me glancing wildly around the room, searching for the source. Realizing it was me, I barked out a laugh that caught in my throat and ended on a sob. Sinking to the floor, I stared miserably across the room.
“I found it, Luke,” I whispered hoarsely. “I found that fucking place I’d always promised.”
