The Box in the Woods (Truly Devious #4)(58)

“I’ve got a punch card for a free coffee that’s almost full.”


Janelle let out a long sigh.

“Only a little while until we’re back at school,” Stevie said.

“Now I know how Nate feels,” Janelle replied. “Nothing is longer than a little while.”

The next morning at breakfast, Stevie averted her eyes as they passed Nicole on the way in. Nate was already there when they arrived, avoiding his bunk’s table and skulking in the corner with a tray of pancakes and bacon.

“I thought you’d never get here,” he said, sitting down with them.

“Don’t you have to be over there?” Janelle asked.

Lucas peered up when he saw Nate. Nate slouched over his tray.

“All night,” he said. “All. Night. He talked about my book. Mostly, what he thought was wrong with it. And where is the second one? He knows more about that book than I do. He is a sentient internet comment.”

“He is eight years old,” Janelle pointed out again.

“You don’t understand,” Nate said, shaking his head. “Where is this other counselor? Why isn’t he better? It was supposed to be, like, one day.”

“Nicole said a few days,” Janelle said, belying her understanding of the night before.

“I did not sign up for this.”

Stevie ate bacon and watched her friends squabble. She had missed them so much when they were all apart.





“Your friend is here,” Nate said. “Captain Big Box. Box Bag. Bag Boss.”


Stevie turned to look in the direction Nate was facing. Sure enough, Carson was speed-walking through the patch of grass bordering the dining pavilion, weaving his way through the clumps of children, heading toward their table. He looked like he was on a mission, his brow furrowed.

“Oh god,” Stevie said. “What does he want? Nicole’s going to yell at me again for bringing weirdos to the camp, even if that one does own it.”

Nate looked like he wanted an explanation about that, immediately, but Carson was upon them. He squatted down at the end of their table.

“I need to talk to you,” he said to Stevie in a low, breathless voice.

Stevie looked at her rapidly cooling pancakes. “Could I finish . . .”

He shook his head. “No time.”

“Podcasts sleep for no one,” Nate said.

Stevie sawed into the pancake stack in a desperate attempt to get them into her mouth.

“Listen,” he said, “Allison Abbott is dead.”





19



STEVIE FROZE, A FORKFUL OF COLD PANCAKE INCHES FROM HER mouth.

“What?” she asked.

“Arrowhead Point,” Carson said. “She fell during her morning run.”

Stevie felt everything slowly spin away from her. She’d just seen Allison, just gone on that morning run with her, seen that spot on Arrowhead Point, where all of Lake Wonder Falls spread out below in a glorious display.

“We have to go now,” Carson said.

“To do what?” Nate asked.

Stevie did not need an explanation. She had to go, to try to see, to understand. She set her fork and knife down automatically and grabbed her phone and bag. They were halfway across the dining area when Nicole stopped them.

“What’s up?” she said to Carson. “What are you doing?”

“I need Stevie.”

“She’s got a job here.”

“Not today,” he said.





He and Stevie continued on before Nicole could make any reply and were soon in the Tesla. A minute later, they were tearing (or at least going at a moderate speed in a more or less responsible manner in a nearly silent electric car) out of camp. They drove out of the main entrance and turned toward the public side of the lake. Up ahead, Stevie could see a police car blocking the entrance road by the ranger checkin cabin.


“How did you find out?” she asked numbly.

“I was out doing walking meditation this morning,” he said. “Two police cars and an ambulance went by, going toward the lake. So I ran in that direction. I tried to go in, but one of the cops stopped me on the path. I ran home and got a drone to have a look and a listen. I got some footage, but I couldn’t get that close . . .”

Stevie turned in disgust, but found she had nothing to say. The shock was still too strong and her head was fuzzy.

“They’re closing off the main entrances,” Carson said, continuing past the police cars. “But we can get in through the woods.”

Her phone buzzed. A text from David appeared:

Come over when you can.

David was here for five days. All their time for the summer. What was going to happen now? She couldn’t think about it. Her head was swirling. She texted back.

Is there anything weird going on there this morning?

No, he replied. Why?

That made some sense. The lake was big, and Arrowhead





Point was at the far end. David was more near the middle, by Point 23.

Carson slid the Tesla to a stop on the side of the road.

“Here,” he said, handing her a tiny microphone. “Better audio for your phone. You go in through here and see if you can record any witnesses. I’m going to try to sneak in closer near Arrowhead Point and get video footage.”