Camp Aglesha Bay
At breakfast I saw Spike, and asked about Snider I really wanted to know how they slept. Spike said he was still asleep he hadn’t slept too well been kind of sick. He himself had slept fitfully Snider had gotten up to go to the bathroom several times.
I felt sorry for Spike a little but not much.
After breakfast we went to a short class in swim safety and then for a swim.
I was actually enjoying myself and then someone later no one would say who although someone had to see who threw Snider in the pool, in his long PJs he had brought from home not the summer PJ’s everyone else wore.
I heard the splash and turned, it was noisy in the pool and at first I just thought some nimrod had cannonballed, something you weren’t supposed to do.
But then I saw him, and I heard Ricky yell, "Freaking Snider!"
"I’ll save him!" Davie yelled but I was closer, and made my way to him, but seconds later Steve was there pulling him out and giving him mouth to mouth. Steve had one of the other councilors Earnest take Snider to the nurses office.
We were all drying and getting out of the pool so we could go do our silly little craft projects when a pink car pulled up, it was not really a car more of a small limo and a boy got out.
"Who is that?" someone said. Not even Ricky had a comment.
"That is Remington Bramwell Smyth the third, he is from Fenton," a girl said.
"Ladee da and ritzy snitzy," Chum said.
"He has three last names and don’t know it." Charlie giggled.
I didn’t know Chums real name only knew that was what Ricky called him.
Ricky shocked me by going over to the boy and helping him with his things.
Chum chuckled and said to Charlie, "Ricky smells fresh meat."
So that was it, I thought and sighed, as Ricky asked Ernest if Remmy could bunk up with him, he and Charlie had room. Yes indeed and they had the new beds.
I had been here a little over 24 hours and I already knew if you wanted something not to go to Steve unless you really wanted to know if it was right or wrong, and not to go to Larry who would just say go ask Steve if it was more important then where are the balls or games or simple questions. You wanted something badly you asked Ernest, who was a nice guy just not the sharpest knife in the drawer if you know what I mean. Remmy was going to be shark food for Ricky, Chum, and Charlie. Everything Ricky did or said those two numb skulls thought it was funny or right.
About an hour later three more kids were brought in two girls and a boy who had a lot of stuff, the girls obvious didn’t want anything to do with that kid. Who’s name was Johnny and almost got assigned in with us, but Chum and Timmy got him instead. I was so glad he had all kinds of bottles and things for catching bugs and small reptiles.
The next morning a kid in breakfast line complained someone had stolen his metal and tokens, we got our tokens right after breakfast I only got three a day. So far I had spent only two, and I still had my fifty cents. A couple of times Ricky had invited me to play but never around Davie.
Everyday it seemed some kid was missing something, Davie’s watch, some girls charm bracelet, little items but it was annoying.
The week drew out, I wrote home everyday, but not to my parents or even aunt Becky, but some one different each day, first to Benny, then to Topaz, then Sid and Butch, then to the twins, Jeremy, and last to Willie, I wondered if they would answer. I tried not to sound too down. But let them know that if they could get me out of here some how I would be grateful.
I wondered how they did in the race that Saturday morning as yet another theft was reported. I suspected one of the new kids, there were four boys, the kid they called fatty who Ricky harassed a little "Fatty fatty two by four couldn’t get through the bathroom door" and so on what a putz. Poor kid he had some skin condition that kept him wearing long sleeve shirts. He was so big he had to wear uniforms made for the staff. He seemed to be a good enough kid, he did think arm farts were funny and made the loudest ones I ever heard Sid would get a kick out of him
That Saturday afternoon is when the trouble started, while doing a cabin inspection Matty one of the lady councilors found a silver ID bracelet under my bed. With the initials JLB on it. I was being looked at by everyone as the thief, no one seemed to believe I had no idea how it got there. I was beginning to feel framed and what was suspicious is no one claimed it.
That night I had a dream I was in my winter jammies and I was riding the carpet from my bedroom out of Camp Aglesha Bay and to the club house, and Comet was there and she was so thin and crying because no one ever came and got her and she was starving. I had to call someone I thought when I woke up.
Sunday was the worse, no one came right out and accused me of being the thief but they were having a council meeting about what to do about the thief, more items were gone. They checked my cabin but Sid would have been proud they never figured out the aspirin bottle held money.
I was feeling pretty bad when I ran into Marty the crippled kid, he smiled at me and said he didn’t believe I had done it. That made me feel a bit better.
Look on the bright side, what was the worst they could do? Kick me out of camp, I would welcome that!
Then I had a horrid thought what if they gave me KP? The thought me an upset stomach, but they did the KP thing only in the army right, and besides they had Cookie and Dan to do all that.
"I wish they would eliminate all the chicanery around here," Remmy groused to Ricky and his card playing buddies, as he gave me a dirty look.
"Why would you want to lemonade Sean Connery?" Johnny asked.
He was not the sharpest knife in the drawer either, I thought glumly.
"Hey I like 007 he is cool," Ricky said.
"Sean Connery doesn’t play 007 now," Remmy sighed. "Now its Roger Moore."
"Those boys are so dimwitted, I know you didn’t do it Skeeter," a girl with blond hair in pig tails said.
"Don’t I know you from wood craft?" I asked feeling a little better someone besides Marty believed my innocence.
"Yes, oh I guess I should introduce myself, I am Karli, I will be going to your school in September, we just moved to Rivervale from Bayview," Karli said smiling.
"Good you will like it," I said, realizing some of the guys were smirking. So I was talking to a girl, girls were not that bad, Buck . . er Topaz was one of the greatest girls ever.
"So why are you here?" she asked.
"I think my parents are getting divorced," I sighed, and couldn’t believe I had bared my innermost feelings to this girl I didn’t know.
"Oh no," she said, and the depth of her sadness was almost too much, I almost started to go all cry baby right there, but then she said.
"Well you know what my grandma said, when life gives you lemons make lemonade."
I grinned and noticed she had a scabbed up knee.
"Come on lets go swimming its hot," she said smiling now.
We talked a long time, I told her about the gang and some of the things we had done and she listened and really seemed to be interested in meeting my friends.
I went back to my cabin that night to turn in, I felt much better.
Davie had gotten Dan to bring him some buttered toast and wanted to share the marmalade his mother sent.
There was a commotion at card shark Ricky’s cabin and my cabin mate Davie the snitch seemed to know it was a bust and I would have bet my aspirin bottle and its dimes that Davie turned in old Ricky and his pals. Davie the snitch as he was now being called, but he didn’t seem to mind being bunked in with Skeeter the thief. Davie had said he had never seen me leave my bunk at night which had helped a bit I think.
That night the thief struck again this time it was Davie’s pinkie ring, and I knew no one would believe me, heck I was beginning to think maybe I was doing it in my sleep.