I’m working hard to shake my doubts away. No matter what Julian does, PALs Camp is going to be so much fun that Oliver will forget his deal with Julian and start chatting—maybe he’ll talk even more than Snips!
I’m determined to get Oliver to speak right away. I just have to show him that taking money from his brother is a bad idea. Being like Julian is another bad idea. I’m going to have to reverse that, and fast.
Julian jumped down from the counter and found Aunt Cora’s salve. “Glad we had this little talk,” he said, unscrewing the lid. “Eww. Stinky.” He took a big dollop and smeared it on his neck. Then he smeared some on my arm, so we smelled the same way: bad.
Before I could complain, he tossed the salve into my hands and said it was all part of the illusion, then dashed into the dining room.
He told Aunt Cora that I “give a lovely massage” and have “magic fingers.” But all I cared about was that I smelled awful and my dinner was cold.
Until Julian suggested I use the salve on Aunt Cora after dinner.
Julian! He’d conned everyone, and now I couldn’t refuse rubbing Cora’s neck. “Sure,” I said, giving him a side-eyed glance. He winked.
I knew that Oliver sat watching all this, and I could see he was soaking it in. If I don’t show him a good time at camp, he’ll turn out exactly like Julian. I have to stop that!
Project Save Oliver begins first thing in the morning.
It was the first day of camp. Abigail was marking off names on a clipboard with a pencil.
“Camp helper, Turo.” Abigail called out his name, even though he was standing right in front of her.
“Here,” he said, raising his hand. “Ready to assist.”
“Mary Pat and Bianca?”
“Here,” they said in unison. They were dressed alike, with the exception of Bianca’s blue boots and Mary Pat’s brown boots—which was the only way to tell the twins apart.
“Snips?”
“And Señor Carrots reporting for duty.” Snips saluted.
“Lester?” New Kid One raised his hand.
“Lilly?” New Kid Two raised her hand. This was clearly Lester’s younger sister. They both had choppy, wild brown hair. It looked as if they’d taken turns cutting each other’s bangs.
“And, finally, Stella?”
A little girl, about nine years old, began to raise her hand, but then changed her mind. She raised her voice instead. “I am here and ready for camp. If you don’t mind, I have some suggestions. First, we are currently standing outside on the porch.” She indicated the horses milling nearby. “I just think those animals are too close for comfort.”
Lucky laughed. “Spirit is safe for—” she started.
“Wouldn’t it be more comfortable for everyone if we moved inside to the living room?” Stella asked before Lucky could finish.
“Pru is in the living room setting up for a scav—” Lucky began to explain.
Stella cut her off again. “After our morning activity, Cook will be dropping my lunch. You’ll need to invite her in to set the table for me. We’ll be bringing our own silver, of course.”
“Are you related to Maricela?” Lucky asked.
“She’s my second cousin once removed,” Stella declared. She held up two fingers and twisted them together. “We’re very close.”
“I’m sure you are…” Lucky said before turning to Abigail.
“Maricela and her family are away for a few weeks. They went to the city for important business,” Stella explained. “My family is staying in their home. They’ll be back soon, and we will spend the rest of the summer together.”
“I see,” Pru said, returning from the house. She approached Abigail and Lucky and whispered, “That should be interesting. This town is only big enough for one Maricela!”
“And one Julian,” Lucky put in. They all laughed.
“That reminds me—we have just one last camper.…” Abigail looked around. “Oliver?”
He wasn’t there. She put an x by his name and set down the clipboard on the porch railing. “Roll has been called. Now we can do our first activity.”
The kids all cheered.
“Wait,” Lucky said, stopping Abigail. “What about Oliver?”
“I marked him absent,” Abigail said.
Just then, Julian arrived with Oliver. “Girls, I’m so sorry we’re late,” Julian said. “There were some details to work out this morning.” He gave his brother a small shove forward. “He’s here.”
“Camp already started,” Abigail said. “Sorry.” She sounded very professional. “Camp policy. Come back tomorrow.”
“But he’s here,” Julian said. He looked to Pru and Abigail. “Be a pal, won’t you, Abigail? What’s this about a camp policy?”
Pru shrugged. And Lucky looked blank. They had no clue what Abigail was talking about, but she had the clipboard, so she was in charge.
“Let me think what to do.” Abigail considered the problem. “I suppose that we can give him a late pass for today.” She grabbed her clipboard and erased the x, putting a check by his name instead.
“Wow. She is strict,” Julian said to Lucky with a wink.
“Oliver had better be on time tomorrow,” Lucky said with a laugh. It always confused her a little when Julian seemed genuinely friendly.
Julian nodded, giving Oliver another little shove. “See you later, little brother.”
Oliver didn’t budge.
“You ready for fun, Oliver?” Abigail asked him.
He opened his mouth, then shut it quickly. Lucky watched as Julian slipped his brother a shiny nickel. She’d already told Pru and Abigail about Julian’s challenge. They were all determined to break Oliver’s silence with a good time—and get paid.
“You ready for fun, Oliver?” Abigail asked him again.
This time, Oliver didn’t even pretend to try to answer. He kept his lips pressed tightly together.
“It’s okay, Abigail,” Lucky said. “I’ve got this.” She reached out to take Oliver’s hand. He shoved it away. She frowned and addressed all the waiting campers. “Now, where were we? Ah yes, who’s prepared for the best scavenger hunt ever?”
Julian looked at Lucky and winked. “Go on,” he told Oliver. “I’ll pick you up later. You know what to do.”
Oliver gave
