“So what’s the signal for us to get going?” Elizabeth asked as she finished tying the canoes together.

“Our act is right after the Nature Center, so right after that. You should be able to launch the BFR from the docks as soon as they’re done and be in sight within about a minute.” Allison replied. Elizabeth groaned.

“Are we still calling it the Big Fucking Raft? If it’s going to be a pirate ship we need to come up with a better name.”

“That’s up for you and the rest of the Boathouse staff to come up with, you guys are the pirates after all.”

“Peter’s being crotchety again, he’s still going on about how this is going to damage the boats and rigging. I’ve told him plenty of times that we’re not actually using the sails, but he won’t hear it.”

“No one said the Team Leader has to be the Captain of the BFR, if he doesn’t want to be a part of it then he can sit on the sidelines. Not like he does much else around the boathouse.”

“I’d agree with you if he wasn’t my boss. Charlie says he should have stopped years ago.”

“He is in his seventies, the only reason admin keeps him around is his years of experience. He’s been getting more abrasive since he retired, it’s no wonder almost all the boathouse staff turns over every year.” Allison said.

“You think this is gonna hold?” Elizabeth asked. She clambered into the closest of the six canoes tied together, steadying herself as the whole group of boats rocked in the shallow waters of the lakeshore.

“It should be all right, so long as you guys don’t go too crazy on it. Remember, when you take your uncle ‘hostage,’ you’ll need to help him on board since you’ll be a bit off shore.”

“I’ll be staying on the ‘BFR’ to make sure it doesn’t drift as the rest of the boathouse staff goes pirating. I’ll make sure that he gets on just fine. We’ll have plenty of life vests in the canoes just in case.”

“It’ll be getting dark when it’s time, you got the flashlights ready?” Allison asked. Elizabeth pointed to a plastic cooler in the rear of one of the middle canoes.

“Five mag-lites and four headlamps, all with fresh batteries in them. Doug’s got the costumes in his car and is gonna bring them down during dinner so we don’t give it away ahead of time. We just need-”

“Never fear, the cavalry's here!” Allison and Elizabeth looked up as William and Charlie rounded the corner into the small alcove, carrying a sunfish sail and several paddles between the two of them.

“Good timing, we just finished getting the BFR together, and I need to get back to the beach for my shift on the stand.” Allison said, checking her watch. “Do you need me to send one of my team over to help?”

“We should be able to get it done. One of us will come over if we need help.” William replied. “We’ve got the mast base pre-assembled, so it’s just getting it set in place in the canoes and securing it before putting the sail in temporarily to see if it’ll hold. We’ll leave it down until it’s time to come back and get set after dinner, just to make sure the wind doesn’t catch it and take the ship away.”

“Good plan. I’ll see you guys later!” Allison replied. The other three waved as she turned, jogging down the lakeside trail towards the beach.

The quarter mile of trail back to the main camp wound around trees and bushes lining the edge of the lakeshore. Allison had to be careful not to trip over the roots and stones poking through the packed dirt as she made her way back to the border of the camp. It had made sense to put together their “surprise” for the campfire that night a bit away from the camp, otherwise a bunch of campers would have seen the boats being tied together and figured out what they were doing. Allison hoped that their act would go well, last year’s fiasco with the water balloon fight hadn’t been her idea, but the whole waterfront staff had to spend the whole day cleaning up the amphitheater the following day of every fragment of nearly a hundred water balloons. Hopefully the pirates vs. ninjas idea they had collectively decided on would go off without a hitch.

Allison jogged past the boys and girls changing rooms as she broke through the tree line into camp. The beach had a few more sunbathers arrive since she had gone to help put together the raft. Allison entered the fenced-in area, nodding to Travis who was busy signing in a few more campers to the beach, and headed towards the lifeguard rest platform. Jack looked up from his book and then looked at his watch as she approached.

“Right on time, boss. How goes the ‘project?’” He asked.

“Coming along well. Boathouse has it covered for now, and said they’ll call if they need help.”

“Too bad we couldn’t get that sailboat mast from the lightning strike on monday, would’ve looked good on the…’project.’” He stated, eyeing the campers sunbathing nearby.

“Mike’s got it locked up in his office. He doesn’t want anyone hurting themselves on the sharp metal. He’s hoping he can get insurance to pay for a new one before next week.”

“Good luck to him with that, but I doubt it. Never thought I’d see a lightning strike on a sailboat, let alone on a sunny day. Are you taking the beach stand or the raft this time?” He asked, putting a bookmark into place as he stood from his chair.

“I’ll take the beach. You got it last time, and from what I could see from the raft, spent most of it talking to the campers.”

“My eyes were on the water the whole time.” Jack replied solemnly.

“Never said they weren’t. You may be lazy, but you’re not irresponsible.” Allison replied, stepping out of her sandals.

“Just saving my energy for when it’s actually needed. Never know when one of these squirts is gonna need a rescue.” He replied, stretching his legs. Alison snorted, shrugging off her shirt and shorts to her red one-piece swimsuit.

“Just make sure the kids on the raft don’t go crazy starting a diving contest again. Savannah had to clear the beach cause half the swimmers tried to get on the raft all at once.” Jack laughed, shrugging off his shirt as well.

“That must have been a sight. Poor little Sav, trying to keep twenty kids off the raft? She’s what, 5’ 2”?” He asked, grabbing the sunscreen and squeezing it into his hands.

“At least she remembered the whistle this time.” Allison replied, turning and pulling her braided brown hair to her front. She shivered as Jack started rubbing the sunscreen into her back. “I thought I told you to put that in the sun, not in the fridge, jeez that’s cold.”

“I was hoping for a better reaction than that.” Jack muttered. Allison whipped around, staring at him.

“Wait, you actually put it in the fridge? What the heck!” Jack smirked.

“Just trying to keep you cool on a hot summer day.” He replied as she rolled her eyes.

“It’s only 83, hardly a scorcher. Try that on Helena when it’s in the 90’s, guarantee she’ll scream.”

“Duly noted. All set.” He said, handing her the sunscreen as he turned. Allison squeezed the tube into her hand, quickly rubbing it into his back.

“And if I see girls hanging around you at the raft again-”

“No worries, I’ll tell ‘em off. Looks pretty busy out there anyways, with the raft limit I’ll have a good excuse for telling them to move along.”

“Works for me. All set.” The two of them quickly finished applying sunscreen to the rest of their exposed skin, the healthy bronze tan of their skin the result of several weeks of clear, sunny weather. Allison lamented the extreme tan lines the one-piece gave her, but at least they were less obvious while fully clothed. Some of the other staff had good farmer’s tans going on as a result of the staff uniforms, which peeked out from under sleeves whenever they were inevitably rolled up on hotter days. She glanced over at the campers sunbathing, mostly senior girls in two-piece bikinis. A few years ago and she would have been right on the beach with them.

“All set. Here you go.” Allison turned, taking the rescue tube from his hand and slinging the strap over her head. She patted her chest for the whistle around her neck, and lowered the sunglasses from where they perched on her head to her face.

“All set. Go on and relieve Russell, he looks like he’s wilting out on that raft.” Jack saluted, turning and jogging over to the rowboat on the side of the swim area. Allison strode across the beach, winding her way between the sunbathers on her way to the lifeguard stand.

“Swap time, Helena.” The lanky redhead on the stand looked down at her, a toothy grin breaking out on her face.

“Yes, boss!” Allison kept her eyes on the water as Helena clambered down from the high seat, scanning the swim area. A few dozen swimmers total in the water, she estimated. Close to capacity for two guards.

“Helena, can you go relieve Travis at the check-in? And let him know that if you get over 40 active swimmers, he’s going to have to swap in.” Helena drooped slightly, but smiled.

“Sure thing- Oh looks like I was right, we got some romance in the air.” Helena pointed. Allison pointed at her eyes, and Helena looked towards the water as Allison turned around. Two of the sunbathers had joined a couple of boys at the fence line, another trio a short distance away.

“Looks like Russell might owe you his dessert tonight.” Allison replied, watching as one of the boys fished out a piece of paper and a pen from his backpack, which both girls quickly scribbled something on. “Looks like they’re exchanging phone numbers.”

“Really?! Yes, I knew it!” Helena cheered. Allison turned back to the taller girl, who smiled despite her gaze still sweeping the swim area.

“I swear you must have some kind of radar for that, that’s the third bet you’ve won this summer. It’s like you’re cupid or something.” Allison muttered, turning towards the lifeguard stand.

“What can I say? I’m good at reading people from a distance.” Helena replied, her tone turning a bit wistful. She continued scanning the swim area as Allison climbed up the steps into the lifeguard chair.

“I’m sure whoever you’re pining for won’t know what hit him, sooner or later.” Allison said. Helena looked up at her as Allison began her scan, an awkward wince on her face.

“We’ll see, I guess. Have fun!” She said, before turning and skipping across the sand towards the entrance.

Allison settled into the chair, the familiar motions of the scanning process coming naturally to her as her shift on the stand began. The happy chattering and splashing of the campers in the water mixed with the leaves rustling in the breeze. The waves sparkled silver as they made their way towards the shore, a dazzling blanket of starshine bobbing with the water’s motions. Farther out, several different types of boats meandered across the lake, the orange kayaks and canoes popping out from the blue waters. Several triangular rainbow sails slid slowly across the lake, nearly half a mile out near the opposite shore. A few paddle boarders between the boathouse and the swim area laughed as one of their number became unbalanced and fell into the water.

It was a perfect summer afternoon, barely any clouds in the sky, with a slight breeze to keep the direct heat of the sun on her skin from getting too hot. She could practically feel the sun’s rays turning her skin a shade darker as she continued to scan the swim area for any signs of distress. They had been lucky so far this summer, there had only been the single call to empty the swim area during a missing camper alert the previous week, which had been resolved quickly once a fellow camper reported they had slept through lunch.

It was a far cry from the previous year, where there had been at least two or three times a week where the lifeguards had to execute a rescue. Allison wasn’t sure if it was because of the new rules put in place this year to help regulate the number of swimmers at a time, or if it had been her unwilling but necessary leadership that had done something different instead. In any case, it was a far cry from the previous two years where she had spent her shifts on the towers in a state of near-constant panic, always sitting on the edge of the seat, ready to explode into action at a moment’s notice. Tyler’s leadership at the time hadn’t helped much, and his absence this year left Allison as the only lifeguard who had returned to work at the camp this year.

Allison sighed, fiddling with the rescue buoy strap as she continued her scans. It hadn’t been easy, reconciling with the fact that she’d have to work at the camp another year, with the added burden of being put in charge of the lifeguards. The money her parents had put aside for college was starting to run low, and with her indecision over her major continuing to loom over her, she didn’t have much of a choice in the matter. She had to get a summer job to stretch her college money a bit further, and Camp Starfall’s pay increase from being a team leader was enough to put it over any other job offer she found. Despite the fact that she was returning to the scene of two of her hardest breakups, Allison at least found peace in the fact that neither of them were there to constantly remind her of her mistakes-

The shrill, piercing blast of a whistle being blown twice spiked her heart rate as her eyes jumped to Jack out on the raft. He was already jumping out of the stand, and Allison followed his gaze to the middle of the swim area, where she could see a pair of hands thrashing above the water line. Immediately, she grabbed the whistle around her neck and blew three short blasts into it as Jack jumped off the raft into the swim area.

“Clear the swim area! Everyone out of the water, now!” Allison shouted, jumping from her position on the top of the stand to the sand below. Immediately, she heard Helena, Russell and Travis echo her from behind as she sprinted towards the water, ripping her sunglasses off her face. Campers in the swim area looked confused, but moved quickly towards the beach as she ran in, diving into the water. By the time she came close, Jack already had the camper, a young boy with blond hair holding onto his rescue buoy, who was coughing and sputtering as he was helped towards the beach.

“All set?” She asked, quickly scanning the area around her. Most of the other campers had gotten to the shallow end at least, and there were no signs of anyone in the deep end.

“All set, looks like he just got tired.” Jack replied, taking long smooth strokes as he came closer to the shallow area.

“Buddy check!” Allison yelled, and once again, she heard Helena, Russell and Travis echo her call. The campers on the beach and the shallow end of the swim area began milling about, calling each other's names as they found their pairs, clasping and raising hands into the air as they did. Allison and Jack finally got their feet on the ground in the swim area, pulling the blond further into where he could stand as well. Another young boy came up to them, his short black hair plastered to his head, looking at the blond with wide, brown eyes.

“Luke! Are you okay?” He asked. The blond looked up at him, his face still pale as he gasped for breath.

“Are you his buddy?” Jack asked. The black-haired boy nodded, walking with them as they stepped onto the beach. It was near silent as Luke suddenly turned on him, a furious snarl on his face.

“What the hell, Greg?! You nearly drowned me!” He shouted, and Allison’s blood turned to ice. Greg looked stunned.

“What? What are you talking about?”

“You grabbed my ankle and pulled me under! I told you not to do that!” Luke fumed. Greg held his hands up, eyes wide.

“I wasn’t anywhere near you! You went out to the raft while I was doing laps, remember? I was near the shallow end when they whistled.” Greg replied.

“I told you don’t like deeper water, and you go and pull me under? What kind of friend pulls that-” Luke continued to rant over Greg, until Allison put a hand on his shoulder.

“I’m going to ask you once to calm down. Let’s step over to the lifeguard station and get you checked over, all right?” Luke looked up at her, suddenly deflating as he remembered where he was. Jack led the two boys over towards the chairs as Allison walked over towards the other three lifeguards. Helena looked over to her as she came alongside them.

“15 pairs, two triples!” Travis shouted from the other side of the beach.

“15 pairs, two triples confirmed!” Russell called back. Helena looked down at the sign in sheet in her hands.

“15 pairs, two triples, all clear!” Helena replied.

“Swim area is closed for 15 minutes, no one gets in the water until I say so, is that clear?” Allison projected across the beach. Some campers groaned, and a few gathered up their things and headed towards the exit as most of them settled in to wait for the swim area to re-open.

“What was that about?” Helena asked, checking off a few campers from the sign-in sheet as they left the fenced-in area of the beach.

“The kid, Luke, seems certain his buddy nearly drowned him, but the other, Greg, claims he was halfway across the swim area when it happened.” Allison replied. Helena frowned. “He could just be imagining it, stressful situations and all.”

“That doesn’t explain the cuts on his leg though.” Helena replied, nodding towards the lifeguard station. Allison turned, eyes wide as Jack tended to a small trio of gashes around Luke’s calf muscles. Both of them looked at each other, Allison’s mind racing. How had they missed that?

“Keep posted here, I’ll be back.” Helena nodded as Allison walked over to the trio at the lifeguard station. Jack looked up at her as she approached.

“Called a code blue, these cuts are pretty deep, he’s probably gonna need stitches. Owen and Madison are on their way down.” Jack replied. Greg looked pale as Jack pressed gauze from the first aid kit into Luke’s cuts.

“How are you feeling, Luke?” Allison asked.

“Fine, I guess. I didn’t even notice the cuts until I sat down.” Luke replied. “I still don’t really feel them.”

“Might be shock?” Jack asked.

“No blue extremities, color is coming back to his face at least. Any dizziness? Chest pain?” Allison asked. Luke shook his head to each one, looking more annoyed than scared.

“Like I said, I don’t feel it. I feel fine, I think.” He replied. His pupils looked normal as well, and Allison took his hand in hers.

“I don’t think it’s shock. How deep are those cuts?” Allison asked.

“Definitely looked like more than a quarter inch to me. I might be mistaken though. I’m not a medical expert.” Jack replied.

“Not to worry, the medical experts have arrived.” A jovial voice called from behind her. Allison turned as Owen, a slightly heavyset man carrying a large, red tote came up behind them. Madison, walked next to him, brushing her red hair behind her as she removed a smaller, blue bag from across her shoulders. Behind them, at the fence, Allison spotted Mike hovering, obviously torn between needing to know what was going on and getting in the way. Allison sighed, and Madison caught her eye, grinning slightly.

“Go on, Allie, we’ve got this from here. Best not to keep Mike waiting, he’ll blow a fuse.” Madison said. Allison smirked.

“That’d be fun to see, just not on my beach. I’ll be back in a moment, Mads.” Allison turned, heading over to Mike and ushering him away from the beach.

“What’s the situation? Do we need outside support?” Mike asked.

“Not sure yet, that’s Owen’s call. Luke, the blond, claims that his friend dragged him under and nearly drowned him, but it doesn’t add up. Greg says he was on the other side of the swim area at the time, not to mention the cuts on his leg don’t seem to be from a kid’s fingernails.” Allison replied.

“Great, another mystery. Just what I needed. You’ve been sweeping the bottom of the swim area for branches and everything?”

“Every shift before we open the beach, so unless no one noticed someone throwing in a branch large enough to drag a kid under, that wasn’t it.”

“Was anyone else close enough to have done it?” Mike asked.

“Not that I saw, I’d have to check with Jack, he saw the situation first. But again, those cuts-”

“Xavier to Mike, please respond.” The radio on Mike’s belt squawked. Mike’s shoulders dropped, grabbing the radio from his waist and thumbing the button on the side.

“Go for Mike, Xavier.”

“I got a situation I’m gonna need you in on, can you meet me at Admin for a debrief?”

“Give me a few minutes, Xavier, I’m at the beach for that code blue. How urgent is it?”

“Nothing too urgent, but I need you in for conflict management. Brian’s involved, can’t be in charge. Nepotism and all.” Xavier replied. Mike frowned.

“All right, I’ll be there in a few. Over.”

“Over.” Mike clipped the radio back on his belt, a confused frown on his face.

“All right there, Mike?” Allison asked. Mike looked back at her as though just remembering she was there.

“Yeah, all good. Too much going on at once. First that snake this morning, now this and whatever happened with Xavier? This week’s been a doozy for random incidents.” Mike sighed.

“Well, at least this is the first time this week the beach has had an incident. 2 calls in 5 weeks is pretty good compared to last year.” Allison replied. Mike looked at her shrewdly as she looked innocently up at him.

“Yes yes, you’re doing a good job. Keep it up. Guess I’ll get the rest from Owen later. Doesn't look like he needs an ambulance, so it must not be too bad.” Mike nodded towards the others. Allison looked over to where Owen and Madison were helping Luke into the first aid golf cart before they slowly drove over the field towards the path back to the health center. Madison smiled and waved from the rear-facing back seat, and both Allison and Mike waved back as they departed.

“Jack just wanted to be safe, I’m sure. First time he’s been the point person for an injury, so he might have just misjudged the severity of the cuts.” Allison shrugged. “He certainly handled it better than I did my first point.”

“You did look about ready to keel over after that one. All right, I’m off, I’ll talk to you later, Allison.”

“Good luck with whatever Xavier needs you for, hope it goes well.” Mike nodded as he strode away, long strides eating up the ground beneath him as he went. Allison sighed, relaxing slightly as he moved away. Talking to him always had her slightly on edge, never knowing if his control-freak tendencies would rear their head. She couldn’t remember the number of times she had witnessed him nearly bite someone’s head off, herself included a few times.

Still, an uneasy ball of nerves had settled in her stomach at some point during the conversation. Mike’s casual reference to the number of strange incidents over the week had her anxieties resurfacing. Allison took a few deep breaths, trying to calm herself. This was nothing like previous years, she reminded herself. A few strange incidents weren't going to be the end of the world.

Allison sighed, turning back into the fenced-in area, where a few dozen expecting eyes tracked her. She glanced at each of her lifeguards, nodding at each one as they nodded back.

“All right, give us a moment to get back into position, and we’ll reopen the beach for swimming.” She called. “Helena, you’re up for the raft, next, so be ready. Jack, you good?” Jack smiled, and gave her a thumbs up as he strode back towards the water, heading back out to the lifeguard stand on the raft. After a moment, Allison turned and headed back to the stand on the beach, climbing back up to it and waiting for Jack to climb up onto the raft.

“All right! Swim on!”