"Katherine, get in here." My mother called from the living room in the cabin that we shared.
"What" I said in a way that reminded me of Mr. Sir. I made a disgusted face at the thought of sounding like Mr. Sir. Which, by the way, isn't even his real name. It's Marion. Marion Suvillo. Plus he's violation his parole with that gun for "yella spotted lizards". I walked into the room where my mother, Lou Walker, was painting her nail with the rattlesnake venom polish.
"Well, what do you have for me today" She asked it like a statement, not a question. I was my mothers spy for the camp.
"The new mea…ahem...camper, Stanley, had a name now. It's Caveman. He got it after a small tiff with the Lump. No one was hurt. Zero is still the fastest digger. Some of the boys think he is a mole and eats the dirt."
"Moles don't eat dirt."
"That's what one of the boys said. Then he said he thought Zero was a worm and ate the dirt." My mother looked thoughtful. Most likely on the whole Caveman thing. Not the Zero/mole/worm thing.
"Thank you." That was my cue to leave. Once I was in the safety of my own room I allowed myself to be angry at my mother.
"Excuse me." I said in a flawless imitation of my mother, including the ice cold tone she uses. I even look like her a bit. I have red hair and light chocolate-brown eyes. Those traits seem to be passed down to the woman in this family. My looks were softer, nicer, and I didn't have wrinkles! I couldn't imagine how she could live with herself and still use me the way she does. The bitch! I went into my bathroom where I saw wanted posters of my namesake. Kissin' Kate Barlow. You see, my full name is Katherine Barlow Walker. Figures my mother would name a child after a famous outlaw who robbed every bank from hell to Houston.
I glanced out the window at the camp, silently watching two boys from D-Tent washing my mothers care. Squid and Zigzag. Although I would say it was my mother's orders, I spent a lot of the time watching D-Tent. Most were cute, especially the two washing the car…
My ringtone suddenly went off to 'What You Own' from RENT. The tall, cute, blond, Zigzag looked over. Quickly, I dropped to the ground, pressing ignore on my phone. I had almost let myself get caught. Zigzags file said he suffered from acute paranoia. The sighting could pass as that, somehow I doubted it would, especially if my mother heard from her other sources(that were actually guys and had no idea about me). I'd be in trouble. No shower tokens. I joked to myself.
About a week later
I was in my usual outfit. A hat to hide my hair, and an orange jumpsuit so big that it covered my female body. I was 'filling my canteen' at the water spigot when I heard a bunch of D-Tent boys talking. I thought it might have something to do with the fact that my mother had left and returned to our cabin looking very exited. I bet it had something to do with that damn treasure she was always going on about. How she would always find it one day.
"Man how did she know my name?" Stanley 'Caveman' asked. Me. I told her, as I do with every camper. I'm just the reporter. Like a little spy device.
"Oh, man, she's got the whole place wired. Oh yeah, she has these little cameras and microphones all over the place. In the tent, in the rec room, in the showers." Maybe Zigzag hadn't seen me the other day. If he really believed the camera and microphones thing. It was possible for him to believe it.
"They're not in the showers." Well of course there not in the showers, they don't exist. I wouldn't watch any of the boys here in the showers. They are a few exceptions to this, of course. Not that I actually watch them in the showers, put some do walk around shirtless sometimes.
"Oh don't listen to him. I read his file. It said he suffers from, um, oh. Acute paranoia." How would Squid read this file? I was the only one allowed to handle the files.
"So I guess that means she watches me everyday, huh." No comment.
"Man, he said cameras and microphones, not microscopes" I almost laughed out loud when I heard the 'microscopes' part of the conversation. I didn't get to hear Magnet's response. Zigzag looked over to me and arched a blond eyebrow. It wasn't a questioning look. It was more of a knowing look that had me convinced, once again, that he had seen me the other day. I allowed my mouth to droop open as soon as the group walked away. As I headed to another part of the camp to spy on I heard Zigzag's words in my head. "Camera's and microphones". If he knew I was here, did he really mean it? Or was it just a cover up. Is that all I was to my mother; eyes and ears of the camp. Is that all I was; cameras and microphones.