Kayla hummed softly as she walked down the path towards the lake that adjoined the campgrounds. It was a warm, sunny day and, after the cold snap that had captured Salem, she relished the feel of the sun on her bare arms and face.
She tried to quell her nervousness at her appointed "mission." Kayla had never been comfortable with lying. In fact, just a few years before, she would have insisted that lying was never the right thing to do. But then she had met Steve, and had learned that doing the right thing sometimes meant thinking and acting outside her preconceived notions of right and wrong.
If telling a few white lies and gathering information under false pretenses could help get Shane out from under the charges he was facing, she would do it, without hesitation.
Rounding another corner in the path, Kayla began to hear the sounds of voices. She slowed slightly, knowing the lake must be close by.
Taking a deep breath, Kayla took the last steps through the trees and onto the beach fronting the lake. Looking out to the water, Kayla could see a few rowboats with fisherman dotted around the lake.
Turning towards the sounds of the voices, Kayla looked down the beach and saw a group of twenty or so women and children about fifty yards away.
Kayla walked slowly towards the group. She could see a couple of older women in chairs in the center of the group. Surrounding them in chairs or sitting on beach towels were several women who appeared to be around Kayla's age. Several small children were playing nearby and, farther down the beach, Kayla could see a group of teenagers playing volleyball.
Steeling her courage, Kayla walked towards the group of women. As she drew closer, she could see that she had been spotted. The older women peered at her, as three or four of the younger women leaned their heads together in close conversation.
Kayla was about ten yards away when a woman not much older than Kayla got up and walked quickly towards her, a broad smile on her face.
"I can't believe you're here!" the woman exclaimed in a strong southern accent. "Aunt Verna didn't tell anybody you were coming."
Kayla quickly looked over her shoulder, wondering if someone had walked up behind her. Seeing no one there, she turned back, only to be engulfed in an embrace clearly intended for a long-lost relative.
Before Kayla could speak, the woman pulled back and then grabbed Kayla's hand, dragging her towards the rest of the group.
"Look who's here, y'all. It's Aunt Verna's baby girl, Macy."
"I think-" Kayla started to say.
"Come on over here, child," one of the older women said. "I haven't set eyes on you since you were still in diapers."
Kayla smiled awkwardly and stepped towards the woman. "I'm sorry, but I think there's been some mistake. I'm not Macy. I'm-"
"Oh, I can't believe I was such a fool," the first woman spoke again, snapping her fingers. "Of course you're not Macy."
"That's right," Kayla confirmed with a nod. "I'm—"
"You're Cousin Louise's girl, Sarah," the woman interrupted. "I should have known better. You're the spitting image of your mama."
Kayla stood in silence for a moment as all of the women began talking at once. From what she could tell, they were doing a family inventory and trying to establish exactly where "Sarah" fit.
"Wait!" Kayla finally shouted, getting their attention. With several pairs of eyes now trained on her, Kayla spoke again. "I'm sorry for the confusion, but I'm not Macy or Sarah or anyone else connected to this family reunion you're having."
A second elderly woman, probably the oldest in the group, spoke up in a very stern voice. "Well if you're not family, then what are you doing here?" She turned to a middle-aged woman with bright red hair. "You said we had the whole durn place to ourselves."
"Hush up, Aunt Patty," the woman responded, standing up. Turning to Kayla, she held out her hand and said, "I'm Ellie. My husband and I own the resort."
Kayla shook Ellie's hand. "It's nice to meet you Ellie. I'm Kay-" She caught herself just in time. "Kay Daniels."
"Welcome to the resort," Ellie replied with a smile. "I must say, I'm surprised to see you. When I saw the reservation on the books for William Daniels, I assumed it was just for another huntin' party. I gather he must be your husband, right?" She did not wait for an answer. "So what brings you and your husband to our place?"
Kayla was silent for a moment as she tried to come up with a plausible story. She mentally kicked herself for not having discussed this was Steve earlier.
"Uh. . . ." She started hesitantly, looking into a sea of expectant faces. "My husband heard about this place from a friend of his and he . . . uh-"
"Lemmee guess," Aunt Patty nearly snarled. "He decided to disguise a deer huntin' trip as a romantic weekend getaway. Jes like a man."
Kayla smiled broadly, grateful for the unexpected assistance. "Something like that," she replied with a nod. "I . . . uh . . . I don't know if he's going to do any actual hunting, but I think it's definitely a scouting trip." She shrugged. "You know how those men can be."
With the exception of Aunt Patty, all the women laughed and exchanged knowing glances, clearly agreeing with Kayla. Aunt Patty muttered something and Kayla thought she saw the old woman quickly lift a flask to her lips and take a drink. As the laughter faded, Ellie asked, "So, Kay, where are you and your husband from?"
Before Kayla could respond, she heard a scream from down the beach. She looked quickly towards the source of the noise and saw a teenage girl lying on the ground, holding her ankle.
Without thinking, Kayla ran towards the girl, only barely aware that the most of the other women were following closely behind.
When Kayla reached the girl, she dropped down beside. "What happened here? What hurts?"
"My ankle," the girl said in between sobs. "I was jumping for the ball and when I landed, it hurt real bad."
"Let me look at it." Kayla ran her hand over the girl's foot. As she did, she realized that she and the girl were now surrounded by the group of women she had been talking to and they all had concerned, but somewhat suspicious looks on their faces.
"It's okay," Kayla said, turning back to the girl. "I'm a nurse. I just want to see if anything is broken." Kayla carefully felt around the girl's foot, ankle and lower leg but could not feel any broken bones.
Looking into the girl's eyes, she gave an apologetic smile. "Sorry, this is going to hurt, but I need to move your ankle around to see if the ligaments are okay. I'll be as quick as I can. I promise."
The girl nodded and closed her eyes. Kayla quickly rotate the foot a short way in each direction. When she was finished, she sat back and looked up at the waiting family. "It's okay. . . . There doesn't appear to be anything broken or torn. I think it's just a light sprain."
Kayla could hear the sighs of relief surround her. Turning back to the girl, she asked, "What's your name?"
"Lucy," the girl said, a shy smile breaking through her tears.
"Hi, Lucy. I'm Kay." Kayla smiled reassuringly at Lucy. "Your ankle's going to be just fine, but you should go back to the camp and get some ice on it as quickly as possible. That will help keep the swelling down. You're also going to need to stay off of it for the next few days, I'm afraid."
Lucy nodded unhappily as two of the teenage boys in the group helped her up.
"Eldon, Henry," Ellie spoke from behind Kayla. "You two help Lucy back to the lodge and help her get some ice on that ankle. The rest of us will be along shortly."
"Yes, ma'am" the boys responded in unison, each throwing an arm around Lucy and helping her hobble down the beach.
"She really gonna be okay?" Aunt Patty asked.
Kayla nodded. "I really think it's just a light sprain. It'll swell up a bit, but it should be better in a couple of days."
"Thank you," Ellie said, smiling at Kayla. "I guess you came along at just the right time."
"I'm glad I could help," Kayla replied sincerely. Suddenly, she remembered she was supposed to be gathering information. But how could she segue from helping the girl to asking about their evening plans?
Ellie turned to the rest of the group. "Come on, girls. We better get our stuff together and get back to camp. We got a big supper to cook tonight."
Kayla's ears perked up at that. At least she had learned there would be some kind of dinner. She stood there for a moment, trying to think of a good way to ask for more information.
Just as she was about to speak, Ellie turned to her with a questioning look on her face. "Do you and your husband have supper plans?"
Kayla shook her head. "We haven't discussed it." At least she could be honest about that.
"Well, then, it's settled. You and Mr. Daniels can join the Deakins clan for some down-home southern cookin'. It's the least we can do after the way you helped Lucy."
Kayla started to protest, just out of habit. But then she remembered why she was there and caught herself. "Thank you. We'll be glad to join your family. Just tell me where and when?"
"Six o'clock sharp in the main lodge," Ellie said as the group began the trek back to the campground. "And be sure to bring your appetites. You ain't seen nothin' like a Deakins family supper."
Kayla nodded and smiled. She had a hunch the supper was going to be even more interesting than Ellie expected.