There was a broad selection of healthy refrigerated treats and snacks inside the cart, and on the side were containers of veggie chips and bags of dried fruit, which I was certain Lola had picked out. She loved incorporating veganism into everyone else’s lives.
I picked out a chia seed pudding and grabbed a spoon from one of the cabinets on the cart, but before I turned away, I noticed a camera in the corner above me.
My heart froze for a moment, then beat to life again like a drum.
A camera? I only saw one camera, and it was in the cafeteria. But there was one here. Were they all over the camp? On the trails? The cliff?
They could have been hooked to the trees. After all, this was an upscale camp. They had great resources. Who was there to stop them from making sure they had an eye on every single thing happening at their camp?
I put my back to the camera casually. “Shit,” I cursed under my breath.
I walked away, keeping cool. Those cameras couldn’t work . . . but if they did, then they’d put the times together. They’d investigate and they’d know I had come off the same trail Keke was found on.
My plan would be over way before it even began.
I’d worked too hard. I couldn’t let that happen.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
There were three rangers in the main station. It appeared they’d just woken up, dumping creamer and sugar into their coffees with sleepy faces.
As I peered through the window, I made out a room for security in the back. Was it occupied? Was someone watching?
There was no way I’d be able to get in there with three men on duty. I walked away grudgingly and made my way toward the lake. I sat on a bench for a little over thirty minutes, watching the windows of each cabin across the lake light up. The volunteers and soon-to-be moms were waking up now. Some were already out and walking about.
I stood up and took a different trail to get back to my cabin, but I didn’t go straight in. I waited, until I saw Arabel, Faith, and Xena leave.
When they were gone, I made my way inside, trying to keep my nerves from frying. Lola was already fully dressed as she stood in front of her bed, pushing a diamond stud through her earlobe.
She wore brown hiking boots, black shorts, and one of the Ladies with Passion shirts I had modeled for the photo shoot.
“Oh, hey, Ivy. You’re up early,” Lola said when she spotted me coming in. “You hangin’ in there?”
I smiled at her, trudging to my bed. “Kinda. I couldn’t really sleep last night. Woke up around four this morning and went to the Night Mommy cart. Grabbed a snack and sat by the lake.” I winced regretfully. “I know there are cameras here, so if you see me on one of the security screens sneaking a couple of snacks, I hope you can forgive me.”
Lola laughed. “First of all, that cart is for everyone at camp. We refill them if needed, so there’s enough to go around. Secondly, the cameras here are turned off during the week of Ladies with Passion, other than in the cafeteria and front entrance.”
Oh my goodness, Marriott! Never had I felt so religious! The cameras didn’t work. They didn’t work! This was more than enough reason to break out in gospel.
“There was an incident about two years ago,” Lola continued. “One of the rangers—who was terminated—took footage from our week at camp and uploaded it online. It was a video of one of the moms going into premature labor. She was screaming at everyone. Hysterical. It was a mess. To keep me in his good graces, the owner of the camp made an agreement that cameras would be off for the week of Ladies with Passion so that it could never happen again. Not only that, but when the mom in labor saw it, she filed a lawsuit against the charity so . . . that didn’t end well. I value the moms-to-be and like for them to have as much privacy as they can, so when we’re at camp, cameras are off. I don’t have time for another lawsuit.”
“I can’t believe that asshole did that.” I wanted to squeal. This was great news, and I know it’s horrible to say, but thank goodness for the mom who drew the lawsuit. If it weren’t for her, the cameras would still be on. No one would ever know I was on that trail.
“Speaking of, I actually might stop the Night Mommy cart next year,” Lola said, cutting into my thoughts. “Not many moms flock to it anyway.”
“Maybe they all just so happen to sleep really well between the hours of midnight and five a.m.,” I offered.