“You’re full of it. No one would waste so much money and effort on a damn goat. You two said the Red Team has never got it! We’ve got to try,” Terrance insisted.
“I’m serious. If you get anywhere near it . . . Boom. Alarms start blaring, and the next thing you know, you’re behind bars at the Morgantown jail.”
Alice stilled, both concerned and mystified by the boys’ conversation. Justin and Matt were both “expert” Durand campers. They were bright, energetic, and often mischievous, but not any more so than most teenage boys. She considered Terrance in the same light. Alice didn’t think any of them were capable of serious law breaking. True, Matt had been involved in several petty crimes years ago. He came from a pretty rough neighborhood and had fallen in with a bad crowd. But since first attending Camp Durand, Matt had been clean as a whistle and his grades had significantly improved.
“What are you guys talking about?” Alice demanded loudly, fully entering the room.
The boys started like they’d been goosed.
Of course she got nothing from them after that but uncomfortable laughter and some unintelligible mumbling. Alice was considering separating them for a more thorough interrogation, but stopped herself at the last minute. Something told her it would be wiser to go about this in a different way.
I mean . . . a goat? Seriously?
And hadn’t she heard someone say something about a goat recently? It came to her when: Jim Sheridan in the woods yesterday, sporting with the two kids from Kuvi’s team about a goat.
Sure, it was alarming to hear her kids talking about a theft, but there had to be something more to the story, something Alice wasn’t getting. She was mystified, more than anything.
She brought up the incident at lunch later that day while she was sitting at a table with Kuvi, Thad, and Dave Epstein. Dave grinned.
“I know what they’re talking about. Salinger told me after I heard some of my kids making some sly references to it and acting like I was too stupid to notice,” Dave said, referring to Aidan Salinger, a Durand manager. “There’s another camp down the shore called Camp Wildwood, and their mascot is a goat. They call it Bang.”
“Bang?” Alice asked blankly, pausing with her chicken sandwich a few inches from her mouth.
“The whole thing is based on an old story. Camp Wildwood puts on a firework display on the last night of camp. One summer decades ago, a wild goat broke into the shed where the fireworks were being stored and ate some of the fireworks.” Dave shrugged. “You can imagine the rest. Bang went bang.” He made an exploding sound and motioned with his hands to imply fragments shooting in all directions.
“Disgusting. You Yanks have the most warped sense of humors,” Kuvi declared when Thad and Alice snorted with laughter.
“Seriously? A wild goat? Around here? Where do they find those, right alongside the wild cows and sheep?” Thad asked, glancing from Kuvi to Alice incredulously. Alice choked on her laughter and set down her sandwich.
“Yeah, I know,” Dave assured, hushing his voice to mute the spectacle of them in the crowded dining hall. “Whether it really happened or not isn’t the point. Bang is a big deal a
round here. It’s become a tradition for a couple Durand kids to sneak over and steal Bang one night while both camps are in progress. They return him the next day in a canoe, so no real harm is done.”
“They got another goat after they blew the first one to smithereens?” Kuvi asked, looking scandalized.
“No,” Dave managed between jags of laughter. Thad, Dave, and Alice had busted up again at Kuvi’s wide-eyed question. Sometimes, Kuvi’s Britishness made her seem more sophisticated than any of the other counselors, but occasionally, she was adorably naïve when it came to their American idiosyncrasies. “They have a little statue of Bang,” Dave continued. “It sits in the middle of their common, right in the center of all the cabins. Because the Camp Wildwood kids and staff know the Camp Duranders will try to steal Bang one night, it’s gotten harder and harder to do it. The Wildwood kids have made an art of defending their mascot. Last year’s attempt failed, and resulted in two Gold Team experts being taken to Morgantown jail. It was the Durand kids’ fault. They got mouthy and rude when they were caught. A fight almost broke out. They got out of jail quick enough with a slap on the hand. Camp Wildwood didn’t press charges and everything was okay. Before that happened, the Durand managers and Kehoe sort of smirked and turned a blind eye to the Bang phenomenon, considering it a Camp Durand tradition, kids will be kids, yada yada. They’ve been doing it for years now. Rumor is, secret points were even allotted to the team who successfully stole and then returned Bang. Lots of Durand alumni are pretty nostalgic about Bang.”
“Glorifying the tradition of thievery as long as no one gets caught at the scene of the crime,” Kuvi said. “Lovely.”
“Oh come on,” Alice disagreed. “They’re fifteen-and sixteen-year-old kids having some fun at summer camp. I can think of a kid on my team who could benefit from a little teenage rule-breaking for once. We’re not talking about jumping someone in the hood here.” She was thinking of Noble D. He was way too serious. His teen years were going to vanish very soon. Since he was ten, D had assumed the male leadership role in his family after his older brother had been shot and killed. D planned to become a minister following his four years at a Baptist college. Before he knew it, D would find himself a pious reverend, his chance to be a goofy carefree kid gone forever.
“I agree,” Dave said. “But after the two guys got caught last year and started mouthing off, things have changed. This year, they’re discouraging any Camp Wildwood forays. I think Kehoe started that rumor about Bang being booby-trapped with an alarm, just to deter Camp Duranders from getting into any more trouble. I’m going to be having a talk with my kids about it this afternoon, but I’m not sure it’ll make much difference. Apparently, the Gold Team is known for being the most strategic and successful at Bang acquisitions.”
“You must be so proud,” Thad said drolly.
“His kids must think so,” Alice defended Dave, who did look a little proud talking about his team. “Matt, Terrance, and Justin sounded completely envious, and were not happy the Red Team had never won the honor.”
“If you want to call going to jail an honor,” Kuvi said, popping a fry in her mouth.
“Since no charges were ever brought, I think that’s exactly what my kids think. It takes some balls to do it. I just need to convince them there’s no honor in being a rude jerk. So what do you guys think about the Alumni Dinner tonight?” Dave asked quietly, glancing casually from side to side to assure himself no Durand managers were hovering nearby. “Think we should be nervous about being put under the microscope by the Old-Boy Network?”
“As long as we’re using oxymorons, there’ll be some Old Girls there as well. And some that aren’t so old,” Kuvi said, giving Dave a pointed glance. He shrugged a concession. Kuvi grinned at him. “I don’t think it’ll be so bad,” Kuvi continued. “I’m getting the impression Durand executives who were counselors here have a serious nostalgia factor going on about Camp Durand. Look at this Bang example. They’ll probably be more interested in telling us stories of the good ol’ days than anything else. I’m not too worried about it.”
“What about you, Alice? Up for another shindig at the big house?” Dave asked, using his fork to shovel up the last of his salad. Since he was otherwise occupied, he didn’t notice both Kuvi and Thad cast anxious glances at her. Why did everyone think she was such a basket case?
Because you’ve kind of been acting like one lately.
“I’d rather go to the dentist. It’s just something I have to do. What are you wearing tonight, Kuvi?” Alice asked, her offhand, casual manner discouraging further unsolicited concern on either Thad or Kuvi’s part. Alice was worried enough on her own about playing the stranger in Dylan’s home tonight . . .