Camp Driftwood

Chapter 24 - Masterkey

Chapter 24 - Masterkey

Kaylee and Judie stood by the windows, looking out onto the courtyard of Camp Driftwood from the low light of the moon. Matthew and another of the guards Kaylee was not familiar with were making their way across the yard, hunting rifles slung at their sides by the straps, engaged in conversation. Evan sat on his bed, wrapping a thin strip of cloth tightly around the metal lawn mower blade that he had procured from the farmhouse. It now served as a dull, but effective knife.

"What do you plan to do with that prison shiv?" Kaylee asked quietly, before turning her attention back to the guards, watching their routes.

"Relax," he said, not looking up as he tied off the last of the cloth around the improvised handle, "It's for Operation Houdini: Mark II."

"Speaking of which," Kaylee muttered, falling silent for a moment as Matthew and the other guard rounded the corner, walking back past the orchard and towards the main building, "It looks like we're almost good to go. Get ready."

Evan nodded, tucking the blade into his back pocket once again, before quietly getting to his feet and joining Kaylee by the window, making sure to stay behind the curtain. As he waited, he laid a hand on Judie's shoulder, squeezing gently. The girl's hammering heart calmed slightly with his reassurance, and she stepped back towards her bed. As Kaylee kept watch Evan turned back to the other attendants.

"Time's running out," Evan said grimly, looking back towards the attendants, who were all sitting on their beds, waiting expectantly, "Kaylee and I are going to step out and grab something from the farmhouse. Don't do anything until we get back."

He turned to the door, waiting for Kaylee's signal. She kept watch, waiting until their door was out of the managers' lines of sight, before giving a nod. They opened the door silently, before stepping out onto the veranda and closing it behind them.

Before the managers could turn and take notice, the pair ducked off the porch and ran around and in between the other cabins in the semi-darkness, sticking close to the walls. After a few moments of silence, where neither dared to breathe, they continued towards the far cabin closest to the orchard. As they continued, each gave a slight tap on the wall of the cabin they were moving towards. They paused again, peering around the corner, as a barely audible knock sounded in response. Evan gave a smile, and they waited for the managers to do another circuit.

"Where do we go from here?" Kaylee muttered, barely poking an eye out from the corner to keep an eye on the managers.

"Waiting," he replied quietly, "There's a girl in this cabin that picks locks, makes me look like a rank amateur. I can get through into the farmhouse in just under ten minutes, maybe. She can do it in two."

"Sounds useful," she nodded.

"Damn right I am hun," she heard a voice laugh behind her, and Kaylee barely managed to stifle a cry of shock at the sudden appearance of the girl.

"Jesus," Kaylee hissed, "Don't do that!"

Kaylee turned, looking at the new girl, who had snuck around the other side of the cabin. She was taller than Kaylee by three inches, putting her almost at eye level with Evan, which was unusual for a girl of their age. She was thin too, skin and bones, with awkward knobs for knees and elbow joints.

"Lovely night for a walk," she smiled brightly, in a thick southern drawl.

"Kaylee, this is Beth," Evan said quietly, "She's our masterkey."

Beth grinned, moving into position behind Kaylee and peering out at the managers currently making their rounds. "What's the plan boss?" she asked Evan.