Car lights flashed, a horn blared, and she could hear her friends singing the happy birthday song as McKenna hastened back to the campsite. She recognized the car immediately.

"Happy Birthday, Kenny!" Her best friend, Kelly Noble, was the first one out of the car. She rushed toward McKenna. McKenna held out her arms to catch her. Laughing uncontrollably, they regained their balance.

"You guys! How did you know?" McKenna was still breathless from her run to the campsite, thoughts of her mother and father no longer important at the sight of her three friends.

"We got invited," Raven said.

"Raven---"Kelly started to say but was interrupted.

"We couldn't let our best girl celebrate her birthday with just a bunch of Old Fogeys, could we?" Layla said.

"Layla...for God's sake, be quiet." Kelly shushed them.

"Invited?" McKenna asked. "By who?"

"Sorry," Kelly opened the trunk of the car. "We've been sworn to secrecy. And you won't drag it out of us, Kenny, so don't even try."

"Oh, I don't care who invited you. You're here. You have no idea how happy I am! This is the best birthday present ever."

"Oh, hell, no," Raven squeezed the breath out of McKenna, then released her, "we brought real gifts!"

"You didn't have to---"

"Don't worry about what we didn’t have to do," Kelly interrupted. "and don't you dare take the fun out of this for us!"

"Okay, I won't," she laughed.

"Good, then help us unpack the car. We need to set up our camp before it gets too late. We've already lost the light thanks to our driver."

Raven, the driver, snorted at this remark.

"You're staying then?" McKenna asked.

Raven grunted as she pulled a folded-up tent from the trunk of the car. "All weekend."

"That's so great!" McKenna squealed.  "Let's get you ladies set up!"

It wasn't long before they had their circle of tents set up and a fire going in the middle of them. All the girls were experienced campers and hikers, and setting up their campsite was nothing to them. Each girl brought her cooler filled with their favorite things to eat. Now they roasted marshmallows over the campfire and telling ghost stories.

"Have you been to the old cemetery, Kenny?" Raven asked.

“What cemetery?" McKenna shivered, her green eyes glancing around the darkness, her red hair glowing scarlet from the campfire. “You mean there’s a cemetery close by?”

"Oh my God, you didn't know there's a cemetery? And how long have you been coming here?" Layla asked, then turning to Kelly, she said, "Okay, we have to take her."

"Yes!" Kelly said excitedly. "We'll go tomorrow. You’re going to love it, Kenny. There’s quite a story about it."

"Really?" McKenna asked. "What's the story?"

"Oh, no. No way," Raven laughed. "That's a story for tomorrow. In the meantime," she yawned widely, "I'm beat. It's time to hit the sack if we want to go exploring tomorrow."

McKenna wasn’t tired, and now she was curious. Her mind was still preoccupied with her parents' argument, her friends' surprise visit, and now the anticipation of visiting a mysterious cemetery that she knew nothing about.

Grudgingly, McKenna trudged back to her campsite, crawled inside her tent, and wriggled into her sleeping bag. She doused her lantern, laid back, and tried to turn her mind off. It was almost impossible, and she knew sleep was not coming any time soon.

She gave up and left her tent and plopped down in a lawn chair beside the dying fire of her camp. Her mind started to settle down now that she was outside in the fresh air, but it cleared the way for other things to invade her consciousness. Things her dad said to her but never got to finish. Her mother running toward them, shouting for her dad to stop. What was so horrible that her mother wouldn't let her father tell her? And what did it have to do with her?

She needed to be well-rested for the long day ahead and hoped her stint outside would help her sleep. She stood, stretched, and brushed the sand from her khaki shorts that seemed to be everywhere when they camped.

The sharp cry of an owl overhead made her jump. She turned, her eyes roaming the woods beyond the campsite. "Don't be silly," she chastised herself: too many ghost stories and the talk of the cemetery.

She spied him standing at the edge of the clearing where he had been earlier in the day. He had been observing her from the shadows of the trees. Once again he lifted a hand and waved.

What? She thought. Who is that?  She squinted, unable to see him well enough in the darkness. Could he be one of her many relatives? But then he would be staying inside the camp.

He beckoned her closer.

McKenna stared wide-eyed at him. This stranger wanted her to go into the woods with him. Was he crazy?  She shook her head, no.

He repeated the motion for her to join him. She shook her head once more and backed away slowly until she was at the entrance to her tent. She trembled, and her eyes stared into the dark. She couldn't tell if he was still there, and that made her anxious. She climbed inside the tent and closed the zipper, scooting on her butt away from the opening. She waited, her ears straining to hear footsteps. The night stayed quiet. She crept to the entrance and, with shaking hands, unzipped the tent. He was no longer visible.

***

The robins and warblers and sparrows woke her the next morning. Somewhere in the distance, a woodpecker tapped loudly on a tree, the sound echoing throughout the forest.

McKenna rolled over in her sleeping bag and opened her eyes. She didn't sleep well and should be extremely tired, but she wasn't. She felt wide awake, excited, and looked forward to the day. Her friends were here to make things a whole lot better with the promise of a thrilling excursion.

The smell of fresh coffee lured her from her tent. Her mother was at the setup they used as a kitchen, pouring coffee into Styrofoam cups for everyone.  Afraid of being yelled at again, she tentatively approached, but her mother surprised her, seemingly no longer upset. "Good morning, McKenna," she said pleasantly. "Want coffee?"

"Yes, please." She studied her mother's face and reached for the cup. There was nothing there to indicate the tension of the night before.

"I see your friends have arrived."

McKenna's face broke into a grin. "Yea, I was totally shocked. How did they know we planned this?"

"Because I invited them." Her mother smiled at her.

"You invited them?"

"Of course." Her mother picked up her cup, took a small sip, and then blew into the coffee to cool it off.

"Thank you, Mom," McKenna felt herself soften toward her mother. "Thank you very much."

"You're welcome. I thought you might enjoy yourself more if you didn't have to hang out with a bunch of Old Fogeys."

McKenna’s face flamed a bright red. "You heard."

"How could I not?" Her mother’s mouth twisted into a lopsided grin. "Your friends are not known for their indiscretion."

"She didn't mean anything by it."

"I know she didn't. I thought it rather funny."

McKenna laughed at this.

"Speak of the devil," her mother said.

"Morning," Kelly walked toward them, rubbing her eyes. "Oh, yes! Coffee!"

Sarah handed her one of the Styrofoam cups. "So what do you girls have planned for today?"

Raven was next to appear, ready for coffee. “We thought about taking Kenny on a little picnic to a special place."

"Really?" Mrs. Dunn questioned.

"Yes," Raven's head bobbed excitedly. "She's never been to the old cemetery on the other side of the lake. I can't believe she didn't know about it. Do you know about it, Mrs. Dunn?"

Sarah lowered her eyes and took a sip of her coffee. "Yes, I know of it, but we don’t go to cemeteries in this family.”

Why not?" Kelly asked.

"We only visit the living. Graveyards are for the dead. And I wish you girls wouldn't take McKenna there."

"But, Mrs. Dunn," Kelly said, “it will be okay. We would be going during the day. And we were going to pack a cooler. We were going to have McKenna open her gifts there.”

"Never mind," McKenna interrupted. "We don't need to go there. We can go on a hike and take our picnic with us."

The girls groaned but agreed.

McKenna finished her coffee and threw the cup in the trash barrel. "Come on," she motioned to the girls. "Let's go.”

As they walked toward their tents, Raven spoke up. "Man, I can't believe we're not going to the cemetery."

"Who says we're not?" McKenna grinned.

"You're not serious." Kelly's eyes widened.

"I am very serious."

"You're going to defy your mother?" Raven asked.

"You bet we are. I'm getting tired of all the secrets this family keeps. There's something about that cemetery that I need to see. Come hell or high water."

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