Page has never been more happy to return home. If she had the choice, she would have stayed at Camp for the whole year if she could, but at least she now had Demetri to spend the rest of the summer with.
She hops out of the car and looks up at the torn down apartment building. Home sweet home. When her dad unlocks the apartment door, she braces herself for the mess her mom is sure to be in. She is met with an empty room; bottles still strewn everywhere, tv off, and no one to be seen.
"Where's mom?" Page asks cautiously. She's afraid to know the answer.
Her dad sighs, "When you left, your mom didn't know where you went so she went to look for you."
Page is in shock, "She did?" She thinks for a moment, "Wait. Is she still looking?"
"In every bar she comes across," her dad responds sadly.
Page looks down at her feet, "Oh."
Her dad wraps his arm around her shoulders, "Don't worry kiddo. Hey, I have the entire day off, what do you say we go spend the rest of it in town and you can tell me all about Camp."
Page looks at her dad with a smile, "Sounds great!"
She tosses her things on the floor next to the door and they head out.
Twenty minutes later they are sitting on a bench in Central Park chowing down on two dogs with the works.
"So how come you're wearing that canteen around your waist?" her dad asks her after swallowing the last of his hotdog.
Page looks around at the joggers and children playing in the distance. No one seems to be in hearing distance. She knew this question would come and the Camp said they could tell close family they knew they could trust...She takes a deep breath, "I...I got it from camp. I wear it because I learned how to use the water inside."
He eyes her in confusion, "Use the water?"
She sighs unsure of how to explain herself. Page looks him in the eye, "Dad. I'm a waterbender."
He stares at her wide-eyed in horror, "WHAT!?!" He jumps to his feet "You went to Element Academy!? That's the Camp you went to! I should have known they'd change their cover name! I told them no!"
Page watches in shock as her dad paces back and forth, shouting these things. "Wh-what are you talking about?"
He quickly grabs her hand and pulls her to her feet. She drops her hot dog on the ground. Her dad drags her through the park, looking back in forth in what seems like paranoia. Page knows this path, its leading them back towards the subway entrance nearby.
"Why are you acting so weird?" she asks, "And how did you know the Camp's name?"
He picks up his pace, "We can talk about it when we get home, its not safe out here."
Page pulls her hand out his steely grip, "I'm not going anywhere until you answer me."
A shirtless guy covered in tattoos breathes fire from his mouth nearby. The crowd that has gathered around him claps in amazement, but its not the fire-breather that Page catches her dad staring at; its the man in the tattered red t-shirt and jean shorts standing at the edge of the crowd not staring at the man, but them. His face pales.
Something about his blank expression gives Page the creeps, "Dad?"
He grabs Page's hand again. "Please Page."
She nods. They take off almost in a sprint. She steals one last look at the young man only to find him gone. They quickly get on the subway train, her dad scanning over everyone around where they stood. His actions begin to take affect on Page. Her heart is pounding and she expects the guy in the red shirt appear out of the blue. What the heck is going on?
YOU ARE READING
Element Academy: The Light of the Avatar
ActionCrystal and Page have returned home from Camp, but who says the adventure is over? With a month still left of Summer, anything can happen and there are dark forces at work determined to make sure that something does. WARNING: This is book 2 of Eleme...
