by Holly Rayner
Alyssa’s heart pounded. She had so many questions. Was the plane in danger of sinking? Were they close to civilization?
For the time being, she kept the questions bottled up. This wasn't exceptional chatting time. Right then, she needed to get her butt in gear.
Steven opened the exit door, revealing rocking blue waves. Alyssa clutched the back of her chair. If it wasn't dropping, it seemed, it was rolling.
Out came the raft, which Steven inflated by tugging on a cord before tossing it into the water. He gestured to Alyssa.
“Ladies first.” Steven smiled, but Alyssa could see how hard he was trying not to freak out.
“Go ahead,” Ali said soothingly.
“You have your purse?” Steven asked.
Alyssa snatched it up from her seat. It contained her phone, wallet, keys, and some gum. Not exactly anything useful for when you crashed in the middle of the ocean. Unless they got cell reception in…wherever they were.
With Steven holding the raft next to the plane, Alyssa clambered on board. She scooted over to make space, and the two men joined her, Steven bringing a large bag with.
The waves pushed the raft against the plane's side, and a shiver went down Alyssa’s back. They’d really crashed into the ocean.
Steven and Ali took up extendable paddles and, sitting on either side of the raft, maneuvered them away from the plane.
Alyssa turned away from the plane, not wanting to see the thing she simultaneously associated with safety and danger. Ahead of them, a lush green island waited. Looking to either side, Alyssa could see where the island curved away. Those spots had to be miles away, though. The island was big.
The paddles made gentle dipping sounds in the water. No one spoke. Alyssa wished they would. Talking would show that they had answers. If they had answers, that meant this ordeal would be over soon.
“Soon” felt like a dream. In reality, this whole ordeal was only beginning.
The island drew closer. White, sandy beaches. Bright green trees. It would have seemed a paradise if it also didn't look completely abandoned.
“Where are we?” Alyssa asked, breaking the silence.
“We’re off the coast of Thailand,” Steven answered.
“Good,” Alyssa said shakily. “So, we’re close. Someone will see we’re here.” She pulled her cellphone out. No bars.
“Unfortunately,” Steven answered grimly, “We’re not that close to the mainland.”
Alyssa squeezed her eyes shut. Great. So they'd survived death by plane-crash only to face death by deserted island. Suddenly, that first option seemed a lot more favorable. Quicker. The terror and pain less drawn out.
Close to shore, Ali and Steven jumped out to drag the raft the rest of the way in. Alyssa got out as well, but the water made her jean shorts and sneakers heavy, and she ended up fumbling to help haul the raft.
Making it to shore, they pulled the raft high onto the sand where the waves couldn’t get it. Alyssa turned around, taking in the curved palm trees, soft sand and turquoise waters. The place looked like heaven. The only thing that was off in the picture-perfect scene was the small jet out on the water.
“We can’t go back there?” Alyssa asked.
“It wouldn’t be safe.” Steven got on his knees and unzipped his bag.
Alyssa looked at her fiancé. He’d said very little throughout the whole ordeal, and his face was pinched. They’d never faced anything like this before. Alyssa knew how he dealt with work stress and family stress. In those situations, he was relatively calm. But life or death? Who knew what anyone would do?
“Did you radio for help?” Ali asked Steven.
Alyssa’s heart jumped. Of course! Duh. Every plane had a radio.
“Radio was destroyed,” Steven said briskly.
“Cripes,” Alyssa muttered. She shielded her eyes with her palm and squinted at the thick, jungle-like woods in front of them. What kind of animals were in there?
“The good news,” Steven said, “is that I think this island might be inhabited at the other end.”
Ali and Alyssa shared an excited look.
“Here’s what we have,” Steven said, pointing to everything he’d brought from the bag and laid out in a line. “Water canteen. A few plastic water bottles. First-aid kid. Flares. A few dehydrated meals.”
“We should set a flare off,” Ali suggested.
Steven rubbed his jaw. “Yeah. First, we need shade. We don’t want to get baked out here. And we’re gonna need to look for water soon, too.”
Alyssa gnawed on the inside of her lip. She’d gotten on the plane thinking this was going to be an ordinary trip, and she’d woken up in an adventure novel—the kind she should have been reading at the resort they’d been headed to.
“I’ll find a shady spot,” Alyssa said. She walked for the tree line.
Really, she needed to be alone, if only for a minute. A sob collected in her throat, but it wouldn’t come out. What if Steven was wrong about there being other people on the island? What would happen to the three of them? How often did boats or planes come by this island? How much longer would it be till Alyssa saw Rashid again?
A few days away from her sweet little baby had been difficult to stomach, and now, this—not knowing when she would see him again. It was like being turned inside-out.
Alyssa stopped in the shade of two palm trees. A breeze played with her hair, and she closed her eyes. She had to be strong. If she didn’t have faith that they would make it home, she would lose her mind, and that wouldn’t help at all.
A familiar touch on her shoulder made her turn around. Ali’s lips were drawn tight, his eyes hard to read.
“Are you all right?” he asked.
Alyssa stared at him. “No.”
“Don’t worry, my love. Steven said there are people here—”
“He thinks they’re here,” Alyssa corrected him.
Somehow, his face tightened even more. “We were taking a regular path for private jets. Someone has to fly by, eventually.”
“Eventually.” Alyssa nodded. “Yeah.” She looked past him. “I’m gonna help Steven.”
They got all the supplies into the shade, then Steven straightened up and looked around. “Flare first.”
Alyssa stood back, watching as Steven set off a flare. It whizzed into the sky over the water, creating a trail of smoke.
She looked down at the water bottles and packs of food. They didn't have much.
Alyssa picked up the canteen. “Might as well look for water now.”
“I'll come with you,” Steven said. He looked to Ali. “It's best if someone stays here, in case the flare gets a response.”
Ali glanced sharply at Alyssa, but nodded.
The moment they stepped into the thick jungle, it became cooler. Steven took out a pocket knife and cut a notch into a tree.
“In case we need to find our way back,” he explained.
“So, you've done this before.”
It was a pathetic joke, but Steven gave her a weak smile for it. They trudged through the foliage in quiet. Leaves rustled as a breeze came through, and birds called to each other. Even in the middle of an awful situation, the jungle’s beauty was too strong to be denied. Right underneath that beauty, though, there was a quiet danger. The island held secrets, Alyssa sensed. A shiver went down her back as she wondered which of those secrets it would reveal.
Every minute or so, Steven stopped to put a notch in another trunk.
“I’m sorry about this,” he said at the fourth or fifth notch.
“It’s not your fault.”
“No, but it also isn’t the ideal way to start planning your wedding.”
Alyssa looked at the canteen. “I didn't even want to come out here.”
He closed the pocket knife with a snap. “There’s no point in thinking that way now though, is there?”
She nodded and stepped over a fallen log. “Yeah.” A faint trickling made Alyssa stop. “Listen,” she breathed.
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Steven halted too. “Sounds like it's coming from that way.”
They followed the sound as best they could and came across a flowing creek. Crystal-clear water ran over rocks, and upstream a bit, a small waterfall about the height of a one-story house put off an impressive amount of spray.
Alyssa laughed in amazement. “This is beautiful!”
“Every acre of this part of the world is,” Steven said.
Squatting down, they ran their fingers through the cool water. Alyssa cupped some in her hands and splashed it on her face, enjoying the pleasurable shiver it sent through her.
“I wish Ali could see this,” she said, gazing wistfully at the waterfall.
“He will. It's a short walk, and we'll need to come back for water soon enough.”
They drank from the creek and then filled the canteen. Through the gaps in the trees, Alyssa could see hills.
“You know what island this is?” Alyssa asked. “That's how you know there are people here?”
Steven hesitated for far too long. “I think I know,” he hedged.
Alyssa drew her shoulders back and clenched her jaw. She wasn't going to let that doubt get to her. Finding the creek and waterfall had invigorated her, and she suddenly felt braver and hardier than she had when they’d lugged the raft onto the island.
With that new sense of hope buoying her, Alyssa followed Steven back the way they'd come. After a short walk, pieces of the beach and ocean appeared between the trees.
She walked faster, coming out onto the sand…and finding no Ali.
Frowning, Alyssa looked around. The plane still rested in the water, and the raft was right where they had left it.
“Ali?” she called.
No answer. Alyssa’s heart rate sped up. Where had he gone? He hadn’t tried to go into the jungle after them, had he?
“Ali!” she screamed, desperation filling her.
She held her breath and waited for the answer.
“I’m right here.”
She spun around and found him walking along the beach toward her.
“Where did you go?” Alyssa shouted, stomping up to him.
“I only walked down the beach some,” he explained in far too calm a voice. “To see if I could find signs of anyone else.”
“You need to stay in one spot,” she snapped.
Ali’s brows pushed together, and he looked down at her in annoyance.
“Fighting won’t do us any good,” Steven said, stepping between them.
Alyssa huffed and crossed her arms. She knew he was right.
“We found a creek.” Steven held up the canteen. “I notched the trees, so Alyssa can show you back to it while I’m gone.”
“Why only you?” Ali asked.
“I think there’s a village on the other side of this island.” Steven paused. “Assuming it’s the island I think it is. And, if it is, then it might be a good three days’ walk. At least one person needs to stay here while someone else walks the beach to get to the other side.” He looked between the two of them. “And I think you two should stay together.”
Alyssa caught Ali’s gaze. Did he know anything about wilderness survival? Her best guess was no. She knew a bit from going to camp growing up, but she wasn’t one of those people who could make a fire from striking rocks or spear a fish and eat it raw.
Already, Steven had proven he knew the most out of the three of them. Of course it made sense for him to leave the relative safety of their rough camp and be the one to go try to find civilization.
“Let’s divvy up the supplies,” Steven said. He got to work right away, tucking bottles of water into his pants’ waistband and slipping some of the food into his pockets.
“That water won’t last you long,” Ali commented.
Steven nodded. “The trip might take me longer than expected if I have to go inland to look for fresh water. That creek can’t be the only one on this island, though. It’s flowing down from the middle of the land. If I’m lucky, the spring there has more than one outflow.”
He finished packing up and looked at the two of them. The expression on his face was grim.
“What kind of animals are here?” Alyssa asked warily.
“Gibbons, maybe,” Steven said.
“Macaques,” Ali added.
Alyssa glanced at him. Since when did he know anything about Thai wildlife?
“The food will last you a few days if you’re cautious,” Steven said.
Alyssa’s stomach knotted. “And after that?”
“We’ll figure it out,” Ali said.
Irritation warped Alyssa’s brain. This was no time for bravado. If Ali didn’t know what they were going to do, he needed to come out and admit it.
“There’s fish,” Steven said. “Coconuts.”
Alyssa bit her lip. Fish and coconuts. Great. Now, they just needed someone to acquire said fish and coconuts.
“I’ll send help the moment I reach someone,” Steven said. “Don’t go into the jungle, unless it’s for water. There’s no real telling what’s in there, and if help comes while I’m gone, someone will need to be here.” He hesitated, sweeping his gaze over them one last time. “Good luck.”
Alyssa and Ali stayed where they were, watching Steven grow smaller as he walked away along the shore.
Chapter 8
Alyssa
With Steven gone from view, desperation descended on Alyssa. Her breathing became ragged, and she folded her arms, nails digging into her forearms.
“You okay?” Ali asked.
“Yeah.” Alyssa turned away from him. “It’s just really humid.”
Alyssa squeezed her eyes shut. Maybe once she opened them, all of this would be gone. She’d be back home in New York, playing with Rashid on the floor while she video-chatted her mom or Lucy.
“We need to make a shelter,” Ali said, interrupting her fantasy.
Alyssa opened her eyes. Yep. She was still in the middle of nowhere.
“What are we gonna make a shelter out of?” she asked.
He looked at the trees. “Fallen branches. It’s unfortunate that we have nothing to cut fresh, strong branches with, but we need to do something. Especially with it being the rainy season.”
“It doesn’t look like rain,” Alyssa said, noting that the sky was blue, dotted with fluffy, white clouds.
“It can come on fast here, and when it does, you do not want to be caught out in it.”
“I’ll take your word for it.”
Without further ado, Ali walked for the trees. Alyssa hugged herself tighter. Was there something she should be doing? Maybe spelling out “SOS” with rocks?
No. A small jet floating in the water was probably enough to alert anyone to their distress.
Leaving the shade, Alyssa followed Ali to the trees. They stayed on the edge of the jungle, scouting for fallen logs and branches. With one heavy one, which they dragged across the sand together, they made the frame of a tented structure by leaning it against one of the curved palm trees. Taking smaller branches and big leaves, they made a wall and a half.
It was crude even by the kindest of standards, not to mention super small. The two of them would be able to rest in it, though, and take some refuge from sun, and the rains if they did come later.
Ali sat down on the sand and wiped his brow. Alyssa joined him, and they stared in silence out at the ocean. Alyssa wondered how long it had been since they’d last spoken. Time was unbearably slow when you knew there was a chance you could starve to death in the next few weeks.
“Fish,” Alyssa said. “How are we supposed to catch fish?”
“We’ll have to make a spear out of a stick.”
Alyssa eyed him. “Have you ever done that?”
“Of course not, but does that matter right now?”
Alyssa looked back at the ocean. Sweat dripped down her face, and her clothes stuck to her skin. She wished the hypothetical rain would go ahead and come.
“Think it’ll sink?�
� she asked.
Ali looked at the plane. “Steven said it is dangerous, but it doesn’t look like it’s going anywhere. Not now, anyway.”
“There’s more food on there. We should have grabbed it.”
“Getting off the plane was more of a priority, then,” Ali said. “It could have flooded at any moment.”
Alyssa dug her sneaker’s heel into the sand.
Ali stood. “I’ll look for good sticks for spears and a rock to sharpen them with.”
She followed after him, and again, they scoured the edge of the jungle.
“Here’s a long stick,” Alyssa said, holding up one that was mostly straight.
Ali nodded. “Good. And I have a sharp rock that may do well.”
Back to the shelter they went. Ali went to work sharpening the end of the stick, although it was slow going. Unable to bear just sitting there and watching, Alyssa stood and paced in the shade of the palm trees. She kept looking down the beach in the direction Steven had gone. She knew there was no way he would be returning already, but she couldn’t help glancing that way.
She’d felt safer with Steven there. He’d seemed to know what he was doing. Now, it was just a sheikh and a girl from Queens fumbling to survive, based on things they’d seen on TV or read in books.
“Looks pretty sharp to me,” Ali said after a while, raising the spear.
Alyssa shrugged. “I guess.”
Ali hoisted himself up and went into the waves. Alyssa trailed behind.
“Stay back,” Ali said. “I’ll wait until the fish come in with the current. If they sense your movements, they’ll swim away.”
Alyssa stood just past where the waves broke, the sun scorching her face. She was probably sunburnt already. If she didn’t want to turn into a lobster, she would need to get back into the shade soon. For then, though, she wanted to watch Ali.
From her position, she could see the silvery flash of scales coming in. Ali stood very still, spear poised in his hand. He didn’t move, though. The fish weren’t close enough.
Out went the water, then back in it came. After a few minutes of this, Ali sent the spear down into the waves. It was a clumsy effort, and the end of the spear emerged with no fish on it.