Lost: The Novels

by Catherine Hapka

  She still melted a little every time he called her “beautiful.” Besides, maybe she wasn’t quite ready to face Arreglo alone anyway.

  Squeezing his hands, she nodded gratefully. “Thanks,” she said. “It’s almost ten—guess we’d better head upstairs and get this over with.”

  17

  FAITH’S ARMS ACHED AS she lowered herself to the jungle floor. Even though there was no sign of any snakes in the grass anymore, she’d clambered through the branches of the large tree until she could climb down well beyond the edges of the clearing.

  As she rubbed her raw, sore palms on her shorts, she was already starting to feel foolish. She glanced toward the grassy clearing, which looked serene and beautiful beyond the edging of trees. Even if those had been snakes back there, she wasn’t sure what had made her panic like that.

  Or maybe she was. Those snakes hadn’t just been going about their business; she knew it as certainly as she knew her own name. They had been stalking her. And snakes just didn’t do that…

  “Aaaaaaaaaaaaah!”

  The shout of terror was faint, but instantly recognizable even at that distance.

  “George,” Faith whispered as the echoes of the cry rang through the forest.

  She stared off in the direction from which the shout had come. For a second she was tempted to ignore it. Surely there was someone closer who would go to his rescue this time. Besides, he was probably just afraid because he’d seen a particularly scary beetle crawl past on the jungle floor…

  “Help! Help me, someone—please!”

  She couldn’t do it. She couldn’t ignore a cry for help—not even after all the things George had said and done. She couldn’t make herself not care about him, one human being to another. It was the same softheartedness that had made her stop to rescue an injured robin when she was late for an interview as a teenager. It had almost cost her the job, but she still hadn’t been able to regret it—especially when she and Gayle had released the fully healed bird from the roof of their apartment building and watched together as it soared up into the sky, joyful and free…

  She hurried through the jungle, adjusting her route as necessary each time George cried out again. It occurred to her that following his voice was also almost certainly leading her back toward camp. She was glad about that, though distracted by trying to follow the sporadic cries.

  After a while, as the cries grew louder and closer, she realized she was back on familiar ground—she recognized the oddly twisted branch of a particular tree from an earlier stroll, and that distinctive rock formation over there.…A moment later she swore she could smell the salt spray from the beach.

  Her relief was soon overshadowed by another cry: “Help! Please! I—I can’t stay here much longer!”

  Hurrying forward, she found herself at the edge of an open, rocky area. Enormous boulders studded the ground here and there, while at the far end the rocky ground rose steeply into a jagged cliff topped with a row of palms that leaned out over the drop-off as if peering over the edge at the ground far below.

  George was balanced on his left hand and both knees on a narrow spit of rock near the bottom of the cliff. It was some four feet off the ground, about the size and shape of a surfboard, and lined on both sides by thick, thorny bushes. His right hand clutched a small, battered-looking valise, and she guessed that he’d just retrieved it from among the roots and stones just above where he was perched—she could see a few other pieces of debris from the plane up there. At the moment he was looking down at the rock in front of him, his teeth gritted, though whether with fear or pain she wasn’t sure.

  At first she had no idea what was going on. Were his clothes or skin caught in the prickly bushes? Or had he perhaps fallen from farther up the cliff, injuring his back? What if he was paralyzed? She would have to find her way back to the beach, find Jack…

  After a second she realized it wasn’t doing George any good for her to stand there in a panic and speculate. “Hello!” she called to him, her voice shaking a little. “George? What are you doing up there?”

  His head whipped around immediately. “Faith!” he gasped out, sounding relieved to see her. “Thank God. Tell me this is another one of those harmless little baby pythons, all right?”

  It was only then that she saw the snake. Coiled on the rock just two feet in front of George, its head swayed back and forth menacingly as it stared at him.

  Faith’s heart skipped a beat. Not wanting to jump to any conclusions, she took a few steps forward. Only a few yards away now, she had an unobstructed view of the snake’s short but thick body, broad, triangular head, banded brown and gray scales, and thin, yellowish tail tip. She stared at it for a moment, trying to convince herself that she had to be mistaken about what it was.

  “Well?” George demanded anxiously. His gaze had left Faith and returned to the snake. The two of them, man and serpent, seemed to be trying to stare each other down. “Is it safe to move?”

  “No!” Faith blurted out. The snake heard her; it shifted slightly, its tongue flickering and its tail switching slightly as it sought the source of the new voice. She did her best to keep her voice calm and soothing, not wanting to rile the snake any further. “George, you’re going to have to stay very still. That’s an Acanthophis.”

  “A what?” George’s voice held an edge of irritation, along with panic. “Talk English, okay? Is this thing poisonous?”

  “Yes.” She swallowed hard as the snake let out an ominous hiss. “Very. It’s more commonly known as a Death Adder.”

  18

  WHEN THE ELEVATOR DOORS hissed open, Faith was surprised to see several burly uniformed men standing in the hallway a few doors down. “What’s going on?” she whispered nervously to Oscar.

  He glanced down the hall. “Bodyguards,” he said. “Arreglo’s not exactly Mr. Popular with everyone these days, remember?”

  Faith stared out through the elevator door, suddenly feeling ambivalent about this whole adventure. Why hadn’t she trusted her first instinct to wait until she got home to deal with this? Being here just made everything so much more complicated.

  “Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea,” she mumbled.

  Oscar let out an impatient snort. “You can’t chicken out now, babe,” he said. “Come on—let’s go.”

  When Faith still didn’t move, he gave her a forceful shove. She stumbled forward, catching her balance in the hallway outside just as the elevator doors started to close behind her. Oscar jumped out after her in the nick of time.

  She shot him an irritated glance. “Why’d you push me?” she said. “You know, the more I think about this, the more I think maybe we need to sit down and have a good talk, and soon. I’m starting to feel like you’ve been making more and more of my decisions lately—including this whole trip, come to think of it—and I’m not really sure I like it. That’s not the kind of relationship I thought we had.”

  He shot her an edgy grin that didn’t quite seem to reach his eyes, which were darting here and there along the hall. “Sorry, baby,” he said. “Whatever you say. We’ll talk about it later if you want. If it still seems important then, anyway.”

  She narrowed her eyes at him, not sure what he meant by that last part. Before she could ask, the bodyguards spotted them.

  “You there,” one of them called out in a booming voice. “Can I help you?”

  Faith gulped, intimidated by the man’s sheer bulk as well as his businesslike demeanor. She found herself staring at the name tag on his chest, which read TIM J., NEW SOUTH WALES SECURITY SERVICE.

  “Um…I’m Faith Harrington?” she squeaked. “I’m—that is—um…”

  “She’s here to see Arreglo,” Oscar finished for her, grabbing her arm and dragging her forward a few steps.

  The guard gazed at him with a hint of suspicion. “Harrington,” he said. “Yeah, Arreglo said he’s expecting her. Who are you?”

  “I’m with her.” Oscar tilted his head toward Faith. “Boyfriend.”
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  “That’s right,” Faith added quickly. “I invited him along. I hope that’s okay.” She could tell the guards were just doing their job, being cautious. But she hated to think what might happen if their suspicious questions and stares triggered Oscar’s temper. She wasn’t sure she could deal with the fallout of one of his rude, offended outbursts at the moment.

  Two of the guards exchanged a look. Then the first one, Tim J., shrugged. “S’pose that’s all right, then,” he said. “Afraid we’ll have to frisk you, though, mate. You understand.”

  Faith winced, anticipating the howl of outrage that was certain to follow. Oscar hated submitting to any sort of authority figure—back home, he tended to jaywalk on purpose if there was a cop around, and he always paid his rent on the final hour of the final day before the cutoff because his landlord had once hassled him about paying at the last minute.

  To her surprise, though, he immediately stepped forward and spread out both arms. “Frisk away, my good man,” he said jovially. “Nothing to hide here.”

  Faith stared at him in surprise as the guard expertly ran his hands over Oscar from top to bottom. “Okay. You’re clean, mate,” he said. “Go ahead.” He nodded toward the door behind him.

  “Thanks, mate,” Oscar said, stepping forward and rapping sharply on the door.

  Faith realized she was sweating. She slipped off her windbreaker and clutched it tightly in front of her, wishing she had a few more minutes to compose herself. This had all happened so fast that her head was still spinning, and she realized she hadn’t had so much as a cup of coffee since being so abruptly awakened. No, she definitely wasn’t sure she was ready to face Arreglo just yet.

  “Want me to hold that for you, babe?” Oscar asked, grabbing her jacket and slinging it over his arm before she could answer.

  “Thanks.” She rubbed her hands together apprehensively. “I don’t really know why I’m so nervous…”

  Oscar grabbed one of her hands and squeezed it so tightly his fingernails dug into her skin. “Don’t be. You’ll be great,” he assured her. “Great. This is going to be great…”

  Just then the door swung open, filled with Arreglo’s smiling, bearded mass. “Faith, my dear!” he cried, his eyes lighting up with joy. “You came—I am so happy to see you!”

  Suddenly, just like that, it all seemed a lot easier. Why had she been so nervous? Looking into his caring eyes and open face, Faith immediately felt much better. More comfortable. She knew it still wouldn’t be easy to say some of the things that needed to be said, or reconcile some of their new beliefs, but now at least she was sure it would be worth it to have Arreglo back in her life. He was the only father figure she’d had in a long time, and she’d hardly even realized how much she’d missed him. She found herself glad now that Oscar had been so pushy, both figuratively and literally. Otherwise she might never have summoned up the courage to come.

  “Hi,” she said softly. “I—I came to say I’m sorry…”

  Arreglo shot a wary glance at the guards, then a curious one at Oscar, before returning his attention to her. “Me, too, Faith,” he said kindly. “Me, too. But come—let’s go inside and talk.” He leaned out past her to speak to the guards. “My friends, I really need to talk to dear Faith here,” he told them. “Please don’t allow anyone to disturb me until it is time for my next meeting.” He turned and winked at Faith. “That gives us a couple of hours to work things through, all right? I hope that will be enough.”

  Faith smiled and allowed Arreglo to usher her and Oscar through the door. She waited while he closed it behind them, then followed him down a narrow hallway that had to be nearly thirty feet long. At the end of it was a thick wooden door, and beyond that, the space opened up into a spacious, airy sitting room. One wall was a solid sheet of glass offering a soaring view of downtown Sydney a dozen stories below. A small but comfortable-looking bedroom was visible through a half-open door in another wall. The furnishings were modern and luxurious, and large potted palms nodded at them from the corners of the room.

  “This is nice,” Faith said politely as Arreglo stopped in the middle of the room.

  “Yes—I normally wouldn’t stay somewhere quite so fancy,” Arreglo said, stroking his beard and looking around. “But Q Corp insisted on sponsoring my trip here, and so here I am.”

  Faith shot a quick, anxious look at Oscar, certain that he wouldn’t be able to let that one slide. But he hardly seemed to be paying attention as he fiddled with her jacket, shaking it out and laying it on a sleek black leather chair. He’d also removed his hat and sunglasses, setting them on the seat of the same chair.

  “And speaking of the devil, as most of us have always regarded Q Corp”—Arreglo let out a short laugh—“I want to assure you, Faith, that I will do my best to explain why I did what I did. I know it made you very upset, and I can understand why.”

  “It just surprised me, I guess,” Faith said shyly. “I—I probably overreacted. But it seemed like such a change for you, and that kind of freaked me out. I don’t really like sudden changes, I guess.”

  Arreglo nodded and smiled. “We shall talk it all through,” he said. “I want to try to help you understand my motives a little better. I think when you hear everything, you will see that I made the better choice. Even if you don’t agree, I think it will make more sense, you know? I’m just so glad you’re here—I felt terrible about what happened between us.”

  “Okay. Thanks.” Faith smiled at him, feeling as if a weight was being slowly but surely winched up off her heart. Finally, her world seemed to be moving back to normal…

  Suddenly realizing she hadn’t introduced Oscar, she turned to him with a smile. He was standing back a bit, his hands in the pockets of his baggy khaki pants.

  “So sorry, Dr. Arreglo,” she said. “I forgot you haven’t met my boyfriend, Oscar Wolfe. Oscar, come meet Dr. Arreglo.”

  “Welcome, my son,” Arreglo said, stepping toward him and extending his hand. “Any friend of Faith’s is a friend of mine.”

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you, sir.” Oscar pulled his right hand out of his pocket, grasping the older man’s hand and shaking it heartily. “I brought you a little gift…”

  Oscar was still shaking Arreglo’s hand as his own left hand emerged from his pocket. It was holding something cylindrical and shiny. Is that a syringe? Faith wondered with confusion. What is he—

  Before she could finish the thought, Oscar yanked Arreglo toward him and plunged the syringe into the man’s chest.

  19

  FAITH FELT HER HEART pounding in her chest as she stared at the snake, trying to figure out what to do. “Stay still,” she called to George as she saw him shift his weight from one knee to another.

  He let out a groan. “Don’t know if I can,” he said. “Not for much longer anyway…”

  Faith bit her lip, willing her sluggish mind to think. Death Adders weren’t as fearful of humans as some other species, so it wasn’t very likely that the snake would decide to retreat on its own if it hadn’t already done so. However, the species had also been found to be less likely to strike unless actually touched. That was probably why George had been able to get away with shouting and shifting his weight and everything else so far. She didn’t want to put any money on things continuing that way, though. If George had disturbed the snake’s resting place, it might be irritated enough to strike out at him if he made any sudden moves.

  “Stay still,” she called again.

  “You said that already.” He sounded breathless and anxious. “So what am I supposed to do? I can’t stay in this position forever.”

  Focusing her gaze on him, she saw that he was right. The narrow spit of rock on which he was perched was only a little wider than his body, making it nearly impossible for him to shift his position. The uneven rock was also still dotted with puddles from the earlier rainstorm, which had to make it even more difficult for George to keep his balance. The sheer cliff wall was only inches behind him; the spiky
thorns of the bushes inches away on either side; the snake just a couple of feet in front of him. His normally ruddy face was white with exhaustion and fear.

  If I hadn’t turned up when I did…, Faith thought, though she didn’t bother to finish the sentence. So far, aside from identifying the snake, her arrival hadn’t done him much good.

  “Okay, just hold tight for another few seconds,” she called as reassuringly as she could, hoping his knees and balance could hold out for a little bit longer. “I’m going to get you out of there.”

  “Hurry,” he said through gritted teeth. He stared at the snake, which swayed slightly and flicked its tongue at him.

  Tearing her gaze away from the pair of them, Faith cast a desperate glance around the clearing. She had already considered and rejected the idea of throwing something at the snake to distract or kill it. Even if she thought her aim was up to the task—which she most certainly didn’t—she was afraid that might only make things worse. A distracted snake was more likely to strike out at anything around, and if she hit it but didn’t kill or disable it, that would only irritate it further.

  Luckily she had already hit on another plan, one much more likely to work. “Just hang on…” she said distractedly, walking toward the edge of the forest and scanning the ground.

  “What are you doing?” George’s voice took on a panicky edge as she moved out of his line of sight. “Don’t leave me here!”

  “I’m still right here,” Faith called to him. “I’m not leaving. I’m just looking for a…aha!” Suddenly she spotted exactly what she needed.

  Hurrying forward a few steps, she picked it up. It was a fallen branch, about three feet long and an inch or so around. More importantly, it ended in a V shape, its twin prongs each an inch or two long.

  As she moved back into his line of sight, George squinted at her anxiously. “What’s that?” he demanded. “You’re going to need a bigger stick than that if you’re going to kill this thing.”