Deadly Race

by Margaret Daley

  “The usual, shelter, clothing, water.” She wasn’t sure what he was getting at, but somehow she knew she was going to regret the direction the conversation was taking.

  “Nothing for the soul?”

  Placing her hands on her hips, she fired back, “Such as?”

  “Those are the same things an animal needs to survive, but we humans require more. Like the ability to dream.”

  “Not to love?”

  He tossed a small limb to the side and opened the cockpit door. “Yes, of course, to love, to feel emotions.”

  “I guess you can deny those intangibles for a while, but soon you find yourself dying a little inside.”

  “Are you speaking from experience?” Climbing into the cockpit to check behind the seats, he scanned the area.

  “I was engaged once. It didn’t work out.”

  He looked at her through the broken windshield. “What happened?”

  “The usual. Our love wasn’t strong enough.”

  “Strong enough for what?” he asked, bending down to retrieve some items.

  “To weather deceit.”

  Slade tossed out two blankets, some rope, a flashlight and a toolbox. “Did you catch him with another woman?”

  “Several, to be exact. He was married and also had a mistress while he was engaged to me.”

  “Then you’re better off without him.”

  “Is that how you feel about your ex-wife?”

  “I married on impulse and lived to regret it. I won’t make that mistake again. Marriage isn’t for me.” He appeared in the entrance into the cockpit. “No food, I’m afraid.”

  For a moment he had allowed her a brief look into his past. But the moment was now gone, and Ellie realized she wouldn’t get anything else out about him. His expression was closed to her. “What are you going do with these?” she asked, examining the box while she wrestled with the disappointment his declaration had produced. Marriage wasn’t in her future either, so why should she care what he felt about the subject?

  “You never know when one of those tools will come in handy. We have no weapons, since that soldier took the gun that I so kindly persuaded the nice man in my hotel room to loan me.”

  Ellie lifted a screwdriver out of the box. “Come any closer and I’ll use this on you.”

  “Laugh all you want, but I seem to remember you using your purse as a weapon this morning.”

  She replaced the screwdriver in the box and put her hand in her pockets. That was when she realized her brooch was missing. “It’s gone!” She dove toward the plane and Slade.

  He tried to scramble out of her way, but she hit him square in chest, barreling him over into the copilot’s seat. She was halfway on top of him, frantically searching the inside of the cockpit.

  “I’ve got to find it!”

  “What?”

  “My grandmother’s brooch.”

  “You probably lost it back at the airport or—”

  “No.” She rounded on him in the small confines of the plane. “It’s the only thing I have that belonged to my grandmother. She raised me.”

  “We shouldn’t stay around here much longer.”

  “I’m not leaving until I find it.”

  “It’s that important?”

  She nodded, then leaned over him and began to rummage through the debris.

  “I realize the brooch means a lot to you, but—”

  “No buts,” she cut in. “You go on without me. I’ll follow when I find it. It’s my lucky piece. Nothing’s going to happen if I’m wearing it.”

  “And that’s supposed to reassure me after the events of the past twelve hours? You were wearing it then.”

  “I’m alive right now and the odds were against us.” She fixed him with a determined look. “I’m not going. Short of carrying me out of here kicking and screaming, I’m staying.”

  “Woman, you’re exasperating.” He stared at her long and hard. “Okay. I’ll help. But it doesn’t seem to be in here. Maybe you lost it outside when you fell.”

  “It can’t be under the plane.” Ellie scrambled out of the cockpit and on her hands and knees began a careful search of the area around the plane. Tossing branches out of her way, she painstakingly went over every inch of the ground near her before moving onto the next area.

  Slade went down on his hands and knees, too. “This really does mean a lot to you.”

  “My grandmother is probably turning over in her grave right now. My grandfather gave it to her on their wedding night. It symbolizes fifty years of marriage.”

  “Ah, the romantic again, and after all that has happened to you.”

  “Haven’t you had anything you treasure more than anything else?”

  “Yes, my skin.”

  Her hand closed around an object buried partway in the dirt under a branch. She dug at the earth and uncovered the brooch. Hugging it to her, she closed her eyes in thankfulness.

  “Now, may we go?”

  Hopping to her feet, she looked down at him still kneeling on the ground. “What’s taking you so long? We need to get out of here.”

  He stared at her aghast, then suddenly began laughing. “Coming.” He started to pick up his duffel bag and stuff some of their extra supplies in it. He stopped. “We can’t go quite yet.”

  “I thought you were in an all fired hurry to leave.”

  “We should try to camouflage the plane, so an aerial survey of this region won’t disclose its whereabouts.”

  “How? Look at its size.” She gestured with a wide sweep the length of the plane.

  “With branches. They’d search in the air first if they want to find us. The delay will be worth it to us.”

  For the next hour they worked side by side in silence, disguising the plane’s location with branches and leaves. When they were through, Ellie had to acknowledge they had done a great job of hiding it. But the fact they had stayed to camouflage it in the first place made her even more wary of Slade Calvert.

  She tried to picture him in a three-piece business suit, working behind a desk, and running a computer firm. She couldn’t. All she could see was him dressed in camouflage and combat boots and surrounded by the mountainous terrain of the jungle. She couldn’t fit him into the mold of an executive and that worried her tremendously. She had been fooled once by a man and had paid the price emotionally. She, too, learned from her mistakes.

  “I think this time we’re ready to leave,” he said when the job of hiding the plane was finished.

  Ellie looked up through the tree branches at the sun high in the sky. “We won’t have a lot of time to put much distance between us and this place.”

  “Not as much as I’d like, but it’ll have to do. It’s all we have.”

  “I’d say that’s a practical approach.”

  “I believe in being practical. Fantasies can only get you into trouble.”

  “But they are so much fun to dream.”

  “What are your fantasies, Ellie?” Slade lifted the duffel bag and handed her the blankets to carry. “Fame? Fortune?”

  “Neither. I want to make a difference with my life.”

  “How?”

  “I haven’t figure that out yet. There was a time I wanted to get married and have a family.”

  “But not now.”

  “I’ve seen too much for that to be a fantasy anymore.”

  “You don’t daydream? That’s hard to believe.”

  “Oh, I daydream, but not about getting married.” She held up her hand. “And don’t ask me about my daydreams. A gal has got to have some secrets.” She wanted to get off the subject of her and her daydreams, which she guarded. She had told him more than she had most people. If the truth were known, she still fantasized about having a family, but reality had a way of making a person stop believing. “Tell me, when you go to work do you wear a gray, three-piece suit?”

  His brow knitted. “Sometimes. Why?” He started forward.

  “Oh, I don’t know. I’m trying
to imagine you sitting behind a desk, giving orders, running a company. It’s hard to, under the circumstances.” She fell into step behind him as they began their journey toward the tall mountain that stood between them and the coast.

  Ellie realized she loved to travel and did as much as she could, but rarely had she been in a hot, humid climate without the prospects of returning to an air-conditioned hotel room. Consequently as the hours ticked away, she felt more and more out of her element. Normally that would be okay, because she loved the unknown. But something told her this unknown territory could get her killed.

  Sweat trickled down into her eyes and burned them. She constantly wiped at her face and licked her lips. Her throat was parched, and she would die for a tall, cold glass of water with big chunks of ice in it. Her muscles stiffened in protest, and her head continued to throb like the beat of a drum, a deep bass one. As she followed Slade into areas of dense undergrowth with nothing to cut a path, the branches of trees and bushes clawed at her skin that was quickly turning red from the relentless sun. She pictured herself looking like a baked lobster by the end of the day, and realized years of avoiding overexposure to the sun were going to be ruined after this short trek.

  After traveling for four hours, mostly in silence because carrying on any kind of conversation took more energy than Ellie had, she finally asked, “Can we stop for a moment?”

  “Only a little farther. I hear the sound of water.”

  “Water?” Just the mention of the word sent her heartbeat racing in anticipation. She came alive, hurrying her steps behind Slade until she almost ran into him.

  When she broke through the jungle foliage, she saw the rushing river, its muddy water filled with debris and above all not looking very thirst quenching. Ellie wanted to do something thoroughly childish, like stomp her foot in frustration and cry. Where were those crystal clear mountain streams when you needed one?

  “We can’t drink that!” She pointed at the offending river of water and realized survival in the wilderness would never be her thing.

  “I agree. But if we follow it upstream, we should come upon its source. And at least we can wash off in it.”

  “I don’t swim in water that I can’t see through. Ever since I was nine and encountered a snake in a muddy river, that has been one of my cardinal rules. I think I’ll pass on washing myself off.” Ellie wrinkled her nose in disgust as she stared at the river, her imagination running rampant with visions of what was lurking just below the brown surface. She thought of those nature shows she had seen on television and remembered that piranhas swam in schools and could tear the flesh off something in a matter of minutes. Her skin crawled. Did piranhas live in the fresh water of Bella Isla?

  “Are you sure you don’t want to wash off some of that dust and dirt you’ve collected along the way?”

  “It’s part of my earthy motif, remember. I’m not ready to give it up just yet.” She sat down on the bank to watch him. Her skin continued to itch unbearably, but she wasn’t desperate enough to use water that had more dirt in it than she had on her.

  Slade stripped off his shirt and knelt at the edge of the river. The broad expanse of his back drew her unwavering attention as he cupped his hands and dipped them into the water. He seemed to fit right into this wild and rugged terrain, like a chameleon that could change its color to fit its environment.

  “This doesn’t bother you, does it?” Ellie spoke her thoughts out loud.

  “Not particularly. I suppose it helps that I’ve been in a jungle before.” He twisted about, water dripping from his hair and face.

  “Where?”

  That shadow crossed his face, and Ellie again sensed she had trodden into forbidden territory.

  “A long time ago, best forgotten.” He removed his shoes and socks as though he were accustomed to bathing in a river everyday. “This wouldn’t be my first choice for a vacation, but I can’t change what’s happened to us.”

  “So you’re a practical realist who probably never daydreams.”

  “Oh, I have my dreams, but they are grounded firmly in reality. I’ve learned to think everything through, to weigh the pros and cons.” He waded out into the river and completely submerged himself.

  Ellie was thankful he had at least left his pants on. It was hot enough without being treated to a full view of his splendid body minus clothing. When he resurfaced, looking insufferably refreshed and cool, she gave the water a longing gaze. She felt sticky, dirty and anything but appealing.

  “Come on in and join me. I admit it doesn’t look too good, but the water feels great.”

  She cocked her head to the side. “I guess it doesn’t look too bad.” And his skin was still intact.

  He spread his arms wide. “As you can see, I’m still here, alive and well. No giant boa has gotten me.”

  “I suppose beggars can’t be choosers. I doubt we’ll be running into a Holiday Inn before nightfall.”

  “No, I doubt we will,” he said with a laugh and came back to shore.

  “I wonder how many bugs are in this.” Kneeling next to Slade at the edge, she gingerly dipped her hands into the water and splashed her face. It felt great. “Maybe not too many.” Again she filled her palms with water and washed the dirt and grime off her face, relishing the partial bath.

  “I think that’ll do,” she said after the third handful of water. She suddenly had the need to control something. “I need my mirror.” She started for his duffel bag, deciding to do what she could with her appearance since she couldn’t change much else.

  “What for? You look fine except for this one spot. I’ll take care of it.”

  Before she could move away from his disturbing touch, he wiped the dirt off her cheek with one hand while the other was under her chin, tilting her face toward him. The feel of his work-toughened fingertips on her skin was soft and caressing, as she knew it would be. Her pulse rate quickened.

  “There, perfect,” he said, leaning back on his heels to give her a little more breathing room.

  “I doubt it. I think my skin is nicely seared about now. Too much more of this sun and I’ll rival a tomato.”

  His eyelids slid halfway closed, veiling his expression from her. But she didn’t need to see into his gaze to know of the intense appraisal he was giving her. Her pulse pounded through her body, faster than the rushing river roaring past her.

  “There’s certainly nothing wrong with you, even if you’re a little pink.” He smoothed her hair away from her face, then in a whispering touch grazed his hand down her jaw line. With only one finger he outlined her lips. “I would like to kiss you.”

  As his mouth came down upon hers, his arms encircled her and brought her close to him. The thundering of her heartbeat in her ears drowned out the sound of the river. He nipped the shell of her ear lovingly, blowing lightly into it between nibbles. She shivered in the heat of the day and drew closer to his warmth. Tossing back her head to allow him free access to her neck, she savored the feel of his mouth as it scorched a path over her skin. The riot of sounds and colors about her was eclipsed by the myriad of sensations he was creating in her. He made her feel so alive, so feminine.

  Suddenly Slade jerked upright, practically dropping her. His face tensed into a frown.

  “What’s wrong?” Ellie asked, dazed by the abrupt end to his kiss. As the glorious sensations died, she realized what was wrong. In the distance she heard the whirling sound of an approaching helicopter.

  CHAPTER 5

  Bolting to his feet, Slade dragged Ellie up and grabbed his duffel bag. “We’ve got to get out of here.”

  He dove into the thick underbrush, oblivious to what else might be there, pulling her along behind him. Everything happened so fast that she didn’t have time to get the blankets. They were still where she’d left them by the river. She started for them. Slade grabbed her and held her close to him, so close she could feel the increase of his heartbeat against her.

  “The blankets,” she whispered and wondered
why she had, since there was no way the people in the helicopter could ever hear her over the noise of the machine.

  “It’s too late. At least they’re army green. I doubt anyone will see them from the air,” he said as the helicopter swooped down the length of the river like a bird of prey after its victim.

  The rapid rotation of its blades matched the pulsating pound of her heart. From her vantage point in the bushes, Ellie could see there were two other people besides the pilot in the helicopter. They were dressed in uniforms and holding rifles. The soldiers were looking for something or someone, that much was obvious. The danger she and Slade faced heightened in that moment. She realized how difficult it would be for them to get off the island, even when they did reach civilization.

  “They’re looking for us. That’s not good.” Slade’s brow furrowed as he watched the helicopter approach a bend in the river.

  “Maybe it’s the good guys.”

  “Who are the good guys, Ellie? I’m not sure anymore. Personally, I don’t want to stay around here and find out when they land or come in to get us on foot. As soon as it’s clear, we’re out of here.”

  Just as she thought the helicopter was leaving, it swung around and came back over the same territory it had covered a moment before. Her pulse thundered with fear that one of the soldiers had seen the blankets and they were looking for a place to put down. As the helicopter neared again, her lungs felt on fire, her breathing shallow and difficult. Sweat rolled down into her eyes, and she swiped at it, only to have more follow suit. All she could focus on were the rifles the men carried and the fact she and Slade only had a hammer and a screwdriver. Neither was much of a weapon against bullets.

  Finally, after what seemed an eternity, the helicopter disappeared down the river in the direction it had come.

  Ellie released her trapped breath in a rush and sagged against Slade.

  “This is just like in the suspense movies I watch. I don’t know if my nerves can take much more of this. Can’t we fast forward through the next several days to when we arrive in Puerto Rico safe and everyone lives happily ever after?”

  Slade stared at her stunned for a few seconds, then roared with laughter. “Ellie, what in the world are you going to say next?”