Peter's Return

by Cynthia Cooke

  The two men—Snake carrying Rosa, Peter carrying Manuel—walked carefully toward the bridge. After Peter handed Rosalia the baby, he turned and saw Emily once again step into the water. Before he could say a word, her eyes widened and she jumped back on shore.

  “The river is full of leeches,” she screamed, then looked down at a new wound on her ankle.

  “They’re not leeches,” Peter said as he met her back on shore. He picked her up and carried her out into the water.

  “What are they?” she asked, with a tremor of fear in her voice. She kicked up her foot and stared at one particularly nasty bite. Peter watched a drop of blood fall into the water and squeezed her tighter to his chest. As quickly as he could he lifted her up onto the bridge.

  “Dinner,” Snake said and speared a fish with large pointy teeth and bulging eyes.

  Emily blanched. “Piranhas?” she squeaked.

  “Yep, pretty tasty.”

  She turned to Peter, a spark of anger lighting her eyes. “You let me walk into a river filled with piranhas and didn’t tell me?”

  “I told you to wait for me.”

  “Yeah, but you didn’t tell me why.”

  “I didn’t want you to panic.”

  “I am not a child. You should have told me.”

  He stared at her. Maybe she was right. He couldn’t expect her to just trust him blindly, without knowing what she was getting herself into. Maybe that had been part of their problem all along.

  “You’re right,” he said. “I will no longer protect you from life’s brutal realities.”

  She looked skeptical. “Thank you. I think.”

  “Don’t thank me yet. Before this day is over, you might long for a little ignorance,” he said, and couldn’t help wondering what Baltasar had in store for them next.

  Chapter Thirteen

  They were so hungry the fish actually tasted good. Emily’s stomach was full, but her feet ached and the sun was sinking lower in the sky; soon it would be dark. She could only imagine the nocturnal animals that made their way out at night to strike fear into the hearts of the natives.

  She didn’t want to see a single one.

  They pushed forward, moving quicker, realizing how much more dangerous it would be to reach the lab after nightfall. Especially if Baltasar was lying in wait for them. What better way of torture than to make them walk through his version of paradise before meeting up with whatever he had planned for them.

  Snake gestured for them to walk softly toward him. “The lab is right through there.” He pointed off the road toward the right.

  Emily didn’t see anything different that would have given Snake an indication of where he was. “We have to go off the road?” She didn’t like the whine in her voice, but over this torturous day she’d gained a great deal of respect for the road.

  “Yeah, and be careful for trip wires. Step everywhere that I step,” Snake insisted.

  Emily nodded. Once Snake turned, Peter helped Rosalia and gestured for Emily to step behind them. Perhaps it was the skepticism on his face, but suddenly it occurred to her that Peter might not trust Snake as much as she did. But he hadn’t seen how worried Snake had been for his sister, how he would rather die than let anything happen to her. He also hadn’t seen how Snake had saved her life by shooting that horrible man who had pointed a gun at her.

  He wouldn’t be leading them into a trap.

  Would he?

  “Are you sure this is the way?” Emily asked. She couldn’t even discern a path through the thick carpet of jungle foliage. Surely if people had been stomping through here to get to some mysterious lab, there would be a path, or some sign that they weren’t the only people to have set foot here in the last one hundred years.

  “Shh,” Peter said, and gestured with his hand for her to be quiet. She hated it when he did that.

  Snake bent down and pointed to something hidden in the bushes. They all stood around him and peered through the greenery. Emily’s stomach dropped. A thin wire. What would have happened if she’d tripped on that? Would she have blown up like in the movies? Or would Baltasar’s guards be on them faster than she could say “there’s no place like home”?

  Thank goodness they had Snake.

  For what seemed like an eternity, they walked carefully through the bushes, following Snake, stepping everywhere he stepped, not making a sound. She watched Peter’s back. How could he live like this? He seemed to thrive on it. He didn’t even notice when he came within inches of a nasty looking insect or stepped on something squishy.

  Emily tried to push it all out of her mind, to focus on each step. Soon they’d be at the lab and, God willing, they’d find a Jeep. Thirty minutes later, when she didn’t think she could stand the tension any longer, and she just knew Rosalia was going to collapse or the baby was going to cry and give their position away, Snake stopped. Appearing among the trees, a few ramshackle buildings became visible.

  Emily swallowed. “This was it.” Her eyes met Snake’s.

  He said something to Peter she couldn’t discern.

  “They look deserted,” Emily whispered, and her stomach dropped as she realized there were no Jeeps in sight. If they didn’t find one, would they have to spend another night in the jungle?

  Peter turned to her. “You and Rosalia stay hidden here behind this tree. Don’t come out for any reason, and don’t make a sound.”

  “Peter, you can’t leave us.” Panic gripped her heart. “What if you don’t come back? It will be dark soon. I don’t want to be sitting in the dark worrying about you, wondering…” She looked down.

  He took her cheeks in his hands and stared deep into her eyes. Her heart jumped in her throat. “I will come back. I promise.”

  She tried to believe him, but there was no way of knowing what he’d be walking into. There was no way of knowing if he could come back. But she had no choice but to watch him go, and pray God would protect him. “God is our refuge and strength and ever-present help in trouble,” she prayed as she watched the two men walk toward the deserted lab. At least she hoped it was deserted.

  The last thing Peter wanted to do was leave the women alone in the jungle while he and Snake investigated the lab, but he had no choice. Baltasar knew they were on their way. He would be waiting. They skirted the open area as long as they could, then sprinted across the clearing to the first building. This one looked like a toolshed where they found all the supplies the workers would need and a generator to fire up the lamps in the processing lab.

  Peter placed his hand on the side of the generator. “It’s cold.”

  “This is usually where the Jeeps are parked.”

  Peter looked at the empty area with a sinking feeling in his gut. They crept out of that building and entered the next. This one held the offices and living quarters. As Peter stared at the large bed in what Baltasar obviously used for a bedroom, he was tempted to go back for Emily and Rosalia and bring them in here. The poor women needed a few hours’ sleep, but that would be foolish. Baltasar and his goons could be anywhere.

  “It’s deserted,” Snake said.

  “And the office? The computers?”

  “Gone.”

  Peter swore under his breath. They were too late. “Other than the next building, are there any other buildings we haven’t seen?”

  Snake shook his head. “Only a shack at the airstrip.”

  Peter walked into a makeshift kitchen and opened a cupboard. He was relieved to find a few cans of food and some utensils in a drawer. “Are there any weapons stashed anywhere?”

  Snake opened a cabinet next to the desk. It was empty. “Nope.”

  Peter shook his head. No weapons, no phone, no Jeep. Things were not looking good, and worse, he didn’t like the look on Snake’s face. “What is it?”

  “It’s too quiet.”

  Peter nodded. He knew exactly what he meant. “What next?”

  “We should check out that last building.”

  “Just to make sure we d
on’t run into any surprises?”

  “Exactly.”

  Peter didn’t like it. He took a small kitchen knife out of the drawer and stuck it in his pocket, then handed one to Snake. It was the best he could do. They watched out the window for a good twenty minutes, but saw no movement anywhere.

  “Ready?” Snake asked.

  Peter nodded. “Now is as good a time as any.”

  They crept toward the last building, walked its perimeter, but didn’t hear or see any sign of movement. Finally, they went inside. The building loomed quiet in the shadows. No one could be seen hiding behind the rows on long tables. They stood inside the door. “Everyone is gone,” Peter said.

  Snake didn’t respond but walked farther into the room.

  “What is it?” Peter asked. His gut tightened as he watched Snake’s furtive movements.

  “Did you hear that?” Snake cocked his head listening. “There it is again.”

  Peter heard it now. Some sort of splashing water sound. He walked farther into the room, standing by Snake, his gaze searching the walls of the building. “Where is it coming from?” he asked.

  They both stood still, listening, then at the same moment looked down.

  Peter’s eyes widened at the gaps in the floorboards beneath his feet, but the warning his mind screamed came a second too late. The false floor beneath them collapsed and they fell into an underground water hole.

  Peter stood knee-deep in the brackish water, wiping it from his eyes and giving his head a shake. “Where are we?”

  “I don’t know,” Snake answered. “I had no idea this was even here.”

  Peter tried to get an idea of the size of the underground cavern, but there was little to no light and he couldn’t see much. Somehow they had to get back up into the warehouse but the floor was a good fifteen feet above them.

  Suddenly they heard a splashing sound on the other end of the cavern. Peter’s heart froze.

  “I don’t think we’re alone,” Snake said.

  The tone of his voice raised the fine hairs on the back of Peter’s neck. He shuddered to think what could be in the water with them. In a Venezuelan jungle, it could be anything.

  Suddenly a light shone down through the opening above them. Peter caught his breath.

  “Hello, Pietro, Snake. So nice of you to pay us a visit.”

  The light moved to the side, and Peter could see Baltasar and Esteban smiling through the opening.

  “We heard you were on your way and went through a lot of trouble to prepare for you.”

  “What do you want, Baltasar?” Peter demanded.

  “I want you on your back begging for mercy, Pietro.”

  Peter narrowed his eyes. “Not in a million years.”

  Baltasar laughed. “We’ll see about that.”

  He shone the light on Snake. “I must say I’m very disappointed, Snake. I thought better of you than a backstabbing liar.”

  “I paid him,” Peter said. “His only job was to bring me here.”

  “Then I’ll have to thank him properly. By the way, Snake, how is your sister, Rosalia?”

  Esteban snickered, and Peter saw Snake’s fists clench at his side. He prayed Baltasar hadn’t found the women.

  “Gentlemen, I have the ultimate gift for your ultimate betrayal. I’d like to introduce you to my favorite pet, Leona, and her friends.”

  There it was again—a sloshing in the water. Baltasar laughed and dropped his light. Peter lunged for it, grabbed it and then shone the light down the darkened cavern. The single beam caught the sinewy movement of a giant snake moving toward them.

  “Anaconda,” Snake whispered.

  That one word froze the blood in Peter’s veins. He spread his legs, pulled out his knife, and braced himself for the impact.

  Emily shivered with the approaching darkness. Rosalia’s fever raged. The baby started to whimper, and the young mother pulled him tighter to her chest.

  “We’re going to make it, Rosalia. They’ll be back soon, and then everything will be all right. You’ll see.” But even as Emily whispered the words, she worried that everything wasn’t all right. The men had been gone far too long and it was almost dark.

  Then she thought she heard something. Her heart stilled. She stared into the clearing of the labs. There it was again—laughter. A slow finger of fear crept up her spine.

  They weren’t alone.

  The baby’s distress grew. Alarmed, Emily looked at Rosalia and the baby. Rosalia was trying to quiet him, but the little one wasn’t cooperating. “Here, let me try,” she whispered. If Baltasar found them now, they’d have no hope. Reluctantly, Rosalia handed her the baby. Emily walked in a circle, rocking back and forth, softly cooing to the child. Luckily, the baby quieted. She continued rocking, afraid to stop, afraid of what would happen if Manuel started fussing again.

  As Emily watched the clearing, she saw Baltasar and Esteban walk out of the third building…the building Peter and Snake had gone into. They’d been caught. Their only hope now was to make sure they didn’t get caught, too. Emily stepped back behind a large palm frond, and hoped Baltasar and Esteban wouldn’t walk toward them.

  Of course, that’s exactly what they did.

  Baltasar was laughing, talking about Leona and there being nothing left of Pietro and Snake but the bones she spit out. His words, his laughter, froze the blood in her veins.

  He was a monster. She realized that up until now she’d never believed that people could be that evil. That deep down there was a modicum of goodness in everyone and if someone could just reach that goodness inside, then anyone could be saved, anyone was worth love.

  But she was wrong.

  This man was evil. He’d had the sweetest, most innocent love of a child, and still his heart and soul were corrupt. Emily hated him. But worse, she couldn’t see straight over her fear at what he’d done to Peter.

  She turned to hand Manuel back to Rosalia, deciding to search for a large stick in case the worst possible scenario came to pass and she had to defend them. Rosalia gasped. Emily took one look at her wide, terrified eyes and froze. Not six feet away, a midnight black jaguar with yellow-green eyes crouched, staring at Manuel, its eyes focused, its muscles primed. It opened his mouth and licked its lips with its long tongue.

  Emily stared at it in horrified shock.

  She heard a sound behind her, and turned to see Baltasar and Esteban were heading their way. Emily’s heart pounded, but she grabbed control of her fear and handed Rosalia the baby. She whispered next to her ear, “As soon as I have it distracted, take the baby and head around back of the buildings. Watch for trip wires, and don’t let Baltasar see you.”

  Rosalia nodded. Emily gave her the baby then picked up a large branch and started swinging it over her head. It will be okay, she told herself. It just wants to play with them. Baltasar always kept his cat fed, so it wasn’t like it was starving and wanted dinner, it just wanted to torture us for a while.

  The cat’s eyes followed the path of the branch. “Come on, Akisha. Run away,” she whispered.

  Rosalia touched Emily’s arm. “That’s not Akisha.”

  Emily’s eyes widened. “It’s not?”

  Rosalia shook her head.

  Emily felt the color drain from her face. Okay, maybe it was hungry. Maybe it did want dinner.

  Baltasar and Esteban were almost on top of her. Emily didn’t know where she found the courage, but she started swinging the large stick baton style, round and round while moving closer to the cat. It snarled, its paw swatting at the stick.

  Emily gave Rosalia a short nod. Rosalia and Manuel disappeared into the jungle. Emily stepped back, still swinging the stick, still keeping the cat’s attention focused on her, and moved into the bushes at the same moment that Baltasar and Esteban stepped into the clearing. As she had hoped, the cat’s attention swung to the two men.

  It snarled, and they froze.

  Esteban pulled a black revolver from the waistband of his pants. Emily cov
ered her mouth to keep from making a sound, when she felt something move on her shoulder. Stiffening, she glanced behind her. The diamond head of a snake slid across her shoulder. She gasped and stared horrified at the small snake. She knew immediately it was the famous fer-de-lance, the deadliest snake in the jungle. With one swift movement, she slipped the stick under the snake and flung the slithering reptile, not caring where it went as long as it was away from her.

  She swallowed a scream of disgust as it flew across the clearing and landed on Esteban. He jumped and yelled, swatting at the reptile as it slid across his back. It was all the time the cat needed to pounce. In shock, Emily watched as the cat sunk its sharp teeth into Esteban’s neck. Baltasar turned and fled, doing nothing to stop the cat and save his guard. Emily turned away.

  She cautiously worked her way through the jungle, circling around the buildings, trying to get as far from Baltasar as she could—hoping he hadn’t heard her, or given much thought to snakes flying though the air. She had to find Peter.

  Earlier she had watched them walk into the third building farthest from her. She ran up behind it, oblivious to the jungle and the creatures that brushed past her. She skirted the side of the building, listening for any sound within. Peter yelled something. To Snake? Her breath caught. She quickened her pace.

  Taking one last look for Baltasar, she ran into the clearing and through the building’s door. All was dark and gloomy, with nothing but the ghostly shapes of long empty wooden tables. Peter yelled again, a sound full of pain and frustration, a sound that she’d never heard before.

  The sharp edge of fear sliced through her. She stepped farther into the room and saw a large hole in the floor. She ran to the edge of the hole, afraid to look down, afraid of what she’d find. Snake grunted then gave out a primal yell. Emily peered into the gloom and saw both men, struggling, fighting with something beneath the water.

  Eyes widening, she strained to see into the water, her heart pounding, her breath coming in sharp and painful gasps. The water itself was moving, and it wasn’t just from the waves their struggles were making. It seemed to be alive.