RETURN

by S. C. Deutsch

  That is, until her week on the island. The experiences here had started to change the way Ana viewed the world, causing her to question her long-held beliefs about right and wrong. She realized her brother was not responsible for the way he was. Ana often regretted her prior treatment of him and was thrilled when not only did Niall and Jax take to each other, but that her brother had started to show progress in both his emotions and his communication abilities. He even smiled now, although that was only when he was playing with Jax.

  After her return home, Ana had also begun to see both parents through different eyes. She was starting to understand her mother’s emotional distance and the aloof attitude towards the rest of the family. Niall had become the center of her mother’s world, leaving Ana and her father on the outside. As Ana became more demanding, it was easier for her mother to just give her whatever she wanted instead of dealing with the inevitable fights that resulted when the requests were refused.

  The government only allowed each woman two pregnancies. Whether the pregnancy resulted in a live birth or not, it still counted against what the government allowed. After Ana’s birth, her mother had tried for years to become pregnant again, spending thousands on specialists while hoping that should there be another pregnancy, it would go well, ending with the birth of another child. Ecstatic when the treatments were finally successful, Ana’s mother had reacted with disbelief and shock when the check-ups showed problems with the fetus. The doctors had tried to convince her mother to terminate the pregnancy, but her mother had refused, knowing there would be no other pregnancies allowed. This was the last chance to have another child.

  Niall had seemed to be a normal infant when he was born. Healthy, he had progressed until about two years of age. Her mother doted on the child, leaving Ana to her own devices, which suited Ana just fine. Her father worked long hours, so any parenting he did was hap-hazard and totally ineffectual. When Niall stopped communicating and his speech development ceased completely, her mother became obsessed with trying to bring him back. Ana was ignored and pretty much did what she wanted, learning to manipulate both parents to satisfy every want and need. Ana desperately missed her parents, especially her father, but couldn’t reach them and eventually turned to friends for support instead.

  Her father had eventually stepped in to try and bring Ana under control, but his job seemed incredibly demanding and her mother pestered him constantly about finding new specialists to try and treat Niall. By the time her father had finished dealing with the essential family obligations, he was often too exhausted to fight with Ana. Instead, he would tell her he loved her, transfer credits for her use, then returned to his desk until long after the house had gone to bed.

  What Ana had found very shortly after returning to the mainland had shed light on some of her father’s actions and motivations, but it also raised questions about everything she believed. The discovery had angered her, and still did, and its existence was one of the reasons Ana had opted to return to the island.

  Ana pushed the worrying thoughts aside since she could do nothing about them right now. She needed to concentrate on surviving the next month, and the new directives lowered those odds to almost zero. She continued stroking Jax, gazing around while waiting for her companion to wake.

  Suddenly noticing the backpack lying near the edge, Ana chided herself for forgetting about that, too. She should have remembered it would have been left for her, along with the letter it surely contained. Reaching over and picking it up, Ana believed it to be the same one that had been in her possession during the last trip to the island. Turning it over, Ana saw the initials carved in the bottom, verifying who it belonged to. The confirmation did not come as a surprise, but the knowledge increased her unease. It was obvious that the government had not only gone to her home but that they had also entered her bedroom, and this caused her to worry about what else they may have found.

  The pack had been hanging from the side of Ana’s bed since her return to the mainland. She had carved the initials on the bottom without really knowing why, draped it over the footboard, and then promptly ignored it. Ana now turned the pack over once more and started to open it, but then had second thoughts. She knew what it contained, but decided she wanted no part of the letter right now. It would cause further distractions and it was certain to increase the anger she already felt. No, it could wait until later in her ordeal, maybe right before the departure, provided she survived that long. But Ana was worried that the government might have searched her room. She had hidden the discoveries very carefully, but if they started ripping apart the mattress, they were sure to find them. Another thing she needed to ignore, having no control of what happened there while she was exiled here. Ana sighed and turned her thoughts to trying to solve the most immediate problem.

  Placing the pack on the ground, Ana waited patiently for Jax to come around, not wanting to try and move off the ledge with an unconscious animal weighing her down. She drifted into a light doze, her hand dropping from Jax’s side and into her lap.

  Ana woke to Jax tugging on her shirt collar. Smiling, she gathered her furry friend into a hug, not letting go until the little creature started pushing back. Setting Jax down, Ana looked her companion over, checking to make sure the small animal had recovered completely. Satisfied, she sat back and gazed at Jax.

  “We’re in trouble, little furball,” she said. “We’ve been returned to the island, but they left us on top of a mountain instead of on the beach. I have no clue where we are, but we can’t stay here. The new list of directives is a little different, and we are going to be hard pressed to follow them while also managing to stay alive. We have to find our way back to the spot where they picked us up last time, but right now, we need to get off this mountain and find a safe place to spend the night.”

  Ana never spoke to her companion as if the animal were a child or a pet, finding that the little creature’s intelligence was much higher than either. She talked to Jax constantly, never lying to the little animal, but always tried to keep it simple and precises since her companion took everything literally. The conversations were always one sided as Jax never uttered a sound, and Ana was often amazed at how much her companion seem to understand, although the surprise was lessening the longer Jax was around.

  Jax now listened to Ana with a slightly cocked head, then left her lap and peered over the ledge. Returning to Ana’s side, the little animal tugged until Ana stood. Ana brushed herself off, slung the pack over one shoulder, and told her friend to lead the way.

  Jax scrambled over the side of the ledge, Ana following. Standing sideways, Ana slowly tried to descend the mountainside, leaning sideways and using one hand for balance while the other lay flat against the dirt. When her feet start sliding, Ana abruptly dropped to a sitting position, grabbing a bush as it slid past. The bush slowed her progress, allowing time to search for the safest way down. Seeing how steep the descent was, Ana opted to stay seated instead of trying to walk. Pulling the pack around, Ana levered up a fraction, stuffing it under her rear, then wiggling to push it into the gravel slightly. Using both feet to move forward, Ana made sure to angle towards a bush or tree in case she lost control and started moving too fast. Jax kept pace, never urging Ana to hurry and never leaving Ana’s sight.

  It took hours to get off the mountain. Ultimately meeting with the jungle, the going eventually became easier, allowing Ana to stand and brace herself on the trees when needed. But it was still a long way down, and by the time the pair reached the bottom, she was tired, thirsty, and her hands were aching and cramped. After the third bush, Ana had noticed both hands were being scraped raw, so she had cut strips from her shirt and wrapped the fabric around them as a form of protection. Not wanting to risk an infection, Ana now removed the strips and saw the hands were filthy as well as being scraped deeply. She needed to find water, both to drink and to clean the abrasions.

  “Jax,” she called, “do you think you could find some fresh water?” As Ana was questi
oning Jax, she mimed drinking, still unsure how much of the spoken words her friend understood.

  Jax stood on hind legs and repeated the same weird dance she had done the last time they were here. Spinning slowly and moving forward about twenty feet at a time, the small animal eventually returned to all fours and loped off, Ana following close behind.

  Jax had located a small hollow, this one slightly larger than the last one. It contained a small pool of clear water, bubbles indicating it was spring fed from underneath. Ana, remembering what happened when she drank too fast, cleaned the scrapes first, then cupped her hands and slowly drank her fill. Once the thirst had been slaked, Ana rinsed her face and smoothed back her hair.

  “Is it safe to spend some time here? I have a few things I need to do before we move on,” she asked her companion. Jax squatted and appeared to be in no hurry to leave, earning a light kiss as way of thanks.

  Rising, Ana removed her pants and resumed a seated position, laying the piece of clothing across her lap. Turning them inside out, she felt down the legs and along the seams. Discovering the items secreted there had been removed bought a slight smile to Ana’s face, but no real concern. She had banked on being searched before being returned to the island and had tried to make the items noticeable but not too obvious. Ana wanted them to find those things, but not easily, hoping that once they were found, the government would not search further.

  Ana turned the pants right side out again, once again laying them over her legs. She had specifically bought cargo pants and a long sleeve shirt in preparation for the return, knowing there would probably be a need to slice fabric off over the course of the month. Being able to wear extra layers so there would be a change of clothing would have been nice, but Ana was sure the government would never have allowed it. After her last stay, the clothes she had worn had been reduced to tatters, and Ana often wondered how those who had lengthy sentences managed to keep their clothing intact for the entire time. The knowledge that this stay would be much longer than the last had led her to purchase the most durable clothing available, but there was still a very real concern about keeping them in one piece for the entire month. Ana had also chosen a size larger, wanting the extra length for any bandages that might be needed. She had secreted small items along the inside of each pocket, sewing and resewing them into the seams until they blended.

  Ana was thrilled to discover the more important items had not been found. She had managed to hide a needle set with thread, multiple pieces of gauze for any cuts or scrapes sustained, floss, strips for testing water quality, several pieces of soap that had been scraped off a solid bar she had managed to purchase, and a couple of elastic bands.

  The soap had been the hardest. Bar soap was unknown in Atlantica, but Ana had gotten the idea from the soaproot she had been given in the camp. It had taken a very long time to find some, requiring both strong detective work, quiet questions placed in people that earned her trust, and an exorbitant number of credits. It also required more lies about the purchase and Ana had asked the saleslady, a wonderful old lady she had struck up a friendship with, to enter the digi-receipt as something else entirely. The soap was thicker and wider than the other items and created bulges no matter how many different ways it was sewn into the clothing. Ana had eventually whittled the bar down, managing to secrete the slivers in her bra and carefully sealing each piece in plastic so neither sweat or rain would cause them to disintegrate. There were only six small pieces, so extreme care and minimal use was going to be necessary. She had not expected to have to make them last for an entire month.

  Ana removed each item from its hiding place, stowing everything except the needle and thread and one sliver of soap in the backpack. She regretted not thinking more would be needed but had believed her arrival would be on the same beach as last time and had therefore not considered needing anything different than what she had managed to smuggle in. The things she had bought would help somewhat, but only if they were used sparingly. Carefully repairing the seams, Ana bit off the knot and placed the needle and thread in the pack as well.

  Taking the small sliver of soap, Ana washed her hands, paying particular attention to the scraped palms and ripped fingernails. When finished, she carefully placed what remained of the soap back in the plastic bag and stowed it away, knowing it was more valuable than any of the other items currently residing in the backpack. Rinsing the bandages used to wrap the abraded palms, Ana wrung them out alongside the pool in order to minimize possible contamination of the water. Deciding that her hands didn’t need to be rewrapped, the strips were draped over nearby rocks to dry.

  Ana looked around and noticed the shadows were lengthening and the temperature was starting to drop. Evening was approaching and they needed to find food before it got too dark.

  “Jax,” Ana called softly, pointing to her stomach as she mimed eating. “Is there any way you would be able to find food? Do you want me to come with you if you know where there’s something to eat?”

  Jax scrambled up a nearby tree, was out of sight for a couple of minutes, then returned to Ana’s side. Motioning for Ana to stay put, the little creature disappeared into the forest.

  Ana sat back, leaning against a rock. Taking the knife, she picked up a small branch, stripped it of leaves and the small twigs growing out of it, then made a single notch. Opening the pack and stowing the branch inside, Ana mentally repeated a reminder to do this every day. She had to keep track of the days or she risked the possibility of missing the ride back. This was now the only way she could think of to note the passage of time.

  Jax returned after what Ana estimated to be no more than an hour. Her companion was lugging a branch with fruit on it and seemed utterly exhausted. Ana gently took the branch and laid it aside, then gathered Jax into her arms and gave the creature a big hug. The fruit looked different than the ones they had eaten previously, so Ana allowed Jax to show her the proper way to consume it, wanting to make sure it was done safely. Jax made sure Ana was watching before pulling a fruit off the branch and biting into it, eating around the core like an apple. Following Jax’s lead, Ana was pleased to discover that despite the dark purple color, it did in fact taste just like a ripe apple with a slight hint of cinnamon. It was absolutely delicious, and the pair demolished the fruit, remembering to bury the remains completely when they were done. Washing her hands, Ana rinsed her mouth, then bit off a small piece of floss and cleaned her teeth.

  “Thank you,” she said, delivering another kiss to the top of Jax’s head. “Is it safe to stay?”

  As a reply, Jax snuggled alongside and instantly lost consciousness. Ana slid down and curled up around her furry friend, relieved that Jax had gone right to sleep and still amazed at the amount of love she had developed for the little thing.

  Ana saw that the light had almost completely faded, softening the harsh outlines of the mountain and deepening the shadows in the surrounding jungle. Seeing no reason to try and stay awake, Ana closed her eyes, but despite the deep exhaustion and lingering aftereffects of being drugged, it was a long time before sleep claimed her.

  2

  Chapter 2

  Week 1

  Day 3

  Arching her back to relieve the tight muscles, Ana contemplated the 3D diagram she had created. It had taken several hours to complete and had only been done in an effort to better ask Jax for help. Ana hoped her companion would not only be able to make sense of it but also understand what was being asked of her. Just as Jax had been the main reason Ana had survived last time, she now needed Jax’s help if they had any chance of surviving their time here again.

  Leaning forward and making a few small changes, Ana finally sat back once she was completely satisfied. She had done the best she could, but the diorama was based on what she remembered from the first day and Ana wasn’t sure if the scale was correct or if there had been any landmarks in the surrounding vicinity. Unfortunately, the only way to double check was to climb back up the mountain, and there was no way
she was going to even try that approach.

  Ana had drawn a rough outline of the island based on what she remembered seeing while seated on the summit. Drawing the boundary of the beach and the sea, she used the weird blue fern fronds to mark the water, small light pebbles to mark the beach, and grasses and leaves to mark the trees. She had left a small, cleared area near the base of the mountain, which had been created using mud and rocks, sticking small twigs in here and there to represent scraggly bushes. Finally, Ana had taken two small sticks and fashioned crude figures, which were placed in the open area.

  After a restless and uncomfortable night, Ana had decided to take yesterday to rest and try and work out some sort of plan for the pair. It had taken a long time to fall asleep and by the time she woke, still exhausted, the morning was well advanced. Her hands stung, especially when they got wet, even though the skin had started getting hard and they were no longer the color of raw or new skin. Her tailbone felt bruised and trying to sit normally caused it to ache, forcing frequent shifts in position to try and relieve the pressure. Ana also still felt a sluggish from the aftereffects of being drugged and the ordeal of climbing down the mountain, making it a monumental effort to do any hard thinking. Weighing the options, she decided that as long as Jax felt safe here, they could afford to take a day before starting their journey.

  Ana would dearly have loved to stay here for the entire month. It had fresh water, Jax was able to find fruit, and it seemed safe, at least for now. But her return hinged on locating the rendezvous point specified in the directives. And that was not here nor anywhere in the immediate vicinity. The only way to find the location specified would be to head to the beach and then walk the perimeter of the island, searching for the correct location in the process. Ana had never been good at estimating distances and based on what she had seen from her perch on top of the mountain, surmised that the beach was at least several days walk from the little hollow. Ana had no idea if the rendezvous point was directly ahead, behind, or somewhere in between, making any decision on which way to head a gamble. Without knowing how large the island was, she concluded the only way to locate the departure point was to get through the jungle, then walk its edge until she located the pick-up spot. All while following the new directives and trying to stay alive.