by Liz Wolfe
“The men hunting us were having a little target practice.” Paige ripped Aleisha’s shirt off her shoulder and took off the make-do bandage. Damn, it did not look good.
“Bastardos!” Alex took Aleisha’s hand gently in his.
“That would be my opinion,” Paige agreed. She took Aleisha’s chin in her hand and turned her face to make eye contact.
“Aleisha, how you doing, girl?”
Aleisha nodded. “I’m okay.” Her mocha colored skin was several shades paler than normal. “Th -thanks for coming back for me.”
“Hey, we’re all in this together,” Paige said. “The bullet is still in your shoulder. I don’t think it’s hit anything major, but it’s got to come out.”
“Yeah, I kinda thought that.” Her voice was soft and weak. “Hey, I’ve had a kid. I can take all kind of pain.”
Paige patted her good shoulder and moved over to lay the blade of her knife in the small campfire. Connor had already put a pot of water over the flame to heat.
“We need to get that bullet out of her,” he said.
“I know. You have any experience with that sort of thing?”
Connor shook his head. “You?”
“I had a short course in field emergencies. Basically, we need to get the bullet out, cleanse the area, and bandage her.”
“I don’t suppose you got any morphine in that first aid kit?” he asked.
Paige shook her head. “This is gonna be a bitch.” She glanced over at Aleisha. “And it’s already getting dark. We need to get it done while there’s still some light.”
Ty brought over a cup of water and handed it to Alex, who held the cup for her, murmuring softly in Spanish. Ty and Nick stood back, not knowing what to do.
Paige pulled her knife from the flame, cleaned the soot off with antiseptic and took it to Connor. He knelt beside Aleisha and poured the antiseptic onto a wad of cotton. She moaned when he swabbed her shoulder and Paige knew this was going to be even worse than she’d thought.
“Aleisha? This is going to hurt like a son of a bitch. But we have to get the bullet out of your shoulder.”
Aleisha nodded. Her dark brown eyes were wide, the pupils slightly dilated. Paige thought she was holding up pretty good, given the situation.
“Ty, bring that lantern over here.” Ty complied and held it above them.
The problem was that Paige didn’t want Aleisha screaming. It’d be bad hearing it herself, but what really worried her was the sound traveling and alerting the men who were after them. There wasn’t any sign that they’d followed them, and Paige was hoping that since it was already getting dark when they’d shot Aleisha, they had just gone back to where they were staying to have a big steak and congratulate each other on their sick game.
That’s what she hoped. But she had to allow for the possibility that they were still in the jungle, looking for them. Aleisha’s screams could serve as a beacon. Paige handed her knife to Connor.
Paige’s dad had been an amateur boxer. When she was little he’d boxed with her, showing her all the tricks. One she remembered was that you could hit someone just right on the jaw and they’d pass out cold. Hardly even a grunt.
“Aleisha?” She looked up at Paige with big, trusting eyes, filled with pain. “You’re going to thank me for this some day.” Her smooth brow furrowed in confusion just as Paige’s fist shot forward, clipping her under the chin.
Aleisha’s head jerked back from the impact, then slumped forward. Alex glared at Paige angrily.
“It’ll be easier on her this way,” she assured him.
“Damn,” Ty mumbled. Nick backed away to sit close to the fire.
“Lean her over,” Paige said as she took her knife from Connor. He and Alex held her while Paige sliced into the taut skin on the back of Aleisha’s shoulder.
“Ty, bring that light a little closer.” When he did, Paige finally saw the gleam of the bullet in her flesh. Using the knife to lever it out, she grabbed it with her fingers and handed it to Ty.
Hurrying to finish before she woke, Paige poured antiseptic on the cut and pressed a bandage over it. She applied pressure for a few minutes, then used tape to secure it.
“That’s about all we can do for now. When she comes around, make sure she takes a couple of aspirin.”
Aleisha’s eyelids fluttered. “What happened?” she asked groggily.
“Sorry about hitting you.” Paige grinned, hoping she wasn’t going to be a pain about it.
She smiled, winced and touched her jaw, then winced again at the pain in her shoulder. “Probably for the best.” She grinned and lifted her other shoulder in a shrug.
“Thanks for being a good sport about it.”
Paige stood and turned to the others. “Ty, you take first watch. We’ll take two-hour shifts. You, Nick, me, then Connor. In that order. At first light, we head for the cave we found today.”
Ty walked off to find a spot with good visibility, Nick helped Aleisha to her tent, and Alex hobbled off to his.
Paige was too exhausted to bother with putting up her hammock. She found a spot cushioned with dead leaves and settled down on the ground. The night was warm, but she knew they’d get chilled sleeping in the open, especially if it rained. She pulled her small nylon tarp over herself and glanced at Connor. He must have been dead on his feet. She knew he’d only had a couple hours of sleep the night before, after a long trek through the jungle. If he was tired from another sleepless night, he wouldn’t be much use tomorrow.
“You’re welcome to share my tarp,” Paige said. Connor looked surprised, but nodded and moved next to her.
“I promise to behave,” he said.
“I never doubted it.”
Connor chuckled. “After the way you knocked Aleisha out, I wouldn’t want to piss you off.”
“Just a trick my dad taught me.”
“It’s a good one.”
They were sound asleep minutes later, and when Nick woke Paige for her watch it seemed she had just closed her eyes. She scooted away from Connor and stood, motioning Nick to go back to his tent, then settled on a fallen tree to consider the situation.
Eight people chosen for very particular reasons, nine if she included Connor’s co-pilot. Six because of some relation to Eastland Industries, the others because they could be disposed of without raising too many questions.
Eastland Industries was the key to why they had been chosen. There had to be something each of them knew, or could know, that was a danger to these men. Aleisha and Barry both worked at Eastland, so they might have seen or heard something and not even realized it. Alex worked for the cargo company that shipped parts from Eastland’s manufacturing site in Colombia to Portland. Kevin worked for a delivery company that Eastland used. Paige had been investigating Lisa Johnston who had worked at Eastland, and she was also connected through her father, as Ty was through his late wife. Both had been killed while they were investigating a murder connected to Eastland.
Her gut told her that the men were responsible for those deaths and the murder they’d been investigating. God only knew what else they’d done.
She had come to think of the men who pretended to be the show’s producers as the Hunters. And she was trying really hard to not think of the contestants as the Prey. The Hunters were armed, rested, and well fed. The contestants were exhausted, hungry, and armed with a few knives and sticks. The fact that they outnumbered the Hunters seven to four wasn’t an advantage at all. Two of the group were seriously injured, which would only slow the rest of them down. Their only advantage was that they were frightened for their lives, while the Hunters were simply playing a game.
Paige picked jungle debris from her braid and tried to ignore her itchy scalp, which was still sore from Ty yanking on it during their fight. An hour before her watch ended, she had decided that as much as she was attached to her hair, she was also weary of it.
There were scissors in the first aid kit. If those didn’t work, her knife was sharp enough
to do the job. She walked back to the camp, got her knife and the scissors and settled on the log again.
The scissors didn’t make a dent in the thick braid. Paige picked up the knife and started sawing at her hair. She felt it give a little, and bit her lip. She hadn’t cut her hair other than trimming a half-inch occasionally in over ten years. The braid gave a little more and she thought she was about halfway through. Too late to change her mind now.
A few minutes later, Paige looked at her thick, dark braid through tears. Lying in her hand, it looked just like the braid her mom had worn all her life. Her mother had loved Paige’s hair and Paige had loved the fact that it looked like hers. She remembered what a strong woman her mother had been. Oh, she knew now that her mother must have had her fears and foibles. But she had always seemed invincible to Paige. Until she’d been killed during a mugging.
Her mother would have known how to keep everyone safe. How to get them off the island. But she wasn’t here now. Paige had to find a way to keep them safe herself. And she had to get them off the island. Unshed tears burned her eyes, and Paige finally let herself cry out her anger, frustration, and fear.
“You okay?”
Connor’s voice startled her. She wiped the tears away and turned. “Yeah, fine. Just giving myself a haircut.” She held the braid up, each end still held with an elastic band.
“Well, you’ve done a hell of a job.”
“No mirror.” Paige shrugged.
“Here, give me the scissors.” He held his hand out. “Why?” She clutched the scissors to her chest and eyed him suspiciously.
“So I can fix your hair.”
“You’re a hairdresser?”
Connor scowled. “You certainly aren’t. The way you’ve got it cut, it’s just going to fall in your eyes all the time.”
“And you think you can do better?”
His broad shoulders lifted in a shrug. “I can’t do any worse.”
He had a point. Paige handed the scissors over to him.
If he made it any worse, she’d just shave her damn head.
“My mother’s a hairdresser. She’s taught me a few tricks.”
Connor pulled a comb from his pocket and ran it through her hair, gently separating the tangles. Paige closed her eyes and remembered her mother doing the same thing. He ran his fingers through her hair a few times, and Paige almost moaned with the pleasure of it.
Finally, he lifted a section and she heard the snip of the scissors. Locks of hair fell to her shoulders and landed on the ground around her. He continued to push his fingers through her hair, lifting small portions and clipping. Concentration was etched on his face as he turned her head to one side, then the other, checking that he’d gotten it all even. When he was done, Paige could feel the soft bangs on her forehead, curls barely touching her cheeks.
“Well, you could still use a shampoo, but it’s out of your face.” Connor stood back and admired his handiwork.
Paige ran her hands through the cropped mane, shocked at how short it felt. Couldn’t have been more than two inches long all over. Her head felt lighter, almost like it was floating. She picked up the braid and rose. As tall as she was, Connor still topped her by a good half foot.
“Thanks. I really appreciate it.”
“Say that after you’ve looked in a mirror.” He laughed when her hand flew back to her hair. “I’m just teasing you. It looks good short. Curly.”
Paige scowled at him for good measure. She had a memory of having curly hair when she was small. But it’d grown so long that the weight pulled all the curl out of it.
“What are you going to do with that?” Connor nodded at the braid in Paige’s hand.
“I haven’t thought about it. Stick it in a box as a memento of this vacation?”
“There’s an organization that makes wigs for kids who’ve lost their hair due to chemo or radiation.” Connor fingered the end of the braid. “Hair like this would make some little girls feel a lot better about themselves.”
“That’s a good idea. Sounds better than having it lie around in a box.”
“Go get some sleep. We still have a couple of hours before sunrise.”
Paige shook her head. “I’ll just feel worse if I sleep for another hour or two. Besides, I want to get everyone up soon. We have a long hike today; I’d like them to eat before we get started.”
“What have we got left to eat?”
“My secret stash.” She grinned. “A bag of gorp.”
“I love gorp.” Connor’s eyes sparkled. “Granola, nuts, raisins, and chocolate chips. What’s not to like?”
“The fact that it’s not bacon, eggs, and hash browns with a stack of pancakes dripping with real maple syrup?”
“Well, there is that. Tell you what, I’ll buy you the biggest breakfast you’ve ever had when we get back.”
Paige hoped she’d have the opportunity to take him up on that offer.
“When we move camp, I’m thinking about leaving everything here that we don’t absolutely need.”
“It’ll make traveling quicker and easier,” Connor agreed. “I’m hoping if the Hunters find this camp, they’ll think we’re still in the area and not go looking for us somewhere else.”
“The Hunters?”
“That’s how I think of them. It’s what they’re doing, isn’t it?”
“Yeah, it is.” Connor shook his head. “They don’t look like hunters. They look like businessmen. Like a CEO or an accountant or something.”
“Looks can be deceiving,” Paige said.
“Yeah. Anyway, that’s a good idea about leaving some stuff here.”
“Any trail they find around here will just look like we’ve gone for food or water.”
“You’re really good at this stuff.” Connor chuckled.
“Why is that funny?”
“It’s not really funny.” Connor shrugged. “It’s just that if I’d met you under different circumstances, I’d never have pegged you for the wilderness type.”
“Why not?”
“You look feminine.”
“No, I don’t.”
“It’s not an insult.”
“I know that. I just think you’re wrong.” Paige walked over to her larger pack and dug for the bag of gorp. “Go wake the others up.”
Connor started rousing everyone while she heated water for a pot of coffee. They ate all the gorp and washed it down with the coffee.
“We’re leaving as much here as we can,” Paige told everyone. “If the Hunters find this camp, they’ll be less likely to look for another one. At least for a while. Leave the clothes you brought here. All we really need to take is the water bladders, the first aid kit, weapons you might have, and a couple of cooking utensils.”
“But what if we need all this stuff later?” Alex asked.
“What we need is to get off this island,” Paige said. “If we don’t, we won’t need this stuff, or anything else.”
In a few minutes they were ready to go. Their weapons consisted of a machete for Ty, a knife that Nick had brought, and a walking stick that Alex was using. Paige had two knives. Meager resistance against men armed with rifles, scopes, handguns, and God only knew what else.
Alex walked slowly, but without assistance. Aleisha’s arm hung in a makeshift sling, but she moved along pretty well, too. They hadn’t made it more than fifty yards from the camp when Paige heard the noise.
She held her hand up to halt the group, then pressed a finger to her lips for silence. Everyone stopped and looked around.
Paige heard someone crashing through the jungle, and a shiver crawled up her spine, in spite of the heat and humidity of the rainforest.
The Hunters were after them. And they were close.
She waved her hand to signal everyone to follow her and moved silently into the brush.
“The Hunters are at our old camp,” Paige explained in a low voice. Faces showed a range of emotion. Anger from Connor and Ty, fear from Aleisha and Nick, resignation
from Alex. Indifference from Kevin. Alex’s resignation bothered her more than the fear Aleisha and Nick exhibited.
Paige knew they had no chance of outrunning the Hunters. Not with Alex and Aleisha injured. She had two choices. Hide everyone and hope the Hunters didn’t stumble across them, or lead the Hunters away from the group so they could get away. Paige would take action over hiding any day.
“I want all of you to stay here. I’m going to lead them away,” she whispered.
“You want some help?” Ty asked.
“I can go, too,” Connor offered.
She considered both men for a moment. Her first instinct was to not put them in danger. But she knew the more directions they could give the Hunters to follow, the safer the others would be.
“If one or more of them follows you, you’ll have to get away. It’s dangerous.” She could hear the Hunters in the old camp. Tearing stuff apart, cursing at the contestants’ absence. They didn’t have any time to lose.
“I’m game,” Connor insisted.
“That’s the whole point, isn’t it?” Kevin chuckled, drawing a sharp glance from Paige. “I’m in, too,” he volunteered.
“What’s the plan?” Ty asked.
Paige made an immediate decision, refusing to question if it was the right one. “Nick, you’re coming with us.” Nick paled, but nodded.
“Aleisha, do you remember the way to the cave we found?”
“I think so,” she said uncertainly. “You want me and Alex to go to the cave?”
“Exactly. Start now; some of us will come back and help you out.” Paige turned to the men and saw a mixture of fear, concentration, and bravado. She thought she probably looked pretty much the same.
“We’ll circle around those trees and approach the camp. As soon as they see us, we take off at a dead run.” She looked at Nick and Connor. “At some point, I’ll give you two a signal. You find cover and stay there until the Hunters have passed. Then go back and lead Alex and Aleisha to the cave.”
“What about you and Ty and Kevin?” Connor asked.
“We’ll meet you back there.” Paige stood and looked at Aleisha and Alex who were only a few yards away, picking their way through the rainforest. At least they were being as quiet as possible. She signaled the men to follow her and walked quietly through the foliage toward the camp.