by Scott Bergin
Instantly Silthe felt like he was drowning, only not in water. The burning made it feel more like drowning in fire. Then Silthe thought of the idea, he would simply hold his breath. But he would need one last gulp of air to do it, and there was none around. That is when Silthe realized where the only breath of fresh air was, trapped in Busanda's lungs. Silthe remembered that he had died before the cloud struck, so the air inside him was still good. Silthe rolled onto the remains of Busanda's head. Pinching the nostrils shut, Silthe put his lips to Busanda's and sucked the last breath of fresh air out of him. Silthe felt far from refreshed, but it was enough to let him live. A burning sensation came over his legs, and he rolled onto his back again to see what was happening. The flesh on his legs began to blister, and the blisters began to pop. It looked as if he was being boiled alive, and it felt the same way. The lack of oxygen was so severe that it made it impossible for his skin to breathe either. Then the same sensation of pain came over his chest and arms, then finally his head. Screaming in agony, Silthe let out what he knew would be his last real breath. The pain was too intense, he simply wanted to be dead. He looked around for a gun that a sniper might have dropped. He saw nothing. That is when he realized that his eyes had also blistered over, and he was blind. As the lack of oxygen slowly made him pass out, Silthe was well aware of the unbearable pain being inflicted on every inch of his huge body. By the time the cloud eventually worked its way back out of the building and continued its course, no one who had been in the building was left alive.
Chapter 10
April 9
12:06 a.m.
Waza National Park, Cameroon
Alex lay on his bed staring blankly at the bathroom door. Gabrielle had been in there for well over half an hour. He heard water noises, gurgling noises, more water noises, and some things he couldn't identify except as noises in general. The routine was the same every evening. Alex would get the bathroom for about five or ten minutes. Enough time to get all settled in and ready for bed. Then Gabrielle would get the use of the bathroom, and move in. The bag she brought in was big enough to be considered luggage all by itself. With the amount of time she spent in there, Alex felt as if he had plenty of time to shave a family of baboons in the bedroom, and clean up the mess. Although, the only thing he had done while she was in there was to switch mattresses with her. At any moment the bathroom door would creak open a tad, and Gabrielle would make sure the lights were all out. Then she would silently make her way across the room and get into bed. Alex wondered what she must look like in the morning, before getting back to the bathroom. Perhaps she wasn't all that beautiful. It may have all just been hours of heavy makeup and construction. That would explain why she didn't want any light on when she emerged from the bathroom. Alex cringed as he thought about her wearing a blue-green mud pack, and curlers in her hair. He was sure that however she looked, it would keep her from mentioning the mattress difference. That is, if she even noticed the difference at all. The bathroom door swung open three inches.
"Turn the light off please." Came the gentle voice from beyond the cracked door. Alex reached over and threw the switch on the lamp, that rested on an end table between the beds.
"Thank you." Came the reply. Then the bathroom light went out, and the door swung open full. Gabrielle emerged slowly from the bathroom and walked gingerly across the squeaking floor. Alex squinted his eyes to see through the darkness, but he could not. His eyes were still not yet adjusted enough to see clearly. All he could see for sure was her rough outline, and this had to be confirmed by the squeaking of the floor. She was between the two beds, just past the foot of Alex's bed. Soon she would be under the covers, and Alex would have to get up early to discover her secret.
Just then, the door to the room swung open. Light poured in from the hallway. In an instant Alex realized why Gabrielle had insisted on the lights being out. She was completely naked. When the light struck her it stung her eyes, and she threw her hands to her face in response. Now she was standing nude, right next to Alex's bed, and facing him. All Alex could do was stare. His head was less than two feet from the front of her naked thigh. Alex tilted his head back and looked up at her with awe. She was more stunning than he had imagined, and he had imagined. He was so captivated by what he saw of her that he almost didn't notice the man in the doorway. The man who had swung the door open was equally astonished by what he saw. He was apologizing and backing out the door, but he was still peering into the room with wide eyes.
"Gabrielle." Alex said, startling her. She pulled her hands away from her face, and saw Alex staring her in the face. He had seen her naked from the front for about ten seconds, but he barely caught a glimpse of her from behind as she dove under her covers.
"Okay what's so important?" Gabrielle snapped at the man backing out of the doorway.
"Emergency." He replied.
"What kind of an emergency?" She asked.
"Not for you, for Mr. Taylor." He replied, pointing past her to Alex's bed.
"Well, I guess if it's just an emergency for me it's not a fire then. So what sort of emergency is it?" Alex asked, sounding more pleased about what had just happened than interested in the man's emergency.
"You're the desk clerk." Gabrielle said, finally realizing where she had seen the man's face before.
"Yes." The man responded.
"Hey thanks for pointing out the obvious." Alex quipped.
"Oh shut up." Gabrielle said, throwing her pillow at Alex.
"Simmer down there, miss nudie by nature." Alex said.
"Please sir, you must come now." The man interrupted.
"What is this emergency?" Alex asked.
"It is a telephone call from Europe, and they said it was life or death." The man replied. Alex got out of bed in an instant and darted across the room.
"I want to come to." Gabrielle whined.
"Don't worry I'll handle it." Alex said. "Just relax, and keep your shirt on. Or, off actually, it looks better." Then with a smug grin Alex was out the door. Only one person he knew was melodramatic enough to call someone after midnight and feel they had to say it was a matter of life and death. That someone was, unfortunately, his boss.
"Hello Dana." Alex said, lifting the phone from where it rested on the front desk.
"How did you . . . oh, never mind." She said interrupting herself.
"Oh, nothing important then, okay, goodbye." Alex teased, as if he were really going to hang up.
"No wait!" She hollered. Alex put his hand over the mouth piece and snickered. She was so easily fooled. "There actually is a matter of life and death this time." She added.
"Whose?" Alex asked.
"Yours. There is a lethal cloud of carbon dioxide gas about a day and a half away from you." Dana said.
"I guess we'd better get out of here then." Alex replied.
"You mean get over there, don't you." Dana said, but Alex did hear her. He was watching Gabrielle walking down the hallway toward him, now fully dressed. He was still remembering how she had looked just that short time ago.
"What was that?" Alex asked.
"I said you had better get over there as soon as possible." Dana responded. "You are already booked to spend the next couple of nights in Bénoué Park. Then, once the cloud has passed, you are to go in and photograph the damage."
"It isn't going to hit Bénoué then?" Alex asked.
"No, it's headed straight for Yaoundé." She replied.
"How big is it?" He asked.
"Oh, I don't know exactly. A couple of miles across, a couple of miles long. That reminds me, see if you can't get up to the north after you're done in Yaoundé." Dana said.
"How big is what?" Gabrielle asked. Alex just waved her off, then turned away.
"What do you want us up there for? There is nothing up there." Alex said.
"There was something up there a while ago, some lake." Dana said. "That's how this whole thing started. Some lake up there was sitting on an active volcano, or fault line.
There was an earthquake and a flood, and now this. Anyway the main thing is to get the destruction it does to Yaoundé on film. That is what all of the other photojournalists will be gunning for as well."
"But we are not photojournalists." Alex snapped.
"You are now." Dana replied. "And I promise this time there will be no giant animals in the tabloids. This time if you make it into any magazine, it will be a respectable one." Dana knew how upset they had gotten when she had sold their pictures to the tabloids, but this was different. This time they knew what they were getting into before they took the pictures. This time they could take respectable pictures and end up in descent magazines.
"When is it supposed to be safe enough to go in?" Alex asked, sounding tired and defeated.
"You should be able to go in by the twelfth at the very latest." She replied.
"Then the very latest it shall be." Alex said, and hung up the phone.
"Well, what is the emergency?" Gabrielle asked.
"We've been sold out." Alex replied. "She wants us to go photograph some nearby disaster so she can sell our photos to the highest bidder."
"Sometimes I really hate that cold hearted witch." Gabrielle replied, thinking of the tabloid incident.
"You will be leaving soon then?" The man asked, apparently after listening in on the whole conversation.
"Yeah." Gabrielle snapped. "Why don't you bust our door down tomorrow morning, so we'll have time to pack by noon."
"Oh, I am sorry." The man said. "I only work for another two hours, but I could leave a note for the morning shift."
"Just forget it, Gabrielle." Alex said, after noticing that the man had no clue that Gabrielle was still upset about the whole scene. Then Alex walked Gabrielle back to their room and shut the door. Gabrielle slid her bed in front of the door, just in case the man was dumb enough to leave the note. Alex watched as Gabrielle slid beneath the covers, and stripped.
"It's nothing I haven't seen before." He said.
"Very funny." She replied, and threw her jeans at him.
"Well, goodnight." Alex said, and flopped onto his bed. It was extremely saggy. While he was on the phone, Gabrielle had switched the mattresses back. He rolled onto his back and saw Gabrielle giggling beneath her covers.
"Oh, you think that's funny?" Alex asked playfully.
"I most certainly do." Gabrielle responded.
"Good, then you can shut off the light." Alex said, grinning. The light was well out of Gabrielle's reach, and she had already thrown her clothes at him.
"No problem." She said. Then she sunk completely beneath the covers. Eventually, her head and arm emerged at the foot of her bed. She reached out from under the covers, revealing only her bare back. Then she looked up and smiled. Alex could see that she was holding the cord to the lamp. A moment later, she gave it a tug and the room went dark. There was more rustling noise from her bed, then silence.
"Goodnight." Gabrielle finally said, breaking the silence.
"Goodnight." Alex said. Then he rolled over and began to doze off. As he did, he thought of all that lay ahead in Yaoundé, and all that he had unexpectedly seen that night.
Chapter 11
April 10
10:15 a.m.
Bénoué Park, Cameroon
Alex pulled the car into one of the many open spaces in the lot. He turned the car off and looked at his watch.
"Ten fifteen, too early to check in?" He asked.
"Well, there's only one way to find out." Gabrielle replied. Then she swung her door wide open, and hopped out.
"I hope they aren't sold out." Alex said, resting his hands on the top of the car and talking over it.
"Of course they have room." She quickly replied. "Look at this parking lot, its empty."
"Well," Alex snipped. "You couldn't tell that we've been sold out just by looking at us, now could you?"
"We are not going to have this argument!" She barked. "I have been listening to your endless complaints for the last two hours, and I'm sick of them." Gabrielle reached into the car and removed her purse, then slammed the door. Alex went around to the back and started to remove the luggage.
"Look," Gabrielle said, waving her index finger at him. "Maybe someday when you get your own magazine things will be different. But for right now, you're just going to have to deal with it."
"Who went and shoved a tree stump up your butt?" Alex asked as he removed the last of the luggage, and came around her side of the car.
"How would you like to get a slap in the face?" Gabrielle asked, though not really meaning it.
"Only by your inner thigh." Alex replied. Then he grinned as he saw her eyes widened in shock.
"Pig!" She blurted out. Her eyes still open wide, and a smile of disbelief crossed her face.
"Dog!" He replied in an instant.
"Woof, woof." She said, still smiling though her eyes were no longer widened in awe.
"Oink, oink." He replied. "Can we check in now?"
"Sure." Gabrielle said. They both picked up some luggage and began to carry it, but before they got three steps, two men were approaching them. They were waving their arms and yelling to them.
"No, no." They said as they approached. "We carry, we carry."
"All right," Alex said. "Just don't drop anything, it's all very expensive."
"Sure, sure." One man replied. "We won't break anything."
"Well don't drop it, and we won't have to worry." Alex snapped.
"Alex," Gabrielle said. "Don't worry about it so much." The two men proceeded to carry their bags inside and up to the front desk. They set the bags down, then Alex and Gabrielle went to the front desk.
"Hello?" Gabrielle said, leaning over the desk trying to find someone. The short man behind the counter eventually came to help them.
"I believe you have some rooms for us." Gabrielle said.
"And what are the names?" The man asked.
"Chambers and Taylor." She replied.
"Yes I have a room for you two," He paused. "Did you want two rooms? When I took the reservation, I heard nothing of two rooms." He said defensively.
"One room will be fine." Alex said, taking the key and turning away from the counter. As soon as he turned around, the two men picked up the luggage and carried it toward the room.
"Be careful with that." Alex yelled to them, though they were no more than fifteen feet away.
"That is very important photographic equipment." He continued.
"Then you will be wanting to meet with Mr. Thomas." One man said.
"Who is Mr. Thomas?" Gabrielle asked.
"He is the photographer in the room next to yours." He replied.
"Gabrielle, don't bother them." Alex pleaded. "The last thing I need is for them to break something."
"Talk about a stump up your butt. What's your problem?" She asked.
"I'm really not in the mood for a welcome wagon." Alex said. "And certainly not one that consists of human pack mules."
"Shh." Gabrielle whispered. "They'll hear you." When they reached the room, the two men set down the bags. Alex gave them a small tip and waved his hand to shoo them off. The men walked a few steps down the hall then turned back toward Alex.
"We may be pack mules sir," One of the men said. "But you are the jackass." Then they turned and continued down the hall. Alex turned back to Gabrielle, who was laughing hysterically as she entered the room.
"Did you hear that?" Alex asked.
"Well, what did you give them for a tip?" Gabrielle asked.
"One of these." Alex said, holding up a silver coin from his pocket.
"That's worth about a dime, Ebenezer." Gabrielle said, before she began laughing again.
"Bah, humbug." Alex said, setting his bags inside the door of the room. "Come on, let's go find that photographer." Gabrielle agreed. After setting her luggage up against a wall, she followed him out the door.
"Where do you want to look?" Alex asked.
"Actually, I just feel like gett
ing outside." She admitted. "If he's not out there, we won't search for him."
"Fair enough." Alex said. They walked back down the hallway then turned and went out the back door. There were several umbrellas set up on a patio, providing shade for the tables and chairs underneath them. Only two men were sitting beneath the umbrellas. One was a thin young waiter, dressed mostly in white and stains. The other was a heavier built older man with graying hair. He was sitting two tables away from the waiter, drinking a lemonade and staring out at the open field beyond the small fence at the edge of the patio.
"That must be him." Gabrielle said.
"You think that we and this, Mr. Thomas, are the only ones here or something?" Alex asked.
"After seeing the parking lot, yes." She replied. Thomas LaRue turned at the sound of their voices.
"Ah, fellow Americans." Thomas said. "Come, sit down." He waved them over, and they sat at his table.
"Allow me to introduce myself." He began.
"You're Mr. Thomas, and you're also a photographer here to do a story on that natural disaster." Gabrielle quickly jumped in.
"You are pretty quick." Thomas said.
"Thank you." Gabrielle said, smiling.
"But not quick enough." Thomas continued. "We are obviously here for the same reason, so I'll let you in on a little secret. You gotta stop believing the locals."
"What do you mean?" Gabrielle asked.
"Those two guys out front, they're the only ones who call me that." Thomas explained. "My name is Thomas LaRue, they just call me Mr. Thomas. I guess it's because they aren't so smart."
"Smart ass." Alex said under his breath.