by Ellis, Tara
“Until now,” Jess pointed out. She thought she’d be more emotional about it, but found she didn’t have the energy to get upset. It wouldn’t change things. “Do you think he feels anything?”
“I once knew a boy that was in a horrible accident,” Akuba said. She waited for Jess to finally tear her gaze from the sky and look at her. “He was only fourteen, but already working in the mines with his family. There was a slide, and he was partially crushed under some boulders.”
Jess frowned, wondering how the two stories could have anything to do with the other.
“I was only twelve, but had known him for years since our mothers were friends.” Glancing over her shoulder like she heard something, Akuba looked around the darkening yard before continuing. “We went to visit them months later, after he was home from the hospital. He could walk, and talk, and play…but he’d changed. He didn’t know who I was, and his personality was totally different. Yet, it was still him. My mother made me play with him, and we eventually became friends again.”
“I think this is a little different,” Jess scoffed.
“Is it?”
Jess’s face screwed up as she thought about it. “I told you what they did to Mr. Van. I want my dad back, not…him.”
Akuba sighed and moved over next to Jess on her lounge. “We don’t know for certain what happened to Mr. Van. And I’m not suggesting you can rebuild a relationship the same as I did with my friend, only that your dad didn’t choose this. That it’s the same as brain damage from any other injury. You know how much he loved you, Jess. That’s what you have to remember.”
Jess was going to comment on her use of the past-tense for love, when Amisha approached them, walking slowly across the grass without any sort of light. “Amisha!” Jess called out when she saw her. “What are you doing out alone? It’s getting dark, and you know—” she stopped when she saw the other girl’s face. It was ashen and tear-streaked, and she looked on the verge of collapse.
“She’s dead.” Amisha sat down in the grass near the edge of the cement with a blank expression. “Now they’re all gone.”
Jess jumped up and rushed to Amisha’s side. Sitting down beside her, she draped an arm around her shoulders. “You’re not alone.”
“You’ll sleep in here tonight,” Akuba said gently, reaching out a hand to help Amisha to her feet.
As she stood, Amisha looked at Jess and then Akuba, her eyes welling up with fresh tears. “I need to bury her, but she wanted to be with my dad and brother. I don’t know what to do.”
Jess guided her inside, and Akuba began moving about the kitchen, making tea. They’d need to turn the generator off when she was done, so Jess would have to start lighting candles soon. Leading Amisha to a stool at the counter, she thought back over their conversation from the night when she first arrived. “You said your dad and brother are…still in your house?” When Amisha nodded, Jess raised her eyebrows at Akuba. “Could Kavish take care of that for her?”
Akuba set the kettle on the stove before leaning on the counter opposite them. “He and Slaider are already going that way, and I’m sure they’d be willing to help. I believe your house is on the way out of town, toward Slaider’s village. I will have them take your mother with them, and—”
Amisha hung her head and began sobbing before Akuba could say the words that would confirm it was all really happening. That her whole family was dead.
Sitting there, trying to comfort her friend, Jess thought back over what Akuba had just said about her father. She wanted to believe it. That there could be a way to come to accept that it was just a change in his personality due to brain damage. But that didn’t change what she’d heard and seen her father doing at the Libi Nati. It didn’t change the stories Akuba and Kavish had already told her about the Kra Puru, and how it was all lining up to fall in with the ancient prophecies.
As Jess sat there holding Amisha, she wasn’t sure which one was in a worse situation. While her dad was still alive, Jess found herself mourning him the same as she would if he was dead.
Tomorrow, Amisha would be able to say goodbye to her mom and try to pick up the pieces.
Jess might never have that. Not when the pieces were still being withheld.
Chapter 9
TYLER
Near Barinas, Venezuela
“I’m not entirely sure what time zone we’re in anymore,” Jason said, as he slung a backpack over his shoulder. “But I’m guessing it’ll be getting dark in a couple of hours at the most. It’s time to move.”
Tyler helped Hernandez pull his boot on before grabbing two of the other bags piled next to them. What was going to be a short stop had turned into a couple of hours, and everyone was getting edgy. Jason found the road they’d spotted from the air, and he said it led to a farm with an old truck in the driveway. Considering everything that was going down in other big cities, and that the country they were in was already somewhat unsafe for traveling, it was decided it’d be best to skirt around Barinas under the cover of darkness.
Tyler had no idea what the population of Barinas was, but based on what he saw before they landed, it looked huge. There was also lots of smoke, which Eddy said was probably a result of power issues and civil unrest. Even more reasons to avoid being seen, and get into what Jason called the “less populated region”.
Taking another look at the dense vegetation and exotic plants, Tyler didn’t know if they could get any less populated. Except, after living on Madagascar he was well aware of how you could go from impenetrable jungle to sprawling city in a heartbeat.
If Barinas was like some of the places he’d seen on the island, then Jason was right. Tyler remembered how freaked out and chaotic everything was after only a loud noise. He couldn’t imagine what a large city would be like with a big chunk of the people dead and nothing working.
“I think I can walk,” Hernandez insisted, when Eddy and Jason moved to lift and support him.
“I’m sure you can,” Eddy replied casually. “But for how far? Certainly, no further than one, or possibly two-hundred feet. After that, you won’t be able to help yourself at all and we’ll end up carrying you. It would be easier for everyone involved if you allowed us to help support you now, so that you have a better chance of making it to the road before collapsing again.”
Tyler grimaced at the expected reaction from Hernandez, as his face clouded and his nostrils flared, but Peta quickly intervened. “Eddy’s right,” she said, stepping up close to him. “Now that you’re out of the water, your temperature is going to climb again, and you’re going to feel pretty crappy before we get too far. Just let them help you,” she urged, taking one of his hands. “Because no matter how much you beg and go on about being a liability, we aren’t leaving you here.”
Eddy cleared his throat. “It would be the most—”
“I’d listen to her,” Jason spoke up, cutting Eddy off while glaring at him. “I haven’t known her nearly as long as you, but I don’t need a medical degree to see that she’s stubborn. Plus, you know I’m a Marine. We never leave a man behind. Or woman,” he added, glancing at Peta with a dashing grin.
“Come on.” Devon didn’t wait for permission. He grabbed one of Hernandez’s arms and pulled it across his shoulders. “Time to check your pride, my man. And I’d really like to be inside a vehicle with hard sides and locking doors before it gets dark out here.”
Chuckling, Hernandez didn’t resist when Jason came along his other side. “How far did you say this road is?” he asked, as they began half-carrying him across the clearing.
“Less than a mile,” Jason answered with a nod toward the spot in the trees he’d come back from. It was a small opening in the undergrowth on the other side of the helicopter. “It’s not a marked trail, but it’s definitely used by either animals or maybe fishermen. This is a great spot for either.”
“Let’s go with fishermen,” Devon said, looking around nervously.
Tyler shook his head and grinned at Peta
as she rolled her eyes. He suspected Devon wasn’t as scared as he always pretended to be. He’d exchanged enough stories with the guy throughout the past couple of weeks to know Devon had a lot of guts. He also had a lot of experience doing some crazy stuff out in nature, but for some reason always played it down.
Some clouds had moved in during the afternoon to further obscure the hazy sun, and the temperature dropped a good ten degrees as a result. Tyler welcomed the slight relief from the sweltering, humid warmth. But the only thing worse than heat in the tropics was a good rainstorm. Hopefully, it would hold off until they got some transportation. “Why didn’t you just grab the truck when you saw it?” he asked Jason. Tyler had wanted to grill him with a dozen other questions about what he’d seen as soon as he was back, but everyone had started talking at once, and Jason was obviously hot and irritated by then. Waiting for a better opportunity had seemed the smarter thing to do.
Marty loped around them, sniffing at everything he could find. Tyler hoped that if there was some sort of terrifying animal lurking nearby ready to spring on them, the dog would alert them to it.
Jason was keeping a quick pace and carrying most of Hernandez’s weight, so he didn’t try and look back when he answered. “Because I couldn’t tell for certain if the farm was deserted. If there’s a problem, I want you guys out here on the road waiting to make a quick exit.”
“What do you mean by problem?” Peta asked. “If there’s someone there, we’ll just try the next place.”
Eddy looked back at Peta from where he was leading the group onto the trail, and Tyler braced himself for what he was pretty sure was going to be an unpopular answer.
“It could be some distance until we’re able to find another viable vehicle,” Eddy stated in a very condescending tone. “Hernandez obviously can’t make that sort of hike, and we don’t have the time. Would you not agree that the potential of successfully reaching this Libi Nati is more important than the unethical act of car theft?”
“Of course, it is,” Peta snapped. “But I’m not about to get into a shootout with some innocent farmer just trying to survive like everyone else.”
Eddy hesitated, forcing Jason to stop and eliciting a curse from him. “Can we have this conversation once we’re on the road?” Jason said, glaring again at Eddy. “Or maybe we can simply agree not to kill anyone. Is that logical enough for you?”
Eddy’s brows drew together and Tyler had to wonder if it was due to some small emotional reaction to Jason’s obvious criticism of him, or if he was really deciding how logical it was. Then his expression relaxed back into his regular poker face, and he gave Jason a small nod before trudging on. Tyler noted that it wasn’t really an answer.
It took about a half-hour to reach the firmly-packed dirt road that wound its way through the trees. After a few minutes of pouring over the maps Garrett had given them, Hernandez agreed with Jason on what direction to go in order to meet up with the main road they wanted.
“I’d prefer to have three of us for this,” Jason said, after Hernandez was settled against a tree in the shade. “We can leave the fourth gun with you,” he said, gesturing to the ensign.
Jason had been happy to find their weapons and some other stuff already in the helicopter, when they left the CDC. Tyler assumed Garrett put it all there. It would have been great if the guy had thought to pack them some food and water, too. They already had to scavenge for food during their stops. Now that they were going to be driving through the jungle, it was about to get even harder.
Devon sat down beside Hernandez and held his bandaged arm up. “I’ve already been shot once, so I’m thinking my luck has been used up when it comes to special ops. I’ll just hang here with Hernandez and Tyler and make sure they aren’t eaten by anything.”
“Hey,” Tyler interjected, feeling dismissed. “I’m a pretty fast runner, you know.”
“We aren’t going to need any fast runners,” Peta said, sounding annoyed. “And you’re used to being in the rainforest,” she added, looking at Tyler. “You’ll know what to look out for while you keep Hernandez company.”
Eddy didn’t say anything as he removed his backpack and took out two handguns, handing one of them to Peta. Turning to Jason, he gestured down the road. “Lead the way.”
“Marty, stay,” Jason ordered, pointing at Tyler. The German Shepard whined and looked back and forth between the two, showing his indecision. “Stay,” Jason said again, with more force. Lowering his head in defeat, Marty trotted over to sit at Tyler’s feet.
Peta hesitated and stared at Tyler, looking like she wanted to say something else. Instead, she gave him a stiff smile and then dropped her pack next to the others, before jogging to catch up with Eddy and Jason.
“I’ve got a bad feeling about this,” Devon muttered, watching them leave.
“Yeah?” Hernandez grunted. “Well, I’ve had a perpetual bad feeling for the past twelve days. Sucky part is, I keep underestimating just how much worse things can get. I’d say I’m pretty much at the lowest point now, though. Don’t you think?”
Devon ignored Tyler as he joined them under the tree, and focused on getting Hernandez a bottle of water and some more Tylenol. “You know, none of us would have made it this far if it hadn’t been for you and Rodriguez saving our butts back on Mauritius,” Devon said, handing him the water and medicine.
Hernandez grunted again as he shook out the last of the pills. Tossing the empty bottle back at Devon, he swallowed them and then leaned back further against the mossy base of the tree. “I’ll let you in on a secret, my friend. I voted to leave your sorry asses behind and make a run for the chopper early on, but Rodriguez overruled me.”
Devon chuckled, but Tyler wasn’t sure if it was actually a joke or not. Smiling, Hernandez used his right hand to lift his left one onto his chest, and then closed his eyes. “I think I’d better rest now, guys. I’m tapped.”
Turning to Tyler, Devon tossed him one of the last bottles of water and then motioned for him to follow him to another tree. “This isn’t good,” he said, shaking his head as Tyler and Marty sat next to him. “Did you see his face? I think the fever’s back already, and we’re out of medicine. There isn’t anything else we can do.”
Tyler watched the steady rise and fall of Hernandez’s chest for a moment. He thought back over when they first met at the small airport on Madagascar, to their escape from the base, and more recently the lab. He set a hand on Marty’s head without realizing it. “He’s always known what to do.”
Devon shifted to face him, and nodded in agreement. “Yup. He’s one of those guys you tend to take for granted. ‘Cause it’s easy to get irritated when he’s bossing you around all of the time, until you realize you need him to. We aren’t as strong of a team without him.”
Team.
Tyler thought about the word. Thought about how they’d come to be sitting in some Venezuelan rainforest, waiting for two doctors and a scientist to jack a car. It might have been funny in another lifetime.
The only team he’d even known before the eruption had been his family, and they’d been taken from him. Taken by forces of nature that no team could ever win against, no matter how big or how strong they were. None of it even seemed real to Tyler as he lounged in the shade of the palm tree.
Fat drops of water began to hit his jeans, spreading out in dark circles like pools of blood. “We’ve done some pretty crazy things,” Tyler said, not wanting to think about another person dying that he’d come to care about.
“Tyler,” Devon said in a demanding tone.
Tyler looked up, surprised.
“We’re going to get there,” Devon said. The happy-go-lucky tone was gone, and was replaced by a confidence Tyler hadn’t seen before. “We’ve got almost two-thousand miles to go, but I know we’re going to get there.”
Encouraged by the small pep-talk, Tyler ruffled Marty’s ears and then took a drink of water. He might have smiled then, if he hadn’t looked over at Hernandez. They mi
ght eventually make it to the preserve, but his friend would never live to see the Libi Nati.
Chapter 10
JASON
Near Barinas, Venezuela
“Dang it!” Jason pulled his head back from inside the truck and turned to look at the modest farmhouse. “No keys. I’ll have to go look for them.” When they found the vehicle unlocked, he’d been hopeful that the keys might be in it. He should have known nothing could ever be that easy.
“I’ll go with you,” Eddy offered, walking around the truck and toward the house.
“No.” It came out like more of an order than Jason had intended, but it at least had the desired effect, as Eddy stopped and turned to look questioningly at him.
“It would be faster and more prudent,” Eddy said, glancing at Peta. “She can keep watch outside for us.”
Peta scowled at him but thankfully, didn’t say anything. Jason had quickly come to appreciate how she didn’t say a whole lot without prompting. Peta was one of those rare people you actually listened to when they chose to speak.
“I’d rather you go post as a lookout near the road,” Jason said to his friend, carefully gauging his reaction, or if he even had one. “Peta can stick around outside the house in case something goes down, but I think it’s pretty obvious that no one is here. Or, at least no one alive.”
Eddy walked back to the truck and stopped a few feet from Jason, his eyes narrowing slightly as he thought about Jason’s directions. “You don’t trust me.”
Another time, if he were talking with his buddy Dr. Chase over a beer, he would have denied that sort of awkward accusation and attempted to smooth things over. But Jason had to accept the reality of the situation they were in, and that he wasn’t the same Eddy anymore. And it was true. “Not after what you did to that guard, no. I can’t trust your judgement anymore. Not the way I need to in this situation.”