Survival in Style

by Emily Asad

  Chapter 13: Enemy

  Dead Island Lake presented itself when we reached the top of a high hilltop. It was easy to see where it got its name: an island rose out of the water at one end of the lake, full of white tree skeletons. It looked enormous.

  “We made it!” I exclaimed.

  Tony gave a half-smile. “Almost, right?”

  “I’m so thirsty,” I said. “Gotta say I’m a little nervous about drinking straight lake water without any purification tablets.”

  He recited the directions as if still committing them to memory. “Head to the southernmost point and then head west. Then it’s a day’s hike.” He glanced at my ankle. “Make that two days.”

  “Give me some credit,” I said. “I haven’t fainted on you yet.”

  “No, but you came close back there.”

  “Nothing that some water can’t fix. Come on.” I didn’t tell him that I was planning a quick nap when we got there - after drenching myself in water, of course.

  As we approached the banks, we saw a hawk dip down and snag a large fish with its talons.

  “Hey, let me have your earring,” Tony said. “Let’s see if your dad’s fishing lures really work.”

  My hands flew to my ear so I could unfasten the lure. “We’re going fishing? Won’t they rot by the time we cook them tonight?”

  “I doubt it. Then again, we probably won’t catch anything, so what’s the harm? If we get lucky, you can tell your dad. Besides, once we get to Otter Paw, we won’t see each other again.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “And all you want before we part ways forever is to see my earring?”

  He blushed - a true bright red that crept all the way up into his hairline. “Actually, I want something else... but I don’t know if you’d give it to me.”

  I held the earring out to him. He took my hand instead. Then he stepped in for a kiss. He was so close that I could feel his breath on my face.

  “No fair,” I murmured. “I’m crippled. I can’t run away.”

  “Do you want to?”

  I hesitated, considering. “Not really.”

  He put his arm around my waist and drew me even closer, but it was my decision to raise my lips up to meet his. My first kiss was brief, exciting, tender and strong all in one split second.

  He caressed my jaw with his hand before breaking contact. “There,” he said. “If I die tomorrow, nobody can take that away from me.”

  I giggled, dizzy, but not from pain. “That’s so morbid, Tony.”

  He released my hand. As soon as he did, though, the earring dropped and slid into a crack in the rocks below us. “Oops.” He stooped to get the earring. It fell underneath the rocky ledge so that he had to shove his hand into the crevice to reach it.

  A rattling sound filled the air. Just as I located the source, Tony jerked and withdrew his hand. It was bleeding - punctured by two small fangs.

  He stared at it, not realizing what happened.

  I tugged him backward as hard as I could, away from the large brown rattlesnake that sat under the outcrop, poised to strike again.

  We both ran away until we stood on the banks of the lake, where I yanked him to a stop. “You need to lie down and stay calm. Walking or moving makes the heart pump faster.”

  “Snakebite,” he said, staring at his hand. “Rattlesnake, pretty venomous. They make a pretty decent stew, supposedly.” His voice was oddly empty of any emotion. He was just stating facts.

  “Tony. Sit down. Help me think what to do. What else?”

  “What else,” he repeated. “What else.” He went hysterical. “What else? I’m going to die! That’s what else. It’s fate. Why else would life be trying so hard to kill me?”

  I pushed him to the ground, hard. “Stop that right now. Stay calm, do you hear me? Stop that or I’ll... smack you.” It was a lame threat, but it seemed to work.

  He laid flat on the ground, a terrified expression on his face.

  “Look,” I continued, “we need to keep your head below your heart level, right? Or was it level with your heart? I don’t remember. I wish I had paid more attention in health class!”

  “Hey, you’re babbling.” He reached over and patted my hand. “Let’s be logical about this. You should leave now, get to Otter Paw before you starve to death. You’re strong enough if you use your walking stick and go real slow...”

  “Shut up.” I put a finger on his lips. “I’m not going anywhere without you.”

  “You can’t stay and watch me die. I’ve heard about snake bites. They’re not pretty. First I’m going to swell up, then I’ll vomit all over you, and then I’ll be paralyzed before I fall asleep and never wake up again. Go, Alana. Don’t stay here.”

  “I’m not leaving,” I repeated. “Help me with this. Is there something I’m supposed to do now? Cut your punctures, suck the venom? Apply a tourniquet?”

  “No, no. Just go away.”

  “Stop it.” I propped his head on my lap. My tears splashed onto his face, making him blink. “If only we had a flare or something.”

  “Who’d be looking? Unless it was Nelson, and we don’t want his attention.” He tapped on my belt. “Give me the blow dart.”

  “No way. We don’t know if it’s a tranquilizer or poison. I won’t risk that.”

  “It’s my choice. I choose, Alana. I won’t stay here and die a slow and agonizing death, especially if it means keeping you here when you could be on your way to freedom.”

  “So you’re seriously thinking about killing yourself, Tony Wexler? After all this time and all the talk about surviving and planning for the future and everything? So you’re a liar, then?” I burst into tears.

  His face turned to stone, as if he wasn’t even aware of me.

  With a trembling hand, I pressed the loaded tube into Tony’s hand. “I don’t know what I’d do if I were in your situation,” I admitted, “but please don’t do anything yet. Please? Just give me a chance to see if I can find some help.”

  His knuckles turned white when he closed his fingers. “What’s the point? We’ve been avoiding attention all this time, and now you want to bring it here?”

  “Well, if you’re going to look for worst-case scenarios, then let’s assume that all of Otter Paw has been bribed, too. There’s no sense in pressing forward then. We may as well both of us just sit here and die.” Angry, I tromped toward the rattlesnake’s crevice. “How about I just stick my hand in there, too, so we can both die together?”

  “Don’t be crazy,” Tony said, sitting up.

  “You’re the one who’s crazy.” I hid my face in my hands for a minute, not brave enough to get any closer and let the snake bite me. I turned around to face him. “I don’t want to die, Tony. You might, but I don’t.”

  The empty white trees haunted me with their deathly beauty. Too bad there wasn’t a bridge connecting our shore to the island; the dry wood would have made easy material for tonight’s campfire. Campfire? What about a bonfire?

  “Tony! What if I were to light the entire island on fire? That would bring an entire team of rangers. You heard Nelson yourself - he said he was so good, he could assemble a team in less than half an hour. That would solve two of your problems, don’t you see? First, there would be a bunch of people showing up, not just him. Drosnin can’t possibly know who all would come here to fight the fire, so they can’t all be bribed. And second, time is precious with snakebites. We can get you to the hospital before the venom takes hold!”

  He blinked at me, afraid to hope. “It’s a risk.”

  “That’s okay.”

  “How do you plan to get out there? Swim?”

  I nearly jumped up and down like a little kid. “Check it out. See the dock on the island? There’s another one over there, right up the shore. I can’t see one, but I bet there’s a boat. I mean, do you see any roads around here? How could anyone haul a boat up here? I bet it’s a community boat - you use it and put it back.”

  “And if there’s no
boat, you’ll be wrong and I’ll be dead.”

  I gulped. “Let me go find out.”

  His bitten hand had already begun to swell. He kept it clenched, as if he were holding something inside. His other hand squeezed the blow dart. He glanced back and forth from hand to hand. “Do it,” he said, giving me the blow dart. “I’ll wait until you get back.”