The Project Eden Thrillers Box Set 2: Books 4 - 6 (Ashes, Eden Rising, & Dream Sky)

by Brett Battles

  “No sniffles? Fever?” he asked. “You don’t feel tired?”

  “No change means no change, Robert. I feel fine. Can we talk about something else?”

  “Uh, sure. What do you want to talk about?”

  “I don’t care. Anything.”

  Robert was saved from having to come up with a subject by Estella’s arrival.

  “Pax would like to talk to you,” she said.

  “About what?”

  She shrugged. “He was on the phone to his people, then he wanted you. That is all I know.”

  “Hey, you still there?” Renee asked.

  “Go,” Estella said. “I will keep her company.”

  Robert found Pax across the room. “You were looking for me?”

  Pax nodded toward the buffer room and headed over. The area next to it was a quiet place to meet, most people not wanting to get so close to what was right on the other side.

  “The arrangements are set,” Pax said. “But we’ve got a bit of a time crunch so we need to start getting things moving.”

  The island—coated now with the virus—was no longer a safe place to stay, even for the inoculated, so Pax had been working on a way to get them all off.

  “When will the planes be here?” Robert asked.

  “That’s part of the problem. They can’t come here exactly. If we had enough seaplanes, maybe, but with only one or two, it would take far too long to get everyone off. They’re sending a passenger jet. It’ll land at the airport over in Limón tonight. So that means we have to get ourselves over there.”

  “But we don’t have enough boats,” Robert said. The resort had only a few speedboats and some diving boats. “Even if we overloaded them, it’ll take at least two trips to get everyone across. And if the water’s at all rough, I don’t want to think about how dangerous that’ll be.”

  “We’ll take them all at once,” Pax said.

  “And how the hell are we supposed to do that?”

  “A ferry.”

  “But the ferry is at the coast.”

  “Which is why,” Pax said, “you and I are going to go get it.”

  “WE’LL BLOW THE horn as soon as we reach the bay,” Robert said after he explained to everyone what he and Pax were going to do. “That’ll be your signal to head for the dock. Until then, stay in here.”

  “Are you sure it’s okay to leave?” someone asked.

  “Renee has shown no signs of the flu,” Robert said.

  “Doesn’t mean she won’t,” someone else countered.

  “What about our stuff?” a man near the back asked. “Do we grab that on our way out?”

  “If there is something vital you need to bring, then you can get it. But no suitcases, no clothes, nothing bulky. They’ll take up too much room.”

  “What’s the hurry?” a woman asked. “Isn’t it safer if we just stay here?”

  “I’ll take this one,” Pax said. He stepped forward. “In all likelihood, your system is now as immune to the Sage Flu as it’s going to get. So, from that point of view, staying in here or leaving would be the same.”

  “Are you a doctor?”

  “No, I’m not.”

  “Then how can you know that?”

  “Because I’ve been dealing with this a lot longer than you.” His words came out sympathetic, but firm. “There is a very good reason not to stay here, though. The people from Project Eden will be back soon. It’s a pattern my people have seen elsewhere. They’re going to want to make sure the disease they dumped on the resort took hold. They’ll expect to see a quiet island with perhaps a few bodies spread around. If they don’t, they’ll very likely send in a squad of armed personnel to see what happened. From our observations, this can take place anytime from now through the next few days. So, no, it’s not safe. And, yes, we are in a hurry.”

  Several people shouted at once.

  “Listen to me,” Pax said loudly enough to cut through the clatter. “I would love to stand around and answer all of your questions, but every minute Robert and I delay our departure is another minute closer to their return. You can argue all you want with each other, but we’re leaving now.”

  He started toward the buffer room. Robert stood there a moment longer, feeling the need to reassure everyone.

  “Are you coming?” Pax asked, looking back from halfway across the room.

  Robert turned to the group of residents. “We’ll be back as quickly as we can,” he said, then headed after Pax.

  Two steps into the crowd he felt a hand on his arm.

  “Be careful,” Estella whispered. She kissed him on the cheek before letting go.

  “Make sure everyone’s ready,” he said.

  “I will.”

  He doubled his pace and met Pax at the plastic flap that served as the buffer’s door.

  “They’ll be fine,” Pax said, giving him a reassuring smile.

  “I know.”

  The older man pulled the flap back enough to duck through. As soon as the way was clear, Robert followed.

  Renee was waiting for them as they stepped outside. “What the hell is going on? I could hear people shouting, but I couldn’t hear what anyone was saying.”

  Robert quickly explained the plan.

  “You’re taking me with you, right?” she said.

  “One of us has to stay here,” he said. As she opened her mouth to argue, he added, “If we don’t come back, you need to use what we have here and get everyone off, no matter how many trips it takes.”

  She frowned as she closed her mouth, but didn’t fight him.

  “Keep an eye out for us,” Robert said. “If you see us coming before we get into the bay, you can get the others started.”

  She shook her head. “I make the sacrifice, you get the glory. Typical.”

  He winked at her. “I’ll make sure they put an asterisk by your name in the history books.”

  “Get out of here before I throw you off the deck.”

  Heading down the stairs, Robert couldn’t miss the spots of residue along the railings and on the steps. He wanted to pull away from them but the gunk was everywhere.

  When they reached the sand, he moved in front of Pax and led them down the path to the dock. One speedboat was tied to a buoy in the bay, while the other—Robert’s preferred boat—was at the dock.

  While he started the engine, Pax untied the mooring ropes, and within moments they were moving across the bay toward the channel that led to the sea.

  “How long is it going to take?” Pax asked.

  “In this, not more than an hour, less if the sea’s calm.”

  He slowed as they turned into the channel, and slowed again as they exited the other side. The sea was choppy but not too bad. He didn’t open the engine all they way up, though, until they circled around to the side of the island that faced Costa Rica.

  “You might want to hang on,” he said, and then pushed the throttle forward.

  THE TOWN OF Limón was located on a little bump of land along the Caribbean side of Costa Rica. With the exception of a few scattered villages, it was the only real civilization on the country’s entire eastern seaboard, and the only place able to accommodate the ferry that had shuttled guests to and from Isabella Island.

  The first indication that Robert and Pax were getting close was the sight of red and white antenna towers peeking above the horizon. Soon after, the buildings that crowded the coast came into view. From the sea, the town looked to Robert like it always did. It wasn’t until he and Pax were closer that he could see the roads were empty and there were no people about.

  Robert tried not to think about it as he guided the boat around the southern end of the land bump to where the main port was located. As soon as it came into view, he stared in surprise.

  Limón had always been a stop for cruise ships touring the Caribbean. In the past, Robert had never seen more than one docked at the pier at a time, each ship usually staying only a few hours before heading back to sea. Now, however,
three giant vessels were in the harbor—two on either side of the main pier, and the third tied to the ship on the east side.

  Robert wondered if the flu had broken out on board the ships first, or if the vessels had rushed to shore upon hearing news of the outbreak. As the speedboat neared the docks, he was able to get a better look at the third ship. It appeared it hadn’t pulled up next to the other one, but had crashed against it, buckling metal and scraping off long streaks of paint. He could see hastily rigged gangways between the two vessels, apparently so that passengers could cross onto the ship at the pier and then to shore.

  Jesus. They must have been in full-on panic.

  “Where’s the ferry?” Pax asked.

  The haphazardly docked third ship was blocking their view of the dock where the Albino Mer was normally tied up.

  “Should be on the other side,” Robert said, hoping the bigger vessel hadn’t clipped the ferry, too. If so, the Albino Mer wouldn’t have suffered a few dents and some lost paint. It would be on the harbor floor.

  He exhaled a deep, long sigh of relief as they came around and saw the Albino Mer tied to the next dock, pretty as a picture.

  He maneuvered alongside it, and after their boat was tied to the ferry, they climbed on board. First stop was the engine, accessed through floor panels near the rear of the boat, where Robert checked the tank.

  “Almost empty,” he said. “It don’t think there’s enough to make it back.”

  “Where do we fill up?” Pax asked.

  Robert stood up and scanned the port. “I’m not sure. I never even thought about it before.”

  “I don’t see any pumping stations.”

  “Me, neither. But they had to fill up all the time so there’s got to be a way.”

  They hurried down the dock to shore and took another look around.

  Robert’s gaze stopped on a pickup truck with a large tank permanently affixed to its bed. It was parked in the shadows, next to one of the buildings fronting the piers. He pointed and said, “Maybe that.”

  As they jogged over, they were enveloped by the strong smell of fuel before they reached the truck. A quick peek into the top of the tank showed it was nearly full.

  They found the vehicle’s keys under the front seat. Its engine wasn’t happy about being started again, but after a few sputters, it rumbled to life.

  “How long’s the trip back going to take us?” Pax asked as they drove toward the ferry

  “About twice as long as the speedboat took, give or take.”

  Pax frowned. “By the time we get to the island, get everyone on board, and head back, it’s going to be close to sundown. I had hoped to locate a few buses before we returned so they’d be here waiting, but that’ll waste even more time.”

  Robert slowed as he turned onto the pier. When they were as close as they could get to the boat’s engine, he engaged the parking brake and turned off the truck.

  “It’ll take me at least fifteen minutes to fill up,” he said. “Gotta be some buses parked nearby, if you want to take a quick look.”

  “Not a bad idea.”

  While Robert ran the fuel line to the ship’s tank, Pax jogged back to shore. The next time Robert looked up, Pax had just reached the buildings and within seconds disappeared between them.

  Robert opened the valve and let the fuel flow out. As the ferry’s tank filled, he entered the covered passenger section and walked over to the small corner that served as the snack bar. There he found a couple dozen Cokes in a cooler. The ice that had kept them cold was now a puddle of water at the bottom. He grabbed a can and popped the top. The liquid was lukewarm—not ideal, but drinkable. From under the counter, he snagged a bag of spicy chips and a chocolate bar and headed back to the tank.

  A few more minutes passed before he heard the fuel sloshing near the top. He backed the valve down, slowing the flow, and cut it off completely as the tank reached its maximum. The ferry had more than enough fuel now to get them to the island and back and then some.

  Once he recoiled the hose onto the back of the truck, he moved down the pier toward shore, searching for Pax, but except for a few birds, the area was empty. He checked his watch. The fifteen minutes he had given Pax were verging on twenty.

  He walked to the end of the pier, cupped his mouth, and yelled, “Pax!”

  Several of the birds fluttered into the air.

  “Pax!”

  Surely Pax wouldn’t be so far away that he couldn’t hear Robert. He was the one wanting to leave for the island right away after all.

  “Pax! We’re ready to go!”

  He scanned the buildings and roads that ran in front of the docks, but he was the only one there.

  What if Pax had been hurt? Maybe twisted an ankle or something and was having a hard time getting back?

  Robert tried to remember the exact buildings Pax had passed between. He crossed over to them and entered the passageway.

  “Pax!”

  Receiving no response, he raced out the other end and didn’t pause until he reached the edge of a four-lane divided road. He checked both ways for movement, but saw none.

  What the hell? Pax shouldn’t have gone any farther than this.

  “Pax! Shout if you can hear me!”

  Not a damn thing.

  He decided to cross the road and keep going north for a few blocks. If that didn’t work, he’d try east and west.

  “Pax! Can you hear me? Pax!”

  All remained silent, until he neared the point where he’d planned to turn back.

  It wasn’t a voice he heard, not even something rapping against the ground to get his attention. It was an engine, and by the sound of it, one belonging to a large vehicle, like a…

  …bus.

  Relieved, he started jogging back down the street. He was still a good half block from the divided road when a tour bus came speeding through the intersection. He slowed, surprised. While he had clearly seen Pax behind the wheel, the older man had not been alone.

  The people Pax worked with must’ve shown up early, Robert decided.

  He sprinted back to the buildings in front of the port, and reached the ocean-side corner of the passageway moments after the bus pulled to a stop. He was just about to step into the clear when the vehicle’s door opened and Pax stumbled out.

  Robert paused, still mostly hidden behind the building.

  The second person to exit was a man carrying a rifle. He shoved the weapon’s stock into Pax’s back, prodding him forward. Four more people piled off—two men and two women. The men and the younger woman were similarly armed.

  They had a desperate look to them as they conferenced at the end of the dock. The talk seemed heated, one of the men gesturing angrily at Pax. Then a man and the armed woman ran down the dock and disappeared onto the ferry. Robert could see them moving quickly through the boat, and knew they had to have been looking for him. When they returned to where the others waited, the man shook his head and the woman said something.

  The guy who’d shoved Pax shouted a curse and turned Pax away from the water, not quite angled at Robert, but close enough.

  “I know you’re out there!” the man yelled. “I saw you and your buddy come in! So you might as well show yourself.”

  Robert didn’t move.

  “Here’s the thing,” the man continued after a moment. “We’re taking your boat. Now your friend says he can drive it for us, but you were the one behind the wheel of the one you two came in on, so I’m thinking you’re the pilot. Or captain. Whatever. I think your buddy here is useless. So, unless you want to watch me kill him, I need to see you walking over here.”

  What the hell was wrong with these people? They didn’t look sick. Shouldn’t they have been happy to find others alive?

  “Thirty seconds,” the man announced, “or I swear to God I will shoot him in the back of the head, and we’ll try to figure out how to sail this thing ourselves.”

  “I told you I can do it,” Pax said, his voice not quit
e as loud as the other man’s. “My friend’s long gone by now. He’s not coming back.”

  “Is that right?” The response was yelled so Robert could hear it. “You the kind of person who will just leave your friend to die?”

  Robert didn’t know what to do. He didn’t want Pax to get hurt, but who was to say these people wouldn’t kill both him and Pax if he did as they asked? Robert’s main responsibility was to those still on Isabella Island. Without him, they would never get off. Of course, without the ferry, getting everyone to the mainland would become infinitely harder.

  “Goddammit! Where the hell are you?” the man screamed. He grabbed the back of Pax’s shirt and shoved the end of the rifle into Pax’s neck. “I’m fucking serious! Show yourself!”

  One of the man’s companions came up and said something Robert couldn’t make out.

  “I know what I’m doing!” the agitated man shouted. “I know what I’m doing!”

  “I can pilot the boat for you,” Pax said, his voice surprisingly even.

  “Jacob, his buddy’s obviously not coming back,” the man who’d walked up said, his voice louder now. “We need to let this one try. What other choice do we have?”

  “Come on! Where are you?” the man holding the rifle—Jacob—yelled.

  “Let’s just go,” the other man said. “He’s not coming. We’re wasting time.”

  Jacob grunted in frustration and then lowered his rifle. After twisting Pax around, another conversation ensued, again too low for Robert to hear. When it ended, Jacob shoved Pax toward the Albino Mer.

  The only time in his life Robert had felt more helpless was when he realized Dominic had contracted the Sage Flu. From his hiding spot, he watched as Jacob led Pax onto the boat, while the other four retrieved several suitcases from the bus and carried them to the ferry.

  As the two women untied the lines holding the boat to the pier, the engine kicked to life. For a few moments, the Albino Mer simply drifted in place. Finally, the rumble of the motor increased and the ferry pulled slowly away.