Into the Blue

by Robin Huber

  He nods thoughtfully and then puts his hand on the counter beside me and says gently, “That’s only because you don’t know how to use one. You need to learn.”

  “Why do I need to learn how to use a gun when I have a built-in bodyguard following me everywhere I go?” I narrow my eyes at him playfully.

  He leans in close and says seriously, “I won’t always be around, Makayla. You need to learn to defend yourself.”

  His comment not only disappoints me, it fills me with trepidation.

  “Okay,” I say, reluctantly accepting the inevitable fact.

  “Here, Makayla, try these on,” Jason says, walking back in and handing me a pair of boots and socks.

  I sit down on the terracotta tiles and lace them up, which takes me much longer than it should. They’re a little big, but I tie them tight.

  Dr. H walks into the kitchen. “How are you feeling?” he asks, evaluating me from across the room. “Any soreness?”

  I stand up with only a little more effort than normal. “Not really. I feel pretty good. Better every day.”

  “Well, you’re in for a real treat today,” he says, smiling. “Be sure to keep your eyes out for the toucans and the howler monkeys.”

  “Okay.”

  “And let us know if you need to take a break.”

  “I will.”

  “You’re going to love it,” Mia says, walking in with Adam, who’s dressed a lot like Kellan. “It’s a protected forest, completely pristine.”

  Grant, the last one to join, is wearing similar attire and donning as many weapons. But his dark red hair and thick beard make him look more fierce—like a Viking warrior ready for battle. It both eases and unsettles me at once.

  “We’re hoping to get samples from the fuemigueña plant today,” Jason says.

  “The fue-ma-who-what?”

  He laughs. “Fuemigueña. It’s kind of a shrub of a plant with really big leaves. It’s been used in bush-medicine for centuries. It has red, spikey fruit on it, so it’s pretty easy to spot, but they grow sporadically throughout the forest. Sometimes we won’t see one for a mile.”

  “A mile?”

  “It’s easier than it sounds. The forest sort of pulls you in. It’s easy to get lost in its splendor.”

  My eyes light up as I listen to him. He makes it sound so majestic. “Can we go now?”

  Kellan’s shoving things into his backpack, but I can see him smiling.

  “After you,” Jason says.

  We pile into two Jeeps and drive along the same road that Kellan and I took to the waterfall yesterday, except this time we drive much farther. Once we get around the cliffs, I kick my feet up and take in the new scenery, happy to feel the sun on my face, which, like the rest of me, is already covered in sunscreen.

  “Isn’t this great?” Mia shouts from the back seat. “Wooo!” she squeals, throwing her hands in the air, letting the wind blow against them. Her enthusiasm is contagious.

  Jason lets out a loud yelp and I follow with one of my own.

  Kellan laughs, but leaves the shouting to us, although our calls are met with a few shouts from the other Jeep. Adam and Dr. H, no doubt. Though, the thought of Grant whooping it up makes me giggle.

  We eventually make our way to a valley in between two mountain peaks. There’s no view of the ocean, but it’s breathtakingly beautiful. The valley stretches for what looks like a mile in all directions and is covered in soft green grass with only the occasional cluster of low-lying shrubs and trees. On either side of the valley stand two sloping green mountain peaks that are covered in lush tropical trees and plants. Gray clouds roll in the distance, blocking the sun, and the mix of dark colors in the sky is a beautiful contrast to the green mountains below. As we drive across the valley, I realize that the grass is higher than the tires. I look over at the other Jeep and then back out at the valley that surrounds us, and I’m reminded of scenes from Jurassic Park. I giggle to myself, imagining a giant T-Rex running out at us at any moment.

  As we near the other side of the valley, the space between the base of the two peaks grows wider and I can see a blanket of thick trees and plants that stretch between them. I can’t help but feel a little intimidated as the Jeep comes to a stop and I realize we’ll be trekking through this jungle.

  Kellan turns off the engine and stands up, crossing his arms over the top of the windshield. “This is it.”

  Jason and Mia climb out of the back and start making their way through the high grass. “Come on,” Mia shouts.

  Kellan circles the jeep and holds me by my hips as I jump down into the tall grass. It tickles my legs as we walk through it, but it tapers off as we make our way to the edge of the rocky green slope. Grant takes the lead as we edge into the forest and Adam flanks the group to the left. Kellan and I trail behind them. Everything is covered in fine green moss for as far as I can see. We carefully make our way over green rocks and walk under a canopy of trees that stand at least fifty feet high. Above that canopy, another layer of trees stands even higher. I gaze up at them as we walk, trying to see patches of sky through the layers of green. Kellan has to keep reminding me to look down, so that I don’t trip over a tree root. I understand what Jason was talking about now. I’m completely entranced.

  As we move deeper into the forest, the sky disappears completely, replaced by layer upon layer of illuminated shades of green. Light and shadows move as we move, glistening off water droplets that bead on the wide leaves of the tropical plants that surround us.

  I pause and take it all in. The leafcutter ants that are climbing up the woody vine that’s wrapped around the tree next to me, the yellow moth that flutters over my shoulder, the exotic calls from the birds and monkeys that live in the trees above us, the sound of rushing water somewhere in the distance. The forest is so...alive. The grandeur of it all is overwhelming. I close my eyes and take a deep breath. I even love the smell of it. It’s earthy and wet. I hear the faint sound of thunder in the distance and hope it will bring rain our way, not only to cool us off, but to provide the full embodiment of the rainforest.

  “Makayla? Are you okay?” Kellan says quietly from behind me.

  I turn around and look up at him. “I’m better than okay. I’m overwhelmed, but in the best possible way.” I close my eyes and exhale a cathartic breath. I smile when raindrops begin to fall through the trees above us and I open my eyes.

  “We should stay with the group,” he says, but I don’t move. I just need a few more seconds to enjoy this moment. I watch each raindrop dampen his hair and roll down his flushed cheeks, until the air changes between us.

  “Okay,” I say softly, but neither of us move until thunder rumbles loudly above us and the rain falls harder, making it impossible to ignore.

  “What now?” I ask, glancing up at the falling rain.

  He looks around and I see that we’re now separated from the group. “This way,” he says, urging me in front of him.

  My wet hair falls against my face, twisting into dark gold strands, and ribbons of water stream down my legs, soaking my socks and boots as we run, looking for shelter. The lush forest thrashes all around us and I have to watch my footing, careful not to trip over the rocks and exposed tree roots that stretch along the forest floor. I’m also careful not to strain my recently healed abdomen. Kellan pulls his shirt off to try to shield us from the rain and the forest fades to a green blur behind him. All I see is him. His black hair, darkened by the water dripping from it, the strands all twisted together. His dark wet eyelashes, contrasting his clear blue eyes. The rain running in streams down his tan chest and stomach.

  “There,” he says, pointing to a shallow cave that’s covered by a few small trees. We stumble into the shelter holding onto each other, and when we stop I’m pressed between him and the stone wall. He towers over me and his warm, wet body covers mine. His hips are pressed against me and I can feel his heated skin through my wet shirt.

  Suddenly, without warning, I feel it—the inky blac
k pulsing through my veins with no way for me to stop it. I close my eyes and try to fight it, but the blurry memories come to me in sickening flashes. I struggle against him and scrape my elbow on the stone wall behind me, until I hear Kellan saying my name.

  “Makayla, it’s okay. You’re okay.”

  I open my eyes and see him standing several inches away from me. His familiar eyes are filled with worry and he has a tortured look on his face that makes me want to cry. I shake my head and tears leak onto my face, mixing with the rain dripping from my hair. “I’m sorry.”

  He takes a guarded step toward me and I meet him half way, closing the space between us. “I’m sorry,” he says, low and soft. “I wasn’t thinking. I’ll be more careful.”

  I raise my hand to his stomach and tentatively press my fingers to his heated skin, feeling only safety and warmth now. “You shouldn’t have to be.”

  His jaw clenches tight and the tiny muscles flex where it hinges.

  “You’re not the cause of my pain, Kellan. You’re the cure,” I whisper.

  Water drips down his sculpted nose to his parted lips and a drop falls onto my face, tracing my mouth. I press my lips together to catch it and see a storm raging behind his piercing blue eyes that puts a new charge in the air between us.

  “If you’re done, the rest of the group is waiting,” Grant says, startling me.

  Kellan turns around and gives him a hard look. “We’ll be right there.”

  Grant shakes his head and turns to walk away. “Didn’t even hear me walk up,” he says exasperated, running his hand through his wet hair as he leaves.

  Kellan drops his head and looks for his shirt, wringing the water from it when he picks it up off the ground. He puts it back on and it clings to his chest and stomach. “You okay?” he asks me, and I consider my throbbing elbow...and heart.

  No. I swallow hard and nod.

  “Come on,” he says, and I force my wobbly legs to move.

  I stretch my arm out and turn it over to inspect my self-inflicted injury.

  “You’re bleeding,” Kellan says, stopping to look at my elbow. He gives me a worried look.

  “You didn’t do it,” I assure him. “I did.”

  “Because of me.”

  “There you guys are,” Mia says, stumbling between two elephant ear plants that are bigger than her. Kellan and I look up and watch her bat the leaves out of the way. “What happened to you?”

  “We just ran for cover when it started raining,” I explain, wondering what Grant told her.

  “So did we.” She glances over her shoulder at Jason. “I take it you were about as successful as we were.” She grabs the bottom of her shirt and wrings the water from it.

  “Yeah.” I glance up at Kellan, who has an unreadable expression on his face.

  “Are you bleeding?” she asks, eyeing my arm.

  “Yeah, I banged my elbow.”

  “On what?”

  “A stone wall,” I say, keeping my eyes off Kellan, who I can feel looking at me.

  “What’s this?” Dr. H asks, walking up with Adam and Grant.

  “It’s just a scrape. It’s nothing,” I assure him.

  He holds his hand out and I offer my arm, which he carefully inspects. He looks up at me and says seriously, “Nothing can turn into something quickly out here. Let’s get it cleaned up.”

  “Okay.”

  I wait patiently while he cleans and dresses my elbow with a small bandage.

  “I thought you were supposed to protect her,” I hear Grant say to Kellan. I don’t look up, but I hear Kellan curse at him under his breath.

  “All set,” Dr. H says with a smile.

  “Thanks.”

  “All right, let’s keep this train moving,” Adam says, taking the lead, and we follow behind him.

  As quickly as the storm came, it passed, leaving every tree, rock, and plant dripping with water. The sun casts rainbows on every beaded drop as we move deeper into the forest.

  Kellan has taken the lead with Adam, leaving me to wonder what they’re talking about and to arbitrate a lengthy discussion about apes and evolution. By the time we stop, Mia and Jason are arguing over Planet of the Apes.

  “What!” Jason exclaims. “You’ve got to be kidding me. You can’t possibly think that the remake is better than the original!” He throws his hands against his head in disgust.

  “Hello? Mark Wahlberg.” Mia raises her eyebrows. “Need I say more?”

  Jason rolls his eyes. “No, Mia. You don’t need to say anything more.”

  “Look!” Mia says, dropping to her knees. She shrugs out of her backpack and hovers over a leafy plant that’s been flattened to the ground.

  Jason kneels beside her. “It’s destroyed.” He stands up holding a stem of the crushed plant in his hand, rubbing some sort of red residue between his fingers. “Fuemigueña. What’s left of it anyway.”

  Kellan steps around them, eyeing the dilapidated plant. “An animal maybe?”

  “No,” Jason says, shaking his head. “They won’t come near it. It’s too toxic.”

  “Then why are you touching it?” I ask.

  “It’s only poisonous if it’s ingested.”

  “We’ll find more. We just have to keep looking,” Dr. H encourages.

  “If it wasn’t an animal, what was it?” I ask Kellan, who’s still inspecting the area around it.

  “Not what. Who,” Grant says, and my skin pricks with concern.

  “Don’t worry,” Kellan says softly to me. “It was probably one of the locals.”

  “Why would a local destroy it?”

  “Because not all of them are happy about us being here,” Grant says, and Kellan gives him a firm look.

  “It’s not uncommon,” Dr. H assures me. “This is their home and the land is sacred to them. It’s something we always take into account on expeditions. But as long as we’re respectful of the indigenous people, most of the time they are very friendly. We’ve spent a lot of time at the village here and I assure you, most of the locals are very welcoming. You’ll get a chance to meet them soon.” He gives me a warm smile, but it doesn’t settle me.

  “Come on,” Kellan says, offering his hand, which I grip tightly as we follow behind the group.

  We spend the rest of the day exploring the forest, looking for more of the toxic plants. It’s an endless sea of green in every direction. Moss-covered rocks, ferns, rain trees, elephant ears, banana trees, and a thousand other tropical-looking plants that I can’t name fill the view. There’s also an endless supply of insects. I stop counting after the tenth spider sighting. Mia hates spiders and Jason takes the opportunity to taunt her whenever we see one. I, however, am much more wary of the snakes, poisonous frogs, and disgruntled locals.

  We eventually dry out and pile back into the Jeeps with three samples of the Fuemigueña plant. And as we make our way back across the grassy valley, I watch the majestic forest fade into a blanket of dark green between the two mountain peaks behind us.

  Chapter 9

  Makayla

  I step into the hallway and find Kellan leaning against the wall outside my bedroom door with a duffle bag slung over his shoulder and a cup of coffee in his other hand. He hands me the cup and I raise a curious eyebrow as I take a sip.

  “What’s in the bag?”

  “Guns.”

  “Plural?”

  “It’s time for your lesson.”

  I sip my coffee and think of all the reasons I need to learn how to protect myself. As if a drug cartel, diverting traffickers, and a corrupt businessman weren’t enough, now I have rogue locals to worry about.

  “I think it might help,” he adds, giving me a knowing look, and I think of the episode I had yesterday when he was pressed against me in the rain.

  I finish my coffee and follow him outside.

  He leads me to a nearby clearing where a large piece of plywood is sticking up out of the ground with a black target painted in the middle of it. I exhale an appreh
ensive breath as Kellan drops the duffle bag and retrieves a gun from it. I eye it cautiously. It looks like some sort of handgun.

  “This is a pistol,” he says, holding it in his palm for me to see.

  I nod and watch him turn it over.

  He shows me the safety and the magazine and other various parts of the gun. “You can watch me first.” He hands me two small earplugs. “You’ll need these.”

  I push the earplugs in and take a few steps back.

  He stands with his feet slightly apart and his arms outstretched in front of him as he grips the gun with both hands. He aims at the target and squeezes the trigger, creating a loud blast that rings in my ears, even with the earplugs. He fires the gun two more times, then nods for me to come over.

  I walk over to him, feeling butterflies in my stomach, but not the good kind. “Kellan, I’m nervous,” I admit.

  “I’ll be right here. But I’m going to have to put my hands on you to keep you steady, okay?” I nod and he places his hand on my waist and positions me in front of him. “Just relax,” he says softly against my ear. “Just breathe.” If he’s trying to calm me down, he’s going about it the wrong way. His warm breath falls on my cheek, forcing my eyes closed. “I’m going to move my hands now.” He raises his hands to my shoulders and slides them down my arms, then he slowly raises my hands out in front of me.

  “Kellan,” I whisper, shaking my head.

  “Open your eyes.”

  I open my eyes as he cradles his arms around me and places the gun in my hands. He wraps my right hand around the handle of the gun and cups my left hand underneath it. “Hold it tight. Lock your arms.”

  “Kellan, I–”

  “You can do this. I’m right here,” he says calmly against my ear. “When you’re ready, I want you to squeeze the trigger.”

  I drop my chin and look at the ground beneath my feet.

  “I know it’s hard, but I want you to think of the men who hurt you.”

  I lift my head and stare at the target in front of me. I think of Marc Spencer. And Santiago Quintero. I think of what he did to me...what he still does to me each time the darkness resurfaces. I think of Jessica. They threw her body on the ground like she was nothing. I’m suddenly overwhelmed with anger that brings tears to my eyes. They leak onto my face as I squeeze the trigger. It lets out a loud blast and the force kicks my arms up, pushing me back against Kellan’s chest, but he holds my arms in place and I squeeze the trigger again. And again...and again...until all the bullets are gone.