by Mills, Lisa
The sound of her tent flap unzipping drew his attention. She stepped out into the early morning light and lifted her arms over her head in a deep stretch. The scene reminded him of a butterfly emerging from a cocoon and stretching its wings in preparation for flight, only his butterfly had tousled hair and sleepy eyes.
“Morning, beautiful.”
She dropped into one of the canvas chairs, a slow smile spreading across her face. “Why do you insist on getting up so early?”
“Habit.” He figured the half-truth was safer than telling her that he enjoyed seeing her first thing in the morning, looking soft and vulnerable while sleep still had a hold on her. He wondered what it would be like waking up beside her every morning. Blissful, no doubt. But that sort of speculation was premature. They had a lot to learn about one another before he could consider an arrangement that included matching pillowcases. An explorer at heart, he intended to enjoy every moment of their journey.
She finger-combed her hair and rubbed her eyes, banishing the last traces of the morning look he admired. “How long is the drive to Santo Domingo?”
“Around five hundred kilometers. We’ll be on the road most of the day. I’m hoping we can make camp before nightfall. You riding with me this time?”
“Definitely. I don’t intend to get trapped with Raúl again. He can throw a fit if he wants, but it’s time he accepts that I’m not dating him anymore.”
“If he needs convincing, you’ll let me know, won’t you?” Manuel kept his tone light, but he couldn’t have been more serious. He’d held his feelings in check during the last month, knowing it wasn’t his place to interfere with Isabel’s private life. Now that she had invited him into her inner circle, he didn’t intend to let Raúl bully her.
“Raúl might be difficult to deal with, but I don’t think he’s going to give me any real trouble.” She slipped out of the chair and stood in front of him, resting her palms against his chest. “But thanks for sticking up for me. It feels good to know you’re there for me if I need you.”
Holding her close felt nice, and Manuel decided he might like to have a good morning kiss. He leaned toward her, but she dodged his advances and wiggled away from him.
“Not before I’ve brushed my teeth,” she laughed.
Smiling, he let her get away, confident he could collect from her later.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Isabel finished packing the last of her gear just as Raúl drove up. Grabbing the straps of the nylon case holding her tent, she toted it toward the waiting vehicles.
Raúl met her halfway. “Good morning, Isabel. Let me carry that for you.”
“Thanks, Raúl.” She handed it over and watched him hustle to the jeep.
The temperamental disdain that drove him from the camp days earlier had vanished, and he helped load supplies into the jeeps with more intensity than Manuel and Isabel combined. In addition, Isabel noted something in his appearance had changed. He looked as if he’d been drinking, but it was more than that. Perhaps a casual acquaintance wouldn’t notice the difference, but because they’d dated for months, Isabel saw the glint of fear in his bloodshot eyes. His features were set in hard, serious lines, making him seem drastically different from the carefree playboy she had dated.
The skin on her neck prickled with apprehension.
Catching her eyes on him, Raúl scrubbed his hand over his face, as if trying to erase the evidence of a night of heavy drinking. She’d known him to drink a glass of wine with dinner, but he’d never shown signs of bingeing, so why now? Had something or someone driven him to the bar, seeking a temporary escape?
The speculation frightened Isabel, and she hovered close to Manuel, drawing comfort from his presence. They made little conversation as they finished loading. Isabel climbed into the passenger seat of Manuel’s jeep, and they left the park with Raúl following in the other vehicle.
As miles of highway stretched out before them, Isabel tried to relax, told herself she was worrying without any real cause. Despite her internal admonitions, she couldn’t ignore her feeling that danger prowled the shadows, waiting for an opportune moment to strike.
Fourteen
The road to Santo Domingo led them under a swollen canopy of storm clouds. Traveling without the jeep’s canvas top and sides allowed a breeze to blow through the vehicle. The airflow warded off the tropical heat, but rain would cause problems. Too much water could damage some of the equipment they carried, and Manuel didn’t relish the idea of getting soaked. A roadside sign told him the next town lay only minutes away.
“Let’s stop here and zip the top on the jeep. We can take a restroom break and get a bite for lunch too.”
“Sounds good.” Isabel turned and waved at Raúl, signaling him to follow them off the highway.
The exit took them to a quaint town situated on the side of a mountain. Stucco buildings nestled into the rise of the landscape, each red-tiled roof standing slightly higher than the one before it. Bold lettering painted on the salmon-colored storefronts identified the wares of each shop. A colorful array of fruit decorated the doorway of the frutería, while clothes and housewares filled the windows of other stores.
Manuel spotted a street vendor and turned the car into a gravel parking lot. “Why don’t you see what kind of food that woman is selling while I find the top and zip it on?”
Isabel nodded and climbed out, moving slowly at first, no doubt working the stiffness out of her muscles.
In uncharacteristic compliance, Raúl climbed from his jeep and followed Manuel’s lead without comment. Manuel felt relief that, for once, Raúl didn’t criticize or question his leadership. In minutes, both jeeps were enclosed in canvas, and Isabel returned with beefsteak and egg sandwiches and bottled waters.
She smiled when she handed Manuel his lunch.
“Thanks, Isabel.” He leaned against the side of the jeep and unfolded the foil wrapping on his sandwich.
“’Welcome.”
She turned her back to give Raúl a sandwich, and Manuel wondered if she offered Raúl the same smile he’d received. A touch of envy plagued him whenever he saw her with her former beau. She had loved Raúl once. Maybe she still did. Knowing she had wasted months of devotion on a man who viewed her as nothing more than a trophy gouged at Manuel’s sense of decency. If he could, he would roll back time, give her the months she’d lost, love her the way she deserved. He wanted to erase Raúl from her life. Maybe then she would look at him in the starry-eyed way he’d seen her look at Raúl.
The sky thundered, echoing the rumble of jealousy in Manuel’s heart. He crumpled his sandwich wrapper and tossed it in a nearby trash bin. “Better eat fast. We need to keep traveling. This rain may slow us down, but we can still arrive at our destination by nightfall if we make steady progress.”
Isabel nodded and lifted her sandwich to her mouth, her eyes smiling at Manuel as she took a bite. He relaxed and felt the jealousy ease. She’d made her choice, walked away from Raúl’s manipulations and opened herself up to the possibility of a relationship.
But gaining her trust and her love would take time. With deadlines and responsibilities pressing in on his life, Manuel didn’t know if he could afford to wait.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Isabel snuggled into the bucket seat of the jeep, enjoying the relaxing patter of rain falling on the roof of the vehicle. Manuel sat beside her, his hands on the wheel and eyes on the road, seemingly content with the companionable silence. His presence comforted her, wrapped her in a cocoon of safety, removing the weight of problems and worries from her mind.
He had a quality about him that she’d grown to admire, a rock-like stability that anchored him and those around him. She wondered if his inner strength stemmed from his relationship with God. Manuel had never openly discussed his faith, but she saw him pray at meals. More importantly, she witnessed his character and integrity. If his life was any indication, he was firm in his convictions.
“Manuel, tell me about your faith in God.”
He shot her a crooked grin that made her heart do acrobatics.
“What is that smile about?” she asked.
“Your conversation starter. You’ve been quiet for an hour then you ask a deeply personal question like that.”
She realized how abrupt she must have sounded. “If you don’t want to talk about it, I understand.”
“I want to tell you, Isabel. You just surprised me. So what do you want to know?”
She thought for a moment, searching for a good starting place. “Do you go to church?”
“Every week. Sometimes more, depending on where I’m living and what my current schedule is like. Unfortunately, my career has prevented me from perfect attendance.”
“How long have you believed?”
He kept one hand on the wheel while the other stroked his mustache. “Hard to say. I think I always believed. My mother made sure we attended Mass every week and raised us with a healthy measure of reverence for God. Later, when I went to college, I hooked up with a Bible study group that helped me learn the value of having a relationship with God.”
Isabel liked his answer. It revealed his depth and maturity, but she still felt a need to probe his convictions in a few other areas. “How do you feel about fidelity?”
His expression suggested he’d expected the question. “I’m not like Raúl if that’s what you’re asking.” He paused, and Isabel thought she saw a blush creeping beneath his tan.
She couldn’t remember seeing him flustered before. “Manuel?”
He gave an embarrassed laugh. “I might as well be honest with you. If we start dating, we’ll talk about it sooner or later. Truth is, my experience with women has been pretty limited. I had a few experiences in high school that I’m not proud of, but after I joined the college study group, I recommitted to Christian dating principles. Since then, I’ve never dated more than one woman at a time and I’ve honored the boundaries God set out for male-female relationships.”
His statement washed over her like a warm ocean wave. In a country where men judged one another by their conquests, finding a man like Manuel was rare. No. More than rare—a treasure.
“That must have been a tough decision. This culture puts a lot of emphasis on machismo.”
His expression grew thoughtful. “I guess my belief in God influenced me, but I had other reasons too. Rodrigo’s journal entries, the way he viewed the Indian women, reminded me so much of my own experiences.”
Intrigued, Isabel waited.
“I have three sisters,” he explained. “I would be furious with any man who took advantage of them, so how could I justify my behavior if I did the same to someone else’s sister? Besides, anyone can see Rodrigo and Karwa had something special. There’s only one way to build a love that endures, and they found it.”
As she pondered his answer, the reservations she’d built up inside her heart softened a bit. “You’re a good man,” she whispered, slipping her hand into his.
He wove his fingers with hers and lifted her hand to his lips. After pressing a kiss to the back of her hand, he flashed her a devilish smile. “What about you, Isabel? Any confessions you’d like to make?”
Her face heated. Why did this subject always make her feel so awkward? But she couldn’t avoid answering him, not after he’d spoken so honestly about his experience—or lack of it.
“When I was fifteen, my parents sat me down and talked with me about the choices I would confront when I started dating. They were very candid about the pressures of dating and the options available to me. At the end of our talk, they shared from their hearts that they wanted the best for me, and their experiences had led them to believe waiting until marriage was the best option. Every other choice has risks and consequences. My dad pulled a ring out of his pocket and asked if I would wear it as a symbol of my promise to wait.”
She lifted her hand and showed him the ring. “I still wear it.”
“It’s beautiful.”
“I’d like to give it to my daughter someday—if I have one.”
“Do you want children?”
“Yes, a few. How about you? Do you like kids?”
“I love them. They’re born with an insatiable curiosity and a sense of adventure. Natural-born explorers—my kind of people. But I don’t know if I’ll ever have any. My career isn’t conducive to family life.”
Faint stirrings of disappointment registered in Isabel’s mind. She felt as if he’d just pointed out the limits of their budding relationship. They could date, have fun, but could there ever be more between them? Before she allowed her feelings to grow serious, she needed to consider whether she could deal with the unusual demands of an archaeologist’s lifestyle. His career would preclude any sort of normal life. Maybe she was crazy for even considering dating him. On the other hand, perhaps God had arranged for her to tag along on this expedition to give her ample information on which to base her decision. If she wasn’t sure by the end of their journey, she never would be.
Turning her thoughts to work, she rehearsed the information she knew about the next location they intended to explore. Santo Domingo was a small town nestled in the mountains only thirty kilometers from the Columbian border. Their destination lay another twenty kilometers south of the town in the sparsely populated mountain range.
“You got quiet.” Manuel’s gentle voice interrupted her thoughts.
“I was thinking about our next location. Reviewing facts and details, trying to prepare for what’s ahead.”
“Why don’t you get out the journal and read the entries out loud. We both need to review our homework.”
“Good idea. Did you pack the working copy in this jeep?”
“I think so. Look in the box underneath my bedroll.”
Isabel undid her seatbelt and turned around. Kneeling in her chair, she reached between the seats. The road curved sharply, and she tottered off balance, leaning heavily on his shoulder for a moment before she righted herself. “Oops, sorry, Manuel.”
He laughed at the apology.
She caught the amused glimmer in his eye. “You did that on purpose, didn’t you?”
His grin gave him away.
“Try and keep your attention on the road,” she scolded with a smile.
Shifting the bedroll and a few other items, Isabel uncovered the three-ring binder holding their notes. Once they had completed the journal translation, they used a word processing program to compile their translation, observations, and notes into a logical and functional notebook. The working copy was more practical than the journal and saved wear and tear on the artifact.
Isabel settled into her seat and flipped through the pages. Finding the one she searched for, she began to read aloud.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
January 15, 1506
Karwa’s belly grows round with the coming of my child, filling my breast with emotions too powerful for words. At night I lay beside her, rest my hand on the swell of her abdomen, and feel the child move within her. She carries a precious and priceless treasure, one I would stop at nothing to protect. By our best estimate, she will give birth late in the dry season.
This cave is not a fit habitation for an infant, and in truth I grow weary of the dark, damp atmosphere. The walls of this great cavern have offered us shelter and protection, but our time here draws to a close. I wish for my child to be born in a home, one safe from the far-reaching menace of slavery.
The slavers encroach further into the interior each day, and we must go far inland to make a life free from the threat they impose. We will travel now, putting distance between the enemy and ourselves while Karwa can still endure the difficulties of a journey. Perhaps it is idealistic of me, but I hope to find a home where peace abounds, a place where attributes such as greed, cruelty, and prejudice are intolerable. If such a place exists, I will find it and give it to my children for their inheritance.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
One paved road snaked through the town of Santo Domingo, following the cur
ve of the landscape. Houses and shops in pastel shades of stucco flanked either side of the street, stretching a line of civilization through a valley of green wilderness. In the background, a heavy mist lingered midway up the slopes of the mountains while low-slung clouds snagged against the higher peaks.
In the muted light of early evening, men leaned against the fronts of their homes, smoking pipes or playfully tussling with their children. Women pulled wash off the clotheslines and chatted with neighbors over vine-covered fences. The poignant vignettes spoke of life lived at a slower pace, and Manuel felt a sudden craving.
What would it be like to settle down—buy a house, marry a woman, have children? Some days, the unrelenting pursuit of his dream wore him down, and the sacrifices he made to follow his heart seemed too great a price. But could he find happiness in a common life, one he’d spent years trying to avoid? He glanced at Isabel, who was sleeping in the passenger seat. Maybe. Exploration took on many forms, and he could only imagine the discoveries he could make with the right woman by his side.
A hand-painted sign advertised a general store, and Manuel steered the jeep into a parking space. During the long drive, he and Isabel had compiled a list of supplies they needed to purchase before leaving the comforts of civilization, and this looked like as good a place as any to buy them.
Manuel placed a hand on Isabel’s shoulder and gently shook her. “Wake up, sleepyhead.”
Her eyelids fluttered open, and she stole his breath away with a sleepy smile. “Where are we?”
“At a general store in Santo Domingo. Want to help me buy some supplies?”
She nodded and pulled down the mirror on the sun visor, trying to smooth her mussed hair into place.
“No need to bother with primping,” he said, tugging a strand of her hair. “You look beautiful.”
She snorted. “Yes, sleeping in the front seat of a jeep does wonders for a person’s appearance. I have a horrible crick in my neck.”
“You looked comfortable enough while you were snoring.”
