Once Upon a Caveman

by Cassandra Gannon

  “Skoll!” Anniah made her way to the front of the crowd. “Put the torch down. Please.” She held up her palms in a gesture of peace. “I will be your mate, if you just let the others go. I swear it.”

  Warren seized hold of her wrist as she started forward. “No freaking way.” He dragged her back, away from Skoll. “You are not going near psychos with the fire, Anniah. Are you out of your mind?”

  She turned to give him a desperate look. “But it is the best chance to save you and my father, Warr-en. I must go to him.”

  “Forget it.” He pulled her behind him. “I don’t even have to understand your language to know that’s fucking crazy talk!”

  Skoll cut off the argument. “I would never have you now, Anniah!” He roared. “You have sullied yourself with that pretend god and I wash my hands of you. The rest of you will beg to have me back, though.” He jabbed the torch at the Clan. “You will all see that I’m right! I was right all along. I will kill Lucy the Destroyer and then Uooloa will stop its rage. I will be Clan leader, as is my fate!”

  “No one will harm my woman.” Rhawn said quietly.

  Skoll smirked. “Then we will all die. None of us want that. Hand her over to me and no one else will have to suffer. The Destroyer’s death will put everything back in balance. The island will be spared.” He held out a palm. “Give her to me. You know it is the only way.”

  Lucy’s gaze was swinging back and forth between them, piecing the argument together. “Rhawn…” She began in a serious voice.

  He cut her off, knowing what she was about to say. “No.”

  “If I go over there, it will at least be a distraction.” She insisted. “Maybe he’ll put down the torch. I’m obviously not saying to let the son of a bitch kill me or whatever crazy, violent thing he’s planning. But we have to try something here. This will give you an opening to beat him to death.”

  Rhawn shook his head, his attention on Skoll’s smug face. “He will kill you the second he gets his hands on you.”

  “No, he won’t. You won’t let him.” Lucy said with utter faith. “You’ll keep me safe.”

  “Yes, I will keep you safe.” Rhawn agreed harshly. “I love you.” He spared her a quick scowl. “There are not words in my language to say it and I don’t need them. What I feel for you is beyond words. Which is why I will never hand you over to that maniac. Not for any reason in this world or any other. There is no point in even discussing it.”

  Lucy stared up at him, matching him glare for glare. “Oh, we are discussing it. I love you, too, jackass. Which is why you have to get on one of those boats. I didn’t just Choose your adorable little ass to watch it burn up in a volcano. So, I am going over there to distract him. Deal with it.”

  Rhawn’s eyebrows climbed up his forehead.

  She loved him?

  She Choose him?

  She thought his ass adorable?

  Despite everything, Rhawn’s heart filled with joy. Happiness rushed through him. Peace. Belonging. Gratitude. He felt all of it and more. In that second, he had everything he’d ever dreamed of. “Vando, Lucy.” He whispered.

  “Surprisingly enough, saying ‘lungs’ at me isn’t going to change my mind, Romeo. We need to do something to distract Skoll and this is our best…”

  Notan solved the problem by hitting Skoll with his cane.

  The old man was crafty enough to sneak up behind Skoll and catch him by surprise. In his youth, he had been the Clan’s best hunter, after all, and Skoll wasn’t expecting anyone from the Clan to stand against him. The heavy wooden stick slammed into Skoll’s head, knocking him sideways.

  Skoll gave a furious roar. His body whirled around, preparing to strike the Clan’s leader down. As he moved, though, the torch shifted from overtop of the ragan. The second it was clear of the vessels, Rhawn threw his spear with all his weight behind it

  The projectile slammed into Skoll’s neck and came out the other side. The point on the end was designed to go through the tough hide of a mammoth. Skoll’s flesh put up no resistance, at all. According to one of Lucy’s lectures on the topic, obsidian spearheads from the Ice Age could be made shaper than medical instruments in her world. Rhawn wasn’t exactly sure what that meant, but he believed it was true about his weapon. It pierced Skoll like he was made of water. He collapsed to his knees, his mouth opening and closing, but no sound coming out.

  “You will never lead our Clan.” Notan pronounced, his cold eyes. “You have been judged unworthy.”

  Skoll fell to the sand, already dead.

  “Whoa.” Lucy blinked over at Rhawn. “Nice throw! Forget Cal-Tech. If we ever get back to reality, I’m going to sign you up for the Yankees.”

  Anniah raced over to check on her father, beaming with pride. Tammoh and Ctindel were already congratulating him.

  Notan shook his head, refusing their praise, his eyes locking on Rhawn. “Rhawn the Accursed!” He called. “You have never been accursed, at all. Your Clan thanks you.”

  Everyone present nodded, smiling at him.

  Rhawn inclined his head.

  Warren stepped forward to kick the torch into the sea. “Bad guy’s dead. Yay, Rhawn. Now, we gotta go!” He shouted, gesturing to the ragan. The rest of the Clan was already racing forward to drag them towards the water.

  Rhawn moved, so he could stare down at Skoll. He didn’t regret the kill. Still, he had never taken a life before. It was disheartening to stare down at the other man, knowing that he had been alive just moments before. Knowing that he would never be alive, again.

  Rhawn sighed and looked back a Lucy, worried that she might view him differently now. She cared for mammoths and tandar, refusing to see them harmed. Now he had ended a human life, right in front of her.

  Rhawn met her eyes, looking for signs of disgust. “I had no choice.” He said softly.

  Lucy nodded. “I know.” Her perfect green gaze stayed on his, never wavering. “You saved me. You saved everyone. You have no reason to feel guilty.”

  Rhawn crossed the sand to stand in front of her, one of his hands coming up to cup her cheek. “Do you truly Choose me?” He asked, studying her face. “Truly, Lucy?”

  “I Chose you when I was eighteen years old, Rhawn. You know that.” She gave him a tender smile. “You are the only man in the universe I could ever love. And --trust me-- I know for a fact that it’s big, damn universe.”

  His mouth curved into a smile. “It is big. And I am happy to be in any small part of it, so long as I am with you, goddess.” He swept her up into his arms, holding her tight. “I would never be anywhere, than by your side. You are my heart and soul.” He lowered his head to kiss her.

  “Can you two idiots make out later?” Warren bellowed, ruining the moment. “Come on, already! There’s a fucking volcano exploding, in case you fucking missed it!”

  Lucy and Rhawn turned to glower at him in perfect unison.

  He had a point, but neither of them appreciated his timing.

  Most of the Clan were in the ragan, now. The men were pulling them into the waves and paddling out into the ocean as fast as they could. According to Lucy, they needed to get at least several miles out to be safe. Rhawn did some quick calculations and wasn’t sure they’d make it far enough before Uooloa blew.

  And even then it might all be for nothing, if there were no other islands out there.

  Anniah helped Notan into one of the vessels and then turned back to check on Warren. “Warr-en!” She shouted and beckoned him to join her. “Come.”

  “Get in the boat! I’m right behind you!” Warren helped push the largest ragan into the water. It was loaded down with the fresh water and fruit they’d gathered earlier. His head swung around to look at Lucy. “You coming or what?” He demanded, apparently not willing to leave without her.

  In that moment, Rhawn actually liked the man.

  Lucy was not similarly moved. “Yes, we’re coming!” She shouted back, exasperated by his nagging. “What the hell do you think we’re going
to do, Warren? Take fucking selfies with the lava? Stop asking stupid questions and go with Anniah.”

  Warren nodded and stepped backward towards the water. “Well, hurry up then, ya know?! You’re the only one with a clue as to what direction we’re sailing in.”

  “West.” She pointed towards the horizon. “We paddle that way until we hit an island with purple flowers on it. Alright?”

  “Hey, you two are the smart ones. If you say that’s the way we go, that’s the way we go.” Warren waded out into the water to climb aboard Anniah’s ragan. “Hey, Moose-y!” He cupped his hands around his mouth to shout back at her. “In case we die later, thanks for getting us this far! I always knew you were going to change the world!”

  Lucy glanced up at Rhawn, with a long suffering sigh. “Ya know, if I’m about to be marooned forever on an uncharted alien isle with one of my moronic classmates… Warren really is the best option.” She shook her head. “What does that tell you about our graduating class?”

  “We do not know for sure there is a land with purple flowers.” Rhawn reminded her, still hesitant to get in the ragan. This plan was the only option they had, but he still didn’t like the uncertainty of it. Risking Lucy’s life on such an unpredictable venture worried him.

  …But not as much as risking her life with the volcano.

  Rhawn cast another quick look at Uooloa, wincing at the horrible red glow of the smoke. Perilous or not, there was no other choice. “Yes. We must go.” He held out a palm to her. “Come. There is one ragan left and we are taking it.”

  “No shit. The class reunion is officially over. Let’s go home. …Wherever the hell home turns out to be.”

  “My home is where you are, Lucy.’

  She smiled at that. “My home is with you, too. But, let’s hope it also has bagels.”

  Lucy was reaching for his hand when the gunshot rang out.

  Chapter Fifteen

  “Is it an earthquake?” Lucy reaches over to steady herself on his arm, as the floor moves beneath them.

  “It’s the Ardin.” He corrects, softly. “The sinking.”

  She, of all beings, knows that.

  “The what?”

  “The end of the world.”

  “The WHAT?”

  Rhawn and Lucy’s Dream- This Year.

  For a second Lucy thought she was shot.

  She actually looked down at her shirtfront, expecting to see her insides falling out of a bleeding hole. It took her a second to realize that the gunman had actually fired at the ground in front of her. The bullet had left a small crater in the sand, three inches from her shoes.

  “Fucking hell!” Lucy turned to scowl at prom queen who’d just opened fire on her. “You could have killed me, Taffi! Have you lost your mind? What the hell are you doing?!”

  “I’m self-actualizing.” Taffi arched a brow. “By the way, you’re really terrible at hiding things. Craig and I found this gun under that rock in --like-- twenty minutes. Didn’t we, Craig?”

  “Yep.” Craig came out of the forest to stand beside her, looking smug. They must have been waiting until Rhawn and Lucy were alone on the beach, before revealing themselves. “I told you I used to rob people, Meadowcroft. I can find alllll the hidey-holes folks like you think up. It was part of my job and I’m damn good at my job.”

  “Tell them what else you learned about in your line of work, Craig.” Taffi urged, as if they were filming this as an infomercial on crime.

  Craig smiled and it wasn’t pleasant. “Jewelry.” He pronounced. “I learned a shit-ton about jewelry.”

  “Jewelry?” Taffi held up the missing bead from Lucy’s necklace. “Like, for instance, uncut, D color diamonds the size of superballs, Craig?”

  “Yeah. Exactly like that, Taffi.”

  They both turned to look at Lucy with identical, greedy expressions.

  Aw hell… Those shiny rocks were diamonds? Lucy looked down at the strands of beads Anniah had given her, her eyes going wide. Under the circumstances, that was seriously, seriously bad news.

  “You can probably imagine what Craig and I have been chatting about, ever since I got my hands on this and realized what it was.” Taffi continued, rubbing the bead between her fingers. “You might have Mensa begging to hang your portrait in their Hall of Fame, but I know expensive rocks when I see them.” She shrugged. “Turns out, that’s going to make me the special one. It isn’t getting us home. It’s owning all the big ass diamonds here in Dinotopia.”

  “For the last time, dinosaurs did not live in the Ice Age.”

  “God, I am so sick of your know-it-all-ing, Lucy! I swear to God, I would be shooting you even without the piles of treasure.”

  Rhawn stepped forward, trying to get to Lucy, but Taffi swung the gun around to face him. “Actually, the treasure part is where you come in handsome.” She smirked. “Lucy might like you dragging her around by her hair and all, but I have a much more important job for you.” She glanced at Craig, her eyes cold. “Grab him and let’s get out of here.”

  Rhawn tried to shove Craig away when he approached, but Taffi switched the gun to Lucy. “I wouldn’t.” She warned. “Not unless you want Lucy to join poor Skoll.” She spared his body a quick glance. “FYI, that man was the worst kisser ever. One time he bit my nose. I mean what the fuck is that about?”

  “You can’t get both of us, before one of us gets Lucy.” Craig told Rhawn, in case he still didn’t understand the threat. “Who’s the loser now, huh?”

  “Still you.” Lucy assured him.

  Craig’s eyes blazed with hatred and illegal substances. “You haughty bitch! Just because we need you alive for another hour, doesn’t mean I can cut off your face in the meantime and eat it right in front of…”

  Rhawn interrupted the Hannibal Lecter-ish rants. “Lucy is cooperating.” He stepped between them and allowed Craig to seize his arm. Clearly, he was more worried about Taffi, because his eyes stayed on the gun. “There is no need to threaten Lucy with that weapon. We will do as you ask.”

  “Good boy!” Taffi praised, like he was very stupid dog. It was a wonder Taffi-Two didn’t bite her, if she used that condescending tone on her poor Pekinese. “You’re going to show me where the diamonds come from. I know I’m not your type, but I need someone who speaks English and knows his way around this dump. Which means I need you, Piltdown Man.”

  “No, you’re not my type.” Rhawn agreed quietly. “You are the Destroyer.”

  Taffi scoffed at that. “Oh fine. Make me the bad guy.”

  “My ancestors were too blind to believe two women could fight the Ardin alone, but there was never a male god, at all. I see that now. It was always destined to be you and Lucy in this battle.”

  “I hate Lucy.” Taffi bit off, her eyes bright. “We’ve been enemies since kindergarten. I don’t deny that. But I’m the star of this show. If anyone’s the Destroyer here, it’s her. I mean look at her clothes!”

  Lucy flicked her off.

  Rhawn shook his head, looking supremely calm and way too confident for a guy being kidnapped. “Lucy is the Savior and she will best you.” He said simply. “This is the Ardin and it is her fate.”

  “No! She’s not stealing this from me, too!”

  “She does not have to steal anything. It is already hers.”

  Taffi’s eyes narrowed in rage. The girl was fanatical about staying in the spotlight. Her French manicured finger tightened on the trigger, wanting to shut Rhawn up and prepared to open fire to make it happen.

  “I know where the diamonds are.” Lucy blurted out before her mate got himself shot.

  Rhawn and Taffi both turned to give her incredulous looks.

  “You do?” Taffi demanded.

  “That is impossible.” Rhawn began with his usual candor. “The cavern where Anniah found those stones has long since sunk into the…”

  Lucy cut him off. “But, the volcano is about to erupt, Taffi.” She continued. “Going to the mine is pointless. It’s too late to g
et the diamonds, now. We have to escape this island while we can.”

  “You want us to swim away from millions of dollars?” Craig scoffed. “Maybe you’re the one who’s high. The stupid volcano isn’t going erupt for hours yet.”

  “Are you basing that on your vast experience in volcanology?” Lucy snapped sarcastically. “Because it looks a little bit hot over there.” She gestured to Uooloa, with a desperate wave of her hand.

  “Hey, I saw a Paul Newman movie about volcanos okay?” Craig retorted. “I know what I’m talking about, because Paul Newman knew what he was talking about. That man was a god.”

  Rhawn frowned. “There is another god present?” He looked around like 60s movie stars might be hiding in the trees.

  Taffi’s attention stayed on Lucy. “I think a fortune in diamonds is worth sticking around for a few minutes, don’t you?” She asked with an arch expression. “Really, you’re just being selfish.”

  “I’ll give you the necklace.” Lucy tried, pointing to the beads she wore. “You can have these diamonds. Just give me back Rhawn and let us go.”

  Taffi looked insulted. “I don’t wear used jewelry! Honestly, what do you take me for?” She prodded Lucy forward with the gun. “Let’s go. You and He-Man aren’t going anywhere until I have my diamonds.”

  Lucy reluctantly headed into the forest. “This is the stupidest thing you’ve ever done, Taffi. And I read your college essay, so I know the depths of stupidity you’re capable of.”

  The ground was still vibrating and flames were now visible over the lip of Uooloa. Or maybe it was lava, already beginning to boil up. Not that it really mattered. Either way, the odds of survival weren’t good. Their chances this close to a large eruption were about 50/50. So statistically speaking, only half of them were going to get out of this alive.

  …And Lucy knew which two needed to go.

  “The white stones you want were only found one place.” Rhawn interjected. “They were very hard and difficult to shape, so we did not even gather them before the water filled the cavern. There is no way to reach them now.”