Surviving the Swamp (Survivalist Reality Show Book 1)

by Grace Hamilton

  With her back against a tree, she at least had a view of everyone else. The group had been dealt a blow, and it was painfully obvious they were struggling to recover. The reality of the situation had been realized with the finding of their fellow contestant’s body. Regan herself was still grappling with the realization that there was no safety net for them to fall back on. This was the real thing.

  She was happy they remained silent, but it was odd for the group to be so quiet. Fred sat scribbling in a notebook he kept in his front pocket along with the little golf pencil he kept with it. Wolf sat lost in thought, staring out over the water.

  Geno and Tabitha had separated themselves and were huddled together, with Tabitha rubbing his back and comforting him. Geno seemed to be taking the finding of the body especially hard, which surprised Regan. He had such a rough exterior, it was hard to imagine him actually being this upset over a stranger’s death. He kept wishing aloud they could bury her, though he understood why it didn’t make sense.

  Her eyes drifted back to their leader, Wolf. She watched him, doing her best to keep him from noticing her staring at him. The man was hard to read. She got the feeling he was more upset about the dead contestant than he was letting on. She knew he took the show seriously and thought of himself as the group’s protector. Losing one of them must have chipped away at his self-confidence. His suffering illustrated exactly why she preferred to be a loner. She didn’t have to worry about feeling like him because she kept everyone at arm’s length. She was responsible for herself and no one else.

  “It’s late enough,” Wolf announced, rising from the stump he had been sitting on. “Let’s move.”

  Fred put away his notebook, wrapping it in a slip of plastic to keep it dry. “You sure?”

  “Have you seen a gator?” Wolf responded.

  “No.”

  “Then I don’t want to be sitting here in the evening. It’s time to move.”

  Regan looked at the water and felt a shiver of apprehension run down her spine. The very thought of getting into the water threatened to send her into panic mode. She knew she couldn’t panic—panicking killed people—but the water scared her. Bonnie’s dead body lying on the bank was proof of her fear being warranted.

  It was Bonnie’s panic that had killed her, Regan reminded herself. The woman had panicked and run off alone, and now she was dead.

  No one else seemed to share Regan’s same apprehension. They were all suddenly very eager to get out of the swamp, despite the risk the river crossing posed. It wasn’t a wide river. Maybe thirty feet, tops. She could do this, she told herself.

  “I’ll go first,” Fred said. “If it’s deep, it’s better I find out than one of you,” he said, looking pointedly at Tabitha’s short stature.

  “Good idea,” Wolf muttered. “We’ll cross one at a time. In case one of us gets into trouble, the rest of us can jump in and help out. There may be quicksand, and we don’t want everyone getting stuck at the same time.”

  Regan raised an eyebrow, questioning the reasoning but understanding it was Wolf’s decision, which meant it was probably for the best. In her opinion, an alligator could take them all out. It didn’t make a lot of sense to send in more people to get killed. She wasn’t being selfish, either; it was self-preservation. She wasn’t trying to be anyone’s hero. Heroes usually never knew they were heroes because they were too busy being dead.

  Wolf looked at her. “You good?”

  “Yes, I get it. If it looks like one of us is going to die, we all die together,” she said dryly.

  He shook his head. “Not exactly. The five of us are stronger working as a team than, say, you are, alone, against an alligator or drowning.”

  She shrugged. “Fine. Whatever.”

  Wolf didn’t bother pressing the matter. “The bottom is probably going to be boggy. Try to keep moving, but don’t rush. Keep your arms up to balance yourself. The water isn’t moving fast at all, which will make it easy to walk through. If you feel like you’re becoming unsteady, take a minute, get your balance, and then move. The water is murky. If you go down, we’re not going to be able to see you easily to help you out of the water. Fight to keep a hand up if you do fall. Ready?” he asked, looking at each member of the small group.

  There were quick nods as everyone steeled themselves to walk into the water.

  “All right then, let’s move!” Wolf said in an upbeat, cheerleader voice that Regan wanted to laugh at. She would have, too, if she hadn’t been scared that her voice would crack with trying.

  Fred stepped into the water. Regan found herself holding her breath, half-expecting an alligator to rise up out of the dark water and attack. She watched as he took slow, small steps into the water until it was mid-thigh and he was halfway across, presumably at the deepest part of the river. She looked at him and then at herself. It was probably going to be close to her waistline where he was now, and would definitely be waist-high for Tabitha.

  She turned to look at Tabitha, who looked terrified.

  “You okay?” she asked softly.

  Tabitha smiled and nodded, but Regan noticed she was holding Geno’s hand in a death-grip. “I’m not a big fan of water,” Tabitha admitted. “My swimming abilities are seriously lacking. I can float on my back and tread water, but that’s the extent of me swimming.”

  “You’ll be fine, babe. I’ll be right there,” Geno said in a soothing voice.

  Regan turned back to watch Fred take the last few steps out of the water.

  He grinned and held up his pack. “All good!”

  “Let’s go,” Geno said, taking Tabitha’s hand and leading her to the bank.

  “You can do this,” Regan assured her.

  Geno stood on the bank, anxiously watching his wife make her way deep into the water.

  Tabitha made it halfway before she started to panic. She whirled to Geno, tears suddenly running down her face. “I can’t!” she called out.

  Geno didn’t hesitate, and followed her in, ignoring the one at a time rule.

  “You can. I’m right here,” Geno said, taking her hand.

  “No, you go. I’m going back,” she said in a panicky voice. Wolf and Regan had stepped to the edge of the water instinctively, but Geno had her.

  “Babe, you’re already halfway there. We can do this. I’m here. Hold onto me,” Geno coaxed her.

  Regan felt a strange twinge of jealousy. She had never had that kind of a relationship. Geno was obnoxious, but seeing him like this, helping and lovingly supporting his wife… it was sweet. Regan hadn’t ever longed for that, but she had never actually seen it up close and personal like she was in this moment, either. It was endearing to watch.

  When Tabitha stepped foot on the opposite bank, she hooted and cheered. Geno wrapped his arms around her and spun her around a few times in turn, telling her how great she’d been. Regan watched as he whispered something in Tabitha’s ear and the woman burst into laughter. That was definitely a perk of a close relationship. Having someone to tell your secrets to, knowing they would keep them—that would be amazing, Regan had to admit. The brief episode changed the way Regan saw Geno, too. She’d finally gotten a glimpse into the man behind the boisterous voice and huge muscles. The man she was seeing for the first time explained the attraction Tabitha obviously had, which hadn’t come close to making sense to her until now.

  “Ready?” Wolf asked, looking at her.

  Regan sighed. “Ready as I’ll ever be. Don’t worry about telling my family if I die. I don’t have any.”

  “Stop thinking like that. You’ll be fine,” he said firmly.

  She walked into the water, her chin high with determination. She hesitated only when the water lapped at her thighs. It actually felt good, and would have been a nice relief from the heat and humidity if there weren’t potentially deadly animals waiting to have her for a late lunch.

  “Keep going,” Wolf encouraged her.

  Regan closed her eyes and pushed on. About two-thirds of the
way, she paused to look back at Wolf. He was at the edge of the river, ready to make his way across, his eyes focused on her. His presence and knowing he was looking out for her made her feel better, and she looked back to the bank she’d been heading toward with rising spirits.

  But then she tried to take a step forward… and couldn’t move. Her foot had sunk several inches into the soft river bottom. She jerked her leg, trying to pull her foot out. It felt as if she had stepped into wet cement that had dried in seconds; her foot wouldn’t come loose.

  “What’s wrong?” Wolf asked from behind her.

  “Nothing,” she grunted, shaking her head. She was determined to dislodge her foot, and yanked at it again, but to no avail.

  She jerked again, harder but with nothing to hold onto, she nearly toppled into the water.

  “Are you okay?” Tabitha asked.

  “I’m fine,” she muttered, tugging at her leg.

  The jerking motion had made her foot sink deeper, and her other foot had landed on mostly solid mud, but she could feel it slowly sinking into the muck now, as well. The first sliver of panic raced over her nerves. An image of her drowning or being attacked by an alligator and torn to shreds while her boots were firmly planted came to mind. She wouldn’t stand a chance. She was a sitting duck. She counted to three in her head before pulling hard on the leg.

  She wasn’t fine. The realization slammed into her. She fought against the panic, violently tugging at the foot that was almost completely submerged in the soft silt.

  “You’re not fine,” Wolf’s deep voice said from behind her.

  She turned to argue with him, and felt shocked to realize he’d managed to wade into the river and reach her without her having realized it. Right behind her now, he didn’t give her the chance to protest and instead bent down, both his hands below her knee as his face hovered above the water. He jerked once and then again, freeing her foot but leaving her boot in the mud. He’d loosened her laces to get her free, she realized belatedly.

  “Wait!” she called out when he grabbed her hand to pull her toward the bank where the others waited. “My boot!” she protested.

  She tried to pull her hand away, but Wolf held firm, ignoring her arguments. With one solid yank, she dislodged her hand from his grip and immediately dove under the water. She had a good idea of where the boot was and felt around with her hands, finding it and wiggling it free. When she emerged from under the surface, she triumphantly held up her boot.

  Her excitement over rescuing her boot was short-lived. Wolf’s arms circled around her waist and suddenly he was practically dragging her through the water.

  “Let go of me! I can walk,” she growled.

  His response was to pick her up and cradle her like a child. Her embarrassment amped up several notches at being manhandled in front of a very rapt audience.

  “What the hell!” she shouted. “Let go of me. Put me down!”

  He walked out of the water and deposited her on the riverbank, dropping her to the sand without ceremony and glaring at her the whole time. Regan looked around and noticed the others staring. She could feel her cheeks turning red. She was embarrassed and furious at the same time. How dare he pick her up as if she were a child? As if she were incapable of walking out of the river under her own steam?

  “Why did you do that?” she growled.

  “That was stupid!” he shouted right back at her.

  “What are you talking about? I got stuck! It wasn’t like I did it on purpose!” she defended herself.

  “Going back, diving under the water to get your boot! That was stupid!”

  She rolled her eyes, already trying to slam her wet boot back onto her foot. “Would you have me walk around with one boot? Did I miss the extra boots you packed for me?” she asked sarcastically.

  He shook his head. “We would’ve figured something out,” he said, but his voice had dropped down to a more reasonable level.

  She worked at the soaked laces of the boot, not looking at him. “I wasn’t going to traipse through the swamp with one boot. What if I stepped on something sharp? I don’t know about you, but this isn’t the place where I want to be walking barefoot.”

  Wolf turned and looked at the other three before facing back to her. His look must have been a silent communication for the others to back away and give them some space. Regan looked up from where she was furiously trying to loosen her laces further to see them moving down the bank a few yards.

  “What now?” she grumbled, knowing she was in for a lecture. At least the man had the decency to do it in private.

  “Don’t do that again,” Wolf said in a low, strained voice.

  Regan managed to free the laces and looked up to see Wolf staring at her. “Look, it wasn’t anything personal.”

  He shook his head, shutting down her excuse. “You have to trust we would have figured something out. All that thrashing around could have attracted a predator.”

  The comment froze her. “An alligator?” she murmured, looking at the water that once again resembled murky glass. She gulped. She hadn’t thought about why he’d wanted them to move evenly and not rush.

  He shrugged. “Possibly. Listen to me, Regan, I need you to trust me enough to know I’m not going to tell you to do something if it isn’t for your own good.”

  She stopped messing with her boot and looked at him. There was a softness in his eyes she hadn’t noticed before. That’s when she recognized something familiar about the way he was looking at her. He had actually been afraid for her. This was real concern she was seeing now.

  She gulped down the emotion rising in her chest and shook her head, looking back to her boot. “Okay. I’m sorry, really, I am. I wasn’t trying to get myself killed. I thought, in that moment, it was the right thing to do. I was only looking at the big picture,” she explained.

  He sighed, standing up straight and gazing out over the water. “I understand that, but you’re not experienced in this. I know you’re convinced you’re smarter than everyone else and can do it all on your own, but you’re not. In this, dealing with the swamp, I really do know what I’m talking about.”

  She smirked. “I’m not saying I’m smarter than you or some of the others. Seriously, I’ve been looking out for me for a long time. Considering I’m here arguing with you, I think you have to trust I know what I’m doing.”

  That made him smile. “Fine. You’re not a complete novice, but please, in the future, trust me a little. I’m only trying to keep you alive and in one piece.”

  She nodded. “Got it.”

  With the boot on the ground, she stood up for the added leverage, and tried to shove her foot inside the soaking wet boot. Her arms flailed as she tried to balance herself at the same time.

  Wolf watched her struggle before making a growling noise in the back of his throat. “Seriously?”

  “What?” she scowled at him, her frustration increasing with every passing second she couldn’t get the boot back on.

  “Hold on to me!” he practically shouted at her.

  Regan stopped moving. “Relax,” she told him, grimacing and going back to her struggle.

  “You are so damn stubborn! Either lean on me so you can get that stupid boot on or I’m going to toss it back in the river, and I dare you to try and retrieve it,” he added, glaring at her.

  She smiled, meeting his annoyed gaze. “Okay, okay. Sheesh, you really need to settle down.”

  “And you really need to lean on others. I don’t think I’ve ever met such a stubborn, defiant woman in my life.”

  Regan put a hand on his arm to steady herself while using her other hand to force her boot on. She managed to get it done and then quickly tied the laces up tight before standing straight and looking at him with supreme satisfaction. She was soaked and uncomfortable, and burning up under the afternoon sun, but she had both her boots.

  “There. Now, I’m ready to go.”

  He shook his head, grumbling under his breath as he walked over to
rejoin the others.

  Regan took a moment for herself, breathing in. Wolf had truly been worried about her. That look was one she had seen in her mother’s eyes a long time ago. Whenever she had done something careless, that look of anger and hurt had appeared. She wasn’t sure how she felt about Wolf worrying about her, but deep down, it felt good. It wasn’t exactly a Geno and Tabitha situation, which was fine by her, but it was nice to know someone cared even a little if she lived or died.

  Feeling as if she had pulled herself together, Regan rejoined the group.

  “Ready?” she asked, anxious to get as far from the river of death as possible.

  Tabitha looked at Regan with a little too much scrutiny for her taste.

  “What?” Regan asked defensively.

  “Glad you’re okay. You had me worried there for a minute,” Tabitha said softly. “Don’t you dare leave me alone with these guys.”

  Regan shrugged a shoulder, feigning nonchalance. “No big deal.”

  Tabitha smiled. “Of course not. The mighty Regan Goodfellow doesn’t need anyone’s worry or help,” she said with a wink.

  It wasn’t meant to be an insult, but Regan saw with the comment that she really had given herself a bad image. It was that stubborn streak she had, which was a mile wide according to one ex-boyfriend. Wolf and her ex called it stubbornness, anyway. She called it self-preservation and determination. Moving with the group, she adjusted her wet pack, which now felt several pounds heavier, and shook off the self-critique. There was no time for questioning herself, not considering how far she’d gotten on her own, and what they faced now.

  “I know, mine’s uncomfy, too,” Tabitha groaned. “Though, mine isn’t as wet as yours. I didn’t go underwater,” she quipped.

  9

  Moving through the swamp at a snail’s pace was making Regan crazy, and her feet felt raw. They had all put on dry socks before getting much further, but their boots were making them wet all over again despite the fact that they’d specifically held off on changing socks in hopes that their boots would dry out a bit. She really wanted to move faster and be done with the wet stuff. It sucked. Plus, the branches reaching out and tangling in her hair combined with the million bugs buzzing around were making her feel murderous.