Tiembo led us through the dusty streets until we walked up to where we would be staying. The mud house was small with a central courtyard. There was an outhouse shower with a half wall and no ceiling. It was basic and would suffice to rinse the dust out of my hair and skin.
We climbed up to the roof. Low walls enclosed the top of the house, a thoughtful protective measure since I read most Dogon and travelers slept on the roof at night. There were four sleeping mats propped against the wall. Tiembo fixed a curtain across a portion of the roof for propriety and we set our packs down. I needed to think about how to handle the sleeping arrangements, especially since I had a feeling I wasn’t the only one thinking the exact same thought.
Chapter Ten: Actions Speak Louder Than Words
“Go ahead,” Reid said to my back as I looked toward the shower. “Helga wants us to use an unscented soap to keep away mosquitoes AND a net at night. Malaria is a pretty big deal over here.” He pulled a bar of soap wrapped in brown paper out of his backpack, unwrapped it, and tossed it toward me. It looked like a chunk of wood and felt as rough. I ran a finger across the small rectangle and pretended it gave me a splinter. Reid laughed and said, “I’m trying to be helpful. Anything else I can do?”
“Why do you ask? Do you really think a shower is too tough for me to handle on my own?” I pulled out my chamois towel and a change of clothes. I figured I would rinse the clothes I was wearing and let them dry on the line. Given the temperature outside that should only take two minutes.
Reid was going through his backpack and didn’t look up as he answered, “You seem unappreciative but Mr. Parks would be proud of me for extending my hand. I thought he said we were better together but suit yourself.”
I shook my head and laughed. Reid pulled out two bottles of water and a clear Tupperware box. Helga. My eyes were glued to the clear plastic rectangle. Reid shrugged. “Come on, it’s Helga. She wasn’t going to let me leave with some energy drink Dr. West concocted and a few nutrition bars. She knows we have to be careful about what we eat but she also knows we will be hungry. Hurry up with your shower and then we can see what she sent.”
Reid looked up at me and I saw myself reflected in his sunglasses. A shower was a good idea and good food was a strong incentive to launch my feet into motion. I scrambled down the steps and arrived at the primitive shower stall. I walked into the designated shower area and decided the faucet looked simple enough to operate ALONE and that if I wore my clothes into the water I could get them wet and soaped up to save myself time.
My scream was a reflex. A blast of frigid water had slammed me back against the wall the instant I flipped the faucet handle. I had not considered water pressure and it was a painfully clear lesson to me why the National Guard used fire hoses for crowd control. I was powerless against it and couldn’t move. Reid’s hands wrenched me out of the torrent of ice water before he turned the faucet off. Its force and arctic temperature left me breathless. I gulped air and wiped water from my eyes. “Sorry,” I sputtered as I noticed through my wet lashes that he had gotten himself wet. “I didn’t expect it to be a FREEZING COLD tidal wave.”
He had a humorous look on his face. “Obviously. Speaking of unexpected, nice shower outfit.” Reid’s eyes swept down my drenched clothes that were plastered to my skin and I felt ridiculous appraising myself through his eyes. “Is this haute couture for the village rinse off or were you expecting me?”
His glib laugh and cocky smirk made my panther paw twitch, and without thinking I stepped to the side of the stall and flipped the faucet back on him. Reid’s response was classic crane—he did not protect himself but instead he extended his arm and grabbed me while he turned his back into the stream of water. It defused the torrent and sprayed the water in all directions. Reid swept me up and he pulled me close to him. I could feel the warmth of his touch pulse all the way down to my toes and his kiss was electrifying. He took the hit for a bigger impact and it was one I would not forget.
Unfortunately, Reid was not immune to the frigid water and eventually he had to reach behind him and turn off the faucet once and for all. He was drenched as he rescued a soggy roll of Certs from his chest pocket. His face was crestfallen; he seemed so attached to the peppermint breath mints. I started to hum taps and his exaggerated scowl made me playfully squeak, “Yikes!” as I grabbed my towel and sprinted to the roof to my waiting change of clothes. The curtain gave me a dressing room to peel off the clingy, wet clothing and exchange them for a loose and long-sleeved camp shirt and trekking shorts.
I peeked out of the curtain and saw Reid by his backpack pulling on a clean expedition shirt. He felt my stare and turned around. There was a gleam in his eye and a smile on his face. It seemed I was forgiven for ruining a pack of his precious Certs. “Truce?” He stretched out his arms and as he walked toward me the movement revealed his cobblestone abs beneath the open linen fabric. I wanted to look away but my eyes betrayed me and first skirted up to his broad shoulders and then to his lips. It was too late by the time I felt him in my mind. He had been practicing. A lot. He was not nearly as clumsy as he used to be when he crossed over and it was harder for me to detect him. I had a strong suspicion Mr. Parks had been training Reid before we left for Africa.
I pushed away the image of his physique in my mind and Reid gave me a coy grin. “I learned that trick from this really beautiful girl I know. You might know her…she cheats in sparring matches.”
Well, that explained the mischievous look in his eye. Next time, I would be more wary. I made a pathetic attempt to cover up why I would be staring at his lips. “I didn’t realize I was so hungry,” I murmured as I breezed by him and reached for a Tupperware box. Reid’s stare pressed into me and I pretended not to feel it. Around us, the sun was sinking into the desert sky, making it glow a vibrant orange. There was a lull in the noise of day when everything seemed to be taking a breath, and the rooftop had a magical feel.
“Neither did I,” Reid said, but he was not looking at the food.
I needed something to do that did not involve meeting Reid’s eyes so I opened the lid of the Tupperware box. It smelled like honey and sweet pineapple. Inside was a trail mix of sunflower seeds, dried fruit, and some of Helga’s homemade granola.
“I don’t know if I like the way you are staring at me,” I said. “There are plenty of good options here for a carnivore. I think that one says beef jerky over there.” Reid ignored my suggestion. I popped a handful of trail mix in my mouth and snapped the lid back on. I tossed the plastic rectangle at him, attempting to shake the building intensity between us with the rattle of the container. It was desperate but I was running out of options.
Reid and I were both schooled in strategy and he recognized I was trying to divert his focus. He caught the flying plastic box of trail mix and let it drop to the ground. Reid was not falling for my usual tricks and distractions, and the pull toward him was getting stronger as he closed the physical space between us. I was keenly aware I had lost control over the situation and wondered to myself if he had hijacked my body and mind.
“I know you are as attracted to me as I am to you, Whitney. How are you able to turn it on and off? I’m asking because when I don’t know how to do something I want to learn and right now, I am failing miserably at staying away from you.” Reid phrased his question in an innocent tone but his demeanor radiated confidence. The trail mix tasted dry in my mouth as my mind spun for an answer. “It seems to be getting worse as I fall deeper and deeper in love with you.”
This would be an ideal time to black out, I thought to myself as I tried to untangle the knot of my emotions. Reid had me reeling for footing and I had to take the opportunity to ask him about Karen. I wanted to know why I had a precognitive feeling Karen had a hold on Reid and why he had a sense of duty toward her. I cursed the fact that I had gravelly trail mix in my mouth and not enough saliva to swallow it. It was like chewing rocks and I grabbed the water bottle to wash it down.
He wrapped his arms
around me and said, “I can see the uncertainty in your eyes, Whit. Let me show you something spectacular. Come fly with me in my mind for a minute.” The murmur of his voice made my stomach drop. He leaned toward me and I felt the softness of his lips. It was difficult to concentrate on crossing over to his mind as he requested but I managed to find my way.
As I entered, I found myself in diaphanous clouds of blues and reds that blended together to form a shifting kaleidoscope of purple hues that created an ethereal light. I could feel his presence here and it was strange that I could also sense my own. My sight was captivated and when Reid kissed me again the air tingled with a rush of vibrant energy that rippled with possibility like the wind off the ocean. The sensation played like music on my skin and I inhaled my favorite fragrance of the brisk snap of evergreen and the warm zing of clove spice; it smelled like Reid.
The yell sounded distant at first. Then it was clear the shout came from close by in the village. Its urgency was clear even though I didn’t know what the man said. Reid broke away from me to grab his shoes. I looked at him, perplexed.
“Doctor. The shout was for a doctor.” Reid answered my unspoken question. He grabbed his first aid kit out of his backpack and I slipped my feet into my hiking boots.
We raced down the stairs and out of the gate toward the large crowd that was gathering across the street. Blair and Patrick were at the center of the circle where a Dogon woman was holding a small girl. The child was limp in her mother’s arms and she looked like she was having difficulty breathing. A lot of people were talking and I could feel their nervous tension.
“The villagers think it’s malaria,” Reid explained. He popped open his kit to find the chloroquine pills. We had all been taking them before we left as a preventative measure.
The girl’s face was puffy and her breathing was strained. Her eyes took on a distant stare and no one needed to translate that the situation was growing dire.
Reid held up the bottle of pills and asked the village doctor if he needed them. The doctor shook his head no. He explained the little girl had some already. Some of the people in the crowd walked away with defeat draped across their shoulders. Malaria was a constant killer of small children in Mali and those leaving assumed the medication had come too late.
Blair gently moved the sleeve of the thin fabric near the girl’s arm. Angry bumps on the child’s skin were large and getting larger and the rash progressed toward her torso. Hives. I was about to tell Blair but she was already using the auto injector of one of our epinephrine pens. She had figured it out and there was no time for discussion. She made the obvious choice: either she tried the EpiPen and it worked or she didn’t and we all watched the child die.
Tiembo and Reid fielded answers to the questioning crowd, explaining what Blair had done as the epinephrine was absorbed and the swelling was going down. Blair showed them the receding rash, and after the child’s airway and breathing were restored, the little girl explained a bee stung her. By the time she got to someone to get help, her tongue was too swollen to speak. The girl’s mother held her tight and rocked her back and forth. Tears streamed down the mother’s face and the rest of her family came to help get them to the hospital for observation. Assured they would be all right, we headed back to the mud house where we were staying.
“Blair, you just saved that girl’s life! That was amazing. How did you know to do that?” Patrick could hardly contain himself as he bounded next to Blair. Every step he took had an extra bounce. He was visibly celebrating the little girl’s second chance at life thanks to Blair’s swift actions and preparedness.
In typical Blair style, she downplayed her role. “I saw the hives…” Blair said slowly and methodically. Her eyes were looking off to the side as she considered what had happened and dissected how she knew how to handle it.
Patrick found her steady and calm response confusing. He grabbed her arm to jostle some of his enthusiasm into her. “Yeah, but you’re not allergic to anything. How did you know to DO that?”
“Because my best friend IS allergic to something and I made it my business to know what to do. I wasn’t going to walk around helpless and wish I had known how to recognize the signs and symptoms of anaphylaxis. What if Whitney needed my help someday? Or Reid? Or anyone for that matter? It’s no different than knowing how to do CPR or the Heimlich maneuver.” Blair shrugged. “I’m not going to watch someone die if there is something I can do to prevent it. I could not live with myself because to me, that’s being irresponsible.”
“Whoa. I hadn’t thought of it like that,” Patrick said. “No offense, Reid, I had not realized you could have ever needed my help. My mistake.” Patrick slapped Reid good-naturedly on the back. “I guess I thought there was not much I could do except call an ambulance until I saw Blair in action.”
“None taken, Patrick. I appreciate your willingness to learn. We can show you when we get back. It’s not hard. That was good detective work, Blair. Medical school could be a back-up option if the P.I. business doesn’t work out.” Reid slipped his hand into mine. I was happy he gave Blair the credit she deserved and I didn’t mind letting him know it as he crossed into my mind to see how I felt about what had happened. As ever, I was feeling glad to have Blair on my team.
“Great save, Blair. It’s an understatement to say thank goodness you were there,” I said and gave her a nod. She smiled. I caught a twinkle in her eye that said there was more than her medical heroic that she was smiling about and I arched an eyebrow, asking what else I had missed.
Her smile of excitement grew and my eyes flitted to Patrick. Wordlessly, I widened my eyes, questioning her if something happened while they were gone. She blushed and looked at the ground, smiling. I could only derive a yes and couldn’t wait for her to spill the details.
Reid squeezed my hand as he had been in my mind for the wordless conversation I had with Blair. “Hey, Patrick, we need to grab more water for tomorrow. Tiembo, can you direct us to where we can buy some more while we are out and escort the girls back to where we are staying?”
“Certainly. And I must warn you all about the shower. It’s a bit testy,” Tiembo started to explain.
“Yeah, we found that out the hard way. It’s sort of like a horizontal geyser. You need to stand to the side of the stall when you turn it on and then go into it with your back first. And it’s painfully cold,” Reid explained. Despite his description his eyes sparkled and he cryptically added, “It’s not all bad though.”
“Hmm. Sounds lovely,” Blair joked. I could tell by her face she had no intention of getting near the stall. Blair was too pragmatic to take on a geyser without the proper equipment.
“It’s water and I survived it. Somehow,” I laughed, and replayed the memory of me turning the faucet on Reid in my mind for his benefit.
“Barely,” he clarified. His brown eyes admonished me for teasing him as he backed out of my mind. He cleared his throat and refocused. “Come on, Patrick. I want to get back before we lose our daylight.”
“Sure thing. Blair, I’ll show you Sirius like I promised when I get back. The astronomer had some pretty amazing things to say about it and you guys will want to hear about it,” he continued, addressing Reid and me. “And Blair, tell Whitney what we found and see if she wants to check it out on our way to visit the Hogon tomorrow. Oh! And we got the kola nuts,” Patrick rambled, reluctant to leave as Reid dragged him around the corner. I waved to them until they disappeared and then excitedly linked arms with Blair. Her signature tight-lipped smile appeared right on cue. I couldn’t wait to get back to our rooftop to hear what happened with Patrick. Finally!
Chapter Eleven: Lost in Translation
Tiembo walked us into the courtyard but then left to wait in front of the wooden house gate for Reid and Patrick’s return. As soon as we were alone on the rooftop, I pounced on Blair for answers. “Spill it!” I eagerly whispered. It was not a big village and it was a logical guess that buying water was not going to take long. Reid h
ad tried to arrange for me to have some time alone with Blair and I didn’t want to waste it.
“About what?” Blair looked up with an obviously fake perplexed expression. She was rearranging her trekking backpack and I refrained from commenting when she pulled out the silver roll of duct tape and proved she never did leave home without it. Exasperated, I batted at her arm to get her to put down her make-up kit. This was not the time for lipstick or for her to pretend she did not know what I meant. She burst out laughing. “OK, team leader. What intelligence do you want first?”
“The you and Patrick kind!” I spouted in a hoarse whisper. Her deadpan response and solemn eyes made me gasp. “Oh, no! Am I wrong?” I questioned in hushed dismay. As an intuitive, I had to be careful of foregone conclusions. Free will could always delay or thwart the future, a possibility I sometimes struggled to remember. Before I could admonish myself too much for jumping the gun, Blair gleefully replied, “Something happened, all right. We had the most incredible first kiss!” Her voice rose in a giggle. Her tight-lipped smile became a wide grin and I could see her cheeks scorch red in the fading twilight.
I immediately forgave her for the prank. “Eeeeee! Go on! Go on!” I cried with girlish delight. I was reminded how noise carried from rooftops when a lone dog barked at my unrestrained enthusiasm. I curbed my enthusiasm and reverted back to a whisper as I fished for specifics. “Where? When?”
Blair glanced around to make sure the dog bark from below was not an intruder alert. Assured no one was coming, Blair continued, “It happened when we went to see the village astronomer this afternoon. He was not there so while Tiembo went to find him we decided to cool off in the shade of one of the several natural caves nearby.”
I clapped my hands together. “Oh! This is so much better than your run-of-the-mill basement party. This is the start of an epic romance…” I interrupted, skipping ahead in anticipation. Methodical Blair scowled at me. She was not going to rush the sequence of events.
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