Priestess of Paracas

by K Patrick Donoghue

  They traveled a lot farther down the Ene River than Anlon anticipated. When he mentioned this to Cesar, the archaeologist reminded him they would not be kayaking the full distance.

  “We will be landing in Pichari and the travel company will drive us back close to the merge of the Ene and Cutivireni. We will put our kayaks into the Ene there. We will only be kayaking about twenty miles. I say that as if it will be an easy task, but the man from the company I spoke to before we left Ayacucho says it could take us up to twelve hours if we go the full distance to Three Sisters today. He advised against that, knowing we’d then have to backtrack to set up camp.”

  Anlon heard Sanjay ask Cesar how far upriver their campsite would be.

  “That has yet to be negotiated,” Cesar said. “The spot where they normally set up is about halfway to the falls. I am hopeful we can prevail upon them for something closer.”

  “Are there any ruins in the area?” Pebbles asked.

  “I do not know, and I did not ask the man from the company,” Cesar said, “but I would be surprised if there weren’t. Many ancient cultures settled by riversides for obvious reasons and we know there are indigenous tribes still living in the surrounding jungles.”

  When they finally landed in Pichari, Anlon was impressed to see the eight-man tour company team ready and waiting for their arrival. With them, they brought two full-sized vans, one hitched to a trailer laden with kayaks while the other hauled two river rafts.

  The head guide, a wiry man with a bushy beard and mustache, introduced himself as Pablo in perfect English. Joint introductions followed and without any further preamble, they loaded into the vans and drove off.

  In Anlon’s van, Pablo sat in the front passenger seat with one of the other crewmembers at the wheel. Joining Anlon in the back were Pebbles and Jennifer.

  “How far is the drive?” Anlon asked.

  “Just under forty miles,” said Pablo. “It will take us about two hours. There are many bends in the road, so we have to go slow. We don’t want to tip the trailers.”

  During the early part of the drive, the road tracked close to the Ene, providing Anlon, Pebbles and Jennifer glimpses of the river. About a third of the way, however, the road turned inland and for most of the rest of the way, the scenery on both sides of the road alternated between jungle forests, open patches of farmland and the occasional small community.

  Near the end of the drive, they stopped briefly in the town of Los Ángeles de Primavera. There, they had lunch and received kayak safety instructions delivered by Pablo and one other English-speaking member of the team, a college-aged young man whose name was Alejandro. Afterward, sunscreen and bug sprays were applied, and they loaded back into the vans for the final mile drive to the jetty.

  Once they arrived, Anlon and his group stood aside to don life vests while Pablo and the crew unloaded boats, oars and supplies. While they waited, Alejandro doled out dry bags to Anlon and the others, which they used to stow their backpacks. The dry bags were then loaded into one of the river rafts along with other gear and supplies. The rest of the gear went into the other raft. Afterward, Pablo asked them to divide into two-person kayak teams.

  “I think I should go with Sanjay,” Pebbles said. “If I start to have a vision, I’d like him close by.”

  “Makes sense,” Anlon said. “Jen, why don’t you go with Mereau and I’ll pair up with Cesar.”

  “Sounds good,” Jennifer said. As they walked down the ramp to the waiting kayaks, Jennifer posed a question to Anlon. “Um, I know it’s late in the game to bring this up, but should we mention anything to Pablo about the possibility of Pebbles going into a trance?”

  “No! Don’t do that!” Pebbles whispered. “Pablo seems like a by-the-book kind of guy. He might make me sit the trip out.”

  “Yeah, but what happens if you pass out and fall overboard?” Jennifer asked.

  “Look, I’ll be fine,” Pebbles said. “If I start to feel like I’m going to pass out, I’ll give Sanjay a heads up. Just tell Pablo I’m dehydrated or overtired. I’m sure it happens all the time. They’ll probably just load me in one of the rafts and keep on going.”

  Before they could finish the conversation, Pablo called them to gather around. Anlon noticed Pablo and his crew now wore gun belts with holstered pistols. Pablo addressed the wardrobe additions right off the top.

  “You may have noticed we are all carrying handguns. It is not something we like to do but your safety is our number one concern. However, I do not want to unduly alarm you. In the six years we have operated tours in these waters, we have only run into pirates twice. They were looking for easy pickings, not a gun fight, so they just turned away and left our group alone. I know there are also many rumors about the natives who live in the jungle, but the only tribesmen we ever encounter along the riverbanks run back into the jungle as soon as they spot us. Still, we would be irresponsible if we did not have a means to protect you if they, or pirates, took a greater interest in us.

  “Now, I know you are on this trip to have a good time, see some of our beautiful nature and relax. We will do our very best to ensure you have a wonderful experience but please help us by observing some basic precautions. While we are on the river, keep to the middle as much as possible. If something attracts your interest on either riverbank, please do not go off on your own to investigate. Alert one of my crew and we will all go together. The same goes if you become tired and want to pull over to rest.

  “Finally, when we are ashore, whether to set up camp or rest, please do not wander off into the jungle alone. If you need privacy to relieve yourselves, go in pairs or ask one of my crew to accompany you. Always make sure to tell me or Alejandro the direction you intend to go and please make sure the river and our group are always within eyesight. All clear? Everyone understand? Good. Now let’s go have a fun and safe adventure.”

  Anlon raised his eyes to the sky. Amen to that, brother.

  Ene River

  Edge of Amazon Jungle, Peru

  The first two miles went by quickly, thanks to the assistance of the Ene River’s current. Pebbles, seated in the front of her kayak, scanned the environment as they glided along, hoping to spot something she had seen in a vision.

  Thus far, the only features that seemed familiar were the muddy banks and density of trees on both sides of the river. At least it’s something, thought Pebbles. It had been a day-and-a-half since her last vision, the longest gap she had experienced over the last several weeks. She did not want to admit it to the others, but the sudden drop-off concerned her.

  Was it a sign that Citali was withdrawing again? Had she sensed Pebbles’ disgust? Her anger? Or had sharing what happened at the cave been a catharsis for her?

  “Sanjay, let me ask you something. Do you think it’s possible Citali’s spirit doesn’t want forgiveness? That maybe all she cared about was coming clean about killing the new ones?”

  “It would surprise me if that was the case.”

  “Why?”

  “She has shown you several visions of events that appear to have happened after destroying the cave. The ones that happen here in the jungle.”

  “Couldn’t those just be additional attempts by Citali to justify what she did? You know, showing me how hard she fought against Muran, how she was so concerned on her deathbed about honoring her ancestors?”

  “Maybe. There is clearly denial involved in those visions. There is also evidence of bargaining.”

  “Bargaining? What do you mean?”

  “Rationalizing, justifying, her actions.”

  “Oh, right. Like I said.”

  The conversation was interrupted by shouts from Pablo. He was up ahead in one of the river rafts. Apparently, they were about to turn into the headwaters of the Cutivireni River. He instructed the kayakers to line up in single file. Up ahead, Pebbles could see the Ene bending to the left as they neared a gap in the jungle trees on the right. She saw the lead kayak, steered by Alejandro, turn sharply to the right.
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  Alejandro beached his kayak onto a sandbar, then hopped out. He pulled it further onto the sand and then dashed into the water until he was knee deep. With exaggerated arm movements, he urged the next kayak, the one piloted by Anlon and Cesar, to head toward him.

  “What’s he doing?” Pebbles asked one of Pablo’s crew.

  The man stopped paddling long enough to motion for her and Sanjay to head in Alejandro’s direction. As they complied, she watched Anlon and Cesar paddling frantically to turn their kayak but the current of Ene took hold of them and spun them around backward. Alejandro waded up to his waist and grabbed a cord on the nose of the kayak, pulling the paddlers toward the sandbar.

  “Ah. Now I see,” Pebbles said.

  On the other side of the sandbar was the Cutivireni. As it added its muddy water to the Ene, the flow of the Ene picked up speed, making it difficult to turn into the Cutivireni without getting swept up in the increased downriver flow of the Ene. Therefore, instead of trying to paddle against the Ene to enter the mouth of the Cutivireni, it appeared they would beach their watercraft and carry them over the sandbar until they found a more suitable place to enter the Cutivireni.

  When it came Pebbles’ and Sanjay’s turn, she found herself laughing at their inability to coordinate the turn. Suddenly, it felt as if they were on a spinning amusement park ride until two of Pablo’s men corralled them and pulled them onto the sand. As she got out of the kayak, Pebbles continued to laugh. “That was fun!”

  She looked back toward the Ene and saw Jennifer and Mereau waving off Pablo’s men. The experienced kayakers dug their paddles into the river as if they were Olympic medalists and swung into the Cutivireni with no problem. Pebbles cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted, “Show-offs!”

  As Jennifer and Mereau passed by, she admonished Pebbles and the others to quit loafing and get back in the water. Pebbles raised her hands to shout a retort but froze in place. On the far side of the mouth of the Cutivireni, at the spot where the Ene finished its left-hand turn, was a jumble of debris that had washed onto another sandbar. She staggered backward and plopped down onto the sand as a myriad of images cycled in her mind.

  ...the shattered shell of a boat…bodies half buried in mud…trees, stripped of their foliage and coated with muck, felled by the side of the river…urgent shouts…splashing through the water…a group of men kneeling…the mud-caked arm of a child sticking out from a pile of debris…

  No! Fathers! No!

  Citali stumbled and fell beneath the water. Pushing up against the slick bottom, she resurfaced. Wiping brackish goo from her eyes, she waded to reach the group of men. Under her breath, she cursed.

  It is the end! I have done the evil bitch’s work for her!

  Two of the men turned toward her as she climbed up the gooey bank. Their expressions were grave. Citali fell to her knees and began to scream at the gray skies above.

  No! It cannot be!

  A third man turned. In his arms, he cradled the limp body of a child. A little boy covered in mud from head to toe. The man carried him to Citali and knelt down before her. She lowered her head and sobbed. She could not bring herself to look at the boy.

  The man spoke. His voice barely above a whisper.

  “He is alive, Keeper. He breathes. I can feel his warmth.”

  CHAPTER 23: SPEAK THE WORDS

  Cutivireni River

  Otishi National Park, Peru

  September 30

  “What is the matter?” Pablo asked. “Why does she shake?”

  Anlon held out his arm to push Pablo away. “Stop. Don’t touch her.”

  “Answer me! What is wrong with her?”

  “Nothing…she’s having a nightmare, that’s all.”

  “In the middle of the day?” Pablo challenged.

  As Anlon knelt down beside Pebbles, she began to growl. Without warning, she leapt up and charged through the circle of onlookers. Anlon was too slow to grab hold of her as were Sanjay and Pablo’s men. Swinging her arms wildly, she burst between them and sped toward the Cutivireni.

  “Jen! Mereau!” Anlon shouted. The two kayakers heard him and turned his way. He pointed toward Pebbles as she ran into the water. “Get her! Quick! She’s in a vision!”

  Anlon heard Pablo issue an urgent order in a flurry of Spanish. All his crew dashed after Pebbles, kicking up big clumps of sand on their way. Anlon, Cesar and Sanjay joined the chase. Pebbles’ head disappeared briefly beneath the water before her life vest pulled her back up. In the swift current, the vest seemed to make Pebbles weightless. She drifted away as easily as a leaf upon the water.

  “Shit! Shit! Shit!” Anlon yelled. “Hurry!”

  The young bucks among Pablo’s crew were first into the water. Two of them waded in while the third, Alejandro, shed his life vest and dove into the river. Pebbles’ arms flailed and Anlon heard her call out for help.

  “Hold on, Pebbles!” Anlon shouted. “Help is on the way!”

  By the time Anlon reached the spot where Alejandro had gone in, Pebbles was fifty yards beyond and nearing the junction of the two rivers. Anlon was about to jump in when he heard the sound of an engine starting. Anlon wheeled around to see Pablo in one of the river rafts. He was in the Ene, his hand on the controls of a portable motor at the stern. The boat sped off, the whining engine spouting smoke into the air.

  Sanjay and Cesar ran up beside Anlon just as Alejandro caught up to Pebbles. Shortly thereafter, the swift-paddling Jennifer and Mereau came alongside the two swimmers. Alejandro grasped the craft with one hand while he held Pebbles in the crook of his other arm. The kayak crested a small rapid and entered the Ene.

  Speechless, Anlon watched Jennifer and Mereau coordinate their oar strokes to angle the kayak toward the closest bank. A hundred yards up the Ene, Pablo finally caught up with them. Alejandro let go of the kayak and grabbed hold of the safety line ringing the raft. As the raft disappeared behind the bending Ene, Anlon saw Pablo pull Pebbles into the boat.

  “Thank God,” he whispered.

  Behind him, he heard Pablo’s voice through the walkie-talkie of one of the crew still ashore. The man answered back and then Anlon heard the sound of spraying sand. He turned to see the crewman running for the second raft. Moments later, after affixing another portable motor, the raft went off in pursuit of the others.

  Twenty minutes later, the rafts came back into view. In one, Anlon could see Jennifer and Mereau, their empty kayak being towed alongside. In the other were the stern-faced Pablo, Alejandro and Pebbles.

  Pebbles was wrapped in a blanket. For some reason, she was smiling from ear to ear.

  As the nose of the raft pushed onto the sand, Pebbles hopped out of the raft and ran toward Anlon, Cesar and Sanjay. Pablo angrily yelled at her to stop but she ignored him and shouted, “One of them didn’t die! One of the boys! He made it! He survived!”

  It took a half hour for Anlon and Cesar to convince Pablo to resume the trip. In the end, the goal was accomplished through a combination of creative prevarications on Cesar’s part and Anlon’s promise of additional compensation to win the tour guide’s agreement.

  However, Pablo did extract two additional concessions. For the remainder of the trip, Pebbles would ride in the raft with Pablo. And if she ran off again, whether into the river or jungle, the tour would be cancelled.

  Out of earshot of the others, Pablo leaned toward the two men and whispered, “I did not want to alarm you earlier, but the natives watch all who enter the Cutivireni. You cannot see them; they hide in the jungle. But we see the bushes move, sometimes see their footprints on the riverbanks. They occasionally show themselves. I do not know their reaction to your friend’s outburst, but I do know they will follow us until we return to the Ene. If she has another outburst, I will not hesitate to turn and leave. I am not risking your people or my men to those savages.”

  The look on Pablo’s face told Anlon the man was deadly serious. “They’re that bad?”

  “If they feel the s
lightest bit threatened, they will attack. Not with arrows and spears, but with machetes and machine guns.”

  “Machine guns?”

  “Yes. Favors bestowed by those who grow coca in the jungle in exchange for safe passage.”

  Anlon and Cesar convened with the other members of their party, sharing the deal reached and the risk associated with continuing on. “As always, we only go forward if we’re all in agreement.”

  Hands on her hips, Pebbles sighed. “Then we’re screwed. My skin is tingling. I can feel more coming, A.C. Like, any minute. You guys should head back, but I can’t.”

  “Uh, that’s not happening,” Anlon said. “If you’re staying, I’m staying.”

  “Me as well,” Jennifer said.

  Anlon looked to Cesar, Sanjay and Mereau. “Gentlemen? No hard feelings if you want to go back.”

  Cesar laughed. “I’ve met my fair share of rebels and machete-wielding natives. These can be no worse than others. I’m staying. Especially if Mereau is willing to aid in our defense.”

  “You may count on it, my friend.” Mereau patted Cesar’s shoulder then turned and smiled at Jennifer and Anlon. “We will prevail as we did at Calakmul.”

  Anlon looked to Sanjay. Despite the doubt evident in the psychologist’s eyes, he said, “Do not even think it, Anlon. I am staying here with my patients.”

  “Patients with an ‘s’?” Jennifer asked.

  “That’s right. Pebbles and Citali. One cannot find peace without the other.”

  Mereau turned and walked away. Anlon called to him. “Where are you going?”

  “To fetch my backpack. My Lifintyls.”

  “Ah. Gotcha.”

  Pebbles tugged on Anlon’s sleeve. “A.C.?”

  “Yeah?”

  “You need to tell Pablo what’s going to go down. Like right now.”

  She covered her mouth and backed away. Her eyes rolled back, and she collapsed on the sand.

  The man painted in gold looked into Citali’s eyes, his brow furrowed, his eyes blinking. “But, Keeper, I do not understand. The child lives. This is worthy of rejoicing.”