by Black, Tasha
“He’s only being cautious after last night,” Margot said, looking like she was trying to hide a smile.
“They’re very protective,” Ruby said. “It’s not his fault - it’s instinctive. Besides, even Margot and I didn’t want you going alone.”
“To be honest, I would have wanted him along anyway,” Olivia said. “I’m still kind of freaked out. It was the fact that he wouldn’t give me a choice. He wants me to be his wife, but he’s acting like I’m his daughter.”
“He just wants to keep you safe,” Margot said.
“I’m a grown woman,” Olivia retorted, a little too loudly.
The men turned around.
There was dead silence for a moment, then Ruby snorted with laughter.
Margot laughed, too.
Wayne grinned at her, then turned back to his brothers.
“Anyway,” Olivia grumbled. “I can take care of myself.”
“Of course you can,” Margot said. “But what’s the point of having friends if we can’t have your back?
Olivia smiled and took another sip of her heavenly coffee.
“You know I’ve been thinking,” Ruby said. “Please don’t kill me - just here me out.”
“We’re listening,” Margot said.
“Do you remember the tarot cards?” Ruby asked.
“Who could forget?” Olivia asked, rolling her eyes.
“Remember the first card?” Ruby looked excited, so Olivia played along.
“Sure, the poverty card, and our corporate card wouldn’t work,” Olivia said. “But that was a coincidence.”
“And the second card?” Ruby asked.
“It was the moon,” Margot said.
“Yes, and the card had a wolf with red eyes,” Ruby said, her voice low. “As soon as we got here, we found those claw marks and that dead squirrel.”
“That was an ocelot,” Margot said.
“Ocelots are nocturnal,” Ruby reminded her. “What card was next?”
“Uh, the hanged man?” Margot asked.
“The hanged man.” Ruby nodded. “What happened to Olivia on the zip line?”
Olivia’s heart started to beat louder.
“That was just something stuck on the line,” she said quickly.
“But what?” Ruby asked. “And why did no one else have a problem with it?”
“What’s your point, Ruby?” Olivia asked.
“Last night, you guys said you heard a hideous howl in the night,” Ruby went on. “What color were the glowing eyes you saw?”
“This is ridiculous,” Olivia said. “You could take any random thing that happens and find a way to relate it to the cards.”
“What color were they?” Ruby asked again.
“They were red,” Olivia sighed.
Olivia Fontaine didn’t believe in tarot cards, and she certainly didn’t believe in the cadejo.
And yet a shiver went down her spine that had nothing to do with the cool breeze.
16
Olivia
Olivia scanned the beach again, a sense of frustration rising in her chest.
One of the PAs ran up to her.
“I’m sorry, Miss Fontaine, but I can’t find Lex,” he panted.
“That sounds about right,” Olivia fumed.
The blond cameraman had been acting weird lately - sneaking off for breaks left and right.
And of course, the ever-steady Al was already set up with most of the camera crew on the beach for today’s live shoot.
Wayne jogged up with a box in his hands.
“I have an idea,” he told her.
“Yes?” She wondered what was in the box.
“Why don’t we ride with them?” Wayne asked. “There was a stash of body cameras with their gear. You and I can do the filming.”
“That’s not a bad idea,” Olivia admitted. “It might come out like The Blair Witch Project, but at least we’d have footage.”
“We have about ten minutes before the horses have to go if they want to make the live shoot on time,” the PA reminded her.
“Yes, yes, okay,” Olivia relented. “Let’s suit up.”
Wayne gave her his crinkly-eyed smile and she couldn’t help but smile back.
He was a wonderful guy, and he had a nice instinct for being on a film set. She figured it made sense since this had been his only experience on the planet, but it was still pretty amazing.
The PA helped them with the camera equipment, then Wayne led the way to the horses, a real spring in his step.
He really did love animals.
Olivia loved them too. It was a shame her job meant she was constantly traveling. Growing up, she would never have believed she would have her own apartment and not have so much as a goldfish.
As much as she was sweating the production details, this trip was bringing her back to herself. The trees, the monkeys, the horses - all of it reminded her how much she’d loved being outside as a kid. Really outside - not the fake version she had grown used to imitating on a sound stage.
“We’ll need two more horses,” he told the lady. “One big enough for me. Can you help?”
“Of course.” The woman smiled up at him in a way that set Olivia’s teeth on edge.
Don’t you dare be jealous, Olivia Fontaine, she scolded herself. He’s not your boyfriend.
But she was relieved when he smiled back politely, his eyes never straying from the woman’s face to check out the rest of her.
Ruby and Margot were up ahead, already mounted on their horses.
Margot rode a beautiful white stallion that reminded Olivia of the horse Margot’s character rode on A Lion’s Game.
Ruby was seated on a chestnut pony with a brilliant black mane and legs.
Kent and Parker were still with the groom, who was adjusting and readjusting the saddles to fit their large bodies.
Olivia had to smile when she saw that they had assigned each man a horse whose markings matched their mate’s horse’s markings.
Another groom led a dapple gray with a snowy mane up to Olivia.
She nearly clapped her hands with delight. It was beautiful - almost as if a horse-shaped cloud had come to life.
“Three minutes,” the PA announced.
She swung onto her horse, patting its cloudy withers, and looked over at Wayne.
The huge dapple stallion they had brought him looked skittish.
“Hello, my beautiful friend,” Wayne said softly, reaching out his hand, palm up.
The stallion instantly quieted, snuffling Wayne’s palm.
A moment later he had mounted and the six of them were ready to go.
“One minute,” the PA announced.
“Okay, let’s do this,” Olivia said. “Guys, you’ll stay in front so Wayne and I can hopefully get some good shots of the ride.”
Margot grinned and gave her a mock salute, then she was racing her horse down the beach toward the trees.
Kent followed along with Ruby and Parker.
It was a picturesque sight, the four of them on those beautiful horses, waves crashing on the beach beside them, the verdant jungle just ahead.
Olivia gave her mare a gentle squeeze and she cantered off instantly, obviously eager to catch up with her friends.
“Gently, love,” Olivia told her. “We can’t catch up, but we’ll keep them in sight.”
The little mare had no interest in Olivia’s opinion. She lengthened her stride in spite of Olivia tightening the reins.
“Slowly, my friends,” Wayne said. “We must stay back so that we can watch over the others.”
Olivia felt the reins slacken instantly.
“How do you do that?” she asked him, incredulous.
“I—”
“—you have a way with animals,” she said, rolling her eyes. “Never mind.”
But it was hard to stay irritated when the breeze was lifting her hair and she and the dappled mare had found a rhythm.
They moved across the sandy beach at
a dreamy pace. But sped up when the horses’ feet hit the dirt path through the jungle.
Parker was just ahead of them, his mount’s inky tail swirling as they went.
The shade felt good after the hot sun of the beach.
As soon as Olivia’s eyes adjusted, she saw they were surrounded by bright red blossoms.
Birds cried out in welcome.
It was a perfect day.
Olivia was glad she and Wayne had been forced to go along. She was sure this was the kind of activity he loved. And as long as they got some decent footage, she figured this might be even better than the smooth, professional shots Lex would have gotten. Watchers would be able to feel as if they were riding along with the two happy couples.
Three happy couples, the little voice in her heart said contentedly.
“Whoa,” Parker said to his horse.
Olivia pulled up too and they trotted into a clearing.
The path opened up enough to reveal an old stone tower that burst up through the tree canopy, as if reaching for the heavens.
A sign in front had a poster attached to it that read:
A treat for the newlyweds!
Climb the tower for a honeymoon surprise.
“Very cool, Olivia,” Ruby said.
“I had nothing to do with this,” Olivia told her. “I’m not sure it’s legit.”
“It’s on the production company stationary,” Margot pointed out.
Would they really throw something in without consulting her?
Ruby was already dismounting, tying her mount’s reins to one of the posts next to the tower.
“Let’s check it out,” Ruby said.
Parker was dismounting too.
Olivia looked up at the tower and the stairs that wound around the outside of it up out of sight and thought of her terror on the zip-line.
Heights were not her thing.
When she looked back down she saw that everyone else was ready to climb.
“You can stay down here, Olivia,” Wayne said. “I will follow them and be sure to film the surprise.”
He remembered her fear of heights.
She smiled down at him, grateful.
“No,” she said. “I’m coming too. I don’t want to miss all the fun.”
She hopped off her horse and tied her to a post.
The six of them began to climb the stairs, Margot followed by Kent, then Ruby followed by Parker, and finally Olivia with Wayne behind her.
After the first few turns around the tower her thighs were burning to the point that she had to focus more on the climb than the height.
“What could be all the way up here?” Ruby wondered out loud.
Olivia wondered the same. Why would the crew have set something up without telling her about it? Who would have signed off on that? She was already imagining the phone calls she was going to have to make to sort it all out.
She only hoped they had budgeted enough time for this little side trek to still make it for the start of the live shoot.
“Can we go any faster?” she called ahead.
The group picked up their pace.
She tried not to think about the way the stairs wobbled and seemed almost to sway. It had to be her fear of heights making her overreact. The crew would have had to traverse the stairs to setup whatever was going on at the top.
And no one on the crew would ever put them in danger.
17
Wayne
Wayne followed Olivia, hoping his instincts were wrong.
It seemed impossible to him that any facet of the production of this television show hadn’t been run past her.
But why would someone send them on a detour up a tower?
“Oh, wow,” Margot said from somewhere up ahead.
He followed Olivia as she went from the top stair into the tower itself.
Three small archways looked out over the landscape, like windows into the jungle.
They let in enough light to make three bright shapes on the floor of the otherwise pitch-dark circle. The floor where he stood was a wide wooden plank, furred with thick green moss, and there was a scent of mold and disuse permeating the space.
No one spoke.
The climb had left them winded. For the span of almost a full minute, their harsh breathing was the only sound, echoing in the empty tower.
And then there was another sound.
The hollow click of enormous claws on the wooden planks.
“Wh-what was that?” Ruby moaned.
A metallic clink was her only answer.
Wayne tried to deny what he heard, but the clanking sounds cascaded like a waterfall around the tower.
The sound of heavy chains.
A man’s guttural scream rose inside the tower. But it wasn’t either of his brothers.
The voice transitioned into a low growl, which opened into an earsplitting howl as the chains clanked louder and louder.
“Let’s get back to the stairs,” Olivia said. Her tone was modulated, but Wayne knew her well enough to sense the tension.
Every protective instinct he had rose up in his chest and he was ready to demolish the place to keep her safe.
“Ohhh,” Ruby cried from close to the stairs.
“I’ve got you,” Parker’s voice said in the darkness.
“What is it?” Olivia asked.
“Th-the stairs,” Ruby whimpered. “They’re pulling away from the tower.”
“What?” Olivia cried out, a note of panic creeping into her voice.
She reached into her pocket to get her phone, then cursed softly.
“I suppose it’s too much to ask that anyone actually has a signal out here,” she said.
The others checked, but only shrugged apologetically in response.
“Gather near the stairs,” Wayne said. “And let me access the opening.”
He could hear their footsteps as they parted for him.
After his time in the gloom, the light almost hurt his eyes.
But as they adjusted, he saw Ruby was right.
The stairs were already swaying out several feet from the side of the tower, as if they had spontaneously decided they no longer wanted to be part of the structure.
Or as if someone had loosened them.
He looked into the trees, wondering what other options they had for escaping the tower and whatever was trapped in it with them.
There was nothing but rain forest in every direction, long, thick vines hanging from almost every tree.
Wayne envisioned the adventurous Tarzan of Greystoke, whose movie he had enjoyed.
He felt very sure that he could use the vines for swinging, but they were too far away.
A chattering in the trees reminded him that they were not truly alone. Animals were everywhere in this place.
“My friend,” he called out. “Bravest and most friendly of monkeys, are you out there?”
He waited, then heard a chorus of scolding sounds moving… away.
They were leaving him.
Then another cry, a familiar one, surfaced, this one coming closer.
They had not left him - they were conveying his message.
A funny little face with a dark furry body appeared on the largest tree across from the tower.
“Thank you for coming, my friend,” Wayne told him. “My friends and I are stuck in this tower. The stairs are broken, and we have no tails. Can you bring us vines strong enough to swing from? There are six of us.”
“You have to be kidding me,” Margot murmured.
In the darkness behind them, the thing that might be a cadejo groaned and snarled, shaking its chains.
But Wayne remained focused on the little creature in the tree.
It was a complicated message. But he knew this monkey was very clever.
It observed him, cocking its little head quizzically, then scampered away.
“No,” Olivia sighed.
“Wait,” Wayne told her.
18
Olivi
a
Olivia chided herself for being a fool, even as her eyes strained to find the monkey in the maze of leaves and branches.
Wayne might be good with animals, but no one was that good.
But a moment later, in a great chorus of excited shrieks, the monkey appeared at the tower, a thick vine grasped in his tiny hand.
He perched on the stone ledge, his tail held high and proud.
“Thank you, my clever friend,” Wayne told him. “Is this strong enough to hold one of us?”
The monkey chattered madly, shaking his little head up and down.
“I’ll try it,” Parker said.
“No,” Ruby told him. “I’m the smallest. If it will hold anyone, it will hold me. If I make it down I’ll ride for help.”
Before Parker could argue, Ruby took hold of the vine and swung out of sight.
“Ruby,” Parker moaned.
A moment later there was a crash in the underbrush.
“I’m okay,” Ruby yelled up.
“Go for help,” Olivia screamed down at her.
The monkey had disappeared along with Ruby. He was back now with another vine.
“Go on, Parker,” Wayne told him.
Parker swung out into oblivion with an expression of relief that could only mean he was eager to be with his mate.
Margot went next, then Kent. Each landing and calling out that they were safe.
“Now you,” Wayne told Olivia as the monkey offered her a thick vine.
She looked out over the jungle.
The only thing between her and the forest floor a million miles away was the coil of broken stairs, reminding her of what would happen to her own bones after a fall from this height.
She began to feel dizzy.
“I-I can’t,” she said. “You go. Send for help.”
“I won’t leave you here, Olivia,” Wayne told her.
A sound from deep within the tower told her that the beast was growing weary of watching its prey escape.
She wondered why it hadn’t attacked yet, but was too thankful to really care.
She looked outside again, her stomach clenching.
