Virgo's Vice

by Trish Jackson

  My heart sinks. I want to grab the phone from him and speak to them myself.

  Jared curses and dials again. “Hello.” He shouts this time. “Can you hear me? I’m calling from the group you dropped off by parachute. Allan Dockery’s group.”

  “Fuck it!” He makes as if he’s going to smash the phone on the rocks, but holds on to our only hope. “They can’t hear me.” He stares at the screen. “Now there are no bars.” He thrusts his glasses up his nose angrily.

  I blow out air. Billy takes the phone from him and examines it closely. “There aren’t any bars now. Did you actually manage to contact someone?”

  “Yeah.” Jared nods vigorously. “I heard the lady but she couldn’t understand or couldn’t hear me.”

  “Try again,” I say.

  “No bars,” Jared says.

  We wait a while, but the bars don’t come back. I drop back onto my rock perch, set the camera down, and wipe the sweat from my brow. “So what now?”

  “We wait,” Billy says. “That’s all we can do.” He sits beside me and pulls me into him. “Don’t look so sad. You mustn’t cry again.”

  I sigh and try to smile back, but I don’t feel like smiling. I’m done crying, though.

  “Oh no. Fuck it,” Jared says after a few minutes. “It’s losing its charge. The battery isn’t holding the charge for long enough. I can’t understand why.” He shakes the phone and stares at its screen again. “I’ll try one more time. There’s only one bar, though.” He scrambles up onto another boulder to get higher.

  Billy follows him. It’s right on the edge of the hill and leaning outward. Did it just wobble a little?

  “Watch out!” I yell, but even as I say it I know it’s too late.

  Everything happens so fast and yet it seems to be in slow motion.

  Jared loses his footing and scrambles to catch himself. The sudden shift in weight dislodges the boulder he’s standing on and it starts moving. I hear myself scream. There’s a loud scraping grinding sound and the boulder starts rolling. It grazes the ground, rocks back and forth, and then drops down over the edge of the cliff with Jared still trying to get his balance.

  My heart catches in my throat. I watch in horror as Billy lunges for Jared and follows him over the cliff.

  Chapter 38

  Riaan Marais arrived at work at the normal time, just before eight on Monday morning. There always seemed to be so much to catch up on after he had been away, even if it was for a short time, and he had been away for five days.

  “Hey man,” Hendrik came into his office and shook hands with him across the desk. “You look good.”

  “Ya, it’s beautiful over there, in Kenya,” Riaan said.

  Hendrik dropped into the chair across from Riaan and sipped from his cup of tea. “Glad you got to have a honeymoon. When Michaela and I married I couldn’t leave work.”

  “What happened with the Hollywood crowd?” Riaan helped himself to two sugars and stirred the tea Mpili had just set on his desk.

  “Nothing. Haven’t heard a thing and they haven’t paid the bill.”

  “Shit. That’s strange. I got the impression this was being filmed from that day on. That poor little camera girl was terrified out of her mind. I don’t think she knew she was gonna be jumping with the others. I hope she’s okay. He also sent his dog down with one of the contestants. The cowboy.”

  “You said that Hollywood guy who’s in charge would want to be dropped there with his crew and equipment while you were gone, and I had everything ready, but nothing happened. No calls and no money. I actually got to wondering about them, so I flew over that way and spotted their camp a couple of days ago.”

  “And? Were they okay?”

  “Ya. They were hanging out there and they waved. They’ve marked their camp with something bright in the trees, which was smart. I had a look at the airstrip and it’s still okay, although it’ll need mowing and checking again soon. Hell, if we had been paid I might have landed and spent a little time with them, but I figured I might be interfering with the game. Aren’t they playing some kind of game?”

  “Ya, I told you it’s a reality show like Survivor. You must have seen that on the telly. The winner gets a million dollars or something like that. But I don’t understand why Mr. Dockery hasn’t contacted us. He knows there isn’t anyone else who flies over that way, and he definitely said he would be back to get the game going three days after I dropped them. He told me they had a sat phone, so I guess they would have called if they ran into any problems.”

  Riaan logged in to his computer. “I hope the Internet is working today. I must have some emails to catch up with. At least we’ve got power.”

  “For the moment.” Hendrik stood, drained his cup, and went back to his own office. “I’m taking some guys out to the river later today,” he yelled back.

  “Mpili.” Riaan called the office assistant.

  “Sir,” she said, and picked up his empty cup off the desk.

  “Are there any phone messages for me?”

  “No, sir. Hendrik took all your calls. Except for one day, yesterday. When he was out flying.”

  “Who was it?”

  “I don’t know, sir. I couldn’t hear him properly. It was a bad connection. It sounded like he was saying something like ‘mockery’, but I don’t know what he meant. I think maybe it was just a crank call.”

  “Okay. Thanks. They would have called back if it was important.”

  Riaan checked all his emails. He had hoped there would be something from Allan Dockery, but there was nothing. He checked his spam box. Still nothing.

  Something wasn’t right. Allan Dockery had seemed like such a genuine person—a larger-than-life kind of man. He was obviously eccentric, but he didn’t seem like the kind of person who would go on his word. Riaan knew people were not always what they seemed to be, but he liked to think of himself as a good judge of character.

  He had been so sure Dockery would pay, because he had told Riaan he would be coming back to Zimbabwe in three days and would need to have the rest of the crew and all their gear transported to the site.

  Had he found another air charter group to fly him there to avoid paying? Nobody else in Zimbabwe had aircraft big enough to fit all the stuff Dockery was talking about. Could someone from Zambia have flown them? It was possible, just as it was possible someone from Mozambique, Botswana, or South Africa could have taken him to the site. There was one way to find out. He would have to dig into the flight plans that had been filed with the Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe while he was away.

  He checked his watch. The time difference was nine hours. It was eight-fifty, which meant it was almost midnight in California. Dockery would be at home and probably in bed asleep. His office number was the only number he had given. Riaan picked up the phone and dialed. He left a direct message for Dockery. “Please contact me via email or call me,” he said. “I’ll give you my office number and my cell phone. If I’m not at work when you call, use my cell phone and don’t worry about what time it is over here. I’ll answer it. It’s very important that I hear from you.”

  When Trip and Faith reached the deserted village, Trip headed straight for the cultivated patch he had found previously. “I’ll break the corn off if you hold the bag,” he said. “I want to get enough for a couple of days. They’re pretty dry and old, but they’ve been good and even if we don’t get any meat some days, these will fill us up.”

  “And those”—Faith pointed—“are what you got before, the green stuff.”

  “Yeah. They’re weeds, but the locals call them ‘relish.’ We have to eat greens or we’ll get sick. Do you have the machete?”

  Faith got it from her backpack.

  “Maybe you could start cutting it, close to the ground.”

  �
��I hope Rodriguez catches some birds,” Faith said. “I can’t tell the others there’s no protein tonight. The rice is finished, and it’s our only meal in the day. Everyone is so hungry.”

  Trip stopped for a rest and wiped the sweat off his face with his sleeve.

  “Why did you put that in Mark’s food?” Faith asked, suddenly breathing hard.

  “What do you mean?”

  “You know what I mean. You’re the only one who knew about mushrooms.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  Faith lifted the machete and started cutting the weeds again.

  Trip watched her for a while, his brows furrowed.

  Once they had filled the black bag, Trip said, “Okay. I guess we should head back to camp.” He pointed. “I hope they manage to connect with someone, but I doubt they will. There are no cell towers around here.” He humped the bag over his shoulder and picked up the shovel. They walked in silence for a while before he said, “So you think I’m the killer?”

  Faith stopped to stare at him. “Why do you ask?”

  “What you said a while ago. About Mark.”

  Faith started forward again. “Are you?”

  “Why would I kill them? I have no fight with Mark.”

  “Maybe he saw you do something. Maybe he got it on camera.”

  “It wasn’t me,” Trip said.

  “Must be someone from the outside, then,” Faith said. “But how did they poison him? That’s why I asked you if you did it. There wasn’t much chance of anyone putting poison in his food. No outsider could have done so.”

  “It could have been any one of us.” Trip stopped. “I suppose you think it’s me, because of the way Lexie keeps trying to blame me.”

  “No, I don’t think it’s you,” Faith said. “If it was you, you would have stopped when she accused you, because you would know everyone is watching you. Why does she hate you so much?”

  “I wish I knew. I did know her before, but I didn’t do anything that would make her mad like that. I dated her aunt.” Trip started walking again.

  Faith remained silent.

  “What happened to Andy and Kelli?” Trip asked.

  “What do you mean?” Faith’s voice rose an octave.

  “You were the last to see them. You went back after me, and then they turned up dead. How did you do it?”

  “So now you’re . . .”

  “What was that?” Trip said. “Did you hear it?” He stopped to listen.

  “It sounded like thunder but there are no clouds,” Faith said, staring up into the sky with a wrinkled brow.

  “Look,” Trip pointed. “It came from there. See the dust?”

  “Isn’t that the hill where they went to see if they could get the cell phone to work?” Faith asked, shading her eyes with a hand.

  “Yeah. Come on, let’s hurry.”

  Chapter 39

  When I finally get to the bottom of the hill, after what seems a lifetime, I throw the camera down and run. “Billy,” I yell. “Billy where are you?” Oh please let him be okay. My heart is beating fast and I gasp for breath.

  “What happened?” Stretch says. “Is everyone okay? I think I must have blacked out.” He’s sitting on the ground holding his arm with a dazed expression on his face. His skin is gray, apart from the scrapes all down one side of his face that are oozing blood.

  “A big boulder crashed down. Jared stood on it to get higher and it fell. Billy was with him. It brought a whole lot of other smaller rocks with it and they crashed onto you guys down here.”

  He grimaces and gazes around him.

  “Where are you hurt?”

  “My arm and my shoulder. Hurts like heck,” he says in a strained voice.

  “Have you seen Billy anywhere?”

  Stretch is too stunned to answer.

  “I’ll see if I can find anyone to help you.”

  I try to swallow but my mouth is too dry. I move on. “Billy, please answer me.” Oh God, please. The ground is littered with rocks of all sizes and that must be the big one. The boulder Jared was balancing on. Someone is lying half underneath it.

  I stop breathing.

  Then I run.

  “Jared!” I kneel down beside him.

  He opens his eyes wide. “My legs,” he moans.

  His feet seem to be wedged under the boulder. I taste bile and force it back down.

  I crouch down and reach out and stroke his forehead. It has blood and dirt streaked on it. “Does it hurt?” I say.

  “No. I don’t think . . .” He doesn’t finish, but I know what he wants to say. His feet must be crushed. It doesn’t hurt yet, but when the shock wears off he’s going to be in terrible pain. I stand up and push my shoulder against the boulder and lean into it with all my weight. It doesn’t move. I stay there and stare for a few seconds, not knowing what to say.

  “I’ll come back in a minute. I have to find Billy.”

  I move on.

  Maria is lying on her back, her arms out above her head and her legs flung wide. Her eyes are closed. I bend down and reach out to touch her. Is she alive? I feel for a pulse in her throat. Yes. It’s stronger than I expected.

  “Billy,” I yell. “Billy Murphy, answer me this minute!”

  “Yo,” Billy shouts. “Over here. Near the big tree.”

  I run to him and throw myself on the ground beside him, and wrap my arms around his shoulders. “Oh Billy, thank God. I thought you were . . .” I bury my face in his chest.

  “I’m glad you care. I didn’t think you would.”

  His clothes are torn and dirty but I don’t see any blood.

  “Are you okay?”

  “I think so,” he says.

  I offer a silent prayer of thanks.

  “Oh, Billy, Jared’s hurt bad and the boulder is on his feet. I don’t know how we’ll get it off.”

  He sits up and I help him to his feet. “Fuck!” He almost falls over and leans heavily on me, and I see the pain in his scrunched up eyes and gritted teeth. All the blood has gone from his face. I wonder if he’s going to pass out. He’s holding tight to my arm.

  “You’re hurt.”

  “My knee. I must have twisted it. I felt it when I lunged for Jared. I don’t know if I can walk on it.” He’s still leaning on me. His face is streaked with dirt and sweat runs down his forehead. “I tried to catch him, to stop him, but I couldn’t get to him.” He stares at me. “Are you okay?”

  “Yeah. I wasn’t on that rock. We should go to Jared.”

  Maria is now sitting up rubbing the back of her head.

  Billy uses me for balance and hops on one leg. He has to stop and rest every couple of steps, and he rubs his knee, breathing hard and muttering curse words.

  “Over here.” Lela’s standing staring down at the ground.

  Billy and I stagger over to her. Sam is lying half on her side. Her head is thrown back and her neck is bent at an impossible angle. I know she’s dead.

  “Oh crap,” I say, and my heart sinks.

  Lela’s forehead has a big gash in it and she’s holding it with one hand. Blood has seeped through her fingers and she’s wiped her brow and smeared it on her face. “You okay?” Billy says.

  “My arm hurts real bad. I think it’s broken.” Her voice is shaky and quiet, she’s holding onto it. I can see bone sticking out of it and I heave, but there’s nothing in my stomach to come out. I manage to swallow and take a few deep breaths. I’m not going to cry, no matter what. My ears start ringing and I feel myself sway.

  “Come on, Lexie. Don’t give up on us now,” Billy says.

  He shakes my arm.

  “She has no pulse. I think she’s dead,” Lela says.

  It s
ounds like she’s far away.

  “You should sit down, Lela. We need to get the first aid kit over here to you. Your arm looks pretty bad and you’re bleeding from that cut on your head. Take a few deep breaths,” Billy says to me. After a few moments, he adds, “Feel better now? Where’s Jared?”

  We make our way slowly to Jared.

  Billy lets go of my shoulder and, ignoring his own pain, he slips down into a sitting position. He takes Jared’s head and slides under it so it’s pillowed by his good leg. “What the fuck did you think you were doing, bro?” he says with a grin. “Extreme rock surfing?”

  It brings a smile to Jared’s face despite his obvious distress. His face is white, and his eyes are very big and dark. His shorts are torn and I can see his boxers through the ragged hole. Apart from his face, his skin is red and has scrapes all over it. His glasses are gone.

  “We’ll have to figure out a plan to get you out from under there. You okay otherwise?”

  Jared nods. “I have a few scratches and bruises, but if I could only get my fucking feet free.” He groans. “I can’t see too well without my glasses, either.”

  Jake comes galloping up to me, his tail tucked between his legs. He’s panting and obviously terrified. I crouch down and hug him around his neck and stroke him. “It’s okay, boy. That gave you a big fright, too, didn’t it?” He keeps his tail down, but wags it a little to show he appreciates the comfort of my voice and hands.

  We hear yelling in the distance.

  Trip is running toward us, Faith trailing after him.

  “What happened?” Trip asks when he catches up to us, breathing hard.

  “Rockslide,” Billy tells him. “Jared’s feet are trapped, and most of the others are not in very good shape. We need to move this rock somehow and the others need the first-aid kit.”

  Trip throws down the black trash bag and pushes the boulder. It doesn’t move. “We need a couple of strong, thick poles to lever it off him.” He searches around. “The axe is in camp. I’ll go and get it.” He picks up the black bag again.