Virgo's Vice

by Trish Jackson

  Stretch limps across to us, with Maria trailing behind him.

  “Are you all okay?” Faith says.

  “Lela’s arm is broken,” Maria says, chin-cocking in her direction. “We need the first-aid kit and water.” Maria is a little pale, and she still has a bit of a dazed look in her eyes, and a few scrapes on her face, but by the way she’s staring down at Jared, I can tell she’s back in nurse mode rather than victim mode. “And my space blanket,” she adds.

  “We’ll also need one of the parachutes and maybe we can drag Jared back to camp on it,” Billy says.

  “I think I have a concussion,” Stretch says. “I’m prone to them and I can’t remember much about what happened. Something must have hit me on the head. Again. But it’s my arm.” He grunts. “Anyone know how to put a joint back into its socket?” His arm is hanging down. He touches it carefully and grunts. “My shoulder is hurting too. I don’t think it’s broken but it hurts like heck.”

  Maria moves over to his side and gently takes his wrist in her hand. “Let go of this arm,” she says to Stretch, who is holding his shoulder. Maria yanks and twists the arm somehow and it makes a sickening crack and Stretch screams.

  “Sorry,” she says, “but I think it’ll be okay now.” She peers closely at the shoulder. Stretch is holding it again and moaning.

  “Let me see,” she says.

  Sweat is pouring off Stretch’s face. “That hurt like hell.”

  “I know, and I’m sorry,” Maria says. “You were right. It was dislocated, not broken. How does it feel now?”

  Stretch gingerly moves it, then a little more, and then he rolls his shoulder carefully. “It’s better. It’s still real tender, but you fixed it. Sorry I yelled, but thank you.”

  I swallow hard. “I’ll go back and get what you need. Come on, Jake.”

  I start at a panic-driven jog, but I can’t keep it up and after a while, I have to slow to a walk.

  I haven’t made it to camp yet when I run into Trip heading back to the site of the rockslide. He’s carrying the axe, and the first-aid kit. “Lexie,” he says, “I want to talk to you alone.” He tosses the axe down onto the ground, and before I realize what he’s doing, he grabs my arm.

  Chapter 40

  “Let go of me,” I yell and pull away and twist my arm and do everything I can to get Trip to loosen his grip. That old sick sensation swirls inside me. I can’t let him overpower me.

  “Wait, Lexie, I only want to talk.”

  I’m pulling as hard as I can and hitting his hand with my free hand. “No.”

  Jake leaps up and closes his jaw on Trip’s wrist. Trip lets go of me and punches Jake on his snout. Jake yelps and then growls and jumps at him and barks, but he doesn’t get close enough for Trip to hit him again.

  “Keep him away or I swear I’ll hurt him, Lexie,” Trip yells.

  “Jake. Come!” I manage to get a hold of his collar. “Isn’t it just like you to delay when those people out there are relying on you to help them,” I sneer.

  “I just wanted to talk, Lexie. That’s all. I haven’t been able to talk to you privately the entire time we’ve been here.”

  “Now is not the time, Trip. If you’re not gonna help Jared and the others, give me the axe and the first aid-kit and I’ll help them.”

  He picks up the axe, keeping his eyes on Jake who is still growling, and walks sideways along the trail toward the others, glaring at me.

  I turn my back on him and continue on toward camp. I half expect him to follow me but I don’t hear his footsteps, and I know Jake will warn me if he gets close again.

  “What do you need, Lexie?” Rodriguez asks when I finally make it there after what seems like forever. Trip is not following me. I hope he’s taken the medical supplies to the others. “Water. I need water.” I dump the camera in the shelter and follow Rodriguez to the water bags. He starts lifting them off their hooks. I take one from him and suck greedily on it. Jake is already lapping up the water in his bowl.

  “Jared’s trapped under a boulder. I think his feet are crushed,” I tell him between drinks.

  “Trip told me some of what’s going on. You must have seen him on the trail.”

  “Yeah. I need to take water and a parachute and the space blanket. If they can get Jared free, they’ll have to drag him on some sort of litter.”

  “What about the others? How will they get back?” Rodrigues rubs his ankle as if to show me why he isn’t able to do anything.

  “I’ll help Billy get back. His knee is twisted badly, but he’ll make it. Lela’s arm is broken. It’s real gruesome with bone sticking out and all. Stretch’s arm was dislocated, but Maria fixed it. Faith was with Trip, so she’s okay and didn’t get caught up in the rockslide. She’s helping the others, and I think they’ll all be able to make it back here on their own.”

  “I wish I could come with you. It’s a long way to that hill.”

  “I know. More than five miles, I think. You’ll probably have to help cook supper tonight if we have anything. Faith is gonna be helping out there for a while, and we’ll be needing something to keep our strength up.”

  I start walking as fast as I can back toward the trail. I was running on adrenalin before, but now I want to like lie down and curl up into a ball. Jake must have fallen with Jared and Billy. He was on the big boulder with them. I’m so glad he’s okay, and he doesn’t seem to have been affected by Trip’s punch.

  For a while, the hill doesn’t seem to get any closer. It’s almost like a mirage and I wonder if the heat is getting to me. Then I think of Jared’s feet and that gives me a little more energy.

  I don’t want to see how mangled they are.

  I guess his phone is long gone.

  As I approach the disaster area, Billy, Trip, and Faith are angling long poles under the big boulder. Stretch is sitting on an old tree stump still holding his arm. I hand the water bottles and the other stuff I brought to him and Maria.

  “If you have another of those poles, I can help.” I know even though I’m not very big or heavy, Billy won’t be able to put his entire weight into it and it’s going to take a lot of force to move the boulder.

  Billy says, “Lexie, I want you to stand behind Jared and hold him under his arms, and when I shout pull, you drag him backwards. Okay?” I nod and stare at Billy’s leg. His jeans are torn and his knee is twice its normal size. I wonder how he finds the strength to do this.

  “I wish I could help you, Lexie,” Stretch says, and limps over to us. His arm looks okay, but he’s still gray.

  Billy calls Maria over. “You can give him that shot of morphine now.”

  She slips a syringe out of her pocket and holds it up and squirts the air out of it. She pushes it into Jared’s arm and we all stare at the plunger as the morphine goes in. “Let us know when it starts to work. I don’t know how much of the pain it’ll deaden, but it will help. It may still hurt like a bastard,” Billy says. “Yell if you want. We don’t mind.”

  Jared’s face is still white, and he’s shivering. He licks his lips. “It’s working,” he says and grins. “Yeah. I’m getting a good high now.”

  Billy stares at Trip, then Faith, and then at me. “Okay. Ready.” They lift their poles.

  “On the count of three. One, two, three.”

  Everyone groans with the strain, but the rock hardly moves. “Sorry, bro,” Billy says.

  They’re all sweating, and I know Billy is hurting. The way Jared looks I figure he’s probably going to pass out.

  After a short rest, they’re ready again, and on the count of three they all strain to lift the rock. I grip Jared’s arms and Billy yells, “Pull Lexie.” I lean back and tug with everything I have. I am beginning to think it’s not going to work, and then all of a sudden he’s free and I’m falling ba
ckwards.

  I lie there panting for a few moments, with Jared’s head and shoulders heavy on my legs. I slide out from under him and get up. I don’t want to see his feet but I can’t help it. His shoes are gone and he never wore socks. Where his feet were is just a pulpy mess of meat and bone. I dry heave and then lose some of the water I drank. I wipe my mouth and move my gaze to his face, and I’m thankful he’s passed out.

  Maria kneels beside him and wraps him in her space blanket. She whistles. “I don’t know what we’re gonna do with this boy. Someone is going to have to get help here before gangrene sets in.”

  I’m suddenly cold and I’m shivering. I can’t swallow. Why am I in shock? I’m not even hurt. Gangrene. One little word. One terrifying word.

  They have figured out a way to tie the parachute across two of the poles they used to lever the rock up, and they roll Jared onto it. Trip takes one end and Faith takes the other.

  “Sorry, Faith,” Stretch says, the strain in his voice clear. “I just can’t take that weight on my arm or shoulder.”

  “It’s okay,” she responds. “I can handle it as long as we don’t go too fast.”

  Lela and Stretch and Maria walk slowly behind them, supporting one another as best they can. Lela’s arm is bandaged and is in a sling. There wasn’t enough morphine for both of them, and Lela agreed that Jared’s need was greater than hers, but she’s very pale, and I don’t know if she’ll make it all the way back to camp on her own.

  Billy and I have agreed to watch Sam’s body until they can come back for her. We are afraid wild animals will get her if we leave her alone. I think Billy should have had morphine too.

  “You should get to camp and rest,” I say.

  “I can rest just as well here,” he says with a grin. “Besides, we’re alone together now. We can do whatever we want and nobody will be around to see us.” He winks.

  “Billy Murphy,” I say. “I cannot believe you’re thinking about sex at a time like this.” I pick a piece of grass and chew on the end, savoring the little bit of moisture in it.

  “I think of sex every time I’m near you,” he says, “and also when I think about you. And I think about you a lot. Pretty much all of the time.”

  A warm tingle runs down my back.

  “What are you gonna do when you get back home?” Billy says.

  “I guess I’ll go back to work. I need to earn money. Anyhow, it doesn’t look like we’re gonna get home. Ever.”

  “Sure we will. Will you come and live closer to me?” He shifts and I can see the pain in his eyes.

  “Do they make movies in Texas?”

  “Not that I know of.”

  “Then the answer is no.” I shrug.

  “What if I don’t accept no as an answer?” Billy says.

  “What? You gonna kidnap me?”

  “Maybe I’ll marry you and keep you pregnant and barefoot in the kitchen.” He grins.

  I smile. “Billy Murphy. Is that a proposal?” My heart misses a beat and I hardly dare to breathe.

  “What if it is?” he says.

  “You hardly know me.”

  “I don’t give a shit about that. I just know I’ve never felt this way about any woman before.”

  “It’s probably because we’re stuck out here together. Things will be different in the real world.” I can’t hold his gaze.

  “Is that a no? Does that mean you don’t want to marry me?”

  I glance at his face. That sad expression is unusual for him. I put my hand up to his cheek and stroke it. “I . . . have a lot of baggage.”

  “We all have baggage of some sort or the other. I haven’t always been the best citizen in the world. In fact, I’ve been a dumb asshole and gotten into a lot of trouble and caused a lot of pain for my dad.”

  “How so?”

  He shifts his leg and groans. “I killed my mom.”

  Chapter 41

  “What?”

  “I didn’t mean to do it and it’s haunted me all my life.” Billy’s voice broke. “I know it was an accident, but I can’t shake the guilt. I never will.”

  “What happened?” Lexie slid her arm around his shoulders.

  “I was six years old. My dad had left his shotgun leaning against the wall in the bedroom as he often did. He had taught me not to touch it, and never to point any gun at anyone. But being the dumb little kid I was, I picked it up and carried it. I was gonna give it to my mom so she could put it away. Well, I tripped and fell and the gun went off. When I picked myself up my mom had a red stain across her chest.

  “No one ever blamed me, but it’s never gone away. The pain of losing her and of knowing it was my fault.”

  “That’s the cause—the thing that eventually led to you being locked up?” Lexie asked.

  Billy stared at her face. She didn’t seem to be too fazed by it. He had never talked about it to anyone before and he was worried that she might hate him for it. He realized he’d been holding his breath, and it was a relief to let it out.

  “In a roundabout way, it probably is the reason I was locked up. I guess you could say I grew up to be a troubled kid, and when I was thirteen, I did some stupid things. It plagues me even today.

  “It just shows Dockery didn’t do any background checks. If he had known I’d been in lock-up, he wouldn’t have chosen me. I wonder what he would have found if he had checked the others.”

  Trip showed up, carrying the shovel. The dude had had his fill of exercise for the day. He must be fit for an older guy.

  “Any thoughts about where we should bury her?” he said. “Faith is needed back in camp and I can’t carry her body back on my own.”

  Lexie stood, dusted the seat of her jeans with her hands, and glanced around. “How about there, beside that big tree? It would be easier to find the grave again if we remembered it’s beside the biggest tree around.” She glanced down at Billy and he nodded his approval, and then held out his hand for her to help him up. He felt like he was gonna pass out for a few seconds, but he managed to hold it together. He leaned on Lexie and they followed Trip, who started to dig.

  “As long as there’s not too much rock, this should be okay,” Trip grunted.

  Billy and Lexie sat on the grass and Jake, who was understandably traumatized, sat beside Lexie, his body touching hers for comfort. He was staring at Trip and his hackles were standing up, and Billy wondered what Trip had done to him. After a long time, Billy said, “Let me take a turn and you can rest.” He held out his hand for the shovel.

  “Don’t be a fool,” Lexie told him. “I’ll do some digging. You rest that knee.” Billy tried to protest, but his leg was seriously painful and he dropped back onto the grass. He hated to let a woman do that kind of work, but had to admit to himself it was a relief. The digging was hard work, and Lexie didn’t seem to be making much progress when Trip took over from her again. His hand closed on hers when he grabbed the shovel and she jumped and twisted away. “Don’t touch me,” Billy heard her say quietly, then she glanced back at him. He stared at Trip with narrowed eyes.

  I sink down beside Billy and wipe the sweat off my face with my shirt. I’m sweating all over and I wish I could have a drink of water.

  “I don’t blame you for hating him so much, but you’re so afraid of him,” Billy says quietly. “It’s time you got over that. You’re not a kid now. He can’t hurt you if you don’t let him.”

  “I think we’re ready,” Trip says. “I’ll probably need some help with the body.”

  I shiver at the thought of having to pick Sam’s body up, but Billy can’t do it and I know he’ll try if I let him. “You take her legs and I’ll hold her shoulders,” Trip says.

  Sam is surprisingly heavy, and by the time we get to the grave site I’m breathing real hard. We can’t set her
gently in the hole. We have to let her fall in. It’s not right, but we have no choice. Trip starts to cover her. I offer to help, but he says he can do it. I scout around for something to use to mark her grave. She was so good at marking the other graves it seems particularly important for me to do something for hers.

  I find a couple of fallen branches and bring them over. There’s nothing I can use to tie them together to make a cross, so in the end we stick the two of them beside one another.

  “I’ll make a cross and come back tomorrow,” Billy says. “You should say something.”

  “Me? Why me?”

  “Go on, Lexie.” Trip is obviously weary, and his clothes are soaked in sweat.

  I stand up and move to the head of the grave and bow my head. I clear my throat. “I’m so sorry I didn’t get to know you better, Sam.” I glance over to Billy and he nods in approval.

  “I don’t know the twenty-third or any other psalm by heart. Do either of you guys?”

  Billy and Trip both shake their heads.

  I take a couple of breaths and try to clear my mind. I do the best I can with the phrasing, then end with, “I can’t remember any more than that, so God, please take care of her.” I bow my head. “She was a good person and she didn’t deserve this. Nobody did. Amen.”

  The others echo with “Amen.” I hope God doesn’t think badly of me because as I say that I want to add, “Except Trip. Because he sure as hell does deserve to die.”

  Only now that I scan around me do I realize that the sky is painted with bright reds and oranges, and soon it will begin to fade to deep purple, and the night insects will start to buzz around us.