But only when he didn’t realize he was leading.
He would jump in to help with any project his village undertook, even helping at her village, and his intelligence quickly resulted in him telling where to cut, where to tie, where to place. Whenever she saw him in action, she felt so proud of him, and it made her want him even more.
But it was not to be.
She smiled at Tuk, trying to send him a message of her love, but he quickly looked away, staring at the sky as if seeing something fascinating. She didn’t bother looking up; she knew there would be nothing there.
Her chest ached.
Arms grabbed her from behind and she yelped as she was lifted into the air, the roar of her future mate filling her ears. She squealed and he flipped her around, giving her a big kiss, which she returned willingly. Bruk was a good man, and she did have feelings for him, and in time she knew she’d love him more than she loved Tuk. Part of her always felt guilty when there was some sort of public display of affection between her and Bruk in front of Tuk, but it couldn’t be helped, and if she were to live here, he would have to get used to it.
Bruk put her down and she stole a glance over at Tuk but he was already heading into the forest, his shoulders slumped.
“Stop that or the Mother will curse you with ugly children!”
Bruk and TikTik laughed as he put her down, one last kiss snuck before he disappeared into the forest with several of the men, tonight’s main course still undetermined.
She resumed brushing Grandmother Trin’s hair, her humming resumed, her thoughts returning to poor Tuk. She hoped he would find a mate someday. It would be hard, he having to marry outside the village and there only being a few villages within easy travelling distance. But perhaps at one of those villages there would be some poor girl, in a predicament similar to his, that would take him as her mate and perhaps they could make each other whole, each other happy.
She just wanted Tuk to be happy.
Because she knew she would never truly be happy if he weren’t.
She felt an odd vibration on the log she was sitting on and stopped her brushing, looking about to see what was happening. A scream erupted from the forest, a scream she recognized immediately as Bruk’s.
And it was one of terror.
A beast roared from the forest, unlike anything she had ever heard, the sound so loud she could only imagine it must be as tall as the trees. Legends of giants filled her head as she grabbed Grandmother and they retreated toward the center of the village. Suddenly creatures, black from head to toe burst into the clearing, quickly surrounding them all, at least two dozen in number, then a massive creature surged through the trees, the mighty trunks chewed through by the creature’s spinning teeth, a high pitched wail emerging from its mouth as the trees were felled easily.
The beast was unlike any creature she had seen, it clearly from another world, perhaps that of the Spirits. Or worse. She had heard of course of where those with evil in their hearts were sent, a world of horrors where there was no joy for eternity, a world where those who would abuse the Mother’s gift of life were doomed to live out the afterlife.
And she had no doubt this creature was from there.
One of the black creatures shoved her toward the center of the village, the hunters that had just left suddenly emerging from the forest, their hands high over their heads, their spears not to be seen. She couldn’t see Bruk, and she wondered if he had somehow escaped, when her heart sank.
Two of the black creatures dragged his body into the clearing, dumping him on the ground.
She screamed.
Rushing toward the body of her mate-to-be she felt something hit her back and she collapsed to the ground, jerking, unable to control any of her limbs or even shout out in fear.
Tuk’s voice erupted from behind as he cried out in anger. Her only thought was a message her mouth couldn’t deliver as she lay paralyzed on the ground.
Run, Tuk! Run!
Tuk ran. As hard as he could. At first he had no destination in mind, then he turned to head to TikTik’s village, then he realized there was only one person who could help him.
The Woman of Light.
She was of the Spirit World and so were the Panther People. She might know some way to stop them, some way to defeat them. From the little he had seen his people were no match for these cursed creatures. If he hadn’t have seen it for himself he wouldn’t have believed it.
Panther People!
The very idea was insane, but there was no doubt at what he had witnessed.
He had witnessed TikTik’s death.
He suddenly stopped and bent over, emptying his stomach on the forest floor, his retching continuing as he pictured TikTik’s body twitching on the ground then unmoving. How she had been taken down, he had no idea. Her attacker had merely held up its hand and she had dropped.
It was magic.
And he needed a medicine man.
And he couldn’t picture a medicine man more powerful than someone from the Spirit World.
Lau-ra-pal-mer would save them.
Lau-ra-pal-mer would save them all.
Laura Palmer stood in the middle of her prison. Overhead the sun shone brightly through the tree tops, large swaths of warmth making it down to her. She had removed most of her wet clothes, putting her bra back on, and had slung her shirt and pants up over the wall so they hung down the side, the sun shining on them. She used her makeshift latrine, burying her waste, then drank as much of the water she could from the small holes she had dug.
Now for food.
The idea of using her shirt as a lure, rubbing it over her body then tossing one arm over the edge like a fishing line occurred to her, but she didn’t know what she might catch. If the creature were too big, it might simply tear her shirt away from her, leaving no cover for nightfall.
Or worse, it might fall in the hole with her, trapped and scared.
The chance of it being a small creature was good, but not worth the risk.
No, she would have to do with whatever Mother Nature would provide.
That meant grubs, worms and insects.
The thought wasn’t appealing, but she had eaten most things at least once in her life, but never as a matter of survival. To understand cultures you needed to experience their way of life, and the anthropologist in her insisted she try everything, no matter how disgusting. Which had meant insects, spiders, worms and grubs.
Even many of them alive.
She had wretched a few times, even tossed her cookies once, but in time she had learned to stomach most anything.
And it would keep her alive.
The pit looked like it had been there some time, so she decided the ground she was standing on may have begun to develop its own ecosystem similar to that above. She began digging in the corners, along the edges, and was soon rewarded with a few wrigglers, quickly swallowing them without thinking about it.
Ugh.
Well, almost without thinking about it. She couldn’t help it, especially with the knowledge that this might be all she ate for the next seven days.
Six and a half!
She sighed, shaking her head, wondering again why the hell Tuk had done this to her.
And where the hell James was.
She admonished herself for getting mad at him, knowing that there would be almost no hope of him finding her unless he had picked up the trail, and there was little chance of that without help, help that was days away at best.
And they had travelled over two days, fairly swiftly, Tuk clearly knowing the forest.
A branch snapped, the sound echoing through the forest overhead. She froze. Was it wildlife or man? Friend or foe? Was it a predator that wouldn’t hesitate to leap down here and eat her, or a herbivore she could lure down and possibly snap the neck of.
Or was it a search party.
Or worse, a group of cannibals.
She heard something, what she couldn’t determine, but she moved to the center of t
he pit, slowly spinning, her head monitoring the edge surrounding her as panic began to set in, the image of a massive anaconda slithering into the pit and crushing her to the point of near suffocation, then swallowing her whole—and alive, to be digested over days, never to be found again.
More sounds, another crack, making her think either the creature approaching was huge, or careless.
And only humans were careless.
If it were members of a hostile tribe, she could find herself in a worse state than she was now, but if it was a search party, they might walk right by her.
Do I yell?
It was a debate it hadn’t occurred to her she might have to have. Of course she had to yell, she had to call out to let them know where she was. Anything was better than here.
Hostile natives could kill you or eat you!
She knew she could survive here seven days as long as she had rain at least every couple of days. There was plenty of food to scavenge that would meet her minimum needs, and as long as nothing entered the pit that was able to kill her, she should be okay until Tuk arrived.
Who then might kill her anyway.
The sounds were getting farther away now, slowly fading.
What do I do?
Then a thought occurred to her.
Natives would never step on a stick and reveal their position.
And she committed.
“Help!”
Acton stared at the ground in frustration. They had lost the trail, the overnight rain washing away many of the heel prints his Laura had been leaving, their trackers only able to find every fourth or fifth imprint, sometimes less, and now they had found none for the past five minutes.
He stepped on a stick, it snapping loudly sending several birds from their perches, silencing the immediate vicinity of some of its non-stop racket for a few seconds. And it was a racket. What had been beautiful two days before was now annoying. He hated the jungle. He wanted out of the jungle. He never wanted to see a jungle again. He knew his hatred was irrational and linked entirely to the situation, but his level of frustration, impatience and fear was so high, he was ready to snap and tear someone’s head off.
Another branch snapped, Sandro the guilty party this time, and Acton cringed. If they were close to Laura’s captor then he would certainly hear their approach with all the noise they were making. The native guides were silent in their progress, their bare feet seeming to sense the ground under them, but the inexperienced Westerners with their large boots and thick soles were blazing a trail of noise.
“Help!”
Everyone froze, ears cocked to detect where the cry had come from.
But Acton already knew. He plunged through the trees to the right, running as fast as he could toward what was unmistakably Laura’s voice. He knew he had to get to her before she was silenced by her captor, or worse, killed for giving away their position.
He crashed through the trees, the jungle protesting at the disruption, branches snapping and cracking loudly, and he didn’t care. Speed was what was important. He could hear the others behind him, and he hoped it was because they agreed he was heading in the right direction, not simply following him.
“Help me, please!”
He adjusted slightly to the left then burst into a clearing, skidding to a halt on the wet grass that greeted him. In the center was a large pit, easily ten by ten feet. He stepped up to the edge and looked in, the sun shining in his eyes, the pit dark. He shielded his eyes and dropped to his knees in relief.
“James!”
“Laura!”
She was the most beautiful sight he had ever seen despite her disheveled appearance. Standing in the center of the pit, a pit which was at least ten feet deep, she rushed toward him as he dropped to his stomach, reaching out for her. Their fingers could barely touch, but it was enough for them both to know they weren’t imagining things. Sandro and the others arrived and within moments a rope was lowered as she dressed. They hauled her to the surface where she quickly leapt into Acton’s arms, the two of them simply holding each other, sobbing in relief.
Acton’s chest hurt with the shock, the relief, the anger of the situation. What had been intended for his wife? He could only imagine the worst, and his imagination was running wild with images of leaving her there to die, to tossing in wild animals for entertainment as she fought for her life.
He sucked in a deep breath and let it out slowly, instead focusing on her.
“Are you okay?” he asked gently, without letting her go.
Her head nodded against his chest.
“No injuries?”
She shook her head.
“He didn’t—you know…” He couldn’t bring himself to say it, he didn’t know how he’d handle it. He knew it wouldn’t be her fault if he had raped her, and he would think of her no differently, it was just something so alien to his experience he didn’t know how she would want to be treated should it have happened.
She vehemently shook her head, pushing back slightly and looking into his eyes. “No, he never touched me.” She cupped his cheeks in her hands, wiping the tears away with her thumbs. “In fact, Tuk was quite the gentleman for the most part.”
“Tuk?”
“That’s his name. We learned to communicate a little.”
“Did he say why he took you?”
“A little, darling, a little. Like yes, no, toilet, food.” She wiped her own face dry. “If I had to guess, however, I’d say he was taking me back to be his mate.”
Acton felt a flash of jealousy, his cheeks flushing.
Laura grinned at him, patting his cheek. “Now, now, dear, I only have eyes for you.”
“Uh huh. Your Tuk boyfriend better hope I don’t see him.”
“I don’t think we have to worry about that. He’s not coming back for another six days.”
“Six days!” Rage again surged through his body as he tried to fathom what possible reason this Tuk bastard could have for leaving Laura in the bottom of a pit for a week.
“I’m guessing some kind of purification ritual,” replied Laura to Acton’s unasked question. “Leave me there for all the evil and impurities to leave, and if I survive, I was found worthy by their gods.”
Acton nodded, still refusing to let her go. “Sounds plausible.”
Sandro approached, everyone having given them a few moments alone. “Senhor, we should be leaving now. If we hurry, we can maybe make the village before nightfall.”
Acton looked at Laura. “Are you able to walk?”
“Try to stop me!”
“Good, then let’s go.” He motioned for their guides to lead the way and Skip soon had them racing back through the jungle. As they proceeded Laura drank some fresh water and ate plenty of the food they had brought. Acton fished out the satphone. “I better give Leather a call, he’s supposed to rendezvous with us by nightfall.”
Laura swallowed a bite of her granola bar. “He got here quick.”
“Yeah, apparently they parachuted in at night, straight into the river!”
Laura tore off another chew from the bar. “Intentionally?” she mumbled, covering her mouth.
“Yup. And Hugh’s girlfriend saved the life of one of the men who missed the hook line.”
“Girlfriend!” Laura nearly choked, beginning to cough, some granola going down the wrong pipe due to her sudden inhalation. She drank some water, her cough subsiding. “What are you talking about?”
“Her name is Kinti. She pretty much seduced him the first night in the village they went to for help. They’ve been inseparable since, apparently.”
Laura shook her head, a smile on her face as she resumed chewing. “Good for him. I hope he doesn’t get his heart broken though.”
“He’s a grown man.”
“Who hasn’t had a serious relationship in almost twenty years.”
Acton frowned. “True. You don’t think he’d actually fall in love?”
“Is she cute?”
“Beautiful. Not as
beautiful as you, of course!” he added quickly for the save.
“Good one. Sex?”
“Absolutely. Here?”
“Not you, you pervert! Hugh.”
“All damned night from what I heard.”
“You were there?”
He nodded, describing his incident with the tribe’s hunters.
“Well, I think I should meet this Kinti, see if she’s worthy of our friend.” The smile disappeared from her face. “In all seriousness, I hope he doesn’t fall for this girl. He has to know there’s no future.”
“He knows. Just let him enjoy the moment.”
“If the moment goes on too long, the heartache afterward will just be that much harder to get over.”
“But it’s his heartache to get over, and none of our business. Let him have his fun, and when we leave here tomorrow—”
“Tonight!”
Acton laughed. “Okay, tonight, we’ll help him forget her. Who knows, maybe it will open him up to the possibility of finding a woman back in civilization.”
Laura seemed pleased with that idea. “That would be nice. I always feel sorry for him. He must be so lonely.”
“Some men are confirmed bachelors.”
“Some. But I think Hugh has so much to offer.”
“So do I. If I were a chick, I’d be all over him.”
Laura smacked him. “Be serious.”
“I am. I would be all over him.”
She shook her head and put her arm around his waist, laying her head on his chest for a moment as they slowed their pace. “I’m so happy to see you,” she whispered.
Acton stopped and wrapped his arms around her, kissing her deeply. When the kiss finally broke, he held her tight, his chest giving a single heave as he fought his emotions. “I thought I’d never see you again.”
“Come! Faster!” yelled Sandro, waving to them from about thirty feet ahead. Acton waved and they followed, holding each other’s hand as they rushed toward safety, either the heavily armed former SAS team, or the village itself.
Barasana Village on the Rio Negro, Northern Amazon, Brazil
Amazon Burning (A James Acton Thriller, #10) Page 13
