Pirates of the Storm: Stranded In Time Book 1

by Fletcher Best

  Chapter 2: Lost

  Jeff came to with a start and he sat up in the kayak. The sky was sunny and the wind and sea were calm. He looked around and to his relief, he saw the island to his left and he was just inside the barrier reef. His fins were gone, but his mask and snorkel were still there. He had a brief moment of panic when he realized the paddle was not in the kayak but fortunately it was still tied to the rope and Jeff pulled it in. He untied the rope and started to paddle, but then realized that he didn’t see any familiar landmarks. Along the shore there were no structures he could see and the pier of the guesthouse was nowhere in sight. He looked at his watch to see how long he had been unconscious, but the digital screen was blank, apparently damaged in the electrical storm. Since the wind had been blowing him towards the West End of the island, he reasoned that if he paddled East, he’d eventually find the guesthouse, so he set off paddling in that direction.

  As he paddled, he watched the shore for some sign of civilization. Since he had no idea how far away he was from the guesthouse, the best course of action would be to go ashore anywhere he could get help, especially since it looked like the sun was heading down and it would soon be getting dark. But there was nothing on the shore as far as he could see. He continued paddling, growing more and more worried. There were no buildings or structures of any kind and the sun was definitely setting. Not wanting to be paddling in the dark, Jeff turned towards shore.

  He beached the kayak and stepped out. His back and legs were stiff and his arms were sore from the day of paddling, but otherwise he didn’t seem to have suffered any damage from his experiences of the day. Although the weather seemed fine now, he knew that the approaching hurricane could cause problems at any time, so he looked around to see what might serve as a makeshift shelter. He was standing on a thin strip of sand, beyond which appeared to be nothing but jungle. Several hundred yards up the beach, he spotted a rocky outcropping at the edge of the trees. He reasoned that it might at least provide a wind break, and since there did not appear to be any other good shelter options, he headed that direction. By now, the sun was getting low in the sky and the bugs were coming out. There were a few mosquitoes, but the bigger problem at the moment was the sand flies, which were quickly building in number. The bites started slowly, but soon Jeff’s skin was stinging all over and he would have done anything to have had access to some insect repellent. His walk toward the outcropping quickly turned into a run and he would periodically veer off into the water to splash himself and get a brief respite from the bugs.

  He finally reached the rocks and between swatting bugs he spotted what appeared to be a small cave about 10 feet up the side of the outcropping. It wasn’t exactly easy to get to, but he was able to climb up the sharp rocks without too much damage to his hands and feet. It turned out to be a pretty shallow cave. It was really more of a cut-out in the rocks than an actual cave, but it did provide a covered area just big enough to lie down in. It would provide decent shelter from any storms that popped up from the hurricane that night. By now, Jeff wondered if the bugs were going to leave enough of him to even have to worry about storms. Smoke from a fire would help, but despite having seen several television shows on how to make a fire in the wilderness, he didn’t have much hope of being able to actually pull it off in this environment, especially without any tools.

  He then remembered reading on a travel website about using coconut oil to prevent sand fly bites. He was surrounded by jungle – surely he could find some coconuts! He carefully climbed down from the cave and was pleased to find a coconut tree just a few feet away that had a few mature nuts on it. The only problem was that they were 15 feet up. He tried climbing the tree but only managed to scrape up his arms and legs before having to drop back to the ground. Looking around, he found a tree branch. It was heavy and awkward, but it was just long enough and he was finally able to knock down a coconut.

  But the hard work was just beginning. Opening a coconut with a machete or other tools is not too difficult, but opening one with rocks is another thing entirely. After repeatedly crunching and scraping his hands on the rocks while beating the coconut on them, he finally opened up a tear in the husk. After several more minutes of beating, tearing at the husk, and cursing, he managed to separate the inner nut from the husk. Although he was still being bitten repeatedly, a light breeze had come up and the bug bites were slowing somewhat. Realizing that the coconut would provide much-needed hydration as well as insect protection, he carefully cracked open the nut and drank the coconut water before breaking the shell apart to get at the meat. He pried loose a piece and set it on a rock to beat it into a pulp. He then rubbed the coconut on his skin and to his surprise and relief, it not only greatly reduced the number of new bites, it also soothed the sting of the existing bites. With the sting of the insects subsiding, John suddenly realized how hungry he was. He broke off a piece of coconut meat and popped it in his mouth. While he had always liked coconut, none had ever tasted so good.

  It was now getting quite dark and Jeff realized that he had better get back up to the cave while he still could see enough to climb the rocks. He placed the remaining coconut under his shirt and tucked the shirt into his swim trunks to hold it while he climbed. There was just enough light left from the sun sinking below the horizon for him to find hand and foot holds as he made his way back up into the cave. He mashed up a little more coconut for insect protection and slowly ate the rest as darkness set in. As time passed, the moon started to rise in the sky and there was actually a little more light than there had been when he had climbed into the cave. Although he was tired, Jeff knew that he probably wouldn’t get much sleep. The floor of the cave was hard and rocky and his thoughts would surely keep him awake. He stared up at the moon and stars for a while before lying down to try to get some rest. As expected, he could not really get comfortable, but eventually Jeff’s fatigue took over and he lapsed into a fitful sleep.

  Jeff awoke to the sun in his eyes and the sounds of sea birds. His body ached from a combination of dehydration and sleeping on his rocky bed. He was surprised to see the sun, since the Hurricane had been projected to pass close by during the night. Apparently it had changed course. Jeff was thankful he’d be able to search for help without being hindered by bad weather. He climbed down from the cave and set about knocking down a few more coconuts. His experience from the night before served him well and he was able to open his first coconut of the day much faster and with much less damage to his hands. The second and third coconuts went even easier. The coconut water and meat made him feel considerably better and after a brief rest to collect his thoughts, he walked up the beach to the kayak and set off to try to find help.