They continued on. Catalina warily eyed the passing capybaras.
Sensing tension, Micah asked, “Something bothering you?”
Catalina said, “I’m just amazed that the giant rats are the only thing not trying to murder us.”
“Out here, giant rats are just a normal part of the scenery.”
Catalina’s tone grew more serious. “So, do you really think some intelligent force from outer space created those monsters just to kill us?”
“Maybe not us specifically, but they’re definitely trying to stop anyone from reaching the Anomaly.”
“And you’re sure that’s the only rational explanation?”
Micah pondered that for a moment. “Well, on the flip side you’ve got the pirate queen’s version.”
“Which was?”
“She was convinced the snake god and his dark minions had risen up to protect its home.”
“And why does that sound any crazier?”
Micah thought, She’s right. Are the queen’s spiritual beliefs really any more farfetched than my allegedly scientific explanation?
Catalina asked, “But why aren’t we seeing any monsters now? Not that I’m complaining.”
“I think it’s ’cause we got rid of the fragment.”
“Or maybe you just passed the test.”
Micah gave her a puzzled look.
Catalina said, “You keep saying some weird old man is guiding you. Well, what if he was testing you, to see if you had the right stuff?”
“Are you saying he was intentionally putting us in harm’s way?”
“It’s just a theory.”
“That would be a dick move, but I guess it’s possible. Or maybe the act of creation is exhausting and the intelligence is worn out. Didn’t God have to rest on the seventh day?”
“You mean the day he should have been finishing the Amazon?”
“Something like that.” He shouted to Faye, “Slow down and stick with us.”
They reached the summit. Feeling winded, Micah stopped to take a few deep breaths while gazing out at the panorama of fog-shrouded rainforest and flowing river.
Catalina took Faye’s hand and stood next to him, whispering, “I think God’s done alright.”
All three looked out, swept away by the sheer majesty of what lay before them. Micah was hypnotized by the grandeur, until a terrifyingly familiar voice snapped him back to reality.
“Hello, Lucky Man. Did you miss me?”
Followed by the sound of a pistol being cocked.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Micah spun around to find himself face-to-face with Queen Caveira. The skull makeup was gone, but her eyes still radiated madness. Ironically, she was holding the very revolver he’d been carrying when they met. The monkey sat perched on her shoulder, baring its canines at him. Two men stood on either side of her, AK-47s held at the ready. Another three pirates emerged from the brush, weapons pressed to their shoulders.
Queen Caveira said, “When I saw the Morte Tinto’s footprints, I knew you’d panic and head back to the river, but I got here faster. So, why did you betray me after I gave you so much?”
“I didn’t, I just had to find my daughter.”
The queen gazed down at the terrified little girl. “So did I.”
Pulling Faye close, Micah said, “Look, just get out the chart, I’ll show you exactly where Batista’s mine is.”
Queen Caveira looked insulted. “Do you think this is about money? You took something more valuable than emeralds, and now you must pay for destroying Boiúna.” Shifting her eyes to Catalina, the queen asked, “So is this the scrawny bitch you’ve chosen over me?”
Catalina said, “What?” her eyes darting between Micah and the queen.
Micah thought, Oh God, is the queen actually jealous?
Glaring at Catalina, the queen said, “So you didn’t tell your woman about our love? Yes, Lucky Man spent many hours worshipping his queen.”
Locking eyes with her, Catalina said, “Oh yeah, he told me all about it. But he said I shouldn’t be jealous, ’cause you were just a cheap puta.” Seeing the rage burning in the queen’s eyes, she added, “All he’ll need to get over you is a shot of penicillin. But after that we’ll laugh at you, while getting down to some hot, nasty—”
The queen lunged at Catalina, grabbing her by the hair. Catalina twisted sideways, latching on to her other arm. In a practiced move, she twisted the queen’s arm behind her back and dropped down, jamming her knee into the queen’s lower back.
The queen’s men charged at her, fingers on their triggers.
Catalina drew the empty Glock, jamming it against the queen’s head. “Anybody moves and I blow your queen’s crown off!” She looked to Faye and Micah. “Run!”
Micah said, “But—”
Pleading with her eyes, Catalina said, “Go now… Please!”
Micah grabbed Faye’s hand, shouting, “Run, baby, run for the trees!” And they both raced off.
The queen lay on the ground, offering no struggle. In a serene voice she began mumbling the same phrase over and over.
Pressing the pistol to her temple, Catalina whispered, “That tune’s getting old fast.”
Micah ran behind Faye. “Keep going, baby, don’t slow down till we hit the trees!” He fought the urge to look back, unable to bear seeing Catalina.
Faye made it to the trees first, scrambling through the thick brush. Micah was only a few feet behind when he saw a ribbon of color in the weeds. It lashed out with lightning speed. Faye screamed, collapsing to the ground, clutching her leg.
Micah froze, staring down at the coiled, five-foot jararaca—a viper more commonly known as fer-de-lance.
Faye rolled on the ground screaming in agony. The hissing snake reared up, readying for a second strike. Micah lunged at it with adrenaline-fueled speed, grabbing it midway down its body. The snake writhed, furiously trying to bite him. Micah swung hard, slamming its head against a tree over and over until it went limp. Tossing it aside, he knelt down over Faye.
She whispered, “Daddy, it hurts,” tears streaming down her cheeks.
Micah held her tight, telling her, “I know, baby, but it’ll be alright.”
But he knew it wouldn’t be. The fer-de-lance was sometimes called a five step—meaning that’s as far as the victim got before succumbing. Without antivenom, Faye would be dead within hours—every moment of it being sheer agony. Micah stroked his daughter’s hair, knowing he was powerless to save her.
#
Faye’s scream distracted Catalina for an instant—it was long enough. The queen jerked upward like a bucking bronco while rolling sideways. Catalina hit the ground, still keeping the pistol against the queen’s temple. Then she felt a blade pressed to her throat.
The queen put her lips to Catalina’s ear, whispering, “Go on, pull the trigger! Pull it now or I’ll slit your throat.”
One of the pirates ran forward, yanking the pistol from Catalina’s hand. He popped out the empty magazine and held it up for all to see. The pirates laughed.
One of them grabbed Catalina, hauling her up onto her feet, while a second zip-tied her hands behind her back.
The queen brushed the knife blade along Catalina’s cheek without cutting her. “I like this one.”
In one blindingly fast move the queen swung her other arm around, delivering a left cross to Catalina’s jaw. The pirate holding Catalina up let her sink to the ground.
The queen strode to the trees where Micah knelt, rocking his sobbing daughter in his arms.
Holding up the dead snake for the pirates to see, Queen Caveira proclaimed, “When he ran, I called upon Boiúna, who sent this mortal underling to take revenge. Everything is as I foretold.”
Her pirates hovered around, amazed that her prayers had been answered.
Reeling with grief, Micah thought, Christ, she almost makes sense. But instead, he shouted, “If it’s all as you foretold, then why’d Batista kick the living shit out of you?�
�� He fully expected her to beat him.
But instead, her tone softened, becoming sympathetic. “Is there any sound sadder than the bellowing of a faithless man? Why are you clutching your dying child and shouting insults at me when you should be begging your own god for mercy? Boiúna tested my faith by leaving me with nothing. But I came from nothing, and therefore I will rise again. Now, with your aid, Boiúna’s physical form will also rise again. All because you will make a genuine sacrifice. The life of your child.”
“Why her? I’m the one you hate, so just kill me!”
“Lucky Man, your stupidity amazes me. If I kill you first you will die faithless. Sacrificing your daughter allows you to witness Boiúna’s resurrection. Then you can pray for his forgiveness and redeem your soul before I kill you. You know, you really should be thanking me.”
The queen’s pretzel-twisted logic left Micah speechless. Faye let out a shriek, the caustic venom tearing through her like fire. Micah held her tightly, unable to hold back his tears.
Tossing the dead snake aside, the queen said, “Dying from the venom means hours of unbearable agony. Lucky for you, I don’t have that kind of time.” Gesturing to her men, she ordered, “Grab him.”
Two men wrestled Micah away from Faye, zip-tying his hands behind his back.
The queen said, “Bring the child to the cliff so the river spirits can witness our sacrifice.”
Two men lifted Faye up and carried her to the cliff’s edge.
Catalina watched them, shouting, “What are you doing?” She tried to stand, but a kick in the chest sent her back to the ground.
The pirates hauled Micah to the cliff’s edge. Benício, the queen’s executive officer, grabbed him in a chokehold, forcing him to watch.
The queen knelt down over Faye, chanting under her breath. Then she raised the knife, saying, “Lucky Man, you are about to witness a miracle.”
And she was right.
Benício suddenly gasped, his grip on Micah slackening. Benício toppled forward, pinning Micah under him. Micah twisted his body, struggling to free himself. That’s when he saw the arrows jutting from the pirate’s back.
A fusillade of arrows shot through the air. Two more of the queen’s pirates dropped, multiple arrows in their backs. The three others spun around, blindly firing into the trees.
Micah struggled to push the dead man off him. Another salvo of arrows zipped over his head, cutting the remaining pirates down. They lay writhing on the ground, poison dart frog venom burning through their veins.
From the ground, Catalina saw a group of tall, loincloth-clad men emerging from the brush, bows held at the ready. They were Morte Tinto warriors.
The Red Death had come.
The queen stood, facing the warriors, declaring, “You have interrupted an important ritual!”
The Red Death warriors stopped and looked to each other, puzzled by the defiant woman.
Micah managed to shove the dead man aside and get back on his feet, his hands still cuffed behind his back.
Queen Caveira held the knife up high, hellbent on completing the sacrifice, and screamed, “Boiúna!”
Micah shouted, “No!” and charged, head down, slamming into her chest. The impact sent them reeling backwards.
And they both went over the cliff.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Micah plummeted, enveloped in a cloud of birds, with the queen’s hand locked around his throat. In that surreally slow instant, one of his father’s survival lessons flashed through his mind.
Bouncing is better than falling.
Micah kicked out while twisting in midair. The maneuver broke the queen’s grip while keeping his body close to the cliff face. He crashed through a clay outcropping, the impact breaking his fall slightly, along with some ribs. A colorful blizzard of parrots swirled around his tumbling body as he bounced off another outcropping.
Closing his eyes, he muttered, “I love you, Faye,” and hit the ground, anticipating an instantaneous death.
But instead of crashing hard, he sank, velocity slowing with each millisecond, until he struck solid ground. His forehead bounced against the earth, and the air was squeezed from his lungs. He lay there, dazed and blind, engulfed in some viscous black void. His hands were still cuffed, but his feet were touching solid ground. Wriggling and squirming like a worm, he bored headfirst through the mire.
He was a heartbeat from blacking out when his head burst out into blinding sunlight. He took a deep breath, but there was no air to breathe—just searing ammonia vapor. Lungs burning, he wriggled forward until his body was free and he tasted clean air. The ammonia vapors still burnt at his eyes, forcing him to rub his face in the mud. After a few seconds, the pain subsided and his vision cleared, revealing a glorious sight.
Queen Caveira’s twisted body lay sprawled on the rocks a few feet in front of him. A patch of the strange berry bushes surrounded her like a floral arrangement. She looked almost … peaceful.
Micah muttered, “Now that’s your Netflix finale.”
Something slammed down onto the back of his head, jamming his face into the mud. A second later, it hopped off. Micah raised his head, spitting out mud and bird guano.
Upon seeing the attacker, he said, “You again?”
It was the queen’s ubiquitous monkey. The capuchin came to rest at its mistress’s side, poking at her shattered body, squeaking piteously.
After a few more delicious gulps of air, Micah craned his head around enough to see what had broken his fall.
“Well I’ll be dipped in shit.”
While the queen’s outward trajectory had sent her onto the jagged rocks along the river’s edge, Micah had stayed closer to the cliff, landing face down in the ten-foot-high mountain of bird guano. Its layers of excrement and thick moss slowed his descent from fatal to extremely painful. The ammonia vapor had been gases trapped in the layers of feces.
He wriggled his limbs, relieved to find that his legs were intact and functional. His chest felt like he’d been hit with a sledgehammer, and his right shoulder was, best case, dislocated. His eyes were swelling up, indicating a broken nose.
He tried to stand, but it wasn’t happening. Between his cuffed hands and the injuries, every attempt just landed him facedown again. The best he could manage was rolling onto his back. He found himself staring up at a trio of Red Death warriors.
Micah muttered, “Hey, guys.”
They stared down at him in bewilderment, puzzled by his survival. One pointed to the mound of bird guano and the tunnel he’d bored through it. The trio burst out laughing, as if it were the funniest thing they’d ever seen.
The sheer absurdity of it all snapped something inside Micah, and he began laughing uncontrollably, while thinking, It’s nice to be able to remember the precise moment you lost your mind.
Once the laughter died down the warriors hauled him up onto his feet, herding him towards the incline leading up the cliff. They didn’t kill him, but they didn’t untie his hands either.
Another group of capybaras ambled by, snorting in annoyance at the humans trespassing on their walkway. The sight of the mothers escorting their young cleared his thoughts.
Faye, flashed through his mind, and he stumbled up the slope.
#
Micah reached the clifftop, his cracked ribs throbbing against his labored breath. The Red Death warriors were clustered around Faye. One of them held up the dead snake and mimed biting. The rest seemed more interested in the laces of her boots than helping her. Another warrior examined her clothes, particularly fascinated by the zippers on her pockets. The warriors chattered back and forth in a series of strange, birdlike whistles.
Catalina was up on her knees, hands still cuffed, imploring them to help in every language she knew. She saw Micah running towards them and shouted, “You’re alive! But… The cliff?”
“My face broke the fall.”
He struggled to get close to Faye, but the men kept pushing him away.
Once t
he novelty of Faye’s zippered pocket wore off, the tribesman reached inside. He let out a long, high-pitched whistle and held up his discovery. The other warriors pressed closer, intent on touching whatever he’d found. Then, almost as one, they approached Micah.
Catalina muttered, “Aw shit.”
One held out their new discovery for him to see. Micah stared at it, dumbfounded. They were holding up the meteorite fragment—the same one he’d thrown off the tower.
The warriors’ attitudes spun a hundred and eighty degrees. The leader rolled up Faye’s pant leg, while others plucked berries from the strange bushes. The leader shoved berries into his mouth, chewed them up, and spat the juice onto Faye’s snakebite. Once the wound was saturated, he wrapped leaves around it.
The youngest warrior stripped off his arrow quiver and sprinted into the brush at Olympian speed.
Catalina got to her feet and trotted over to Micah. “I think they’re trying to help her.”
Micah watched, grim faced. “It’s no good. That was a fer-de-lance. Without antivenom, she’ll die.”
Catalina leaned closer and, in a near whisper, said, “I hate to quote Queen Psycho, but didn’t she say there’s nothing sadder than the words of a faithless man?”
“She said a lot of crazy stuff.”
“But maybe there was truth in that. Micah, these people have lived here forever, so, just maybe, they know something our medicine doesn’t. Please, just try to believe.”
Micah closed his eyes, and, with every fiber of his being, tried to believe.
While the leader ministered to Faye, other warriors descended on the queen’s fallen pirates. They rifled through the dead men’s belongings, showing no interest in the guns. The dead men’s knives, however, were considered quite a prize.
At the leader’s behest, two men lifted Faye with a gentleness that surprised Micah. They carried her towards the trees.
An older warrior, with multiple battle scars and a permanently squinted eye, helped Catalina and Micah stand up. He pointed to Micah’s swollen eyes then to his own permanent squint and whistled in what Catalina assumed was laughter.
Primeval Waters Page 22
