Read Online Amazonia by James Rollins - Free Book Online Page B

markings pass by." Frank unfolded and smoothed the paper. A hand-sketched drawing was revealed. "This was tattooed across Agent Clark's chest and abdomen. We hope that we'll find isolated folk who might have seen a man with this marking."

    Professor Kouwe flinched.

    His reaction did not go unnoticed by those in the room.

    "What is it?" Nathan asked.

    Kouwe pointed to the sketch paper. It delineated a complex serpentine pattern that spiraled out from a single stylized hand-print.

    "This is bad. Very bad." Kouwe fumbled in his pocket and pulled out his pipe. He lifted a questioning eye at Frank.

    The redheaded man nodded.

    Kouwe slipped out a pouch and tamped some locally grown tobacco into the pipe, then lit it with a single match. Nathan noted his uncharacteristically trembling fingers.

    "What is it?"

    Kouwe puffed on his pipe and spoke slowly. "It's the symbol for the Ban-ali. The Blood Jaguars."

    "You know this tribe?" Kelly asked.

    The shaman blew out a long stream of smoke andsighed, then shook his head. "No one knows this tribe. It is what's whispered among village elders, stories passed from one generation to another. Myths of a tribe that mates with jaguars and whose members can vanish into thin air. They bring death to all who encounter them. It is said they are as old as the forest and that the very jungle bends to their will."

    "But I've never heard of them," Nathan said, "and I've worked with tribes throughout the Amazon."

    "And Dr. Fong, the Tellux anthropologist," Frank said. "She didn't recognize it either."

    "I'm not surprised. No matter how well you're accepted, a nontribesman will always be considered pananakiri , an alien to the Indians of the region. They would never speak of the Ban-ali to you."

    Nate couldn't help but feel a bit insulted. "But I--"

    "No, Nathan. I don't mean to slight your own work or abilities. But for many tribes, names have power. Few will speak the name Ban-ali. They fear to draw the attention of the Blood Jaguars." Kouwe pointed to the drawing. "If you take this symbol with you, it must be shown with care. Many Indians would slay you for possessing such a paper. There is no greater taboo than allowing that symbol into a village."

    Kelly frowned. "Then it's doubtful Agent Clark passed through any villages."

    "If he did, he wouldn't have walked out alive."

    Kelly and Frank shared a concerned look, then the doctor turned to Nathan. "Your father's expedition was cataloging Amazonian tribes. If he had heard of these mysterious Ban-ali or had found some clue of their existence, perhaps he sought them out."

    Manny folded the sketched drawing. "And perhaps he found them."

    Kouwe studied the glowing tip of his pipe. "Pray to God he did not."

    * * *

    A little later, with most of the details settled, Kelly watched the trio, escorted by a Ranger, cross the room and exit the warehouse. Her brother Frank was already at the portable satellite uplink to report the day's progress to his superiors, including their father.

    But Kelly found her gaze following Nathan Rand. After their antagonistic exchange in the hospital, she was still slightly put off by his demeanor. But he was hardly the same oily-haired, foul-smelling wretch she had seen hauling the girl on a stretcher. Shaved and in clean clothes, he was certainly handsome: sandy-blond hair, dark complexion, steel-blue eyes. Even the way one eyebrow would rise when he was intrigued was oddly charming.

    "Kelly!" her brother called. "There's someone who'd like to say hi."

    With a tired sigh, Kelly joined her brother at the table. All around the room, final preparations and equipment checks were being finished. She leaned both palms on the table and stared into the laptop's screen. She saw two familiar faces, and a warm smile crossed her face.

    "Mother, Jessie's not supposed to be up this late." She glanced to her own wristwatch and did a quick calculation. "It must be close to midnight."

    "Actually after midnight,