anything but wait to be rescued.
A s he finally came within sight of the camp, Zach’s heart sank to his toes. There they were, his hapless companions, just as he’d left them—a ragged band of unwitting, undelivered castaways. It looked as if they were all still asleep. “The Devil’s Dozen, minus one,” he thought irreverently, including himself in their number. “The Luckless Wonders.”
If he’d had ten more steps to go, Zach wouldn’t have made it. Not under his own steam. He fell to his knees and sat, head down, panting heavily, hoping he wouldn’t wake the others. He didn’t want to have to give them the bad tidings yet. To see the fear and disappointment on their faces. In fact, he wished he could put it off forever. But this wasn’t something he could hide, like a child who’d broken a toy and didn’t want to confess. This was a matter of life and death.
He was still hunched there, weaving with weariness, when something lightly bumped his shoulder. He opened bleary eyes to see a brown hand holding forth half a coconut.
“Here, man, take a drink of this,” Daniels told him quietl y. “Wish I had something stronger to offer you, but things being what they are … ”
Zach drank greedily. The milk felt wonderful going down his parched throat. “At least we have this,” he croaked gratefully. “Maybe we won’t die of thirst after all.”
Gavin sat next to him. “Guess you didn’t find any more than I did.”
Zach shook his head. “Nothing. No one. No sign that anyone else has ever set foot on this island. And no fresh water, either, unless there’s a source somewhere inland.”
“Shit!”
“My sentiments exactly. How are the others coping? Did Alita make it back okay?”
“She made it back, mad as a hornet. I don’t think she could believe you wouldn’t want a piece of what she had to offer.”
“Like I had time!” Zach declared, shaking his head in disbelief. “What about the others?”
“I’m about to explode over here, is all,” Roberts called out, alerting them to his need.
“Cross your legs and hold your breath. We’ll get to you,” Gavin advised curtly. To Zach, he added, “The woman died.”
“Which woman?” Zach’s head came up, and he quickly took account.
“The one we carried down. Jane.”
Zach’s gaze swiveled to meet Kelly’s. She stared at him from her makeshift pallet. “Jane?”
“Jane Doe, if you will,” she replied softly, a hint of tears in her green eyes. “We have to call her something. We can’t just bury her with no name at all.”
“Another nasty little chore ahead of us,” Gavin put in. “I have no idea what we’re supposed to use to dig a grave.”
“Well, you’d better find something,” Wynne suggested, levering herself to a sitting position. “In this climate, you can’t let a body lie around in the open for long, you know.”
“Wonderful thought.” This derisive comment came from Frazer, who was now awake as well.
"Dios mio! Can’t a person get any sleep at all?” Alita grumbled, and peered out through one mascara-smeared eye. “Ach! It isn’t even morning yet!”
“Oh, but it is, Alita. The very crack of dawn. We didn’t want you to miss the sunrise,” Frazer taunted. “We wanted to see if you’d melt, like the witch in The Wizard of Oz .”
“Very funny. Go stick your head in the sand and suffocate.”
“You’ve got your stories mixed, Frazer,” Kelly informed him dryly. “The witch melted when she got water tossed on her. It’s vampires that go up in a poof of smoke on contact with sunlight.”
“Good grief, Zach!” Gavin exclaimed in mock horror. “She didn’t bite you on the neck out there in the dark, did she?”
“Ha!” Alita pinned Zach with a malevolent look. “He was dashing down the beach much too fast for that. I’m beginning to think there isn’t a real man among you.” Her head swept to include the steward in her statement. “That should make you a very happy
A s he finally came within sight of the camp, Zach’s heart sank to his toes. There they were, his hapless companions, just as he’d left them—a ragged band of unwitting, undelivered castaways. It looked as if they were all still asleep. “The Devil’s Dozen, minus one,” he thought irreverently, including himself in their number. “The Luckless Wonders.”
If he’d had ten more steps to go, Zach wouldn’t have made it. Not under his own steam. He fell to his knees and sat, head down, panting heavily, hoping he wouldn’t wake the others. He didn’t want to have to give them the bad tidings yet. To see the fear and disappointment on their faces. In fact, he wished he could put it off forever. But this wasn’t something he could hide, like a child who’d broken a toy and didn’t want to confess. This was a matter of life and death.
He was still hunched there, weaving with weariness, when something lightly bumped his shoulder. He opened bleary eyes to see a brown hand holding forth half a coconut.
“Here, man, take a drink of this,” Daniels told him quietl y. “Wish I had something stronger to offer you, but things being what they are … ”
Zach drank greedily. The milk felt wonderful going down his parched throat. “At least we have this,” he croaked gratefully. “Maybe we won’t die of thirst after all.”
Gavin sat next to him. “Guess you didn’t find any more than I did.”
Zach shook his head. “Nothing. No one. No sign that anyone else has ever set foot on this island. And no fresh water, either, unless there’s a source somewhere inland.”
“Shit!”
“My sentiments exactly. How are the others coping? Did Alita make it back okay?”
“She made it back, mad as a hornet. I don’t think she could believe you wouldn’t want a piece of what she had to offer.”
“Like I had time!” Zach declared, shaking his head in disbelief. “What about the others?”
“I’m about to explode over here, is all,” Roberts called out, alerting them to his need.
“Cross your legs and hold your breath. We’ll get to you,” Gavin advised curtly. To Zach, he added, “The woman died.”
“Which woman?” Zach’s head came up, and he quickly took account.
“The one we carried down. Jane.”
Zach’s gaze swiveled to meet Kelly’s. She stared at him from her makeshift pallet. “Jane?”
“Jane Doe, if you will,” she replied softly, a hint of tears in her green eyes. “We have to call her something. We can’t just bury her with no name at all.”
“Another nasty little chore ahead of us,” Gavin put in. “I have no idea what we’re supposed to use to dig a grave.”
“Well, you’d better find something,” Wynne suggested, levering herself to a sitting position. “In this climate, you can’t let a body lie around in the open for long, you know.”
“Wonderful thought.” This derisive comment came from Frazer, who was now awake as well.
"Dios mio! Can’t a person get any sleep at all?” Alita grumbled, and peered out through one mascara-smeared eye. “Ach! It isn’t even morning yet!”
“Oh, but it is, Alita. The very crack of dawn. We didn’t want you to miss the sunrise,” Frazer taunted. “We wanted to see if you’d melt, like the witch in The Wizard of Oz .”
“Very funny. Go stick your head in the sand and suffocate.”
“You’ve got your stories mixed, Frazer,” Kelly informed him dryly. “The witch melted when she got water tossed on her. It’s vampires that go up in a poof of smoke on contact with sunlight.”
“Good grief, Zach!” Gavin exclaimed in mock horror. “She didn’t bite you on the neck out there in the dark, did she?”
“Ha!” Alita pinned Zach with a malevolent look. “He was dashing down the beach much too fast for that. I’m beginning to think there isn’t a real man among you.” Her head swept to include the steward in her statement. “That should make you a very happy
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