Read Online The Fields of Lemuria by Sam Sisavath - Free Book Online

know, from the movie Rain Man with Tom Cruise?”
    “I’ve never seen that movie.”
    “It was pretty good. I think that short guy might have won an award for it or something.”
    “Tom Cruise?”
    “No, the other short guy.”
    “Dustin Hoffman,” the big one in front of them said.
    “Yeah, him,” the second one said.
    “I don’t watch a lot of movies,” Keo said.
    “Yeah, I got that,” the short one said.
    “Where are we going?”
    “Hey, which one of us has the guns here?”
    “You.”
    “That’s right. So we ask the questions, and you answer. See how this works?”
    “Well, now that you’ve clarified it, sure.”
    The older one chuckled. “This guy is funnier than you, Shorty.”
    “Easy to be funny when you’re trying not to fall asleep in a tree,” the one named Shorty said.
    They definitely saw me up there before sunrise.
    How is that possible?
    Keo heard a squawk, and the man in front of him reached into the folds of his ghillie suit and pulled out a two-way radio just as a female voice said, “Zachary, come in. Over.”
    “Everything okay?” the man named Zachary said into the radio.
    “Everything’s fine over here. What about out there? Shorty?”
    “He’s in one piece.”
    “Tell her I’m starving,” Shorty said.
    “He says he misses you and wants to touch you in inappropriate places when we get back,” Zachary said.
    Shorty snorted. “Two smartasses today.”
    “I bet,” the woman said through the radio. “What about those guys you saw all over the park? We heard a lot of shooting yesterday. It sounded like some kind of war was going on over there.”
    “It was close,” Zachary said. “We’re bringing over a guy who’ll be able to provide some answers. He’s a real talker.”
    “Who is it?”
    “Said his name’s Keo.”
    “What kind of name is Keo?”
    “Apparently because every other name in the English language was taken.”
    Keo grinned.
    “What’s wrong?” Zachary said into the radio.
    “What do you mean?” the woman said.
    “Come on. You sound pissed off.”
    “You and Shorty, staying out there again. I told you before, it’s too dangerous. You need to stop taking unnecessary risks like that.”
    “Couldn’t be helped. We got caught outside. Nothing you can do about it but roll with the punches.”
    “I don’t want to argue,” the woman said. “Just get back here.”
    “Will do. Over.” Zachary put the radio away.
    “Who was that?” Keo asked. “Your wife? She sounds angry.”
    “Allie,” Zachary said.
    “He wishes she was his wife,” Shorty said. “Hell, I wish she was my wife.”
    “She didn’t sound very happy with the two of you,” Keo said.
    “It’s her job to worry,” Zachary said. “She’s the boss. But I think she’ll get over it when I bring you back. I’m sure she has a lot of questions. You guys freaked everyone out with your shooting.”
    “So, she’s the boss? Allie?”
    “Pretty much.”
    “Not bad looking, either,” Shorty said. “Too bad she’s a lesbian.”
    “She’s not a lesbian,” Zachary said.
    “I’ve been trying to get with her for months now. Trust me, she plays for the other team.”
    Zachary snorted. “Just ’cause she doesn’t want to sleep with you doesn’t mean she’s a lesbian, Shorty. That would make the vast majority of the female population lesbians even before they got turned into bloodsuckers.”
    Shorty wasn’t convinced. “Lesbian. One hundred percent.”
    *
    They led him through the woods for another thirty minutes. It would have been faster, but Zachary began doubling back before taking different turns the second time through the same path. Or, at least, he thought it was the same direction. He couldn’t really be sure, which told him Zachary was doing a damn good job. What he did know for sure was that he was dealing with seasoned trackers and woodsmen here.
    Great. I got captured by Daniel Boone and his little buddy.
    Even Shorty seemed to know what he was doing,