Horizons (9 page)

“It’s Earl Roberts,” he tendered. “And in case you’r
e
wonderin’, I’m fifty-two ye
ars old and I’ve never had any
sexually-transmitted dis
eases. No thanks to my darlin’
wife.”

“Oral Roberts?” Gavin echoed on a hoot of laughter. “You’ve got to be kidding!”

“Earl,
not Oral, you spear-chuckin’ idiot!” Roberts snarled. “And you can quit laughin’ fit to give yourself a hernia. It ain’t that funny.”

“It will be if you tell us you’re a preacher, previously from Tulsa,” Zach informed him with a chuckle.

Kelly giggled. Blair was almost choking trying to hold back her laughter.

“Aw, shit!” Roberts cursed, his expression one of acute embarrassment. “I knew I shouldn’t have told y’all.”

“Hush!” Kelly hissed suddenly. She stood, tilting her head, waving for the rest of them to be quiet. “Listen! Do you hear that?”

Silence fell, as they all strained their ears.

“It’s a plane!” Frazer cried out. “It’s a plane! What did I tell you? They’re searching for us!”

Bedlam ensued, as they stumbled over one another trying to thrash through the jungle and still watch their every step, at first heading several directions at once.

“This way!” Zach yelled. “It’s to the east side of the island!”

The others rallied behind him, following his lead, shouting and waving, though still in the cover of the trees where it was doubtful they could be seen as yet.

By the time they’d plowed their way nearly two miles through thick undergrowth to the eastern beach, the plane was already gone. Out of sight and hearing.

Scratched, scraped, and out of breath, the disheartened band collapsed on the sand. Blair started to sob. So did Alita. Kelly laid her head on her upraised knees and joined them.

“Damn! I knew I should have stayed near the signal fire!
”
Gavin swore, berating himself.

“It’s not your fau
lt,” Zach said wearily. “We were all so intent on finding that water. It was our main priority, and none of us were giving much thought to anything else.”

“Maybe they spotted the wreckage,” Frazer submitted in an effort toward optimism. “Could be they’re on the radio right now, contacting a rescue cruiser.”

“We should be so lucky,” Blair sniffed.

“Whether they saw anything or not, we should relocate our camp closer to the water hole,” Zach interjected thoughtfully. “Perhaps on the eastern or southern side of the island, where the ocean breeze will help keep the mosquitos at bay.”

Kelly gazed up at him, her dark, damp lashes framing liquid green eyes. “You don’t think they’re coming back, do you?”

Zach shrugged. “They’ll be back. Trouble is, we don’t know how soon. Meanwhile, we need to be nearer the pool.”

A
fter another quick stop at the water hole, they returned to their camp to collect their meager belongings.

“Oh, no!” Blair wailed, upon nearing the spot. She gestured toward the message they’d laid out in the sand. “I was holding out hope that they might have seen our SOS from the plane, but look!”

Her companions shared her dismay. In their absence, the tide had washed half the coconuts away, strewing them
along the shore. The remainder spelled nothing at all, resembling just scattered dark blobs in the sand.

“Well, at least we have water,” Kelly pointed out in a subdued voice. “And as long as the fruit holds out, we won’t starve.”

“So who are you? Little Miss Sunnyanna?” Alita griped.

“That’s Pollyanna, and I’m just trying to look at the good side,” Kelly rebutted. “Which is more than I can say for you.”

Within a few minutes they’d gathered their small store of gear and were trudging en masse toward the southern end of the island. Kelly, sensitive now to Blair’s pregnant condition, offered to carry Sydney. When she tired, Zach perched the little girl atop his shoulders once more. Apparently none the worse for her previous experience there, Sydney squealed with delight.

As the toddler clutched Zach’s dark hair and pounded his head with her tiny fists, urging on her makeshift pony, Kelly had to chuckle. “You’re taking that beating very well,” she commented.

He grinned back at her, and replied simply. “I like kids.”

“How old is your daughter?”

“Becky’s twelve.” His face sobered, as he added, “Going on thirty, most of the time. It was hard on her when her mother died. She seemed to grow up faster after that, quicker than I wanted her to.”

“How did your wife die?”

“Rachel was killed in a car accident. The only good thing was, she died instantly. Or so the doctors told me. I hope they’re right. I hate to think that she might have suffered.”

“Was
…
was Becky with her?”

“No. She was in school. Rachel was out alone, shopping for a birthday present for Becky.”

“You loved your wife very much, didn’t you?”

“Yes.” He didn’t elaborate. He didn’t have to. The lost look on his face said it all.

“How I envy you,” she murmured.

He frowned at her in mute disbelief.

“Not that you lost her,” Kelly hastened to say. “But that you loved her that deeply. That you had a child together. That you shared something so precious between you.”

“You and your husband didn’t have any children?” he asked.

“No. I miscarried a couple of years ago. Brad was relieved, I think. I was devastated.”

Zach’s brows drew together. “Your ex sounds like a real bastard.
”

Kelly smirked. “He’s a hot-shot lawyer with political aspirations. Does that tell you anything?”

“How long were you married to him?”

“Five years too long. I married him the week after I graduated college.”

“Which makes you what, around twenty-seven or so?” “Twenty-eight next September. A dried-up old prune,” she tacked on with a wry grin, only half joking.

“Yeah,” he said in a teasing tone, his topaz eyes twinkling. “A real hag. Which explains why Alita acts so jealous of you. Now, if you think you’re past your prime, I’ve got eight years on you, green eyes. What does that make me?”

Kelly pretended to eye him critically. “Oh, I think you’ve still got a couple of good years left in you. I don’t see any gray hair yet.”

He slanted her a grin and winked. “Only my hairdresser knows for sure. And maybe Sydney.”

Chapter 9

A
fter choosing their new campsite and resting a bit, Zach started organizing a work, schedule. “It will be dark in another couple of hours, so we’d better make hay while the sun shines. All right, who gets latrine details?”

“As in digging, or using?” Frazer asked archly.

“Very funny, Fraze,” Kelly told him.

As one, the others turned toward Gavin.

“What?” he complained. “You think just because I’m in the army I should get the shit job?”

“I thought that was part of your basic training,” Blair said. “You know, digging fox holes and latrines. At least you know how to go about it.”

“So the rest of you just automatically volunteer me, huh?”

Earl smirked. “That’s about the size of it, soldier boy.”

Gavin scowled. “What about you?”

“He’s going to set up another signal fire, and lay out another SOS signal, this time beyond the tide line,” Zach
s
p
e
ci
f
ied. “Staying within sight at all times.”

“The fire, okay. But it probably won’t do a diddly damn bit o’ good to make another sign,” Earl groused. “In order to keep it far enough up from the water, it’ll be too close to the trees and too small for anyone to read from a plane.
”

Zach nodded. “You’re probably right, but it’s still worth a shot.” He turned to the women. “You ladies are in charge of collecting food and water. Coconuts, bananas, and anything else you can find that you know for sure is safe to eat. Stay together, so there’s no chance of your getting lost, and keep a sharp eye peeled for any more traps. Frazer, since you’re the most incapacitated, you can help set up camp and watch over Sydney.”

“
What does that leave for you to do,
Senor General
?”Alita inquired testily.

Zach offered a saccharine smile and sw
ept a hand toward the ocean. “
Why, I get to go snorkeling, of course. Actually, I thought I’d try to catch a fish or two if I can, and add to our limited menu.”

“Good,” Blair approved. “We need protein. Meat, to keep up our strength.”

“How do you propose to catch a fish without a rod or reel and no bait?” Kelly wanted to know.

Zach snatched up a blanket, and promptly began to tie the opposite ends together. “Using this as a net, I hope. I figure it’s better than trying to spear one with a stick, at least until I’ve had some time to practice. But don’t get your hopes up. This is still going to be iffy.”

“Don’t go out too far,” Frazer cautioned. “The currents can be tricky. And don’t cut yourself on any coral.”

“What about sharks?” Kelly asked worriedly. “Or barracuda?”

Zach grinned at her and jested, “I was thinking more along the lines of something smaller, like a perch or mackerel, that would fit in the blanket and wouldn’t put up as much of a fight. Probably better eating, too.”

“Go ahead and joke. Just make sure you aren’t the main entree for the fish, instead of the other way around,” she stressed.

The gleam in his eyes changed to something less humorous, more predatory. “Don’t fret, Kelly. I’ll do my utmost not to let anything happen to ruin my plans for making love to you.”

Kelly’s jaw dropped, and she stared at him, wide-eyed and dumbfounded. Stunned that he would announce such a thing so abruptly, and right in front of the others. “Now wait just a blamed minute,” she sputtered. “I think I have something to say about that.”

He shrugged. “Don’t get your Irish up, sweetheart. I’m just stating my intentions.” His tigerlike gaze now swept the others, leveling warningly on Earl and Gavin. “Simply staking my claim, so there won’t be any misunderstandings later. I trust I’ve made myself clear, fellas.”

“Yeah,” Earl grumbled. “Clear as glass.”

Gavin held his hands up, as if surrendering. “Aye-aye, Captain. I got no problem with that, as long as she doesn’t.”

Kelly glared at them all. “Sh
e
will make up her own mind, in her own good time, thank you all very much. Good Lord! It sure didn’t take you Neanderthals long to revert back to the law of the jungle, did it?”

Again, Zach lifted his shoulders in a nonchalant motion. “When in Rome, green eyes. When in Rome.”

“
I
t’s your big innocent eyes,” Alita sniped. “And that fake blond hair. Just wait until all those dark roots start to show. “I’ll bet Zach won’t find you so appealing then. He’ll be sorry
…
”

“Sorry for what?” Kelly interjected nastily. “That he didn’t choose you? The Crowned Princess of Pop Rock?
The Mistress of the Macarena? Hasn’t it occurred to you that the man might like your music, but he has a little more class than to want to hook up with a woman who wears clothes so skimpy and tight that there can’t be a square yard of material covering her boobs and her butt?"
Kelly surveyed Alita’s bright red skin-
tight mini-dress with disgust. “
What did you do? Spray paint that thing on?”

“Reeoow!” Blair rendered a fair imitation of an angry cat. “You two sound like you ought to be on a back fence somewhere, sharpening your claws and fighting over a horny tomcat. Furthermore, I was under the impression that you didn’t appreciate Zach’s comment back there, Kelly. If that’s the case, I fail to see why you’re so upset that Alita might want the man.”

Kelly’s facial expression echoed her confusion. “It’s not that I don’t want him, Blair. In fact, I find him extremely attractive. It’s just his high-handed manner that made me so mad. He as much as issued a proclamation, not an invitation, and he’s taking an awfully lot for granted, especially on such short acquaintance.”

“In other words, if he wasn’t so bossy, you’d be happy to jump his bones,” Blair deduced with a knowing grin.

Kelly laughed. “Yep, that just about sizes it up.”

“Hey, girl. Go for it,” the librarian advised. “Don’t let a little thing like too much pride keep you from a good thing.”

“Aren’t we supposed to be looking for food?
”
Alita reminded them irritably. She pointed toward a nearby tree, from which hung numerous greenish globes. “Isn’t that more of those bland breadfruit things?”

They collected a few that had already ripened and fallen
t
o
the ground, and continued their search. A few minutes later, Kelly discovered a papaya tree. Soon after that, Blair tripped over a trailing vine and unearthed, of all things,
a large sweet potato! A bit of digging unearthed several others.

“Oh, this is a marvelous cache!” she declared delightedly. “And look there! Unless I miss my guess, that’s another lime tree! Now we have vegetables, fruits, and if Zach is successful we’ll have meat, too.”

“
Good. Something from nearly every food group,” Kelly assessed with satisfaction. “A nutritious balance for our mother-to-be and her baby. And for Sydney.”

“For all of us,” Alita said. “You don’t suppose we could find some coffee and chocolate on this sandy rock, do you?”

“Hang a left at the ice-cream stand,” Kelly snickered.

Blair laughed, too. Then, ever handy with the trivia, she added thoughtfully, “It isn’t totally beyond the realm of possibility, you know. There just may be coffee growing somewhere on the mountain.”

“Hopefully, we won’t be here long enough to find out.” Kelly shrugged out of her stained linen blazer and bundled a portion of their foodstuff into it. “I’m going to start back to camp with this load, and see if I can find something better to use to carry some more.”

“Going to weave a quick basket or two?” Alita taunted.

“I’d consider it, if I could make one big enough to stick you and your big mouth into and set you adrift,” Kelly snapped back. “And I can promise you, I wouldn’t bother trying to make it water-tight.”

K
elly was almost back to camp when she heard excited shouts coming from the shore. Immediately, she dropped her bundle and sprinted toward the beach, sure that her brash would-be lover must be in terrible trouble to be yelling so loudly. Half expecting to see him being eaten
by a shark, Kelly skidded to a halt midway across the sand, and stood gawking.

Still knee deep in the surf, Zach was clutching the blanket to his chest, wrestling with the fish caught within its folds. “Get hold of an end!” he bellowed at Gavin, who was wading out to him. “Quick! Before he wiggles loose!”

“What am I supposed to grab? The fish or the blanket?” Gavin hollered back.

“I don’t care. As l
ong as it’s not my balls! This
sucker is slippery, and all muscle!”

Gavin gripped the edge of the blanket just as the finned tail poked through the gap. Between them, the two men hauled their writhing burden to within a few yards of Kelly before the fish squirmed loose and plopped out onto the sand. Zach quickly tossed the blanket overtop the fish, and straddled it.

“Get a knife, or something to use as a club,” he told Gavin breathlessly. “We don’t want this beauty flopping back to freedom.”

Kelly was feeling a bit breathless herself at the moment. When Zach had tossed down the blanket, she’d caught her first full look at him. Her initial thought was to wonder where he'd gotten a pair of swim trunks. In the next instant, she’d realized he wasn’t wearing bathing trunks at all. He’d stripped to a pair of form-fitting navy blue briefs—and brief they were! Cut high along his hips, amounting to little more than a swath of clinging polished cotton and a few bands of elastic, they left very little to the imagination— especially the way he filled them out!

“Oh, my!” she murmured.

Zach looked up to find her staring at his crotch. A broad grin creased his face. “See something you like?” he asked.

Her head jerked up, her cheeks flaming as she met
his teasing gold gaze. “Uh…
what?”

“You’re drooling, babe. Do I pass inspection?”

She faced him squarely, denying her urge to run, primarily because she couldn’t decide which way to go—toward him or away from him. “I can safely assume there’s no conceit in the rest of your family. You obviously inherited it all.”

He laughed. “Along with other attributes.” His pause was significant, allowing her time to ponder which traits he might be referring to. Then he elaborated, his eyes dancing with mirth. “My nose, for instance. The cleft in my chin. The color of my eyes. And the slight wave in my hair, complete with a very stubborn cowlick. I’ve often wondered if that kid who played Alfalfa was Jewish.”

Gavin chose that moment to come running up with his pen knife in one hand and a big stick in the other. “Got them both, Zach.”

Kelly retreated a couple of steps, quickly mustering her lost composure and sense of humor. “I’ve got to get back to the others. I’ll leave you and Buckwheat to your chores, Alfalfa. I’m sure Spanky, aka Earl, will be along soon to lend a hand.”

Gavin, totally baffled by her comment, threw her a dark look. “Hey! Watch the name calling, Blondie! What do you mean by that crack, anyway?”

Kelly gave a little wave of her hand. “Ask the guy with the cute cowlick.” She walked away, chuckling.

K
elly was almost content as she sat by the campfire later that evening. For the first time in two long, horrendous days, she was finally clean and relatively free of sand. That was to say her body was, and at least part of her clothes. She had sponged out her panties, which had dried in no time, and her camisole top. But her linen slacks were still soiled and looking more than a little ragged at the hems. And she’d been forced to don her dirty blazer again, since
her camisole was still damp enough to be fairly translucent. She’d also washed her hair, replaiting it in a neat French braid while it was still wet.

The others had also availed themselves of the pool, their overall appearance vastly improved, discounting miscellaneous bandages and multicolored bruises. The primary advantage for the men was that they were able to discard their shirts, and now lounged around the fire wearing only their trousers. Even Sydney was dressed only in her panties. Of course, being all of two years old, the toddler could get away with such things, whereas the women could not. Everyone, however, was barefoot, having gratefully shucked their socks, hose, and shoes. A little sand between one’s toes was immeasurably preferable to having one’s skin abraded by thousands of individual granules grating between flesh and leather.

After two days of nothing but coconuts and bananas and breadfruit, supper had seemed like a feast. The fish and sweet potatoes had been wrapped in wet palm leaves and roasted in the coals of the fire. Though lacking seasoning, they’d still been tender and tasty. The papaya was delicious. Kelly had even concocted a new drink for the group, consisting of combinations of papaya and lime juice and water. Sipping it from coconut shells still rendered a tinge of coconut flavor to it, but even Alita had liked the new beverage.

Even with their disappointment over missing the plane, and their assorted aches and pains, their situation was vastly improved. Zach’s shoulder and ribs still ached, but Kelly had checked him over and he hadn’t yanked anything else out of place. Gavin had found that he could still use his left hand, despite the discomfort of a broken bone or two and a
jammed finger. Kelly’s fuzzy vision had improved with her headache, which was now merely a dull throb. Blair was hobbling along fairly well on her ankle, and the
swelling was beginning to subside. Frazer was worst off, with his mangled leg, yet he still refused to let Kelly tend it for him. And Alita, with only the scabbed-over laceration on her calf, complained more about her puny injuries than any of the rest of them.