Lost (7 page)

Marco froze. Nacho was still splashing, and Marco slashed a hand across his throat. Nacho stopped and stood still, water dripping down his face.

There was a crashing in the underbrush, loud enough to be heard over the waterfall. Marco said, “Let's get out.”

Sarah and Cash quickly scrambled up the bank and grabbed their towels. Nacho was farther away. He began to swim toward Marco, when there was a flash of black fur in the woods. Marco reached out and grabbed his brother, then waved at the girls, motioning for them to hide.

They ducked behind a large rock. Marco put a finger to his lips and led Nacho to the side of the water. There, they ducked lower than the bank, hopefully out of sight of whatever was there.

The waterfall continued to rush. Right above them, Marco heard chuffing. The girls were still out of sight behind the rock. Finally, the sound went away. Marco waited another moment, just to be sure, then he stepped out from the bank a tad to look into the underbrush. Nothing. He let out the breath he didn't know he'd been holding. He took Nacho's arm and said, “Come on. We better get back.”

They quickly dried off and headed back to the fruit trees, where they stopped to pick some more for the camp. Then, towels laden and heavy and damp, they headed back to the beach, Marco glancing back every now and then, wondering whether there had been something back there. And whether it had seen them.

 

9

They walked in silence. Sarah felt cooler and cleaner. She couldn't stop lifting and dropping strands of her hair in front of her face in order to smell the lovely scent of shampoo. She'd always taken being clean for granted and decided then and there to never do that again. Marco was up ahead, walking faster than she felt like. She hadn't seen anything at the pool when they hid; maybe there had been something, maybe there hadn't. She wished they could have stayed longer.

Marco asked Nacho, “What time is it?”

“Almost eleven,” said Nacho.

“Do you think my dad is back yet?” asked Sarah.

“He should be,” said Marco. “I mean, it's been a while and he was just going to get bamboo.”

Sarah increased her pace. “He's probably there and wondering where we are.”

“Will he get mad?” asked Cash.

Sarah shook her head. “Probably just worried enough to give me a lecture.” Her stomach growled. “I'm ready for some lunch.”

They emerged from the trees and headed over to their camp. Yvonna stood there, waving at them. But to Sarah, she looked no better than before.

Yvonna asked, “Where did you kids go?”

“Swimming!” called Nacho.

“Nice.” But the corners of Yvonna's mouth barely curled. “Is John with you?”

Sarah shook her head. “I thought he'd be here by now.” Why wasn't he back yet?

“Don't worry,” said Marco. “He probably wanted to get as much cut as he could.”

Yvonna put her face in her hands.

“Mom?” asked Nacho. “You okay?”

She took her hands away. “I just feel so weak.” Then she quickly turned and stepped into the trees, sick once again.

Cash asked, “What's wrong with her?”

Sarah glanced at Marco, whose forehead was all wrinkled. She set a hand on his arm. “She'll be okay.”

Marco asked, “How do you know?”

But Sarah didn't know. She didn't know anything. She was simply trying to be nice because it felt like the right thing to do.

Nacho pulled out his notebook. “What if she gets dehydrated?” He read a little bit, then lifted his head. In a tone drenched with authority, he barked, “We need coconuts.”

Sarah pointed at the small pile of brown ones that remained. “There's some.”

Nacho shook his head. “We need the raw ones, the drinking nuts. They're big and green. They have juice in them that will be really good for Mom.” He replaced the notebook in his backpack.

Yvonna came out of the trees, her hair disheveled. Her steps were uneven, and Marco jumped up and ran over to her. “Mom?” He put his arm around her and she leaned on him.

He called out, “Somebody get the pillows and blanket.”

“I will!” said Cash. She ran over to the tree where Yvonna had been resting.

Sarah went to help Marco with Yvonna. Together, they got her over to the camp and waited for Cash to spread the blanket before lowering Yvonna down.

She immediately fell back on the pillows, a hand over her eyes.

Sarah said, “You should drink some water.”

Yvonna shook her head. “I can't. I will in a minute.”

Sarah glanced at Marco. His mouth was a thin line, and his eyes were narrowed. She whispered, “She's got to drink something.”

Marco said, “Maybe Nacho is right. We should find some of those drinking coconuts.” He glanced around. “Where is he?”

Sarah turned. Nacho was nowhere. She asked Cash, “Where'd Nacho go?”

Cash shrugged. “I don't know. I was getting the pillows and stuff.”

Marco put both hands on top of his head. “He probably went to find the coconuts himself.” He sighed.

Sarah said, “I should go get my dad.”

Marco nodded. “And I need to find Nacho.” He looked at Sarah and pointed toward the beach. “We should go after them.”

Cash's eyes widened and she shook her head so hard that her braids flew up. “No way. I'm not going that way.”

Sarah said, “You can stay here.”

“Yeah,” said Marco. “Will you watch my mom?”

Cash nodded. “Of course.” She glanced down at Yvonna. “Although I don't know how much I can do for her.”

Sarah said, “We shouldn't be gone long.” She hoped, anyway. “But just in case, I'll get some supplies.” She went over to the monkey pod trees and found a small blue canvas bag with a long white strap. She packed it with some fruit, a few bottles of water, and a flashlight. A paring knife fell off a pile of towels, and she tossed that in there too.

Marco came over and dug in his suitcase. He held up a pair of sneakers. “We'd better wear something other than flip-flops.”

“Okay.” Sarah's heart pounded at the idea of going off on their own, but she had to find her dad. Nothing would stop her from at least trying. She dug out her sneakers and put those on, then went back over to the group. She quickly put two braids in her hair. Then she stood up and asked Marco, “You ready?”

Marco nodded and sank to his knees beside his mom. “We'll be back as soon as we can. With John. And some coconut juice for you.” He gave her a quick hug, then told Sarah, “Let's go.”

 

10

As they walked along the beach, Marco hoped he wasn't making a mistake by leaving his mom alone. Technically, she wasn't alone—she had Cash—but Marco still worried about her.

Sarah said, “She'll be okay.”

Marco glanced at her and nodded. “I know.” He lifted and lowered his shoulder. “I still worry.”

Sarah added, “And we'll find Nacho. He can't be far.”

Marco smiled then. “He drives me crazy sometimes, but he's my little brother. I wouldn't ever want anything to happen to him.”

“I get it,” said Sarah. “Not that I know what it's like, but I like Nacho. He knows a lot. I mean that whole thing about the ape mermaids? Pretty crazy.”

Marco said, “Yeah, he does know a lot.”

Sarah smiled. “You sound surprised.”

“Well, I—” He wasn't sure what was more unexpected: that she noticed his little brother was smart or that she admitted she liked him.

“What?” There was an edge to her voice.

“Nothing,” said Marco, although he couldn't help but wonder how Sarah felt about him. He figured she still held a grudge because he hadn't told their parents about the red bird the first time she asked him to. “I'm glad you like him. I guess I didn't expect that. Some people might think he's a little obsessive. I mean, with the hand sanitizer and all.”

Sarah raised her eyebrows. “I know a lot of people who use way more of that than he does. I use it all the time during flu season at school. And besides, what's not to like? He's pretty handy.”

Marco smiled. “Yeah, I guess so.”

Sarah said, “I think he likes Cash too. She's pretty nice.”

“Yeah, I guess,” said Marco.

Sarah looked at him. “What?”

He said, “I just thought it was weird when I showed the trunk to you guys. You and Nacho both had the same look on your faces, like you thought it was cool. But Cash…”

“I didn't notice,” said Sarah. “What did she do?”

“I don't know,” said Marco. “It was almost like she recognized it.”

Sarah asked, “Do you think she's seen it before?”

“No. But I do think that she's heard about it before.” Marco stopped and faced Sarah. “Remember how she told us about Fox's cargo? But then later, she slipped and called it treasure?”

Sarah nodded. “It could've been an honest mistake.”

“Maybe,” said Marco. “But I just got the feeling that maybe Fox spilled some details about his treasure, details which included that trunk.”

Sarah frowned. “But, if that trunk is actually Fox's treasure, how did it end up on
Moonflight
?”

Marco shrugged and started walking again. “Captain Norm went all over these islands. There was like over a year after Fox got rescued before he went on the boat with Cash and Sarge.”

“So you think Captain Norm found it on an island?” asked Sarah.

“Maybe,” said Marco.

“But if he did,” mused Sarah, “why didn't he open it?”

Marco shrugged. “Captain Norm seemed content with his life, don't you think? I mean, look at the condition of his boat. Maybe he appreciated the trunk for what it was on the outside.”

Sarah frowned. “I don't think so. He was a businessman. I mean, he didn't even offer us a discount when we saw his boat wasn't anything like the one in the brochure.” She shook her head. “He wouldn't have left the trunk alone because he was nice.” She raised her eyebrows. “Maybe he thought it was cursed. If he believed in mermaids, he might have believed other things too.”

“Why would he think that?” asked Marco.

“Maybe someone gave it to him, but with a warning.” She shrugged. “He obviously didn't get into it. There had to be a reason.”

Marco stopped walking. “Do you think we should go back? What if Cash tries to open it? I don't want her ruining it.”

Sarah's eyes widened and she pointed ahead, to a trail that went into the dense trees. “Look.”

Marco turned. “Maybe that's where your dad has been going.”

Sarah breathed out. “Only one way to find out.”

Marco led the way into the trees. The path was mostly dirt and not very wide, but seemed like it had been used a lot. Soon the trees thickened, shutting out some of the daylight, making it seem more like a rain forest with a cover above them.

“It's way cooler in here,” commented Sarah.

“Yeah,” said Marco. He wondered where the bamboo was.

Sarah said, “I could whistle for Ahab. I mean, if he's anywhere near us he'd hear and come running. Or at least bark.”

Marco shook his head. “No. I don't think that's a good idea.” He saw something shiny, half hidden in the dirt, and stooped to pick it up. A silver anchor, engraved with letters
AHAB
. He grinned and held it up. “Looks like we're on the right path.” He handed it to Sarah.

Sarah squinted at the anchor. “Wait a second.”

“It's Ahab's. I saw it on his collar.” Marco didn't understand why she was acting so skeptical. “Your dad must have come this way with the dog.”

Sarah shook her head. “The one Ahab has on is misspelled, with two
b
's. Captain Norm told me Ahab had lost the one with the correct spelling”—she brandished the tag—“on an island.” She looked around. “They were here before. On this island.”

A soft chuffing made Marco freeze. “Did you hear that?

Sarah said, “Hear what?”

Marco lifted a finger to his lips, then jabbed it in the air to his left.

The chuffing grew louder.

Marco grabbed Sarah's arm and pulled her behind a tree with him. His heart pounded as they crouched there, listening as the chuffing turned into a loud crunching.

“Sounds like something is eating something,” whispered Sarah.

The sound stopped. Marco put a finger to his lips. Sarah nodded.

Suddenly, there was a rush of leaves and a flash of gray. The ground shook so hard that they each grabbed a tree to keep their balance. A large something charged past them, gone before they could see what it was.

They brushed themselves off and then stepped out onto the path. “What was that?” Marco was panting, and his hands trembled.

Sarah's face was pale. “I don't know.” She looked one way, then the other. “I don't even know which way it went.”

Marco scratched his head. “Do we keep going?”

“Or should we go back?” asked Sarah.

Marco sighed. They had to find John and Nacho, but what were they getting themselves into? “I don't know.”

Sarah still had the dog tag in her hand. She pinched it between two fingers and held it up. “Should we flip for it?”

Marco nodded. “Heads we go back and just wait for them to return. Tails we keep going.”

Sarah tossed the tag and caught it, then flipped it onto the back of her wrist. She slowly lifted her hand, revealing the blank side. She raised her eyebrows. “Looks like we keep going.”

Marco swallowed, wondering what they were going to find as they headed farther into the trees.

 

11

Sarah followed Marco as he walked slowly along the path. She glanced furtively behind her every now and then, hoping nothing was going to creep up on them. She had no idea what had run by them, but that thing was big. Monstrous. She definitely didn't want to encounter it on this narrow path. “Do you think we're going the right way?”