Shadowed Eden (17 page)

They made their way back to the fire and sat down, and Avery glanced around and frowned. “Where's my dad?”

“Your dad?” Luca looked around, too, but Mr. Miles wasn't around. “I don't know. He didn't come with us.”

A frown wrinkled the middle of her forehead as she bit her lip. “You think he's OK?”

“I'm sure he's fine. He's a grown man.”

She nodded, but the worry wrinkle didn't disappear.

A few of the others approached and surrounded the guys who had pushed the van.

Tasha stepped closer and honed in on Bradley. “What was it like on the other side of the jungle?”

“It looked the same as here. We had to find fruit and water before we came back, and we slept in the other van.”

Bradley
could
be a decent guy. Luca didn't understand why he chose not to be, and now, why he was acting like he deserved respect even when he didn't give it.

“How far into the jungle did you go?” Avery leaned toward Bradley casually—too casually—and Luca knew she was after something with her question. She wanted to know if the other group had experienced the weird things their own group had faced. She was going at it all wrong though, since Bradley hadn't ever had to go too far into the jungle on the other side.

One of the other boys, Jeffrey, shook his head and spoke up. “I couldn't say. It didn't take us long to find food and water, though. There were fruit trees all over the place, and a spring ran right through the tree line.”

So they probably hadn't gone in far at all.

“And everyone's been OK?” Avery pressed him for more information. “No one's been sick or feeling strange?”

Jeffrey frowned. “No. Why? Have you guys been sick?”

“Only Erin,” Benny said around a mouthful of fruit. “Oh yeah, and Katelyn sees things. And I guess Avery too.” He stopped and frowned. “Am I missing anyone? Oh. The snakes. We were attacked by snakes, and a rabid monkey.”

A few from the other group frowned and started asking questions.

“Benny,” Luca growled. “That's enough.” He glanced at Avery, and her cheeks flamed. Probably because Jeffrey took a step back when Benny mentioned Avery seeing things.

Benny held out his hands. “What? He asked what had been going on here so I told him.”

“I don't understand,” Jeffrey said. “What do you mean you've been seeing things? What's wrong with you guys?”

Erin and Chad sat together in one of the shelters, but they could obviously hear the entire conversation. Erin strode toward them now. “You don't want to know what I see, but some of you won't be so blessed.” She turned to Bradley. “And you may as well give up on getting out of here.”

Chad hurried to the group, a giant frown on his face. “Erin, there's no need to scare everyone. We're going to find a way to leave. Greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world.”

Erin didn't look convinced.

The couple went back to the shelter but no one else in the group spoke.

Luca recognized what Chad had spoken. It was a Bible verse he'd learned as a kid, and it referred to God's power versus Satan's.

Why had Chad brought it up? Luca didn't like the implications. Was Erin seeing something satanic? Like a demon or something?

A loud rustling moved through the woods and everyone from Luca's group jumped up defensively. Luca grabbed a stick, ready to cut some heads off snakes if he needed to, but only Mr. Miles came bursting through the overgrowth.

He grinned and waved at them all excitedly. “Waiting for me?”

“No, Daddy,” Avery said, her breath rushing out. “You scared us all half to death.”

His excitement didn't waver. “Why? Oh, I see you got the van over. Perfect.” He cruised past them all and climbed into the van, pulling his backpack from his back and slamming the door behind him.

“What's he doing?” someone asked.

“I don't know,” Avery muttered. She watched the van long after everyone else had lost interest.

“Thank you.”

Luca turned to June who stood behind him. “What?”

“Thank you, you know, for taking care of everyone. I don't think we would have made it without you.” She stepped close to him.

He managed a smile, but he shuffled back a step or two. “You're welcome, but you don't owe me any gratitude. We've all worked together. Look at you. You even got a snake bite.”

She smiled and shook her head. “Yeah, but who carried me to the van for anti-venom?”

“You're welcome. Really.”

She moved away, and Luca took a deep breath. This place was mind-numbingly confusing at times. Hopefully, June wasn't getting any weird ideas about their relationship. He pushed the thought aside and tracked down Bradley instead of joining the group around the fire. “What did you see while you walked?”

Bradley glared at him. “Why should I help you?”

“Help me? Dude, we're all trying to get out of here.”

Bradley paused, but when he didn't have anything to fire back, he shrugged. “Nothing. We walked toward the sun as it rose, and away from the sun as it set behind us. We were clearly walking away from the jungle. The next thing I knew it was right in front of us.”

“Maybe it was a different jungle.”

Bradley shook his head. “I don't think so.”

Luca frowned and looked away. “It doesn't make any sense.”

“Tell me about it.”

“What about when you came back?” Luca asked. “Did you do the same thing? Or did you follow the line of the trees?”

Bradley shook his head. “That's the weirdest part. We followed the tree line around, and it took us longer to get here. By nightfall, we hadn't reached the camp, so we stopped for the night to sleep. The next morning it took us another couple hours to get here.”

Luca turned to study the jungle. It was almost as if they weren't allowed to leave. “Whatever this place is, it's messed up.”

Bradley nodded but didn't offer any more opinions.

Luca stood and headed back toward the group. Avery waited near the van's side door.

“What's up?”

She frowned and looked toward the van window. The windows were tinted, but that didn't stop her from looking. “I don't know what he's up to. He's excited about something, but I have a feeling that whatever it is, it's not going to get us out of here.”

“Yeah, I got that impression, too. What do you think it is?”

“I haven't figured it out yet, but I think it has to do with this place. He thinks he's found something here.”

“How would he find anything if Jeffrey said they never went into the jungle?”

She shook her head. “I don't know. And who knows if he went in or not, you know? No one would think his behavior was odd. They probably wouldn't pay attention. I wish he'd talk to me, but he's so artificial with everyone.”

Luca rolled her words around in his mind. It gave him an idea. “I wonder if Chad would answer our questions.”

Chad was more concerned with helping his wife at this point than he was in taking care of them, but he might answer a few questions.

Avery's gaze trailed toward their youth leader. She shrugged. “He might. Do you think Erin even wants to be rescued?”

“Why would she want to stay?”

Avery shook her head. “I don't know. Maybe because she's not herself.”

“That's for sure.”

They trekked through the sand and Luca stooped outside the girls' shelter. Now that he was here, he wasn't sure what to say.

Chad and Erin stared at him expectantly.

Finally, Chad cleared his throat. “You guys need something?” The sun had definitely done a number on Chad and his group. Blistered skin showed under his eyes and on his nose. They must not have thought of hats or sunblock.

“Yeah, we were just wondering if you could tell us what all Mr. Miles has been doing since you guys got stranded.” It sounded stupid, even to him. He glanced at Avery for help.

“He says he's looking for something,” Avery said. “I just wonder what it is.”

Chad frowned and shook his head. “He stayed with the group at all times that I can remember. The only time anyone went into the jungle alone was for—well, personal reasons.”

“He didn't seem to be acting strange to you?” Luca asked.

“Sorry, no.”

“They say someone will find it,” Erin said. She rubbed her forehead like she had a headache. “A devil, or demon. I don't know the word for sure. It's probably your dad.”

Chad turned to her, his eyes showing how upset her words made him. “Who said that, Erin? You can't listen to them.”

“It doesn't matter, Chad. I hear them whether I listen or not.”

“They said that?” Avery looked away then spoke like she was talking to herself. “So they want something to be found. Maybe they're keeping us here to find it?”

Luca frowned and tugged her back. “Let's leave Erin to rest. Thanks for your help, Chad.”

Avery frowned at him as they walked away. “Why did you pull me away? She was giving us good information.”

“Yeah, but Chad is here now. He won't appreciate his wife being badgered to solve a mystery.”

“I wasn't badgering her.”

“No, but he's trying to help her overcome whatever it is she's seeing. If that were you, I wouldn't want anyone bugging you, either.” He'd heard people talking about putting their foot in their mouth. If ever he'd wanted to take something back, it was now.

She would think he thought they were getting back together. She would put him in his place. Distance herself.

He watched her, gauging her reaction, but she didn't huff and stomp away.

She didn't frown or remind him they'd broken up months ago. She just nodded.

Maybe he hadn't messed up, at least not this time.

“If she's right,” Avery went on, “then Daddy is listening to whatever those things are. He's being led by—I don't know—something. We need to get out of here. It isn't right.”

He took a deep breath, remembering what Chad had said about God being greater than the devil. “Yeah, I agree with you, there.”

She gave him a crooked grin. “When do you disagree with me?”

There was one area, for sure, but he didn't want to push his luck in bringing up the way her dad dumbed her down. Instead he smiled. “Good point.”

She stared at him with her mesmerizing blue eyes and it took his breath away. He should ask if she wanted to talk, not about getting stranded or her dad. Just talk.

She smiled and her hair blew slightly with the breeze.

He opened his mouth to ask her.

“Luca! Luca, come quick!”

Benny's frantic call brought him out of his bad idea, and he spun around. “What's going on?”

Benny slid to a stop in front of them, panting. “It's June. She's having a seizure or something.”

20

Watching June's body jerk around in the sand turned his stomach. He swallowed hard and pushed the feeling away as he marched toward her. “What happened?”

“We were sitting here, and she just started shaking.” Katelyn wiped tears from her face, but it looked like she'd stopped crying for now, thank goodness. “We didn't know what to do, then she fell sideways and kept shaking in the sand.”

Erin pushed through them and knelt beside June.

Luca moved out of the way to let her examine the girl. He almost felt guilty for not calling her in the first place, but he'd forgotten about Erin being an authority figure, especially since she'd been practically useless since they got here.

But crazy or not, Erin's instincts seemed to have kicked in and she quickly went to work. June had stopped shaking and Erin called to her softly as she checked her pulse and lifted her eyelids.

June moaned and turned her head.

Avery jogged over and handed Erin a bottle of water. Erin took the bottle and held it to June's lips. “Can you drink this?”'

June lifted her head slightly and took a sip before laying back. “What happened?”

“You had a seizure,” Erin said. “Do you have a history of seizures?”

“No, I don't think so.”

“Could it have been caused by the snake bite?” Luca asked.

Erin nodded. “Definitely. You need to lay back and relax for the rest of the night. No more hiking through the jungle.”

June gave them all a weak smile. “You got it.”

She blinked up at Luca hovering over her and smiled a little brighter, but she turned away before he knew what to make of it.

Something tugged at his mind, something about her eyes. He wasn't sure he liked the thought so he pushed it to the back of his brain before he had to figure out what it really meant. His stomach growled loudly and it gave him the perfect excuse to step away and find something to eat.

A basket of fruit sat in the shade but all he found were pears. That was the last thing he wanted. His gaze moved to the jungle, and he studied the trees and shadows inside. He could go in alone. The thought simmered for a moment, and he glanced around to see if anyone watched him. Sure, he didn't want anyone else doing it, but he needed to be by himself. Being surrounded by so many people all the time was exhausting.

Glancing around one last time, he stepped into the jungle and hiked toward the banana tree they'd seen a few days ago. Farther and farther he trekked, until sweat pooled on his back and ran down his temples. He pulled off his shirt and slung it over his shoulder as he continued deeper into the jungle. His eyes moved back and forth constantly, scanning for snakes or monkeys or weird native people.

Nothing stirred the trees though, and after a while, he spotted yellow ahead. Luca grinned. He'd remembered the banana tree's exact location. Excellent directional skills; just another perk of hunting and tracking. The reminder tensed him up as he remembered the uncertainty waiting for him back home.