Chapter Thirty Six
Irina nodded, no hesitation and not overly surprised at Jack's decision to send her up there, but still happy to take her time in figuring out the best way of making her assent. She skirted around the fern, looking over it, from every angle she could, taking in its height and width. It was, by her calculation, over two hundred years old. It was tall and in the conditions surrounding it: low light, moist air, water system, she saw it is a work of nature to be reckoned with.
Her other observation was the absence of branches and therefore foot holds for the first five meters. She turned to Jack, "I'm going to need help getting up." He looked to the fern, at first doubtful that she really did, but shrugging as he recognized the truth to her statement.
"What do you need?"
She considered him, by no means wishing to impose but seeing no other way. "You think you can hold me on your shoulders?"
"Standing?" he asked, once again doubtful.
"I could probably reach from sitting." He nodded curtly to her and flexed his shoulders, doing his best to remain devoid of emotion.
Irina watched him as he knelt down, motioning for her to come forward and climb on. She did so quickly, ignoring the heat he radiated as she knew he would be doing the same and quietly waited for him to hoist himself and he up. A few seconds later, he was standing, waiting patiently for her to find her way up.
Grabbing the overhead branch with the tips of her fingers, Irina quickly pulled herself up, her legs slipping over Jack's shoulders like liquid as she used her arms to propel herself straight up, through the thick layers of green fern and out of sight. Jack sat down, happy to wait.
About two minutes later, Irina appeared, almost silently, beside him. She'd jumped the several meters and landed perfectly, steadying herself with a hand as she crouched beside him. He was seated and had been throwing rocks into the stream as he continued to mull over the situation.
She repositioned herself, sitting down, cross legged and finally surrendering to the siren call of the cool water in front of her. Silently, she took both her shoes off and let her feet slip into the freezing liquid up to her knees. She pointed her toes, waiting for Jack to ask her about her trek up the tree. Turning to her and taking what she immediately noticed to be a blatant and purposeful look at her from her toes up.
She flushed red, not quite knowing why but reveling in the self satisfied grin and nod that Jack gave on finding her plastered in a light shade of crimson. Turning back to look out at the water, Jack asked, "What could you see?"
Irina returned to her controlled state the moment his gaze left her and answered his question a second too late, "The rainforest is pretty large, we're just about in the middle of it, which isn't surprising considering that the river is here. I can't see any sign of civilization from here and no sign of our pursuers either."
He nodded thoughtfully, "Weather?"
She smiled, not surprised that that was her second question, it was what he had been taught at the CIA, it was what he would always use. "Blue skies from here to as far as I can see. The air was still pretty moist, but I think that must just be the rainforest."
"Is that a good thing or not?" Jack asked, not as knowledgeable as Irina in regards to rainforests.
"Good." She turned to drag her feet out of the water and look him in the eye. "If it rained, everything could flood or it could go to mud. And the amount of leeches would increase."
"Uhuh," Jack responded, obviously still not happy with leeches and their presence within the hideaway rainforest. "Now what?"
Irina shrugged, "We wait."
It was getting dark and still neither had had the guts to decide to move more than ten meters from where they'd been sitting. The bird calls were increasing as they returned to their nests and the scampering of wombats and wallabies could be heard around them and they emerged for their evening meals. Irina leaned back against the tree happily, or so it seemed, to wait forever, while Jack sat, not leaning on anything, blatantly upset with the living arrangements for the night.
They both knew what they were waiting for, but their opinions on when the waiting was over were going to clash. They needed to stay put until the chances of Cameron still being around and attentive had dropped below reasonable. In Jack's mind, he wouldn't have waited more than twenty minutes but Irina, having seen the calm look of defiance on his face knew there was a good chance he was wandering around in the hope of finding them.
With these thoughts most prominent in their minds, Jack stood up and stretched, making as though he was about to leave. Irina looked at him, head cocked as she waited for an answer to her unspoken question. Obliging her, he answered, "I think it's safe, we may as well try to get out of here before night hits."
She shook her head with force. "He's still going to be up there."
"I don't think so." Jack shot back at her, almost before the words were out of her mouth, "What chance does he have of catching us? You said yourself that it was a pretty big rainforest, he's only going to be able to cover a small part of the perimeter, he will have realized this and given up hours ago."
Irina shook her head but stopped the argument before it started, "I don't think so," he voice was calm, but she stood up anyway, "But if you're sure, I have to agree with you." She paused, "You're in charge."
Jack stopped immediately, suddenly unsure of his decision. "Wait," he said to the departing form as Irina moved off in the direction from which they had first entered the small clearing. She paused and turned back to him.
"What?"
"Why do you think he would still be there?"
She paused, not sure of her answer and the amount of truth that it should hold. His piercing eyes, though, made it seem like lying would be a waste of time anyway. "Gut feeling."
He nodded, silently debating between his own mind which worked logically and his own gut which told him to listen to his wife, in which his trust was growing to unreasonable levels. His own instinct finally winning out, he took a seat again, this time up against a tree as he watched Irina who again refused to do anything without him voicing it first. "Fine, we'll stay," he told her curtly.
She smiled and sat, picking a different tree which gave her access to a new spot of dry land. The valley was still wet with moisture in the air and humid, but somehow was growing cold as the sun disappeared beneath the horizon. The light the flickered through the leaves was no longer green but instead filtered blues and aquas glittered with specks of yellows, oranges and reds from the sunset.
Irina basked in the colors while the chilly weather was getting to annoy her. She cuddled herself tighter, wrapping her arms around her legs and burying her head in her lap. Jack watched from afar, feeling the old as well, but not as bad. They were going to need somewhere to sleep and they were going to have to find it soon. He watched her as she snuggled closer to her own body before asking, "Where do you propose we go for some shelter?"
She looked up, the idea seemingly blatant though it had never popped into her mind. She stood immediately knowing where to go. Jack soon stood to follow her along the side of the river.
Ten minutes later they arrived at what Irina had described as a heat island that she had seen from her perch above the fern tree. It was something she'd only seen a few times before but she knew how and why they worked. In the middle of a few rainforests were large black slates of stone, usually along the rivers and covered by thin, almost transparent moss. The black surface remained hot at the end of the day and as Irina leaned into in, placing her hands on it, she felt the heat radiating off still. The whole area was heated and the chills left her as she walked into the middle of the two by two meter block.
The moss was tender under her feet and as she knelt onto it she found it soft and slightly ticklish. She smiled at Jack, "Thanks for bringing this up, I'd completely forgotten about finding somewhere to sleep."
He smiled, not sure what to make of her, "Well done on finding this." He moved over to where she knelt, feeling the heat radiating off. He turned and looked at her, wondering at where she'd learnt of these things but too afraid to ask. "How does it work?"
Irina turned to him and explained the use of the black surface and its attraction and retention of heat. She then went on to point out that they would probably find a hot spring close by too and forcing him to be as quiet as he could, she listened carefully for the sound of water. Hearing what Jack couldn't, she scrambled towards the sound and found the heated water not three meters away.
She smiled, turning back to Jack. "Perfect."
Reviews please...
Irina nodded, no hesitation and not overly surprised at Jack's decision to send her up there, but still happy to take her time in figuring out the best way of making her assent. She skirted around the fern, looking over it, from every angle she could, taking in its height and width. It was, by her calculation, over two hundred years old. It was tall and in the conditions surrounding it: low light, moist air, water system, she saw it is a work of nature to be reckoned with.
Her other observation was the absence of branches and therefore foot holds for the first five meters. She turned to Jack, "I'm going to need help getting up." He looked to the fern, at first doubtful that she really did, but shrugging as he recognized the truth to her statement.
"What do you need?"
She considered him, by no means wishing to impose but seeing no other way. "You think you can hold me on your shoulders?"
"Standing?" he asked, once again doubtful.
"I could probably reach from sitting." He nodded curtly to her and flexed his shoulders, doing his best to remain devoid of emotion.
Irina watched him as he knelt down, motioning for her to come forward and climb on. She did so quickly, ignoring the heat he radiated as she knew he would be doing the same and quietly waited for him to hoist himself and he up. A few seconds later, he was standing, waiting patiently for her to find her way up.
Grabbing the overhead branch with the tips of her fingers, Irina quickly pulled herself up, her legs slipping over Jack's shoulders like liquid as she used her arms to propel herself straight up, through the thick layers of green fern and out of sight. Jack sat down, happy to wait.
About two minutes later, Irina appeared, almost silently, beside him. She'd jumped the several meters and landed perfectly, steadying herself with a hand as she crouched beside him. He was seated and had been throwing rocks into the stream as he continued to mull over the situation.
She repositioned herself, sitting down, cross legged and finally surrendering to the siren call of the cool water in front of her. Silently, she took both her shoes off and let her feet slip into the freezing liquid up to her knees. She pointed her toes, waiting for Jack to ask her about her trek up the tree. Turning to her and taking what she immediately noticed to be a blatant and purposeful look at her from her toes up.
She flushed red, not quite knowing why but reveling in the self satisfied grin and nod that Jack gave on finding her plastered in a light shade of crimson. Turning back to look out at the water, Jack asked, "What could you see?"
Irina returned to her controlled state the moment his gaze left her and answered his question a second too late, "The rainforest is pretty large, we're just about in the middle of it, which isn't surprising considering that the river is here. I can't see any sign of civilization from here and no sign of our pursuers either."
He nodded thoughtfully, "Weather?"
She smiled, not surprised that that was her second question, it was what he had been taught at the CIA, it was what he would always use. "Blue skies from here to as far as I can see. The air was still pretty moist, but I think that must just be the rainforest."
"Is that a good thing or not?" Jack asked, not as knowledgeable as Irina in regards to rainforests.
"Good." She turned to drag her feet out of the water and look him in the eye. "If it rained, everything could flood or it could go to mud. And the amount of leeches would increase."
"Uhuh," Jack responded, obviously still not happy with leeches and their presence within the hideaway rainforest. "Now what?"
Irina shrugged, "We wait."
It was getting dark and still neither had had the guts to decide to move more than ten meters from where they'd been sitting. The bird calls were increasing as they returned to their nests and the scampering of wombats and wallabies could be heard around them and they emerged for their evening meals. Irina leaned back against the tree happily, or so it seemed, to wait forever, while Jack sat, not leaning on anything, blatantly upset with the living arrangements for the night.
They both knew what they were waiting for, but their opinions on when the waiting was over were going to clash. They needed to stay put until the chances of Cameron still being around and attentive had dropped below reasonable. In Jack's mind, he wouldn't have waited more than twenty minutes but Irina, having seen the calm look of defiance on his face knew there was a good chance he was wandering around in the hope of finding them.
With these thoughts most prominent in their minds, Jack stood up and stretched, making as though he was about to leave. Irina looked at him, head cocked as she waited for an answer to her unspoken question. Obliging her, he answered, "I think it's safe, we may as well try to get out of here before night hits."
She shook her head with force. "He's still going to be up there."
"I don't think so." Jack shot back at her, almost before the words were out of her mouth, "What chance does he have of catching us? You said yourself that it was a pretty big rainforest, he's only going to be able to cover a small part of the perimeter, he will have realized this and given up hours ago."
Irina shook her head but stopped the argument before it started, "I don't think so," he voice was calm, but she stood up anyway, "But if you're sure, I have to agree with you." She paused, "You're in charge."
Jack stopped immediately, suddenly unsure of his decision. "Wait," he said to the departing form as Irina moved off in the direction from which they had first entered the small clearing. She paused and turned back to him.
"What?"
"Why do you think he would still be there?"
She paused, not sure of her answer and the amount of truth that it should hold. His piercing eyes, though, made it seem like lying would be a waste of time anyway. "Gut feeling."
He nodded, silently debating between his own mind which worked logically and his own gut which told him to listen to his wife, in which his trust was growing to unreasonable levels. His own instinct finally winning out, he took a seat again, this time up against a tree as he watched Irina who again refused to do anything without him voicing it first. "Fine, we'll stay," he told her curtly.
She smiled and sat, picking a different tree which gave her access to a new spot of dry land. The valley was still wet with moisture in the air and humid, but somehow was growing cold as the sun disappeared beneath the horizon. The light the flickered through the leaves was no longer green but instead filtered blues and aquas glittered with specks of yellows, oranges and reds from the sunset.
Irina basked in the colors while the chilly weather was getting to annoy her. She cuddled herself tighter, wrapping her arms around her legs and burying her head in her lap. Jack watched from afar, feeling the old as well, but not as bad. They were going to need somewhere to sleep and they were going to have to find it soon. He watched her as she snuggled closer to her own body before asking, "Where do you propose we go for some shelter?"
She looked up, the idea seemingly blatant though it had never popped into her mind. She stood immediately knowing where to go. Jack soon stood to follow her along the side of the river.
Ten minutes later they arrived at what Irina had described as a heat island that she had seen from her perch above the fern tree. It was something she'd only seen a few times before but she knew how and why they worked. In the middle of a few rainforests were large black slates of stone, usually along the rivers and covered by thin, almost transparent moss. The black surface remained hot at the end of the day and as Irina leaned into in, placing her hands on it, she felt the heat radiating off still. The whole area was heated and the chills left her as she walked into the middle of the two by two meter block.
The moss was tender under her feet and as she knelt onto it she found it soft and slightly ticklish. She smiled at Jack, "Thanks for bringing this up, I'd completely forgotten about finding somewhere to sleep."
He smiled, not sure what to make of her, "Well done on finding this." He moved over to where she knelt, feeling the heat radiating off. He turned and looked at her, wondering at where she'd learnt of these things but too afraid to ask. "How does it work?"
Irina turned to him and explained the use of the black surface and its attraction and retention of heat. She then went on to point out that they would probably find a hot spring close by too and forcing him to be as quiet as he could, she listened carefully for the sound of water. Hearing what Jack couldn't, she scrambled towards the sound and found the heated water not three meters away.
She smiled, turning back to Jack. "Perfect."
Reviews please...