"Ahhh..." The girls clung to each other as they fell out of the tree. Suddenly they once again found themselves on the cold, hard ground.

"Are you okay?" Alyssa asked.

"Yeah, are you?"

"I think so." They helped each other up.

..........................................

"Any progress?" Mrs. Bellows asked as she came into the kitchen.

"Unfortunately no. I had to tell Andrew. He's upset. Very upset." They heard someone come through the kitchen door. It was Isabel.

"Sweetie, what are you doing here, your supposed to be at school?"

"Listen, my best friend is missing I wanna help find her. Plus I am having problems at school right now. I just need someone to talk to."

"Sure, sweetheart, what ever about?" Mrs. Bellows asked, pulling out a chair for Isabel.

"Well, for almost as long as I can remember, you have both been really great Aunts. Almost like a Mother, well two of them anyway. I just want to know, cause I can't talk to my dad about it, he never talks about her. I mean, I just have one crumpled up old picture of her. I just want to know, what was my Mother like?"

Jeannie hated Isabel's mother. She had left the family when Isabel was only about two. The very thought of this woman, who had abandoned her child and left her husband devastated made Jeannie's blood boil. She had wanted to do something to this woman for a long time, but she had vowed not to. Perhaps, one day, if she ever came back, maybe she would break that vow, but not today, not now. She did not like to talk about this woman either, so she decided that she would just let Amanda do the talking for now.

Little did Jeannie know, that Amanda despised Isabel's Mother just as much as she did, and did not like to talk about her either. She had decided a very long time ago, that if she ever saw her again, she would give her a piece of her mind. She also decided that she would let Jeannie do all the talking regarding this subject. As a result, both women were silent.

"I can't believe this, I can't talk to you either! I thought that I could tell you guys everything!"

Finally Amanda decided to break the silence.

"Yes, sweetheart, you can tell us everything. Your Mother, well she was a very flamboyant woman. She loved margaritas and parties, cocktails, clothes and her career. And she loved you too. We don't know why she left, but we know that it was not because of you, she loved you very much."

"Really?"

'Yes, oh yes."

"Thanks, you have made me feel so much better!" She said, going to hug each one of them.

"Now, Isabel are you going to go to school?"

"Of course not, I've still got a best friend missing, remember?"

..........................................

After the girls fell out of the tree they continued walking. It was hot outside, very hot. But being in the jungle made them feel a little cooler than they would have been had they been on the beach. A little while after they began to walk they found a tree adorned with bananas, they picked as many as they could carry and moved on. They were in search for a new place to sleep. The beach had not been comfortable in the least. When it seemed as though they'd been walking for a number of hours, Jackie felt as though she were standing on something sticky and squishy and uneven. She looked down and screamed, for she was standing in quicksand. Alyssa screamed too, and tried desperately to pull Jackie out. After a short anguishing while she succeeded and Jackie was free of the 'death sand.' Jackie had sunk into the sand, all the way to her shoulders. They were incredibly thankful that they were able to get her out. They lost most of their banana collection, but pressed forward anyhow. They had been walking a lot longer than they thought, for it was dark when they finally reached the edge of the jungle. A small lake of sorts, with a waterfall sat before them, as well as a rather large, smooth rock. This was the perfect place for them to sleep.

The next morning Alyssa woke to find that the sun was nowhere to be seen and that clouds covered the sky. This was a new development, the thought that it might rain there had never crossed her mind before, but now rain was an immanent threat. She looked to her right. Jackie was still sound asleep. Knowing that there was nothing to be done for now, she laid down and went back to sleep.