Captured
Chapter 4
Arrival At Haiti
A/N: I wonder why he has a white shirt on and gets wet...hmmm....(ponders this, holding my Nic Cage doll) Oh, and Liz gets good news at the end of this. She'll just have to read to find out, though. ;-
Here they go to Haiti...and I have a picture right here for you! Copy and paste it into your browser...hopefully this works. http:www.lukas.no/forall/haiti/haitimarket.jpg
Oh yes...and Papi is pronounced Pah-pee. (that looks weird)
---::---
Andy's head shot up at the sudden sound of thunder and at this he was instantly awakened. The helicopter was being rocked back and forth dangerously by the harsh wind, and the only other sounds were of the helicopter blades cutting through the thickening air, the faint creaking of metal, and Riley's hammering snoring. He was sprawled out on the cabin floor, huddled up to the twins, his arm laying motionlessly across Tom's gently heaving form. Ben was bored, sitting in the pilot seat, a National Geographic sitting on the dashboard, his glasses on his nose, and his hand propping up his head. He would look up occasionally to make sure the storm wasn't worsening, or to see if they were still on course by checking the compass, or to check the map when he spotted a dominant landmark below. But now unfortunately, with the storm, none were visible.
"Dad?" Andy said quietly. Ben turned his head with a brief 'mhm?' and his son crawled into the passenger seat beside him. The 10 year old looked up at his dad, the dim cockpit light somewhat illuminating his face.
"I was thinking earlier...did you really steal the Declaration of Independence?" Ben stared at Andy a while, closed his magazine, set it on the floor, and placed his glasses on the cover. Then he looked up at his son with a blank expression. Andy took that as a 'yes' and a smile almost instantly spread across his face.
"You did?" Ben nodded guiltfully, but his younger son's grin persisted.
"Awesome!"
"Shh..." Ben said, looking behind him to check if his other son and his best friend were still sleeping. Another roll of thunder broke the new silence, and a bolt of lightning streaked the sky with a sharp cracking noise. Ben turned his head forward again and looked through the windshield, squinting through the rain.
"I can't see where we're going anymore," said Ben, running the windshield wipers, but it only streaked the glass worse. He decided to open the door and stick his head out. It was raining hard, and massive raindrops drenched Ben's head, and white button down shirt. He had taken off the tie he had been wearing and put it with his magazine on the floor. Wind whipped through his hair, the rain in turn soaking it. They were flying into fog. Ben looked below him at the rough, churned water of the Atlantic Ocean about 20 feet down and realized it would be clearer if they flew lower still. He pulled himself back in, slammed the door shut, wiped his face on his sleeve that was rolled up to his elbows, and smoothed his hair back.
"What's up?" Andy asked, getting more comfortable in the passenger seat.
"There's a fog ahead. We need to go lower," Ben replied, his hand finding the collective lever. He lowered it and they began to descend slowly to ten feet. The air was clearer, but there was still nothing to spot ahead. Just more and more ocean. Andy sighed at the disappointing sight.
"Wake me up when we reach the Caribbean," he said, and crawled back to Riley and his brother. Ben checked the compass and the map again, bored once more. He found himself deep in thought, hoping to hell that his wife hadn't been hurt or killed. He double-checked the map, squinted at the Caribbean Islands, and made the quick decision to break at one of them, where they could purchase fuel, food, and supplies. They were running low on all three, which Ben discovered after glancing at the fuel gauge. He sighed, picked up his glasses from the floor, and looked more carefully at the tiny islands, the map in front of him on the steering wheel. They could land on almost any one of them if there was a dock. The pontoons on the bottom would allow them to land in water, but it would be difficult, so he practiced. He descended, and experimented how gently he could land on the surface. He did this almost the entire night, until he felt he could do it in his sleep. Then, he did, incidentally, find himself slumped over the wheel.
---::---
Ben's eyes stung horribly when he opened them in the morning. He had only gotten a few hours in, and the sun was burning sharp rays through the windshield onto his face. When Riley, now at the wheel, found that his friend had lifted his head, he smiled.
"Morning, sunshine," he said brightly, looking back out the windshield. Ben groaned, holding his hand in front of his eyes.
"Where are we?" Ben mumbled, sitting up straight.
"About a single mile from the Caribbean islands," Riley replied optimistically. "I decided to take over when I saw you'd like...died in the cockpit here." Ben rubbed his eyes tiredly, and Riley shrugged. "You told me to read the manual, I read the manual, now I'm flyin' this thing."
"Where are the kids?"
"Out sitting on the pontoons," Riley returned off-handedly. Ben panicked and threw open his door, looking down at the twins lounging on the huge white ovals, about 5 feet from the water.
"Ah, let 'em have fun. We gotta get off soon, Andy said you wanted to stop somewhere around here, correct?"
"Haiti," Ben said automatically, trying to forget his father-like attitude, and closing the door.
"Right," Riley said, looking out the side window.
"Can I please - " Ben said rather harshly, making to get in the pilot's seat again. Riley agreed, and switched. Ben lifted the map to his face, finding his glasses on the floor and setting them on his nose. He looked up at the compass and nodded.
"We're going the right way. Haiti's almost due South from our position."
"Good news," Riley said, lifting his feet onto the dashboard. He sighed. "Say anything about the treasure to the twins?"
"Andy. He woke up last night and we talked about it briefly. He's probably already told Tom, so there's really no sense in mentioning it to him." Riley nodded, and the two began scanning the water for any signs of land.
"See anything?"
"Not yet," Ben said. A few minutes passed, and Ben extended his finger forward. "There," he said. Riley followed his finger and smiled.
"Land, ho! Great job, Ben." He pat his friend on the back, smiling all around.
"Alright, get the twins in, I'm gonna start to land this thing," Ben said, re-consulting the map and compass confirming that the island that they were nearing was indeed Haiti. Riley obeyed quickly, calling Tom and Andy back into the craft.
"Are we landing now?" Tom asked excitedly, climbing into the back of the cabin with Andy.
"Yeah," Ben said. "Okay, on the count of three, I'm going down, so everybody hold on tight. Alright? Are we alright?" There were nods and signs of comprehension, and Ben looked around at the controls thinking of what he had gone through about twenty times the night before.
"Okay," he whispered to himself, repeating each step carefully. They descended, and soon they were skimming lightly on the top of the water, which was coming up from the pontoons and giving the windows a light mist.
"Do you see the dock? I don't see the dock," Riley said, looking along the shore.
"I see the dock," said Ben, concentrating hard on it. As they neared the island, the dark faces of the inhabitants were visible, all turned towards the strange white helicopter approaching the shoreline.
"Okay. Ben. You're cuttin' it a little close, we're there...you gotta stop - " There was a sickening cracking noise, as the head of the chopper somewhat collided with the dock, as Ben had stopped just a second too late. A few people gasped and exchanged glances, while the four climbed onto the dock. Riley tied the helicopter to a pole on the dock with the rope ladder, and Ben looked around, holding up his hand.
"Hi," he said, in a somewhat 007 fashion. There was a pause while people just stared, then a bald man with nothing on but a colorful beaded skirt around his waist came up to them, smiling.
"Hello," he said.
"Hey, man with skirts of many colors," Riley said. The bald Haitian seemed amused, and raised an eyebrow.
"Hello man with the little whiskers on his chin." Riley frowned at this, but Ben let out a bit of a smile and cut in.
"We're on our way South, and we're in need of certain...provisions before we can continue on our course. Could you possibly point us in the direction of some kind of place where we would go about purchasing said provisions?"
"It depends what kinds of things you're looking for," the bald man replied, glancing at the helicopter, which a few other islanders were eyeing appraisingly.
"Uh...food, equipment, fuel for the helicopter...things like that," Ben said. The Haitian nodded and smiled again, revealing a mouth full of yellowing teeth. Some were missing. "Papi," he said, extending a hand.
"Ben, Riley, Tom, and Andy," Ben said gesturing to each member as he presented them, and then shook Papi's hand. He nodded once more, motioned for them to follow him, and began leading them to the village. It was much different here than in D.C. The sun was shining all around them. It's rays bounced off of everything it fell upon, making the entire island shimmer like a decorative tropical Christmas tree ornament - even if they were only getting onto a long sandy road through the marketplace. The place was also crawling with an explosive dry heat, and the air was over 100 degrees, not even a light breeze to stir and relieve the air of it. Ben began to wish that he was the one wearing the long beaded skirt...but the wish faded quickly before it was even finished running through his head. Riley was probably the warmest of all of them, wearing jeans, a black shirt, and a denim jacket.
"As Papi guided the group through the village, Ben noticed that most of the people on the island were friendly, and some of them, instead of shooting unwelcoming and suspicious looks at the strangers, were smiling at them instead. He also noticed that no one else was dressed like Papi - they were all dressed normally, mostly in bright colors, wearing clothes very much unlike Papi's. He looked at Riley, who had been busying himself checking out younger Hatian women, and frowned.
"What are you doing?" Riley's head turned at the sound of Ben's low, stern voice.
"N-Nothing," Riley replied, clearly guilty. Ben shook his head and began to look around, fascinating by the busy scene and wishing that he had a camera and a notebook. They soon passed a man sitting in a wooden chair, a metal bowl sitting next to him, playing with astounding skill on a steel drum. Ben decided to stop and watch.
"Riley, do you have - ...Riley?" Riley wasn't anywhere to be seen, and Ben guessed that he had either been swallowed up by the crowd or had gotten an invitation to somewhere...
"Come on, Dad, keep moving, we're going to lose him!" Andy said, hurrying his father along after Papi. They reached a small shop, where Papi led them inside and up to the counter.
"Bonjou, Jojo," he said to the man at the counter.
"Ah, Papaca! Kouman ou ye?"
"N'ap boule, N'ap boule." Papi turned to the group. "Excuse me," he said, and began talking in a low voice to the man at the counter.
"Tout bagay anform?" Jojo said, glancing at Ben, Tom, and Andy.
"Wi, wi - " The two continued speaking in fast Creole, Papi clearing negotiating with the clerk. Jojo looked up and nodded.
"Wi! What can I get for you all?"
---::---
Ben, Tom, and Andy headed back to the dock, carrying their supplies. Ben hauled the fuel while Tom and Andy carried sacks full of hot dogs, coal, a lighter, a hand compass, and many other supplies that would be useful when they reached the Amazon rain forest.
"Alright. everyone in. Where's Riley?" Ben looked around and walked to the end of the deck where a pile of clothes and tennis shoes was laying. His eyes widened, afraid to look up. He did though, and wasn't at all surprised at what he saw, knowing Riley for so many years now.
"Please tell me you're not swimming naked in the Caribbean Sea," he said blankly. This was followed by giggles from a few Haitian women standing behind Ben on the dock. Riley smiled.
"Might be. Wanna join me?" More giggles.
"No. Get in the helicopter."
"Okay." Riley began swimming towards the ladder up out of the water.
"Wait, no - FREEZE! Uh... Oh God, Riley. Here - take your clothes." Ben threw Riley's belongings down to the ledge, which Riley sat upon, dressing himself again. He climbed up and looked at his friend, who gave him that what am I going to do with you look. Riley smiled and pat Ben on the shoulder.
"If you're going to do this again - "
"Come on, relax. And stop acting like the worried mother of a kindergardener." When Tom and Andy had both gotten into the cabin, Ben jumped up into the helicopter first and turned to wave 'goodbye' to everyone on the island. Riley heaved himself into the cabin, only to bump Ben's shoulder, causing the large can of helicopter fuel to slip from his hands into the water.
"Riley!" Ben shouted, ready to pull out his hair.
"Oh, damn - I'm sorry, Ben, I'm sorry..."
"Never mind," Ben grumbled, jumping back onto the dock to quickly consider his options. They were running out of fuel, and if they didn't have enough to last them until they reached the rain forest, they would break down in the air and crash, most likely causing them to all explode. The other thing that could happen was if the can made contact with the reef and burst open, the water would become highly contaminated and poison the plant and animal life living along it. He could only do one thing. He needed to get the fuel.
"What are you gonna do?" Riley called out the door. Ben looked up at him, still thinking.
"Riley," he said finally, "Let the rope ladder down into the water. If something goes up, I can climb back out." He rolled his sleeves up higher.
"What are you doing, you're going to jump in? Wha - Ben!" Ben dove into the Sea, feeling a cold rush or water wash over him like a thin blanket of ice.
"He's insane," Riley said simply and vaguely, shaking his head and releasing the rope ladder, "You're father's insane." He dropped it, and Tom and Andy peered over the edge of the helicopter floor, worried. Down below, Ben was having a hard time seeing, but was supremely relieved when he spotted the sparkle of the reflector that was stuck to the side of the fuel can. He swam deeper, reaching out in front of him, desperate to grab the handle. The sun seemed to dissolve above him, disappearing into the darkness and the shadows of the massive reef. It was starting to get too dark for Ben to see his own hand in front of him, or the gentle glint of the diving watch on his left wrist. With a single finger and a particularly violent swipe, he caught the edge of the cap, hoping it wouldn't pop open, but cut his finger on it in the act. He bit his tongue and tried to hold back the tiny bit of pain, but had to time to break, as he was becoming extremely dizzy from lack of oxygen. He quickly pulled it up far enough to grasp the handle in his other hand, and propel himself up off of the reef. When the top of his head was almost a foot away from the surface, he began to feel his energy being drained from him, and latched his foot on the rope ladder next to him. He opened his eyes again another moment to see the gleaming eyes of a large fanged fish and a small cloud of blood from his fingertip. The next thing he knew, his head felt like it weighed 100 pounds, there was a sharp piercing pain near his shoulder, and the remainder of the air in his lungs left him through his mouth and nose.
A/N: In case you were wondering, I don't really have a Nic Cage doll. lol. Sorry, fellow Cage fans, I don't have an EBay account either if I were to sell said hypothetical Nic doll.
The helicopter stuff was surprisingly easy to write this time for some reason. I haven't read anything since the last chapter. I wrote from the beginning up to "after glancing at the fuel gauge" during study hall at school. I feel so proud of myself. And the Creole stuff I found on this cool website that proved very very useful. Anyway, there's LOTS planned and LOTS on the way. You gotta keep reading though!! (reviews don't hurt either)
NOTE ABOUT HAITI: Just in case you would like to counter the friendliness of the Haitians...they're at the GOOD part of Haiti - the other part is.....not so good to say the least. So to make for a semi-happy story, I have made the people nice. lol.
REVIEW REPLIES FOR CHAPTER 3:
Mercury Gray - Yes, I love the reviews! lol. I liked this chapter, just because they got to hijack the chopper and I got to look up a vague way how to run one. LOL I love the idea about the twins helping with Ian - I'll do that haha thanks! Thanks AGAIN for reading!!!
Scifi Kane - Hahaha you just made me a very happy 13 year old, yanno? Heh...well thanks again, I'm kinda likin' this reviewing!!! I forgot...did you read Keep Going? If not, READ. lol...I'm sure you'll find that one's good too. Ha...anywho, I'm going to go type what I wrote of Chapter 4 in my notebook now and you shall get this when I post it! Happy Canadian history paper!
Liz - Liz, darling. You stalk me in school. You harass me in reviews. Bah! Oh, and the thing I said today - about making you a native with a loincloth, I was kidding. hahaha. Thanks again for reading. lol. Weirdo. ;- P.S. Next history club meeting, I'm bringing my DVD player and I will MAKE you watch part of Matchstick Men. You have been warned.
DragonTamer - Yay Ben! lol...well, you got the next chapter, so how did you think of THIS ONE??
Megan - It wouldn't hurt for you to try writing one!! If you did, I'd definitely read and review!! Thanks so much for reading mine - I hope you continue with it!! And it was kinda funny you reviewed because my friend was just nagging me online to post the next chapter and I was like: I DONT HAVE 5 REVIEWS and then you review hahahaha. Thanks!A/N: Just a thought about National Treasure being one of my favorite movies as of now...how can anyone pass up a movie with a bunch of hot guys chasing after treasure??? (Assuming someone reading this likes Ian....) Too many people like Riley though lol.
And so now you're in suspense. Cool. It'll be a while until the next chappie just because a lot more stuff needs to happen. I'm glad people like this lol.
