Princess pulled up to Mark's airfield, noticing that it had remained quiet, and she had beat her new fiancée back home.

Maybe I'll order some takeout…Mark will probably be starved by the time he gets home. Princess thought, as she entered his shack and began to set the table for dinner. She could hardly wait to wrap her arms around her favorite pilot's neck and give him a proper "welcome home".

After the table was set, she quickly drove to the nearest Chinese restaurant and purchased dinner. She rushed back to Mark's shack, hoping she didn't miss his return.

She sat there at the table, for what seemed like hours. At first she was anxious, and then she became angry, thinking he was somewhere else, taking his own sweet time in returning. She knew how he could get when he was daydreaming above the clouds.

As more time passed, she decided to set aside a plate to keep warm in the oven for him when he returned.

Then the worry set in. It was almost midnight, and there was still no sign of Mark. She attempted to reach him via communicator.

"Mark… are you there, Mark?"

All she received in return for her efforts was static. Her heart pounded. Where was he?

"Where are you? " She asked once more, slamming her fist down on the table in disappointment.

She decided to check with the others…maybe he had contacted them.

"Jason? Are you there?" She called into her wristband.

"I'm trying to sleep. What is it?" Jason growled. He was thoroughly aggravated. It wasn't the first time he had been roused by a panicked Swan.

"Have you heard from Mark today?"

"No. Why would he call me?"

"Mark's late. I can't reach him. I'm worried something has happened to him!" Princess tried to hide the panic in her voice but it wasn't working.

"Don't worry, Prin. He probably had to stay overnight. Maybe he's waiting out bad weather, or something. Let me know if you don't hear from him by tomorrow, ok?" Jason tried to comfort her.

"But I can't reach him…" Her voice quivered.

"Prin, you know as well as I do that storms sometimes mess up communications…" Jason began. Then he added, "You ok, Prin?"

"Yes…yes…I'm fine…" Princess choked out as a tear rolled down her cheek. "You go and get some sleep."

"Oh shit, Prin, don't cry…you know I hate that…" he bellowed. "Do you want me to come over there and wait with you?"

By this point, she had dissolved into tears and was unable to answer. But Jason knew what had happened and was already on his feet, pulling up his pants. "I'll be there in a few minutes, Prin, hang in there…"

"Thanks," was all she could get out. Her imagination had gotten the best of her, and she was already picturing Mark lying somewhere in a ditch.

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Jason arrived to find Princess huddled up on Mark's couch, weeping in the dark. He sat down next to her and put his arm around her. "Hey, no need to get so worked up, Prin. I'm sure he's alright."

"I checked with everyone, Jase, including Chief Anderson, and no one has heard anything. I'm so worried. It's not like him just to disappear like that, you know?" Princess buried her head in Jason's chest, dampening his shirt.

"Listen, if we don't hear from him by tomorrow, we'll go look for him. Okay?" Jason stated. "Will that make you feel better?"

Princess nodded and snuggled close to the Condor. "Please don't leave me here alone, Jase…"

"I won't, Prin." He held her tightly as they reclined together on the couch. "Just get some rest."

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The next morning, Mark opened his eyes to find himself in some sort of hut. He had no idea where he was or how he got there.

A young woman rushed to his side and handed him a jug filled with water. "Drink this." She said. "You need to stay hydrated."

He brought the jug of cold water to his dry, cracked lips. It tasted so good.

Then he glanced up and studied the pretty raven haired woman. Her hair was braided neatly, her skin was a lovely olive tone and she possessed the most penetrating brown eyes.

"My name's Claudia." She said." Your plane crashed in the jungle, and our villagers brought you here. My father and I are taking care of you."

"Plane?" Mark asked. He didn't remember a plane.

"Yes, you are a pilot, I suppose." She giggled. "What is your name?"

Her patient appeared puzzled. "I…I don't recall…"

"Well, I can give you a name…at least until you remember yours. How does Mateo sound?"

She blushed. "It was my grandfather's name."

"That sounds fine." Mateo agreed. "Do you have anything to eat?"

He tried to get up from his bed, but his legs wouldn't move.

Claudia pushed him back down. "Your legs were injured…in the crash. They may take a while to heal."

"Will I ever walk again?" Mateo was suddenly frightened.

"More than likely you will. But it will take some time." An older man entered the room. He was a large man with a thick graying beard. "The name's Salvador. I am the village physician. You were lucky your plane crashed so close to our village. You are in the middle of the rainforest, young man."

Claudia rushed to get her patient some stew. She sat by his side and cooled a spoonful by blowing on it, and then scooped it into Mateo's mouth.

"How is it?" she asked.

Mateo chewed for a moment and then smiled. "Good, thanks…uh…Claudia."

His sparkling blue eyes pierced right through her, and she began to blush.
"You're welcome." She said.

Claudia looked at her father and smiled proudly. "See? At least Mateo appreciates my cooking."

"Mateo?" Salvador asked.

"Yes," Claudia answered confidently. "In honor of grandfather. He doesn't remember anything; not even his name."

"Ok, then." The old man grinned. "Mateo it is. I'm going out into the forest to gather some ingredients for your legs. I'll be back in a bit."

He pointed at his daughter and teased. "Now you behave young lady. Just because we have a handsome you man living with us, doesn't mean…"

"I know, father…" Claudia stood up and pushed him out the door.

Then she returned to her patient and huffed. "I'm sorry. He can be a little difficult at times…"

Mateo grinned back at her and then gazed intently at the bowl she was holding.

"Oh, the stew. Here, have some more." Claudia continued to spoon the stew into her patient's mouth as if he were a baby.

"I can do that myself, you know." He stated indignantly. "My arms still work."

"Uh, sorry…" Claudia became embarrassed. "I just thought you might still be too weak."

She handed him the bowl, which he proceeded to dump straight into his lap.

"Oh!" she gasped. "You're all wet now. I'll help you into something dry."

"No…No!" Mateo waved his arms. "It's not necessary! It will dry!"

"Nonsense." Claudia lifted off his shirt, admiring the well defined chest underneath. She grabbed one of her father's shirts, and placed it onto Mateo.

"Now, for the pants." She announced confidently, unzipping his jeans.

"Wait just a minute!" Mateo cried. "Can't I have some dignity here?"

"I'm sorry, Mateo, but you can't just lay here in wet clothes. I'll need to wash them for you." She grinned. "Besides, I'm your nurse, and you have to obey my orders." She teased, and continued to wriggle his pants down around his ankles. "Just be thankful the stew didn't reach your underclothes." She giggled.

She averted her eyes as best she could, and slid a pair of her father's pants onto her patient. They were much too large for him, but it didn't matter since he was lying in bed.

"I'll get you some more stew," Claudia began. "And this time…I feed it to you. Got it?"

"Understood." Mateo answered.