J.M.J.
Author's note: Thank you for reading and reviewing! The next chapter will be up tomorrow. God bless!
August 13 – Sunday
When Chet brought the girl her breakfast, he thought she looked much better. Throughout Saturday, she had been eating a little here and there, but she had still been flushed with fever. This morning, however, her face was a more normal color, though pale, and her eyes looked more alert. In fact, she was staring at Chet with untrusting eyes, her muscles poised as if she was ready to get away if she needed.
Chet stopped a couple of feet away from her and scooted the plate of chopped fruit toward her. "You're looking like you're feeling a lot better this morning," he said, trying to sound as friendly as he could.
The girl stared suspiciously at him, and then she glanced down at the plate. Then her eyes flicked back up to him, as if to check whether he had moved.
Chet considered which of his options was the least likely to scare her, and after a minute or two, he decided leaving her to eat her breakfast alone would probably be the best. He very slowly stood up, and the girl cowered, tensing once again to be ready to run.
"I'll let you eat your breakfast," Chet said in what he hoped was a reassuring tone. "If you need anything, just call."
Then he hurried back to where the others were trying to pretend they hadn't been watching. They were huddled in a group, ostensibly doing the dishes even though it had never taken five of them to do the dishes before. Tony was the only one missing from the group, as he was still sick.
"She still seems awfully scared of us," Biff noted quietly. "Why do you think that is? You'd think if she's been alone on this island for a long time, she'd be glad to see some people."
"Maybe being alone for so long makes her not trust strangers," Joe suggested.
"It isn't doing that to me. We've only been here less than two months, and if a serial killer landed on the island, I'd probably hug him," Chet said.
Frank and Joe glanced at each other.
"That just goes to show that she's smarter than you are," Biff replied teasingly.
"She acts like she's been treated badly before," Phil commented. "If she was just shy about strangers, I don't think she'd act like she's ready to bolt whenever someone comes close to her."
Everyone paused and glanced at the girl at this. Fortunately, she was wrapped up in her meal and didn't notice them looking at her, or it might have frightened her.
"I wish she could speak English so we could ask her who she is and how she got here," Joe said.
"We might eventually learn to communicate somehow, if we can get her to trust us," Frank replied. "That's not going to be easy, though. As scared as she is and since we aren't able to explain ourselves at all, we'll all have to be really careful not to do anything that she would see as threatening."
"And who knows what she's going to think is threatening." Chet shook his head.
Joe glanced at Frank again, trying to feel out what his brother was thinking. Chet's comment about the serial killer was obviously both hyperbole and coincidence, but it somehow added urgency to Joe and Frank's decision to check the island for any sign of strangers. They hadn't gotten the chance yesterday, since they didn't want to go too far in case something happened with either Tony or the girl, but both of them were so much better this morning that Joe wasn't especially concerned. He hadn't had an opportunity to ask Frank what he thought yet.
Frank returned his glance and nodded briefly. Then he cleared his throat. "Say, guys, do you think you can hold down the fort here if Joe and I do some exploring today?"
Phil raised a skeptical eyebrow. "You and Joe? What are you going to explore?"
"I, for one, would like to be exploring anywhere on the mainland or even Hawaii, but we'll have to settle for this island," Joe replied with a teasing grin.
The other boys chuckled and then Biff said, "Sure, we can handle things. Unless some disaster happens, just because I said that."
HBNDHBNDHB
If anyone had landed on the island, Frank and Joe reasoned that it would not have been on the western side. That was closest to the cabin and the boys were frequently on the beach fishing, which was the easiest landing place. The most likely spot, they agreed, was the small lagoon on the north side of the island that they had seen the first time they had explored. They had intended to go back there at some point, but they never had. It would be a good place to land a boat and completely out of sight of the cabin. The hills would also help to block the sound of a motor, which would explain why the boys hadn't heard anything.
Since they had never gotten back there, they had never gotten a trail cleared. Joe spent most of the morning hacking at the jungle growth with the machete. Frank offered to take a turn using it, but much to his annoyance, Joe wouldn't let him.
"It only takes one arm," Frank grumbled.
"Not exactly," Joe retorted, panting. "You need your other arm to balance."
"It's been over a month," Frank reminded him.
"Uh-huh, which isn't long enough that even a real doctor would let you take the cast off, so there's no way we're taking the sling off and you won't be able to balance with it on," Joe insisted.
In spite of that, they eventually reached the lagoon. If anyone had used it as a landing spot, it was all quiet now. The beach had a rippled pattern from the tide rising and sinking over it, and there was no sign of a footprint or a boat being pulled up on the sand to be seen. The vegetation around the lagoon was thick and almost forbidding. This had looked like a more pleasant place from up on the hill. Up close, it definitely wasn't a place where the boys would come to relax.
"It's just as well we never got around to coming back to this place," Joe commented, setting the machete down.
Frank nodded. "It wouldn't have been as fun as we were thinking. But we're not here to have fun this time. Let's look around for any sign that someone's been here."
They both knew that even if someone had landed in the lagoon, it could be hard to find any signs of it. Their best estimate was that the strangers had arrived between two and three weeks ago, giving between one and two weeks before anyone became sick. After that amount of time, most of the obvious signs, such as footprints, would be gone, but there could be something.
Before they started searching, they halted to make lunch. They hadn't been able to bring much with them, but like most of the island, there were fruit trees nearby. Joe had also brought one of the fishing poles and attempted to catch a fish from the lagoon, but he had no luck.
"You'd think there'd be tons of fish in a place like that," Joe said, sitting down to eat the meager lunch of fruit that was available. He shivered as he looked at the forbidding lagoon. "Maybe they think it's creepy, too."
"I doubt fish have the same sense of what's creepy as people do," Frank replied. "It is strange, though."
"Like a lot of things about this island," Joe added.
HBNDHBNDHB
Biff made a face as he tried a forkful of fish. He set it to the side. "I'm sorry, Chet, but no on that one. The guava juice on the fish was surprisingly better than I thought it would be, but banana and fish is never going to catch on."
"I don't think it's half bad," Chet replied, heartily chewing the experimental dish.
Phil made no comment about what he thought of the dish, but he did say, "You'd better go ahead and eat it, Biff. We can't afford to waste food."
"Tell Chet that," Biff replied. "Using it to make inedible experimental dishes seems a lot like wasting food to me."
"Hey, you were complaining about how tired you were of the food we have around here as much as anyone," Chet retorted. "If we just learn how to make the food more interesting, we'll have almost as many options to eat as we would back home."
Biff sighed. "What I wouldn't do for a hamburger right about now…"
"I'll take anything you've got, as long as you can eat it." The others hadn't heard Tony come out of the cabin, so it startled them when he walked up behind them and joined the conversation.
"Hey, you must be feeling better," Chet said.
"Yeah." Tony stopped and turned away as he coughed several times. "Better than I was, anyway. I'm starving."
"That's good," Biff replied. "That's the only way you'll be able to eat this stuff."
"Hey!" Chet objected.
Tony took no notice and dished up some of the fish that was left over. Then he sat down on the sandy ground. He made the sign of the Cross and silently said a brief meal prayer before he began eating.
Chet's eyes widened as he watched him. "Hey, I just realized. What day is it?"
"Uh, I don't know," Biff replied. "Frank's the one who's been keeping track."
"Well, I just realized we haven't had church since Tony's been sick," Chet said. "That seems like ages ago."
"I think that was on a Sunday." Biff started counting on his fingers. "I think that means it's Sunday again."
Tony swallowed a bite of fish. "It's a good thing you guys thought of it today, then. We can still do something this afternoon, then." He looked around. "Are Frank and Joe still not back?"
"They said they wouldn't be back until late," Phil said. "If they get too late, they even said they'd camp out. I don't know what they had to go check out so abruptly, but I don't think that they're just exploring for the sake of exploring."
"Do you think something's wrong?" Tony asked.
Phil shrugged. "Who knows? They obviously didn't want to tell us about it."
"I'm sure they had a good reason," Biff said. "There's no reason to assume they didn't."
No one could even guess what their friends were looking for, let alone guess why they hadn't told anyone about it, and so they let the matter drop. Biff reluctantly finished his lunch and then began dishing up what was left to take to the girl. He paused, looking down at the plate.
"Something wrong?" Phil asked him.
"We all agreed that we need to make sure we don't do anything she'd see as threatening, right?" Biff said. "Trying to poison her is pretty threatening."
"It's not that bad," Tony told him. "Kind of weird, but not bad."
"It's not bad at all," Chet insisted. "It's delicious. If you don't cut it out, Biff, I'll make it for your birthday."
Biff made a face, but he didn't say anything. Instead he took the plate of food to where the girl was sitting up against the wall of the cabin, watching the boys. She watched him closely as he came toward her, but she didn't tense up. She let Biff hand the plate directly to her, but her face didn't change expression.
"Sorry if you don't like it," he said in a quiet tone so the other boys wouldn't hear it. "Chet's not a bad cook, but some of his ideas for new types of food are not good."
Apparently, the girl agreed with Tony's assessment that it was weird but not bad, because she made a strange face after she took the first bite and then she continued eating. Thinking the girl seemed more relaxed than she had so far, Biff crossed his legs and sat near her. She looked up at him a trifle uncertainly and then she went back to eating.
"It would be really helpful if you could talk to us," Biff said. "Are you sure you don't speak English?"
The girl's complete lack of response seemed like a clear enough answer. Nevertheless, Biff decided that he would try to learn the girl's name. He waited until she had finished eating and then pointed to himself, saying his name several times clearly. The girl watched with her brow furrowed, but Biff wasn't sure if she understood what he was doing. He tried pointing out the other boys and saying their names, but since they were staying back to keep from frightening her, Biff was afraid that might only make the whole thing more confusing.
He was about to give up when the girl pointed to herself and said clearly, "Katina."
"Katina?" Biff repeated, and the girl nodded. Then Biff looked over his shoulder at the others. "Hey, guys! I think I just learned her name!"
The others hurried over, although not as quickly as they wantedto. Katina shrank back when they approached, and so they all kept a couple of yards' distance. Biff told them what he'd learned, and they all began repeating their names until Katina started giggling nervously.
"Okay, guys, I think we're overwhelming her," Phil said. "Let's let her be."
"At least we learned her name," Biff commented as they all drew back. "Maybe we'll get to be able to talk to her even more soon."
HBNDHBNDHB
Frank and Joe spent all afternoon combing the area around the lagoon for clues. In that amount of time, they were satisfied that they had thoroughly checked the western side, and they thought they would check the eastern side in the morning. They had fruit for supper, and then Joe decided to try fishing again.
"Why bother?" Frank asked him. "We already ate, and it doesn't look like this is a good fishing spot, anyway."
"If I catch anything, I'll still eat it. It's not like I'm not hungry after eating just that fruit. Besides, there's something strange about there not being fish in this lagoon. I want to see if it's really true or if it was just a bad time earlier."
Frank shrugged his shoulder that wasn't in a sling. "Whatever you want to do."
While Joe attempted to fish, Frank lay back on the sand and closed his eyes. It had been a long day and he was tired, but he hadn't intended to fall asleep. He had intended to take the opportunity that the quiet provided to think. However, before he realized it, sleep had overtaken him.
He was wakened by Joe shouting, "Frank! Frank!" followed by a tremendous splash. Frank jumped to his feet, discombobulated by finding that it was much darker than when he had gone to sleep. The sun had set, but there was still a little twilight left. It was a fortunate thing that it wasn't even ten minutes later, although Frank didn't have a chance to think about that. Joe was still calling for help and the splashing was continuing. Frank would have thought his brother had fallen in the water and was afraid of drowning, except that he knew that Joe was a strong swimmer, and even if he wasn't, that part of the lagoon couldn't possibly be deep enough for anyone to drown. He ran down to the edge of the water and saw Joe struggling, as if he was trying to stay above water while something was trying to pull him under. There was just enough light to see something thick and long wrapped around Joe's torso.
Frank wasted a second or two by staring and then he began casting around for some kind of weapon. He noticed the machete lying on the sand and snatched it up. He splashed into the water and tried to get a clear shot at the snake without accidentally hitting his brother. Between the semi-darkness and Joe's thrashing, this was next thing to impossible. He spotted a length of the snake's body and tried to hack at it with the machete. Joe had been right about needing a second arm to balance while using the machete; the force of the swing itself pulled Frank off-balance more than he expected and only the tip of the machete glanced off the snake's body. He began frantically trying to cut the sling off.
"Frank!" Joe shouted again.
"I'm coming, Joe!"
Frank half-cut, half-tore the rest of the sling off. Then he plunged into the water just in time to see the snake drag Joe completely under. For a horrifying moment, Frank could only stare helplessly at the roiling water. Then a portion of the snake's body appeared on the surface and Frank slashed at it, cutting deeply this time. The snake convulsed in a shock of pain, and it turned its attention to Frank. Its head came shooting toward him just below the surface. Frank brought the machete's blade down on it. If the snake had been on a solid surface, that would have been a killing blow, but in the water, the snake was able to dive down and reduce the force.
Something sharp pricked Frank's leg, and he recoiled instinctively. He could still see the snake's head just in front of him. He slashed at it again, and he felt the resistance as the blade connected with the snake. He slashed several more times, hitting the snake on most of them. It continued convulsing, though more violently now. Joe was still struggling, too, and once he managed to get his head above water. Frank darted forward and grabbed him with his free hand. The snake was still thrashing around, but it didn't seem to be paying any more attention to the Hardys. Frank took the risk and tossed the machete onto the beach so that he could use both hands to try to drag Joe back up onto the beach.
The snake's body was still tightly wrapped around Joe, making it hard to pull him up out of the water. Joe was trying to help, since through the whole ordeal, he had managed to keep his arms free, but he was winded and unable to do much. When Frank had finally gotten Joe on the beach, there were two coils of the snake's body wrapped around Joe. Frank pulled them off, which was no easy task, and then pulled Joe a couple of yards farther away. Then they both fell on the sand, breathing hard.
"Are you okay?" Frank asked after a few minutes.
Joe continued panting for a few seconds before replying. "I think so. Is the snake dead?"
It was too dark now to see anything but the faintest outline of the snake. Its thrashing had stopped and all was still. "Looks like it. What happened?"
"I'm not sure. I guess I was too close to the water in the dark. I got the line tangled in something and I reached down to untangle it, and next thing I knew, something grabbed me and dragged me into the water." Joe continued breathing hard. "I don't think I'm too hurt, thanks to you."
"Good." Frank tried to resist the urge to groan, but he couldn't quite manage it. His arm ached almost as badly as it had when he had first broken it.
"Are you all right?" Joe asked.
"You don't want to hear."
"You hurt your arm again, didn't you?"
"Yeah. I might have rebroken it."
"Great." Joe sighed. "I guess we'd better do something about it."
"Can't do much in the pitch dark."
Joe started to sit up. "We'll have to build a fire."
"Hold on, Joe," Frank cautioned him. "You couldn't pay me to go into that jungle in the dark. That might not have been the only snake around."
Joe froze. "That doesn't make sitting here without a fire to scare them off any more appealing. But then, I guess we don't have any way to start a fire. The matches we brought along must be soaked."
"Right." Frank sighed. "Matches are one thing we can't afford to waste."
Joe settled back onto the sand, not liking the options available to them. "Are you sure you rebroke your arm?"
"No," Frank replied. "I don't know. It'll have to wait until morning to find out."
"I guess. But morning is a long way off."
