11. Whisper
CHAPTER 11
Whisper
As I huddled next to Cody under the giant fern, the thumping beat of the chopper’s blades as it buzzed overhead seemed to go right through me. Like some alien predator, it swept back and forth with the blinding searchlight probing the dense canopy.
Had the pilot spotted us?
Was that why it kept circling this area?
The noise was deafening and the downdraft from the rotors made everything around us shudder. I pressed my forehead against my arm, and squeezing my eyes shut, I willed my pounding heart to slow.
I can’t believe this is happening.
If my hunch was correct and this nightmare had something to do with Chui, then Dane had dragged us into the orbit of some truly dangerous people.
Oh God! Please don’t let that be true.
I couldn’t believe I didn’t tell anyone about Dane’s messages on my phone, or what I was doing. Just about all my friends were involved in some form of law enforcement, and yet I hadn’t confided in any of them.
Worst still, no one knew where I was.
I’m such an idiot.
Time stretched endlessly as we waited for the chopper to piss off. My mind careened from one horrifying thought to the next. How had Dane become tangled up in this mess? Why would he risk everything? Will he deliver that truck or turn to the cops?
And the most chilling question of all: will he be killed because I escaped?
The terrifying questions multiplied, and I had absolutely no answers.
Finally, the helicopter’s menacing beat began to recede. I turned to look at Cody, but I could barely make out his broad shoulders in the darkness, though he was only a foot away.
“Let’s get out of here.” He pressed his hand against my lower back.
I slid out from under the fern, and standing, I dusted the dirt off my hands onto my bare thighs.
“Come on, we need to move.” He slung the rifle over his shoulder and plunged into the bushes.
The star-studded sky cast an eerie silver glow over the underbrush, and we ducked under low-hanging branches and dodged around thick bushes. Slippery roots threatened to take my feet right out from under me with each step.
As I followed Cody, I wrestled with conflicting emotions. I needed him, yet I didn’t trust him. Although he did save me from Bruce . That meant something. The memory of Bruce’s predatory gaze, when he’d returned to the barn stall, sent shivers down my spine. If Cody hadn’t shown up when he did . . .
Cody’s pace increased, and he swung his arms like he was trying to force his body faster.
“Cody, wait up.”
He didn’t slow down. He didn’t even acknowledge that he’d heard me.
With the chopper gone, a dense silence washed over the vegetation around us.
Maybe he was trying to avoid answering my questions. Well, screw that, I needed answers.
“Cody!” I shouted, desperation creeping into my voice. “Will you talk to me, please?”
He glanced back at me, and despite our limited light, frustration flickered in his eyes.
The jungle floor sloped steeply upward, adding another challenge to each step. Cody maintained his relentless pace and as my lungs burned, my mind swirled with fear and confusion.
Deciding on a different approach, I said, “Hey, Cody, what did you mean when you said everything you ever worked for just imploded because of me?”
He answered by adjusting the rifle on his shoulder, barging past a plant with leaves as big as surfboards, and striding away.
His silence pissed me off and fueled my suspicion.
“Tell me,” I said between gasps as I raced to keep up with him, “because I find it hard to believe you don’t know anything about the drug business.”
“I don’t give a shit what you believe.” He snapped a branch from a tree and stomped on it as he passed. The rifle swung across his back with his angry strides.
If he wanted to kill me with that gun, he could have done it already. So, I wasn’t scared of him anymore. But to save Dane, I needed to know what was happening at that farm. And Cody had to know something.
With the helicopter gone, the nocturnal symphony of the jungle grew louder, as did the angry footfalls of Cody’s cowboy boots. His arms swung back and forth, matching his forceful strides.
“Look,” I said, racing to catch up with him, “I get that you’re angry, but I’m scared for my brother. If you know anything that could help him, please, just tell me.”
Cody’s stride faltered for a moment, but he didn’t turn back. “I already told you. I don’t know your brother and I sure as shit don’t know anything about any drugs. So I don’t know where you got your info from, but you’re barking up the wrong tree.”
“What was in that semi-trailer then? And don’t tell me it was just corn.”
He whirled around so fast I nearly crashed into him.
“It was just corn, lady.” His eyes glinted dangerously in the moonlight. “I saw the pallets of cans, filled with my organic corn being loaded onto the back of that truck myself. What exactly did you see?”
Anger blazed through me as I met his glare.
“I didn’t see the truck being loaded because I was too busy trying to breathe through the fucking rag Bruce shoved in my mouth.” I jabbed my finger into his rock-hard chest. “And don’t call me lady!”
“So let me get this straight. You didn’t see anything, yet you don’t believe me , even though I have been living and working on that farm for nearly two decades.” He shook his head. “And I’ll call you whatever I want!”
I clenched my fists, fighting the urge to scream. “Fine. Call me lady. I don’t give a shit. But answer me this—if everything’s so above board, why did Bruce tie me up and gag me?”
“You were trespassing.”
“Okay, I’ll give you that. Why did you save me from him then?”
“Because Bruce is a fucking asshole, and no matter what you did, you didn’t deserve that.”
“Oh, thank you. I’m honestly very grateful that you saved me from him.”
He tilted his head. “I’m not a monster like Bruce, but his actions don’t add up to the conspiracy you think is going on at the plantation.”
“Why are you running then?”
His jaw tightened and he glanced at the jungle ahead, sweeping his hand through his wavy hair.
“You’re hiding something. I can feel it.”
He spun back to face me, his eyes blazing. “You want to know what I’m hiding? I’m hiding the fact that everything I live for just got fucked up because some city girl decided to play Nancy fucking Drew on my farm!”
His words hit me like a slap, and I stumbled back. “I was trying to save my brother.”
Cody’s expression softened slightly. “Okay. I’ll buy that. But there’s nothing sinister going on at my farm. It’s just corn, hard work, and people trying to make a living. Including me.”
God, how I wanted to believe him. We stood in silence and his words hung heavily between us. I didn’t know what to think anymore, but something still didn’t add up.
“Then why did you release me? Bruce said he’d called the cops—which was bullshit, by the way—but you could’ve waited for that.”
He sighed and the rigidity melted from his shoulders. “Look, this isn’t getting us anywhere. We need to find a place to settle for the night.”
“Settle?” Anger flared within me. “Are you insane? I need to save Dane. And my family—they’re in danger too!”
Huffing, he spread his arms wide. “And how do you propose we do that? We can’t go back to the plantation.”
“But we can’t stop.”
“I am.” He lowered his rifle to the ground. “You can do whatever you want. Be my guest.”
He pointed into the sea of vegetation ahead.
“Okay then.” I planted my hands on my hips. “There must be other houses around. We’ll go to them.”
He chuckled, and then his expression turned grim. “Do you know where we are?”
“Yeah. The middle of fucking nowhere.”
“You got that right. We were chased into the Daintree Rainforest. Have you heard of it?”
I rolled my eyes. “Of course I’ve heard of it. I’m not an idiot.”
“Then you know that we’re hundreds of miles from civilization or a phone.”
“Then we’ll have to sneak back to your corn farm. I assume you have phones there. Right?”
He groaned. “If you go back there, I can’t guarantee I’ll be able to save you from Bruce next time. Besides, I’m not going anywhere until sunrise.”
I looked around with desperation clawing at my throat. The moon cast a silvery glow, but all I could see was an endless ocean of vegetation.
Cody pulled a pocketknife from a sheath on his leather belt, sliced off massive leaves, and stacked them over low-hanging branches to create a makeshift shelter.
Shit, he was serious about staying the night.
He paused, another leaf in hand. “Whether you like it or not, we need to get over this mountain to reach civilization. That’s going to take time.”
“Time! How much time?” I demanded, my voice rising with frustration.
He chuckled, but it was a humorless laugh that sent chills down my spine. “Days. If we survive getting out of this rainforest, that is.”
I rolled my eyes, thinking he was joking. But when he leveled his gaze at me, my stomach sank. Oh shit, he’s serious.
As he continued building the shelter, the gravity of our situation hit me like a punch to the solar plexus. “What are we going to do?”
“Right now, I’m going to get some shut-eye.”
He placed one more leaf on the shelter and crawled inside. He laid the gun within easy reach and found a palm-sized rock that he put beside the rifle.
I sank to the ground, feeling utterly helpless. As I stared into the darkness, the sounds of the jungle grew louder, and a wave of despair washed over me.
My mind reeled with terrifying possibilities. Was Dane okay? Was my family safe?
As the night closed in around us, I hugged my knees to my chest, trying to ward off the chill that had nothing to do with the temperature.
I was trapped in a nightmare with a stranger who was frustrating the hell out of me.
But whether I liked it or not, I needed him.
Would I even make it out of this jungle alive?