Chapter 14
CHAPTER
CHARLEY
“Okay,” I said. “I’ve always wanted my very own island guide.” I was just happy I didn’t say island god, which is what I was thinking.
Then I smelled a wave of something yummy, and all I could think was food.
The fire ring hummed with action. Fish hung across the coals, and green cabbage-like leaves lay stacked in piles to one side.
People milled around, maybe a dozen. Guys wore no shirts, showing off decent physiques, but most were on the thin side.
One looked almost skeletal. The girls were similarly trim.
Clearly the island diet was a hard-core weight loss plan, especially when you threw in the physical demands necessary to survive.
Most girls wore wrap skirts like mine, and almost all had a cloth wrapped around their chest like I’d done with Kevin’s bandana.
One girl had a halter like me, tied the same way, which was a relief.
I’d never cared much about clothes, but that didn’t mean I wanted to wear them backward either.
Thad put his fingers in his mouth and whistled. As all heads turned toward us, he called, “Morning, everybody. Meet Charley.”
I felt like the new kid being introduced in the middle of the school year.
“As some of you know,” Thad was saying, “she found Kevin’s clothes. She’s been here thirteen days.”
Feeling all eyes on me, I automatically waved and smiled. “Hi, y’all.” Heads nodded, faces smiled. I recognized the girl who’d been under the cheetah quilt, Natalie. She waved back.
“And in case you didn’t hear, Charley’s not our only new arrival.
Heesham roped a cow yesterday.” Several boys whooped and shouted.
Thad smiled, raised his hand, and kept talking.
“Jason says she’s a Holstein—that’s a dairy cow, people—so fresh milk is on the menu.
Feel free to ask Jason for a lesson in milking.
Last but not least, tonight’s a Nil Night. ”
More whoops and smiles from the crowd. I was grateful he’d introduced me first, then the cow and the Nil Night, whatever that was. I was no longer the center of attention. If that had been his plan, it was awesome.
“So let’s get busy, and get lucky.” Thad saluted. As the conversations resumed, a boy strode over to us. Tan and wiry, the boy had dark hair that fell to his shoulders like Thad’s. The standard male island haircut, I thought.
“Hola, Charley.” The boy’s voice was soft. “I’m Miguel.” The carver, I remembered.
Before I could say hello, he turned to Thad.
“I need you, amigo. There’s something you need to see.” The intensity in Miguel’s voice gave me chills.
Thad nodded at Miguel. “Okay.” Turning to me, Thad’s eyes were dark. “Charley, why don’t you grab a bite? I know you’re starving. I’ll be back in a minute.” Then he smiled. “Watch for zebras, okay?”
Look for them or watch out for them? Because somehow zebras seemed the least of my worries. Thad was already walking away, listening to Miguel, who spoke too fast for me to catch. My eighth-grade Spanish was weak to start with, and it hadn’t aged well.
And my island guide was gone.
Unsure what to do, I stood there in my ridiculously short skirt, feeling self-conscious and oddly alone. Here’s your tribe, I thought, looking around. But I felt like I was joining after the merge, late in the game.
Not a game, my mind corrected sharply. Nothing here felt like a game.
Natalie came over, along with the other girl I’d noticed wearing a halter like mine. Taller than Natalie and thinner, with deep ebony skin, the girl’s collarbones jutted against the halter. I wondered if my shoulders looked as bony as hers; I almost looked down but didn’t.
“Hi, Charley!” Natalie smiled up at me. “You probably don’t remember, but I’m Natalie. How’s your head?”
“Better. And I remember a little. Thanks for yesterday.”
Natalie waved it off. “Please. Like I really did anything. This is Sabine. Sabine, Charley.”
Sabine smiled. “Welcome, Charley. I’m rather new, like you. Fifty days and counting.” Her speech had a delightful lilt. She pointed to my shirt. “Nice wrap.”
“Thanks,” I said. “I’m just happy I didn’t put it on backward.”
“If you had, no one would have cared.” Still smiling, Sabine shrugged.
Following Sabine, more people introduced themselves. I found myself nodding and smiling and saying nice to meet you and privately wondering how the heck I would ever remember all their names and when I’d get to eat.
“I’m Jillian.” Dark-brown hair, freckles, two long braids tied with twine. “Day One Hundred Fifty-two.”
“Bart. Day Ninety.” Cocky smile, sunburned shoulders. Close talker.
“Samuel.” Strong grip. Quick nod. Massive shark tooth around his neck. “Too long.”
“Stop.” A girl stepped up—the only person I’d noticed who was even slightly heavy—and elbowed him lightly in the ribs before turning to me with a huge grin. “I’m Macy. Been here sixty-one days.”
“Julio.” Young, with a baby face. He mumbled three numbers in Spanish; I caught one. Literally, uno.
Odd, I thought. They wore their days like a badge of honor. Names and numbers began to blur.
“Raj.” At least I think that’s what the next boy said as he bobbed his head. Focusing on his introduction, I missed another girl’s altogether.
“Talla.” Straight blond hair, knockout body. I missed her day count because I was so distracted by her chest. No one should get boobs and muscles, but Talla had gobs of both. Her spear seemed out of place.
A tiny Asian girl with chin-length hair bowed. “Li,” she said softly. “Day Three Five Four.” Her accent was so thick it took me a minute to register the number.
Day Three Five Four.
She’d been here 354 days.
I smiled at her, privately shocked by the idea that I could be here in a year. Recalling Thad combing my hair, I silently admitted being here a while might not be so bad. But a year! Holy crap, that was a long time.
Gates must be harder to catch than I thought.
The group dispersed as quickly as they came. Only Natalie stayed behind. I watched Li go, still grappling with the fact she’d been here nearly a year. When I was certain Li was out of earshot, I turned to Natalie. “Did I hear Li right? That she’s been here three hundred fifty-four days?”
“Yeah.” Natalie sighed. “Awful, isn’t it?”
“Totally. Has anyone been here longer than Li? I mean, is there some fifty-year-old island man wandering around, still looking for a gate?”
Natalie laughed. “You’re funny. Nope. Li’s been here the longest.” Then she shot me an odd look. “Thad took you to the Cove this morning, right? And he gave you the scoop?”
I nodded. For an instant, Natalie looked troubled, then she smiled so fast that I wondered if I’d imagined her concern altogether.
“Well, I’m glad he found you. I’d planned to help you get a bath, but I ended up sleeping in.
Of all days, right? Anyway, I still remember how good it felt to get that first bath after wandering around in jungle dirt.
” Her eyes drifted up to my scalp. “Let’s eat and then we’ll check your head.
Here.” She held out a piece of bread, and it was all I could do not to snatch it from her hand.
The bread was sweet and moist. And it was bread.
“I don’t think I’ve ever tasted anything so good,” I said, savoring the last bite.
Natalie laughed, making her eyes sparkle. “Julio’s family owned a bakery. He’s been experimenting since he’s been here.”
“Charley.”
I turned and found Sabine holding out a wooden plank with fish and some pineapple chunks. “Here you go,” she said.
“Thanks.”
“I’ll grab drinks,” Natalie said. “And more bread.” She winked at me. “Be right back.”
I followed Sabine to a heap of black rocks—four giant boulders shaped like beanbags, but as smooth as granite and just as hard.
Natalie returned, carrying three coconut-shell cups and another piece of bread, which she dropped on my plank.
After passing out the cups, she took a full plank from Sabine and sat.
“Cheers,” Sabine said, lifting her cup. “It’s nice to meet you, Charley, even if it is under these circumstances.”
“It could be worse,” I said. “At least we’ve got breakfast and fire.”
Sabine chuckled. “I forgot. You’ve been meandering for twelve days.” She leaned forward. “Did you see any gates?”
“One, I think. Oh, and I saw some my first day here.”
She nodded, then picked up the fish with her fingers. I copied her, happy to have a crash course in island etiquette.
White and flaky, with a hint of citrus, the fish melted in my mouth. I’d never had fish for breakfast before, but then again, I was all about new experiences these days. Before I knew it, my fish was gone. I started on my pineapple, forcing myself to slow down.
The fire crackled, the ocean rumbled in the distance, and voices and laughter blended into comforting background noise. It was the most surreal breakfast of my life.
Sabine’s face lit up. “I see Heesham,” she said, setting down her plank. “Be right back.”
“Where’s Sabine from?” I asked Natalie as Sabine hurried away. “I can’t place her accent.”
“Switzerland. No—wait, that was Andrea. Sabine’s from … Belgium? No.” Natalie shook her head, groaning. “Crap. That was Stella. I’m totally blanking on where Sabine is from.” Natalie rubbed her temples. “I should know this, right?”
“What about you?” I asked. “Where’s home?”
“The United States. A little town in Minnesota called Rochester. Not to be confused with Rochester, New York.” She smiled. “You sound Southern. You’re American, too?”
“Born and raised. I’m from a little town outside Atlanta called Roswell, not to be confused with Roswell, New Mexico.” I smiled as Natalie laughed. But she still looked tired, and despite her smile, she seemed blue.
“Hey, are you okay?” I asked.
“Yeah.” She looked down, twisting a tiny shell bracelet on her wrist. “I just really miss Kevin. All I can think about is getting home and finding him.”