DESPERATE  MEASURES

PART ELEVEN:


The next day dawned with a blaze of orange sunrise. Maximus stood in the shallows

near his cove, sharpened staff in hand, watching the color of it gradually fade into

soft yellows.  Not good.  He'd spent most of his life outdoors and knew it portended

a storm before nightfall.  He turned, then, about his business of spearing a fish for

breakfast.

Sid had been up for an hour, already roaming the island searching for Brianna. As

he walked, he craned his head, looking up in the tops of the larger trees.  Had the

woman made a nest somewhere high? He was running out of places to look. It occurred

to him then that a place he had NOT looked was in Maximus' sea cave. A scowl formed

at the thought. That was becoming more and more likely given that he had now covered

most of the island. When he could determine that Maximus was not present there, he
would go and check for himself.

Maximus ate his fish, a couple of mangoes, then took a long drink from the small spring

basin. He decided to explore through the jungle some more before the storm arrived,

seeing what he might come upon that would be useful to him. The tide had gone out and

making his way around the headland rocks was fairly easy going. He went toward the

beach where he'd lain on the sand the evening before, liking to keep some distance

between himself and Sid's shelter, which lay in the other direction.

He cut across the wide, white sand and up into the palms, stopping to heft a coconut in

one hand. These had to be food of some sort. He peeled the outer layer off, getting it

down to the hairy brownness of the thing itself. It looked for all the world like a large

nut. Probing at it, he found it hard, too hard to open with his fingers, so he tucked it

under one arm, carrying it with him until he should come across a rock large and sharp

enough to attempt breaking it open. It would be good, he thought, if it did prove edible

as there was certainly an abundance of the things on the island.

Sid had been in the palms closer to the headland and had seen Maximus disappear
into the jungle. Quickly he went around the bluff, pausing, his eyebrows raised at the

sight of the squarish cave entrance. So, the General had himself almost a doorway, did

he? Once inside, he was even more impressed. The cave was huge, enormous even, with

its tall pillars of rock giving it the appearance of some roughly colonnaded chamber.

Toward the back, the cave rose upward in a series of ledges and he could see a smoored

fire on one of them. He climbed there, looking carefully for any sign of Brianna.  There

was nothing but the fire, a spring basin, and the rearmost ledge made into a sleeping

area. That he searched most carefully. Had she spent her nights here...with him? The

ledge was narrow, not really wide enough for two...still. But she was not here and she

had not been with him just now when he'd gone into the jungle. No, it seemed she was

not sharing Maximus' quarters after all.  But...where? Where could she be?

As Maximus walked through the jungle, he had this growing sense of unease, as though
something were just not...right. It was a sense that had come to him often as a General,
that awareness of hidden danger, of something out of place. He stopped, looking around.
No, he could not get further with it than that. There was nothing definite. Just that
unease in the back of his mind of something amiss. He looked at the sky. Clouds were
beginning to roll in from the sea. Perhaps that was all there was to it, the storm that
was coming?

A few yards further on, he came upon a sharp ledge of rock protruding from the side

of a slope. Good! Now maybe he could break open the large brown nut and discover

what lay within. He smashed it hard against the sharpest point and a small crack opened

in it. A thin, whitish liquid began to seep out. Liquid? In a nut? He touched the crack

with a fingertip, lifting it to his tongue, tasting it gingerly. Hmmm? An odd flavor, but

not bad, not bad at all. He hit the nut again and it split roughly in half, spilling more
of the liquid on the ground. One half, though, still contained a small amount cupped
inside a thick layer of pure white flesh. He'd never seen the like. Setting that half
carefully on the ground, he broke off a section of the other half and set it near a large
bush. Within moments some sort of small animal scurried out just far enough to snatch it,
dragging it back into the depths of foliage. So, the native wildlife found it edible. He broke

off another piece, wishing he had a blade to separate the white from the tightly adhering

outer brown. Using his teeth he managed a fairly decent mouthful. He chewed thoughtfully, letting his tongue adjust to the new flavor.

The humidity was oppressive and he thought about a swim in the waterfall pool, but the
storm was gathering much faster than he'd anticipated, so he turned, heading back the
way he'd come. Once back in the palm grove, he gathered several of the brown nuts, taking
them with him into his cave.

Sid was long gone, not having lingered after his brief exploration. He, too, was aware of
the approach of the storm. Damn! Where was Brianna that she rode out such things and

did not find it necessary to seek shelter with him? The woman had always been overly independent. Well, he would find her yet.  Either that or the storm would drive her to

him.

With nearly constant flashes of lightning, the storm rolled off the sea and onto shore,
hurling giant waves as it came. Sheets of rain lashed into Brianna's small space under
the protruding ledge. She was only vaguely aware of it as a slight relief from the terrible
heat in her body. She'd been thirsty beyond belief but unable to move enough to get to

the pond to drink. As the rain beat on her face, she licked at it, grateful for the moisture.
There was no sense of how long the storm lasted, only that it was cool and wet for a while
and then it was not.

The storm had been violent but brief, a matter of half an hour and it had crossed the

island and was gone. Maximus came out of his cave, looking out at the sea, calm and

blue again, a rainbow arcing gracefully. It was still early afternoon and he decided

he'd go for that swim after all, perhaps gather some more of those nuts. Also, he had

in mind getting a supply of slender vines from which he could weave some sort of net

to help in his fishing.

The jungle foliage was still wet as he walked, the dampness of it brushing against him

in the thick undergrowth. Coming out on the flat rock, he stood a moment, surveying

the area. He liked the pond, liked the look, the sound of the waterfall. He was in no

hurry. There was nothing to hurry for, not any more, not in this place. The days here

had more hours in them than he actually needed. So he sat on the rock, tunic still on,

and watched the sun sparkling on the water. His gaze centered in on a particularly

bright spot closer to the waterfall. What was that? The light was reflecting almost

goldenly on something that seemed to be floating there. He stood, shading his eyes with

his hand, peering carefully.

Suddenly he realized what it was. A shoe! One of the golden sandals Brianna had been

wearing. Something clutched at his gut. Had she...drowned? She was nowhere to be seen

around the edges of the pond. Fully clothed, he dove into the water, swimming rapidly

to where the sandal floated, then diving deeply again several times, searching for some

sign of her. Nothing.

When he surfaced again, he picked up the shoe, treading water, watching the flow of

current. If it had floated from the side of the pond somewhere, it would most likely

be just...there. The nearly cave-like area just to the left of the waterfall.

Sid arrived at the pond just as Maximus reached the far edge. He stayed in the shadows, watching to see what the General was up to.

 
Maximus clambered out of the water onto the jumble of rocks near the base of the falls, squinting, trying to see into the dark recess. He thought something might be there, but

the shadows were too deep to tell. He crept forward, brushing aside some dangling vines.

Yes. Brianna was there. She seemed asleep and he thought to leave her sandal nearby

and silently slip away. Something, though, that same unease he'd felt earlier in the day,

rose in him again. Well, he would let her know, then, that he was there, had recovered

her shoe, make sure everything was all right. Then he would go. Perhaps she was merely

waiting for Sid to arrive. More likely than not, that was it.

"Brianna," he called softly.

She didn't respond, so he said her name again, slightly louder. Still no movement. He

crept closer till he was but a couple of feet from where she lay. She was sprawled on

her back atop nothing but mud and bare rock. His eyes widened. Not a comfortable

place for a nap. His vision was adjusting now to the dimness and he could make out

the bits of vine and small storm debris that clung to her face, her dress. Her gown, in

fact, was filthy with mud as was her blonde hair. He reached out, touching her shoulder,

shaking it gently. "Brianna?"

Her flesh was burning hot under his hand. He slid closer, touching her face. Fever. He

pressed his lips together. How long had she been here like this?

"Can you hear me, Brianna? It's Maximus." Nothing.

Slipping his arms beneath her, he backed carefully on his knees over the rocks toward

the pond, then slid into the water, floating her in front of him rather as he had back in

the bath house pool. This was very different, though. Then she had smiled at him, her

eyes soft and glowing. Now her eyes were closed, dark circles marring the skin beneath

them, her lips cracked and bleeding.

 
Sid had wondered why Maximus was going into the recess beside the waterfall, but when

he backed out a moment later with Brianna's limp form across his arms, Sid dove into

the water and swam toward them.

As Maximus turned toward the flat rock, he caught sight of Sid in the pond. "Maximus!"

Sid called. "Is she all right?" Sid swam remarkably fast and came up beside them in

seconds. "What happened? What's wrong with her?"

"Fever," Maximus replied laconically, more concerned with getting Brianna out of the

pond than with Sid's presence.

"Let me have her," Sid barked.

"I have her," Maximus said, continuing his swim across the pond.

Sid swam alongside, trying to see Brianna's face. Her head lolled limply back over

Maximus' arm, almost white but for large fiery patches on both cheeks.  He scrambled

onto the flat rock before Maximus, holding out his hands to take her and lift her onto

the rock. Teeth clamped, Maximus let him take her, then hoisted himself out.

She lay, thin and ragged, in a spreading puddle of water atop the rock. Her head had

rolled far to one side, revealing her neck in the bright sunlight. It was hugely swollen,

deep red streaks running out from a central puffy area.

"Oh, God," Sid moaned. "Something's bitten her."

"Was she with you this morning?" Maximus asked, his voice gruff.

"Why does that matter?"

"How long? How long since she was with you?"

"Damn it, man! Day before yesterday!"

Maximus' breath hissed sharply in.

"WHY?" Sid wasn't looking at the General. His fingers were roaming frantically over

her neck.

"It's an older bite," Maximus said, his voice now low and quiet. "You can see where the

poison has had time to spread." He felt slightly sick at the thought of how much time

might have passed. "I thought... I thought she was with you.  All this time...I thought."

"Well, you were wrong!" Sid spat. "I've been looking and looking for her. Couldn't find

her."

His mind was racing. He had medical supplies, even several types of antivenin, back in

his crates. But this...this was far too gone for him to handle. "I have to take her back,"

he said, "back to Emerald City."

"Emerald City?" Maximus repeated, not having any idea what Sid meant.

"The palace...where you were before. I have doctors there, doctors who may be able to 

save her."

"Take her...back?"

Sid was already standing, starting to gather her in his arms. He looked across at

Maximus. "She'll die if I don't."  He began to run with her toward his shelter, leaving

Maximus still kneeling on the flat rock.

Maximus felt bewildered by the strange surge of emotions flowing through him. She had

not been with Sid. She hadn't. Now she might die and Sid was taking her away. He

followed with his eyes as Sid disappeared into the shadows of the jungle. Slowly he gained

his feet. What did it all mean? Why had she not been with Sid? He didn't understand.

He'd thought he'd had it all sorted out, that he knew how things stood. He needed....

He began to run, pounding through the underbrush, pushing away branches as he dashed

for Sid's shelter. When he got there, the front door was open, swinging back and forth in

the constant breeze off the sea. He gripped its edge, holding it, looking inside. Empty.

Several boxes had been overturned. They were gone. Both of them. He felt it clear down

inside his bones as he turned and stared at the endless blue, the crashing waves. He was completely alone. He'd gotten his wish. Sitting heavily in the sand where he'd been

standing, he covered his face with one hand.

ON TO PART 12

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