Amazon Burning (A James Acton Thriller, #10) (16 page)

And it
was too late to pursue his primary target regardless, their departure for the
drop zone delayed by mechanical failure.

Things
never go smooth.

Kinti wasn’t sure why she had jumped in the water after this
stranger, but as she swam the swift river, closing the distance with the man,
she realized it was for Hugh. He was supposed to have just been a fling, an
experiment, a story to tell her children in the future of the great pale man
she had met.

She had
no idea it would be about the great pale man she had met and fallen in love
with.

Her
thoughts were consumed with him, consumed with the desire to please him, to
make him happy, to make him proud. Perhaps that was why she had jumped. She
knew he would be pleased if she saved this man. She also knew it was the right
thing to do. He was a stranger, but he was a stranger here to help, not harm. She
had heard many tales of the pale man hurting people like her, but they had been
lucky. The stories were from far away, passed down from one tribe to the next,
and she knew how those stories could become distorted over time.

She
couldn’t imagine Hugh or his friends harming anyone.

The man
was almost within reach. She called to him but there was no response, no
movement. He appeared to be asleep, probably knocked out when he hit the boat.
She had seen this before and wondered how he managed to stay above the water.
Reaching forward, she grabbed his shoulder, getting a grip on his clothing,
then began to kick toward the shore. He was heavy. Extremely heavy, easily the
weight of two men. She knew these pale people were bigger than her people, but
this heavy? It made no sense.

She
struggled against the weight and the current, drifting farther and farther
downstream. The shore was slowly getting closer, but she was getting tired. Her
hand screamed for relief, her grip now beginning to cramp from the strain, but
the man had still not woken. She thought of Hugh, of the night and day they had
spent together, of how she had got him drunk and seduced the poor man, and how
he had embraced her and treated her so well today when he was sober, not angry
at all with her actions.

He
loves me too.

It
saddened her. She knew there was no way for them to be together, and as soon as
his friend was found they’d be gone. Part of her wanted to let go of this man,
just for an instant, in the hopes it might extend Hugh’s stay, but she knew
that was wrong. She had morals, her people had morals, and it would be wrong to
sacrifice this stranger for her own carnal pleasures, even if her heart risked
being broken.

The
shore was close now, almost within reach. She’d need to grab onto something
strong enough to hold both her and this impossibly heavy man. She knew Hugh and
some others were following them, she had seen them when she first jumped in the
river, but they were far downriver now, and it could take almost half a day to
reach them.

She
grabbed at a root that jutted out into the water, getting a grip for a moment,
but it slipped through her hand, scraping it slightly, causing her to wince and
rethink her exit strategy. A low lying branch was ahead. She reached up,
grabbing it, the leaves protecting her palm slightly, but also making it slippery.
She knew she couldn’t hold long, but she took the opportunity to try and use
her legs to push the man toward the shore.

That was
when she saw a large bag attached to the man by a long flat rope.

What
is that?

She let
go, sending them along the slightly slower edge of the river, the eddies and
currents created by the shore disrupting the swift flow they had been in, but
still moving them along too quickly. She reached forward with her free hand,
gripping his shirt, then released her grip on his shoulder, her hand crying in
thanks as she clenched and unclenched it, trying to work out the kinks.
Reaching once more, she grabbed the rope that was attached to the bag and pulled.
The bag was heavy, as heavy as a man, and she suddenly realized why she was
having so much trouble. She tugged at her end but the rope wouldn’t come loose,
and it didn’t appear to have any knot that she could untie, instead some sort
of loop made of something shiny and smooth had it attached to a loop that
encircled his waist.

She
smiled. She had seen Hugh take this loop off several times, and she had even
helped him the last time. She pulled one end of the loop with her free hand, it
popping loose, exposing a small shiny stick. She yanked on the loop and the
stick popped free. She let go then pulled at the side of the loop, it coming
loose. She grabbed the other end and tugged, yanking at it, it slowly slipping
bit by bit, the free end inching toward the shiny loop holding the rope.

Suddenly
the force of the bag tugging whipped the loop free and the rope flew loose,
immediately lost in the water, the weight she was trying to rescue dropping
significantly. She again made for shore, much more easily this time, though she
knew she was nearing exhaustion. She spotted a small dip into the forest just
ahead, the water digging into the shore line far enough for the current to be
killed. As they rushed toward it she switched to his side, opposite the
shoreline, gripping his clothing at the shoulder and waist, then kicked with
all her might, shoving him into the small oasis of calm.

As his
body slipped in she let go, continuing down the river then grabbing the first
branch she could. She came to a halt quickly, and with both hands now free and
no extra weight to support, she pulled herself ashore then collapsed on the
ground, her chest heaving in protest. But she knew there was no time to rest.
She forced herself to her feet, running back upriver, toward where she hoped
the man would still be lying, and as she burst from the trees she found him
just about to slip back into the current again.

“No!”
she cried as she dove into the water and grabbed his body, pulling him back to
safety just in time. She struggled to get him out of the water, and by the time
she did, he was moaning slightly as he began to come to. Breathing a sigh of
relief that he was still alive and her efforts hadn’t been in vain, she looked
about her to take stock of her situation.

That was
when she heard a curious sound that took her a moment to recognize, then she
smiled.

“Hugh!”

Hugh Reading stood at the prow of the boat, scanning the shoreline,
calling Kinti’s name repeatedly. The boat had several lights trained on the
shore and scanning the water, and they were travelling faster than the current,
the engine adding to their speed. Which meant even if Kinti and the rescue team
member couldn’t get to shore, they should eventually catch up to them.

As long
as they didn’t miss them.

And
they haven’t drowned.

He and
Leather had been taken aboard as soon as the boat had turned around, precious
time wasted. He was happy to be aboard however, as his own efforts were
useless. If he had continued on foot, he’d still be miles back, the fires of
the village probably still in sight.

“There!”
yelled Leather, pointing to the shore. Reading looked and nearly collapsed in
relief as he saw Kinti in the light, waving at them and calling his name. It
sounded like the singing of angels.

You’ve
got it really bad.

He
couldn’t hide his grin as Fabricio swung the boat around, pushing the engine
hard to battle the current and bring them back upstream to where Kinti was. As
they neared he could see she also had Leather’s man with her, and his
admiration for this young woman grew several fold. She had proven herself
resourceful with the idea for making the rope glow, and selfless in risking her
life to save this man.

If she
were from anywhere else, she would make a perfect wife.

And the
thought broke his heart.

She was
intelligent, and probably would have excelled if she had been born elsewhere.
She was friendly, beautiful, sexy. She was everything everyman looked for.

But she
was untouchable.

Not in
the carnal sense as had been shown the past twenty-four hours, but in the
relationship sense. He could never stay here with her, and she could never come
with him. She would be completely lost in modern society, and he would be
completely miserable in hers.

If ever
there were star-crossed lovers, they were them.

Leather
jumped ashore, tending to his man as Reading leaned over and pulled Kinti
aboard. She embraced him, hard, repeating his name several times as he held her
tight. Several of the crew helped Leather and his man aboard, the rescued man
now conscious and talking.

Leather emerged
from below as the boat plowed through the waters, slowly returning them to the
village inlet. He walked up to Kinti and Reading. “Does she speak English?”

“Only a
few words.”

He
looked at her and held out his hand. “Thank you,” he said, holding his free
hand over his heart. “Thank you for saving my man.”

She
smiled, taking his hand and shaking it, saying something in her language.
Leather looked at Reading.

“Sorry,
mate, no idea. But rest assured she understands.”

Leather
smiled at her again, then returned below. Reading joined Milton at the rear of
the boat, Kinti sitting on his lap, her head on his shoulder as she hummed a
simple tune over and over.

Once
again Reading didn’t want this day to ever end.

He
looked at Milton, who had a slight smile on his face, the grins having grown
old. “I’m in trouble.”

Milton
chuckled. “No shit, brother. Let’s just hope she understands the reality of the
situation.”

Kinti
looked up at Reading and kissed underneath his chin.

“I think
she’s far smarter than what you think.”

Milton
nodded. “I have no doubt. People think these natives are primitive, savages, but
that’s only by way of technology. They are fully developed, emotional human
beings, with a way of life and a belief system as intricate as any other. To
think of them as anything less than us is an insult to them, and an arrogant
assumption on our part. Take away our technology, and they’ll be the ones that
inherit the Earth, not us.”

“But
there’s no way she can come with us,” murmured Reading under his breath.

“No,
there isn’t,” agreed Milton, Reading a little shocked he had heard him. “You
would destroy her. Better to leave her here, heartbroken, with her own people
who will comfort her, and eventually she will move on and take a mate, start a
family, and be happy, telling the story of you for years to come—which is what
I think she intended as well.”

“I was
just a challenge, a curiosity.”

“As she
was to you.”

“Not
much of a challenge, I’m afraid.”

Milton
grinned. “I didn’t hear you protest too much.”

“No I
guess not.” Reading sighed.

But
who mends
my
broken heart?

Manaus, Brazil

“Is that a satellite phone?”

Terrence
Mitchell looked up from his fish, Jenny doing the same. A white man, slightly
disheveled, stood next to their table. He looked like he had been through hell,
and by the way he was eyeing their food, hungry as well.

Mitchell
glanced at the phone, wondering if it were about to be stolen. “Yes it is.”

“Any
chance I can use it to make a call. I promise, I won’t be long, and when my
friends get here, I’ll pay you for it.”

Mitchell
shook his head. “I’m sorry, but we’re waiting for an extremely important call.”

Jenny
jumped in, sensing the man’s distress. “But as soon as we get that call, you’re
welcome to use it.”

The
tears of disappointment that were nearly about to pour from the man’s eyes
turned into tears of joy, and erupted down his cheeks. “Oh thank God, thank you
so much.”

Jenny
pointed at a free chair. “Why don’t you join us until then?”

His head
bobbed in elation, dropping into the chair. That was when Mitchell noticed the
stench coming off the man. It was as if he had been in the jungle for days with
no access to any facilities.

In fact,
his clothes were filthy, torn to shreds in places. His shoes were still in
decent shape though filthy. He had at least a week’s growth if not more and his
hair was a knotted mess. His fingernails were filled with grime and his teeth
were yellow, unbrushed for some time.

Which
meant body odor, foul breath and smells better left to the latrine.

And
others were beginning to notice.

“Are you
okay?” asked Mitchell.

The man
shook his head. “No. My team and I were doing some research near the tip of the
Rio Negro, cataloguing species, when we were ambushed and taken prisoner.”

Jenny
gasped. “By natives?”