Amazon Burning (A James Acton Thriller, #10) (18 page)

Sandro
turned to Acton. “They say it killed probably one day ago. They also say it
probably one person, maybe two.”

“How do
they know that?”

“If it
was organized hunt, nothing would have been wasted.”

Acton
nodded as he circled the beast, it already crawling with the smallest denizens
of the forest. “Makes sense. And the trail leads here, doesn’t it?”

Sandro
pointed to a heel print. “Yes.”

Skip pointed
up in the tree, saying something to Sandro.

“He says
someone slept up there.” Skip jumped up the tree, climbing it with startling
speed, then shouted down to Sandro. “He say two people eat there and sleep
there.”

“I can’t
believe he would hunt a snake that big!”

Sandro
shook his head. “No one hunt Anaconda that big. It probably attack, they
defend.”

Acton
felt his stomach tie itself into a knot at the thought of this creature
attacking. He dropped to one knee, his eyes closed as he felt faint, images of
this creature devouring his beloved Laura too much. Sandro’s voice sounded
distant and he felt his face breakout into a cold sweat as he began to sway.

“Senhor!”

He felt
a hand on his shoulder, shaking him, and he opened his eyes, the massive head
of the snake staring back at him. He turned his head, too quickly, a wave of
dizziness almost overwhelming him as his mouth filled with bile. He shoved his
thumb into the pressure point just above his wrist and began to massage the
bundle of nerves, his nausea slowly going away as the world came back into
focus.

“Senhor,
are you okay?”

Acton
nodded, holding his hand out. Sandro pulled him to his feet and Acton steadied
himself, making a point not to look at the now dead predator. “We’re wasting
time,” he finally said. “Let’s get back to the trail.”

Sandro
shouted the order and they were soon moving forward, and with each step, Acton
felt his strength return. He took a swig of water from his canteen and nodded
his appreciation to Sandro, who seemed relieved the episode had passed.

Skip pointed
out several heel prints and a flush of relief washed over Acton as it was now
confirmed Laura was alive and not in the belly of the dead beast’s partner.

Mentally
shoving the visuals of what he had just seen aside, he focused all of his
attention on the trail and his wife that had left it.

Reading lay in his hammock, Kinti splayed across him, her head
snuggled on his shoulder as she gently slept. But sleep eluded Reading, his
mind filled with horrible visions of what could have happened to Laura. Acton
had just checked in with the news they had found where Laura and her captor had
slept two nights ago, and that there had been a battle with an Anaconda.

He
shivered.

Kinti
moaned, waking slightly and kissing him on the neck as she snuggled closer,
falling asleep again within moments. Milton was resting in his bed, Kinti
having brought a large amount of very soft furs for him to lie on once she
understood his back was sore. She had also delivered a massage that Reading was
sure had helped Milton understand part of the attraction he felt for Kinti.

The more
time he spent with her, the stronger the connection became, and he wasn’t sure
what to do. He knew he had to end it, but it had been so long since he had not
only a physical connection with someone, but an emotional one, that he missed
it dearly. It wasn’t just the sex, which was unlike anything he could have
imagined before, it was the companionship, the knowledge that someone cared for
you, liked you and wanted to spend time with you. It made him realize how much
of a void he had been living with all these years. He didn’t regret leaving his
wife, that was the right decision otherwise they would have killed each other,
but he was now regretting the decision to swear off another relationship. He
had his dalliances when he was younger, but it had been a long time since he’d
“blown off some steam”.

And he
felt great.

He felt
wonderful.

Sexual
satisfaction was one thing, emotional satisfaction was an entirely different
beast, a beast he hadn’t realized had been preying on him for decades. His
heart cried out at the time he had lost feeling this way, and it ached at the
knowledge that what it had found would be gone in a matter of days, if not
sooner.

There
was no future for him and Kinti.

And it
broke his inexperienced heart.

He
looked down at her and kissed the top of her head. She wriggled happily, and
returned to her slumber, content.

It made
him wonder what she was thinking.

She must
realize the same thing he did, that this would soon be over, but she didn’t
seem to be letting it bother her.

She’s
got the right attitude.

Enjoy
the moment, don’t think about the future.

And if
that was what she was thinking, it was the right choice.

“Help!”

Reading
bolted upright in his hammock, almost spilling the two of them to the deck, as
he looked for the source of the desperate cry. Kinti immediately woke, grabbing
onto him as he swung his legs to the floor, helping her out.

“Help
me!”

The
voice was desperate and coming from the entrance of the small inlet they were docked
in. Kinti pointed to the shoreline near the mouth where the river was and
Reading gasped.

A man,
clothed, was wading through the water along the river’s edge, waving at them
with one arm.

The
other limp at his side, covered in blood.

Three Day’s Travel from Rio Negro, Northern Amazon
Day of the attack

TikTik hummed as she pulled the brush through the hair of her future
mate’s grandmother Trin, it a chore she was happy to do, the old woman so
pleased with the result. She looked out of the corner of her eye and saw Tuk
staring at her again. She liked Tuk. They had grown up together, her village
and his always on friendly terms and so close that the children would often
accompany their parents when visiting.

They had
become friends, and when she was younger, had even declared to her mother that
she wanted to be mated to Tuk when the time came. Her mother had dismissed the
idea, even discouraged it, saying he was too weak to be a husband, too small to
be a good provider. She had thrown something at her mother, what she couldn’t
remember, and stormed out of their village and hid in the forest, her father
and several others having to come search for her.

She had
cried in her father’s arms as he carried her home, refusing to tell him why she
was so upset, her mother apparently too ashamed to share her revelation. He
hadn’t been mad at her, it was clear to him she had been upset by something,
and that night she had cried herself to sleep, her dreams of living in Tuk’s
village and having children with him destroyed.

She knew
Tuk still longed after her, but he had no idea how much she longed after him.
Bruk was wonderful, of that there was no doubt. He was a prize mate, strong,
handsome, and a good provider, but he wasn’t the intellectual that Tuk was. Tuk
was so smart that she could listen to him for hours talk about the various
creatures in the forest, the sounds they made, their habits, their tracks. If
you needed something or someone found, Tuk was the man to go to.

He’ll
amount to nothing, he’s too weak!

Her
mother’s words still cut her like a blade. Tuk’s village seemed to accept him
as an equal, and TikTik knew Tuk’s mother was desperate for grandchildren, and
TikTik would love to be the one to give them to her. But Tuk had never asked.
No matter how many hints she had dropped, no matter how many bashful glances
she had returned with a smile, he had never had the courage to ask.

Because
he too was convinced he would amount to nothing.

Of that
she was certain.

She had
heard the jokes made about him at her village, even within earshot of her poor
friend. She had cried herself to sleep on many of those nights, sometimes even
shouting at those making the comments to shut up, to leave Tuk alone, and she
had simply been teased and taunted.

It
wasn’t fair. Just because he was smaller and weaker than the others didn’t mean
he couldn’t provide for her and a family. His tracking was legendary, and he
often led his tribe on hunts, he quickly picking the signs of their prey from
the uncooperative forest floor. He could organize groups to build things like
none she had ever met, his leadership skills second to none that she had seen.

But only
when he didn’t realize he was leading.

He would
jump in to help with any project his village undertook, even helping at her
village, and his intelligence quickly resulted in him telling where to cut,
where to tie, where to place. Whenever she saw him in action, she felt so proud
of him, and it made her want him even more.

But it
was not to be.

She
smiled at Tuk, trying to send him a message of her love, but he quickly looked
away, staring at the sky as if seeing something fascinating. She didn’t bother
looking up; she knew there would be nothing there.

Her
chest ached.

Arms
grabbed her from behind and she yelped as she was lifted into the air, the roar
of her future mate filling her ears. She squealed and he flipped her around,
giving her a big kiss, which she returned willingly. Bruk was a good man, and
she did have feelings for him, and in time she knew she’d love him more than
she loved Tuk. Part of her always felt guilty when there was some sort of
public display of affection between her and Bruk in front of Tuk, but it
couldn’t be helped, and if she were to live here, he would have to get used to
it.

Bruk put
her down and she stole a glance over at Tuk but he was already heading into the
forest, his shoulders slumped.

“Stop
that or the Mother will curse you with ugly children!”

Bruk and
TikTik laughed as he put her down, one last kiss snuck before he disappeared
into the forest with several of the men, tonight’s main course still
undetermined.

She
resumed brushing Grandmother Trin’s hair, her humming resumed, her thoughts
returning to poor Tuk. She hoped he would find a mate someday. It would be
hard, he having to marry outside the village and there only being a few
villages within easy travelling distance. But perhaps at one of those villages
there would be some poor girl, in a predicament similar to his, that would take
him as her mate and perhaps they could make each other whole, each other happy.

She just
wanted Tuk to be happy.

Because
she knew she would never truly be happy if he weren’t.

She felt
an odd vibration on the log she was sitting on and stopped her brushing,
looking about to see what was happening. A scream erupted from the forest, a
scream she recognized immediately as Bruk’s.

And it
was one of terror.

A beast
roared from the forest, unlike anything she had ever heard, the sound so loud
she could only imagine it must be as tall as the trees. Legends of giants
filled her head as she grabbed Grandmother and they retreated toward the center
of the village. Suddenly creatures, black from head to toe burst into the
clearing, quickly surrounding them all, at least two dozen in number, then a
massive creature surged through the trees, the mighty trunks chewed through by
the creature’s spinning teeth, a high pitched wail emerging from its mouth as
the trees were felled easily.

The
beast was unlike any creature she had seen, it clearly from another world,
perhaps that of the Spirits. Or worse. She had heard of course of where those
with evil in their hearts were sent, a world of horrors where there was no joy
for eternity, a world where those who would abuse the Mother’s gift of life
were doomed to live out the afterlife.

And she
had no doubt this creature was from there.

One of
the black creatures shoved her toward the center of the village, the hunters
that had just left suddenly emerging from the forest, their hands high over
their heads, their spears not to be seen. She couldn’t see Bruk, and she
wondered if he had somehow escaped, when her heart sank.

Two of
the black creatures dragged his body into the clearing, dumping him on the
ground.

She
screamed.

Rushing
toward the body of her mate-to-be she felt something hit her back and she
collapsed to the ground, jerking, unable to control any of her limbs or even
shout out in fear.

Tuk’s
voice erupted from behind as he cried out in anger. Her only thought was a
message her mouth couldn’t deliver as she lay paralyzed on the ground.

Run,
Tuk! Run!

Tuk ran. As hard as he could. At first he had no destination in
mind, then he turned to head to TikTik’s village, then he realized there was
only one person who could help him.