Dangerous Waters (6 page)

“
You like to jeer, don
’
t you? Roger
’
s just normally good-looking, and he
’
s certainly the nicest man I know!
”

“
Up the Roger,
”
he murmured.
“
Why didn
’
t he meet you at the coast?
”

“
He couldn
’
t get away, and it wasn
’
t necessary, anyway. My sister
’
s
fiancé
had arranged for me to travel out with
Mrs. Pryce, who is the wife of an accountant at the construction company. If she hadn
’
t had the accident on board I
’
d have gone the whole way to Penghu with her.
”

“
I doubt that. They might have let her through, but not you. Roger would kick himself black and blue if he could see you now. You see, if he
’
d got through to Shalak and met you, you could have married
him
at Vinan.
”

“
Very funny,
”
she said unsmilingly.
“
How soon shall we be through Vinan territory?
”

“
If we could carry on at the rate we
’
ve moved today, we
’
d be through by tomorrow evening, or even earlier. But I
’
ve an idea that round about midday we
’
ll meet the swamps. They
’
ll slow us down, but if it doesn
’
t rain we
’
ll get into Penghu three nights from now.
”

“
I thought it rained every day.
”

“
Not at this season—the average is every other day, but we sometimes go a week without a shower. Let
’
s hope this is one of those weeks. Like a cigarette?
”

“
Thanks.
”

She took one and placed it between her lips, had to lean a long way over him to the flame he held. Just as her cigarette tip met the flame he drew it back, and she couldn
’
t help but look down into his face. It was dark and mocking, the teeth very white. She stared and slowly sat back, the cigarette unlighted.

“
Here,
”
he said negligently,
“
have the lighter yourself.
”
She took it from him and used it, found that she puffed rather fast until her breathing evened out. The beast was enjoying some joke of his own. For two pins she
’
d jam her cigarette tip down on to his hand. Even in the darkness she must have exuded vexation, for he said.

“
I
’
ve a hunch we
’
re going to be very glad to part from each other at Penghu. You don
’
t care for men like me, and I find girls of your sort extraordinarily irritating. I haven
’
t met one for some time, but I seem to remember all the signs. You want to marry Roger Payn and settle down to life with plenty of servants, bridge parties and discreet gossip. You
’
ll have your sister for a neighbor and a few spare men to admire you. Too bad I shall be living only a few miles out of Penghu, but I
’
ll try not to haunt you.
”

“
Shut up,
”
she said crossly, and turned her back to him. There was silence for a long time, a jungle silence that teemed with chirping and the drone of insects, the little noises of the river, the whispering of leaves. The moon had risen higher, dappling the river with silver coins, and from the undergrowth came the scent of damp earth, forest flowers and decaying vegetation. It was cooler.

Terry flicked her cigarette butt down into the river, heard the tiny hiss as it died. She said,
“
I
’
m sorry I
’
ve made such a poor impression. I didn
’
t mean to, but yesterday and last night must have unnerved me a little. I
’
m really very grateful for what you did for me in Vinan.
”

“
Forget it,
”
he said carelessly.
“
Your chief trouble is that you
’
re a bit young.
”
A pause.
“
What do your parents think of your sister marrying out here?
”

“
My father was a little disappointed; Annette has always been his favorite—not in a bad way. He
’
s fond of us both.
”

“
And your mother?
”

“
She
’
s a stepmother, but not the traditional kind. She
’
s businesslike and loyal, and she
’
s been good to us, though Annette has never liked her very much. Mother helps to run the shop—a book and gift shop at Henton, not far from London. Annette broke away. She helped at rush periods, but she had her own job; she was a model.
”

“
Good lord, is she one of those? She could have married well in England, surely?
”

“
Yes, except that it was Vic Hilton she wanted, and he was dead keen to take this job in Malaya.
”

“
She
’
ll be out of her element here, love or no love. In any case, the emotions either fade or get swamped in this climate.
”

“
Do they?
”
She was still half-turned from him.
“
I find it easier to get angry, so I should think the other emotions are equally near the surface.
”

“
Oh, they flare up occasionally, just to break the monotony, but after one
’
s lived here for a while there
’
s not much risk of leaping passion. You get so that you can handle things before they reach that pitch.
”

“
You
’
re talking as
a bachelor with lots of experience,
”
she said.
“
Annette
’
s known dozens of men, but she fell really hard for Vic, even though, you might say he
’
s not
her type. Surely you don
’
t think the climate can kill what they feel for each other?
”

“
Not knowing them, I can
’
t say. What sort of man is this Vic Hilton?
”

“
He
’
s rugged, twenty-eight, a bit old in his ways and a very good engineer.
”

“
And your sister—is her temperament anything at all like yours?
”

“
I don
’
t think so. She
’
s a dual character, really; the poised and sophisticated model, calm and assured—and underneath she
’
s uncertain of herself as a wife for Vic. If they
’
d married in England she
’
d have been as happy and confident as a lark.
”

“
Is she scared of the tropics?
”

“
Well,
”
said Terry honestly,
“
you either want to come here or you don
’
t. Annette didn
’
t
.
”

“
And you?
”

She looked at him fleetingly and gathered nothing.
“
I like it all right,
”
she said with reserve.
“
The heat is a bit overwhelming, but it wouldn
’
t take me long to get used to it.
”
She had had enough of the subject.
“
By the way, I
’
d like to travel in something cooler tomorrow. May I open one of my cases?
”

“
Of course, but leave it till the morning. You
’
d better take off your outer clothes tonight and roll in a blanket. That ground-sheet the old boy gave me isn
’
t entirely waterproof, but you can have it doubled.
”

“
And
...
and what about you?
”

“
I
’
ll be fine. Are you sleepy?
”

“
A little. I think it
’
s the smoke.
”

“
It
’
s a bit of everything—excitement, worry, sunshine, and village coffee—they mix ordinary coffee with herbs.
”
He sprang to his feet, flexed his shoulders and swung his arms.
“
Musn
’
t go stiff. Can you get along without brushing your teeth for the night? I
’
ll have it all organized for you in the morning.
”

“
I
’
m adaptable.
”

“
Good.
”
He unrolled the ground-sheet and folded it, placed a gaudy blanket on top of it.
“
Well, there you are. I
’
m going to take the canoe a short way dong the river, just to see if the moon will give me any clues for the morning. I shall be about half an hour, so you may be asleep when I get back. The fire is nearly out, but stay close to it and you won
’
t be plagued by insects. Keep covered, though, even if you stew.
”
He was already untying the canoe when he added,
“
Good night.
”

“
Well, good night,
”
she said in surprised accents.

He was not tempted to make a rejoinder, apparently, and Terry realized, a little dimly, that in clearing off for half an hour he was being tactful and considerate. But somehow she had never imagined his being anything else. However unconcerned he might be about Terry Fremont, the person, he was undoubtedly very thoughtful about the girl he had taken charge of in Vinan. The trouble was, she was pretty sure he would have done as much for anyone; he was the sort of man who naturally takes responsibility in emergencies. Was that how he regarded her, as an emergency
?

Quickly, she got out of her blouse and skirt, bathed her face and arms at the edge of the river, and dipped her burning feet down into the water. The grass, as she trod back to the blanket, was soaking wet, and when she put a hand to her hair that was wet too. The humidity in the air must be terrific. Where the waistband of her skirt had been, the skin was tender and it smarted, and even the smooth surfaces of her arms and legs were thickly clammy with sweat. What a climate!

But ten minutes later, when she lay down on the blanket and pulled a fold of it over her body, Terry felt almost serene. She was several miles nearer to Annette and, barring accidents, the Sternham man would get her to Penghu in three or four days, so that she would arrive about five days before Annette
’
s wedding. That would give her time to rest for a while in readiness for the great day.

She tried to think intensively about her sister, but for some reason Annette was always just beyond a veil, not quite distinguishable. Which was peculiar, but perhaps the tropics did that to new arrivals. She would gradually recover from the feeling of being withdrawn from everyone but her immediate companion.

He came back quietly, and with eyes closed she listened to his movements. He came towards her, bent over and said softly,
“
Are you awake?
”

She kept very still, and he must have been satisfied that she slept, for he moved away and sat down. She saw him unbuckle his rucksack and take things from it, heard the flick of the lighter as he lit a cigarette. Then she had to feign sleep again while he worked at something quite close to her. When she dared to look again her head and shoulders were covered by mosquito netting which hung over bamboo pegs, and the rest of her lay under a sheet of plastic. He seemed to regard her as some commodity which must be protected as far as possible from moisture and pests. She felt like an oversized caterpillar boiling away inside a cocoon.