Final Challenge (19 page)

- What?

- It's just a hunch, nothing more.

- You are a woman, and therefore intuitive. Tell me, what is it?

- I have the feeling that someone is following us.

- But ... have you noticed anything stran
ge? Have you seen anything? Any
noise?

- No, no ... it's hard to explain, haven't you ever felt observed by somebody?... although you had not been able to see anyone, without knowing exactly why? ...

- I do not ... the truth is no.

Hanson thought the depleted state of Kelly was beginning to play her a trick and he was obliged to make a determination. The r
est of the group had distanced
considerably, so was forced to run to Souza. When he was about twenty yards away, he shouted.

- Hey! Souza! Souza!  

Souza turned his head, he saw Hanson and stopped instinctively, moment that Hanson approached him and asked.

- How long it takes to reach the key site?

- As the guide told me, I estimate that no more than three hours.

- There's not much time before dusk. Don't you think that we could spend the night here? We'll get exhausted - Hanson said gesturing with his head toward Kelly - 

Souza perceived the message of Hanson at the instant as he looked back and observed Kelly behind, walking with difficulty.

- Okay, I think it would be convenient that we rested to get strength enough to the last stage. This can be a good place.

Souza left the backpack
down and once again all followed him.

XVIII

 
The rest did them a lot of good
, but very specially to Kelly. She seemed another, had regained her sense of humor and that was an excellent sign. Hanson and Kelly, who as usual closed the group, didn't stop of talking. When he became fixed her carefully, Hanson realized she had again the da
zzling twinkle in her eyes that
inspired on him so many feelings. They looked like two teenagers, especially when once in a while seemed to be a little lazy, delaying their walking pace just enough for a kiss.

Meanwhile, Souza and Marvin walked together, immediately behind the guides. It had been several hours since the start of t
he walk
when Marvin turned to
Souza to make an observation.

- I thought it couldn't get worse, but the forest is even thicker here, if possible. 

Souza gestured back before answering.

- I didn’
t mean anyt
hing to not break the good humo
r and cloud the
friendly atmosphere
, but we are beyond the point at which our friend was ambushed.

  Marvin was a little surprised and excited at the same time, then looked instinctively to all sides and muttered a few words.

- That means ...

- That now we can only wait. And neither
it
should matter much to make
some
noise - Souza said forcing a smile -

- If the fish that should follow
us is the same that we seek
…
not, of course ..

- Dear friend, there's something more - Souza paused and, as he observed the face of bewilderment of Marvin,
then
continued  - We are closer to our destination
more
than we could imagine.

- What is your basis to do such a claim?

- Keep walking as if I had not said anything.
But, for several hours, we are
being followed.

- How do you know
it
?

- Don’
t forget that we have three guides for who
m these inhospitable lands are
their home.

The confidence of Souza meant that, from that moment, Marvin startled every time he heard one of the mysterious noises from the bush. Souza was also not aware that his caution regarding Hanson and Kelly did not cover his objectives, because even though she was physically and emotionally better, her ghosts of the day before still  were chasing her, in fact she kept looking in all directions as guessing the presence of someone hiding in the dense vegetation network. It wasn't hard to Hanson to conclude that there was no need that she comment him anything to know she was still immersed in her omens.

The fact of feeling a dam, a
human bait that was unable to see approaching the fish due to turbulence of the waters, caused a feeling of
distress and impotence on them
. E
very step in advancing was such
the degree of stres
s that their own noise induced
them to confusion, as if they were waiting for the announcement
to confirm their fears. So, when
they saw before their eyes how Ukekeni dropped fulminated, were shocked initially, with no capacity to react. It was Souza who noticed that he had been crossed by a spear and the first to activate his defense mechanisms.

- To ground! Form a small circle! Kelly, to the center! - Shouted Souza venting his adrenaline -  

All heeded him, lying on the ground and trying to move as fast as they could to him. Marvin set his backpack next to Souza's, then came Hanson with Kelly. Hanson put both backpacks to close the simple
defensive ring and quickly all were placing
within it.
In the center, protected by them, Kelly.

 
Suddenly there was an eerie silence, only broken by the distant song of a bird. It was as if nothing had happened, as if eve
rything was in order, but they only needed
to look at the body of Ukekeni lying close to them to realize that was not a dream. They expected by an offensive that didn't quite get there, see their enemy's face, but remained hidden in the shades. They looked at each other puzzled, not knowing they could do more than wait for what seemed
to be
inevitable. After passing the initial confusion, Marvin and Souza, without a word, stared at the corpse of the Indian and exchanged an eloquent look. He hadn't been killed by a modern weapon, by a shot, no. It had been a spear, which probably meant the fish that had come was not the one they were expecting.

 
Souza couldn’t stop to look
at the trees with rifle in
hand, thinking that from there
their hidden enemies had the best choices to pounce on them. Marvin also had the same sensation so he scrutinized, one by one, the branches of nearby trees. A cold sweat began to cover their bodies, silence and waiting became unbearable.

A sound plowed through the air and, when it became quiet again, stared at each other, stunned, until they observed that one of the guides had a dart in his neck. He had not had time even to scream. It was then when that sound started to become familiar. A shower of darts began to fall around them. Unable to guess their origin, were limited to fire into the air, trying to dissuade their attackers, but one of the darts eventually reached Souza and, in seconds, were falling Marvin and the other guide.
Hanson grabbed Kelly between his arms. She shouted him:

- Don't shoot, it's useless!

- Yes, I think our only option is to surrender.

Hanson stoo
d up at the same time that
raised his arms. For a moment he looked around, but still didn't see or hear anyone. He turned around on itself, with
the same result, until he
again heard that familiar noise. A dart flew through the air at breakneck speed and ended up stabbing
his neck. Kelly, by watching as Hanson collapsed and fell to the ground, was overcome by grief and helplessness. She began to cry desperately, watching as several Indians came out of the jungle, like ghosts emerging from the darkness. They were swirling around her,
watching her with curiosity, finally they
form
ed
some kind of human fence that was approaching to her slowly but distressingly.  That was more than her state of anxiety could endure and fainted to the astonishment of the natives.

XXIX

Carol raised slowly the shutters of her room, then drew the curtains. A burst of sunshine lit up her room so much until the point to distur
b her eyes. Since she was a child
she loved those days of Autumn in Tennessee, so bright and with a temperature that seemed to push her for horseback riding around the ranch. I
f Harold would have been fine,
he
had proposed it to her by sure.
But she had to get off her cloud and meet again with her cruel reality.

It's difficult to accept that such a wonderful day can bring such good memories of the past that contrast sharply with a grim present. We are those that according to our mood and our circumstances are able to enlarge or spoil the day, so we can make a memorable one from a gray day or the most unfortunate one from a sunny day. But we can't avoid feeling a sense that behind a bright day there is always a song of hope. However, for some time the sadness of Carol had come over her as the light of Harold's life was fading.
She only had the consolation of having done everything possible to change the course of events, to struggle against fate, or at least she thought so. She also  thought that perhaps  bringing Harold to spend his last days at the ranch had not been a good idea, although at first it could seem better than staying confined within four walls, waiting helplessly until reaching the end, with no other purpose that observing how days follow one after another, but the contrast between past and present was too hurtful in that site where they always had taken refuge to find a solution to the problems that life had presented them, from where their relationship and their lives had emerged forever strengthened.

Before approaching Harold's room to say good morning, made an assessment of all that had happened in recent weeks. As she had decided, opposing frontally Dr. O'Connor, to bring Harold to the clinic that some of her friends had suggested, where merely confirmed all diagnoses to the point of giving
a maximum of one mon
th of life,
vanishing in that way her little hope. She also remembered the visit that had made Peter Feaks, and as she took the occasion to confront the successor of Harold and demand an explanation that never came.
Feaks merely said that had been Harold himself who had requested that famous meeting, during which he had proposed him as his successor after let him
to
know his serious illness.

In any
case
there was no doubt
that Harold's disease had been beneficial to Freak's interests at all levels. On receiving the accolade of Harold, his race for the White House had shot,
and once people was informed about
the serious illness of their president had decided to back to his successor, so that the advantage over the Republican candidate was higher than ten point
s when there were just a little over a month
for the November elections.

 
Carol left her room and found in the hallway with the illustrious Dr. O'Connor. Very reluctantly and as directed by Harold, she had been forced to continue counting on his presence. Wherever they went O'Conn
or was more than his doctor, their
shadow, a shadow followin
g them everywhere, including their
own ranch.  The doctor had just closed Harold's bedroom door. He had a sorry aspect. He recommended her not to come in, the patient had suffered a serious deterioration. It was advisable to take him to hospital urgently. The outcome could be a matter of hours or days. Carol collapsed like a house of cards, basically she always had thought that if a miracle had to occur, it would have taken place there.

XXX

 
  When Kelly opened her
eyes, she felt dizzy, her head ached and had completely lost track of what had happened. Her vision was blurred and there was little light so wasn't easy to scrutinize her environment. Lying on
a bed of straw and covered with
a light textured skin
as a savanna, she perceived a figure at her side, which gradually took shape human. She jumped when that shape passed a sort of wet gauze on her front because then surfaced in her mind the memories of her recent past, when she was surrounded by Indians who slowly were closing their siege a
round her. However, she noticed
that it was not a man but an indigenous woman who was at least as frightened as Kelly when she could observe like Kelly opened her eyes, so her initial reaction was of panic to the point that she went out lavishing voices whose meaning was not needed to understand. Then Kelly heard the voice of a man, distant, who conversed in low tones with the woman, perhaps with the good intention to reassure her.