Hurricane Watch

Chapter

Seven

“SO MUCH FOR that.” Kerry leaned back against a pine tree, crossing her ankles and folding her arms. She looked past the figures of Skippy and Steven, in earnest conversation nearby. “Okay, so it probably was a bad idea.”

Dar was scuffing the pine needle littered ground with one boot.

“Pure chance,” she shrugged. “Not like I called Mark up and arranged it, or told him to go first.”

“You’ll get blamed anyway,” Duks said. “The man does not like you, my friend.”

”That was a bitch, Dar.” Mark shook his head as he joined them, having changed out of his leather and love bug carcass outfit into something less gruesome. ”I ended up having the Erding office bring the equipment in for them. You’re gonna owe a few folks out there.”

Dar nodded. ”Good going.” She re-tucked her long sleeved, heavy cotton shirt into her jeans. ”Glad you could join us.” She glanced over where Steven, José and Eleanor were now clustering together. “Tilts the scale a little.”

”Yeah, you look like you’re having a great time,” Mark commented dryly. ”This place is a dump.” He glanced over as Skippy returned with a bunch of little sacks slung over her shoulder. ”Uh oh, now what?”

”Okay!” Skippy looked perkily grim. ”Here’s what we’re going to do now. We’ve got a course set up—you can see the entrance to it over there.” She pointed and they all looked over to where a trail was clearly marked. ”It’s a ten mile path, and along the way there are different stations and obstacles you have to get through.” She handed each one of them a bag. ”The object of this is for all of you to get through.” She gave them a look. ”All of you, not just some of you, okay? You all have to get back. All of you. Everyone get my point?”

Kerry muffled a wry chuckle.

“Great,” Mariana sighed, “I can see where this is going.”

Skippy looked at them as though waiting for more commentary, then she shook her head and went back to her program.

”Okay. In this sack is your lunch and a snack.” She held up a sample. ”The directions are on the top.”

Dar laughed on seeing them. ”You guys shop on the Military channel by any chance?”

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Skippy scowled, in a nice way, at her. ”Anyway, at each station is a check point. You have to get this card stamped at each checkpoint.

About halfway, there’s a cabin with water and juice, and things like that,” she exhaled. ”It’s not a race, okay? The purpose is to make you work together, to get through the obstacles.”

”We got that point,” Duks informed her. “Yes, we understand we are not to leave any of our colleagues behind.”

”Right...okay...well, go on. We’ll have dinner waiting for you guys when you get back.” Skippy made shooing motions with her hands.

”Wait, you want us to walk for ten miles?” Eleanor objected. ”You must be joking.” She glanced around for support. ”That’s ridiculous.”

”It’s not that bad,” Kerry told her kindly as she moved closer to the Marketing VP. ”Really.”

”Oh no, no, no way.” Eleanor backed away from her. ”I’m sorry.

I’ve had enough.”

”Look.” Skippy clasped her clipboard to her chest. ”This is the important part of the seminar, okay? I have to write a report on your group for your leadership team, and it’s based mostly on this exercise.”

“Yes,” Steven spoke up suddenly. “You don’t want to be the one with the bad marks in that report, do you, Eleanor? We know YOU

don’t want this to be a failure.”

Dar’s eyes narrowed.

Mariana exhaled. ”Come on, Eleanor. God knows I’m not up to walking ten miles, but we’ll get through it.” She glanced over at Dar.

”Let’s get going. The sooner we start, the sooner we finish.” She shouldered her pack. ”We can rest along the way, right?” This she directed at Skippy.

The guide smiled in relief. ”Right. There are benches and things for you to rest on. It’s not an endurance race or anything,” she assured them. ”And there are water fountains.”

The group moved off reluctantly and approached the path, passing the sign and entering a tree lined, fairly well marked lane covered in sand and pine needles.

A grumpy silence held over them and they strung out a little on the path, with José and Steven deciding to set the pace and Dar choosing to bring up the rear. Kerry casually dropped back next to her.

The wind picked up a little and blew the leaves against each other, whistling lightly around them and isolating their conversation.

”Having fun?” Dar inquired.

”Mm, not really, but did it seem to you like Mary Sunshine back there was awfully glad to get rid of us?” Kerry asked, adjusting her canvas pack to settle around her slim waist, instead of over her shoulder. ”Here, let me get yours. It’s easier to carry this way.” She adjusted her companion’s pack, slipping her arms around Dar for the moment needed to fasten the straps.

Well, slightly more than the moment, but not long enough to attract 74

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attention from their grousing coworkers stomping ahead of them.

”Yeah.” Dar glanced around. ”I don’t think we’re going to rate a good report from her. We’ve been sort of uncooperative.” She took a breath of the cool air and felt her temper settle a little. ”This is kind of nice, though.”

”Wait until we get to the obstacles.” Kerry chuckled, rolling her eyes. ”Hey, you know, I had the weirdest dream last night.” She missed the sudden, startled glance in her direction from Dar. ”We were riding a horse and you were wearing armor.”

”What?” Dar started laughing. ”You’re joking.”

”No, no, really.” Kerry chuckled too. ”I know, it was really strange, but it was really vivid, too. I could smell the horse and the leather stuff you were wearing, and the armor was some kind of brass.”

Dar didn’t reply. She went silent for a moment and paced along, thinking. ”Well,” she finally said. ”I guess it was the atmosphere then. I had a pretty strange dream too.” Then she fell silent.

Kerry waited for a long minute. ”What was it about? Was I in it?”

she coaxed, interested.

”Yeah,” Dar responded. ”We were on a hill, someplace I didn’t recognize really, over some river. It was warm out and we were just out there, watching the clouds go by.” She paused. ”You were sleeping. You had your head resting on my leg.” She tapped her thigh.

Kerry waited. ”And that’s strange?” she queried, puzzled. ”I don’t get it.”

”You were pregnant,” Dar said, very softly. ”That was the strange part.” She walked on a few more paces before she realized she was walking alone. With a start, she stopped and looked behind her. Kerry was standing on the path, staring at her. ”Hey, it was just a dream.” But she felt the question in her own voice and knew Kerry had heard it.

Kerry took a breath, then started forward, breaking into a trot and catching up with Dar. They continued walking in silence for a little stretch.

”That is strange,” Kerry finally said. ”I mean, it’s kind of a shock to hear that, it’s something I...” she hesitated. ”I know I don’t have to worry about that anymore, unless I want to...um...you know.” She looked up at Dar’s face, seeing the odd hints of tension around her eyes.

”Uh, have you...I mean, do you want...um...”

”No, no.” Dar lifted her hands and let them fall. ”Kids and me, they don’t mix well,” she stated firmly, then hesitated. ”I mean, well, I um...I mean, if you wanted...someday...I think...um...” She fell silent, then peered at Kerry. ”You know?”

Kerry’s face wrinkled up into a confused grin. ”I think so, but it’s not in my plans anytime soon, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

”I wasn’t worried,” Dar replied instantly. ”Not at all. I was just saying that...um...it’s possible to get used to anything, if you know what I mean.”

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Now, Kerry smiled. ”I know what you mean,” she reassured her boss. ”But that’s a strange image, for a dream.”

”Well, what about me in armor?” Dar asked, glad to change the subject. ”Maybe it was those sandwiches we had last night. I’m still not sure of what they were.”

”Maybe,” Kerry agreed softly. ”Jesus, I haven’t thought about being pregnant for...” A pause. ”A while.”

A gust of wind blew past them, lifting up dark and pale hair and whipping it around both their faces. They’d let the group get a short distance in front of them and the winding path had isolated the two of them briefly.

Dar glanced over and saw the look of quiet, grim introspection on her lover’s face and she debated with herself, whether or not to push Kerry on the subject. Finally she sighed, and flexed her shoulders. ”You, um,” a light shrug, ”Want to talk about it?”

Kerry regarded the passing trees thoughtfully. ”Not really much to talk about. It was just mostly stupidity on my part, when I was home last year,” she related, in a quiet tone. ”They were giving me a hard time. I felt lousy,” A slight pause. ”I felt ugly,” Kerry wryly corrected herself. ”And I went to a party with some old friends from college, got drunk until I didn’t know half of what I was doing, and ended up in bed with some guy I hadn’t seen for five years.”

She studied her boots, remembering just how disgusted she’d felt when she woke up. ”I wasn’t on the pill, of course,” she snorted softly.

”I got lucky, nothing happened.”

Dar snuck a look ahead of them, then settled an arm around her companion’s shoulders, pulling her close. ”That’s lousy. Sorry you had to go through it,” Dar stated gently. ”I can’t tell you how mad that makes me.”

”That I’d do something that stupid?” Kerry asked bitterly. ”Yeah, well, I was pretty mad at myself too.”

”No.” Dar kissed her head. ”That your parents made you feel that bad about yourself.”

”Don’t put the blame on them, Dar.” Her lover shook her head.

”They didn’t make me go to that party, or get plastered, or jump in bed with that guy.”

”I know,” the executive agreed, with a sigh. ”But I think you did that as a reaction to how you were feeling. When that guy came on to you, it made you feel better about yourself, didn’t it?” She felt Kerry’s shoulders move a little in a shrug. ”Didn’t it? I bet he was good looking.”

A hazy memory surfaced and Kerry’s nostrils flared. ”Yeah,” she admitted wryly. ”He looked like that guy from Dune,” she admitted.

”He was really cute and he told me he thought I was cute, and I...” A long sigh. ”I guess I really needed to hear that then.”

She glanced up at Dar, who was still walking along with her arm 76

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around Kerry’s shoulders. ”He was a nice guy, too. He called me the next day, all panicky because he hadn’t had protection on, and telling me he was healthy, and saying he’d ‘do the right thing’ if it turned out I was pregnant.” She had to laugh. ”It was surreal.”

Dar laughed gently. ”Well, you’ll never have to get me drunk to make me tell you how cute you are, okay?” She hugged Kerry.

The blonde woman rested her head against Dar’s arm. ”You make me feel so wonderful, did you know that?” she replied simply. ”It’s such a pleasure to be in love with you.”

Dar blinked, speechless for a few heartbeats. ”Likewise,” she finally managed to say, faintly.

They walked along in silence for a few steps. “Boy, that was like a burst of compressed love packets, wasn’t it,” Kerry finally said, with a little laugh. “Did I blow it with the milk? I thought I was doing so good till then.”

“Who cares?” Dar shrugged her shoulders. “Half the building knows I’m a MacArthur Dairy commercial. Don’t worry about it.”

A yell up ahead distracted them. ”Oh hell.” Dar’s face took on an annoyed look. ”Damn, for ten cents I’d just lose this place.”

Kerry patted her companion’s belly. ”All of us have to get through, remember? C’mon, let’s see what they found.” She disentangled herself from Dar’s grip lengthened her stride, climbing up the tiny, root encrusted rise and peeking down the path.

The rest of the group was standing on the edge of a slice across the path, into which a creek had carved itself deeply, causing a chasm about fifty feet across.

A single, braced rope bridge went over it, consisting of a simple strand, with two others running alongside.

The entire thing was

suspended over the water about twenty feet, providing an annoying, but not lethal drop if one got dumped off the bridge.

The object, obviously, was to get to the other side. If one walked carefully it seemed achievable enough.

The problem was the fifteen foot python wrapped around the rope, sunning itself. ”Oh boy,” Dar muttered, coming up behind her. ”This could get ugly.”

”Now what?” José turned and put his hands on his hips. He was wearing a pair of coach’s shorts and a polo shirt with the name

”Marelito Bowling League” on it, with black socks and sneakers. ”We go back, si?”

”Hell yes,” Steven agreed. ”That’s it.

No way, no how am I

messing around with a goddamned snake.”

Eleanor was seated on a nearby log, fanning herself, and the rest of them were peering at the snake uncomfortably. They turned to look at Dar when she edged closer. ”To hell with them.” José decided. ”We don’t have to put up with this.”

The tall, dark haired executive put a hand on either rope and her Hurricane Watch

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hiking boots on the very edge of the bridge. ”Well, hold on,” she murmured, taking a step forward and letting the rope take her weight.

”Dar.” Kerry’s voice objected instinctively.

”Hey, crazy woman, get the hell back here!” José yelped.

”Ah, my friend,” Duks went to the edge of the bridge, ”you don’t need to go over there.”

”Shit,” Mark cursed.

”Shh.” Dar turned her head and glared at them. ”Just, let me check the situation out, all right?”

”You’re going to end up with your ass in that creek and I’m going to laugh my head off,” Steven sniped.

Dar ignored him and continued slowly moving forward, holding the two ropes on either side of her as she approached the snake. She felt the rope bridge sway under her movement and the wind. The creek chuckled by below her and she could hear the ominous creaking of the hemp fibers, which seemed impossibly loud to her.

A bird called out overhead, almost making her jump, and she glared up at it before she continued forward a few more steps. She was almost to where the snake was now, and she could feel her heart starting to pound and her knees shake under the strain of keeping level.

”Nice snaky,” she murmured, ”easy now.”

Snakes were deaf. She knew that, but it made her feel better to say it anyway. Ten feet away and she could see the soft, glistening surface of the animal as it rested contentedly in the sun, its large, square head spread out on the top rope.

Dar took another step forward, then held on as a breeze made the entire bridge sway, causing the snake to shift a little. Dar ducked her head forward, then took two more steps which brought her even with the large creature’s head.

She reached out, hearing a collective gasp from the other shore and picked the head up, examining it curiously. With an utterly cool expression, she turned her head and regarded her co workers.

They stared at her in awe.

”Made in China.” Dar held the head up. ”It’s rubber.”

A moment of shock, then everyone started moving again. ”Son of a bitch!” Mark breathed, shaking his head. ”These people are effing nuts!”

Dar set the rubber head back down and patted the snake, then she regarded the rest of the bridge. ”I’m going on across. It’s not that hard, just take it slow, and hold on,” she advised the group as she continued on her way. She placed her feet carefully one after the other until she reached the other side and hopped down. There was a small machine that looked like a timecard stamper there. She pulled out her little card and stuck it in the slot.

It made a very satisfying clunking noise and stamped a tiny cobra on her card in the number one slot. She put the card away and glanced 78

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back across the creek, not surprised to see Kerry making her way across the bridge, a determined look of concentration on the smaller woman’s face.Steven was standing impatiently on the edge, waiting his turn.

Everyone else was trying to convince Eleanor to give it a go and Dar was exceedingly glad she was on this side of the bridge and not the other.Part of her felt quite satisfied, having removed an obstacle from the group’s path, but the other part was still annoyed that they were doing this at all. She watched Kerry stop at the snake and look at it, examining the head thoughtfully before she edged past, gripping the ropes tightly on either side.

Kerry looked a little uneasy, Dar thought, and she put her own hands casually on the guide ropes as Kerry paused, taking a deep breath, then swallowing, before she continued on. The wind came through, swaying the bridge and Dar saw her lover’s face tense up and her knuckles whiten on the ropes. ”You okay?” she called out, a little concerned.

Kerry waited for the swaying to stop then she risked prying her eyes open, to see Dar’s blue ones fastened on her. “C’mon, Kerry. You can get past this.” She forced a foot forward, keeping her gaze fixed on Dar instead of looking down. Six steps, seven, and she was close enough to see the faint wrinkle in Dar’s forehead.

Then she was stepping on the last bit, where a wooden plank anchored the bridge and Dar’s hands were reaching for her, only at the last minute holding off and ending up back on the ropes instead.

”Thanks.” She closed her eyes and appreciated the solid ground under her feet as Dar stepped aside and let her past. ”I’m not really thrilled about heights,” Kerry explained, apologetically. ”That climbing wall is okay, because it’s so close to the ground, and all, but that...” She shook her head and pushed a faintly shaking hand through her hair.

”Whoo, haven’t had a reaction like that in a while.”

It took all of Dar’s willpower not to hug her, even with everyone over there watching them. Instead, she put a hand on Kerry’s shoulder and patted it. ”Take it easy. Why don’t you sit down on that bench over there? You’re kind of pale.”

”In a minute,” Kerry stated, tugging her card out of her pack with grim determination. ”I want my stamp.” She watched the machine impact the heavy cardboard. ”Dar, that was amazing.

Everyone

thought you’d lost your mind.” She looked up at her boss. ”Mariana was freaking.”

A shrug. ”Nah, it’s cold out.” She held up a hand in the cool breeze.

”Snake’d be sleepy, they’re cold blooded,” she reminded her lover. ”I just wanted to see if it was sleepy enough for us to squeeze by. I didn’t expect it to be fake.” She glanced back to where Steven was clambering rapidly across. ”It was pretty cool though, huh?” A rakish grin edged Hurricane Watch

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her face.

Kerry laughed gently. ”Yeah.” She walked over and sat down on the bench, willing her legs to stop shaking. She watched as Steven brushed by Dar without a word and stalked to the stamper, then wandered off down the path a little.

Duks was headed across next and Kerry could see that Mariana had convinced Eleanor to cross ahead of her. She wondered briefly what argument the Personnel chief had used, then she contented herself with just watching Dar, who was standing by the exit to the bridge, one hand resting on the rope.

Oh, boy, had that ever rocked. She grinned to herself. The guys got their macho egos kicked right in the balls with that one. She’d been so proud of Dar she could hardly stop herself from cheering as the taller woman made her way fearlessly towards the ominously coiled snake.

She watched Duks get across, exchanging a few words with Dar and giving her a light slap on the side, which got him a modest shrug and a chuckle. Dar was pleased with herself though, Kerry could tell, and she grinned at her as they both walked back to where Kerry was sitting.

”Well, well.” Duks took a seat next to her after getting his card stamped. ”That was a first. I wonder what the rest will be like?”

Dar put a boot up on the edge of the bench and leaned against her knee. ”They can’t get too bad. I mean, after all, this isn’t a military course.

They have to gear it for us soft, lazy executives,” she commented. ”So I doubt we’ll be facing staked pits or anything like that.”“Have you?” Duks asked. “Been the military course?”

“Yes.” Dar plucked at the denim fabric on her thigh. “But that was a long time ago.”

”Ah, I see,” Duks murmured, peeking past Dar and observing as Eleanor squeaked across, with Mark going just in front of her coaxing, and Mariana bringing up the rear. The ropes creaked at the triple weight, but seemed to be holding all right. ”I still haven’t forgiven you for causing me to be awakened like that this morning, Dar. That was not a nice thing to do to a poor, inoffensive, sleeping man.”

”Wasn’t my fault,” Dar responded. ”You guys looked pretty damn funny standing there in your boxers, though, I’ll give you that.”

”Mm. I am going to pretend you didn’t say that, just to preserve my tattered dignity,” Duks replied. ”And, by the way, Mr. ‘I have a Hoover stuck up my rear over there’ suspects you two are more than friends,”

he warned softly. ”He was making some very crude, but completely in character comments after breakfast.”

Dar and Kerry exchanged glances. ”That’s been said before.” Dar shrugged. ”Most everyone’s over that, I think.”

”True, true, but disappearing from the group on the walk was probably not a good idea,” Duks remarked as the three travelers 80

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reached their side of the creek. ”And Kerry, my young friend, do not take any offense, but your eyes give you quite the bit away.” He gave Kerry a wry grin as she crossed her arms and glanced at the dirt trail.

”It’s quite becoming, but you would do as well to watch the birdies or something else, hmm?”

Kerry sighed. ”Sorry.”

”Don’t apologize,” Dar said, suddenly as the other three came up.

”To hell with them. Let them think whatever the hell they want.” She shook herself, then she walked back to the bridge and leaned on the railing, staring intently at the water below.

Kerry gave Duks a wry look, then she glanced up at the newcomers.

”Hey, that was fun, right?”

”Disgusting.” Eleanor was carefully wiping off her hands, muddy from the rope. ”Just disgusting.” She stole a glance at the brooding Dar and then turned her attention back to them. ”I can’t believe they expected us to go past that horrible thing. You can be sure I’m lodging an official complaint as soon as we get back to Miami.”

”That was pretty wild,” Mark agreed, dusting his hands off. ”Good thing we had Dar along. Man, she’d give Tarzan a run for the money for guts, you gotta say that.” He walked over and got a drink of water from the coral fountain that had been tucked into an alcove and got his card stamped. ”This is kinda cool, though.”

Eleanor snorted. ”I didn’t think you’d enjoy anything that didn’t have a computer attached to it,” she sniped. ”What’s your hobby, by the way, Internet surfing?”

”No, that’s my job.” Mark laughed. ”My hobby’s restoring bikes, that one I came in on is my favorite.”

Kerry smiled at him.” Can I get a ride later?” she inquired teasingly. ”I always wanted to say I’d gotten to ride on a Hog.”

He grinned back. ”Absofriggenlutely,” he agreed, ”so long as someone takes a picture for me, or nobody’d believe it.”

Everyone else made it across with no further incident and they moved up along the trail, though this time Kerry was careful to separate herself from Dar who remained at the back. She strolled along with Mark instead, listening as he described what he’d done for the Hong Kong problem. Steven was forging on ahead, searching for the next obstacle, and the rest were strung out in a reluctant string.

Duks fell back to where Dar was pacing along in silence. ”Didn’t mean to get you angry, my friend,” he commented quietly.

”I know,” Dar replied tersely.

”Just a friendly warning. You know what kind of trouble that crap can lead to,” the Finance VP went on. ”And you don’t need any more crap to deal with than what we already throw on you.”

Dar’s jaw bunched, then she reached out and broke off a dead branch as they passed it, whipping the shards off into the underbrush.

”To be honest, I’m not sure I care anymore,” she admitted. ”It’s all so Hurricane Watch

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stupid. I feel like saying to hell with it, and just...” She stopped, and exhaled.

”That puts Mari in a very tough place,” Duks remarked quietly.

”You know that. Come now, Dar, surely you know the consequences.”

She gazed off into the trees. ”Of course I know. It’s just— This is much more than I ever expected it to be, Duks. It might be more than I can handle.” Her eyes flicked to his. ”And if I have to choose, the company’s not going to even be in the running.”

Duks blew out a breath. ”Ah.” His lips pursed. ”I see. All right.

What if we moved Kerry to another division?” he reasoned. ”Then it wouldn’t matter. It’s just the direct reporting that causes the issue.”

”I’d thought about that,” Dar told him quietly. ”But this is what she does, Duks. I’m not tossing her somewhere else in the company for everyone to make cracks about.” She raked her dark hair back. ”No, maybe this whole thing with Steven’s just putting me on edge. I’ll get over it.” She brushed the subject off. ”Sorry about that, I think I need some chocolate.”

Duks gave her a look, then chuckled in relief. ”You and your chocolate.” He watched Dar dig in her belt pack and tug out a few silver wrapped items. ”If you tell me you are carrying around little chocolate kisses, I’m going to have to lose my very meager breakfast over there by the wayside, Dar.”

She stopped and glanced at her open hand, then grinned a touch sheepishly. ”Want one?” she offered weakly. ”I um...” She waved ahead of them. ”I think Kerry stuck them in there.”

”Oh disgusting,” Duks clucked. ”I am getting slimed by all this mushdom.” He did take a kiss though. ”I never, ever thought you had it in you.”

Dar sucked happily on her kiss, rolling it around so the chocolate flavor got equally distributed. ”Yeah well, wonders never cease,” she commented as a shout from the front of the group indicated the next obstacle had been encountered. ”Let’s go see what they found this time.”

IT LOOKED LIKE the next problem was a maze. At least, that’s what Kerry thought it was, seeing the multitude of wooden paths that wound among each other. The paths were about six inches wide and reminded her of balance beams, which had always been a bane of hers.

”Now what?” She glanced at the paths, puzzled.

”We have to get there.” Steven pointed to a low platform about a hundred yards away. ”Just a matter of picking the right path.” He studied the choices. ”I think this is the right one.”

”Why?” José disagreed, kicking the one nearest him with a toe.

”Why not this one?”

”Or this one?” Duks was investigating one that went around the perimeter.

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”Look, this one goes directly across to there. It’s closer,” Steven argued. ”That one there goes all the way over to that side and zig zags, and the other one goes around the edges.”

”Well, but wouldn’t they tend to not make the right one the most direct?” Mariana asked, reasonably. ”What would be the challenge, otherwise?” She watched Mary Lou approach yet another path. ”Not that it’s... I mean, we can just try each one until we find the right one, I suppose.”

”Wouldn’t it be faster if we each tried one and whoever figures out the right one first tells everyone, and then everyone else can just get on that path?” Kerry inquired, peering over the paths. Each wooden walkway was suspended over a coral grotto of pits and slopes, filled with impassable bushes and rock walls. ”What is this thing, anyway?”

Dar stepped up behind her, and turned in a full circle. ”My guess is it used to be a lake,” she stated. ”See how the land slopes up around here?” She pointed. ”So that used to be the bottom of it, soft coral and limestone shaped by the water.”

”Would you can the Discovery Channel, please?” Steven rolled his eyes. ”Let’s get this over with.” He stepped out on his chosen path.

”You all can do what you want. I’m heading over there.”

”This is foolish,” Eleanor muttered. ”They’re going to get a huge piece of my mind when I get back to Miami.” She put a hesitant foot on a board. ”Jesu...if I fall off this, I’m suing.”

Dar was the last one to choose. She waited for everyone else to pick a path, then she stood on the edge of the puzzle and gazed across. Kerry was off to her left and she considered it, then picked a path most likely to intersect with the one Kerry was on. It wasn’t particularly hard, the board being eight inches or so across, you just had to be careful of your step. Falling wouldn’t be painful, just embarrassing, unless you were a guy and fell straight down or you chose to take a dive off the planks and hit your head on the coral.

”See? I told you,” Steven yelled in triumph as his path wound closer to the platform. ”You guys better start backtracking.”

Dar bounced on her feet twice and regarded his planks. ”Maybe,”

she was forced to agree, giving Kerry a wry look as the blonde woman glanced her way. ”I don’t...” She stopped as a faint tremor ran through her legs. ”Did you feel that?”

Kerry concentrated. ”Feel what?” She looked puzzled.

”Like a...a shudder or something.” Dar waited, but the feeling wasn’t repeated. ”No? Must be me, then.” She shook her head, then continued on a bit, watching Duks and Eleanor’s paths come close to each other. Then she felt it again. ”There, did you feel that?”

”Feel what?” Mark had circled around away from the perimeter.

”Dar, are you all right?”

The tall, dark haired woman stopped still and concentrated. ”Yeah.

I think I...” Now it was stronger. ”There...tell me you didn’t feel that, Hurricane Watch

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like a truck going by on the freeway.”

”I felt it,” Kerry acknowledged, looking around nervously. ”Is it an earthquake?”

”Earthquake!” Eleanor heard her. ”What are you saying? Don’t be foolish. There are no earthquakes in Florida.”

Dar's brow creased. ”She’s right.

The entire state’s built on

limestone over a water base. There’s nothing to quake. It’d just turn to sand and—” Abruptly her footing lurched under her. ”Hey!”

”What the—” José wavered back and forth. ”This is some piece of shit trick. Goddamn these people.” He flailed his arms for balance.

”Jesu!”

Dar saw the crack. ”Oh shit.” Her eyes went wide in shock. ”Hang on!” Instinctively, she dove in Kerry’s direction as the entire grotto collapsed under them, in a rumble of rock and splintering wood.

She fell, they all did, with dirt and coral and trees tumbling after them, screams going up as the earth dropped out from under their feet, crumbling and diving down into a sudden, gaping, widening well. Dar covered her head as she dropped, trying to fend off branches with her other hand, and she remained upright until a rock hit her mid fall, knocking her sideways and into the collapsing earth rim.

She grabbed at a limb, but the weight of the earth pressed her onward and she found herself slipping down a moving slope, with rocks and sticks pelting her painfully. ”Kerry!” she yelled, just before a sizable chunk of coral smacked her in the head and knocked her into a dark fog for a long, frightening moment. Then she hit bottom and felt the impact of what seemed like half the world dropping on top of her.

Kerry had screamed as the wood disintegrated beneath her feet, but she’d managed to grab hold of the supports as she dropped and swung over to the side of the falling pit, scraping along the edges and trying to get a grip on anything to stop her slide. Around her, she could hear the others screaming and she ducked a branch, then got her feet under her and managed to slow her descent for a moment.

Not long enough, though, as the earth ledge she’d been bracing against collapsed and she found herself tumbling head over heels towards a pile of coral. ”Jesus!” She managed to shove away from them, but got caught by a falling tree which she grabbed and clung to as it rushed downward. She felt a tremendous jolt as it hit bottom and she went flying through the air.

Luck put her down in a pile of earth and small rocks, instead of anything harder and she crawled out of the way of some falling limbs and huddled under a tree trunk as the collapse roared around her. She heard her name called and she lifted her head, peering through the branches towards the sound. She spotted Dar’s falling body, then saw it crumble in mid air and land, with rocks and dirt on top of her. ”Dar!”

Kerry didn’t wait for anything else. She dug out from her hiding spot and dashed across the still moving earth, through clouds of dust 84

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and shredded leaves, dodging the odd rolling boulder. ”D... oh god.”

She saw the arm sticking out from the dirt and scrambled over the last obstacle. Kerry jumped down next to where her lover had fallen and started frantically throwing debris off her. ”Dar? Hey!” She shoved dirt away from Dar’s head and was rewarded by a groan. ”Hey, hey, come on.” ”Okay, okay, take it easy,” Dar mumbled, getting her arms under her and pushing away from the dirt a little. She felt rocks and earth roll off her back, aided by Kerry’s hands ”Whoa, watch that last step.” She managed to joke faintly as she succeeded in sitting up, reaching to rub her head with a wince. ”Goddamn it.”

Kerry got into the dirt next to her and brushed her off gently.

”Jesus. Are you all right?” She checked Dar’s head anxiously. ”What happened? I thought you said there were no earthquakes in Florida?”

”Calm down.” Dar caught her hands and chafed them, feeling the tremors. ”It wasn’t an earthquake.” She looked around them as the rumble eased, and the dust settled, hearing the cries of their companions. ”It’s a sinkhole.”

”A sinkhole?” Kerry sank down next to her and leaned against her shoulder, sliding an arm around Dar’s waist. ”A sinkhole. Okay, so this is not part of the test, right?”

”No.” Dar gazed at her. ”Are you okay?”

”What? Oh sure. I’m fine. Absolutely,” Kerry assured her. ”Just a few bumps.”

”You’re sure?” Her lover gently inquired.

”Yes. I am,” Kerry stated.

”Okay. Well, you might want to let up on my arm, then. I’m losing feeling in my fingers.” Dar’s eyes twinkled a little.

Kerry stared down at her own hand, clenched around Dar’s wrist in a white knuckled death grip. ”Oh.” She loosened her hold. ”Sorry.” She took several breaths, then studied her companion. ”You’re bleeding.”

Dar glanced at her shoulder ”No. I’m all right. It’s just a scratch.”

A soft, knowing chuckle. ”Where have I heard that before?” Kerry replied as she checked the wound. ”Looks like a branch poked in here.”

She sighed and looked over her shoulder. ”Guess we’d better go find everyone.

”Yeah.” Dar stood, then winced as her weight came down on one knee. ”Oh, shit.” Her face twisted in pain and she sat back down, holding her breath until the jolts of pain subsided. ”Son of a bitch.”

”What?” Kerry grabbed her anxiously. ”Take it easy.” She gently straightened Dar’s leg out. ”What is it?”

”My knee,” Dar exhaled. ”I think the cap is dislocated.” She gingerly felt the front of her leg. ”Yeah, feel that.”

Kerry laid hesitant fingers over the denim covered surface and felt an ominous bulge. ”Ow, Jesus, Dar that must hurt like crazy.”

It was making her nauseous, in fact. ”Yeah...um...” Dar took a deep Hurricane Watch

85

breath. ”Listen, could you just, um, kind of twist that, and move it towards the inside of my leg?”

Wide green eyes stared at her. ”What?” Kerry yelped. ”You want me to do what?”

”Kerry, come on, stay with me here,” Dar urged. ”If you just knock it back in place it’s going to hurt a hell of a lot less.”

”I don’t think I can. God, Dar… ”

”Yes, you can,” Dar’s voice dropped. ”Come on now. It’ll just take a second. Grab it and twist.” She took hold of a nearby branch and clenched it as Kerry’s shaking hands fastened over the misplaced bone.

”That’s it, go on.”

Kerry closed her eyes and gritted her teeth, feeling the hard surface moving and slipping under her fingers. She fought down a queasy sensation and took as firm a hold as she could, tentatively twisting the bone out and down, conscious of the unmoving silence from her lover.

”Okay, hold on.”

She held her breath and pushed, then gasped as she felt the part slide into place. ”Did I get it?” Receiving no answer, she forced her eyes open to see a very pale Dar slumped against the debris, out cold. ”Oh shit!”

DAR BECAME GROGGILY aware of a dull, throbbing pain in her leg, and a warm tingling on her lips. She spent a moment deciding the two were probably not related, and let her eyelids drift open to see very concerned, very vibrant green eyes inches from her own. ”Uh.” She blinked and swallowed, running her tongue over her lips tentatively.

”Did you just kiss me?”

Kerry let out a shaky sigh of relief. ”Yes. I was trying to wake you up.”

”Mm. You know, shaking me would have done it too, but I’m not complaining,” Dar advised her wryly. ”Damn, sorry about that.”

”Wow, the pain must have been incredible, Dar, I...”

Her lover sighed. ”No, it wasn’t that. I mean, yes, it hurt, but not enough to knock me out.” She cleared her throat a little and struggled to sit up. ”It was the feeling of my bones grinding together. I used to pass out whenever they had to set something” She gave Kerry an apologetic look ”Should have warned you.” Her lips quirked. ”That, and long needles. Watch out.”

Kerry regarded her in mild surprise. ”Oh.” She sat back, rubbing Dar’s arm gently. ”I never would have guessed. I mean, you’re so, um...” She lifted a hand. ”You know.”

”Tough.” Dar smiled self-deprecatingly, as she eased her arms around her knees. ”I know. It’s a good act,” she acknowledged, straightening her leg carefully. ”That’s better,” she sighed. ”All right, where were we? Going to check for the others, right?”

Kerry sat back. ”Dar, why don’t you stay here? I’ll go check on 86

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everyone.” She got up, ducking under the branch they were sheltering beneath. ”Maybe I can find something for you to wrap around that.”

Dar reached over her head and grabbed the branch, pulling herself to her feet. ”No. I’d better find out now how—ouch.” She sucked in a breath, then exhaled it as she slowly put weight on her leg. It hurt, but it held, and she eased it up, flexed it a few times then put her foot back down again. ”Okay. I think that’s going to be all right.” She glanced out over the rubble. ”Jesus.”

The ground they’d been crossing had turned into a bowl like pit, with walls over thirty feet high all around them. The bottom was littered with rocks and shattered trees and a muddy seeping of water that Dar could feel chilling her soles.

A yell drifted over—her name—and they turned to see Mark climbing up on a half submerged tree trunk, waving at them. ”Come on.” Dar looked around, then picked up a broken limb to use as a support. “This could be our lucky day.”

“Lucky?” Kerry peered at her. “Let me check your head again.”

“Lucky because this pain in the ass exercise is over,” her boss clarified, “and we can go the hell home.”

“Ahh,” Kerry sighed. “Gotcha.”

They slowly made their way across the rubble, with Kerry managing to resist the urge to take Dar’s arm an entire five minutes before she gave in, gently tucking a hand inside Dar’s elbow as they went over uncertain footing. ”I know,” she started talking nervously, as she felt Dar take a breath. ”I know, and I don’t care, Dar. I’ll quit, I just...I don’t care if they know.”

Long pause. ”Um, actually, I was just going to remind you to watch out for those soft, white areas,” Dar replied gently. ”They’re limestone and probably slippery.” She paused, thinking. ”As for whether or not they know, I’m not going to worry about that right now. The important thing is for us to all get out of here.”

”Oh.” Kerry glanced down, and nodded a little. ”Okay. Sorry.” She felt a little silly. Of course Dar was right. No one would even be thinking about that now and she shouldn’t either. Duks’ comment had shaken her up a little, that was all.

Then she felt Dar’s arm shift and warm fingers curled around her own as she looked up, startled. Blue eyes gazed steadily back at her, a faint hint of challenge in the lilt of Dar’s eyebrows. Kerry smiled and gave the fingers a squeeze, then turned her attention back to finding a way across the slippery ground.

“HEY, GIVE ME a hand here,” Mark called over to where Duks was standing. ”Hold still, Mary Lou. Let me get this branch off you.” He gave Duks a nod as the Finance VP joined him and put a hand on the heavy limb. ”Thanks.”

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”Take it easy, Mary Lou,” Duks told the young woman as he and Mark pushed against the limb, trying to force it away from her body.

”Argh.” They shoved harder and managed to move the tree off Mary Lou’s trapped leg. ”There you go.”

”Augh.” The young woman crawled free and pulled herself to her feet. ”Thank you, thank you.” She gave Mark a grateful look as he took her arm, leading her over to where the rest of the group was gathering.

Dar was off a little ways, poking in the debris with her stick, while Kerry crouched next to Mariana, who had gotten a nasty cut on her arm.

Other than that and some bangs and bruises, they’d all survived intact, and now were standing or sitting in a rough circle, dazedly looking around them.

”Now what, Sherlock?” Steven came up behind Dar and glared at the walls blocking them in. ”You going to wave your damn broom and fly us all out of here.” He spat disgustedly. ”I can’t believe you got us into this, I think I’m going to—Urp.” The end of Dar’s stick was pinning him to a tree trunk and he struggled to breathe.

”You.” Dar pressed harder. ”Are.” She leaned closer. ”Getting.”

Her voice dropped, but somehow became more penetrating. ”On my nerves!” She paused, glaring. ”So shut up, or I’m gonna shove this stick right up your ass.” A deathly silence. ”Got me?”

Steven nodded once, then slumped as the stick was removed and he could breathe again. ”Bitch.” He rubbed his throat.

The tanned face creased into a feral smile. ”Jackass,” she responded, then turned and resumed her study of the wall.

”Oh, boy,” Mariana whispered as Kerry finished tying a bit of shirt sleeve over her cut. ”DR’s on the ragged edge, I see.”

Kerry glanced up at her boss, then exhaled. ”Yeah, but it wouldn’t have happened if he hadn’t pushed her. He’s been doing that all weekend. I was sort of surprised she hadn’t said anything before.”

Truculent green eyes regarded Mariana. ”It’s not her fault.”

The Personnel VP allowed a weary smile to cross her face. ”Whose fault it is doesn’t impact the amount of paperwork I’m going to have to do for this little trip.” She nudged Kerry with her knee. ”Go see if you can settle her down a little. We don’t need police reports on top of everything else.”

Kerry blinked. ”Oh, no, Dar wouldn’t...” She paused, remembering Kyle. ”Okay. I see your point.” She stood, buckling her belt pack back around her waist and picked her way over to where Dar was standing.

Steven gave her a cold stare as she passed and she returned it with a charming smile, which seemed to annoy him a lot.

Dar was scanning the wall, her pale blue eyes flicking here and there as she rested her weight on the stick to keep if off her knee.

”That’s a possibility.” She pointed as Kerry came up next to her. ”It’d be tough, but I think we might make it, or at least a few of us would, and then we could go get help.”

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Kerry gazed up. ”You mean where those trees are hanging down?”

”Mm hmm.” Dar’s attention was tightly focused. ”Yeah, we could get a boost up there and use those roots as handholds.”

It was a possibility, Kerry reasoned. ”That might work, yeah.” She put her hand on the stick, covering Dar’s fingers, which brought the ice blue eyes down to fasten on her. ”You doing all right?”

A faint crease showed in Dar’s forehead. ”Hmm? Oh, yeah, my knee aches a little and I’ve got a killer headache, but I’m okay. How about you?”

Kerry let her eyes slide to where Steven was sitting dourly on a log, then move back to Dar’s face. One eyebrow rose in question.

Dar looked puzzled for a moment, then she rolled her eyes. ”Oh, yeah, I’m fine. I just let him get to me for a minute.” She dismissed the incident. ”We’d better get started.”

Kerry tightened her fingers on Dar’s hand. ”Maybe we should have our lunches first, give everyone a chance to calm down...hmm?”

Dar considered that. ”Maybe,” she acknowledged. ”Half an hour won’t make much of a difference, I guess.” She allowed Kerry to lead her back to the group. ”Okay.” She got their attention effortlessly. ”We obviously need to get out of here.”

”Yes,” Duks agreed. ”Quickly. This is becoming quite slimy and I suspect water will be making us float shortly.” He tapped his foot in a growing puddle of clear, cold water.

”Jesu.” José dabbed at a raw looking scratch on his head. ”We could have been killed.”

”But we weren’t,” Dar told him. ”There’s a spot over there.” She pointed. ”I think we could all make it up there, and if not, those of us who can, will go get help.”

”From who? That idiotic woman?” Eleanor snapped, obviously upset and frightened. ”Don’t be stupid, Dar. We can’t climb up there and I’m not sitting down here in this freezing muck.”

”Come now, El,” Mariana forestalled Dar’s rising ire. ”Either you climb, or you stay here. You can’t say you’re not going to climb, and you don’t want to stay here. Pick one.” She sighed. ”I’m going to be filling out workman’s comps on you people all of next week, aren’t I?”

”We can call for real help when we get up there,” Dar explained.

”But everyone should try to make it. We don’t know how long it’s going to take, and you don’t want to be stuck out here when it gets dark.”

No one looked like they liked the idea, but reluctant nods went around the group.

”It will be lighter if we eat those lunches they gave us first,” Kerry reminded her boss. ”I could use the break.”

”Oh yeah.” Mark pawed at his pouch. ”That’s a good idea.”

Everyone stirred, pulling out their packages with varying levels of enthusiasm. ”What is this?”

Dar had seated herself on a rock, easing her leg out in front of her Hurricane Watch

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and turning her pack over in her finger. ”They’re called MRE's nowadays” She remarked. ”Military food.” She looked up as Kerry sat down next to her cross legged on a flat piece of limestone. ”They won’t kill you, but I won’t guarantee anything else.”

”Oh, lovely.” Kerry pulled at the package, tugging out small foil wrapped containers. ”How does it work?” She glanced up, then put her hand on Dar's knee. ”Hey.”

Dar had been leaning her head against the rock she was seated against, her eyes closed. Now she forced them open and regarded her friend. ”Yeah?” She felt suddenly exhausted and the throbbing in her head was getting worse.

”Here.” Kerry tucked something into her hand. ”I think you need that more than I do.”

Dar peered at the packet. ”Oh.” She smiled in reflex at the army issue generic Tylenol. ”Yeah.” With a sigh, she put her package on her lap and unwrapped its parts. ”Okay, this is a self-heating pouch.” She picked it up and pulled two lurid tabs on either end. ”Do that and whatever’s inside gets heated up by chemical action.” She glanced up, startled to see the whole group of them, less Steven, gathering around her. ”It’s not that hard, people. We are a technology company. Please remember that.”

”Well, well.” Duks pulled his tabs, then set the large packet aside.

”And what’s this? Do not tell me this is what you give us atheists on Christmas.” He picked up a smaller packet. ”Crackers, graham, 2.”

”Oh my god. Is this that stuff they feed the soldiers?” Eleanor’s eyes widened.

”Mm, yeah, I saw a special on that the other day.” Mark investigated his package. ”Silverware too. Pretty neat.”

Kerry opened her heated package and sniffed it. ”Oh.” She pulled her head back in surprise. ”I think this is lasagna.” She poked a spork in and dug a bit out, tasting it warily. ”Hey, that’s not bad.”

They ate their meals mostly in silence, on top of the soft, limestone rocks which were slowly becoming flooded by water. Dar found herself pushing her food around with her spork. She glanced to one side, then offered the remainder to Kerry. ”Here, you want to finish this?”

Kerry eyed her. ”You don’t like it?”

A shrug. ”It’s not bad. I’m just not that hungry,” Dar admitted. ”Go on. I saw you thinking about licking out that pouch.”

Kerry blushed, but took the offering and finished it off, then passed Dar her container of apple juice. ”Here. I don’t like it. Why don’t you take your aspirin?”

Dar took her advice and swallowed both Kerry’s tablets and her own, washing them down with the juice. Then she regarded the group.

”Well?”

”Right.” Duks slapped his knee. ”Let’s get going. I can’t wait to get back to our charming camp and the peanut butter sandwiches I’m sure 90

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will be there for us.” He stood up, balancing carefully on his rock.

José joined him. ”Son of a bitch. I’m going to have a thing to say when I get back, I’ll tell you that.” He glanced. ”Come on Eleanor, let’s get this over with, eh?”

They moved to the far wall, slipping and sliding over the slick rocks, and started a slow path up. Dar went to the front, discarding her stick as she slowly moved from rock to rock. ”Okay, everyone get up here first.”

”I’m not going that way,”Steven stated. ”I’ll meet you all up at the top.” He turned aside and started his own path up, grabbing on to thick vines which trailed down from half dislodged trees.

”He’s right, it’s easier there.” Eleanor abandoned them and followed Steven’s determined form. ”Come on, José, Charles, no sense in taking the hard way up.”

”Si,” the Sales VP agreed as he edged away from them and followed her. ”I’m coming.” Eleanor's thin assistant followed obediently, pushing his glasses up nervously.

Dar gazed after them as though about to speak, then shrugged and turned back to her task, leaning her head against the cool branches for a moment before she straightened and looked for the next step up. The throbbing was starting to subside, but she felt an odd kind of distance to her thoughts that made her wonder if she hadn’t done more than get her bell rung.

A hand suddenly warmed her back and she turned to see Kerry next to her, ostensibly looking for a good hold. ”Is that a good way up?”

The blonde woman asked, stepping up next to her and gazing, then turning to watch Steven’s progress up the wall. ”Or do they have the right idea, much as I hate to admit it?”

Dar smiled wearily. ”Well, that’s an easier climb, but I’m not sure it’s worth it,” she remarked.

”Why?” Kerry asked curiously.

”Those vines are covered with poison ivy,” Dar replied, glancing over as Duks and Mark, who were right behind her, started chuckling.

”Oh, no, don’t say that.” Mariana pushed the frazzled hair back out of her eyes. ”I’ll never hear the end of that, Dar. You’ll have done it on purpose to them.”

Dar merely shook her head and continued her way up, finding easy holds for the rest of her group. ”Easy there,” she warned. ”Grab that root. Yeah, there.” They moved slowly up the slope, using the handholds to keep their balance. Fortunately, the walls weren’t directly vertical and they made fair time, stopping halfway to catch their breaths and take a rest.

Steven, José, Charles and Eleanor had already reached the top and disappeared, and Dar found herself glad of their absence, realizing the constant strain of their irritating presence had really been wearing her down. Duks and Mariana seemed to be glad too, as they leaned against Hurricane Watch

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each other and wiped muddy sweat off their brows. Mark engaged Mary Lou into a conversation about the Marlins, which left Dar and Kerry standing next to each other against the slope.

”How’s the knee?” Kerry asked.

Dar shrugged and flexed the leg in question. ”It’s all right.” She leaned back against the dirt, feeling the coolness through the fabric of her shirt. The joint had stiffened up, but was more a nagging ache than a sharp pain, for which she was grateful.

The climb wasn’t helping, though she’d been able to use her arms and shoulders to pull herself up most of the way. ”Come on,” she exhaled. ”I vote we commandeer the damn bus and get the hell out of here the minute we get back.”

They all looked at Mariana, who stuck her tongue out at Dar. ”Only if you stop at the first blessed Dairy Queen we find, DR. I have to get the taste of that mint jelly out of my mouth.”

Dar brightened a little. ”Dairy Queen, hey, yeah. They do have those up here, don’t they.” Ice cream would just hit the spot, she mused, as she resumed her hunt for roots to grab onto. Her stomach still felt queasy, but she knew she’d never, ever been too nauseous to eat ice cream.

”You had to mention that,” Kerry sighed, as she climbed up next to her lover. ”Now we’ll be hearing about chocolate bonnets until we get there.”

”What’s that?” Duks inquired, offering Mary Lou a hand up next to him.”It’s a hardened chocolate shell,” Dar answered, with a half grin.

”They dip the cones in it, and let it harden.” She pulled herself up one more level. ”It’s messy as hell, but it tastes great.”

”I take it you’ve been subjected to that, Kerry?” Mary Lou asked, as she edged up the rocks.

”Oh yeah,” Kerry answered, then realized how that sounded. ”Um, one of the last Dairy Queens in Miami is just down the road from our Kendall office. We have to pass by there to and from meetings.”

”Uh, huh, I see.” Mary Lou nodded.

They continued to climb until Dar, in the lead, was almost at the top. She slid over one final bit and grabbed a tree hanging off the edge, pulling herself up and over onto the rough path they’d come in on.

No one else was there. ”Bastards,” Dar muttered, as she turned to put a hand under Kerry’s elbow to haul her up. ”Went on without us.”

”Those pigs.” Kerry’s brow creased. ”I can’t believe they did that.

We would have waited.”

The rest of the group came up and sat down on the path. ”Well,”

Mariana exhaled. ”That’s more exercise than I’ve gotten since I was in the Girl Scouts.”

”You have that correct,” Duks agreed, sprawling with his legs outstretched and leaning back on his hands. ”But we have made it, and 92

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as such, I proclaim this part of our little seminar a success.”

Dar got to her feet. ”I’ll vote for that,” she agreed. ”But then, we never had a cooperation issue between us anyway.”

Mariana sighed, and got up as well. ”All right, all right, so it was a bad idea.” She brushed herself off. ”Although, if this hadn’t happened, it might have been more valuable.”

”Yeah,” Kerry agreed softly as they trudged off down the path, as the late afternoon sun slanted through the trees. ”Well, maybe we can work out something on a smaller scale back there, like in a hotel, or something.”

”A comfortable hotel,” Mary Lou agreed.

”A comfortable hotel with beds, air conditioning, and televisions,”

Mark added.

”Don’t forget modem jacks.” Dar gave them a half grin. ”And room service.”

”Room service, oh yes,” Duks agreed.

They all laughed a little as they came to a bend in the path, walking around it almost abreast, stopping as they reached the overlook to the rope bridge.

They stopped, staring at the strands in puzzlement.

Clothing hung off the railing, and loud, angry, frustrated voices were heard below.

”Uh oh.” Mariana peeked over, then hid her eyes. ”I don’t think I have a personnel report to cover this, Dar.”

”What?” The executive peered over. ”Oh boy.”

Kerry balanced on her shoulder. ”Oh my god, they’re naked.”

”Throw the goddamn clothes down, you idiots!” Steven screamed, his head just poking out of the water.

Dar leaned against the railing. ”Say please,” she called out, tauntingly.

”Dar.” Kerry gave her a slap. ”C’mon now.” She picked up the shirts and pants and balled them up, then hesitated. ”If I throw them, they’ll fall in the water,” she yelled down.

”What in the heck are you people doing, anyway?” Mark leaned next to Dar. ”Lousy time to go swimming, you know?”

José stood up, the water draining off his belly. ”Some bastards came with guns and made us!”

Dar sighed. ”It was funny, right up till now.” She backed up and glanced around, then her eyes fell on the snake. ”Hold on.” She made her way along the bridge until she got to it, then she carefully untangled its length from the ropes and slung it around her neck. ”Here.” She edged back to where Kerry was waiting. ”Tie it on to its tail.” She turned to Mark. ”Keep an eye out for anyone coming. Musta been some hunters or someone who decided to play a joke on them.”

Mark backed up and looked around. ”What am I supposed to be looking for? Morons with rifles? My job description doesn’t cover this, Hurricane Watch

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Dar,” he muttered.

Kerry finished tying the clothes to the snake’s tail, then watched as Dar lowered it down to where José was standing, having to crouch all the way down and extend her arm to get it low enough. Kerry kept one hand on the platform and the other hovering, in case her boss lost her balance, though if Dar did and she grabbed her, for sure they were both going creekward.

”Okay, you got it?” Dar yelled wincing as the strain pulled against her leg. She watched José reach up, then closed her eyes in reflex. ”Oh god. I didn’t need to see that,” she muttered, hearing Eleanor scream.

”Shut up, I’m getting the goddamn clothes,” José snapped, finally working

them

free.

”Here.”

He

released

the

snake’s

tail.

”Done...aiiieee!” he yelped as the snake, freed from Dar’s hand, dropped in rubbery coils around him. ”Jesu, Dar. I’m gonna kick your ass when I get up there.”

Dar straightened slowly, conscious of Kerry's hand on her elbow.

”You couldn’t kick my ass if I were a desk chair and you had brass boots,” she yelled back down.

”Would you two just shut up!” Eleanor screamed. ”Oh my god, I'm itching all over.”

”So am I,” Steven chattered, tugging his long sleeve shirt on. ”Oh shit. Augh!”

”On second thought, clothes were probably a bad idea,” Dar commented with mild interest to Kerry. ”That fabric rubbed up all over the poison ivy.”

”Ouch.” Kerry winced, looking at her hands. ”Thanks for telling me.”Dar smiled. ”I’m sure you’ll be fine.” She chuckled, then exhaled, as the four complaining, blotchy, muddy, wet, angry people closed in on them. ”All right, enough!” She raised her voice. ”Let’s just get the hell out of here and scream at each other later, all right?”

”That’s the smartest thing you’ve said since we’ve been here,”

Eleanor snapped. ”Get out of my way.” She shoved Dar aside and stomped across the rope bridge, seemingly oblivious of it’s height and unsteadiness, scratching frantically at her arm as she did so.

”Okay.” Dar leaned back against the ropes. ”Guess we’re going back to camp.” They all filed past her one at a time and she watched them cross, waiting for Kerry to get part of the way over before she brought up the rear, placing her feet carefully on the rope.

”Goddamn it all to hell. I’m going to sue until I’ve gotten every single cent out of this goddamned company.” José was stomping along.

”Irresponsible, danger to its customers—putas!”

Dar sighed and tried to filter his voice out, concentrating on the pain in her leg instead. That worked, but it got her preoccupied, so much so that she didn’t realize everyone stopped and she thumped into Kerry’s back with a jolt, knocking the breath out of both of them.

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”Wh...oh...sorry.” She steadied herself on Kerry’s shoulder and exhaled.

”What’s up?”

Silently, Mark pointed into the camp. Dar stepped up next to him and peered through the leaves to where she could see the main hall.

Their bus was parked off to one side and in front of the structure were two pickup trucks, with various camping style items in the back and prominent shotgun racks. Two men were sprawled in the back of one truck chugging beer and two others were on the porch, one of them pinning a hapless Skippy against the wall as he tried to kiss her. The guide was squirming frantically, trying to escape.

”It’s those bastards that made us strip,” Steven snarled. ”Let me at their ugly butts.” He scratched his arms frantically. ”Auggghghh.”

Dar felt a cold wave wash over her, leaching the color from the vibrant foliage and draining the exhaustion that had been plaguing her since the accident. She felt her attention focus on the men, and a faint, grim smile played about her lips. ”All right, that’s it. I’ve had enough,”

she said as she pushed her way past José and Steven, and stalked into the open clearing.

”Where in the hell do you think you’re going?” Steven hissed, grabbing at her arm.

She shook him off like his touch was nothing. ”I’m going to go work out some repressed frustration,” she growled, then started moving again. “Just be glad it’s on them and not you.”

”Dar!” Kerry's voice was low, but anxious. ”Wait—”

For a long moment she was alone, then she heard steps behind her and a hand grabbed the back of her shirt. She pulled free. ”Stay here.”

She told Kerry as she headed towards the two men on the porch. ”Hey!”

She was up on the platform before they could react, then one belched. ”Hey, you’re pretty!” He lurched towards her, reaching out a hand. ”C’mere, pretty lady.”

Dar felt the motion before it happened, a reaction buried deep in her body that twisted her shoulders and sent an elbow into his jaw, slamming him back against the wall with a startled yelp.

She turned as the other one came for her and nailed him with an overhand right, almost exulting in the sharp sting of impact that traveled up her arm and through her shoulders. He staggered back and she followed, grabbing him by the dirty fabric of his flannel shirt and lifting him up as she shoved him against the door of the main hall.

He opened his mouth, then looked into her eyes and fell silent, his lip quivering.

”You,” Dar sent her voice as low as it would go. ”Are between me—” She kneed him in the groin and watched his eyes roll up into his head. ”And Dairy Queen.”

She let him drop and he collapsed, grabbing his parts and making a low, whining sound. Dar turned and glared at the two beer guzzlers, who had picked up their rifles and started to hop over the side of the Hurricane Watch

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truck. She leveled her gaze on them and stalked towards them, her hands flexing and unflexing into fists.

They stopped in mid motion, one falling over and landing on his head and the other falling back on his ass in the truck bed. The one who had fallen out of the truck scrambled to the driver’s side, pulled the door open and got inside, then hastily started the truck and threw it into gear. He stepped on the gas and it took off, its tires bumping in the dirt and tossing the man in back up and down like a frog on a hot car roof, his desperate yells following the truck’s engine sound out of the camp.

Dar turned and looked at the man she’d hit first. He crawled out of her sight and off the porch, rolling under it and startling the camp dog, who scooted out barking in outrage. Then her eyes slowly swept up and pinned themselves on Skippy. ”Where’s the bus driver?”

The girl opened her mouth and closed it several times before any sound came out. ”Oh, uh...I...he's...um...I...”

”Find him,” Dar growled.

”Yyyyes ma’am.” Skippy fled.

It was quiet then, only the sound of Kerry’s hiking boots scuffing across the sandy ground broke the silence as the blonde woman crossed the area and hopped up on the porch. ”Well,” she murmured, putting her hands on her hips.

Dar regarded her wryly. ”Sorry I took off like that. You okay?”

Kerry pursed her lips and regarded the moaning man on the floor.

”Um, yeah, I guess.” She waved the rest of their group forward. ”You all right?”

Dar leaned back against the wall as their group arrived, giving her wary, respectful looks. ”Yeah, I’m fine, actually,” she remarked. ”I just want some ice cream.” She walked to the bench outside the door and sat down on it, stretching her legs out before her and exhaling.

Skippy came back, eyeing Dar nervously. ”He’s on his way.”

”Good,” Dar said, her eyes closed. ”Do you have first aid stuff here?” She turned her head. ”A sinkhole opened up underneath us.

Those four got tangled in poison ivy.” She nodded towards Steven, Eleanor, Charles and José, who glared at her.

”Uh.” Skippy glanced between them. ”Maybe I’d better call the paramedics.”

Eleanor gave her an evil look. ”Will they keep us here?”

”I...I don’t know, um, probably,” the guide responded weakly.

”Just put us on the damn bus,” the Marketing VP snarled. ”My lawyer will do the rest of the talking.”

”Mine too,” José chimed in.

”I am a lawyer,” Steven added. “And boy, I hope you guys have insurance,” he snapped at her. ”This was disgraceful, not to mention dangerous.”

”Yeah.” José grunted.

”Hold it.” Kerry stood up and walked between them, seeing that 96

Melissa Good

Skippy was about to burst into tears. ”Stop yelling at her. It’s not her fault.” She gave the guide a quietly sympathetic look. ”She’s just doing her job.”

Skippy gave her a tremulous smile. ”Thanks.”

Kerry grinned warmly back.

”Shut up, you whore,” Steven spat disgustedly.

Kerry turned to look at him, aware of the sudden motion on the peripherals of her vision. ”Excuse me?”

”You’re Dar’s whore. We all know it, so just shut up, and go lick her or some—” He never even saw the fist that hit his face, sending a sharp crack across the porch. Steven’s body slid down onto the ground, bonelessly.

Kerry shook her hand out. ”Ouch.” She winced. ”That hurt like heck.” Everyone was looking at her in shock including Dar, who had stood and started to walk over. ”And for the record. I’m not anyone’s whore.”

An awkward silence fell. Finally, Skippy cleared her throat. ”Um, would anyone like some cookies?” she offered with desperate cheerfulness. ”We’ve got three kinds, and some juice, while we wait for the bus. I mean, I’ve asked the camp manager to get your things from the cabin, and I, you know, we’ve never had anything like this happen before, and we’re really sorry. Really, really sorry. Can I get you all some juice?”

Long pause. ”Cookies?” her voice cracked a little.

Mariana, mercifully, came to her rescue. ”That would be great, and if you have Calamine lotion. I’m sure it wasn’t your fault. Let’s see if we can find some Band-Aids, too.” She ushered Skippy inside the hall as Kerry walked back over and sat down next to Dar, somewhat self-consciously. Her hand hurt like hell and she cradled it in her other one, staring down at the swelling knuckles as though they belonged to someone else.

Jesus. She’d hit someone. Worse, she’d hit the assistant vice president of marketing for the company she worked for. All over a couple of words. Ashamed, she glanced up at Dar.

Warm, proud blue eyes gazed back at her, over lips that held a definite, gentle smile.

”I shouldn’t have done that,” Kerry whispered.

”No, but it’s all right,” Dar told her, deliberately reaching over and taking her hand, examining the bruises carefully. ”That’s going to hurt for a few days.”

”Mm.” Kerry absorbed the warmth of her lover’s fingers around hers. ”Looks like yours did that night,” she murmured, glancing around at the rest of the group, who were studiously looking elsewhere. ”This is really messed up.”

”Don't worry about it,”

Dar told her. ”We’ll get through this, trust me.”

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Liquid green eyes gazed up at her. ”I do.”

Dar nodded a little reassuringly, then sat back and exhaled, willing that driver to hurry.