Vicious Memories

Chapter 24

The threat of rain shadowed our expedition with charcoal clouds.

With bags full of food and supplies, eight of us had been tracking since dawn. Alice had found a set of tracks and a trail to the northeast, hastily obscured and cutting toward the center of the island.

We'd lost it two hours ago and split into two groups of four. Alice, Tana, and Scott, the three best trackers, had perused every section of the jungle around us to no avail, making a split the best choice left. Tana led one group south, into the heart of the forest. Alice, Arun, Scott, and I continued northeast toward the beautiful foothills of Mount Home.

Festering thoughts dogged every step we took. I felt like my brain had caught an incurable rot that would eat at it until I was reduced to nothing. I wanted, I needed, answers. As I had told Alice, nothing about this was right. Not just the killings, but the fact that all these people had been stranded on this island with no idea how or why they were here.

In the middle of the afternoon we began to ascend a hill two miles from the base of the mountain. Fat drops of rain slapped the earth. I felt the first one strike the crown of my head with an insulting smack.

"We'll take a quick break," Arun announced. "Ten minutes. Drink and eat a little."

Alice and Scott settled down against the huge trunk of a nearby tree.

I did not.

"We should keep going."

"No," Arun said, rummaging in his backpack. "We need a break."

"There are only a few more hours of daylight left. We don't have time for a break. We're all fine to keep going."

"I want to find Mads, too. But we're tired."

I peered through the gaps in the trees, trying to imagine myself catching sight of Mads in the darkening forest. Alice and Scott were so much better at tracking than I was that all I could do was follow in their wake and try to interest myself in the myriad shades of green around me, or the patterns of the bark in the trees, or the overlapping sounds of life that were only audible when I concentrated.

"We should keep going," I pressed.

Arun straightened with a sigh, leaving his pack and spear on the ground.

This part of the jungle wasn't particularly dense. I could see Mount Home in the distance through the canopy, towering over us. The rain brought a dark and mildewy smell with it. Close by, under a tree, Scott had put his food down and was getting to his feet. Alice chewed a banana, unconcerned.

All I could think about was that people were dying. People were being kidnapped. People I thought I cared about.

And so far we had absolutely nothing to show for it. No leads. No suspects for the murders. No goddamn memories. I cracked my knuckles and glanced up at the gray sky, then back down at the man in front of me.

"We're running out of time," I said.

"No," Arun said, "we aren't. But if we get caught unprepared and tired out here we'll be in serious trouble."

"And what about Mads? Is she not in serious trouble right now?"

"We have no idea where she is. She could be on the other side of the island at this point."

"All the more reason to finish searching so we can know for sure."

Alice took the last bite of her banana and got to her feet. Thunder tolled, a rumbling shockwave that swept across the island.