PREDATOR ISLAND (Sea Lab Book 2)

CHAPTER 16

Jake watched—his eyes darting from one person to the other—as everyone took in the scene of the dismembered body. As far as he knew, this was not what any of them were expecting. If Dylan or Savannah knew about dead park rangers before they arrived on Cocos, they showed no evidence in their facial expressions or body language. They seemed as shocked as everyone else.

The park ranger's uniform was discernible even if it was ripped and shredded by whatever animal had feasted on his flesh. Tony held Rachel around the waist as she calmed herself, panting and wired eyes still locked on the corpse. Sarah broke into Jake's view, stepping in front of him and squatting next to the body, her burnt-orange hair falling wildly past her shoulders. Finally, Dylan and Savannah crowded around, their jaws sagging.

As Jake studied the ranger—the man's missing arm and leg stood out grotesquely as dried bloody stumps—he began to ponder the true reason of why the island had been evacuated. And he realized something rather obvious...not everyone made it out alive. Now, here they were in the middle of it all.

"He's been dead for a while," Sarah said. "Likely since the ban went into effect two months ago. You can tell by the rapid rate of decay."

Tony snarled his nose. "I'd say that's a fair statement judging by the way his skin is sticking to his face like a piece of beef jerky."

Jake knelt next to Sarah, caught her gaze. She was solid as a rock, not the least bit disturbed. "So," he said, "having any second thoughts? Say the word and we're back on the Zodiac, heading for the yacht."

"The camp is grown up with weeds; no one has been here recently. I'd say we're safe for now, but we need to do a thorough search to see if there are more bodies."

"Fair enough." Jake nodded and stood. "You heard her. Spread out in two's and turn this place upside down."

"Good idea," Dylan replied. "Savannah and I will take the side with the tool shed."

"Tony, Rachel...take the cabins," Jake said. "Sarah and I will comb the perimeter."

In eerie silence, each group set off for their assigned search areas. Jake followed Sarah as she hiked over dead tree limbs and small scrubby bushes. Her focus seemed razor sharp and dialed in on their surroundings. Jake felt hypersensitive to the sounds of the jungle—his boots squashing dried leaves, morning sunlight penetrating through the canopy above, and the caws of birds somewhere near the beach. The air smelt of salt from the ocean and somewhat sweet from the fruit and coconut trees. If he remembered correctly, the island was supposed to harbor a few species of cats, wild boar, rats, and maybe deer. Nothing big enough to devour a man.

They searched the outskirts for at least ten to fifteen minutes without much luck, until...

"Here's another body," Sarah said, pointing to a depression in the tall grass.

Jake stopped in his tracks and swallowed a hard lump in his throat. He concentrated on keeping his stomach from retching up his breakfast. Another ranger...this one with half his torso missing. His gaze skimmed over the body and then looked away. Put a hand to his mouth and swallowed again, this time forcing the queasiness down. "This is not looking good."

"I'm beginning to form a hypothesis." Sarah never took her eyes off the body.

"Please share."

"A wild animal killed the park rangers and they closed down the island in a panic."

"That seems obvious, but what kind of animal? From recollection, I don't think there are supposed to be any man eaters in this habitat."

"That's correct. But obviously, something killed this man." Sarah turned to Jake. "Two weeks ago, I would have said that we get out of here as fast as we can, but..."