PREDATOR ISLAND (Sea Lab Book 2)

CHAPTER 35

If the journey thus far was considered difficult, then the leg that lay ahead might be thought of as grueling and arduous. The trek through the jungle valley and hills lasted till noon before the incline among the towering trees vaulted up into a thigh and calve burning hike. Sweat trickled down faces and lungs heaved for the satisfying fix of oxygen as they pushed up the mountainside, but regardless, Jake was glad to say goodbye to the river. It was where he almost bit the dust, twice. Once when he fell from the narrow ledge on the cliff face, and again, when he encountered the big feline. He was the last to jump into the water, and the closest to becoming cat food.

Grunting and straining, he tried to stay in front of Sarah, but it wasn't easy. Bottom line, she possessed far more strength and stamina than he did. To look at her, she appeared as normal as any woman in her late twenties. He glanced back once to see her taking one step after another with little or no exertion on her face. She wasn't even breathing hard. She forged on like they were on a casual nature trail. He wasn't sure if she was even sweating. In the early going, Jake faltered and felt her hand on his lower back. She didn't pass him but supported him. Three hundred feet up, everyone but Sarah called for a break. They needed thirty minutes to breathe and rest their exhausted muscles.

Jake guzzled from his canteen and wiped sweat from his brow with the back of his wrist. "You need some water?"

"I'm good," Sarah replied. "Best to save it for you. Might be a while before we get back to the river."

"What about the lagoon that's supposed to be up there? Dr. Graham said he saw it when he flew over it."

"It might not be drinkable. Could be polluted by the volcano."

"I thought it was inactive?"

"Maybe so, but sulphur dioxide might still be present if there's any magma near the crust. It might not be worth the risk."

Jake huffed out a small laugh. "Just another scientific stroll for you, huh?"

"Thinking keeps my mind occupied." Sarah smiled.

"I was referring to climbing this mountain more than anything."

"It's not too bad right now, but what I'd be worried about is the last two hundred feet. That'll try our resolve."

His gaze followed the direction of her eyes as she looked up at the almost vertical cliff. "Don't remind me. I know we have to scale that before it turns back to a steep hike again."

"Looks like sixty to seventy feet of free climbing," Tony said, taking a bite out of a crisp pond-apple. "These are good, by the way, I don't care what the doc says."

"They're bloody green," Dr. Graham replied. "They're not ripe till they turn yellow."

Tony took another bite and savored it. Shrugged. Leaned in closer to Jake and Sarah and said, "You think the old guy can make the climb?"

"I'm not that far away from you," Graham replied. "And yes, I can bloody well make it. It's not me you should be worried about." He glared at Rachel.

She took the hint from the doctor. "I know I'm more of a lab coat person than a mountain climber. But I am a scuba diver. So, I'm not a slouch. I'm active and athletic. And Tony gave me a few pointers on the way up. And I survived that narrow ledge without slipping. I think I'll be okay."

"She's gotta point," Jake said. "The ledge almost got me,"

"It did get you," Graham said. "But your lovely partner saved you from disaster." He stared at Sarah and drew out his next sentence. "What precisely are you, by the way?"

"Excuse me?"

"Are you some kind of super woman or something?"

"Why would you think that?" Sarah hardened her eyes.

"Oh, no reason, just wondering how someone with your build and body weight, leaning at such an odd angle, could hold and lift someone pushing two hundred pounds while standing on a precarious narrow ledge. That's all." Graham turned away, nibbling on the beef jerky stick he stole from Jake.

Sitting there, Jake wondered why the man waited so long to eat it, if he was so hungry earlier. He shook his head. Everyone added a certain level of complexity to this adventure.

When Savannah leaned over and whispered in Dylan's ear, he stood and said, "Break's over. Time to scale that bluff."

One at a time, they rose to their feet and readied themselves for the ascent. Jake shoulder his backpack, as did Rachel.

"I'll take that," Tony replied. "You're as capable as any novice mountain climber, but the added weight might throw you off."

Rachel agreed and passed the pack over to Tony. Now, they were all set to go.

As Dylan and Savannah went first, Jake and Sarah waited for them to get halfway up before they considered taking to the cliff face. As Jake peered up, Tony stood off to the side with Rachel, pointing and giving her last minute instructions. Jake noticed Dylan using certain hand holds, and behind him, Savannah using the same ones. That might work, or it could backfire if Dylan's weight weakened the grooves and ridges in the rock. But for the most part they didn't have a choice, and no one wanted to be left behind with the gigantic black tiger lurking in the shadows.

Jake refused to go before Sarah. He insisted she start her climb first, and then he'd follow her up. Maybe it was the wrong decision? But it was a risk he was willing to take. He wasn't as skilled of a free climber as Tony, but he had a few under his belt, so he'd manage.

A few minutes later, Dylan and Savannah crawled over the top of the cliff. They'd made it to the safety of the next steep slope. Jake assumed they'd conquered a few cliffs of their own in the past. Maybe somewhere in Texas? But as far as he knew, Sarah had never done anything like this before. He watched in amazement as she scaled the rock face with agility and ease. With her well underway, he grabbed a hand and foot hold and started climbing. Along the way, Tony stuck close to Rachel and gave her advice on the way up. Jake looked down when she slipped and cried out. But Tony was there, telling her which groove to sink her fingers into and which protrusion to nestle her foot on.

Jake shook his head and continued up. He ascended slow and Sarah made it up long before he did. But soon enough, he reached the top, and with her help, he crawled over the high ridge to safety.

Rachel's progress was slower, but eventually, Tony shoved her up from down below.

Jake snagged her by the hand and pulled her over the top.

Finally, Tony joined them on the slope, whistling to himself and offering them a lighthearted grin. Jake half expected him to produce an apple from his pocket.

The next one hundred and thirty feet was nothing compared to the skill it took to climb the cliff. But it didn't take long for exhaustion to set in again. When they finally made it above the tree line and scrambled over the mound at the very top, everyone collapsed, out of breathe, except for Sarah. She stood, turning, gazing back down at the valley floor and the heart of the jungle they'd just trekked. Before long, Jake joined her, peering up at the rest of Cerro Yglesia, which towered another thousand or more feet into the sky.

Jake stood before the greenish-blue water of the lagoon, which was held inside a large round caldera that used to be an active volcano.

He thought of the third and final clue, 'One mouth swallows the mist that clouds the way.'

"We made it," he said, "what do we do now?"