Finally, he turned to Frank. "Something's bothering me. Something we neglected to address after the attack back at the village:"
"What?"
"Remember Kouwe's assessment that we were being tracked?"
"Yeah, but he wasn't a hundred percent sure. Just some picked fruit and bushes disturbed during the night. No footprints or anything concrete:"
Nate glanced over his shoulder. "Let's say the professor was correct. If so, who's tracking us? It couldn't have been the Indians at the village. They were dead before we even entered the jungle. So who was it?"
Frank noticed the direction of Nate's stare. "You think we're still being tracked. Did you see something?"
"No, not really . . . just an odd reflection in the trees a while back. It's probably nothing:"
Frank nodded. "All the same, I'll let Captain Waxman know. It wouldn't hurt to be on extra guard out here:" Frank dropped back to speak with the Rangers' leader, who was marching with Olin Pasternak.
Alone, Nate stared into the shadowy forest around him. He was suddenly less sure that leaving the others behind was such a wise move.
5:12 PM.
Manny ran a brush through Tor-tor's coat. Not that the bit of hygiene was necessary. The jaguar did a good enough job with his own bristled tongue. But it was a chore that both cat and human enjoyed. Tor-tor responded with a slow growl as Manny groomed the cat's belly. Manny wanted to growl himself, but not in contentment and pleasure.
He hated being left behind by the others.
Hearing a rustle at his side, Manny glanced up. It was the anthropologist, Anna Fong. "May I?" She pointed to the jaguar.
Manny lifted an eyebrow in mild surprise. He had noticed the woman eyeing the cat before, but he had thought it was with more fear than interest. "Sure:" He patted the spot next to him. She knelt, and he handed her the brush. "He especially likes his belly and ruff worked over."
Anna took the brush and bent over the sleek feline. She stretched her arm, cautiously wary as Tor-tor watched her. She slowly lowered the brush and drew it through his thick coat. "He's so beautiful. Back at home, in Hong Kong, I watched the cats stalk back and forth in their cages at the zoo. But to raise one of them yourself, how wonderful that must be:"
Manny liked the way she talked, soft with a certain stilted diction, oddly formal. "Wonderful, you say? He's been eating through my household budget, chewed through two sofas, and shredded I don't know how many throw rugs:"
She smiled. "Still . . . it must be worth it:"
Manny agreed, but he was reluctant to speak it aloud. It was somehow unmanly to express how much he loved the great big lug. "I'll have to release him soon:"
Though he tried to hide it, she must have heard the sorrow in his words. Anna glanced up to him, her eyes supportive. "I'm sure it's still worth it"
Manny grinned shyly. It sure was.
Anna continued to massage the cat with the brush. Manny watched her from the side. One fall of her silky hair was tucked behind an ear. Her nose crinkled ever so slightly as she concentrated on the cat's grooming.
"Everyone!" a voice called out, interrupting them.
They both turned.
Nearby, Corporal Jorgensen lowered the radio's receiver and shook his head. He turned and faced the camp. "Everyone. I've got good news and bad news:"
A universal grumbling met the soldier's attempt at joviality.
"The good news is that the Brazilian army has rousted up a helicopter to fly us out of here:"
"And the bad?" Manny asked.
Jorgensen frowned. "It won't be here for another two days. With the plague spreading through the region, the demand for aircraft is fierce. And for the moment, our evac is a low priority."
"Two days?" Manny spoke up, accepting the brush back from Anna. Irritation entered his voice. "Then we could've traveled with the others until then:"
"Captain Waxman had his orders," Jorgensen said with a shrug.
"What about the Comanche helicopter stationed at Wauwai?" Zane asked. He had been lounging in his hammock,
quietly fuming.
Private Camera answered from where she was cleaning her weapon. "It's a two-Beater attack chopper. Besides, the Comanche's held in reserve to back up the other team as necessary."
Manny shook his head and furtively glanced at Kelly O'Brien. She sat in her hammock, eyes tired, dull, defeated. The waiting would be the worst for her. Two more days lost before she could join her sick daughter.
Kouwe spoke from near the large Brazil nut tree. He had been examining the crude markings knifed in the bark by Clark, and now had his head cocked questioningly. "Does anyone else smell smoke?"
Manny sniffed, but the air seemed clear.
Anna crimped her brow. "I smell something. . :'
Kouwe swung around the base of the large Brazil nut tree, nose half raised. Though long out of the forests, the professor's Indian senses were still keen. "There!" he called out from the far side.
The group followed after him. Camera quickly slapped her M-16 back together, hauling it up as she stood.