Page 63 of Taking the Heat

‘God, I bloody hope so.’ Meghan darted forward, delicate and graceful, and kneed Dante powerfully between the legs.

He squealed, high and long, slumping away from me and clutching his crotch. Clara crouched and swiped her leg around, knocking Dante off his feet. As he hit the ground, Jen stomped a foot on his chest, winding him, then crushed her booted foot to his windpipe.

‘Girls, I will stay here with this piece of human garbage,’ Jen said pleasantly. ‘Megan, run the keys to base, and Clara can help Tara walk back.’

Clara looped an arm around my waist and indicated Dante. ‘Will you be okay with fuck-nuts?’

‘Oh yes,’ she grinned, grinding her foot down as Dante gurgled. ‘He is not the first man who has tried to overpower a woman around me. I may be a sex addict, but I’ve never been taken against my will.’ Like the tree she was painted to resemble, Jen was unbending and beautiful.

Meghan stepped forward and took the key bag from my hand, where I still clutched it fiercely. ‘You did grand, lady.’ She dashed away, light on her feet, a demonic jet-black pixie.

Clara walked us away, her warm arm tight around my waist. She was surprisingly strong for such a tiny thing. She spewed a litany of cuss words as she steered us back through the foliage. ‘Mother-fucking-Italian-crusty-cock ass-wipe-douchebag! I hope Jen fucking cuts his balls off and feeds them to him. Touch my girl and die, while I take a dump on your grave!’

‘I’m your girl?’ I asked, shakily.

‘You know you fucking are.’

‘I love you, Clara,’ I told her, squeezing my friend’s hand.

Under her khaki colours, she blushed. ‘Bitch, don’t lez out on me. I love you too, whatevs. Come on, let’s find some help and get Dante tied in a sack of fish guts and dumped in sharky waters.’

We moved as quick as I could manage, the lack of food combining with shock to make each step a wobbly balancing act. Finally, we broke out into the girls’ base clearing, where the other ladies stood celebrating and about half the guys sat on the ground, looking beaten.

Meghan ran up. ‘We won! And I sent the crew out looking for you guys and a team is on their way to Jen and Dante. The producers want to talk to all of us when we get back.’

Tears filled my vision. ‘Thank you so much, both of you. If it weren’t for you guys and Jen … I don’t know what would have happened. You’re all amazing.’

‘Anytime, girl.’ Meghan smiled proudly.

I love my girls, but I needed my man. ‘Have you seen Chris?’ I said.

‘He ran off to look for you. Hey, look! Guess who’s back!’

Dante and Jen broke out into the clearing, his arm pinned to his back by Jen’s tight grip as she marched him in front of her. The crew trailing after them looked on uselessly.

‘This man should be arrested for attempted rape,’ said Jen, pushing him to the ground in front of the nearest producer.

‘I keep telling you all, my English, she’s nota so good!’ Dante’s accent grew stronger as he tried to lie his way out of trouble. ‘Dante thought we supposed to capture the girls, yes? That’s all I was doing!’

‘You dirty fucking liar,’ shrieked Clara. ‘Bullshit!’

‘Dante is so-a sorry, he get it so wrong.’ Penitently, he shook his head.

‘You people don’t actually believe him, right?’ Meghan, Clara and Jen rounded on the production team, defending my honour and blowing holes in Dante’s excuses.

Meanwhile, Chris’ voice yelled my name and I turned to the sound. ‘Tara!Tara?’

‘Chris! Here!’

He sprinted towards me, his eyes like blue daggers through his grey paint. ‘Babe, talk to me, are you okay?’ He wrapped me in a bear hug and I slumped into his embrace, allowing him to smother my face in kisses. His bare chest felt like a warm blanket against my breasts and I pressed in closer to him.

‘I’m okay, I promise. Well, there’s a few splinters in my back, but as long as they get rid of Dante, I’ll be fine.’

But you didn’t, did you, morons?

(Producer, off camera:Tara, we explained to you. You guys were off the camera grid, and the GoPro didn’t capture anything other than Dante picking you up and he explained he misunderstood the game rules.)

That’s such a crock of shit, and you guys are swallowing it. What about the three witnesses?

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