Page 60 of Lost In Kakadu

He swam to the edge dragging dinner behind him. After he climbed onto the boulder, he lay back absorbing the warmth from the rock. Clear uninterrupted sky above was a welcome sight after days in the dense jungle.

The view over the edge was simply perfect. Water flowed between thetwo boulders as a powerful spout, cascading into another, larger lagoon just metres below. The flow narrowed and snaked ahead of him like a giant anaconda, before disappearing into a maze of forest.

The lagoon water had a slight green tinge and was so clear he could see the bottom even at its deepest point. A shiny object caught his eye and he stared into the water.There it is.A small fish swam around, oblivious to his existence just metres away. Its scales reflected off the sun like a slip of alfoil as it swam to the waterfall.

The urge to wash off five days of dirt and sweat was too much to resist. He secured the lizard at the edge of the lagoon and, satisfied that no unsavoury creature occupied the water, swan dived into the middle.

Silvery fish winked at him as he glided along. The water was cool and invigorating, exactly the tonic he needed. He stretched for the surface, rolled onto his back, breathed deeply and felt very much alive.

Large bubbles frothed up from the bottom as he neared the cascade and allowing it to pound his head, he swam up and under the waterfall. He poked his head through the wall of water and was amazed to discover a cave on the other side. Placing his hands on the rocky edge, he pulled himself out of the water.

The cave was about the size of a small kitchen, high enough for him to stand in, and the thundering waterfall was amplified within the rock walls. Mackenzie felt rejuvenated. Days of sorrow and depression were being liberated from his body. He spread his hands and as he spun in a slow circle, he wished Rodney was there to enjoy this with him. But on some level, he knew Rodney was.

“Yee haa.” He cheered and his voice bounced back to him.

He ran to the waterfall, dived through the cascade into the lagoon and stretched out like a human surfboard gliding to the other side. He climbed out of the water and gathered up the lizard. It curled heavily over Mackenzie’s shoulder as he surveyed the cliff he’d tumbled down. Towering above him the brutal edifice offered no obvious climbing route.

A living macramé of inch-thick vines hovered above him as he progressed with caution along the lip of the lagoon. A giant vine, the width of his forearm, dangled down the jagged rock. He tugged on it. It was heavy and solid. He was confident it would support his weight.

He tucked his shirt into his shorts and guided the frilled neck lizarddown his collar, twisting it until the animal’s claws no longer dug into his stomach. His muscles bulged as he lifted the heavy vine, braced his feet against the rock, leaned out from the rock wall and climbed his first step up the vertical cliff.

The cliff face seemed endless, and his mind battled between fierce determination and a crippling fear of falling. Tense muscles burned in his arms and legs, endorphins coursed through his brain and black sparks flashed across his eyes. It was a mental and physical torture and although he tried not to think of it, it was also a battle of life and death.

He placed his foot another length higher and spied a rock that jutted out above him creating a small shelf. With four careful steps, he mounted the ledge and breathed a sigh of relief. His heart thundered in his ears and sweat flooded his forehead, stinging his eyes. Flaps of skin hung from his open blisters and blood dribbled down his fingers.

He wiped his brow on his shirt and glanced downward. It was an awesome sight. The lagoon loomed, dark and ominous, over thirty metres below. Only now could he comprehend just how far he’d fallen. His trembling biceps began to relax and soon his breathing returned to normal.

Above him, the angle of the cliff face eased slightly, buoying his determination. He wiped his bloody fingers over his shirt and mentally prepared to continue. He recalled Rodney’s favourite saying at the gym: ‘Push through the pain’.

The words had never been so pertinent as he braced against the vine and took a measured step upwards.

The further he climbed, the more the cliff face eased away, allowing less strain on his upper body.Yes! I’m nearly at the top.His spirits surged.

The last ten metres were a mere scramble on his hands and knees. When he finally reached flat ground again, he rolled onto his back panting with complete exhaustion. His entire body throbbed.

But he peered through the dense canopy with a new sense of dread.

The sky was red. The sun was setting.

He was about to be consumed with absolute blackness.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Abigail covered Charlie with her white towel, but the resulting ghostly impression made him look even more horrid.

She tore it off and used a black T-shirt.

With each passing minute the sky morphed into a darker shade of crimson and her anxiety increased. A knot sharpened in her stomach when she glanced at the fire and noticed the dwindling smoke. She couldn’t be alone in the dark, never had, never would.

The thought was terrifying.

Abigail tossed every piece of timber she could find onto the embers and within a couple of minutes a huge fire raged. But this presented another problem.

Charlie was too close to the flames.

If he catches on fire, I’ll go raving mad.

Her heart thundered as much from fear as exertion as she tilted Charlie’s leather lounge. The combined weight of Charlie and the chair required all her strength to drag him backward. When he was about three metres from the fire, she sat his chair back up and made sure he was secure. She couldn’t handle it if he slipped onto the ground.

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