Page 158 of Blue Arrow Island
We resume our walk, Marcus and Niran checking to our right and Amira and I watching to the left for any sign of the bright-blue flower. There are orange, red, yellow, and even purple flowers, but not a blue one in sight.
“Oh!” Niran points, all of us turning.
There’s a flash of bright blue, but it’s moving.
“That’s a fucking bird,” Marcus said.
“Oh.”
Amira reaches for her bow. “Is it a regular bird, or is it like those mutant mantises?”
“Regular bird,” Marcus says. “Keep moving.”
We only stop when we need to pee or refill our canteens, and we reach the volcano late in the afternoon. Our boots are still wet from the rain. We have to slowly climb the volcano, our shoesslipping on the wet rock. On days like this, the bottoms of our boots are never fully dry.
“What do you think the temperature is?” Amira asks as we walk up an area of the volcano without a steep incline. “I’m saying a hundred and three.”
“Ninety-nine,” I guess.
“Remember chilly fall walks? And scraping off your icy windshield in the morning? I honestly can’t remember what it was like to be cold.”
My foot slips, but I catch myself. We only make it halfway up the volcano before Marcus tells us we have to go back down, so we aren’t walking down the uneven surface in the dark later.
It’s dusk by the time we set up camp for the night, which isn’t much. We can’t risk a fire, so it’s just the four of us sitting on blankets and eating dried meat and fruit, a thick swarm of mosquitoes surrounding us.
“People used to spend a shitload of money to vacation in a place like this,” Niran says.
“In a luxury resort, though,” I say. “With walls and air conditioning and fruity drinks.”
Niran groans softly and looks at Marcus. “I could go for an ice-cold Modelo right now.”
“Wouldn’t say no.” Marcus leans back on his elbows.
Even though I’m still mad at him, I lie beside him, staring up at the clear, star-filled sky. The long day of hiking through the jungle mellowed me. I’m no longer worried I’ll burst into tears out of nowhere.
“I’d do just about anything for an ice cream sundae right now,” Amira says. “With whipped cream and hot fudge and caramel.”
I smile, trying to imagine the taste of warm, salted caramel sauce. It’s been my favorite since I was a kid. Mae and I wouldfight over whose favorite it was first, because we didn’t want to share a favorite.
“What the hell is that?” Amira jumps a foot closer to Niran, pointing at the sky.
“Just a couple of bats,” Niran says. “Probably looking for some bugs to eat.”
I shiver. “In the cave I found McClain’s knife in, we ran into about a hundred thousand bats.”
Amira gasps. “Are you serious?”
“It was awful. You could feel the vibrations of all those wings, and the sounds they make ...”
“They’re nocturnal,” Niran says, bumping his shoulder against Amira’s. “Maybe they’ll give you a goodnight kiss later.”
“Ugh, no. I’ll send them your way, since you’re clearly the one in need of affection.”
“You noticed my footlong? I can’t help it, it’s the aromium.”
His erection is tenting his lightweight pants, and he’s making no effort to hide it.
A thought flickers through my mind, my smile sliding away. I sit up, my heart racing.
