Page 78 of Wild Idol
“No, you won’t,” I replied. It was one place I had no intention of ever visiting again.
“I say we leave his stupid ass here,” Jack muttered.
“Fine by me.”
We fell back to our previous positions and rejoined the hostages.
I shouted loud enough for the entire village to hear. “We’re leaving. Anyone who wants to get off the island is welcome to join. Now is your chance.”
Terrified eyes peered out of windows. Others had emerged from their bungalows. There were plenty of confused and conflicted glances among the remaining villagers. After an experience like this, plenty were ready to make this island a memory. Still, some were under the spell and refused to leave Solomon.
A few darted off to provide him medical assistance.
It was hard to say what his ultimate fate would be. Abdominal wounds can be tricky. It’s possible he could survive a few hours if given the proper treatment. Enough to get to a trauma center. From there, the odds were good. But the risk of infection was high.
If he did manage to survive, he’d need antibiotics. Maybe one of the villagers could talk him into getting medical attention. But it wasn’t my problem anymore. I figured fate would handle it.
I couldn’t help but notice how soon his downfall came after losing possession of the idol. Maybe there was something to it after all.
I snapped a photo of the mystery man’s face for identification purposes, though with two bullets to the head, he was looking pretty rough. Maybe Isabella could still ID him.
This time, Whisper took Jack up on his offer. She joined us, along with several others, as we headed down to the dock.
The tangy scent of gunpowder drifted in the air. Whisper still trembled, the tears seeping from her eyes.
JD and I hurried down the trail and hit the beach. Both Ivy and Sunshine looked relieved to see us.
We had another problem.
Several more armed goons had taken the girls hostage. But these weren’t more of Solomon’s men. They weren’t mercenaries either.
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The scruffy band of men aimed their weapons at us. With dark hair and swarthy tans, the five of them huddled on the dock around the girls. There was something hollow and soulless about their eyes.
The shortest of the group was their leader. He shouted, “Hola, gringo. Want to tell me what’s happening on my island?”
JD took cover behind a tree at the edge of the beach and kept his weapon aimed at the men.
I stepped from the trail and approached with caution, keeping my hands in the air. I didn’t want to escalate the situation. I wasn’t sure, but I had a suspicion about who these guys were. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to put two and two together.
“I didn’t know this was your island,” I said.
“Let’s just say I have a vested interest in what happens here.”
“Your crop of heroin is safe, if that’s what you’re worried about.”
The short man looked at the crowd behind me that hid in the trees. “Who will work the field if you take all the people off the island?”
I shrugged. “I have no doubt you’ll find someone.”
“I don’t want to find someone else. I like the arrangement I have with Solomon. Is he still in charge here?”
“For the time being. I think if you talk to him, you’ll find you may be in a position to renegotiate your deal. Perhaps with more favorable terms.”
“My terms were favorable to begin with.”
We stared each other down for a long moment.
