Curse of the Condor (8 page)

“Really? I never would have expected that of Ryder.”

She watched him devour two of the red peppers and figured they couldn’t be that hot. She took a small bite and her mouth was on fire. She waved her hand over her tongue, wanting him to hand her the bag with a spout, filled with water.

“Water will make it worse,” he told her. “Eat a yam.”

She did, and only after she was back to normal did he hand her the water.

"You must be hot stuff to be able to stomach those peppers," she told him.

"That’s the first time I’ve had a woman refer to me as hot," he chuckled.

"Oh. That's not what I meant," she tried to explain.

"It isn't?" He looked at her with those bedroom eyes that said come hither, and she knew his mood had changed from one of sorrow to one of playfulness. She noticed he was staring at her lips, and she found herself remembering their kiss and wanted to do it again.

She cleared her throat and took the leaf from her dinner along with the leftover pepper and handed it to him. "Thank you. I enjoyed the yam.”

He took the leaf, downed the pepper in one bite and threw both his leaf and hers into the fire. It snapped at the moisture of their mock plates, and the smoke billowed up into the sky. It was dark now, and the jungle noises were coming to life once again. She realized they'd have to spend the night out there, but didn't really think about where they'd be sleeping until now.

"I don't suppose you brought the hammock with?" she asked, noticing the hope in her own voice.

"No," he said. "The mat you're sitting on is your bed. You can use the blanket that I have the supplies wrapped up in if you need it to cover yourself."

"It's warm tonight," she told him. "I don't think I'll need it." As soon as the words left her mouth she felt pinching and biting on her skin from a swarm of mosquitoes. She slapped at them viciously, about going out of her mind from the noise of their wings around her ears.

Conrado got to his feet and went over to the pack he'd brought. He dumped the supplies near the fire and wrapped the blanket around her shoulders. "Get closer to the fire and they won't bother you as much," he told her. He broke up some more branches and added them to the fire.

"Why aren't you getting bitten?" she asked, slapping a mosquito that landed on her face. "You're standing there half naked, no shirt or sandals and they're not bothering you at all. Why is that?"

"I guess my skin isn't as soft and delicious as yours," he said, and she felt he was talking about his own thoughts and not those of the mosquitoes. "I've got the thick Jivaro skin.  Plus, the mosquitoes don't dare try to bite me for fear I'll bite them back."

He snapped his teeth in the air, pretending he was going to bite them and she laughed, feeling more relaxed in his presence.

"I guess you're not so bad after all," she told him.

"Why thank you for the compliment. You're not so bad yourself."

There was silence again between them as they both just stared into the fire. The jungle sounds around her were getting louder, the chorus of the frogs and night creatures making her uneasy.

"Where is Chatter?" she asked. "I haven't seen him in awhile. Do you think he's all right?"

He laughed a little and rubbed a weary hand over his face.

"Chatter is a creature of the rain forest. He comes and goes as he pleases. You don't have to worry about him. This is his home. Plus he can swing through the jungle faster than any jaguar can stalk him. Who do you think taught me to swing from the vines?"

She didn't like this talk about jaguars and moved her body closer to the fire. "I didn't know you could swing on vines," she said.

“Well, of course, he answered, picking up a warm beer from the pile of supplies and flipping off the top with his machete. "After all, what Tarzan worth his salt wouldn't know how to swing through the jungle?"

She laughed again and watched him bring the bottle to his mouth to take a swig, wondering how he’d decided toilet paper was too heavy to bring with, but a beer bottle wasn’t. Either way, she liked him.

"Thank you for trying to make me feel at ease out here. I can see now why Ryder chose you as his friend."

He lowered the bottle slowly and didn't respond. He just picked at the label of the bottle with his finger.

"Jetta," there's something I need to tell you. Something I should have mentioned before you ever stepped foot in my canoe in Iquitos."

"What's that?" she asked in a joking matter. "That you've got a Jane hidden away in a treehouse somewhere? Or that Chatter's name is really Cheetah?"

"I'm serious," he said in a low voice. "I have a confession to make."

She could see he really meant it. And she could see that whatever it was he had to say was weighing deeply on his mind.

"All right," she said. "So what is it?"

Chapter 9

Conrado tried to convince himself he was doing the right thing in telling her his secret. Now if only he could get his mind to agree to what his heart was telling him to do. Out with it, he figured. He'd just come right out and say 'I killed your brother' and it would all be over and a great weight would be lifted off his shoulders. Then she could hit him and cry and hate him and he, himself, would take her to the authorities in the morning and turn himself in for what he'd done. Then he could stop living in hiding and live the rest of his life in a South American prison instead.

"I - " he never got the chance to tell her, as Chatter chose that moment to swing from a vine, squealing in protest about something. Then the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end and he knew there was a jaguar near by.

He dove for his machete and raised it up just as the wild cat chose to let out a snarl from the tree above. Jetta screamed and got to her feet also.

"What was that?" she asked, standing very close to him.

"Jaguar," he told her. "Get behind me and keep the blanket wrapped around you."

"It’s going to kill us," she cried. Chatter screeched from somewhere up in the canopy.

"Quiet," he told her. "I need to listen."

She actually heeded his command. Then he heard the sound of something moving through the understory. It was the sound of hoofs and an animal's cry of pain as something fell from the tree above and landed in the brush.

"What is it?" she whispered, and clung to his back. Her body was shaking, there was no doubt about it. The danger was over now, but still he knew he had to make sure.

"Wait here by the fire," he told her. "It sounds like the jaguar just caught its prey but I need to be sure."

"Its prey?" she asked, still frightened but also relieved. "You mean, we're not its prey?"

"Not this time," he said, and grabbed a vine and pulled himself up into a tree effortlessly.

"Don't leave me alone," she begged, a tremble to her voice. She held the blanket against her tightly, her eyes wide and innocent. He felt he wanted to protect her more now than ever.

"I have to know what it caught," he told her. "If it's something big enough, we won't have to worry about it being hungry again tonight.”

Jetta watched Conrado climb up the vine, the firelight reflecting off his machete he held in one hand. His bronzed body disappeared into the inky darkness. Then she heard the creak of the vine and saw his shadowy dark form swinging from tree to tree, gradually disappearing from sight.

She couldn't believe he'd leave her there after a jaguar stalked them moments ago. This was the man who was so hell bent on protecting her? So why was he leaving her when she needed him most?

What happened to his gallant nobleness of brushing off a log when she wanted to sit, or being by her side even when she decided to pee? Now is the time she wanted him by her. Now that it was night and the real danger lurked around every corner.

She stood huddled wrapped in her blanket like a mummy, standing as close to the hot fire as she could without getting burned. She listened for him, but could only hear the noises of a jungle night. She jumped at every screech and howl. Every time a twig snapped, she pictured a jaguar coming to eat her. Suddenly, the night seemed very cold. And very dark. And very lonely without Conrado.

She glanced at her watch, wondering how long it was going to take him to check out the jaguar's kill. She tapped at her watch, sure that it wasn’t working, but then a minute went by, then two, and she knew if he didn’t come back soon she’d die of fright.

The jungle sounds closed in around her, and she felt as if insects were eating her alive. She brushed off a huge cockroach and watched it fly away, it almost getting singed by the fire. She was too scared to scream. Just as scared as she was when the snake decided to use her for a pillow.

Just the thought of the snake and her near death had her body trembling even more. Where was he? Why was he taking so long? He'd been gone for at least a good half hour. She glanced at her watch again and it made a liar out of her. It had only been five minutes.

That's when she heard a noise in the trees above her. Something fell, and she dove for his blowgun that was lying on the ground where he'd emptied it from the pack. She picked it up, wondering how it worked. Her fingers shook furiously as she reached for the cloth that contained the darts.

Then something attacked her. Or so she thought, till she realized it was Conrado's hand on her wrist.

"I told you not to touch that," he growled.

She dropped the blowgun and threw her arms around him.

"Thank God you're finally back!" The blanket fell to the ground, leaving her cold and exposed to insects, but she no longer cared. Conrado was here, and she was determined not to let go of him until the morning.

Conrado wrapped his arms around her trembling body. He was furious with her for touching the blowgun when he'd told her not to, but he didn't have the heart to scold her about it now. She shook like a leaf, and it wasn’t from lack of heat. She held him so tight, he found it hard to breathe.

"It's all right," he told her, and rubbed his hand over her back. He liked the way she clung to him. It felt right. He felt like a man protecting his woman. But, he reminded himself, Jetta was not his woman nor could she ever be. "The jaguar caught a
mazama,
so we’re safe for the night.”

"A what?" she asked, not bothering to remove her face from his chest. Her breath tickled his nipple, and the moisture from her lips on his body was very sensual.

"A
brocket,
as you're people would call it. It's a forest deer that's mostly nocturnal. There's enough meat on that for the jaguar to have his fill. He won't be back tonight to bother us."

"Are you sure?" she asked, her voice still trembling.

"I'm sure," he told her. "And if there is any trouble, Chatter will alert us just like he did this time. Now I suggest we get some shut eye while we can."

"I'll never be able to sleep," she told him, a yawn stopping her from continuing.

"Sit down," he told her, still keeping her in his arms as he leaned against the trunk of a tree.

"Will you hold me all night?" she asked, looking up at him with those big blue eyes. How could he deny her what she asked? She was scared, and he had to protect her.

"Are you saying you want my protection now?" he asked with a grin.

"Yes," came her very direct answer.

"Then I'll hold you," he said, and pulled her closer, burying his nose in her hair. God, she smelled good. So much like a woman. How he wanted to do so much more than just hold her. But he wouldn’t.

"What were you going to do with my blowgun?" he asked her.

She sniffed back her tears and leaned back against him.

"I heard something fall from the trees," she said. "Something very heavy, like a jaguar."

"Or like this?" he asked, reaching out and picking up the large round fruit that lay on the ground next to him.

"What's that?" she asked.

"It's a breadfruit," he told her. "It'll make a good breakfast in the morning."

She laughed, yawned and snuggled in close to him.

"Guess I was just being silly. I should have known you'd never let anything happen to me. I'm safe with you and now I know it. How can I ever thank you?"

Was she safe? He wondered. Could he trust himself to take better care of her than he had her brother?

"What was it we were talking about before the jaguar incident?" She yawned, and he looked down to see her eyes closing.

"It can wait," he said. He couldn't possibly tell her now. She needed him, and he had to be there for her. She needed to sleep, and he needed to keep his secret to himself for just a bit longer.

"Conrado?" she asked sleepily, talking with her eyes closed.

"Hmmm?" he asked, rubbing his cheek against the top of her hair and liking the way if felt. He wished this moment and this feeling could last forever.

"Will you teach me how to swing from the vines tomorrow?"

"I'll teach you everything you need to know about the jungle," he assured her.

"Good," she said. "Then maybe someday I can be your Jane."

* * *

Prospero sat in front of the fire, gun in his good hand, listening to the noises of the night. It would be any time now that Conrado would find out about Jetta’s necklace. His tracker had seen the couple wrapped in each others arms, sleeping by the fire just hours ago.

They were only a half day away from them now. And the surroundings were seeming more familiar, though he knew he wouldn’t be able to find the cave on his own. He’d tried for fifteen years now and failed. But once he’d heard Conrado still lived, he knew his luck had changed. His plan was going well, and the girl unknowingly was going to make his dream come true.  They should be at the Cave of the Condor soon.

“Why don’t we just aim our guns at his head and make him take us to the treasure?” asked Arlo, shining his revolver.

“Yeah,” said Fermin, shelling nuts and throwing the shells to the ground. “Why play this asinine game?”

“You don’t know Conrado,” Prospero told him. “Even as a child, he was very headstrong. Plus, his parents died in that cave. He’s not going to be a hurry to point out the way. He’d rather die than give up the secret, I’m sure.”

“So,” said Arlo, “if this cave is cursed, then we’d better not enter.”

“Yeah,” agreed Fermin. “How are we going to get the treasure out, without dying in the process?”

Prospero held up a shard of the ruby, watching it wink in the light of the fire.

“Lucio died bringing this out of the cave. But yet, I’ve owned it for the last fifteen years and I’m still alive. All I need is someone to go in and bring the treasure out for me.”

Arlo and Fermin looked at each other and then back to Prospero. Then they both looked at the native guide they’d hired to track Conrado.

“The Cave of the Condor is cursed, señor,” the guide relayed. “I will not risk my life to gain you your treasure.”

“Of course not,” said Prospero, not wanting the guide to know that’s exactly what he’d planned from the beginning. “Of course not. Now let’s get some sleep and hope Conrado tumbles the girl tomorrow. He has to see that necklace if he’s going to take it back and lead us to the cave. But he’ll never see it if she keeps her clothes on.”