Chad squeezed Natalie’s wrist. In deciding to come, he’d promised himself he would protect her. No matter what. A picture of Stewart flickered through his mind, and he fought back the sting of pain. He might not have been able to save Stewart, but he would protect Natalie.
One of the men shouted, his words too rapid for Chad to understand. Impala scattered into the woods around them, rustling through the tall grass as they ran for cover. Beside him, Joseph and Nick put up their hands. Chad followed suit, dropping to his knees while making sure he was in the line of fire between Natalie and the gunmen.
He nudged Natalie behind him. “Stay back.”
She made no effort to resist his instructions. “What do they want, Joseph?”
“They think we’re after their livestock.” Fear laced the boy’s words, but his voice held steady. Joseph spoke again to the men, his expression animated as his voice continued to rise. Chad strained to understand the gist of the conversation. Poachers … cattle … dead …
A minute later, Joseph rose slowly from the hard ground and motioned the others to follow. “We can get up now. It’s safe.”
Chad hesitated. “Are you sure?”
The men walked toward them, their rifles now at their sides.
Joseph nodded. “With the elections coming up, most of the police have gone to the capital. They have had a number of their sheep and cattle stolen. They only want to protect what is theirs. I told them who I am and that I go to school with one of their own. . . Mbella. They have apologized and said we are welcome.”
“Looks to me like they’re doing a fine job scaring away trespassers.” A ripple of relief, mixed with lingering anger, swept through Chad. He helped Natalie up before letting go of her hand. “Are you all right?”
“Yes.” She looked up at him, the fear in her expression evident in the fading pink glow of the sunset. “You know you don’t have to protect me.”
Chad’s brow rose. “Considering all that’s happened during the past twelve hours, it seems to me as if you need someone to protect you.”
Her grin displaced the rest of his anger. “Perhaps you have a point.”
Chad felt his heart quicken. He hadn’t wanted to get involved. How, then, had his path so quickly intertwined with hers?
Joseph stepped up beside him and made quick introductions to the two men, who one at a time grasped Joseph’s forearm with one hand and shook his hand with the other in their traditional greeting. “They wish to apologize, but insist they cannot be too careful. They have lost many animals to these thieves.”
Chad followed the party as they crossed the open field toward the flicking lights of the village. A dozen huts dotted the cleared area. Smoke rose from the cooking fires, bringing with it the strong scent of fried fish and fiery hot sauce. Women sat in front of fat iron pots, stirring with tall wooden spoons, while the men exchanged stories around the fires. Children, their laughter rippling through the humid night, played in the shadows of the thatched huts.
Joseph stopped near the center of the compound. “They have told me that the women will prepare a place for us to sleep after we eat.”
By the time darkness had settled in around them, the four sat at a small wooden table enjoying bowls of cassava and sauce. A radio, powered by a car battery, buzzed in the background. Insects chirped. A baby cried. Inside the camp they should be safe until morning. And by that time, maybe he and Nick would have been able to come up with Plan B.
Natalie formed a ball of cooked cassava between her fingers and dipped it into the thick, red sauce. “Have you ever tasted anything so delicious?”
Chad smacked a mosquito on his arm. “Not since your party last night.”
She shook her head. “Was that only yesterday? Seems like ages ago already.”
“It is hard to believe.” He smacked another mosquito, wondering what made him so appealing to the deadly insects. “Nick, you missed the best chocolate cake this side of the equator.”
“Stop, please.” Nick held up his hand, shaking his head. “The last time I had a decent slice of cake was at my mom’s, back in Louisiana nine months ago.”
Chad slapped the back of his arm.
Natalie laughed as she dug through her backpack and pulled out some bug repellent. “I’d say we all need some of this, gentlemen.”
Nick fiddled with the brim of his baseball cap. “Do you happen to have any pain medicine in there as well?”
A moment later she handed him two tablets. He popped the pills into his mouth and downed them with a sip of the warm Coke they’d been offered.
“I’m impressed.” Chad sprayed the repellent on his arms. “You really are prepared.”
“I had hoped never to encounter an emergency and have to use it, but I can already see that my ‘grab pack’ is coming in handy.” She sprayed some repellent on her own arms, then passed the small container to Nick. “I’ve also got enough clean water to last us through tomorrow. Maybe into the next day if we ration it.”
Chad formed another ball of cassava with the tips of his fingers. “How bad’s your headache, Nick?”
The pilot shook his head. “Nothing a good night’s sleep won’t cure. Once daylight hits, I need to try and fix the fuel blockage so we can find a way out of here.”
Joseph set down his finished bowl and pushed back his chair. “They have places for us to sleep. I can show you.”
Nick glanced at Chad and Natalie. “Do you mind?”
Chad shook his head. “Considering the nightlife here, I don’t think you’ll be missing much.”
The entire village would be up with the sun. For now, with no electricity, darkness had brought a close to another day.
Natalie handed Nick a small water bottle. “Let us know if you need anything else, Nick.”
Chad turned back to his bowl. “How’s your head?”
“Fine, actually.” She pressed her fingers against the spot she’d hit in the crash. “I was expecting a whopper of a headache.”
“Any nausea?”
She shook her head as one of the women came to clear their plates. Chad complimented the woman in Dha for the delicious meal, thankful they were here and not stuck or injured in the downed plane.
“Tsiko teyo, Mama.” Natalie, it seemed, wasn’t to be outdone when it came to language.
The woman bestowed upon them a white, toothy smile before slipping back into the shadows of the hut.
Chad sat back in his wooden chair. “I’m impressed.”
“I don’t know why.” Even in the dim light, he was certain he saw a rosy blush reach her cheeks. “I’m certainly not fluent like you are. Just a few phrases here and there to help me get by.”
She pulled a chocolate bar from her bag, ripped off the wrapper, and handed him half.
He grinned. “You are full of surprises, Miss Sinclair.”
She laughed and nibbled on the edge of her bar. “While I love their food, it gives me a horrible sweet tooth.”
He bit into the chocolate. “Let me tell you, this helps bring a smile to a day that definitely ranks as one of the worst I’ve experienced in a very long time.”
Natalie’s own smile faded as she stuffed the wadded wrapper into her skirt pocket. “Do you think the plane was tampered with?”
Her question didn’t surprise him. The same thought had played through the back of his mind since their unexpected landing along the Congo River. “They would’ve had to have followed us from the hospital. And the only time they could have done anything was the ten or fifteen minutes Nick worked on the paperwork to get us out of there.”
“Enough time to mess with the fuel tank?”
“Security is nil on a good day, so the possibility is certainly there.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Nick should be able to tell us more tomorrow, but yes. I think someone would have enough time to do some damage.”
“At least whoever it was has no idea where we are now.” She took the last sip of her drink, then caught his gaze. “Why did you decide to come with me?”
Chad hesitated at her question. There were still aspects of his past he preferred not to talk about. Yet Natalie had somehow managed to waltz into his busy life like a welcome afternoon shower, bringing a short respite from the hot African sun.
“I lost my best friend during the last coup, and as I look at Joseph I see a part of myself.” He combed his hand through his hair. “And I suppose, in some odd way, I thought your father would appreciate knowing someone was looking after his daughter.”
Her gaze dropped to the table. “Joseph isn’t the only one asking why God didn’t stop such a horrible event, is he?”
Sometimes he hated the truth. “No, he’s not.”
There were questions he didn’t want to ask. Questions he wished his sometimes faltering faith didn’t force him to ask. Where was God in all of this? When Stewart died? When Joseph’s family was ripped from their home and dumped into some godforsaken mine in the middle of the mountains?
Chad shook his head. He still believed God was in control—and believed he’d stay firm in his faith no matter what. But that didn’t take away the pain of the situation. Or the questions.
Tears formed in the corner of Natalie’s eyes, then dropped, and before he could think about what he was doing he reached out and wiped one from her cheek with his thumb. “I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
He rested his hand against her cheek a second before pulling away. “For the fact that you’ve been shoved into an impossible situation.”
She sniffed and tried to hold back more tears. “Do you really think the election’s being rigged?”
Chad shrugged. “It does tend to be the norm in this part of the world.”
“But surely it’s not going to be easy to pull off with the UN election committee hovering so closely. At least not completely undetected. Could someone really get away with it?”
“I don’t know.” He shook his head. “With the resources at stake, the gamble might prove strong enough to take that chance.”
“Which means we’ve got to figure out who’s planning to take over and stop them.”
Chad’s eyes widened. “You’re talking about interfering with a major presidential election of a country.”
Natalie leaned forward. “I’m talking about saving Joseph’s family.”
A knot formed in Chad’s chest. If she was right, they had less than seventy-two hours to put a stop to what was happening.