18

Avery

Based on Daddy’s behavior, Avery was sure he knew something about their location. Or at least suspected something.

He acted relaxed and excited, instead of uptight and anxious to be rescued.

And worse, based on Luca’s facial expression, he saw it too. Luca didn’t think much of Daddy at all, and it killed Avery. Daddy could be kind—when he tried.

She swallowed hard and looked away. Sometimes she saw families who looked so happy. So normal. They didn’t know how blessed they were.

The food was passed around and Avery took her small portion. Her stomach twisted when she looked at it, but she made herself eat it, nerves or not.

After everyone ate, she worked up the courage to talk to Daddy. He might shoot her down—he usually did—but she had to try.

He stepped away from the group and stared into the jungle, and Avery quickly followed him.

He spotted her and turned her way. “I missed you, Avery. I worried about you.” He smiled and patted her shoulders.

She smiled and nodded, but she almost doubted his words. He’d never played the part of the worried father all that well, especially when he was excited about an upcoming dig. “I thought I’d never see you again,” she admitted. “This place is really strange.”

He glanced up at the massive jungle canopy over their heads. “Strange is too weak a word. This place is special.”

“Daddy, what do you think about it? I’ve been trying to figure it out.”

Something passed across his face. Surprise, or suspicion, maybe? But it was gone as quickly as it had come. He shrugged. “Too early to say, but we’ve stumbled onto something big. I’ve been trying to dig up some information from my side, but I had a whole group of teens to take care of.”

Why did he have to sound annoyed over that? He had agreed to chaperone a mission trip, after all. He could put away work for a few days during an emergency.

She didn’t say that to him. Never would.

“Now that we’ve found each other, I shouldn’t have to play such a vital role in caring for the others. I’ll be free to figure out what’s going on.”

“Daddy, you can’t be going out in the jungle alone. It’s dangerous. Last night we were attacked by—”

“I’m a grown man who’s been on a lot of dangerous digs, Avery. You just keep doing your part in taking care of everyone here, and leave the discovery work to me.” He patted her shoulder like he was comforting a dense child.

He was dismissing her—and what she wanted—just like he always had.

She stood awkwardly, not sure how to answer him, but there was no need to worry; he wouldn’t listen to her anyway.

Daddy looked deeper into the jungle, practically glowing with excitement. “I can hardly wait to get in there and learn this place’s secrets!”

She could tell him a few secrets—magically appearing fruit, a state of confusion that permeated the jungle air, a dark force. And one couldn’t forget the inhuman natives.

But she didn’t tell him any of that. Rae had chosen to reveal himself to her, and only her. That is, until they’d gone tracking him down. Even then, though, he’d spoken to her during their exchange. If anyone could get the jungle’s secrets from Rae, it was her. Not Daddy.

“Avery?” Luca’s voice gave her an excuse to get out of there, but Daddy stopped her with a tug on her arm.

“I hope you haven’t gotten involved with that boy again.”

She frowned and pulled her arm away. “Of course not.”

“Good. I see that he’s really stepped in and taken care of everyone here, but that doesn’t mean he’s good for you.”

Anger bubbled up her legs and spilled over into her stomach. “We’ve all taken care of each other here.”

She stomped away before he could reply, and she hurried to find Luca.

He stood near the shelters, backpack in hand. “We’re going to the water hole. With this many people we’re going to need a lot. Want to come?” His relaxed, undemanding attitude calmed her down.

“Yeah,” she said. “That sounds great.”

They gathered two backpacks full of empty water bottles, then they hiked into the jungle with Benny and June. Avery frowned at June as she climbed over a fallen tree. “Shouldn’t you be staying off that leg?”

June scowled at Avery. “I’m OK. It’s not even sore anymore.”

Avery’s cheeks burned and she looked away. What was June’s problem? She’d never said a mean word to anyone, and now she was mad at Avery?

Luca cleared his throat and glanced at her. “I tried to tell her, but she said we’re the water group and she’s not missing out.”

Benny grumbled and marched ahead.

Avery decided to let June’s rude remark pass. She turned and teased Benny. “You aren’t trying to shirk your duties are you, Benny?”

He huffed and walked faster.

Avery frowned. He’d been more open and willing to help ever since they’d arrived, but now he seemed back to his usual pity-partying self. It seemed everyone was grumpy since the other group had arrived.

They reached the creek and everyone bent to fill the empty bottles.

“I almost didn’t ask you to come,” Luca said. He squatted beside her. “I thought you might want to stay with your dad.”

Avery worked to keep her face neutral. “Yeah, well, he seems less excited at seeing me than I was at seeing him.” Telling Luca these things was safe. It was nothing he didn’t know already. She wanted Luca and Daddy to get along, but maybe she wanted a sounding board more.

“What do you think of all this? Of everything Bradley told us?”

She screwed the lid on a bottle and grabbed another. “I don’t know. I’m working on it.”

His eyebrows rose. “You got a theory?”

Did she? Finally, she shook her head. “Not really, but there are a few things I can’t shake. I’ll let you know when I figure it all out.” She ended with a grin and he smiled back.

He believed her. Believed in her. He was the only one who had, or at least the only one who had in a while.

Guilt pinged at the edge of her mind, guilt that he believed in her more than she had believed in him. And when he’d needed her most, she’d followed Daddy’s order to stay away. It was a wonder he even spoke to her.

Still, this felt good. Renewing their friendship couldn’t hurt anything, and she needed a person she could be herself with. Someone who wouldn’t stare at her or ignore her.

A thought occurred to her and she paused. In the last few days, there hadn’t been any stares. No one had left her out of anything. She tucked the information away for later and kept working.

They finished filling all the bottles, and Avery pulled a pack onto her back. Luca took the other and they started back.

“Do you guys care if I stay here for a while?”

Everyone turned to June, surprised by her question. “You want to stay here alone?” Avery asked.

June’s eyes still sparkled a startling blue. Avery hadn’t brought it up to anyone, especially since it was just another reason everyone might think she’d lost her marbles.

June glanced at the guys and blushed. “I wanted to swim for a while. You know. Wash up.”

Washing sounded really good. Better than good, it sounded great. “Why don’t we get some shampoo and stuff from our bags? We can come back with all the girls.”

“Actually, I wanted to do it alone.”

It was so unlike June, Avery wasn’t sure what to say. She looked to Luca.

Leaving someone alone in the jungle was a definite breach in the rules everyone had agreed to.

“What if I stay but the guys go?” she asked. “I won’t go in with you. I’ll stay at this end of the creek, and I won’t look.”

June frowned but didn’t argue.

Benny took the pack of water from Avery’s shoulders and put it on his own back. Luca grabbed her elbow. “Are you sure about this?”

“What other choice do we have?” she whispered.

He nodded, his frown deep. “OK. We’re coming back for you, though. Stay put until we get back.”

She agreed and glanced at June.

The blonde girl smiled shyly at Luca then moved toward the swim hole as the guys moved away.

Great. She was alone in the dark, creepy jungle with a girl whose eyes had changed color and who was seriously acting weird.

Finding a big rock, she slid to a seat and folded her legs Indian style. The soft sounds of splashing drifted upstream from where June washed a few feet away. Shampoo sounded heavenly, even if June didn’t think so. When they got back, she would have to get all the girls together and return to the creek. She sighed and lay back on the rock then stared at the trees above her. No matter how small he made her feel, Daddy’s presence in their camp was good.

He brought a feeling of security to everyone. Of leadership. A plan.

But how had Daddy’s van ended up on the other side of the jungle? And where, exactly, was this jungle? She focused her mind on maps she’d seen in Daddy’s study over the years. He’d been almost obsessed with Iraq, and he’d made many archeological discoveries throughout the Middle East since Avery’s childhood. Was he after another one on this trip? Was that why he’d come?

Anger. Betrayal. Disbelief and yet total belief.

Feelings ransacked her heart until reason pushed them out.

He couldn’t have known about this place. No one could have predicted a sand storm that would blow them halfway across the country and deposit them in an uninhabited oasis. Whether he was prepared or not, though, he seemed excited to be here. He suspected a few things about their location, and remembering the maps on his desk, Avery suspected a few things as well.

She closed her eyes and let her mind drift, and she almost didn’t notice when the sounds of the water faded away. June must have finished.

Avery opened her eyes. That was when she saw the first bug. It scampered over her rock and disappeared into the water. Avery gasped and pushed herself to the edge, looking over to make sure there weren’t more.

A second bug darted along the creek bed, and a third sat in the middle of the path back to the desert.

“June?” she called. “Are you OK?” She hated the way her voice shook.

No one answered and Avery frowned. She did not want to get off this rock with that giant, nasty bug sitting on the path, but it didn’t look like she had a choice. “June, I’m coming over there. I need you to answer me.”

The only sounds echoing in the air were the jungle sounds of bugs and leaves rustling. Avery shivered when another black beetle crawled up the tree in front of her. Panic crept up her arms and she picked up her speed. “June?”

The swim hole was empty of June, but also of black bugs.

“June!” she screamed.

No one answered her.

Perfect. She stood at the edge of the water and searched for any sign of where June had come out of the water. A muddy path across the creek led into the jungle. They’d never trekked that way, and it was obvious this side led to the path. How had June gotten turned around?

Unless she hadn’t gotten turned around at all. Something was different about June since she’d gotten bit. Something more than her eyes.

Avery gnawed her lip, unsure of what to do. If she went after June she might miss Luca when he returned, but if she didn’t go after her, June could be in trouble.

She glanced into the denser part of the jungle and paused. Maybe she had one other choice. Maybe.

She closed her eyes and prayed a silent prayer that she wasn’t crazy, then she turned and hiked toward the path she’d used to find Rae.

Luca wouldn’t be returning for a while. He wouldn’t want to chance coming back before June finished, and then there was the time it would take to hike back and forth.

Black bugs followed as she walked, but once she’d gone further, she stopped and swallowed hard. This probably wouldn’t work at all. “Rae?” she called out. “Rae, if you can hear me then I need your help.”

The black beetles scurried off the path.

Avery swallowed hard and tried again. “Rae?”

More beetles raced up the tree trunks and out of view.

She took a shaky breath and tried one last time. “Rae?”

Leaves rustled and the sound of someone approaching echoed through the thick, jungle air. Avery held her breath.

Something moved up ahead. Leaves rustled. The air vibrated.

Avery squinted. It almost looked like a building. A temple or something? She glanced around, but the beetles were gone. Gulping, she turned back to the temple. She was really seeing this, wasn’t she? She stepped toward the stone structure cautiously. She still knew where she was—which meant next to nothing in this place—but hopefully she could find her way back.

The stones of the building were stacked in neat rows, and moss and other vegetation covered them. It was old but well cared for. And it had appeared out of thin air.

Avery moved to the door, an old wooden thing that seemed in as good a shape as she would expect. “Hello?” she called out, knocking on the wood. It was rough under her fingers, but definitely there. Real.

She laughed to herself. It was a nervous-type laugh. Maybe she was crazy after all, if she was knocking on doors of what might be an imaginary temple in the middle of a magical jungle. Taking a deep breath, she pushed through the door and looked around.

The temple had one open room. The middle of the room held some kind of podium or pulpit. The rest of the room was empty from what she could see, so she moved closer to the middle.

The podium was made of stones, and the closer she got the more she could see. It wasn’t a podium at all. It was more like an altar. Avery swallowed hard and ran her fingers along the cold stones. Had something been sacrificed here? Animals?

People?

Icy fear crept up her back and she shivered. Suddenly, she had the worst feeling that the black beetles were crawling across her skin. She cried out and jumped away, brushing at her arms and shuddering.

“Are you well?”

The voice made her cry out again, and she spun around. “What are you doing here?” It came out as a shout, and she clamped her lips closed and took a deep breath through her nose.

Rae’s face was guarded, and he stepped back. “You called me, did you not?”

“And then an old church appeared out of thin air.” Her words still held an angry clip, and she forced herself to calm down. “Sorry. I called you because I hoped you could tell me more about this place. Like what’s on the other side of the creek, and why can’t you tell me more than what you have?”

It wasn’t why she’d come at all. She’d wanted to find June. Find out about the change in June, and the snakes. But now all of her questions came bubbling to the surface. “We were separated from the rest of our group, but now we’ve found them. Where did they come from?”

Rae opened his mouth like he would answer, but instead he shook his head. “You have to leave this place. I‘ll help you.”

“You keep saying that, but it’s not doing any good.”

“You can help, as well,” he said. He glanced behind him, toward the door, and his face became more nervous than before. “You can help.”

If she wasn’t crazy, Rae definitely was. “You’re not making any sense.”

He nodded toward the altar then stepped away. “Hurry. You do not have much time.”

Then, he stepped out the door and was gone.

“Rae? Rae!” Avery rushed to the door, but the area was deserted. She growled out her frustration and turned back to the altar. He’d said to hurry. Hurry and what?

A book sat on top the altar. The altar that had definitely been empty when she first came in. Taking another deep breath, she stepped toward it.

The book cover opened easily, and the pages fluttered with the effort. She licked her lips and searched the book. She expected the words to be in Arabic, or at least Latin, but they weren’t. It was more like Middle English. Not that she knew much about Middle English. She couldn’t even master basic Spanish, but call her crazy, some of it seemed to make sense.

She scanned the words, trying to understand them.

For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.

What did that even mean?

A voice called in the distance, and Avery spun toward the door. Would anyone else see this temple? Dread filled her, and she remembered Rae’s words. She could help. She was meant to see this temple and read this book. She knew she’d felt a pull to the jungle like no one else had.

Making a final decision, she slammed the book closed and hurried out the door, back into the jungle.

June burst through the trees several feet away. “Avery? What’s wrong? I heard you yelling and thought you were hurt.”

Avery spun to see if the temple was still there, but only jungle greeted her. She deflated. She wasn’t sure what was bigger—her relief at seeing June or her disappointment at not seeing the temple. Finally, she turned back to June. “Where were you? You scared me half to death!”

June shrugged, her cheeks turning red. “I had to go to the bathroom.”

Heat crept up Avery’s neck and ears. She hadn’t thought of that. “Oh. Sorry. I just got worried.” At least her overreaction had led her to Rae. To the temple.

“It’s OK. I’m actually ready to go back now, if you’re ready.”

Avery nodded and they began walking back to the path when Avery stopped.

June turned and frowned. “What is it?”

Avery watched June for only a second before shaking her head and moving forward, but she shivered.

June’s eyes were green again.

As they reached the path near the creek, Luca made his way toward them.

“Wow, that was perfect timing,” June said with a smile.

Luca smiled back. “Excellent. Let’s get back, shall we?”

Shall we? Since when did he talk like the words from a Middle English book of prophecy?

Avery caught one last smile between June and Luca, and her stomach twisted in knots.

She frowned and dropped to the end of the group as they marched back to camp. June was OK, and that was fine and dandy, but Avery didn’t want her and Luca to become best buds.

The pettiness of her jealousy hit her full on. She’d just read words from an ancient book, in a disappearing temple in the middle of a mysterious jungle. High school drama wasn’t worth her time.

Avery glanced behind her one last time as they exited the jungle. She knew she wasn’t crazy when a flash of white dashed behind a tree.