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WHEN WE RETURNED TO the group, fifteen minutes had passed, and it took the young man who went for the drugs another ten minutes to return with them. When he did, he gave them to the elder man, who counted the syringes before coming forward and handing them to Alex, who then gave them to Tank.
“You got your drugs,” the man said. “Now, give us our money.”
“I have a question,” I said.
“What question?”
“How long will you be gone?”
“I’ve already told you. It takes three hours to get to the island. I imagine we’ll be there for about an hour. Then, it’s another three hours to return. You’ll have your man back well before the sun sets. Don’t worry about it.”
“That’s the thing—I am worried about it.”
“We all are,” Blackwell said.
“If the money comes through, none of you will have to worry about us ever again.” He looked at Alex. “We need to leave.”
“Give me another kiss,” I said to Alex before he left.
He did. And when he did, it was the most heartfelt, passionate, and loving kiss he’d ever given me. It was a kiss for me to remember. It was something he was leaving with me in case he didn’t return, which made me want to cry again.
“Please be safe,” I said. “Remember that I love you. And also what I told you.”
The old man turned on me. “What did you tell him?” he asked.
I shot him a look. “I told him to buy me two pregnancy tests. So be prepared to go to a pharmacy and get those for me. I want my husband back, and I want those pregnancy tests to see if I am still pregnant. That might seem inconsequential to you, but knowing whether our child is still alive means everything to my husband and me. Certainly, you can understand that. If you can’t—”
And then I stopped.
Faint in the distance came the unmistakable sounds of the airplane again, accompanied by the chopping of a helicopter. It was enough to make all of us lift our heads to the sky.
“Well, listen to that,” the man said. “The search for the great Alexander Wenn continues. To you, that probably sounds like hope. To me, it just sounds like more despair is coming your way. And do you want to know why? Because all around us are dozens of unpopulated islands. Did you know that? Didn’t think so. Which ones will they fly over today? Where will they choose to search? Here? They haven’t done so yet, so don’t get your hopes up. Your only hope is me making that call. In the meantime, all of you will be watched more closely than ever.”
“What does that mean?” Tank said.
“Why don’t you have a look around and see exactly what it means?”
We all turned around, and saw that there were dozens of other men, all carrying guns, emerging from the jungle when the man spoke. For all we knew, there could be others lying in wait.
We were at the mercy of the merciless.
And at that moment, it was set in concrete that there was no getting off this island if Alex couldn’t get in touch with Ann—or with somebody else at Wenn—to complete the transfer of that money.
“We’ll expect you back in seven hours,” I said.
“We need to get to the boat, lady. And when we return, we’ll need to walk back here. Give us nine hours. You’ll get your man back.” He winked at me, a gesture that was somehow threatening. “I promise.”
And with that, the man came forward, and took Alex by the arm. Then, the five of them started to walk away from us while Blackwell and Lisa came to my side and put their arms around me and the men standing at the jungle’s edge moved closer to us.
