Bloodseeker - Colin's Conquest Part 19

The blood beckoned to him, then her hands lifted and she gestured for him to come closer. Eyes moving from him to Ben who peeked around his broad back, she motioned for them both to approach her. Open slashes flowed above both her b.r.e.a.s.t.s and she invited the blood seekers to suckle with her expressive hand motions and the thrust of her breast. It did not take a second invitation.

Colin moved first, pulling Ben with him. They nestled in for their blood meal, drinking great draughts of her vital fluid. Hunger made them bold and careless.

Pin p.r.i.c.ks ... one after another. First he ignored them, but as more places on his body felt the sting Colin lifted his head and saw darts sticking out of his arms, legs and his side. A few darts pierced Ben's arms and legs as well. The native men! Shooting darts through bamboo blowguns. Several struck the woman and she fell to the ground. Colin smelled the slight tarry odor of the poison ...

curare. No doubt they dipped the tips in the potent poison to kill them.

His face frozen but slack, Ben tried to cry for help, but nothing happened. His eyes wouldn't move! His neck! His neck would not turn! Colin stared at him in horror as he folded in on himself and collapsed on the ground beside the very dead native woman.

These natives were not the chameleon people! Colin struggled to lift Ben as the warriors pelted him with dart after dart. Ben's weight felt tremendous, but he managed to lift him and carry him through the natives, kicking them out of his way as they continued to dart him.

He vowed to kill every one of them after he got Ben to safety. But as he stumbled into the forest, his legs stopped working and his arms grew weak. He lost his grip and Ben slipped to the forest floor amidst the dead leaves and scattering insects.

Rubbery legs would no longer support him and he toppled to the ground beside the cherished child he could no longer protect. The tribe came for them, lifted them, with great effort, to their shoulders and carried them away. Though paralyzed, Colin still felt the movement for a while and then his leaden world dimmed, until nothing of him remained.

Colin's struggle ... lost.

Seventeen

Joanna's dark blue backpack lay unzipped and gaping open amidst an a.s.sortment of food and camping equipment on the kitchen table. She tossed a folded blanket on top of the hodge-podge, almost knocking over the c.o.ke sitting on the far end of the table.

Catching the can with cat-like reflexes she averted a near disaster.

The warm afternoon caused condensation on the chilled soda can, and Joanna lifted it to her flushed face to spread the cool wetness on her hot skin. Lifting the long mane of hair off her shoulders she held the dripping can against her neck.

"Aaahhhhh."

To combat the heat she fixed her hair into a ponytail and braided it to keep the heavy blanket of hair off her body. Glancing down at her denim-clad legs she thought of putting on shorts, but remembered her experience with the coral snake. She donned pastel pink ankle socks to match her faded pink oxford blouse, and pushed her feet into her favorite pair of used-to-be-white Keds.

After threading her thin leather belt through the loops she added the sheath for the sharp hunting knife. Satisfied with her vampire hunting attire she began the arduous task of stuffing everything on the table into the small backpack.

Staring at the mound of supplies strewn across the tabletop she considered leaving it all behind. Then she'd have to return to the cabin every night ... that would never work! She had a better chance of finding a polar bear in these east Texas woods than she did of discovering Colin's lair, but she enjoyed a challenge, and this was a big one.

Comparing the size of the backpack to the variety of supplies on the table she knew it would take a miracle to get all this stuff inside. Sorting the necessities from the conveniences she made two piles-necessities to the left, conveniences right. She began by sliding the blanket to the left and the Ding Dongs to the right The compa.s.s she'd put in her hip pocket created an uncomfortable bulge, so she moved it to the voluminous pocket on her s.h.i.+rt.

Not as safe, but much more comfortable.

Pus.h.i.+ng the soft pack cooler containing her cherished c.o.kes to the right, she changed her mind and slid them over next to the blanket. She considered c.o.kes a necessity! After she managed to cram everything into the backpack, she settled her sungla.s.ses on her face, hefted the pack onto her back, locked up the cabin and set out on her search.

She started out with a light step, her flushed face a mask of determination as she checked the old compa.s.s for the proper direction.

As a young Girl Scout, she won a merit badge at camp by using the compa.s.s to find her way out of the woods. Now, with the help of the same device, she hoped to win more than a patch. She had to win the missing part of her heart back.

Before long she lost sight of the cabin. Even though she had a compa.s.s she knew to blaze a trail. The Big Thicket was so dense, impa.s.sible in some places so it was best to know which way to turn. Withdrawing the foot long hunting knife from the leather sheath with great care she remembered her granddaddy had always called this knife a machete. She drove its glistening blade into a tree trunk with a downward motion, then once again in an upward motion to form a shallow yet visible notch. Every ten yards or so she notched another tree, always at eye level, to leave an easy trail to follow.

She trudged through the trees for almost two hours before she stopped to rest and have a drink. Her s.h.i.+rt dripped with sweat and her bra had chafed the skin around her midriff. Pulling the hated undergarment away from her body, she rubbed at the raw skin underneath.

Then she thought, "Who's gonna see me?"

Dropping her gear she unb.u.t.toned her blouse, removed the offensive bra, then hung it from a nearby tree as an added trail marker.

Instead of re-b.u.t.toning her s.h.i.+rt she tied the tails into a square knot under her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, allowing air to reach her sweaty back.

Removing one of her beloved soft drinks from the pack was no easy feat, they were way down on the bottom. It was worth the trouble to displace everything else in the backpack, the chilly cola felt wonderful running down her throat into her stomach. She forgot to eat again, but didn't feel hungry. More than anything she suffered from an almost unquenchable thirst, consuming quart after quart of liquid every day.

When she reorganized her backpack she put the clothing, toiletries and blanket near the bottom, and the cooler and snacks on top.

Anxious to be on her way she donned the pack and reached in her breast pocket for the compa.s.s. Not there!

She dropped her supplies in a panic and searched the area. Without the gadget she'd get lost or go around in circles. The position of the sun would be of no help with the dense canopy of trees overhead. Dropping to her knees she scoured the ground, pus.h.i.+ng aside undergrowth and overturning leaves.

A glint of metal caught her eye, lying in the brush beneath the great double-humped arrow of her discarded bra. Relief flooded over her. She held on tight to the compa.s.s as if it might try to escape again.

Bowing a thank you to the bra, she slipped on her backpack and headed north. In the heat of the day no other living thing moved about except pestilent insects. The drone of cicadas rang in her ears, the never-ending buzz of summer. Today's sweltering heat burned her lungs as she drew each breath. Even in the shade the lack of a breeze gave her the sensation of being baked to a delicate crunch, like one of her favorite baked cheese puffs.

By the end of the scorching day, bone tired, Joanna smelled like a soured washcloth, and felt like she had gained nothing with this hike and never would. A perky Mockingbird sang his wide variety of birdcalls from a branch overhead, ignoring the human girl sprawled under the tree. The small gray bird's lively singing did help to lift her spirits some. After all, she made it this far without any mishaps, snakebites, broken bones, or any of the other calamities that she expected to befall her.

Joanna cleared an area of all sticks and pinecones and spread out her faded violet blanket as her bed for the night. Gazing up at the darkening treetops from her makes.h.i.+ft bed she thought of Colin, and his asinine decision to send her away. She couldn't wait to give him a good wallop for treating her this way. As thoughts of getting even ran through her mind exhaustion took over, then she forgot everything.

Several hours later Joanna's eyes opened and she sat bolt upright in alarm, awake in an instant as she became aware of a presence.

Holding her breath, she tuned into the sounds of the night ... a bird of prey leaving his roost, a symphony of crickets, the buzzing of mosquitoes. Then she heard a large four-legged creature ... panting ... drawing near.

Staring into the woods, she searched for the beast. Flipping on her flashlight she saw it ... a pair of radiant gold eyes ... moving closer and closer. Making out the canine form she wondered if it was a dog or a wolf. Motionless, she waited to see what it would do, the flashlight beam pulsating as her hand quivered. She pressed the switch to turn off the light.

The animal disappeared! Fumbling with the flashlight she tried to switch it back on but her fingers failed to cooperate. It took several attempts, but she got it to s.h.i.+ne again, and yes, the animal had disappeared. s.h.i.+ning the light all around she couldn't find it.

Joanna fell back on her blanket, relieved. Straining her eyes she noticed creatures flitting about in the treetops. What kind of bird flies around like that at night? It couldn't be owls. No, only one type of creature is that skilled.

"Bats! Cool."

Her voice seemed so loud to her ears, but the bats didn't notice. Jumping to her feet she repacked her blanket to make a hasty retreat. She'd never get back to sleep now, so why waste time trying?

Traveling at night without the sun beating down was much more comfortable. Heading east for a few miles, she made good time.

She noticed more palmetto fans, big and beautiful, giving the woods a jungle-like atmosphere-a touch of the Amazon. Struggling through lush vines growing on and between the trees on the soft ground, majestic Cypress began to replace the pines, their ancient trunks dwarfing their human visitor.

Through a break in the brush, Joanna glimpsed a clearing, the moonlight flooding in the gap in the treetop canopy. Accelerating her pace, she plunged into the clearing before she realized it was a swamp and she stood up to her knees in the mud and warm stagnant water.

"s.h.i.+t."Standing like a dolt in the water, staring down at her legs, she could manage to say nothing else. She had found an acid bog and there were probably all sorts of creatures in the water with her. Her imagination ran wild: nutria rats ... yuck, snakes, poisonous ones ... yuck, alligators, big ones.... big red crawdeads, yuck. At that moment a soft splash nearby signaled something entering the water!

The mud sucked at her feet like some powerful ent.i.ty determined to drag her down into the predacious bowels of the swamp.

Stumbling through the mire, falling to her knees in the water, she fought to gain stable footing in her panic. Gaining a measure of control over her shaking limbs, Joanna leapt up and out of the bog, flinging slime, mud and putrid water with an explosion of flailing arms and legs. She ran, toppling over fallen tree branches and protruding Cypress roots only to gain her footing and run even more until she reached the point of collapse.

With a dismal sob, she fell to her hands and knees then flat on her face, gasping for breath and holding her throbbing side. Time pa.s.sed, she had no idea how long, but her mind needed rest. It began to play tricks on her and the boogieman came for her through alligators, or nutria rats or any of the myriad swamp creatures.

The stampeding pulse in her adrenaline saturated veins reined in its out of control beat and she drew regular steady breaths again.

Even the pain in her side began to subside. The scent of the earth, the soil, decaying leaves, softwood, stagnant water, even the musk of small rodents soothed her, restoring a sense of normalcy. Her mind drifted and she relaxed, listening to the songs of a hundred crickets and lovesick tree frogs.

Joanna opened her eyes as sunlight came sneaking through the canopy of trees. It hurt so she closed them again, wondering where she was, why she fell asleep here. Damp heat permeated her pores, sweat seeped out leaving her dank and sticky. She sat up, her body stiff and disagreeable. Pain in her back, shoulders and hips ... must be how the old and decrepit feel every morning, but it wasn't morning. Judging from the intense heat and scattered sunbeams threading through the dense foliage it appeared to be late afternoon. She'd left her watch on the table back at the cabin, a lot of good it did back there. Not that it mattered. Time was irrelevant here in the middle of this wooded purgatory with it's infernal, dripping, suffocating heat.

Shaking off her melancholy, she dug the last remaining cola from her pack and downed the tepid liquid in a few long reckless swallows. It burned as it slid down her throat to settle into a sizzling puddle in her empty stomach. At least it was wet.

She should have rationed her supplies better. It seemed like she'd been tramping through the woods for weeks when it had only been a couple of days ... hot, miserable, b.e.s.t.i.a.l days. She'd slept through most of this day, and she should eat something to maintain her strength. Fis.h.i.+ng out her snacks, the little shredded wheat bits tasted like straw. She choked down a few, then crammed the bag back into her pack. So much for eating. The dry cereal made her thirsty and she could not resist taking a long drink from her canteen.

She'd find the cabin she searched for soon. The fact that she was almost out of water didn't worry her ... much.

With a groan, she stood, attempting to brush the dirt off her clothes then giving up when the grime smeared and dirtied her hands even more. Her lip curled with distaste, she shrugged into her backpack and reached for the compa.s.s so she could get her bearings before starting out. Not there!

"On no!" She felt all her pockets. Empty!

"Oh no, oh no, oh no." Frantic now, she muttered over and over again as she searched around the area.

Dropping to her knees in panic she crawled on all fours, scratching her hands on twigs and sticker vines as she clawed at the leaf litter, groping for something that in her heart, she knew would not be there.

Disaster! This could not happen!! No, no, no! Could not be true ... utter chaos, her thoughts.

No matter how hard she clawed at the ground, or how she scuttled around like a beetle through the underbrush and filth of the forest floor, the search ended in failure. The compa.s.s wasn't here. Reflecting on her wild tear through the forest she realized that it could be anywhere. What compelled her to do this? This stupid trek through the woods in search of an undiscovered hidden cabin. Joanna crumbled, body and soul. Folding in on herself, her body collapsed in a heap. She didn't care that thorns under her bare arm punctured the flesh and didn't care that her jeans soaked up the moisture from the damp ground with the efficiency of a desiccated sponge. She wouldn't scream for help or pray to a G.o.d she didn't believe in. She refused to feel anything.

Nightfall. Darkness brought relief from the oppressive heat. The trees sighed as a soft breeze tickled the pine boughs then meandered it's way to the forest floor in whispers of cooling air. Joanna found the strength to lift herself and stand. Lying in her fetal position for such a long time had taken a toll on her battered body and her limbs didn't want to obey. The urgent need to relieve herself pushed her to move or not only would she be alone and lost in the woods but she'd have urine soaked clothes too.

What a struggle to remove the filthy, damp jeans. Nothing could make her put these things back on. So foolish not to bring another pair of pants, shorts would have to do. Digging through her pack, she found them wadded up in the bottom and put them on along with a clean t-s.h.i.+rt. At least she smelled better and felt a little better too.

Feeling more optimistic, maybe she could find some of the trees she notched in her path yesterday. Was it just yesterday? Or the day before? How many days had pa.s.sed? Panic crawled like a multi-legged insect down her throat and invaded her gut, twisting and churning before it exited in a rush of painful gas. She couldn't do this any more ... but if she let this situation get to her now she'd die ... she was much too stubborn to die! Refusing to panic, refusing to collapse again she dug through her backpack for her flashlight and pressed the b.u.t.ton.

Nothing happened.

"Dammit!"

Pressing again and again and yet again she tried to get the light to come on. The batteries died, like her confidence, drained away and dead. But wait ... she packed extras! She grinned as she replaced the batteries.

"Let there be light" She snorted as she pressed the b.u.t.ton and the light came on. She half expected it not to work. Digging a hole, she buried the old batteries, then thought the better of it and dug them back up, putting them dirt and all into her backpack.

Switching the flashlight off again the woods seemed darker than the deepest caves, but if she continued to use it now what would she do when these batteries also ran out of life? What happened to her keen night vision? It was like she had never been able to see well at night at all. The effects from Colin's infusions faded, those heightened senses that she didn't realize were there until they dwindled away.

She'd save her batteries for emergencies, and travel by day, even though walking through the desert would feel cooler than this dense forest during the heat of the afternoon. At least it wasn't raining, so she wouldn't have to untangle the tiny pup tent she'd brought along. Now to find some drier ground and rest until daybreak.

Joanna's long, restless night ended as the blackness lightened to purple, then dark blue in the pre-dawn hour. She could see well enough to begin her search not only for the hidden cabin, but for a way out of the forest alive. All the trees looked alike, bark and branches, and bark and more bark, brush and brambles and decaying wood. No notches in any of these trunks. Nothing to identify that she'd pa.s.sed that way before. No sense of direction, and no way to tell where the sun was in the sky. Nothing but trees ...

trees ... trees. Within hours she was drenched with sweat, frustrated, and still lost.

Thirst was her constant companion and she lifted the canteen to her lips to discover that it was empty, bone dry. No more water.

No more liquid of any kind. Her situation just went from bad to worse and thirst gnawed at her. Dry mouth, dry throat, swollen tongue ... she couldn't swallow. She had to find water, no matter what.

This new quest took on a life of its own ... water ... water. Maybe she could find that bog again. Vines tore at her clothes as she stumbled through the thick undergrowth. Snagging her foot she fell, and her legs tangled in an evil thorn patch. Cursing, she used sheer force to rip her legs out of the slender but wicked vines. Crawling away, trailing uprooted vines with her, she found a more open area to sit and rest.

Thin lines of blood seeped from the scratches on her arms and legs. The blood fascinated her, the rich red color of it, the thickness of it and the motion of this thick fluid as it flowed in tiny rivulets down her limbs.She fancied that she could smell this luscious broth and her mouth watered. Funny, she couldn't imagine where the moisture came from but she welcomed it. She lifted her right arm and inhaled, letting the faint smell of her own body and blood fill her lungs then without thinking twice about it, she ran her tongue over the wound on her forearm.

"Mmmmmmmmmm." The smoky taste of her blood lingered and again saliva flooded her tongue. She needed more! Joanna bathed the cuts with her tongue, sucking at the slices in her skin, squeezing them with both hands to try and bring more blood. The cuts that she couldn't reach with her mouth she wet her fingers and smoothed the blood onto her fingertips then brought them to her mouth.

Finger lickin good.

It relieved the horrible insatiable thirst but still she wanted more.

Her gaze drifted from the clean cuts that were now just dainty pink ridges on her skin to the knife hanging from her belt. With her gut instincts screaming no, she unsnapped the sheath and slid the sharp blade out. A single sunbeam caught the blade and glinted back into her face, hurting her eyes. Squinting, she moved the knife back and forth flas.h.i.+ng light off the blade until the sunbeam disappeared behind the swaying upper branches on the living sentinels of the forest.

With a trembling hand, she placed the blade against her left wrist and drew it across her flesh leaving a deeper cut than she had intended but it served it's purpose nonetheless. Moments later a stream of blood flowed from the slash but she lost not a drop as she closed her mouth over the wound and drank. Swallow after swallow of rich warmth flowed down her throat, soothing the parched tissues and easing the ache in the pit of her belly.

Her head swam, senses dulled and reeling. Each beat of her heart slammed against her ribs with a labored cadence that kept her grounded and aware of herself despite the psychosis creeping over her.

Dropping the bloodied knife to the ground, she stared down at her body, a stranger's body wearing her clothing. Skin gleaming with the alien life within, colors blurring into one another, the laces on her shoes alive and grotesque, everything appeared more surreal than real. The gentle radiance behind her eyes began to fade until her head hit the pillow of growth and decay on the forest floor.

Powerful thirst brought her out of the dream state and back to the stark arid reality that she wanted to forget. She had to find water soon. With a groan, she sat up and ran her fingers through her hair, picking out bits of bark and leaves and a delicate shred of pale green moss. Retrieving her knife, she clenched her bottom lip in her teeth and contemplated cutting herself again. The blood helped for a little while but she had to think. "Think Joanna, think." Losing any more blood wouldn't help her dehydration. No, she couldn't drink more of her own blood.

Trudging through the dense foliage, she searched for a water source, she searched for a way out of the woods and she searched for Colin's cabin. Even though she didn't look up at the canopy, she knew that the sun would soon set. All around her the color disappeared to be replaced by a gray monotone with varying amounts of texture and density instead of the verdant brilliance of the forest canvas.

Stopping to catch her breath for a moment, she lifted the bottom of her t-s.h.i.+rt and wiped the sweat from her face with it. She stretched her hands high over her head first more to the left then more to the right, working the muscles in her sides and back. Then that she heard that miraculous sound ... the gurgling sound of flowing water!

She followed the tinkling splashes with giddy delight. A small creek ran through the woods, gliding over branches, settling into small pools, then flowing out the other side in an endless parade of rippling life.

Small animal tracks littered the sandy sides of the creek and she knelt beside them and dipped her hand in the cool water. Bringing it to her mouth, she sniffed, hesitant to drink the water but so thirsty that she did it anyway. Dipping her hand again and again she gulped mouthful after glorious mouthful of the fragrant creek water.

Feeling much better after drinking water, Joanna chose a spot close to the creek, cleared the ground and spread out her blanket to spend the night. Everything would work out fine now. She could just follow the creek, never be without water and find her way out. Bird song awakened her. The lyrical twee twee twee and garbled but beautiful notes danced around in the surrounding trees ... the melodious echo bouncing from leaf to leaf and around her head. The beauty of her surroundings would have been breathtaking if the onset of severe cramps hadn't already stolen her breath away. Piercing, debilitating pains cleaved through her stomach and intestines, broiling with an intensity that she knew would erupt soon.

Before she could lift herself from the ground or remove her pants, scalding, foul waste poured out of her body in painful torrents. It oozed out of her shorts and down her legs as she watched in abject horror. She could do nothing to stop the onslaught of this dysentery flood and the cramps sliced through her body like double-edged swords, one stab after another.

Minutes, then hours pa.s.sed as Joanna writhed in pain and her own filth. She struggled to remove her shorts, repulsed by the sight and smell of them. It was enough to make her gag and throw up too. She used her remaining strength to roll over, once, twice, then a third time landed her in the creek.

Ice-cold water ... but it felt wonderful on her fevered skin. She managed to get her disgusting clothes off and lie in the cleansing water, unconcerned when her clothing washed down the creek and left her s.h.i.+vering and bobbing there naked as the day she was born. Beyond caring about anything other than when the horrible pains would stop.

A cool sluggishness replaced the cramps. No more pain, no more s.h.i.+vering ... just dreaminess. Then Joanna no longer felt anything.

Eighteen