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  "Hush," he said with a sad smile, the word a secret reminder of their night together. "Hush."

  Fresh tears flowed. "I heard about Manny," she said. "I'm so sorry."

  Nate closed his eyes and bowed his head. "If you get a chance," he said under his breath, "kill that French bastard."

  She leaned into him, sliding her cheek next to his. "I promise," she whispered at his ear, like a lover sharing a secret.

  He turned his face and met her lips, not caring who saw. He kissed her one last time. She met his kiss, gasping between their joined lips.

  Then she was torn away, yanked to her feet by Favre. He had a hand clenched around her arm. "It would seem you two have been sharing more than just a professional relationship," he said with a sneer.

  Favre whipped Kelly around and kissed her hard on the mouth. She cried out in surprise and shock. Louis released her, throwing her back toward the Indian woman. Blood dripped from his lip.

  Kelly had bitten him.

  He wiped his chin. "Don't worry, Nathan. I'll take good care of your woman." He glanced back to Kelly and his mistress. "Tshui and I will make sure her stay with us is an enjoyable one. Won't we, Tshui?"

  The Indian witch leaned closer to their prisoner and fingered a curl of Kelly's auburn hair, sniffing at it.

  "See, Nathan. Tshui is already intrigued."

  Nate struggled to lunge at the man, fighting his bonds. "You bastard," he hissed, choking as the strangle noose tightened.

  "Calm yourself, my boy." Louis stepped back, putting an arm around Kelly. "She's in good hands."

  Tears of frustration rolled down his face. His breath was a ragged gasp as the noose dug into the flesh of his neck. Still he struggled. He would die anyway. What did it matter if he strangled or burned?

  Louis glanced down at him sadly, then dragged Kelly away. The man mumbled as he left, "A shame...such a nice boy, but so much tragedy in his life."

  Nate began to see stars dancing at the edges of his blackening vision.

  Kouwe hissed at Nate. "Stop struggling, Nate."

  "Why?" he gasped.

  "Where there is life, there is hope."

  Nate sagged in his bonds, not so much finding significance in the professor's words as simple defeat. His breathing became incrementally easier. He stared after the retreating mercenary band, but his eyes stayed focused on Kelly. She glanced back one time, just before disappearing into the jungle fringe. Then she was gone.

  The group remained silent, except for a mumbled prayer from Anna. Behind them, a few of the Indian prisoners had begun to sing a mournful melody, while others simply cried. They continued to sit, with no hope, baking under the sun as it trailed toward the western horizon. With each breath or sob, their deaths drew nearer.

  "Why didn't he just shoot us?" Sergeant Kostos mumbled.

  "It's not Favre's way," Professor Kouwe answered.

  "He wants us to appreciate our deaths. A slow torture. It excites the bastard."

  Nate closed his eyes, defeated.

  After an hour, a huge explosion shattered off to the south. Nate opened his eyes and watched a thick column of smoke and rock dust blast into the sky.

  "They blew the chasm," Carrera said at the other end of the line.

  Nate turned away. The explosion echoed for a few seconds, then died away. All of them now waited for one last explosion, the one that would take their lives and burn through the valley.

  As silence again descended over them, Nate heard a distinctive cough from the forest's edge. A jaguar's cough.

  Kouwe glanced over to Nate.

  "Tor-tor?" Nate asked, experiencing a twinge of hope.

  From the jungle's edge, a jaguar pushed into the open glade. But it was not the spotted face of their friend's pet.

  The huge black jaguar slunk into the open, sniffing, lips pulled back in a silent and hungry snarl.

  5:35 P.M.

  Kelly walked beside Frank's stretcher. The two bearers seemed tireless, marching through the jungles of the lower canyon like muscled robots. Kelly, with no burden except for her heavy heart, found her feet stumbling over every root and branch.

  Favre had set a hard pace for the group. He wanted to reach the swamp lake and disappear into the forests south of it before the fiery explosion ripped through the upper canyon.

  "After that, the military will be flocking there like flies on shit," Favre had warned. "We must be well gone."

  Kelly had also eavesdropped on the chatter among the mercenary grunts, spoken in a patois of Portuguese and Spanish. Favre had radioed ahead and arranged for motor boats to meet them at a river only a day's march from here. Once there, they would quickly speed away.

  But first they had to get to the rendezvous spot without getting caught--and that meant speed was essential. Favre would brook no laggers, including Kelly. The monster had confiscated Manny's bullwhip, snapping it periodically as he moved through the line, like a slavemaster overseeing his crew. Kelly already had a taste of its stinging touch, when she had fallen to her knees as the chasm had exploded behind them. She had been so wrung with hopelessness, she had not been able to move. Then fire had lit her shoulder. The whip had split her shirt and stung her skin. She knew better than to falter from that point on.

  Frank spoke from his stretcher. "Kelly..."

  She leaned down toward him.

  "We'll get out of this," he said, slurring. Despite her brother's earlier protests, she had given him a jolt of Demerol before being transported from the Yagga's healing ward. She hadn't wanted him to suffer by their manhandling. "We'll make it."

  Kelly nodded, wishing her arms were untied so she could hold her brother's hand. But under the blanket, even Frank's limbs were secured by ropes to the stretcher.

  Frank continued with his bleary attempt at consoling her. "Nate...and the others...they'll find a way to break free...rescue..." His words drifted into a morphine haze.

  Kelly glanced behind them. The sky was mostly blocked by the canopy overhead, but she could still spot the smudge of smoke from the explosion, closing off the upper valley from the lower. She hadn't told her brother about the incendiary devices set throughout the primitive forest. They could expect no help from their old teammates.

  Kelly eyed Favre's back as he marched ahead.

  Her only hope now was for revenge.

  She intended to keep her promise to Nate.

  She would kill Louis Favre...or die trying.

  5:58 P.M.

  Nate watched the giant black jaguar stalk into the open glade. It was alone. Nate recognized it as the leader of the pack, the sly female. She must have somehow survived Louis's mass poisoning and instinctively returned to the valley of her birth.

  Sergeant Kostos groaned under his breath, "This day just gets better and better."

  The great beast eyed the bound prisoners, ready-packed meals. Without the repellent black powder, even the Ban-ali were at risk. The black feline god, created by the Yagga to protect them, had just turned feral.

  The beast crept toward them, low to the ground, tail flicking.

  Then a flash of fire drew Nate's attention over the cat's muscled shoulder. Tor-tor loped out of the jungle in its shadow. Showing no sign of fear, Tor-tor raced past the larger cat and rushed at Nate and the others.

  Nate was knocked on his side by the cat's show of exuberance. With his master dead, Tor-tor was clearly relieved to rejoin them, seeking consolation, reassurance.

  Nate choked on his tightening noose. "Th...That's a good boy, Tor-tor."

  The large black cat hung back, watching the strange display.

  Tor-tor rolled against him, wanting a pet, something to let him know all was okay. Nate, tied up, couldn't comply--but an idea formed.

  Nate rolled around, earning a further twist of his noose, and held the ropes out toward the jaguar. Tor-tor sniffed at his bindings. "Bite through them," Nate urged, shaking his bound wrists. "Then I'll pet you, you big furry lug."

  Tor-tor licked Nate's hand,
then nosed him in the shoulder.

  Nate groaned with frustration. Nate glanced over his shoulder. The giant black cat padded over to him and nudged Tor-tor aside with a small growl.

  Nate froze.

  The monster sniffed at the hand that Tor-tor had licked, then gazed up at Nate with those penetrating black eyes. He was sure it could smell the abject fear in the man curled at its feet.

  Nate remembered how it had torn Frank's limbs off in a single swooping attack.

  The jaguar lowered its head to Nate's arms and legs. A rumble sounded through it. Nate felt a fierce tug and was lifted off the ground, strangling in the noose. For a momentary flash, Nate wondered if he would be strangled before being eaten. He prayed for the former.

  Instead, Nate found himself dropped back to the ground. He cringed a moment, then realized his arms were loose. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Nate rolled away with a kick and a twist. He sat up, glancing to the severed ropes dangling from his wrists. The cat had freed him.

  Nate yanked at the constricting noose.

  The large black jaguar watched him. Tor-tor brushed the giant cat's flank, a clear display of affection, and crossed to Nate.

  After working free the noose, Nate tossed it aside. His ankles were still bound, but before he could free his legs, he had a friend to thank.

  Tor-tor shoved into him, bowing his furry head into Nate's chest.

  He scratched that special spot behind both ears, earning a rumbled purr of satisfaction. "That's a good boy...you did good."

  A small sad whine flowed from the cat.

  Nate pulled Tor-tor's head up and stared into those golden eyes. "I loved Manny, too," Nate whispered.

  Tor-tor nuzzled his face, snuffling.

  Nate endured it, making small soothing sounds to the cat. Eventually Tor-tor backed a step away. Nate was able to free his ankles.

  Beyond Tor-tor, the giant black jaguar sat on its haunches. Tor-tor must have run into the female after Manny's death. He must have directed her here. Manny had been proven right a couple nights back. Some bond must have developed between the two young cats. Perhaps the ties had grown even deeper by their shared grief: Tor-tor for his master, the female for her pack.

  Nate stood and freed Kouwe. Together they unbound the others. Nate found himself untying the ropes from Dakii's limbs. Here was the Indian scout who had been principally responsible for sending the piranhas and locusts upon their party. But Nate could no longer touch his old anger. The Indian had only been protecting his people--and as it turned out, rightly so. Nate helped Dakii up, staring at the smoky ruins of the village. Who were the true monsters of the jungle?

  Dakii hugged Nate tightly.

  "Don't thank me yet," Nate said. Around the glade, the other Indians were being untied, but Nate focused on the booby-trapped tree with its nine napalm bombs chained around its trunk.

  Sergeant Kostos passed by, rubbing his chafed wrists. "I'm going to see about disarming the charges. Carrera's off to see if she can find the weapon she hid."

  Nate nodded. Nearby, the freed Ban-ali gathered around the two jaguars. Both cats were now lounging in the shade, seemingly oblivious to the audience. But Nate noticed the larger female watching everything through slitted eyes. The cat was not letting its guard down.

  Anna and Kouwe stepped over to join him. "We're free, but what now?" the professor asked.

  Nate shook his head.

  Anna crossed her arms.

  "What's wrong?" Nate asked, noticing her deeply furrowed brow.

  "Richard Zane. If we ever get out of this mess, I'm quitting Tellux."

  Nate smiled despite their situation. "I'll be right behind you with my own letter of resignation."

  After a bit, Sergeant Kostos strode back to them, wearing his usual scowl. "The bombs are all hardwired and booby-trapped. I can't stop the detonation sequence or remove the devices."

  "There's nothing you can do?" Kouwe asked.

  The Ranger shook his head. "I have to give that French bastard's team some credit. They did a great job, damn them."

  "How much time?" Anna asked.

  "Just under two hours. The digital timers are set to blow at eight o'clock."

  Nate frowned at the tree. "Then we'll either have to find another way out of this valley or seek some type of shelter."

  "Forget shelter," Kostos said. "We need to be as fucking far from here as possible when those babies blow. Even without the additional incendiaries placed by Favre's men, those nine napalmers are enough to fry this entire plateau."

  Nate took him at his word. "Where's Dakii? Maybe he knows another way out of here."

  Kouwe pointed to the entrance to the Yagga. "He went to check on the status of his shaman."

  Nate nodded, remembering the poor man who had been shot in the gut by Zane. "Let's go see if Dakii knows anything helpful."

  Kouwe and Anna followed him.

  Sergeant Kostos waved them on. "I'll keep examining the bombs. See if I can come up with anything."

  Once inside the tree's entrance, Nate again was struck by the scent, musky and sweet. They followed the blue handprints up the tunnel.

  Kouwe marched at Nate's side. "I know escape is foremost on everyone's mind, but what about the contagious disease?"

  "If there's a way out," Nate said, "we'll collect as many plant specimens as time allows. That's all we can do. We'll have to hope we stumble on the correct one."

  Kouwe looked pensive, not satisfied with Nate's answer, but had no other rebuttal. A cure discovered here would do the world no good if they themselves didn't survive.

  As they continued to wend their way up the tree, the sound of footfalls echoed down to them. Nate glanced to Kouwe. Someone was coming.

  Dakii suddenly appeared around the corner, winded and wide-eyed. He was startled to find them in front of him. He spoke rapidly in his own tongue. Even Kouwe couldn't entirely follow it.

  "Slow down," Nate said.

  Dakii grabbed Nate's arm. "Son of wishwa, you come." He tugged Nate toward the upper tunnel.

  "Is your shaman okay?"

  Dakii bobbed his head. "He live. But sick...very big sick."

  "Take us to him," Nate said.

  The Indian was clearly relieved. They hurried up at a half trot. In a short time, the group entered the healing ward at the top.

  Nate spotted the shaman in one of the hammocks. He was alive but did not look well. His skin was yellowish and shone with fever sweat. Very big sick, indeed.

  As they approached, the prone man sat up, though clearly it pained him immensely to do so. The shaman waved to Dakii, ordering him across the room on an errand, then stared at Nate. He was glassy-eyed but lucid.

  Nate noticed the ropes lying on the floor under the hammock. Even gravely injured, the man had been bound by Favre.

  The shaman pointed at Nate. "You wishwa...like father."

  Nate opened his mouth to say no. He was certainly no shaman. But Kouwe interrupted. "Tell him yes," the professor urged.

  Nate slowly nodded, obeying Kouwe's instinct.

  The response clearly relieved the suffering man. "Good," the shaman said.

  Dakii returned, burdened with a leather satchel and a pair of footlong lengths of reed. He held the gear out to his leader, but the shaman was too weak. He directed Dakii from his hammock.

  Obeying, Dakii lifted the pouch.

  "A dried jaguar scrotum," Kouwe said, pointing to the pouch.

  "All the rage in Paris," Nate grumbled.

  Dakii fingered open the pouch. Inside was a crimson powder. The shaman spoke from the bed, instructing.

  Kouwe translated, though Nate caught a word here and there. "He describes the powder as ali ne Yagga."

  Nate understood. "Blood of the Mother."

  Kouwe glanced at Nate as Dakii tamped some of the powder into the tips of the two straws. "You know what's about to happen, don't you?"

  Nate could certainly guess. "It's like the Yanomamo drug epena." Over the years,
he had worked with various Yanomamo tribes and been invited to participate in epena ceremonies. Epena, translated as "semen of the sun," was a hallucinogenic drug Yanomamo shamans used to enter the spirit world. It was strong stuff, fabled to bring the hekura, or little men of the forest, to teach medicine to a shaman. When Nate had tried the stuff, all he had ever experienced was a severe headache followed by swirls of color. Furthermore, he was not particularly fond of the drug's delivery system. It was snuffed up the nose.