Castaways Ch 08

This is a fictional account. If you haven't read the others, you might want to start at the beginning. Hope you enjoy but if you're just looking for hot sex this isn't the chapter.

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As John got close to where he had left Em hiding she dashed out from the rocks to greet him.

"Shit, I thought you were dead you were gone so long," Em lambasted him and smacked his arm none too lightly.

"Ouch ...sorry, I just had to stay to see what they were up to," John confessed.

"Don't ever leave me like that again. I was petrified you were hurt or worse," Em scolded.

"Okay ... okay, I won't," John agreed.

"Well ... tell me ... what're they doing?"

"They buried those bags and the briefcase too," John exclaimed.

He grabbed her elbow and led her back behind the rocks for cover. He also glanced one last time down the beach to make sure they had not been seen. They crouched below the rocks on the sand.

"Em, they are definitely not friendlies. And that poor girl appears to be a hostage or slave or something."

"Oh, god! Are they a danger to us?"

"Yeah, we need to cover our tracks as much as possible and be prepared to leave if we have too."

"But, John, the raft isn't ready, you said so yourself, and the sail is nowhere near done," Em exclaimed.

"I know but our chances of survival might be slim otherwise. I have a feeling they don't want anyone to know they were here and especially where they buried those bags," John professed.

"What're we going to do?" Em questioned nervously.

"I think they're going to bed down for the night where they are. They built a fire and were drinking heavily when I left. No telling how much exploring they're going to do in the morning though. We need to work through the night getting ready."

"Ready for what?"

"To defend ourselves and leave the island if we have to," John declared.

"Defend ourselves ... with what? They have fucking machine guns!" Em exclaimed.

"I know, it's not good, but hopefully we can maintain surprise on our side."

"John, there are four of them with guns. The three other guys didn't have guns and we were lucky you got two of them with your trap."

"I know, Em, but what the hell you want me to do? You said it yourself. The raft isn't ready and we can only use it as a last resort. Without a sail we'll just drift wherever," John stated.

"I know ... I know!" Em agreed frightfully.

"We got to move the raft to the western side of the island as far away from these guys as we can to preserve our escape and we have to get rid of the ramp so they won't see it. Then we have to provision the boat as best we can before dawn. I also need to resurrect the trap and we need to prepare to defend ourselves," John explained.

"Oh, god, this is crazy. Maybe we should just take the raft now before they wake?"

"To where? We could drift way out to sea and we don't have enough saved provisions for too long," John concluded.

"I know!" Em agreed emphatically. "You're right. It just looks like suicide to me to take these guys on."

"I've got an idea. If it works we can get away quickly," John explained.

"Okay, I hope so," Em worried aloud.

"Come with me. I'll explain as we work," John instructed.

First thing they worked on was to prepare the camp. John hadn't reset the booby traps after Em had worried that one time about exactly this very thing happening. She had once said to him, when they argued over when to signal and when not to, that she was concerned that they would signal to the wrong people. Well, here the bad guys had come unsolicited by them. Fortunately John had saved the parts to his booby trap. He hadn't wanted to reset it for fear one of them would accidently trip it but now he worked feverishly to reset the hanging traps.

He climbed two trees near the camp with the long pointed pieces of driftwood strapped to his back. He secured them in place with the vines he had used before and ran them down to the ground. He then connected them in trip wire fashion on three sides to the approach to the hut. When he was done he had it just like the first time when it had worked to great efficiency on the drug runners. Only this time he worried that Em might be right. The chances were greater these guys would approach in daylight after sleeping off their drunk. They might more easily see the trip wires. If they totally avoided the trap then their chances of survival diminished substantially.

Once that was done they moved the suitcases they planned to leave with on the raft, including the money, up onto the high rock above their hut. John planned to make a stand from that advantage point. If things got out of hand quickly they could run away on the opposite side of the rock formation away from the hut to the west. The drop off the big flat rock to the sand on that side was only three feet and then a path wound through the rocks down to the western beach. It would take the pirates or whatever they were some time to figure out how to climb the rock and get on top. Once they did, he hoped Em and he would already be down to the beach and the raft.

Next, John had Em hand him up whatever weapons they had. Knives, three spears they used for fishing, and the bow and five arrows John had made with bamboo for their trip on the raft. He hoped to be able to shoot fish if they came close enough to the raft while they were at sea. He had never planned for this and with building the raft had only practiced once to see if it worked. He had done archery as a kid but that was a long time ago and the practice proved how rusty he was. Plus his bow and arrows were rudimentary at best. The only good thing was the tips were sharp, with small pointed pieces of aluminum from the plane.

With the camp set, they began the far more difficult task. They had to launch the raft and pull it through the surf around the western side of the island. They had to moor it there but in such a way that they could release it quickly to get away if need be. They then had to dismantle the ramp to the water and hide the remaining bamboo. John reasoned there was strong likelihood the leader of the bad guys would explore the island a little before departing. If he did, he only had to walk fifty feet south to spot the lean-to from the drug runners. Once seeing that he was sure their interest would be piqued to look further. If for nothing more than to make sure the island was uninhabited as they probably suspected at first or maybe even knew from previous visits.

John believed they would then discover the two pieces of the plane on the southern shoreline and probably next Em's mother's grave along with the other passengers. It wouldn't take a genius to realize someone had to bury them and might still be around.

The work was difficult as they slid the raft down near the water and started dismantling the already used part of the ramp. John had kept one of the knives in his pocket and used that to walk around slicing loose the vine bindings that held the bamboo ramp together. Once he had cut them all he left Em to dispose of the bamboo pieces off the beach in a clump of rocks and palms. They would be unlikely to discover them there without a very thorough search.

John fought the surf for over an hour to pull and push the raft around the island. He could have used Em's help to keep it from washing repeated up onto the beach as he tried to pull it around by the vine he hoped to moor it with on the western side. Unfortunately, she needed to keep working on what she was doing. The full moonlight afforded them ample light for the work they were doing but John knew daylight wasn't far off now. They were both sweating and breathing heavily as they raced to get done what they needed to.

John used the same method he had seen the pirates use. He carried the largest rock he could down to the beach and tied the vine off to it. He felt good it would hold the raft from drifting away with the coming tide but still give him the opportunity to cut them loose for a hasty departure. His arms and back ached by the time he jogged back along the beach to see how Em was doing. Along the way he passed the signal pyre. He had forgotten about that. It too along with the SOS rocks on the beach should be dealt with. He groaned aloud to himself as he raced back to Em.

Em had most of the bamboo off the beach and hidden. John helped her cut the last few bindings at the end which had been under the raft before he left and dispose of the remaining pieces. Their footprints were all over the place in the sand. The only good news they had as they sweated and huffed was the tide was coming in. It would hide or wash away many of their tracks in the harder sand.

The next task was to disperse the rocks they had used to form the SOS sign on the beach. That took about thirty minutes of very hard labor. By the time they had dismantled the signal pyre and spread the parts of it among the rocks and palms, they both collapsed exhausted on the beach to catch their breath.

"Are we done?" Em moaned with sore muscles, her breath still labored.

"I think," John said echoing her exhaustion.

"Good, otherwise I just might let them kill me," Em professed half jokingly.

"I'd almost agree with you on that," John said.

"Do you think what we've done will matter?" Em asked.

"I hope so, Em. If we can somehow keep them from finding our camp we should survive," John claimed.

"What if they do?"

"Then we'll just have to make the best of it," John declared.

"You think we have a chance, John?" Em questioned.

"I do," John said, trying to sound upbeat when he wasn't that confident at all.

"John, don't let them take me please," Em declared.

"I won't, babe," John proclaimed.

"I mean ... if you have to ... I mean I'd rather die than be taken by them," Em confessed, her voice crackling.

"Em, I love you! We'll make it through this. We'll survive!" John exclaimed as vehemently as he could sound.

"I love you too. You're right ... we'll find a way," Em concurred, trying to match his positive attitude.

John leaned over and kissed her. Unlike their normal lust filled kisses during sex, this kiss was ardent but tender. It spoke of their love for each other and their determination to make it through the day.

After several deep kisses, John pulled Em to her feet as the sun was breaking in the east. They hurried back to camp to load provisions on the raft. Loaded down with water and dried fish, Em made her way back to the raft. John carried the two plastic rafts back to their escape vehicle. While Em made two more trips for food and more water, John secured the plastic rafts to the bigger bamboo raft. He loaded the provisions on the sand as Em returned with the final load of prepared food and water. John reasoned to himself, 'We can survive for about ten days adrift I think.' They then retrieved their suitcases from the big rock and stowed those too.

Finally finished they went straight back to camp, familiarizing themselves with the path they would need to take through the rocks and trees in a hurry to escape. With the sun blazing in the east, just above the horizon, they lay down on lifejackets they had moved onto the rock to make it somewhat comfortable.

"Em, try to get some sleep," John stated as they lay prone on the rock overlooking their camp below.

"God, John, I don't know if I can. I'm exhausted but too nervous," Em concluded.

"Try. We'll need our rest," John stated.

"Okay," Em agreed, lying down beside him.

John kept watch and had a hard time keeping his eyes open. Em had fallen asleep after about twenty minutes from sheer exhaustion. To busy himself and stave off sleep, John found and carried three good sized rocks up onto the big rock. He wanted to give them more protection from bullets and also break up the outline of the rock. With the top flat on the big boulder, they couldn't look over the side or pop their heads up easily without possibly being noticed.

For John's plan to work they needed to be able to see the bad guys. He could only find three rocks big enough, that he could carry, and the right shape to work. He put two of them on the eastern edge of the big boulder to hide Em and the third in front of him. Then he worried they looked odd, placed like that on top of the big boulder, so he found and placed some driftwood and old looking palm fronds on top of them sporadically to hopefully give them a more natural look. He wasn't at all sure it worked but at this point didn't have a choice. John hung on till the sun was high in the sky. He fought sleep but exhaustion was winning out.

On the eastern end of the island the pirates and drug runners had finally awoken. The leader had been the first to rise. He had gone to take a leak and discovered the lean-to just as John had feared. He went back to the camp and kicked the others awake. They growled at him but stirred. The leader last woke the girl with a not so friendly kick. After they were all up and the other three had relieved themselves right in front of the girl, they tied a rope around her hands and the other guy with two pistols pulled her along as the leader told everyone to follow him.

He took them back past the lean-to which they examined for signs of recently being used. They continued on down to the beach on the south side looking for any other signs of habitation. They had barely made it to the beach when one of the AK-47 guys excitedly pointed out the top of the broken front part of the plane in the surf down the shoreline. They walked towards the plane, pulling the girl along, and scanning the island for signs of life or threat. The leader told his rapidly talking followers to shut up as they progressed towards the plane.

They examined the plane section realizing it had to be there for a while based on the condition of it in the water and waves. They quickly noticed the aft section of the plane which sat higher up on the beach. Walking to that, they examined it as well for signs of life. Next, they discovered the graves. One of the AK-47 guys kicked at one of the grave markers, knocking it over. It was on the old lady's grave. Just as John had thought, discovering the graves gave the leader more concern and he voiced that with his men.

They proceeded up the beach with their guns at the ready. The two AK-47 guys led the way as the leader and Two Pistols, pulling the girl, followed. They all nervously scanned the beach for further signs of someone living on the island. The pirates walked to a spot just thirty feet short of where the raft and ramp had been only hours ago. The tide had washed away most of the footprint evidence and from thirty feet away they didn't notice anything abnormal with the sand.

The leader, speaking in excited Spanish, urged his men to higher ground. They moved off the beach into the rocks and palms running the spine of the island. Keeping the same formation they worked their way to the middle of the island and climbed onto rocks looking for evidence of someone surviving the plane crash that might still be alive. One of the men even scaled a palm for great visibility. They weren't seeing anything more indicating life and were beginning to think whoever had buried those people had already died themselves from starvation or dehydration.

Two Pistols told the leader they should just go as they were running out of time. Lingering on the island with their boat beached made them more vulnerable to anyone pursuing them and they knew someone was.

The twenty year old hostage they had in tow had been taken from a huge yacht the pirates had boarded just east of Martinique. The yacht was owned by a wealth French family on vacation. After stealing what they could from the yacht, including the TVs, stereo, jewelry, and the silver suitcase, they had left the crew and remaining family members tied up in the lower berths. They left the boat adrift but took the young daughter of the wealthy Frenchman as a hostage to slow pursuers.

The leader also hoped to make even more money via ransom once they got to a safe place where they could plan it out. Venezuela had proven to be a friendly haven to anyone giving grief to western society. Hugo Chavez was not likely to want to help the French and the pirates had already used Venezuelan waters as protection before. The Americans and others were diligent in their pursuit but not likely to invade Venezuela's territorial waters and risk starting a military action.

Two Pistols was insistent but the leader ignored him and pushed them on. His concern over their valuable buried treasure outweighed the risks to lingering too long, at least for now he thought. As they wound through the rocks and trees they finally found what the leader suspected: Em and John's hut and camp lay before them forty yards ahead. The excited talk resumed among the two AK-47 guys until the leader told them to shut up again.

The leader scanned the area around the hut for signs of life. He called out to see if someone would show themselves but no one did. After carefully weighing his options, he pressed his men forward in the same formation with the two assault rifles out front.

John had just nodded off again briefly when his near subconsciousness heard something making him wake up. 'Voices? Were those voices?' his tired brain asked of him. 'Yes, definitely when he heard someone call louder this time. The Spanish words told whom he would see even before he did. Peering carefully over the edge of the rock and through the fronds he saw them coming towards the camp. They still looked hung over from the night before but they moved with purpose. The time was upon them.

John reached across and put his hand over Em's mouth. He then shook her till she woke. She woke with a start and mumbled somewhat loudly into his hand until her waking brain realized what was happening. She nodded knowingly to John and he took his hand from her mouth.

"They're here," he whispered. "Whatever happens, stay down and be ready to run when I say." Em nodded her reply.

John chanced a look again. He said a silent prayer to the Lord for bringing the pirates toward the camp in the same direction the three drug runners had used. They were approaching cautiously and would enter the campsite any second. He said another prayer they wouldn't notice the trip wire. He needed that to be successful like before and also for the element of surprise. The gunmen had their weapons ready and without surprise Em and he were in for a world of trouble.

The two AK-47s started jabbering again as they got near. The leader yelled at them to shut up once more. Just as he did the first of the two kicked something. They had been watching the door of the hut so closely for signs of attack they had failed to watch low. The trip wire pulled, releasing both sharpened lengths of driftwood from the trees as before. This time however, the one guy that had hit the wire realized the trap and jumped forward several feet. The swinging board just missed him from behind.

His partner with the other AK-47 was not so lucky. He had turned to see why his compatriot was moving faster only to realize the game too late. The board that missed the first guy careened towards him. He quickly sidestepped to avoid it but that put him right into the path of the second board from the other side. It hit him grossly in the ass and tore through to protrude out his groin. He screamed a blood curding scream as the board knocked him forward. The vine gave way under the weight of his falling body but the damage was done. He was mortally wounded.

The first AK-47 guy spun around at the scream of his friend. The leader and Two Pistols also looked at the scene in disbelief. No one saw John rise up with a spear until it was too late. John threw the spear with force at the exposed back of the first AK-47 guy. Being only about twenty feet away he was a big target and the spear found its mark in the guy's back.