she didn’t care if that might be a beacon for anyone looking for them.
She was pleased to discover she wasn’t totally inept in the great outdoors. By the time she expected Slade to return, she had the fire going, thanks to some matches he had in his duffel bag, and enough wood next to it to last through the night. By using the saw, she had even done his job of clearing away some of the brush, always alert for any movement in it. Satisfied with herself, she sat down by the fire, comforted by its growing blaze, even if it wasn’t as big as she would prefer. The thought of those soldiers made her think small.
She began to tap her fingers against her knee, waiting for Slade. The minutes ticked into fifteen, then thirty, and her worry grew until her stomach was knotted with tension instead of hunger. She scanned the curtain of black that surrounded the small camp and could see no sign of him. What if something or someone got him? What if he needed her help? The fear that she had managed to keep at bay mushroomed while those questions fretted across her mind.
She started to rise and do something she knew was totally irrational, like going out and trying to find Slade in the growing darkness. She froze halfway up, her gaze riveted to a spot across the fire. The low growling sound chilled her in the tropical heat. The yellow eyes, gleaming in the black, sent a shudder through her body. Her worse nightmare was a short distance away.
She didn’t have to have a vivid imagination to know what went with those yellow eyes. Large, probably very hungry jaguars that was looking for its latest meal growled again, and she nearly jumped back a foot. Somehow she managed to remain perfectly still, her breath bottled in her lungs, because somewhere she had read not to run away from a growling dog, to look it in the eye, and it might not attack. Did that apply to a growling jaguar? At the moment that was all she had. She stared at the yellow eyes that glowed in the blackness like the brilliant sun at noon.
Desperately she tried to think of a way out of this predicament, because she had this funny feeling that staring down a jaguar wasn’t too wise for long. This time it seemed there would be no charming American to come to her rescue. It was just she and the cat, with the shortest five feet between them she had ever seen.
“Nice kitty,” she cooed, keeping her gaze trained on those yellow eyes while she inched herself toward the fire. “Why don’t you go away like the good little kitty I know you want to be?” Her voice shook in the night silence and seemed to echo through the jungle. But hearing herself speak made her feel a little better. At least she was still alive to talk.
She slowly reached for a piece of wood that had caught on fire at one end, making sure there weren’t any sudden movements. Her fingers grasped the wood as the jaguar took a step toward her into the clearing. She tensed, her gaze widening.
When she made her move she would have to do it quickly, taking the cat by surprise, or it would have time to react and she would have time to think of what she was doing. Inhaling a deep breath, she suddenly swung the torch in a wide arc at the jaguar. He roared in protest, baring his gleaming white teeth that looked very, very sharp. She nearly dropped the burning piece of wood.
Tightening her grip on it, she dared to threaten the wild animal, thrusting the piece of wood toward him. “Shoo! Please go away!” she said in her toughest, meanest voice that just barely managed not to squeak.
His yellow eyes seemed to fix her with a look of pity at her futile attempts to scare him away. She poked the torch toward him again while she grabbed another piece of wood in her free hand. As she faced the cat with both pieces, he snarled but backed away. One step. Then another.
“Shoo!” Ellie advanced toward the animal, waving the flaming pieces at him, praying he didn’t suddenly decide to change his mind and lunge at
She was pleased to discover she wasn’t totally inept in the great outdoors. By the time she expected Slade to return, she had the fire going, thanks to some matches he had in his duffel bag, and enough wood next to it to last through the night. By using the saw, she had even done his job of clearing away some of the brush, always alert for any movement in it. Satisfied with herself, she sat down by the fire, comforted by its growing blaze, even if it wasn’t as big as she would prefer. The thought of those soldiers made her think small.
She began to tap her fingers against her knee, waiting for Slade. The minutes ticked into fifteen, then thirty, and her worry grew until her stomach was knotted with tension instead of hunger. She scanned the curtain of black that surrounded the small camp and could see no sign of him. What if something or someone got him? What if he needed her help? The fear that she had managed to keep at bay mushroomed while those questions fretted across her mind.
She started to rise and do something she knew was totally irrational, like going out and trying to find Slade in the growing darkness. She froze halfway up, her gaze riveted to a spot across the fire. The low growling sound chilled her in the tropical heat. The yellow eyes, gleaming in the black, sent a shudder through her body. Her worse nightmare was a short distance away.
She didn’t have to have a vivid imagination to know what went with those yellow eyes. Large, probably very hungry jaguars that was looking for its latest meal growled again, and she nearly jumped back a foot. Somehow she managed to remain perfectly still, her breath bottled in her lungs, because somewhere she had read not to run away from a growling dog, to look it in the eye, and it might not attack. Did that apply to a growling jaguar? At the moment that was all she had. She stared at the yellow eyes that glowed in the blackness like the brilliant sun at noon.
Desperately she tried to think of a way out of this predicament, because she had this funny feeling that staring down a jaguar wasn’t too wise for long. This time it seemed there would be no charming American to come to her rescue. It was just she and the cat, with the shortest five feet between them she had ever seen.
“Nice kitty,” she cooed, keeping her gaze trained on those yellow eyes while she inched herself toward the fire. “Why don’t you go away like the good little kitty I know you want to be?” Her voice shook in the night silence and seemed to echo through the jungle. But hearing herself speak made her feel a little better. At least she was still alive to talk.
She slowly reached for a piece of wood that had caught on fire at one end, making sure there weren’t any sudden movements. Her fingers grasped the wood as the jaguar took a step toward her into the clearing. She tensed, her gaze widening.
When she made her move she would have to do it quickly, taking the cat by surprise, or it would have time to react and she would have time to think of what she was doing. Inhaling a deep breath, she suddenly swung the torch in a wide arc at the jaguar. He roared in protest, baring his gleaming white teeth that looked very, very sharp. She nearly dropped the burning piece of wood.
Tightening her grip on it, she dared to threaten the wild animal, thrusting the piece of wood toward him. “Shoo! Please go away!” she said in her toughest, meanest voice that just barely managed not to squeak.
His yellow eyes seemed to fix her with a look of pity at her futile attempts to scare him away. She poked the torch toward him again while she grabbed another piece of wood in her free hand. As she faced the cat with both pieces, he snarled but backed away. One step. Then another.
“Shoo!” Ellie advanced toward the animal, waving the flaming pieces at him, praying he didn’t suddenly decide to change his mind and lunge at
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