A faint sound penetrated my reverie, and I paused to listen.Voices?Silence descended again, and I shook off the shiver of discomfort that slithered up my spine.Playing nice with strangers wasn’t on my agenda for today.
The next section of the trail followed the winding riverbank as it wended its way from its source, a spring in the center of the island.Because of the crystal-clear water, I had the opportunity to witness the fish going about their daily routines.
I moved with slow precision, placing each step carefully.If I were quiet enough, maybe I’d get another glimpse of the spirit bear.
I heard sounds to my left, louder this time.Definitely voices.
Well, that sucked.After a stressful week at work, the last thing I wanted to do was talk to strangers.Still, protocol demanded that I make my presence known for safety’s sake.No point in having some trigger-happy guide catch a glimpse of movement and decide I was something worth shooting at.
I stopped walking and cupped my hands to my mouth.“Hello?”
Chapter Two
Ryland
My head felt like I’d spent the last night drinking with my buddies.Drinking a lot, like when I partied at the Riptide MC clubhouse back in the day.Someone needed to take the hammer away from the gnome pounding my skull from the inside.I let out an involuntary groan before I remembered where I was.
And why I needed to be quiet.The poachers could still be around here somewhere.And the bear.
I’d seen a bear, right?Or had that been a dream?I cracked my eyes open a slit.Nothing.No bear.No poachers.Just the sun shining cheerfully down through the canopy of leaves overhead.
I took a deep breath and reached across my body to make sure my gun was still in the shoulder holster.
Fuck, that hurt.But the butt of the gun felt cool against my palm.
Still there.At least that was good.And it meant the poachers hadn’t found me.Hopefully it meant they didn’t know I was here.Right now, I wasn’t confident of my ability to defend myself, let alone anything else.
I needed to get up and get back to the boat.I was in no condition to chase anyone right now.
I rolled over and put my arms out to push myself to my feet.A blinding pain shot through my left arm, and once again the world faded to black.
* * *
Kimberly
Total silence answered me.Even the birds stopped chirping.Not a single blade of grass rustled.
Maybe the dumb tourists had gone off in another direction and didn’t hear me.Sound could become muffled in the heavily treed rainforest environment.My heart lifted as I considered the possibility.
Maybe my day wasn’t ruined after all.
Diego came dashing back to my side, head held high and ears tilted forward in that oddly off-balance way he had when he concentrated.I frowned.The dog obviously heard or saw something that he felt needed watching.I opened my mouth to holler again, when something swished past my head so fast all I saw was a blur.A loudthunktold me the object had hit one of the trees behind me.
I turned and blinked, unable at first to grasp the significance of what I was looking at.
An arrow, the kind used for hunting bigger game such as deer or moose, was imbedded in one of the ancient trees.The plastic vanes on the end of the shaft quivered with the force of the impact.
Someone had taken a shot at me.Seriously?There was no way they could have mistaken my shouted greeting for an animal.
Diego whined softly, nudging my hand with his muzzle.I patted his head absently, still mesmerized by the sight of the arrow rooted in the tree.
Diego stiffened, whirling to face the direction the arrow had come from.A low growl came from his throat.
A shiver slid down my spine.Diego didn’t growl.Not at anybody.He was the mellowest dog on the face of the planet.If he thought whoever shot that arrow warranted a growl, then they must be bad.Real bad.
The second growl served to break the spell.Yes, someone had taken a shot at me, and they were heading this way.They’d heard my greeting and replied with an arrow.I was off duty.No one knew where I was, and I hadn’t packed any of my working gear.No gun.No tranquilizer darts.No weapons of any kind.
There was no backup on the way.No one was coming to my aid.I needed to get out of here.Fast!I looked around wildly.Where to go?Nothing like this ever happened on my island.The worst danger I’d ever encountered was rough waves when the weather took a sudden turn for the worse.
