“We can trust each other, though, right?” Ethan asked. “I mean, I think I trust the two of you, but I’m sure we all have our own motivations for being here...”
Fair question. Though she could trust Ford. Whenever they weren’t in the field, they were in his bed. She would have noticed by now. Not that she wanted Ethan to know that.
And Ethan was as honest as the day was long. Like that time he’d admitted to their professor that he hadn’t done the assigned reading instead of bullshitting his way through the answer like the rest of them.
“What are you trying to say, Ethan?” Ford asked, his voice growing impatient. “I know where I was last night. Do you?”
“I’m just trying to say... it seems like something’s been bothering you lately. You’ve been even more irritable than usual. Is there something else going on that we should know about?”
Ford’s nostrils flared and his eyes widened. Oh no.
“Perhaps I’m irritable because of accusations like this. Or maybe I’d just like to get out of this goddamn jungle sometime before the end of this year.”
“I’m not accusing you of anything, I just—”
“Save your feigned concern. We’ve got work to do.”
Ford stormed off to the camp, leaving Corrie and a stunned Ethan in his wake. Irritable was only the half of it. Just a week and a half in and she’d seen all sorts of reactions from Ford. But none like this. Ethan had questioned his integrity, and that clearly didn’t sit well with him.
“I didn’t mean it to come off that way,” Ethan said to her once Ford was out of earshot.
“Well, what waydidyou mean it to come off? Because to me it sounded like you were accusing Ford of being the thief.”
“He’s still acting weird. And not in his normal Ford way. Like last night... again, with the calls...” he said, his voice trailing off.
Corrie debated revealing Ford’s confidences for a moment. On one hand, it wasn’t any of Ethan’s business. But on the other, she had to clear Ford’s name.
“It’s his mom. She’s really sick, Ethan. And he’s worried hemight not make it back before she passes away. He’ll never forgive himself if that happens.”
“Oh no... God, I’m an asshole. Why didn’t he say anything?”
“Because you know how he is.”
“I know, but I thought he and I were friends. I mean, I know I asked you to talk to him, but I can’t believe he’d tell you all this but not me. It hurts, you know?”
She shrugged. “Maybe he feels like I already pass enough judgment on him, so what’s the difference if he reveals his insecurities to me, too.”
“Well, do you think those insecurities might cause him to do something extreme?”
“You mean break into the storage structure to steal the artifacts he’s been hired to find?” Corrie lifted her brow. “No, Ethan, I don’t.”
“But how do we know that?”
There was no way around it. Ethan needed an answer, and Corrie couldn’t lie to him.
“Because I was with him.”
“Wait... what?”
Corrie sighed. “Last night. I stayed the night with him. When you found us this morning, I was getting ready to leave. That’s how I know. He never left the tent. I was with him the entire night and would have noticed if he’d left.”
Now Ethan was the one with wide eyes.
“Are you going to stand there staring at me without saying a word? Go ahead. Let’s have it,” she said, palms face up and waving as if to say,Bring on the teasing comments.
“I... I have no words. Just, wow. How long has this been going on?”
She sighed again. “Oh, I don’t know, Ethan. I mean, there’s always been something lurking between us, I suppose. But as far as this dig is concerned, a couple of days.”
