Page 18 of Dance Practice, Marooned: Part 2

Rachel snorts, then grins.

“There will be other wildlife on this island, you just haven’t spent the time preparing traps to capture them,” he points out.

“Good job for you then,” Ace grunts, effectively ending the conversation.

I let him feed me more sips until the ache in my throat eases. I never thought I could trust him this way again, but here we are, and it feels like he’s the only anchor I have.

“How’s the pain?” he murmurs. “Worse than last night?”

I want to lie, but I’m too tired for that. “Yeah. Feels like... everything’s bruised. And my head is being split in half by an axe.”

He presses the back of his hand to my forehead, then rests it there, leaving it for longer than he needs to. “I don’t like this,” he says under his breath, so low it’s not for anyone but himself. Then, raising his voice: “Aggie. Help me get her changed. We need to keep her warmer.”

“I can change myself,” I protest, but as soon as I go to sit up, my head spins.

“Just let us help,” Aggie says, kneeling beside me.

Underneath my clothes, sweat slicks my skin, and the cold air stings. I start shivering. Ace grabs my blanket and throws it over my body, then tugs my damp leggings down. Aggie starts to help, but stops, staring at my thighs.

“Grace...”

“What,” I mumble, then peer down, confused. The skin on my upper legs is dotted everywhere with red, angry bites, some open and scabbed. I try not to scratch, but it’s impossible.

Ace leans in. “How long have you had those?”

I shrug. “A week? Maybe a little less. You know how bad the mosquitoes are before the rain.”

Aggie’s eyes go wide. “That’s a lot of bites.”

“Yeah, okay? It’s mosquitoes,” I say, wanting to laugh it off, but nothing about their faces is funny. “They, ah, bite.”

Ace glances at Aggie, brows knitted. “Yeah, they also carry bacteria and viruses. You ever get sick from mosquito bites before?”

“No,” I say. “Never.”

He curses under his breath. “Shit. This makes sense.”

Aggie looks at him. “You think she’s sick from these bites?”

“Highly likely.” Ace’s jaw tenses.

“What do we do?” Tati asks, appearing beside me now as Aggie slowly puts dry clothes on me.

“Not much we can do, most of the time it’s a virus and it has to run its course,” Ace says, then glances at me. “It can get bad, though.”

I meet his gaze, then look to Aggie. “How bad?”

“Depends what it is, but out here, it’s not great.”

“You two are scaring me,” I whisper.

Aggie shakes her head and pats my hand. “No, honey, it’s fine.”

“Go to the kit, get painkillers, electrolytes and the antibacterial cream that was in there. Best we can do is keep her fever down, fluids up and rest.”

They all disappear, and Ace sits down beside me. His hand finds mine, and for the first time in weeks, I let him hold it. I need it, more than I care to admit.

“You’re acting like I’m on my deathbed,” I joke. “Can you cool it.”