Chapter 7
1076 Words
Ernie made sure Myra was settled before climbing down from the cave to find better shelter.
He noticed that the signal fire he had set earlier had gone out.
The realization hit him. 'Perhaps Finnley and the others didn't want the search team to find us?'
He frowned, thinking about the strange occurrences on the ship.
Although his company's product was meant for civilian use, it had potential military applications. Someone had once offered to buy his company for a hefty sum, but he had refused. Shortly after, his company began to experience mysterious financial problems. Lily had demanded he leave the marriage empty-handed. Out of lingering feelings for her, he had agreed without much hesitation.
Now, following the bizarre shipwreck and being chased, Ernie started suspecting this was all part of a larger conspiracy.
With this in mind, his resolve hardened.
"If that's the case, I won't let them get away with it!" he muttered. The harsh conditions of the island awakened the long-dormant fighter spirit within him.
To uncover the truth, he needed to speak to Lily.
With his reconnaissance background, finding her on this island wouldn't be too difficult. The island resembled a dolphin. He and Myra had landed near the back of the dolphin's head, while the shallow bay looked like its open mouth. Judging by the time, he deduced that Finnley and Lily's lifeboat likely arrived at the bay between the dolphin's lower jaw and front fin.
Ernie found himself at the "eye" of the island.
Thankfully, he had remembered to bring his binoculars from his backpack.
He intended to make his way across the dolphin's "cheek" to reach the bay.
Regardless of Finnley's harassment, confirming Lily's presence on the island was his priority.
Dolphin Island lay in the northern Norsea, warmed by the Atlantic current that brought moist air and kept the island lush. While the windward slopes were covered with low shrubs and grass, the leeward side beyond the ridge boasted tall trees. It was summer. Although dusk had fallen, the midnight sun meant the sun wouldn't set for another few hours.
This gave Ernie ample time.
As he moved through the jungle, he cut down thin vines and branches with his knife, weaving them into a large cloak. When needed, he could insert grass to create a makeshift ghillie suit, allowing him to blend seamlessly into the surroundings.
He had descended over three thousand feet from the mountain when he arrived at a hollow. Just one more slope, and he would finally see the bay.
A glimmer of hope sparked in him when he spotted several leaf-covered pools. 'This might be fresh water!' he thought, excitement bubbling up.
While he had picked some berries along the way, finding water was his top priority.
He hurried over, brushed the leaves from a pool, and tasted the water with a finger.
It was fresh. But his relief quickly turned to disgust when he noticed a dead pelican floating in the pool. He spat the water out immediately, realizing it was full of bacteria from the animal carcass. Even with filtration of ash and sand, it was too risky to drink unless absolutely necessary.
He moved on, hoping the next pool would be better.
'What's this?' As he walked past a deep pit, something stopped him.
The pit wasn't natural. Its walls were steep, and inside lay tree trunks, thick as arms, long decayed. Most shocking were the large white bones peeking out from the murky water.
'A trap?' He realized with a jolt. Someone else might be on the island.
The trap was about fifteen to twenty feet wide and at least ten feet deep. He wondered what kind of large animal this had been meant to catch. A wild boar wouldn't require such a massive effort after all. Those bones showed the hunter had caught something big.
A chill ran through Ernie, but the trap looked aged, with no signs of recent activity from large animals.
Remembering his mission was to find out about Finnley and Lily, he pushed his worries aside and climbed the opposite hillside quickly.
But when he got to the top, he found the bay was empty!
'Could I have been wrong?' Ernie wondered as he quickly grabbed his binoculars and scanned every part of the bay.
Finally, he spotted a makeshift shelter created from an overturned lifeboat nestled in a patch of trees.
"That's it!" he murmured, focusing intently on it.
The shelter was quiet, showing no signs of fire or movement. Ernie lay on the ground, waiting patiently.
Suddenly, the sound of rustling came from the nearby woods as if something large was approaching. His heart skipped a beat, and he carefully reached for his shark knife.
"These thugs... they're going to get us all killed!" A woman's tearful voice broke the silence as two women appeared from the woods.
They seemed to be foraging for berries or mushrooms to fend off hunger but hadn't found much.
"Susan, don't worry. The rescue team will find us soon, and we'll be safe," one woman tried to comfort her.
"No, they won't." Susan sobbed, her voice edged with fear. "Smith said there's no rescue team. We have to do as they say or they'll kill us and leave us in the forest, and no one will find out."
"What? How can that be? Wouldn't the others stop them? There are nine of us!" the other woman exclaimed in disbelief.
"Alice, they're all in on it. I saw it myself; they tracked down other survivors and tried to kill anyone who knows. Smith has a gun."
"That's awful. We need to tell Jennifer and the others," Alice said firmly, leading Susan back over the hill.
Ernie, hidden in his ghillie suit, blended seamlessly into the landscape, unseen. The conversation he overheard left him shocked.
He had imagined all sorts of scenarios about Finnley, but the truth was worse than he could have guessed.
He couldn't believe that Lily might be involved in such a scheme.
He raised the binoculars again toward the shelter. In the circular view, he caught sight of a familiar figure.
Lily was walking briskly out of the shelter toward the beach, with Finnley closely behind her, talking. Lily stopped suddenly and turned to him
What Ernie saw next filled him with rage. Lily leaned against Finnley, who then, with a smug face, picked her up and carried her back to the tent.
- Writer
