[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.When they were a short distance withinthe forest, he carefully lowered her to herfeet.She crouched down instantly to herknees and began pulling off her soiled dress.Her nude, sweat slicked body continued totremble."W-water.And rags, to wash." She had saidin a low guttural voice.Marshall dashed backto camp with thoughts of wild boars attack-ing her while she was defenseless.Hegrabbed a spear along with a full jug of waterand some fresh rags.As an after-thought healso grabbed her afghan.When he returned she was squatting withher hands between her legs.Blood was187/289everywhere.Marshall turned his mind offand helped her as best he could.There weretimes when she screamed out into the nightas a sharp cramp hit her, and he supportedher bent form.She was exhausted and yetshe continued to squat or kneel trying to ex-pel the contents of her womb.Many hours later, the worst of Oceans painhad receded and she was carried to the seawhere Marshall bathed her exhausted body.After the salt water bath he rinsed her withfresh water from the few remaining jugs andput her in his hammock while he took aparthers to wash.He went about these tasks in astupor, robotically doing what needed to bedone.He avoided thoughts of what he hadwitnessed as well as thoughts of what lay likeso much trash in the filth of the jungle.***When Marshall finally ended his reverie, thesun had moved letting him know that it wasnow mid afternoon.He hadn't even realized188/289that he had fallen into an exhausted sleep.But it had served one purpose now he wasable to formulate a plan.He rose stiffly to hisfeet, taking stock of the camp.He returned tothe hut and collected several items of cloth-ing, as well as the rope that he had so re-cently created.He placed these items ontothe mat that had been his bed for the last fewweeks.He deposited anything that hethought he'd need on his travels, and when itwas filled he rolled it and tied the ends withparachute string, forming a type of sling sothat he could carry the package over hisshoulders.He did not take his hammock.Heplanned to come back with Oceans.Marshall checked the water jugs and chose amid-sized one.Ocean's had made handles sothat it was easy for him to loop parachutestring through it, allowing the large jug tohang from his shoulders as well.Now he hada bed roll, a water jug, and last he picked upa spear.He took one last look at the place189/289that had been his home.Left behind wastheir precious pot, their salt, all of the pot-tery that Ocean's had created.all of thethings that had made this a home.Grimly,Marshall faced the loud crashing waves ofthe sea.He had a plan.The other side of the Islandwas actually another beach.That is whereshe was going.She was headed for a differentbeach somewhere on this Island, and if hejust walked along the beach until he hadcircled the Island, then he would meet her.***Marshall walked that first day, until the sunwas an orange glow in the distance.He haddecided to go in the opposite direction fromwhere they had initially washed ashore.Theywent back to that abandoned campsite fairlyoften and so he opted for the oppositedirection.His camp that night was just his mat on thesand.He gripped the spear in his fist as he190/289slept, too tired to even make a fire and forthe first time in ages he didn't care aboutwild boars coming for him.The idea was ac-tually welcomed in that he could virtuallypicture himself spearing and repeatedlybludgeoning something.He did this for days, keeping to the forest'sedge where there was more protection fromthe sun's burning rays.He ate what he sawfallen on the ground, the small snails that hescraped from the side of the rocks on thewater's edge, or the vegetation that he recog-nized from Oceans' lessons.Seldom did hebuild a fire and he never saw any evidence ofsomeone else's.Marshall didn't read anything into that.Oceans wasn't building a fire, that's all thatmeant.What did she have to build a firewith? He had the lighter.Rubbing sticks to-gether for fire was an exercise in patienceand under those circumstances fire became aluxury.191/289Often over the next several days he thoughtabout yelling her name.That was despera-tion talking.His voice would be carried awayover the crashing of the waves never to beheard by anything other than the gulls thatcircled the waves.One day he ventured into the forest to fill hiswater jug.Sometimes it would take him daysto find fresh water.But he knew the fruit toeat, or the plants that would sustain him.Ashe walked, he replayed his last words toOceans, fantasizing that he had followedthrough with his previous promise to travelwith her.Then he would think that if he haddone that then Oceans was actually right be-side him.He picked up two mangoes and examinedthem carefully."Which one, babe?" he mur-mured."Okay." He dropped the reject to theground and used his hunting knife to care-fully peel the more ripe fruit.He sat on the192/289ground and ate slowly as his eyes carefullyscanned his surroundings for movement.***"Are you sure this snake is ok to eatOceans?" Marshall had stomped the head ofthe snake that had fallen from the trees al-most on top of him.It wasn't very big and hehad no idea if it was poisonous or not.He'djust slung it with his spear and then reflex-ively stomped it to death.Hunger is whatdrove him to pick up the unmoving creatureand skin it.He then carried it back to thebeach where he made a small fire and heused a stick to spit the snake meat.He was sitting on his haunches before thefire roasting the snake.It smelled damngood.Taste like chicken, the imaginaryOceans said and Marshall shrieked inlaughter."Taste like chicken! As if we remember whatchicken taste like!" He chuckled periodicallyat that joke as he carefully picked a piece of193/289hot meat from the stick.His fingertips al-most sizzled from the heat and fat and hequickly placed his injured fingertips to hismouth.The fat from the snake meat tasteddelicious and he dismissed the fear of burn-ing to gobble up every bit of it."Damn babe, you were right! This does tastelike chicken!" He chugged some water whenhis meal was over, then searched the sandfor fallen scraps.Now Marshalls was thin tothe point that his rib bones were clearlydefined beneath his skin.In the past he kepthis facial hair shaved or at least cut down toa short beard.Now his beard was bushy andthick [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]