To my disappointment, the Cessna was in the air and gone beyond the mountains in a matter of minutes.
“I wish,” Laura said, “that the plane had hung around. We could have persuaded the pilot to get us out of here.”
“All we need is Savich,” I said. “He’s got a license. He can fly anything.”
Laura and I walked slowly out of the rain forest again. The dry air felt wonderful on my face. I saw Laura raise her face to the baking sun high overhead.
“It’s around midafternoon,” I said. “At least four and a half hours until it gets dark.”
“We can scout around, try to see the best way to get back into the compound.”
“I’m hungry,” I said, and rubbed my fist against my belly. My hand stopped. I saw her eyes follow my hand, then widen with alarm. Coming from nowhere, just suddenly upon me, I felt a bolt of incredible lust. I was almost instantly as hard as the rocks I was standing on. Jesus, I was losing it. Laura was staring at me.
“Mac, what’s wrong?”
I grabbed her, flattened my hand over her mouth, and said in a raw voice, “Laura, there’s time for us to make love. Let’s do it right here, right now. I’ve got to-”
“Mac, stop it!”
I heard her voice, but what she said made no difference. There was only one thing I wanted, only one thing I was going to do. I was trying to pull her shirt off and unzip my pants at the same time. I didn’t even think about touching her, no, I just had to get inside her, right that instant. She twisted away from me.
I grabbed a moment of reason and choked out, “It’s hit me again, Laura. I don’t know if I can control it. I’ll hurt you. Get the hell out of here, now. Run!” “Mac, you can control it, you did it before!” “Please, Laura.” I was on her again, knocking her backward. She hit a tree but didn’t fall. Instead of running, she stepped forward and kicked me in the balls. My breath whooshed out. The pain blanked anything in my brain. And I stood there, bent over like an old man, knowing the pain was going to get worse, much worse. And it did. I moaned, clutched myself, and folded over. I waited for the god-awful agony to lessen. I simply tried to breathe and not fall on the ground and weep like a baby. Laura was standing not three feet in front of me, not saying a word.
“Good shot,” I said when I could get the words out. Neither of us moved. I just stood there, still hunkered over, trying to get hold of myself.
“It’s not so bad now, thank God,” I said, slowly straightening. “Jesus, I can’t believe a drug can do that. You feel like an animal in pain, and just have to get out of it. You might have had to kill me to stop me if you weren’t so smart. You knocked every thought, every urge, out of my brain.”
“I didn’t know what else to do. You sure you’re all right, Mac?”
“You don’t have to kick me again, at least for the moment. I’m back together again. It was just there for a moment that I wanted sex more than I wanted life. Hell, I thought having sex at that very moment was life. How can there be people who would pay for this drug?”
She lightly touched her fingertips to my mouth. “Just let me know if I have to kick you again.”
“I don’t think so,” I said slowly. We sat down and leaned against a scrubby tree I couldn’t identify. It gave about as much shade as a single leaf on one of the trees I couldn’t identify in the rain forest.
“They didn’t kill us, Mac. They brought us down here and they haven’t done anything but play with us, ugly games, but no torture. Drug dealers don’t do that. Drug dealers eliminate anyone they perceive as a threat to their operation. When they fired on us at Seagull Cottage, they weren’t trying to kill us. They just wanted us under wraps, inside the cottage, so they could use the ice acid and bring us to wherever we are.”