‘What should we do?’ Candace asked. ‘We don’t want to be followed.’
‘The first thing is that we shouldn’t use my car,’ Kevin said. ‘Where’s
yours, Melanie? With this dry weather we can manage without four-wheel
drive.’
‘Downstairs in the parking lot,’ Melanie said. ‘I just drove in from the
animal center.’
‘Was anybody following you?’
‘Who knows?’ Melanie said. ‘I wasn’t watching.’
‘Hmmm,’ Kevin pondered. ‘I still think they’ll be following me if they
follow anybody. So, Melanie, go down and get in your car and head home.’
‘What will you guys do?’
‘There’s a tunnel in the basement that goes all the way out to the power
station. Wait about five minutes at your house and pick us up at the
power station. There’s a side door that opens directly onto the parking
lot. You know where I mean?’
‘I think so,’ Melanie said.
‘All right,’ Kevin said. ‘See you there.’
They split up at the first floor, with Melanie going out into the
noonday heat while Candace and Kevin descended to the basement level.
After walking for fifteen minutes, Candace commented on what a maze the
hallways were.
‘All the power comes from the same source,’ Kevin explained. ‘The
tunnels connect all the main buildings except for the animal center,
which has its own power station.’
‘One could get lost down here,’ Candace said.
‘I did,’ Kevin admitted. ‘A number of times. But during the middle of
the rainy season, I find these tunnels handy. They’re both dry and
cool.’
As they neared the power station they could hear and feel the vibration
of the turbines. A flight of metal steps took them up to the side door.
As soon as they appeared, Melanie, who’d been parked under a malapa
tree, cruised over and picked them up.
Kevin got in the back so Candace could climb into the front. Melanie
pulled away immediately. The car’s air-conditioning felt good given the
heat and hundred-percent humidity.
‘See anything suspicious?’ Kevin asked.
‘Not a thing,’ Melanie said. ‘And I drove around for a while pretending
I was on errands. There wasn’t anyone following me. I’m ninety-nine
percent sure.’
Kevin looked out the back window of Melanie’s Honda and watched the area
around the power station as it fell behind, then disappeared as they
rounded a corner. No people had appeared, and there were no cars in
pursuit.
‘I’d say it looks good,’ Kevin said. He scrunched down on the backseat
to be out of sight.
Melanie drove around the north rim of the town. While she did so,
Candace broke out the sandwiches.
‘Not bad,’ Candace said, taking a bite of a tuna fish on whole wheat.
‘I had them made up at the animal-center commissary,’ Melanie explained.
‘There are drinks in the bottom of the bag.’
‘You want some, Kevin?’ Candace called.
‘I suppose,’ Kevin said. He stayed on his side. Candace passed him a
sandwich and a soft drink between the front bucket seats.
They were soon on the road that led east out of town toward the native
village. From Kevin’s perspective, all he could see was the tops of the
liana-covered trees that lined the road, plus a strip of hazy blue sky.
After so many months of cloud cover and rain, it was good to see the
sun.
‘Anybody following us?’ Kevin asked, after they’d driven for some time.
Melanie glanced in the rearview mirror. ‘I haven’t seen a car,’ she
said. There’d been no vehicular traffic in either direction, although
there were plenty of native women carrying various burdens on their
heads.
After they passed the parking lot in front of the general store at the
native village and entered the track that led to the island staging
area, Kevin sat up. He was no longer worried about being seen. Every few
minutes, he looked behind to make sure they weren’t being followed.
Although he didn’t admit it to the women, he was a nervous wreck.
‘That log we hit last night should be coming up soon,’ Kevin warned.
‘But we didn’t go over it when they brought us out,’ Melanie said. ‘They
must have moved it.’
‘You’re right,’ Kevin said. He was impressed that Melanie remembered.