“Shhh,” Miller said, tapping his ear.
Chloe cocked her head, and after a second, heard it, too — a car on the main road, heading their way.
“Everyone in,” she ordered.
While the other two climbed back into the Audi, she paused by her door and tracked the other vehicle’s progress. The sound of the engine dipped for a moment as the other vehicle passed through the nearby valley, then it grew louder and louder as it neared the top of the ridge.
She held her breath as it crested the top, knowing the entrance to the road she and her friends were on was now visible to those in the sedan.
“Don’t you dare stop,” she said under her breath.
Closer and closer it came. If it was going to take the turn, it needed to start slowing immediately, but the hum of the engine remained unchanged as the car raced past them and continued down the highway. Once the noise dwindled to almost nothing, she climbed back into the car.
“Aren’t we going?” Josie asked.
“Not yet,” Chloe said.
“Why not?”
“Where exactly are we supposed to go?”
Josie was silent for a moment. “So…we wait?”
“We wait.”
26
By the time Robert had returned to the resort the night before, all the residents knew about the boat that had washed up on shore with the body on board. They also knew that Dominic was the first on the scene, and was now trapped out there in case he had been exposed to the virus.
No one knew who had started calling it Dominic’s Beach, but the nickname quickly took hold as a spirited discussion ensued over what, if anything, should be done. The most militant in the crowd insisted that Dominic needed to get into the boat and row it back to the mainland, while the more fatalistic had said, why bother? They were all going to die now anyway.
Robert let them go on for a while before informing everyone they would be sticking with Dominic’s self-imposed quarantine zone, and wait to see what happened.
Robert and Luis then hauled a cot, some food, water, and other supplies across the island and put them at the edge of the beach. After they had retreated into the jungle, Dominic retrieved everything.
“Thanks!” he yelled.
“You’re welcome,” Robert called back. “Still think you planned this so that you could have a little vacation.”
“If I’d planned it, I would have chosen a bigger beach.”
“Yeah, I’d definitely suggest that next time.”
“I’ll try to remember…” Dominic paused. “Hey, what are these for? A campfire?”
Dominic was holding up two one-gallon containers of gasoline.
“Thought it might be best if you burn the boat,” Robert said.
That was not something Robert had mentioned to everyone. While he was sure many of the others would see the benefit of burning the boat, some would be sticking with the idea that Dominic needed to float away in it. That was not something Robert could stomach, so the boat had to go.
“That’s probably a good idea,” Dominic said, not sounding very enthusiastic.
“Just splash some gas on the sides and throw the cans in. You won’t have to get that close.”
Dominic repositioned his supplies farther up the beach, away from the water. Once that was done, he carried the gas cans over to the boat. It was low tide so it was fully stranded on the beach. Carefully, he tossed gas over the wooden hull, quickly emptying the first can. He added more from the second, then tossed both cans on board.
With the soft onshore breeze, it took him a few tries before he could get one of the matches that had been in the supplies to stay lit long enough to ignite the boat. But when the fire took hold, it spread quickly, its flames rising high.
Dominic, caught off guard, stumbled backward and fell onto the sand.
“You all right?” Robert shouted.
“I think I singed my eyebrows.”
“That’s a good thing. They were too bushy before.”
“Gee, thanks,” Dominic said. He stood back up and took several steps farther away from the fire.
Robert, Dominic, and Luis watched the blaze consume the boat until only the gutted keel remained intact. Robert had then bid his friend goodnight and gone back to the resort.
Upon waking that morning, he’d asked Juan, one of the resort’s cooks, to whip up Dominic’s favorite omelet. As soon as it was ready, he went down to Dominic’s Beach to deliver the meal.
“Hey! You hungry?” he yelled when he reached the edge of the jungle. “Brought you something you’re going to like.”
He looked at the beach. Much of the burned-out boat had been washed away in the high tide early that morning, and only the keel remained. Dominic had set up his cot near the trees at the center part of the beach, but it was empty.
“Dominic?” Robert yelled. In a panic, he took a step onto the beach. “Dominic, where are you?”
Surely he hasn’t gone into the jungle. Dominic was the one who had first insisted on being isolated, setting up the boundaries himself.
Robert looked out at the ocean. Had he gone for a swim?
“Dominic!”
“I’m here. Relax.”
Dominic stepped out from behind some rocks just beyond where his cot was set up.
“What the hell, man?” Robert said. “Don’t tell me you couldn’t hear me.”
“Sorry, had to take care of a little business, you know? Kind of hard to answer when you’re in the middle of things.”
Robert chuckled, both relieved and a little embarrassed. “Brought you an omelet.” He set it on the ground. “You’ll want to eat it before it gets cold.”
“Thanks.”
Robert stepped back into the jungle. “How you feeling this morning?”
“Could use a shower, but I’m okay.”
“That’s great.”
“How are things at the hotel? Anything new on the news?”
Robert shook his head. “Most of the channels went off air last night.”
“You’re kidding.”
“Nope.”
“That can’t be good,” Dominic said. He paused for a moment, looking tired. “Listen, you need to start planning long-term. I have a feeling it’s going to be awhile before anyone here can leave the island.”
“As soon as you can come back, you and I will do that.”
“Sounds good,” Dominic said. “Now get out of here so I can come over and get that omelet before some bird flies off with it.”
“All right. I’ll come back in a few hours to see how you’re doing.”
“If I’m asleep, don’t wake me up!” Dominic admonished him.
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
With a wave, Robert headed back to the resort. For the first time since discovering the boat, he felt okay. He was sure now that Dominic would be fine.
Thank God.
Dominic watched his friend disappear into the jungle, then waited another minute to be sure he was gone. Satisfied he was alone, he glanced behind the rock where he’d been when Robert had shown up.
Contrary to the impression he’d given his friend, he hadn’t been relieving himself or taking a crap. He’d been throwing up, and not for the first time.
The pains had come on right before dawn. Not only in his stomach, but in his chest and neck, too. Surprisingly, he wasn’t experiencing the congestion they’d talked about on TV, but there was no question in his mind that this was the flu. Maybe it changed from person to person. He knew other diseases could hit one person one way and someone else another.
It didn’t really matter. What did, though, was the fact that he knew now he was going to die. What he needed to figure out was how to do it without harming anyone else.