Joanne walked into the dark room and felt around for a light switch. When the room flooded with light, she gasped. It was full of tall shelves stocked with everything from flashlights to rubber hoses. She almost tripped over her backpack as she started walking the aisles. Why would Marshall have all this stuff? Who was he? How did Alex know him?Taking the bag, she started walking the aisles, grabbing a flashlight, grabbing a handful of batteries, a box of matches, and other basic items. When she reached the back, her bag was heavy with stuff she thought she’d need. She’d spent four years in the Brownies growing up and knew what it took to go camping.She spotted a small silver box on the top shelf and took it down. Inside was a silver .45. She reached in and felt its weight, knowing she had to make room in her bag. She grabbed a box of bullets and before placing the gun in the small side pocket of the bag, she made sure it was unloaded. Her father had forced her to take gun classes a

Joanne was going to kill him. They were on hour five of their ‘small trek’, as he’d called it, and not only were her feet killing her, she was sure she’d sweat more fluids than she had taken in, or weighed, for that matter. He’d never told her they were going to be hiking through the jungle at top speeds. If he had, she would have told him where to go and how to get there.“Arg… Alex.” She corrected herself. “I have to stop.”“Shhh!” He’d been acting strange for the last half a mile. She had a few rocks in her boots and needed a moment to use the nearest tree.Her shirt was sticking to her skin, and she wanted nothing more than to remove it and toss it aside. But the bugs were so bad under the canopy of the trees, she didn’t want any new bites on exposed skin. Looking at the back of his head, she realized he wasn’t fighting any bugs off.“Alex, I need to stop.” She thought this name suited him better than Argon. He turned and looked at her, his eyes burrowing into hers. She tried very

* * *Joanne felt the cold stone on her back and Alex’s breath on her neck. She wouldn’t regret this move. She’d always taken what she’d wanted and she’d wanted him. Especially after walking out of the cave and seeing him standing naked under the water. She would have had to be a saint not to want to jump him. His muscles were impressive in clothes, but bare, she just wanted to lick him up and down.As she felt his breathing slow, she knew he was going to be pissed at her for maneuvering him so easily. She’d never seduced someone like that before and she felt liberated in doing so. Actually, she wanted to do it again, but doubted they had the time or could spare the energy.Her hands felt a few small scars on his back that she’d seen the other night when she’d been following him. Reaching down, she ran her hand over the larger one along the lower part of his spine.“How did you get this?” she asked as he held himself still."in prison?" she asked again.“Hmm. I should have been lookin

He estimated that they’d traveled a few miles. He didn’t notice anyone following them, but that could change. They needed to get away from the water and quickly. He looked over at Joanne. She was resting the back of her head on the grassy shore. Mud was caked into her hair and her clothes were soaked and muddy. Her eyes were closed as she leveled her breathing.“We have to get moving, Princess. The men might be right behind us.”She nodded and started to rise, her bag still on her shoulders. He reached over and took it from her. “Since I lost mine, I’ll carry the extra weight.” She smiled and nodded again. He wondered why she wasn’t talking and asked, “Is your throat okay?”She coughed a few times, then whispered. “I think I drank too much water and dirt. It will be fine, after I get a drink.”He stopped and allowed her to pull out her canteen of water. As she took a drink, he realized most of the food had been in his

“Why Columbia?” She took a deep drink of her water and he noticed that they were low on fluids.“I’ve got connections in over there. We can book safe passage to the States without raising any flags.” He stood and dusted off his pants, then reached to help her up. Just for his pleasure, he pulled her into his arms and kissed her until he felt her body melting against his.They walked for a few hours, and he made sure they weren’t being followed, constantly looking over his shoulder and listening for anyone else around. So far all he could hear were the sounds of the jungle. They’d just walked into a small clearing when Joanne gasped and he went on guard. He was ready to grab her and run when she started laughing.“Oh, look at them, there are so many!” Her face was turned to the sky and when he looked up he saw hundreds of birds. The green, yellow, and blue colored parrots hopped from limb to limb. He could hear their calls as they flew around enjoying the nuts and be