Page 47 of Sanctuary

How much time had passed? He wasn’t sure, but he figured half his time was up, and he had to get away from Carla now. The cat shied to the right at Simon’s comic antics, and then Simon gave a roar similar to what he heard from the male lions, and Carla bolted. Tibby was the shyer of the two and had to be close by. Hopefully, he’d scared them both off.

Simon shuffled faster. He tried to be careful in the slippery mud but stumbled a couple of times. He managed to stay upright, and his knee held. He made it to the utility shed that held Roberto’s equipment. The inside was stuffy and warm, though it didn’t matter because Simon had to hurry.

Roberto kept the shed organized, and he had no problem finding the things he needed. He heard a scratch on the door and knew it was Indra before he opened it. The tiger slipped inside while Simon worked.

Before he left, Simon sat in the only chair inside the shed. Indra moved in close, and Simon petted his head and scratched the ruff of his neck.

“I need you to stay here out of sight,” he told him. “That is a bad man, and he will hurt you. I have no way to keep you hidden. If you’ll do this for me, I’ll make sure he never hurts another animal.”

Simon figured killing someone was easier than thinking about it, so he wouldn’t think about it. He didn’t want to intentionally hurt anyone, but they’d left him no option. He would need to stop Jerry too. With determination running through his veins, Simon left the shed, closing the door on Indra, who looked at him with forlorn eyes.

Simon stayed as low to the ground as he could with the bad knee. He made his way toward Jerry’s, listening over the storm for signs of the hunter. He moved cautiously until he found the perfect spot to hunker down. It wasn’t easy, but he managed to get low and find a comfortable position.

To wait.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Savage Sanctuary Island, Misty

After Dale left, Jerry appeared uncomfortable. His weaselly voice made it worse.

“Do you want to take showers?” He didn’t make direct eye contact. It was like there was something he should be ashamed of. There was.

“I don’t need a full shower, but I would like to clean up,” Paige said. “Where’s the bathroom?” The cadence of her voice was still syrupy sweet, and she sounded so different.

Misty was unsure what to think. This Paige showed confidence and something else that Misty couldn’t name.

“Come on, girlfriends,” Paige said. “Let’s get dry.” She turned to Jerry. “By any chance, do you have something we could wear?”

“There are clothes in the gift shop,” he said. “I can’t leave you alone, so if you want to grab them first, it would be easier.”

“Do we need to get cold and wet again?” Paige asked.

“No, there’s a back hallway that will get us there.”

Paige smiled, but it wasn’t her normal one. It was like everything about her had changed, from the way she walked and spoke to the way she talked. This was a Paige she had never seen, and Misty had no idea what purpose there was for the new friendlier persona.

They had only a short hallway to cross to get to the gift shop. It had shirts, lightweight parkas, and shorts.

Paige ran her hand down the length of the shorts. “I can cut these if dinglenuts has scissors,” she whispered.

No, Misty wouldn’t laugh at what her friend called Jerry, but it was hard. The shorts looked good to her, and she had no idea what Paige was talking about. The clothes all had the island’s emblem, and they carried them back to the apartment and headed to the bathroom where Jerry pointed after he gave Paige a pair of scissors.

“I want these back,” he said.

The tip of the scissors was rounded and really posed no safety risk, and Paige rolled her eyes. “As soon as I’m changed.”

“You should go in one at a time,” Jerry said, looking between the girls.

Paige’s voice turned sassy again. “If there isn’t a window, what do you have to be afraid of?” Twirling a section of damp hair around her finger and cocking her hip, she continued before Jerry replied, “Even if there is a window, we’re tired of being cold, and the last place we want to be is outside.” Paige smiled like she had a great secret and pointed at Misty and Sarah. “They may not share my excitement, but I’m looking forward to Dale’s party.” Her lashes swept slowly up then down while her lips formed a grin that invited bad things.

Jerry’s eyes grew large, and his smile was disturbing, but he allowed them to enter the bathroom together and close the door behind them. The small, dingy room had pale green paint on the walls with mold on the ceiling and in the corners. It didn’t smell great either.

Paige immediately pulled back the grimy shower curtain and turned the shower on.

“Are you getting in?” Misty asked while looking inside the small space at the additional mold.

“No, but this way we can talk, and that jerk can’t hear us.”

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