Page 81 of Totally Wrecked
Re-entering the beach, I realize I let the fire die last night, so that is another thing I can do. First, though, I gently take Key into my arms.
“Hey, honey. You need to drink all this water, then eat some lychee. I know last night was scary, but today will be better. But I need you to be a brave girl for me, OK?” She looks at me blearily. Her lips are chapped and her face shadowed. I need to take better care of her.
Next, I try to coax some fresh water into Leander. I lay my wet shirt across his forehead. At least he’s in the shade.
Keyara sits, listlessly picking at the fruit.
Firewood and starting a fire is next on the agenda. Everything seems to be taking forever; it’s like all my fingers have turned to thumbs. Hours pass, and it feels like I’ve hardly achieved anything. If I stop and think about our situation, I’m going to give into despair. It must be nearly twenty-four hours since Leander passed out. What if he has a brain injury or something? Seizures can do that, can’t they?
He smells bad. So do I, so does Keyara. I’m pretty sure we have both been lying in Leander-pee all night.
“Honey, why don’t you go down to the shore and wash off in the shallows? You can beach comb as well—see if any new bottles washed up?”
Key seems better when she has tasks to perform, so I’ll keep giving her simple things to do to keep her occupied.
I shove lychee into my mouth and formulate a plan. There are probably a few hours until sunset. I’ll strip Leander and rinse his clothes in the sea. I’d also like to get a fire going again; it would be such a comfort for when the sun goes down.
After two more pieces of fruit, I wearily get to work. Leander’s shorts and underwear are pretty easy to remove, his body is pliant like a wet noodle. I was using my shorts and his shirt as a pillow for him, so I also grab those.
“Back in just a tick,” I tell him, then jog down to the surf. I strip off my own underwear as well and stand next to Key, and give everything a swoosh around in the shallows. It’s perfunctory cleaning at best, but better than nothing.
“Are you OK in your undies if I go hang these out to dry?”
She nods, so I hang her sundress to dry. I want to pick her up and cuddle her as tight as I can, but I need to get organized first. Moving at my top speed, I hang the clothes over the fallen tree branches, then decide I need to get Leander off the smelly sand he’s laying in.
“I’m so sorry,” I say, as I strain with all my might, and finally pull him by the ankles a few feet out into the shade of a palm tree. Under the tree is a cache of small dry branches, so I use those to feed the fire. Once it’s blazing again, I check on Keyara. She’s poking through the seaweed, her back bowed like a little old lady working in a field.
I run down the beach. “Keyara?”
She looks at me with hollow eyes. I don’t know if it’s dehydration or shock. “Come rest, honey, I’m going to open some coconuts and warm them up.” She doesn’t say anything, just takes my hand.
With three bottles of water filled, a tushy wipe box of lychee, and three coconuts open and warming by the fire, I feel absolutely spent.
Buck naked, I lay Leander’s head in my lap and then cuddle Keyara under my arm. I get Key to help me drip water and coconut milk onto Leander’s lips. As we do that, I sing nursery songs, just something to hopefully distract Keyara’s traumatized mind.
“She’ll be coming round the mountain when she comes, she’ll be coming round the mountain when she comes…”
I don’t know what catches my attention, maybe some movement.
“She’ll be coming round the mountain when she comes, coming round the mountain…”
I look around.
Rex, Killian, Gray, and Harvey staring back at me from the edge of the jungle.
REX
Brooke is slumped over, with Keyara tucked under one arm, and Leander’s head on her lap—he isn’t moving.
I watch as she strokes Leander’s hair and sings tunelessly. My heart pretty much crashes to a halt. If ever there was a tragic scene, this is it.
Then she sees us, her mouth opens and she blinks, but no words come out.
My body wakes from its frozen state and I drop everything—cast iron pan, blunt hacksaw, fencing pole—and run.
“Uncle Rex?” Key whispers.
“Little Key.” I dive onto my knees and press my head against hers, burying my lips in her curly hair.
