Page 83 of Stains of Desire
"Me."
"Can you put a rope around us so I don't fall off?"
I laugh. "Is that a serious question?"
Her face is full of anxiety. "Yes."
"What's the craziest thing you've ever done?"
"Climb out of a pit and let a strange guy carry me through the jungle. Oh, and escape through the jungle with the same man."
"Besides that?"
"Nothing. I'm boring. I warned you."
I stare at her.
"Stop laughing at me."
"What? I'm not."
"You want to. Your lips are twitching."
"Do you want to know our second option?"
"Yes."
"We try to figure out a spot in the border to cross in this. But I don't have a good feeling about that. It would require us passing on other people's land, and that could be a recipe to get shot."
She turns toward the water. "It looks choppy."
"We can stay close to shore, but it really isn't rough. Are you okay with that? Think you can spend a few hours holding on to me?"
"What about sharks? Can they get us?"
I lean close to her face. "I won't let the sharks get you. The only one biting you will be me."
She smiles. "You promise?"
"Cross my heart."
She takes a deep breath. "All right."
I dig into my backpack and pull out a T-shirt and sunglasses. "Turn around."
"Why?"
"Don't ask questions."
She turns.
I wrap the T-shirt around her head and tie it so her red hair is covered. "Give me your hair tie."
She removes it from her wrist and hands it to me. "Why are you covering my head?"
"Precautionary. Your red hair makes you recognizable. If anyone is looking for you here, this will help disguise you along with these." I hand her the extra pair of sunglasses I always keep in my bag.
She puts them on and turns. "How do I look?"
