Part 6 (1/2)
Professor Kouwe flinched.
His reaction did not go unnoticed by those in the room.
”What is it?” Nathan asked.
Kouwe pointed to the sketch paper. It delineated a complex serpentine pattern that spiraled out from a single stylized handprint.
”This is bad. Very bad:' Kouwe fumbled in his pocket and pulled out his pipe. He lifted a questioning eye at Frank.
The redheaded man nodded.
Kouwe slipped out a pouch and tamped some locally grown tobacco into the pipe, then lit it with a single match. Nathan noted his uncharacteristically trembling fingers.
”What is it?”
Kouwe puffed on his pipe and spoke slowly. ”It's the symbol for the Ban-all. The Blood Jaguars:”
”You know this tribe?” Kelly asked.
The shaman blew out a long stream of smoke and sighed, then shook his head. ”No oneknows this tribe.
It is what's whispered among village elders, stories pa.s.sed from one generation to another. Myths of a tribe that mates with jaguars and whose members can vanish into thin air. They bring death to all who encounter them. It is said they are as old as the forest and that the very jungle bends to their will:”
”But I've never heard of them;” Nathan said, ”and I've worked with tribes throughout the Amazon:”
”And Dr. Fong, the Tellux anthropologist,” Frank said. ”She didn't recognize it either.”
”I'm not surprised. No matter how well you're accepted, a non-tribesman will always be considered pananakiri, an alien to the Indians of the region. They would never speak of the Ban-ali to you:”
Nate couldn't help but feel a bit insulted. ”But I-”
”No, Nathan. I don't mean to slight your own work or abilities. But for many tribes, names have power.
Few will speak the name Ban-ali. They fear to draw the attention of the Blood Jaguars:” Kouwe pointed to the drawing. ”If you take this symbol with you, it must be shown with care. Many Indians would slay you for possessing such a paper. There is no greater taboo than allowing that symbol into a village:”
Kelly frowned. ”Then it's doubtful Agent Clark pa.s.sed through any villages:”
”If he did, he wouldn't have walked out alive:”
Kelly and Frank shared a concerned look, then the doctor turned to Nathan. ”Your father's expeditionwas cataloging Amazonian tribes. If he had heard of these mysterious Ban-ali or had found some clue of their existence, perhaps he sought them out:'
Manny folded the sketched drawing. ”And perhaps he found them:”
Kouwe studied the glowing tip of his pipe. ”Pray to G.o.d he did not:”
A little later, with most of the detailssettled, Kelly watched the trio, escorted by a Ranger, cross the room and exit the warehouse. Her brother Frank was already at the portable satellite uplink to report the day's progress to his superiors, including their father.
But Kelly found her gaze following Nathan Rand. After their antagonistic exchange in the hospital, she was still slightly put off by his demeanor. But he was hardly the same oily-haired, foul-smelling wretch she hadseen hauling the girl on a stretcher. Shaved and in clean clothes, he was certainly handsome: sandy-blond hair, dark complexion, steel-blue eyes. Even the way one eyebrow would rise when he was intrigued was oddly charming.
”Kelly!” her brother called. ”There's someone who'd like to say hi:”
With a tired sigh, Kelly joined her brother at the table. All around the room, final preparations and equipment checkswere being finished. She leaned both palms on the table and stared into the laptop's screen. She saw two familiar faces, and a warm smile crossed her face.
”Mother, Jessie's not supposed to be up this late:” She glanced to her own wrist.w.a.tch and did a quick calculation. ”It must be close to midnight.”
”Actually after midnight, hon:”
Kelly's mother could have been her sister. Her hair was as deep an auburn as her own. The only sign of her age was the slightly deeper crinkles at the corners of her eyes and the small pair of gla.s.ses perched on her nose. She had been pregnant with Kelly and Frank when she was only twenty-two, still in med school herself. Giving birth to fraternal twins was enough of a family for the med student and the young navysurveillance engineer. Kelly's mother and father never had any more children.
But that didn't stop Kelly from following in her mother's footsteps, getting pregnant in her fourth year of medical school at Georgetown. Yet unlike her mother, who remained married to the father of her children, Kelly divorced Daniel Nickerson when she found him in bed with a fellow residency student. He at least had enough decency not to contest Kelly' demand for custody of their one-year-old daughter, Jessica.
Jessie, now six years old, stood al her grandmother's shoulder, dressed in a yellow flannel nightgown with Disney's Pocahontas on the front. Hey tousled red hair looked as if she had just climbed out of bed.
She waved a1 the screen. ”Hi, Mommy!”
”Hi, sweetheart. Are you having a good time with Grandma an<>
She nodded vigorously. ”We went to Chuck E. Cheese's today!”
Kelly's smile broadened. ”That sounds like fun. I wish I could've beer there:”
”We saved a piece of pizza for you:” In the background, her mother's eyes rolled with the exasperation of all grandparents who've had encounters with the giant Chuck E. Cheese's rodent.
”Did you see any lions, Mommy?”
This earned a chuckle. ”No, hon, there are no lions here. That's Africa.
”How about gorillas?”
”No, that's Africa, too-but we did see some monkeys:”
Jessica's eyes grew round. ”Can you catch one and bring one home? always wanted a monkey.”
”I don't think the monkey would like that. He has his own mommy here:”
Her mother placed an arm around Jessica. ”And I thinkit's time we lei your mommy get some sleep.
She has to get up early like you do:'
Jessica's face fell into a pout.
Kelly leaned closer to the screen. ”I love you, Jessie.”