An image pushed into her awareness: Robert had worn a cap like this. Her mind replayed the moment when the bullet tore into his chest, and his cap flew off his head as he fell to the ground. She pushed the memory down, burying it with the others.
No time for that now. Must focus. Must survive.
She put on the cap, needing the protection from the sun, and continued her inventory of the bag. The phone and walkie-talkie still didn't work. She had one more bottle of alcohol, useful if they needed to clean a wound; her water bottle, now almost empty; and one more can of stew, which was Luke's.
A cacophony of sounds created a symphony in the jungle. It was beautiful, in its own way, though Lucy didn't want to consider too closely what kinds of creatures were making those sounds. She focused instead on the bigger picture as she packed up her supplies and began her hike. The trees, the sky, the sound of the ocean in the distance—if she hadn't been stranded, she might have enjoyed this place.
First stop: she needed to find the waterfall again, or another source of fresh water, and refill. Then she'd look for food. How hard could it be to find something out here?
Whatever strength she'd derived from the canned stew waned as the hours passed. She couldn't find the waterfall they'd been to earlier. In fact, she couldn't find anything that looked familiar. No matter how far she went, everything looked the same. She'd never been the best at outdoor scouting. Her strengths lay in computers and hand-to-hand combat. Missions that required breaking in—infiltrating a secure area and neutralizing a threat, hacking into high tech computer systems—that's what she was good at. Hunting and foraging? Not so much.
She tried to remember what Mr. Hatler had said about finding your way back to camp and foraging for food. The information was in her brain somewhere, if only she could access it. In the meantime, she kept walking and walking and walking. Her tired legs and sore body begged for rest, but she couldn't stop without finding water. She'd saved a drop of water in her bottle, but it would do little good. It served merely as a psychological tool to make her feel like she still had some left.
Just as hopelessness started to win over perseverance, Lucy pushed through another set of trees and into a clearing. Energy surged through her at the sight of a river, and she ran to the water, praying it was fresh.
At the first sip, she smiled and sank her hot, sweaty face into the welcome cold. She drank her fill and refilled her water bottle, hoping that she could find her way back here from her rendezvous point with Luke. Given the greenery around the river, maybe she could also score some food. Once food, water and shelter had been taken care of, they could focus on getting off this island and back to their assignment.
She closed her eyes and rested against a rock, her hand dipping into the water as she daydreamed about food. It took all her strength not to eat her brother's stew, but after drinking himself into a stupor, he was going to need food and water more than she.
Stupid idiot. You don't get drunk and dehydrate yourself while stranded with no food and water. I should kick his ass.
It was easier to be mad at Luke. Lucy couldn't afford the alternative: being scared out of her mind. He'd never acted like this before. He'd always been there for her, no matter what. She couldn't lose her brother in this. Besides Sam, he was all she had.
She shook herself and sat up. Time to look for food. Resting wouldn't help if all she did was worry. In the lake, a pair of eyes rose just above the surface and stared straight at her.
Oh, wow! An alligator. Or is it a crocodile? What's the difference?
This time her memory served up something useful. An alligator had a wide, U-shaped jaw, while crocodiles usually had a longer, more pointed jaw. A crocodile's fourth tooth on its lower jaw stuck out over their upper lip, while an alligator's stayed in its mouth. Crocodiles had a special gland in their tongues that could get rid of excess salt, so they tended to live in saltwater habitats. Alligators had these glands too, but they didn't work as well, so they preferred fresh water. Both were carnivores who tore their prey apart.
The creature lifted its head—U-shaped jaw, no tooth, and definitely in fresh water. Alligator.
Lucy tensed to run, but one last bit of information stopped her: people ate alligator, she was pretty sure.
She drew her knife and took a fighter's stance, then considered her opponent and shook her head. A knife wouldn't work. She'd be alligator food before she could even get close enough to do damage. Her martial arts skills were useless here, too. But what if she couldn't find any other food? Maybe a spear would give her the distance she needed, but it would have to be heavy and sharp to even dent the thick skin.