Page 12 of Hunted (Desert Island Duet #2)

Chapter nine

Reece

I don’t sleep a wink. How can I when I caused my soulmate to have a panic attack and cry hysterically?

I’ve never spoken the words out loud, but I knew that’s what she was, my soulmate.

I don’t think my thirteen-year-old brain understood at the time, but as the years went on, and I never got over her, I knew.

Only losing a soulmate could cause someone to react the way I did, lashing out at the world and refusing to so much as hold another girl's hand.

I had no expectations about how seeing her again would go, since I thought she was dead, but I didn’t expect it to be so complicated.

I knew they were right, that we didn’t know these versions of each other.

But I didn’t care either. She was mine, and I was hers.

Even if I did have to share her. At least it was with my two best friends…

and West. I know he’s a decent guy, but I’m used to being the leader of our trio, and I have a feeling we’re going to butt heads constantly.

But she’s worth it. It sounds like she may need us all in different ways, too. When I was thirteen, I could pull a laugh from her with ease, but these days… I’m not really the laughing type anymore. I’d have no idea how to do it. That’s why she needs Bower .

And King, he seems to understand her on an emotional level that I may never get to.

And West… Well, besides being an arrogant ass, he’s obviously protective as hell, but more importantly, he knows how to deal with her panic attacks, probably from his time in the Marines.

I, on the other hand, have no experience with them and I’m not sure I would have known what to do with her when she panicked today.

I probably would have put her down when she screamed to be let go, but I’m glad he didn’t.

He was right, she was going to drown herself over a damn rock.

Noticing the hut is starting to grow lighter with the early morning sun peeking through the trees, I decide it’s time to get up. Being careful not to wake anyone, I slowly stand and get dressed, then grab a full waterskin and head to the beach.

I stand in the sand and stare at the calm morning ocean.

“At least it’s not roasting hot yet,” I say to myself as I drop the waterskin and strip back down to my boxers, heading towards the water. I’m thankful it’s calm, it will help me in my search.

I have to take a wild guess at where I was standing when I threw it, and where it could have gone. When I get to the rough area, I start walking back and forth, using my feet to feel the ocean floor.

Does the tide move the sand? Could her rock be buried much lower? A seed of worry sprouts in my chest, but I keep pushing on.

After an hour, I take a break to get a drink, then go back to work. It’s only after another half hour or so, when I stop, staring out into the depths of the ocean, that I realize a search crew should have been here by now.

“Dad, what’s taking you so long?” I ask into the empty ocean, my eyes scanning for any sign of movement out there. Is this how the others felt, waiting for me to find them? Will I have to wait that long, too ?

No, people know where I am, they just have to realize I’m missing before they can send help.

“Reece?” I turn and see King standing on the beach and decide now is as good a time as any to grab some more water.

As I walk up the sand, he pulls some jerky from his bag and offers it to me.

“Thanks,” I say, quickly biting off a piece. I didn't want to admit it, but I was getting pretty hungry and had no idea how to feed myself on this island.

“Enjoying an early morning swim?”

“No, I’m looking for her rock.”

His eyebrows raise in surprise before he looks out into the ocean. “Reece… that’s going to be near impossible. The waves have probably already buried it; it wasn’t that big. Even if they didn’t, do you have any idea where you threw it?”

I shrug, not wanting to let his words stop me from finding it. It’s not like I have anything better to do. “I have an idea of where it could be.”

He sighs, dropping his bag and pulling off his shirt. “Alright, well, at least let me help you.”

I open my mouth to refuse, wanting to be the one to fix this, but close it with a snap, realizing it’s not about me, it’s about her.

I nod my head, and he follows me out. We quickly form a pattern of walking side by side, so we cover a wider area, our feet moving back and forth as we go.

We find a few rocks, tossing them all towards the shore so we don’t stumble over them again.

Luckily, Kingsley explained to me that hers actually has the name Steve carved into it, making it easy to identify.

After an hour, we sit and take a break, eating some more jerky and drinking.

“I’m surprised the others haven’t come out here by now,” I say, noting how high the sun is getting.

“I told them to stay at camp today and enjoy some time alone.”

I turn to him, my eyebrows pinching in confusion. “Don’t you want to spend some time alone with her, too?”

He shrugs, avoiding me as he looks out at the ocean.

“Has something happened?” I ask. “I thought you and her were… you know, as close as the others?”

“Apparently not,” he says with a sigh.

“What do you mean?” I turn fully to him, seeing that something is really bothering him.

He glances down at his fingers, dangling between his bent knees as he speaks. “It just seems like she doesn’t need me anymore. I feel like the other two are moving forward with her and I’m… I’m not.”

“King, that’s bullshit. I’m sure you’re just as important to her. This environment isn’t exactly conducive to an equal opportunity relationship between you all.”

“What do you mean?” He turns to look at me, a hint of hope in his eyes.

“It’s not like you can take turns taking her on dates. We’re on a dangerous island with only one place to sleep. I’m sure it will work itself out when we’re back in the real world.”

“Yeah,” he says with a shrug. “Maybe you’re right.”

Pushing to my feet, I ask, “What do you say we get back out there and continue our search?”

“Sure.” He gets up and brushes the sand off his legs .

“And King?” I ask, looking back at him. “Don’t count yourself out yet. I saw the way she threw herself at you yesterday after the whole… incident.”

He looks at me for a second, his lips pinched tightly as he nods.

As we continue our search through the water, he starts telling me about everything that’s happened since their plane crash.

How Darla stayed hidden at first, but helped them survive, even though she was scared.

How she saved him from a wild boar and how she almost broke her ankle, falling from a tree.

It starts to paint a picture of who my Darla has become.

She seems to be incredibly brave and independent, but she also holds a naivety that calls for us to help her, to protect her, even from herself.

Like yesterday. Would she have drowned herself searching for her rock if Weston hadn’t stopped her?

My foot hits something hard and I bend down and pull up the rock. It looks like any other, but when I flip it over, I suck in a surprised breath. The word Steve is carved into it.

“I fucking found it,” I whisper in shock. I didn’t think I’d actually find it.

King whirls to face me in surprise, “What? Really?” I turn the rock to show him, and a huge smile splits his face. “You’ve just made her so happy.”

I nod, looking down at the rock. I still don’t fully understand how a rock can mean so much to her, but it doesn’t matter. If it’s important to her, then she deserves to have it.

As we head back to shore, something starts to bother me. “King? When we get out of here, like when we go back to the real world… this ro ck, it probably has that man’s DNA on it. Water wouldn’t have gotten rid of all traces of it.”

He stops walking and turns to face me. “You don’t think we should take it?”

I frown down at it, considering our options. “It will feel like a ticking time bomb, just waiting for someone to find.”

“But why would anybody ever do that? Besides, we burned the bodies, there is no trace of them to be found. They can’t prove anyone died.”

I nod my head slowly. “I suppose you’re right.”

“Besides, they were mercenaries, I doubt their DNA was in any system to match with.”

“That’s true,” I concede, as we continue walking to our clothes.

As we head down the jungle path, King tells me about the incident with the mud pit, and how Darla threw herself in to save Bower.

It brings up a flood of emotions. Thinking about how close I was to losing Bower makes my gut clench in fear, but knowing she tried to sacrifice herself for him, it makes me angry.

How can she see her life as less important?

Although, I have to admire her tenacity. I would sacrifice myself for anyone on this island… even West.

A loud, feminine laugh cuts through the air, making my head snap up. We can’t see the camp yet, but we’re close.

King glances at me, a smile on his lips, which makes one pull at mine, too.

As we round the corner, I can see all three of them at camp.

Bower is trying to swing on a vine and Darla is bent over, giggling as she clutches her stomach.

West stands close, his arms crossed over his chest with an amused look on his face as he watches her.

“What’s going on?” I ask as we enter the clearing, trying to soften my voice for her. I’m not used to speaking like this. I’m normally brisk, demanding, and stern, even with my brothers. But I don’t want her to see me like that. I don’t want her to hate the man I’ve become.

Bower lets go of the vine, dropping to his feet as they all turn to us.

“You’re back!” she says excitedly as she runs towards us. King is closer, and she doesn’t hesitate to run straight up to him, throwing her arms around his waist in a hug. He seems shocked as his eyes meet mine and I give him an I told you so look.

He looks down as he hugs her back, kissing the top of her head.