The Living

41 Jones Island

Shy cracked open his eyes.

He found Shoeshine hovering over him, moving a syringe toward his right shoulder.

He flipped himself over and tried to push away, but Shoeshine was surprisingly strong. “Easy now,” the man told Shy, pulling the needle away. “Just a few vitamins you’re gonna need on the island. Trust me.”

“What vitamins?” Shy’s eyes darted around, taking everything in. It didn’t make any sense. He’d come to the end. Yet here he was looking around a familiar-looking boat cabin. Alive. The oilman’s ring still safe inside his pocket. Over Shoeshine’s shoulder, Shy saw Addie standing against the wall, rubbing her arm.

“You gonna stop fighting?” Shoeshine asked.

“It’s okay, Shy,” Addie said. “He saved us.”

Shy locked eyes with the man. Crazy gray hair and braided chin beard. Leathery face. No way Shy was gonna let some shoeshine guy stick him with a needle. But his mind was so clouded he couldn’t think straight.

Shoeshine slowly lowered the syringe toward Shy’s shoulder, the short needle piercing his skin, cool liquid pushing inside him. Instead of fighting, Shy looked around the cabin again. Identical to the one where he’d found the dead doctors. But there were no doctors on the floor now. And no bloodstain. The only thing he recognized was the duffel bag he’d found, which was wide open. One of the packs unwrapped and two of the syringes missing. The shot he was getting had come from the bag he’d found.

Soon as Shoeshine stepped away, Shy pushed off the thin mattress and hurried to a trash can to throw up. His eyeballs bulging from the pressure, lips cracking and bleeding. He was shocked by how much came out of him.

Addie put her hand on Shy’s back. “He saw the flares,” she told him, her eyes filling with tears. “And he found us. We’ve been rescued, Shy.”

The look on her face told him it was true.

They’d survived.

When they got to the top of the stairs, Shy saw the island and it took his breath away.

And he saw a ship. Big enough to carry them home.

He was so overcome by emotion he dropped to his knees, fighting back tears of his own.

Addie kneeled down next to him and held out a banana. “Can you believe it?” she asked.

“I told you we’d be okay,” he said weakly as he peeled his piece of fruit. “Didn’t I tell you?”

“You told me,” she said, wiping her wet cheeks with the back of her hand.

They both made quick work of their bananas, and Shy tossed his peel in the trash and looked around. This boat wasn’t shot up. And “320” was written on the side instead of “220.”

“Where’d you get this boat?” he asked Shoeshine, who was busy steering them toward the shore.

“Docked inside a cave on the other side of the island,” Shoeshine answered. He kicked the cooler next to his feet. “There’s more food in here. You all must be starving.”

Shy pushed himself up to his feet again. “We found one exactly like this,” he said. “Only burned up. It was just floating out there.”

Shoeshine nodded.

“It’s where I found the duffel bag.” Shy looked for a reaction from Shoeshine, about the gun and the bodies, but there was nothing. “I also found two dead people.”

Now Shoeshine turned to him. Shy could see in the man’s eyes he wasn’t surprised. And for a second he wondered if Shoeshine had something to do with the murders. But wouldn’t he have taken the duffel, then?

“How’d you know what was in the bag?” Addie asked, rubbing her arm again.

“Because it was taken from the island,” Shoeshine said, still looking at Shy. “There was a minor dispute about what to do with it.”

“What’s happening there?” Addie asked. “Is everything okay?”

Shoeshine turned to her. “Safer than being stranded at sea, I suppose.”

“That’s the truth.”

“Who else is there?” Shy said, thinking of Carmen, Rodney and Kevin. And everyone else. But especially Carmen. “Other people made it, right?”

“There’s about eighty of us,” Shoeshine said. “They’re staying at that hotel you see on the hill.”

“Is my dad there?” Addie asked. “He’s tall with gray hair.”

“I hope so,” Shoeshine said. “More than a few who fit that description.”

Shy looked toward shore again. The island had beautiful green cliffs. The large building at the top, overlooking the ocean, was obviously the hotel. “How’d you even find us?” he asked, turning back to Shoeshine.

“Like the young woman said. Saw a flare go up near sunset. I’ve been out looking for folks the past three days. But you’re the only two I’ve come back with.”

“Why don’t I remember?” Shy said.

“You were half dead.” Shoeshine let up on the gas and allowed the boat to coast. “But I had a feeling about you, young fella. Somehow I knew we hadn’t seen the last of you.”

Shy got a weird feeling looking at Shoeshine. Like the guy was genuinely looking out for him. Even back on the ship he’d felt that way. But why?

He turned back to the hotel on the cliff. It was blue and white and lined by densely packed palm trees—easily the biggest building visible on the small island. The whole island itself seemed no bigger than a few football stadiums wide. Lush cliffs wrapped all the way around, the ocean running right up into them except for a long grassy section, which was where they were headed. Shy spotted four Paradise lifeboats lined up on the shore. To the side of them was a large sailboat on its side in the rocks with a torn sail flapping in the wind. He saw that the ship was carrying a helicopter.

“Whose ship is that?” he asked.

“Showed up here two days ago,” Shoeshine said. “Introduced themselves as a team of researchers. There were about a dozen of them or so.”

Addie went right up to the railing. “But they’re going to take us home, right?”

Shy watched Shoeshine stare at the ship for a long time before he answered. “That’s what they’ve promised.”

“What about the phones in the hotel?” Shy asked. “Can we call home?”

“No electricity. And all the satellite phones we’ve found are dead. We’ve been looking for backup generators.”

“What about radios?” Shy said. “Does anyone even know we’re out here?”

“The researchers say they’ve alerted the authorities about us.”

Shy glanced down at the duffel bag near Shoeshine. “So, who were those doctors I found on the boat?” he asked. “And why’d you give us vitamins from the bag? Why would we need a shot?”

Shoeshine put a hand up, interrupting Shy. “Plenty of time for questions, young fella. But what do you say we get you two back on land right now.” He powered down the motor and lowered the anchor.

They were directly in front of the long manicured patch of grass that looked like part of a golf course.

“Gotta keep the boat offshore a ways because the pier’s underwater,” Shoeshine said. “Same as the runway they used for small planes.”

Addie tapped Shy on the arm and pointed at the island. “He thinks that’s only a quarter of what it was before the tsunamis.”

“As the water goes down,” Shoeshine said, “we find out more and more about this place. Now, you all feel strong enough to swim a ways?”

Shy and Addie both nodded.

Shoeshine ducked back down the stairs, into the cabin. He came out with his notebook wrapped in plastic and shoved it into the duffel bag with the medicine and slung it over his shoulder. “Okay if I carry this for now?” Shoeshine asked Shy.

“You can have it,” Shy said, meaning the gun, too.

Shoeshine nodded. As the three of them moved to the side of the motorboat, he said: “Before you all set foot on that island, there’s one more thing you need to know.”

Shy peered down into the water. It was so clear he could see all the way down to the bottom. No sharks. But instead of sand or reef, he saw what looked like a thin paved road. A shed. Part of the island really was underwater.

“Some of the folks who made it back…” Shoeshine paused. “Well, there’s something wrong with them.”

“What do you mean?” Addie asked.

Shy could tell by Shoeshine’s face it was something bad.

Shoeshine shook his head. “Nobody’s exactly sure yet. They’ve been separated from everyone else for now. The doctor can tell you more.”

Shy could also tell Shoeshine was holding something back. About the syringes in the duffel bag maybe. Or the gun. Or the people who had something wrong with them.

The man turned and looked Shy dead in the eyes, like he sensed all his questions. “Main thing is this. I didn’t give you no vitamins out here, you understand?”

“Why not?” Shy said.

“And you all never saw this bag I’m holding.” He patted the duffel hanging from his shoulder. “It’s important this part stays between us three, you hear?”

Shy and Addie looked at each other. Before Shy could say anything else, though, Shoeshine told them: “I know all this seems confusing right now. But trust me, the less you know, the better. Now come on.” He turned back toward the water and jumped in.

42 Dry Land

Addie jumped in feetfirst with her life jacket on, her blond hair fanning out in clumps on the water’s surface. Shy took off his life jacket and flung it back into the boat. He was weak, but he didn’t care. The shore was close. And he felt free as he leaped off the boat, a cool rush of ocean water quickly enveloping his body, bringing him back to life. For a few surreal seconds his head was underwater, feet dangling a few feet above the grassy bottom, then he dog-paddled his way up and his face broke through the surface.

He and Addie looked at each other, smiling, and Shy recalled the last thing she’d said to him on the lifeboat, about how she was going to love him. He wondered if it was something she had said because she thought she was going to die, or if she really felt it. And what did he think about that?

Shy reached down into the water and squeezed Addie’s knee through her jeans. It was the closest he could come to acknowledging what she’d said. Addie grinned and turned onto her stomach, started swimming for shore.

Before Shy swam after her, he glanced back at the motorboat that had just saved their lives. And then he looked beyond the boat, at the massive sparkling ocean. Hours before they’d been lost in it. Left for dead. But here they were now, less than twenty yards from land.

He could feel his entire body coming back to life as he turned and set off after Addie.

Shy stepped onto shore last.

He walked up the closely cut grass on shaky legs and allowed himself to collapse near Addie, where they both looked around in silence.

They were on what was once a golf course—most of it was now underwater. The research ship with the helicopter was a couple hundred feet offshore, and Shy spotted a couple people moving around on the top deck. He turned around and looked at the island. Old-looking stone stairs zigzagged up the face of the cliff. A thick cable came up out of the water, ran all the way up to the hotel where a fancy aerial tram sat. The cliffs themselves were intensely green with densely packed trees and bushes. A group of squawking seagulls chased after each other low in the sky.

It was like they’d landed in paradise. Shy put both his palms on the ground beside him, amazed that he was actually back on solid ground. He studied the broken-down sailboat on his left. He saw now that there were gashes in the side and the bar that held the torn sail was badly bent. No way this thing would ever sail again. It was a major reminder of what damage the waves had caused.

“That was the easy part,” Shoeshine called to them. “Still got four hundred sixty-five steps to go. I’ve counted.”

“It’s so strange,” Addie said to Shy. “In a few minutes I’ll know if he’s still alive.”

He nodded.

“Even if he’s done bad things,” she said, “he’s still my dad, you know?”

“I get it,” Shy said as he struggled to his feet. But he didn’t want to think about Addie’s dad right now. Or the shady things he may have been doing. Like the picture of Shy Addie had found in his room. His legs were incredibly wobbly. He could barely walk. All Shy wanted to think about right now was the fact that he was alive. And he was on dry land.

Addie looked up at Shy, said: “I don’t even know if I can make it up these stairs. I’m so weak.”

“I bet there’s food and water up there,” Shy told her. “And a bed.” He helped Addie up, thinking about how close he now felt to her. They’d survived together. No one could ever take that away. But he also knew the butterflies flooding his stomach were about something else. Something that made him feel like a bad guy.

As Shy and Addie followed Shoeshine up the stairs, side by side, he remembered Carmen’s dark brown hair and brown eyes. He tried to stop himself, but he couldn’t. He remembered how she’d stepped into the hall outside her cabin with wine when he couldn’t sleep. All the early-morning talks they’d had on the Lido Deck, when she stopped by with her coffee.

Come on, Carm, he thought as he closed his eyes and touched the ring in his pocket.

You gotta be up there.

Please be up there.

Shoeshine stopped as they neared the top of the stairs. He glanced up at the hotel, then looked out at the men on the research ship. He pulled his notebook from the duffel bag, hid the bag with the gun and syringes inside the thick bushes growing right up against the stairs and continued on.

“What was that all about?” Shy asked, glancing at the beat-up leather notebook in Shoeshine’s hand.

“We know the world has changed,” Shoeshine answered, “we just don’t know which way.”

Shy and Addie looked at each other, confused. “I don’t get it,” Shy said.

Shoeshine shook his head and pointed toward the hotel. “Plenty of empty rooms. Doors are all open, keys on the desks inside. Once you claim your room you can lock it. Food and water in the restaurant out back. Extra clothes in the lobby.”

“Aren’t you coming?” Shy said.

“I need to check something on the other side,” Shoeshine said. “Ask for Christian, the doctor I told you about. He’ll tell you whatever else you need to know.”

After they watched Shoeshine disappear around the hotel, Addie turned to Shy. “So you know him?”

“Shoeshine? Sort of.” Shy turned toward the hotel. “I know Christian a little, too. We started out on the same life raft.” Shy remembered being right next to Christian as the giant wave roared toward them. He shook the memory out of his head and wondered if he’d find Kevin and Marcus inside. And Paolo.

“I don’t understand why everything’s so secretive,” Addie said. She squatted down and put her hand on the ground.

“Same here.” Shy looked up at the hotel, which was about a dozen stories high, with big windows and balconies. He turned to Addie, who was now rubbing her temples. “You all right?”

She nodded. “Just a little dizzy. Getting up here took all my strength. I think I need to lie down or something.”

“Can you make it inside? I’m sure we’ll find you a better spot.”

Addie nodded, and Shy helped her to her feet.

They cut across the puddled lawn together, pushed through the hotel doors and stepped into the lobby.

“Damn, look at this place,” Shy said. It reminded him of the ship’s atrium, only ten times the size. High domed ceilings and massive chandeliers. Giant framed paintings on every wall. Thick carved pillars. Antique-looking couches. Marble floors and a marble staircase that wrapped in a circle up to the second level. Shy wondered if those stairs would lead him to a room where he’d find Carmen.

“I knew they had a hotel here,” Addie said, “but I never pictured it like this.”

“So, this is where people from your old man’s company stay?” Shy asked.

“And the doctors they fly out for vacation. My mom said it’s one of the ways they get people to invest in their products.”

They both turned when they heard people walking across the marble floor. It was Christian and two men Shy didn’t recognize.

Christian stopped suddenly. “Shy? Is that you?”

Shy nodded, surprised at how emotional he felt seeing someone who’d been with him on the raft.

“Jesus, man! I’m so happy to see you!” Christian hurried across the lobby toward them, gave Shy a quick hug, then hugged Addie, too. “How’d you guys get here? We didn’t think anyone else survived.”

“Shoe found us,” Shy told him. “In the middle of the night. We thought it was over.”

“Shoeshine. Of course. Man, thank God you guys are okay.”

“They’re more than okay,” one of the men said, stepping forward. He had a long, dark beard and a receding hairline. “How would you feel if I told you you’re going home? Tonight?”

“Tonight?” Shy said. “Are you serious?”

“That’s right,” the shorter man said. He was wearing a Hawaiian shirt, khaki shorts and flip-flops. “We’re departing just after the sun sets.”

The man with the beard smiled and held out his hand to Shy. “I’m Greg Walker, and I’m in charge of the research expedition. This is my head assistant, Connor Simms.”

Shy gave his name and shook hands with both men. Addie did the same.

“You two showed up just in time,” Greg continued. “We were sent here to study the tsunamis’ effects on the sea life just off the coast of the island. But that went out the window when we found all the survivors here. Our mission now is to get you back home to your families.”

Shy squeezed Addie’s arm. He was so excited he could hardly contain himself.

She smiled back at him and nodded, but she seemed to be swaying a little, too. Shy gripped her elbow, trying to steady her.

“What about California, though?” he asked the two men. “Isn’t it messed up really bad?”

“There’s a lot of damage,” the shorter man, Connor, said. “It’s terrible. But the entire country has come to the aid of all the western states affected. You’d be amazed how much people are coming together.”

“They said the death count wasn’t quite as high as the media originally reported,” Christian added. “All we can do is pray that our families and friends are okay.”

Greg slapped Shy on the shoulder Shoeshine had just stuck the syringe into. “We’ll be explaining everything in a few hours over lunch. One-thirty, if you’re near someone with a watch. Go get some rest. We’ll make sure everyone knows when it’s time to gather in the restaurant. I’ll be going over all the logistics of our departure.”

“You’re safe now,” Connor said.

Greg nodded. “And we’re thrilled to be bringing two more home with us.”

Shy felt Addie suddenly start slipping through his grip. He caught her at the last second and lowered her to the ground. “Jesus, Addie,” he said, kneeling down to pick up her head. Her eyes were closed. “Addie? Can you hear me?”

Christian reached into his bag and pulled out a bottle of water. He took Shy’s spot, uncapped the water and put it to her lips, saying: “Addie? Can you hear me? I need you to take a small sip of water if you can.”

Her eyes fluttered open, and she looked up at Christian. She took a small sip and turned to Shy. “What happened?”

“You fainted,” Christian said. “We need to get food and water in both of you.”

Shy put his hand on her forehead. “You okay?”

“She needs rest,” Connor said. “Let’s get her into one of the bedrooms.”

Shy looked over his shoulder when he heard other people hurrying across the lobby toward them. “There are still plenty of open rooms on the first floor,” someone said.

In a few seconds, a small crowd of people had converged around Shy, Addie and Christian—everyone shouting advice and asking how they’d made it out of the ocean alive. Shy looked up at all of them, recognizing a few of the faces from the cruise ship.

And then, near the back of the group, he saw the face he’d been imagining since the moment the ship went down and he’d found himself alone in the dark ocean.

Carmen.

43 Under the Gazebo

Shy, Christian and a few others, including both researchers, helped get Addie into the closest unclaimed room, 117, and laid her on the perfectly made up king-sized bed.

“She needs air,” someone said.

“And something to eat,” another person said. “Look at her.”

Shy watched them all swarming around Addie’s bed, but he kept checking the door, too. His heart pounding. Carmen hadn’t come into the room yet. She had to be waiting for him in the lobby.

“She’ll be able to rest all the way back to California,” one of the researchers said.

An older woman told someone to go get Addie a change of clothes.

“Is my dad here?” Addie mumbled.

“Who’s your dad?” the older woman asked.

“Jim Miller. He’s tall with gray hair. He worked on the island.”

“You rest for now, honey,” the woman said. “I’ll go ask around, see what I can find out.”

The two researchers backed away from the bed and left the room after the woman.

Shy and Christian remained with one other woman as everyone else began filing out. Christian looked into Addie’s eyes and ears with a tiny doctor flashlight, then he listened to her heart with a stethoscope. Shy watched, torn between making sure Addie was okay and going in search of Carmen.

“Shy?” Addie said, looking up from the bed.

“I’m here,” he answered.

She let her head fall back onto the pillow. “God, I don’t even know what happened to me.”

“You’ve been on the ocean for five days,” Christian said. “Both of you.” He turned to the woman next to him. “Mary, would you go to the restaurant and get some bottles of water and fruit.”

“Right away,” she said, and she hurried out of the room.

“You need to rest, too,” Christian said to Shy. “Go to one eighteen, across the hall. I’ll come see you next.”

“Okay,” Shy told him, but there was no way he was doing anything until he saw Carmen. “You feeling a little better?” he asked Addie, squeezing her foot.

“I think so,” she said.

Shy nodded as Christian began asking her questions.

When two women came in carrying a change of clothes for Addie, Shy slipped out of the room.

The second he walked into the lobby he spotted Carmen, who motioned for him to follow her.

As he moved across the marble floor, though, toward the doors, a few other survivors from the cruise ship approached him. Word had gotten out that he and Addie had been rescued, and they marveled at how long Shy had survived at sea.

Shy smiled and nodded at them all, but he hardly heard a word they were saying. He was too anxious to talk to Carmen, who was now standing in front of the hotel doors, waiting for him.

“Make sure you’re in the restaurant at one-thirty,” a man said. “They’re going to tell us when we can expect to be home.”

“I’ll be there,” Shy said, waving as he moved past the group.

His legs were wobbly as he followed Carmen outside the hotel and along the cobblestone path. For some reason she continued walking a few paces in front of him, like she didn’t want to start talking until they were completely alone.

They moved around the entire exterior of the hotel. Puddles everywhere, especially out back. Seaweed strung through some of the manicured bushes like tinsel. A woman wearing an oversized Raiders jersey called to him from across the lawn: “We heard about you! Thank God you were able to survive!”

“Thank you!” Shy shouted back.

They walked past others who greeted Shy the same way. Finally Carmen led him under a large gazebo where they were alone. She spun around and faced him, her head tilted a little to the side. “Shy,” she said, her face breaking into a big smile.

Just hearing her say his name sort of choked him up. “Carm,” he managed to say back.

She was wearing a plain white T-shirt he’d never seen her wear, baggy jeans and tennis shoes. She covered her mouth and her eyes got a little glassy, but there were no tears. Carmen was too tough for that. “Come here,” she said.

He moved toward her and she wrapped him in a tight hug, saying in a quiet voice: “I thought I lost you.”

Shy was so overcome with emotion he wanted to melt into her. He cupped the back of her head and held her against his chest, breathing in her hair. He was exhausted to the point that his knees were shaking, but he didn’t care. He was willing to stand like this forever.

She looked up at him. “I thought of you every single minute. I even tried praying.”

“I thought about you, too,” Shy told her.

Carmen reached up and grabbed Shy’s face in her hands, stared right into his eyes. “How’d you get rescued? It’s been five days. I almost lost hope.”

“Shoeshine,” Shy told her. “He found us out there in a sinking lifeboat.”

Carmen hugged him again.

Shy closed his eyes this time and concentrated on the feeling of her body against his. Being with Carmen again made it sink in that he’d made it to the other side. That he had a second chance.

When she pulled away from him this time, she said: “God, look how skinny you are, Shy. It’s like breaking my heart.”

“I only caught one fish the whole time,” he said.

She laughed a little and shook her head. “I never saw you as the life-skills type. Why do you think I was praying?”

“It was the sharks,” he told her. “For real. They scared away all my fish.”

“You smell, too,” Carmen said, grabbing him by the elbow. “Let’s get you cleaned up.”

Carmen led Shy back into the hotel and behind the reservation desk, where he picked out a change of clothes, and then she took him out back to the freshwater pool where she said everyone had been bathing.

“Go on,” Carmen said, turning away from him. “I’ll keep a look out so nobody tries to sneak a peek at your stuff.”

Shy slowly peeled off the damp clothes he’d been wearing for the past five days and grabbed one of the small hotel-style bars of soap lying beside the pool. Being rescued was a trip: one minute he’d be stressing about getting back home and finding his family, and the next minute he’d get a lump in his throat just looking at a bar of soap.

He dunked himself in the cool water and began lathering his hair and body, which felt incredible, as Carmen caught him up about her own lifeboat’s journey to the island and the island itself.

She was on the first boat to make it to the island, along with about thirty others, including Christian, who they’d pulled out of the ocean. A disheveled redheaded man in a lab coat, Dr. Sullivan, greeted them on the golf course and led them up the stairs to the hotel. Soon as they walked into the lobby, though, he had them all sit down so he could explain what was happening on the island. He’d been working in the lab on the other side, with a team of other scientists, when the first tsunami hit. In seconds, the entire lab was underwater. Only a few of them made it out alive. But that wasn’t all. The next morning, most of the people who worked on the island—in the hotel and the restaurant and on the grounds—started getting sick. Really sick. He’d been putting them all upstairs, in the penthouse, where he was giving them medication.

“Then the doc ducked behind the registration desk,” Carmen said over her shoulder, “and came back with a duffel bag. He explained that the virus going around was very contagious and that each of us would need to have a shot for protection.”

Shy had stopped lathering and was staring at the back of Carmen’s head. He knew she was talking about one of the dead people he’d found on the motorboat. And the shots they all got were the same ones Shoeshine had just given to him and Addie.

“So you let him give you the shot?” Shy asked.

“Of course I did,” Carmen said. “Only two people from my lifeboat refused it, and they’re both sick now. They’re up in the penthouse.”

Shy started rinsing himself off, debating whether or not to tell Carmen about the dead scientists. Or about him getting the shot, too. If everyone already knew about it, why did Shoeshine want him to keep it secret?

“So where’s the bag of medicine now?” he asked.

“Gone,” Carmen said, turning all the way around to face him. “That’s why I’m worried about you.”

Shy thought about ducking back into the water to hide himself. But he didn’t. He just stood there.

She glanced down at him for a quick sec, but her face stayed serious. “Shy, your chest. What happened?”

He reached up to feel it. He had a pretty big scab that was slowly healing. And he was pretty sure he’d broken a rib or two. “No idea,” he said. “Happened on the ship.”

Carmen cringed. “Anyway, Dr. Sullivan disappeared, too. The day after we got here. We don’t know where he went or what he did with the medicine.”

“Was there another doctor?” Shy asked.

“There were four of them,” Carmen said. “But Dr. Sullivan was the only one who came around the hotel. The rest of them mostly stayed on the other side of the island, except when they went to the restaurant to eat. They claimed their entire life’s work was buried underwater.”

Shy started drying himself off with one of the towels stacked near the pool, trying to decide how to tell Carmen what he knew. He didn’t want to betray Shoeshine, but at the same time, he couldn’t keep this from Carmen.

She turned away from him, as if she’d just remembered he was naked. “Everyone on the second boat is fine, too, but by the time the third and fourth lifeboats showed up, Dr. Sullivan was already gone. Same with the medicine. So none of them got the shot.”

“And they got sick?” Shy asked, putting on a fresh pair of pants. He transferred the oilman’s ring from his old ones.

“Almost all of them,” Carmen said over her shoulder. “Only Shoeshine is still fine. And a few others. It’s crazy contagious, like Dr. Sullivan said. That’s why Christian and those research people aren’t letting anyone go up to the penthouse.”

“By any chance,” Shy said, “was that duffel bag of medicine brown and blue?”

Carmen spun back to Shy. “How’d you know that?”

Shy slipped his second arm into his T-shirt and pulled it over his head. “Look,” he said, “Shoe told me to keep this quiet, okay?”

“Just tell me what you know.”

“Okay.” Shy was so tired he had to squat down. “Me and Addie stumbled into that Dr. Sullivan guy’s boat while we were paddling around out there. You said he had red hair, right?”

Carmen nodded.

“So, yeah, someone shot him,” Shy said. “Shot his boat up, too. And tried to burn it.”

The color went out of Carmen’s face. “Who shot him? Why?”

“No idea,” Shy said. “I found him that way. Some other doctor had also been shot.”

“But that doesn’t make sense,” Carmen said. “Why would anyone shoot a scientist? He was helping us.”

Shy looked over Carmen’s shoulder to make sure they were still alone. “You don’t think Shoe had anything to do with it, do you?”

Carmen composed herself and shook her head. “The reason he didn’t get sick, I think, is because he never stays in the hotel.”

“Where’s he sleep?”

She shrugged. “Outside, I guess. He spends all day exploring the other side and fishing and writing in his notebook. He’s also obsessed with that wrecked sailboat. Maybe he sleeps on that.” Carmen shook her head again. “Nah, Shoe’s been good to us. He rescued you, didn’t he?”

Shy looked up at the top floor of the hotel, where the penthouse was. “I grabbed the duffel with the medicine off their boat. I don’t even know why. Anyway, when I woke up on Shoe’s boat this morning, he was sticking me with one of those syringes.”

“Shy,” Carmen said, grabbing his forearm, “that’s really good. Everyone who got the shot is still healthy.”

“He told me they were vitamins,” Shy said. “But obviously that was a bunch of bs. What kind of sickness is it, anyway?”

Carmen shook her head. “Some tropical thing, I guess. Brought on by the flooding. And we were all calling the shots vitamins.” She let go of his arm. “All I know is the illness must be bad ’cause nobody’s recovered enough to come down from the penthouse yet.”

They were both quiet for a few seconds. Shy stood and scooped up his dirty clothes.

Carmen cleared her throat, said: “There’s something else, Shy. I wanted to make sure you heard this from me first.”

Shy looked at her, preparing himself for more bad news.

“Rodney’s up there. He’s one of the sick people.”

It was like a shot to the midsection. Shy looked up toward the top floor again. His legs felt even weaker all of a sudden, like any second he might collapse like Addie had. But he wouldn’t let himself. “He’ll get better, though, right?”

“That’s what Christian says. And the research people promised to take everyone back to California, no matter how sick they are.”

“We can’t go see him?” Shy asked.

She shook her head. “At least, we’re not supposed to.”

As they walked back into the hotel, they were both quiet. Shy could tell Carmen was thinking about the same thing he was. Rodney. It killed him that the guy had made it all the way to the island only to get sick. He vowed to make sure he took care of his roommate on the voyage back home.

Carmen led Shy right past Addie’s room and the room Christian told him to take, toward the stairs. “I think I’m supposed to be in room one eighteen,” he said.

“Says who?” Carmen said.

“Christian.”

She shook her head. “You can take any room you want. Come on.”

She led him to an open room on the third floor, across the hall from hers, and stood by the door as he went inside. He sat on the end of the king-sized bed. It was a super nice hotel room. Art on all the walls, a big window overlooking the ocean. Clean-looking bedding and pillows. But Shy didn’t care about all that. He was still thinking about what he’d just learned.

When he’d seen the island from Shoeshine’s motorboat, he had assumed the worst was over. And maybe it was. But things were still pretty messed up. California had been rocked by an earthquake. And he had no idea about his family. And now he’d found out a bunch of people, including his boy Rodney, were sick.

“Get some rest,” Carmen said. “I’ll come get you before we meet for lunch.”

Shy looked at her hovering near the door. “Thanks for telling me about Rod,” he said. “Guess I shouldn’t even ask about Kevin and Marcus.”

“Marcus is here,” she said. “The people on the second boat fished him out of the ocean.”

“So he’s not sick?”

Carmen shook her head. “He’s been holed up in his room the past couple days trying to fix some portable radio. He found it at the bottom of a huge puddle, though, so I have my doubts.”

“And Kevin?”

Carmen shook her head, looking at Shy. “He wasn’t on any of the boats.”

Shy nodded.

Not only did he feel exhausted, he felt empty. Just a few days ago they were all hanging out together on the ship for Rodney’s birthday. Now Rodney was sick. And Kevin, the strongest and smartest of all of them, was missing. Drowned, probably. Or mauled by a shark. It proved to Shy that the most important part of surviving was dumb luck.

Carmen stared blankly at the floor a while. “Look,” she finally said. “A lot of bad things went down. We both saw the footage of what the earthquakes did.” She shook her head. “I can’t even sleep really ’cause all I do is think about my family. And Brett. And whether or not they’re still alive.”

Shy nodded.

“But me and you are still alive,” Carmen said. “And we’re going home. That’s what we need to focus on, you know?”

“You’re right,” Shy told her.

“Now get some rest. I’ll come wake you up in a few hours.” She picked up one of his room keys and slipped it into her pocket.

“Thanks, Carm.”

She smiled. “You’re family, too, Shy. Remember that.” She turned to leave but then stopped herself and looked back from the door. “Before I go, you know the rules. Give me one thing I don’t already know.”

Shy looked out at the ocean, thinking. Carmen had just told him the truth about Rodney and Kevin. He wanted to tell something truthful, too. “You know that girl Addie?” he said, sitting down on the bed. “The one I was out there with?”

Carmen nodded.

“She’s actually not that bad. I probably never would’ve made it back without her.”

Carmen stared at him for a few long seconds, like she was trying to figure out what he meant. Then an understanding came over her face and she said: “I’m happy you had someone.” She smiled at Shy and stepped out of his room, slowly pulling the door closed behind her.

Shy lay back on his pillow and stared up at the ceiling. He thought about everything he and Carmen had just talked about, and he thought about Kevin and Rodney. He was definitely grateful to be where he was. Alive. Back on land. About to return to California on the research ship. But at the same time he felt guilty, too.

Why should he live and Kevin die?

What made him any more worthy?

Nothing.

He closed his eyes, remembering Kevin following him to the Lido Deck on the first night of the voyage. Warning Shy about the guy who’d been asking about him. Saying with his eyes that he had Shy’s back.

Kevin was a good guy. He was probably a better guy than just about anyone else Shy had ever known, including himself.

44 Giving Thanks

Shy felt like he’d just fallen asleep when he opened his eyes and found Carmen shaking him awake. “Sorry I can’t let you rest longer,” she said. “But we need to find out about this departure.”

Shy sat up. “How long was I out?”

“It’s one already. So almost three hours.”

“For real?” Shy wiped the sleep from his eyes and got to his feet. He followed Carmen out of his room, saying: “I probably could’ve slept for three days.”

Carmen stopped in the middle of the hall. “So which room is hers?”

“Who?”

“Blondie,” Carmen said. “Ol’ girl you were stranded with.”

Shy gave her a confused look. “What are you talking about?”

“Just gimme the room number, Shy. I decided me and her are gonna be friends.”

Shy was still too asleep to know what he thought about this. He reluctantly gave her the room number and followed her down some stairs and through a hall. Before he fully comprehended what was happening, they were standing together outside Addie’s room.

“Go ’head,” Carmen told him. “Knock.”

Shy did.

As they waited for Addie to answer he got a strange nervous feeling in the pit of his stomach. Carmen and Addie, together? It was too weird, like worlds colliding.

The door opened slowly, and there she was. Blond hair tangled in her face. But she looked alert, like she’d been up for a while. She smiled at Shy, then turned to Carmen and said: “Oh. Hi.”

“Addie, meet Carmen,” Shy said, trying to act like it was no big deal. “Carmen, Addie.”

He watched them smile at each other and shake hands like two businesspeople. Then it got all quiet and awkward.

“You feel better?” Shy asked Addie.

She shrugged. Something was seriously bothering her.

Shy thought he understood what it was. “I know you wanna look for your old man,” he said, “but everybody’s supposed to be coming to this meeting, right? So I guess…”

“He’ll either be there or he won’t,” Addie said, finishing Shy’s thought. She glanced down at the ground, all sad-looking.

It went quiet again, so Shy told Carmen: “Addie’s dad was on the ship.”

“Yeah, I kind of figured that out,” Carmen said.

“No, but then he got on a boat and headed here,” Shy added. “She’s not sure if he made it or not.”

“Oh,” Carmen said. “Sorry to hear that.”

It went quiet again, until Carmen said to Addie: “No offense, girl, but you look like you might need to spend some time with a bar of soap.”

“Come on, Carm,” Shy said. “She was in here resting.”

“I know that, Shy. I’m saying, I can show her where the freshwater pool is. We still got time before people start showing up at the restaurant.”

“Wait, what?” Shy tried to imagine them hanging out, just the two of them. “Or how about we could all go together,” he said.

Carmen rolled her eyes and looked at Addie. “You see how this vato is, right? Next he’s gonna wanna soap up your back.”

Addie smiled uncomfortably and looked to Shy for help. But before he could say anything, Carmen was walking into the room and grabbing Addie’s stack of fresh clothes off the foot of the bed. She linked her elbow in Addie’s and started them out the door, telling Shy: “Meet you in the restaurant in fifteen, Sancho.”

Addie looked over her shoulder at Shy, but he was helpless. Carmen did what she wanted. Nothing he said was gonna change that.

Shy sat down at an empty table inside the buzzing restaurant. There was food on a buffet-style counter near the miniature stage: chips, cookies, pretzels, oranges, bags of beef jerky and hundreds of personal-sized bottles of water. Nothing that needed refrigeration, because, as Shoeshine had told him, the island didn’t have electricity.

Shy started wolfing down everything he could get his hands on, and he looked around at all the survivors. A couple of them had worked with him on the cruise ship. Everyone else had been a passenger. They were all wearing clothes left behind by previous hotel guests or the people who worked on the island.

Shoeshine wasn’t there.

Neither was Marcus.

But he recognized many of the other faces. One of the women the oilman had shown the ring to by the pool. An older gray-haired man from Shy’s muster station. A mustached guy he always saw at the blackjack table in the casino. When Shy noticed that someone was staring back at him, his stomach dropped.

It was the man in the black suit. Bill.

He was all the way across the restaurant and no longer in his suit—their eyes stayed locked for a few long seconds until Shy looked away. He flashed back to when he helped the guy get out from under the chandelier in the Destiny Dining Room. He remembered the heat from the fire as he’d leaped through the flames. How he and Kevin got the man onto one of the lifeboats. How was it that this Bill guy was still alive and Kevin was dead?

Carmen and Addie walked into the restaurant just then and headed straight toward Shy’s table. Carmen pointed at him and said something he couldn’t make out and both girls laughed a little. When they sat down he frowned and said: “What’s so funny?”

“That’s between me and her,” Carmen said.

Shy turned to Addie, who was grinning. It didn’t seem as fake this time. She was dressed in baggy jeans and an oversized blue T-shirt, hair all wet and clean-looking. She looked a hundred times better than she had on the lifeboat. “Addie, you gonna help me out here?”

Carmen cut in again. “This is an A and B, bro. So why don’t you C your ass out of it.”

Addie shrugged.

“That’s like something you tell people in third grade,” Shy said to Carmen.

“Sometimes you gotta speak to children in a language they understand.” She winked at Addie, all proud of herself.

Before Shy could think of anything to say back, three people from the research crew walked to the front of the restaurant and stood near the tiny stage. The one with the beard, Greg, tapped a fork against a drinking glass until everyone quieted down and faced them.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” he said. “As many of you already know, we were sent here to study the effects of the tsunamis on this tiny island. Some of the most unique sea life in the world lives in the reefs off the northern coast. However, as soon as we discovered you guys, our agenda changed. We’ve radioed back to our base and received clearance to cancel our original mission effective immediately. I’m happy to report that we will be setting off for California tonight.”

Everyone cheered.

Shy felt a surge of emotion as he looked around at all the happy faces. He thought of his mom and his sister and his nephew. He couldn’t wait to get back to Otay Mesa to try and track them down.

“The coast guard has agreed to meet us halfway and guide us back to Long Beach Harbor.”

A man with his hair pulled back into a ponytail stepped forward. “Many of you have asked about the state of the West Coast after the earthquakes. We’ve been hesitant to say too much until we gathered more facts. But I can now say this: there is major damage and a pretty significant loss of life near all the fault lines. But rescue crews from all over the country, and even other parts of the world, are there in full force. They are confident that the affected states will be built back up much sooner than anyone expected.”

“The moral of the story,” the bearded man said, “never underestimate the resilience of the American people.”

Shy watched the crowd of survivors smile and turn to each other. Everyone was as excited as he was. But at the same time, he wanted to hear more details about the earthquake. He wanted to know specifics.

The ponytailed man raised his hand, waiting for the reaction to die down. “The fact is, you people may have caught the worst of it. Scientists are saying that the tsunamis you experienced were the most powerful in recorded history. As you can see, they’ve all but decimated this island. They also caused major damage in Hawaii, Japan, Taiwan and the Philippines.”

Shy was now wondering if these guys were trying to sugarcoat shit. Just tell us the truth, he wanted to say.

The man in the beard looked at his watch. “I’m sure you all have more questions,” he said, “but there will be plenty of time on our voyage home. That must be a great word to hear right about now, huh? ‘Home.’ ” He motioned a fourth man up from the front table. “Larry here is going to run you through the launch procedures. We’re leaving tonight at seven-thirty, just as the sun sets. It’s imperative that everyone follow his directions exactly. We want to get you all home as safely and efficiently as possible. And this includes our friends currently recovering in the penthouse.”

Shy and Carmen nodded to each other, thinking of Rodney. Shy wanted to raise his hand and ask about San Diego, but the first three researchers were already walking away.

The guy who’d just been called up to the stage, Larry, began describing how they needed everyone to line up single file along the shore by six o’clock. Motorized rafts would take them out to the ship, a dozen at a time. The sick would be loaded last. They had a team of fifteen, he said, and if they did things as efficiently as they hoped, the ship would be on its way by seven-thirty. Their estimated arrival back in Long Beach was roughly two days.

Shy couldn’t help smiling at the thought of leaving on the ship. Neither could Carmen. But Addie looked super stressed as she kept scanning the restaurant. She seemed to spot Bill.

“He might know something about your old man,” Shy told her. “You should go ask him.”

Addie shook her head.

Carmen reached across the table, put her hand on top of Addie’s.

A few minutes after all the researchers had left to go prepare the ship, one of the former Paradise passengers suggested people go around saying what they were thankful for.

The crowd caught on pretty quickly.

A woman with long brown hair said she was thankful for her husband, who had shielded her with his own body during the second tsunami. She started tearing up and said: “We’d only been married two years. After we got home from this trip we were going to start thinking about children.” The tears quickly turned into full-on sobbing, and the people sitting around her patted her back and rubbed her shoulders.

Christian stood up next. “I’m thankful to everyone who helped pull me out of the ocean. You had enough to worry about. And there wasn’t any extra room. But you made room. I’ll never forget you for that.”

People clapped as Christian sat back down.

Addie told Shy and Carmen that she was going back to her room to try and rest a little more.

“I’ll walk you out,” Shy said, getting up from the table.

Addie nodded.

Carmen winked at Shy as he led Addie toward the door. Addie avoided eye contact with Bill.

Outside, Shy told her: “Sorry your dad’s not here. But it doesn’t mean he’s not on the island. Shoeshine didn’t show up to the meeting either. I bet a bunch of people didn’t.”

Addie looked Shy right in the eyes, but she didn’t say anything for a few seconds. Then she took his hands in hers and sighed. “You were really nice to me when we were stranded, Shy.”

“Wish I could say the same about you,” Shy said. He expected to get at least a grin out of her, but she kept a straight face.

“I want you to know I meant what I said.” She squeezed his hands. “That last night.”

Shy didn’t know how to respond to that, so he just sort of nodded and smiled and squeezed her hands a little, too. “Go rest,” he said. “We’ll come get you when it’s time to go down to the beach.”

“I just want to make sure you understand that,” Addie said.

“I do,” Shy told her. “And I’m glad you said it. But there’s no need to get all sentimental, right? I’ll see you in a few hours.”

Addie sighed. She leaned forward on her toes and kissed his cheek. She stood there looking at him for a few seconds with a pained expression on her face, like she still hadn’t fully recovered from fainting. Then she turned and started down the hall.

When Shy returned to his table in the restaurant, Carmen was shaking her head. “I know what it’s like losing your old man,” she said.

Shy wanted to tell Carmen about Addie’s dad’s shady business on the island. They had to be in some deep shit for people to have guns and bags of needles, for doctors to end up dead on a boat. There was no way it was just insurance fraud. But it didn’t seem like the right time or place to get into all that now, so he just nodded and turned back to the people saying what they were thankful for.

“I’m thankful to the men who are taking us home,” an older woman said. “It’s because of them that, God willing, I might get to see my grandchildren again.”

More applause. Some people raised bottles of water and gave cheers.

Bill stood up next and pointed a finger at Shy. “You see that young man sitting over there?”

Everyone turned to Shy. He instinctively sank down in his chair a little, afraid of what the guy was going to say. Carmen was staring at him, too.

“His name is Shy,” Bill said. “And he saved my life on the ship.”

People clapped for Shy, but Bill wasn’t done. “My leg was trapped under a chandelier in one of the dining rooms. He and another young man lifted it off, helped me through the burning room and got me onto a lifeboat. If it wasn’t for Shy’s bravery, I wouldn’t be here right now.”

More cheering. This time it went on for several seconds. Carmen pointed at Shy over the table and mouthed, You’re my hero.

Shy shrugged uncomfortably and looked at Bill. He felt uneasy with all the attention. Truth was, he’d trade Bill’s life for Kevin’s in a second. It’s not like Shy could just forget everything else that happened on the ship—how the guy had followed him all over and messed up his and Rodney’s room and threatened him in the Luxury Lounge.

Others stood and announced who and what they were thankful for, but Shy was no longer listening. He was staring into space, thinking about the conversations he and Addie had had on the lifeboat about her old man and his company. Back then it didn’t seem to matter as much. His sole focus was on surviving. But now he was sneaking looks at Bill, wondering what the guy’s deal was. And what about LasoTech? And then a different thought crossed his mind: Bill must’ve had something to do with the dead doctors Shy found. And if that was true, it meant Addie’s dad had had something to do with the murders, too. Even if it was indirect.

45 The Penthouse

Shy and Carmen labored up the stairs, toward the penthouse on the twelfth floor. He’d spent the last two hours at the restaurant with everyone, doing nothing more than eating and resting and thinking, but it hadn’t seemed to give him a whole lot more strength. He was already out of breath and there were still seven flights to go. He made himself a promise: the second he got on the research ship he’d find himself a bed, or a cot, or even just a spot on the floor, and he’d let himself sleep for twelve straight hours.

“So someone’s actually guarding the doors?” he asked Carmen.

She nodded. “A few of the guys take shifts. But don’t get all nervous, they’re only passengers. And a few people who worked at the hotel.”

Shy didn’t see what the big deal was. Especially if he and Addie were supposedly protected by their shot of vitamins. And someone had to make sure the sick people knew the plan, right? They were leaving in two hours. And how were they going to get down to the water? He wasn’t so sure he trusted anyone right now.

Mostly, though, Shy just wanted an excuse to visit Rodney.

As they passed the eighth floor, Carmen said: “So, what are the chances we’ll find our neighborhoods still standing?”

“No idea,” Shy said. “I don’t wanna jinx it.”

“Hearing them talk about it at lunch,” Carmen said, “I don’t know. It made me feel better and everything, but I got the feeling they were holding something back. I mean, you saw the footage in the theater. It was bad.”

“I was thinking the exact same thing.” Shy started assisting his tired legs by using the handrail. “Wanna hear something else?” he asked. “That guy at lunch who said I saved him, he was the dude who was following me all over the ship.”

“Stop it,” Carmen said. “Really?”

“I promise. Me and Kev were doing our sweep, and I heard someone calling for help. I didn’t even think about it at the time.”

“He seemed really appreciative about you helping him out.”

Shy shrugged. “He still creeps me out. I don’t trust the guy.”

As they passed the tenth floor, Shy switched subjects. “So, what’d you and Addie talk about?”

“I just gave her a little nutritional advice,” Carmen said.

“I’m being serious,” Shy said.

“Me too. That girl’s too skinny. She needs protein.”

Shy shook his head. “So, you were checking her out?”

Carmen grinned. “I peeped her out a little. So what?” She climbed a few more steps and said: “Don’t start having some big deserted-island fantasy, okay? We just talked. She told me how you blasted a shark with an oar. And how some injured guy threw himself overboard when you two were sleeping.”

Shy felt the ring in his pocket as they climbed the final flight of stairs. He decided he needed to tell Carmen about Addie’s dad. The picture Addie had found in his room. How he was partners with the guy Shy saw jump off the ship on his first voyage and how there was something seriously sketchy happening on the island.

But just then they reached the top of the stairs and peeked around the corner. Two men were sitting on metal folding chairs outside the double doors of the penthouse. “What now?” he whispered to Carmen.

“Best way to deal with shit like this,” she said, “is to act like you know what you’re doing.” She popped out from behind the wall and started walking directly toward the men.

Shy followed.

Both men stood up at the same time. The heavier, balding one moved in front of the door. The other guy, who was rocking a military flattop, held his hands up and said: “Sorry guys, nobody’s allowed in there right now. Doctor’s orders.”

“Christian’s the one who sent us,” Shy said.

Carmen slowed and put her hand on the guy’s elbow. “We’re supposed to go in there and run them through the launch details.”

“Sorry,” the flattop guy said. “Nobody’s allowed inside. Not even us.”

“It’s for our own protection,” the heavier guy by the doors added. “Plus Larry was just up here talking to them. Christian must have made a mistake.”

Shy and Carmen glanced at each other. There was no way Shy was gonna climb all those stairs without seeing Rodney. “Okay,” he said, turning back to the two men. “I guess it was a misunderstanding, then. We’ll just go back downstairs and tell Christian—”

Shy suddenly shoved his way past both men and pushed through the doors.

“Hey!” they shouted from behind him.

Shy spun around, saw that one of the men had fallen to the floor. Carmen was hurrying past them, too, and they both ran through the hall, into the main living area, where an awful smell hit Shy.

And then he saw.

Fifteen or twenty people were lying on their backs on temporary cots. Their arms and legs tied down. Some of them looked up when they heard Shy and Carmen come into the room. Others didn’t move.

Carmen covered her mouth with her hand.

The two men who had been guarding the door hurried into the room after them, shouting: “You can’t be in here! We’ll all get sick!”

But then they went quiet, too, and stared at the strapped-down bodies.

Shy pulled Carmen by the wrist and they moved from one body to the next, looking for Rodney. The patients were in various conditions. Some seemed alert and shouted at Shy and Carmen. Others had vomit all over their shirts and they moaned and twisted in pain. Others clawed frantically at their own thighs.

A few weren’t moving at all.

“No,” Shy started mumbling as he and Carmen continued through the rows of patients. “No, please.”

The men were after them again, shouting: “We have to get out of here before they come back!”

“There!” Carmen shouted. She was pointing to a cot in the far corner, where Rodney was lying, and they both rushed toward him.

Rodney’s face was turned toward the wall.

His eyes seemed open, but when Shy shook him he didn’t respond. Carmen turned Rodney’s head toward them, and Shy’s entire body went cold. The whites of his eyes were entirely red and fixed on nothing.

Carmen continued shaking Rodney and calling out his name, until Shy grabbed her by the wrists and said: “Let’s go.”

As the men dragged Carmen and Shy back through the room, Shy stared at each body they passed. Everyone in the penthouse was infected with Romero Disease. And some, like Rodney, were already dead.

And they’d been left there to rot.

46 Two Paths Along the Cliffs

After the two men led Shy and Carmen out of the penthouse, they hurried down the stairs together in shock. “How’d it get way out here?” Carmen said. “And why has nobody told us?”

“I need to get the duffel bag,” Shy said. “And find Christian. The shot we got has to have something to do with the disease. Like a vaccine.”

“There is no vaccine.”

“Then why haven’t you gotten sick?” Shy said. She glanced at him as they continued down the stairs, but she didn’t say anything. Nothing made sense. A few minutes ago they were excited to be going home. Now there were people on the island with Romero Disease. And Rodney was gone. And they’d just left him there.

“The bag had pills, too,” Shy said. “Maybe it’s the kind of medicine they gave my nephew.”

“What’s happening!” Carmen shouted. “Did you feel how cold Rodney’s arm was? Did you see his eyes?”

Shy stopped her as they got to the bottom of the stairs. “I know where Shoeshine hid the duffel. We have to get the meds on the ship or the rest of the patients will die before we get home. I’ll get Shoe. He has to know more than what he told me.”

“I’ll find Christian,” Carmen said. “He’s about to explain why everyone’s been lying to us. I’ll get Marcus, too.”

Shy looked out across the lobby, where a few passengers were lounging on the couches, talking, laughing. They had no idea that people just a few floors above them were dying. “I’ll meet you back here before six, okay? So we can line up for the ship together.”

Carmen nodded. “It doesn’t make any sense, Shy. Why would they lie to us?”

All he could do was shake his head.

Before leaving the hotel, Shy hurried to Addie’s room and knocked on the door. Her dad’s company had to know about the disease. How else would there be a bagful of the vaccine and medicine? And Shy was sure that was what he’d found on the motorboat. He remembered Addie saying LasoTech made hospital equipment. But if they had scientists who worked in a lab, it only made sense that they’d make drugs, too. Maybe they’d been working on a way to protect people from Romero Disease.

He knocked again and called out: “Addie, open the door! It’s Shy!”

When there was still no answer he hurried back through the lobby, pushed open the doors and went outside. He made his way back to the top of the stairs, where he saw the helicopter slowly lifting off the ship. He watched it lean to the side and start moving away from the island; he wondered who was in there and why they’d be leaving ahead of the ship.

Shy skipped down a few stairs and sifted through the bushes where Shoeshine had hidden the duffel bag, but it wasn’t there. Someone had taken it. Maybe Shoeshine.

He stood up again and watched the flight of the helicopter, trying to figure out what was happening. He kept picturing Rodney’s lifeless face. His blood-red eyes. And everyone else who was strapped down to cots in the penthouse. The minute he’d found those dead scientists in the ocean he’d known something bad was happening here. But he never would’ve guessed it involved Romero Disease.

Shy took the trail beyond the gazebo, which led him higher up the cliff, through dense trees and bushes, around large boulders and exposed roots. He had no idea where he was going, he just knew he needed to find Shoeshine. And the last time he’d seen the guy he’d been headed in this direction.

He came upon a few of the researchers, who were spraying the bushes and trees with some kind of squirt bottle. They didn’t even look up, so Shy scooted right past them. When the path broke off into a Y, he chose the route that led farther up the hill. His lungs burned as he climbed. His legs felt like Jell-O. But he had to make sure the duffel bag got on the ship. And he had to talk to Shoeshine.

Shy glanced up as he ran. The sun was already dropping from the sky. He only had about an hour and a half before he had to get back to the hotel. He tried to pick up his speed.

The land leveled out and the path began to narrow. Shy kept running, ducking under tree limbs, leaping over puddles. The faster he ran, though, the more his mind flooded with questions. How had the disease gotten all the way out to the island? Was someone on the cruise ship sick? One of the hotel workers? And where were the two scientists going on that motorboat with the duffel bag? And who shot them?

Shy didn’t notice that the path came to an abrupt end until the last second. He tried to stop, but his momentum made him slide through the dirt. At the very edge of the cliff he grabbed a thick tree branch to keep himself from falling.

He looked down, his heart climbing into his throat as he watched the rocks he’d just kicked tumble fifty, sixty feet, into the ocean. He’d survived giant waves, a sinking cruise ship, circling sharks, only to almost fall off a cliff. He squatted down to catch his breath.

There was a large clearing to the right. A cement platform that looked like a helicopter launchpad. To the left he saw what had to be the flooded lab sticking up out of the ocean. A tall security fence wrapped all the way around it.

No sign of Shoeshine.

Shy doubled back to the Y in the path and was starting down the other route when he heard someone calling his name. He stopped and turned around. It was Bill, limping up out of the brush, using a stick as a cane. “Shy! I’ve been looking all over for you!”

“Me?” Shy answered. “Why?” He looked around to see if anyone else was there. Even after the nice things the guy had said about him during lunch, Shy still didn’t trust him.

“I wanted to thank you personally,” Bill said. He was wearing a generic baseball cap now and a green backpack. He looked kind of scratched-up from walking through the brush. “I meant what I said back at the restaurant. I wouldn’t be here if you and your friend hadn’t pulled me out from under that chandelier.”

“Anyone would’ve done it,” Shy said cautiously. He needed to shake this guy and continue looking for Shoeshine.

“But it wasn’t anyone. It was you.” Bill pulled off his cap, ran his fingers through his hair and put it back on. “What’s the matter, Shy? You seem upset. Everyone else back at the hotel is so excited to be going home.”

“That’s ’cause they haven’t been up to the penthouse,” Shy fired back. He was sick of all the secrecy. It was time for people to start being straight with each other. “There are people dying up there, man. And nobody’s telling us shit.”

“You’re right,” Bill said, balancing on his stick. He adjusted his cap again. “I don’t think they want to alarm anyone. We’ve been through enough already, haven’t we?”

“And what about LasoTech?” Shy continued. The questions were just flowing out of him now. “You work for them, right? What do you guys do?”

“We produce pharmaceuticals,” the man answered. “Well, I don’t personally. I’m only a member of the security team.”

Shy knew it. There had never been any hospital equipment. He wondered if Addie had straight-up lied to him, or if she really didn’t know. “And what do you know about a brown and blue duffel bag with vaccinations?” Shy found himself shouting now. He could feel the heat rising in his face as he pointed out toward the ocean. “And how about two scientists who got shot on a motorboat out there?”

Bill nodded at him for a few seconds; then he glanced at his watch. “Listen, there’s still a little over an hour before we need to be on the beach. Let me show you something, Shy. It won’t take long, I promise.”

Shy scoffed at the guy. “I’m not going anywhere with you,” he said. “All I’m saying is I know your company is shady as shit. And sooner or later, everyone’s gonna find out.” He turned and started back down the path, pissed off but scared now, too. Because maybe he’d said too much.

“It involves the loss of your grandmother!” Bill called after him.

Shy stopped in his tracks and spun around. “What are you talking about?”

“Your grandmother,” Bill said. “Or more specifically, the disease that killed her.”

Shy stared at the guy, breathing hard, trying to make himself think straight.

“I’m only telling you this because of what you did for me on the ship.” Bill waved with his stick for Shy to follow him. “Trust me, you’ll want to hear what I have to say.”

The man turned and started limping up the path.

47 The Roles We Play

Shy followed Bill up the hill, to a lookout point just off the path where he pointed to an even better angle of the submerged lab. “You see that building down there?”

Shy nodded. “I already know, it’s your company’s lab.”

“It was the lab,” Bill said. “Before the ocean surge destroyed it. Do you know what took place inside those walls?”

Shy shrugged. He’d come to hear about his grandma, not to listen to some long, drawn-out story.

“The most important drug research and development in the country,” Bill continued. “But it turns out that’s not all LasoTech developed. The man you saw jump off the ship—”

“David Williamson,” Shy said.

“Yes, Mr. Williamson. He left a letter in a cave that’s a few hundred feet away from the lab. We used the cave as a second dock for our boats. The scientists also used it as a storage facility. The day my lifeboat landed here, I learned that a scientist had discovered this letter. I then read the letter with my own eyes. It was long—seven typed pages—and it revealed some very disturbing information.”

Shy vaguely remembered the comb-over man mentioning a letter before he jumped. “So what does all this have to do with my grandma?”

“Everything,” Bill answered. “This letter explained exactly how Romero Disease originated. I believe Mr. Williamson had what people call a crisis of conscience. Kind of ironic that the information I was seeking this whole time was printed on lined pages, isn’t it?” The man limped a few steps toward a small boulder on his left. “God, this leg is killing me.”

Shy watched him sit down and take off his backpack, set it between his feet.

Bill looked up, said: “Mr. Williamson had been part of the company from the beginning. He developed many original medications that helped a lot of people and made the company a lot of money. But according to his letter, he wasn’t satisfied. He wanted to do something no scientist had ever done before. That’s when he and Mr. Miller came up with a novel idea. Instead of always reacting to the environment, they wanted to create the environment. So they worked backward.”

“I don’t get it,” Shy said.

“Instead of developing a drug to treat a disease, they set out to develop a disease that would need a drug. And that’s exactly what they did.”

When it hit Shy what the guy was saying, his whole body went numb. “They created Romero Disease in a fucking lab?”

“According to the letter we read,” the man said, nodding. “Trust me, we were all as blindsided by this information as you are.”

Shy could feel his anger rising as he stared at the man. “So how’d people get infected?”

“That’s where Mr. Miller came in—your friend’s father. According to the letter, Mr. Miller opened a free clinic in Mexico—under a different name, of course. For two years they treated poor border communities for everything from the common cold to breast cancer. But they also secretly infected the first few patients with their deadly disease.”

Shy stared at the man, horrified.

“They knew it would eventually make its way across the border, into America. And they knew the fear it caused would drive up demand for treatment. When reports first started surfacing, they sat on it for a while, knowing it wouldn’t look right if they had a treatment too soon. A few weeks ago their medicine that treats the disease was approved by the FDA. Their plan was to submit their vaccine by the end of the year. But the earthquakes changed all that, of course. We’ve received word that the disease is ravaging the entire West Coast now. It was determined that the best course of action was for the company to distance themselves from the situation completely.”

Shy couldn’t believe what he was hearing. They hadn’t committed insurance fraud, they’d made up a disease that killed people. His grandma. Carmen’s dad. Rodney. Shy felt so light-headed he had to squat down and put his hand on the ground for balance.

“It’s beyond comprehension,” Bill said. “I know. According to the letter, Mr. Williamson claimed he never really thought about what might happen once the disease was introduced to the public. He’d been focused on the science of the thing. Only Mr. Miller understood how much of a profit it would bring them.”

Shy was so pissed his whole body started shaking. Addie’s dad was responsible for everything. How could Addie not know herself? Shy lost his shit and stood back up. He marched right up to Bill and shoved him off the boulder, shouting: “You killed people, man!” He stood over the guy, breathing hard and trying to think. “You killed my family!”

Bill got back up slowly and brushed himself off. “I didn’t do anything, Shy,” he said calmly. “I didn’t even know about this until a few days ago.”

“You were part of it,” Shy said. “Why else would you be following me all over the ship? Why’d you ask me what that guy said before he jumped?”

Bill sat back on the boulder. “Those were Mr. Miller’s instructions. He wanted to know what Mr. Williamson said to everyone he spoke to that night. He was worried his partner had leaked top-secret information. But I had no idea what he was looking for, I swear to you.”

Shy was so confused. He thought about being stranded on the broken lifeboat with Addie. Back then he’d had no clue he was stuck with the daughter of the guy who killed his grandma. It made him sick. She made him sick.

“I agree, Shy, it’s horrible.” Bill unzipped his backpack, still looking at Shy. “But judgment isn’t my profession. Protection is.”

Shy watched as Bill pulled a gun out of the bag and pointed it at him.

Shy froze in disbelief. “What are you doing?”

“And Mr. Miller pays me a lot of money for protection,” Bill continued. “As long as he’s alive, I will always protect his interests. The company may be ruined, but he’s assured me my services are more valuable to him now than ever before. No one on the mainland knows about his vaccine, and I intend to keep it that way.”

“He’s dead, though,” Shy said.

“Oh no,” Bill said, standing up. “Jim Miller is very much alive. He’s on his way back home as we speak.”

The helicopter, Shy thought.

“Oh, and as far as the two men you found on the ocean,” the man went on, “one of them was a doctor who intended to get the vaccine to California. To protect those who are still healthy and to expose us. The other man was one of mine. His instructions were to make sure this man never arrived. I’m sorry to hear I lost a good man, but at least his mission was a success.”

The man motioned with the gun for Shy to sit on the ground. He did, staring directly into the barrel. His whole body shaking uncontrollably now. Out of a blinding fear. What if this guy didn’t let him go? What if he wasn’t able to get on the ship with Carmen and Marcus? And he never made it back home to look for his family?

“I’m going to teach you something,” Bill said. “And I’m only doing this because you helped me on the ship. Otherwise you’d already be in the ground.”

“I got you on a lifeboat,” Shy said weakly.

The man took a deep breath and stared at Shy. “We all have roles to play in this life,” he continued. “It’s simple really. Mr. Williamson had a gift for science. Ego led him to create the perfect disease. Mr. Miller had the business sense to make money off that creation. My role is to protect Mr. Miller. And do you know what your role is, Shy?”

Shy stared as the man continued pointing the gun at him. “It’s not right, though,” he barely managed to say.

Bill shook his head. “I learned a long time ago to never get caught up in right or wrong. The problem here, Shy, is that you know too much. Maybe you’ve known too much since the night Mr. Williamson decided to end his life. Or maybe you only know too much because of what I just told you. Either way, your role comes to an end today.”

Bill cocked the gun and moved forward a little, so that the barrel was only a few inches away from Shy’s forehead.

Shy looked down at the ground in front of him and then closed his eyes, waiting to hear the explosion that would end it all. His mind furiously flashed through hundreds of images: boarding the ship and his grandma lying in her hospital bed and Rodney’s red eyes and his nephew sleeping and his mom climbing the steps to their apartment and Addie tearing the fish in half and meeting Carmen for the first time on the ship.

And then he heard it.

The shot.

And he let his head fall toward the ground, assuming he was dead.

But he was still sitting there. Smelling the dirt. Breathing. Thinking.

He slowly opened his eyes and looked up.

Bill was lying facedown two feet in front of him, blood already pooling in the dirt around his body.

At first Shy thought he’d shot himself, but then he sensed someone to his right and turned.

Shoeshine was standing there.

The gun in his right hand still pointed at the man.

The brown and blue duffel bag slung over his shoulder.

48 Kicking Down the Door

Shy stumbled to his feet, watching Shoeshine check Bill for a pulse. “Is he dead?” he asked.

“He’s dead.” Shoeshine peeled the gun out of Bill’s right hand and shoved it into the back of his waistband. He picked up the green backpack and then looked out over the ocean.

Shy knew he was in shock, because he couldn’t process what had just happened. But seeing Bill with a bullet wound in his back made him kneel down like he was about to be sick. He’d almost gotten shot in the head. After hearing that Addie’s dad’s company planted the disease to sell their drugs. He spit and looked up at Shoeshine, told him: “You saved my life. Twice now. Who are you?”

The guy shook his head, still looking over the water. “Just a guy who shines shoes, young fella.”

“No way, you have to be something else, too.” Shy wanted to do something for the guy, to show how grateful he was. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the ring, thrust it forward in his palm. “Here, you should have this,” he said.

Shoeshine looked down at the ring and shook his head. “No thanks. Never been big into jewelry.”

“But you could sell it or something. When we get back to California.”

“Not interested,” Shoeshine said, unzipping Bill’s green backpack and sifting through it.

Shy shoved the ring back into his pocket, watching. He thought of all the things Bill had just told him about the disease and Addie’s dad and everyone’s role. It disgusted him that anyone could make people sick on purpose. How would he explain it to Carmen? And what about Addie?

He turned toward the flooded lab, where it had all started. “How’d you even know we were here?” he asked Shoeshine.

“Been watching that man watch you since back on the ship,” Shoeshine said. “I could sense something wasn’t right.” He turned to face Shy for the first time. “Felt the same way about this whole island, soon as we landed here. It ain’t done with yet, young fella.”

Shy nodded. He wasn’t sure what Shoeshine was talking about, but he knew he agreed. The man hadn’t been wrong yet. Shy stood up and moved closer to Bill’s limp body, studied the bloody bullet wound in his back.

Shoeshine pulled a clear spray bottle out of the green backpack and held it up to the sun, which was much lower in the sky. The bottle was filled with a yellow liquid. Shoeshine sprayed a little onto the back of his hand and smelled it. Then he tasted it and spit.

“What is it?” Shy asked.

Shoeshine shook his head and looked back toward the island.

“What is it, Shoe?”

Shoeshine turned suddenly and tossed Shy the duffel bag. “Make sure everything in there stays safe,” he said. “It’s very important, you hear? There’s something else I gotta see about.” He started hurrying down the hill.

“Where you going?” Shy called after him.

Shoeshine didn’t answer.

“Everyone in the penthouse is sick!” Shy shouted. “They have the disease, too!”

“Stay off that ship!” the man shouted over his shoulder. “Long as you can! You hear me?” Then he ducked around a corner, out of sight.

Shy started down the hill a few minutes later, obsessively running through everything he’d just learned from Bill and replaying the sound of the shot he thought had ended his life. When he heard two people talking in the distance he stopped cold and ducked out of sight. It was two of the researchers coming down from the other path, toward the Y.

Once they passed, he looked around, trying to figure out what to do with the duffel bag. He didn’t want to take any chances, since it was the one job Shoeshine had trusted him with. To be safe, he climbed partway up a tree and stashed the bag in the elbow of a high branch that was covered by a dense layer of leaves. He’d come back for it, he decided, just before he lined up to get on the ship.

Shy hurried down the rest of the path, past the gazebo and into the hotel lobby. A few passengers were leaving just as he got there. “Where you going?” Shy asked.

“A bunch of us are heading down early,” one of the women said. “We’re just so excited.”

“Come down when you can,” the guy next to her said. He held up a deck of cards. “Might play a little poker to pass the time.”

“I’ll be down there soon,” Shy told them, trying to maintain his smile. He didn’t understand why Shoeshine wanted him to stall getting on the ship. Everyone else was going early. And it wasn’t like Shy was gonna let the thing leave without Shoeshine. He owed the guy his life.

Shy watched the group leave, then started down the hall toward Addie’s room. He needed to ask her some serious questions about her dad, who was still alive.

He knocked and waited.

No answer.

“Addie!” he shouted. “Open the door, I need to talk to you!”

When there was no response again, he looked up and down the halls to make sure no one was around. Then he kicked at the door, hard as he could. It barely budged. He backed up and kicked again, right next to the doorknob. On the third try the door swung open and he went inside.

The room was empty.

The bed was made up perfectly, like nobody had ever been in it. Where was she? Down on the beach already? Shy sat on the couch in the corner to try and think. He was mad as hell. And he was scared. Addie’s family had killed his own. It made him hate her. But he’d looked into her eyes on the lifeboat. She wasn’t like her dad. Or maybe he’d read her wrong the whole time.

And then he remembered the helicopter leaving the island. He punched the wall. What if Addie had been on it with her dad? But that didn’t make sense either. She didn’t even know he was still alive.

Shy left Addie’s room and hurried down the hall. Another group of passengers was cutting through the lobby toward the exit. “We figured we might as well go line up now,” the woman in the Raiders jersey said.

One of the men looked at his watch. “Only about twenty-five minutes before we’re supposed to be down there. We’ll see you soon, I hope.”

Shy promised he’d hurry.

49 Spotty Reception

Carmen wasn’t in her room either, so Shy started looking for Marcus’s room. Since he didn’t know the room number, or even the floor, he wandered through every level, calling out their names.

“Carmen!”

“Marcus!”

Shy was almost at the end of the fourth floor when he heard a door open behind him. He turned around and saw Carmen standing there. She didn’t say anything, just waved him over.

He followed her inside the room, where he saw Marcus sitting at the end of the bed, working on the radio. Occasionally, there would be a burst of static, but nothing more.

Marcus looked up. “Shy,” he said, setting down the radio and hopping to his feet. They slapped each other’s hands and gave a quick dude hug. “I’m so happy you made it.”

“You too.”

“Tell Shy what you heard,” Carmen said, looking upset.

Marcus sat back down with his radio. “I got it coming in pretty clear for a couple minutes,” he said. “Just before Carm showed up.” Marcus glanced at Carmen and turned back to Shy. “I’m not positive, man, but it sounded like some British dude talking about America being in a state of emergency.”

Shy looked down at the radio. “What’s that even mean?”

Marcus shrugged. “I’m not sure.”

“Tell him the rest,” Carmen said.

“According to the man, they got people crowded in stadiums all over the West Coast. And because they were all so close together…” He paused and looked at Carmen again. “That disease spread through everyone.”

“Romero,” Carmen said, gripping Shy’s arm. “They all got it now, Shy. Everyone in there. And they’re not letting ’em leave the stadiums.”

“Jesus,” Shy said. It lined up exactly with what Bill had told him. What were they going back to?

Carmen reached out and banged the side of the radio. “Why won’t it come in clearer?”

“Don’t hit the thing,” Marcus said, holding the radio away from her. “You’re making it worse.”

She sat down on the edge of the bed, seething.

“At the meeting they tried to say things were okay,” Shy said. “I knew it didn’t sound right.”

“We were just talking about that,” Carmen said. “I guess they didn’t want us to worry about back home until after we got rescued.”

Marcus started playing with the tuner again. “Like I said, I’m not completely positive. It was sort of hard to make out.”

“You find the bag of medicine?” Carmen asked Shy. “I told Marcus all about the penthouse.”

“Sorry to hear about Rodney, man,” Marcus said, shaking his head. “He was a really good dude.”

Shy nodded. “Shoeshine gave me the duffel bag,” he said, looking back and forth between them. “But something else happened while I was out there.”

“What?” Carmen said.

“Come with me to get the bag,” Shy said. “I’ll tell you on the way.”

Carmen stood up. “But then we gotta hurry and get down to the beach. We can talk about all this shit deeper once we’re on that damn ship going home.”

Carmen covered her mouth after Shy finished telling her and Marcus everything Bill said about Romero Disease. “Do you believe this asshole?” she asked.

Shy shrugged. “Why would he make it up?”

“How can they even do that?” Marcus said. “Just invent a disease?”

“I guess if they’re scientists,” Shy said, switching the duffel from one shoulder to the other. He’d pulled it out of the tree on their way to see the body they were now standing over. He kept looking down at the man, Bill, remembering him pointing the barrel right in his face. It made Shy feel like a ghost. Like he shouldn’t actually be standing here, breathing.

“He had the gun right against my head,” Shy said, trying to make sense of what had happened. “I thought it was over.”

“And that’s when Shoeshine blasted him?” Carmen said.

“He saved my life,” Shy told her. “Twice in one day.”

“This is really freaking me out,” Carmen said. “We have no idea what we’re going back to.”

All three of them stood there, looking at each other and at the body. “So no one knows a vaccine even exists?” Marcus asked.

“I don’t think so,” Shy said. “He made it sound like they wanted to back away from the whole thing.”

“You know what they basically did, right?” Carmen kicked the dead body right in the ribs. “They sacrificed poor people to scare money out of rich people. They sacrificed my fucking dad.”

“Beyond shady,” Marcus said. “That’s, like, some kind of genocide or something.”

“Soon as we get back,” Carmen said, “we’re telling everyone. Cops, FBI, CIA, whoever we can find.”

Shy just kept staring at the man’s head. He was so angry he was shaking and his teeth were chattering. And then a thought occurred to him. The envelope in the duffle. He unzipped the bag and reached past the pack of syringes and opened the beat-up envelope enough to see inside. His jaw dropped. It was the letter written by the comb-over man. David Williamson. They had their proof right here.

“We better get down there,” Marcus said.

“Shoe’s still out there somewhere,” Shy said. “He wants us to stall a little.”

“How ’bout we stall on the damn ship,” Marcus answered, picking up the radio.

Shy shrugged and zipped up the duffle and led the three of them back down the narrow trail that would eventually take them to the stairs. When they passed the hotel, though, he started thinking about Addie again. And the helicopter. He wondered if he should go try her hotel room one more time, just in case. And then something else occurred to him.

“Wait,” he said as they neared the top of the stairs.

Carmen and Marcus turned to look at him.

Shy glanced out at the ship, which was facing the island. He saw where the helicopter once was. If Addie’s dad was really still alive, he had to have been on that helicopter. And the helicopter had been on the researchers’ ship. Why would they let some random guy take their helicopter unless…

“Come on, Shy,” Carmen said.

Shy looked down at the beach. They had a perfect view from the top of the stairs. The passengers were all lined up and the research people were walking around them wearing backpacks. Green ones. Just like the one Bill had been wearing. The wrecked sailboat was gone. He thought about Shoeshine telling him to stay off the ship. Maybe he was saying for them to never get on the ship. Maybe it was a warning.

“Everyone’s lined up already,” Carmen said. “We gotta get down there.”

“Let’s go, man,” Marcus said, trying to pull Shy by the wrist.

“Hold up,” Shy said, yanking his arm free. “I gotta think.” He was remembering something else now: Shoeshine pulling the spray bottle out of Bill’s backpack, smelling the substance on the back of his hand. And the researchers he’d seen on the path, spraying the bushes and trees with this same kind of spray bottle.

“Shy!” Carmen shouted.

“We can’t go down there,” he said, looking up at her. “Not yet. We got time, right? They still gotta get the sick people on.”

They all turned to the water when two motorized rafts started buzzing toward shore from the ship. The drivers steered the rafts right up onto the golf-course grass and gave the researchers on land a thumbs-up.

“Look,” Marcus said. “You can hang around up here if you want, but I’m getting my ass on one of those rafts. Now.” He turned to Carmen. “You coming with me?”

Carmen looked back at Shy with sad eyes. “I just wanna go home,” she told him.

“Me too,” Shy said, wiping a hand down his face. “But something’s not right.”

Shy moved closer to the edge of the cliff near the stairs when he heard one of the researchers start shouting orders. He watched over a dense wall of bushes. Instead of loading the first group of survivors onto the first raft, the team of researchers all reached into their green backpacks at the same time and pulled out machine guns. They aimed them at the line of survivors and started firing.

Screams filled the air.

The quick rattle of gunfire.

A few of the passengers tried to run, but no one made it more than a few steps before getting shot.

Shy ducked behind the edge of the cliff, pulling in quick breaths. Carmen and Marcus hurried back up the stairs and dove in behind him.

He watched horrified as body after body fell limp onto the putting green and the screams became fewer until there was nothing left but the sound of gunfire and nobody remained standing other than the researchers, who were not researchers at all but LasoTech security, just like Shy feared.

“Oh my God. Oh my God,” Carmen kept chanting in Shy’s ear.

Marcus only stared, his eyes bugged, mouth hanging open in shock.

Shy’s heart pounded in his chest. He couldn’t move. The men were now piling dead bodies onto the rafts, and several men on the ship were positioning two rocket launchers so they were aimed back at the island. Another man was lighting all the lifeboats on fire so there would be no way to escape the island. When he was done, he pointed up at the stairs and shouted something back at his guys, and soon two other men were raising their guns toward Shy, Marcus and Carmen and firing.

Shy ducked behind the tram and pulled Carmen and Marcus down with him, and the three of them held each other, trembling, as shots ricocheted all around them. Some continued on toward the hotel, causing mini-explosions in the walls and sparking fires. The trees and bushes were catching fire, too, and Shy immediately connected it with the substance in the spray bottles.

The gunfire lasted nearly a full minute, and when it let up for a few seconds, Shy lifted his head over the lip of the wall and saw that two of the gunmen were bounding up the stairs toward them.

“They’re coming!” Shy shouted, grabbing Carmen and Marcus by the backs of their shirts and yanking them to their feet. In seconds they were in a full sprint past the hotel and the gazebo, back up the trail, and all Shy could hear was bullets ripping through the bushes and trees around them and the muted sounds of their footfalls as they climbed higher up the cliffs.

Seconds later the gunfire stopped and Marcus shouted: “They’re leaving!”

Shy and Carmen stopped running, too, and spun around to watch the gunmen hurrying back down the trail, away from them. Shy pulled in desperate breaths next to Carmen and Marcus, who were both leaning over, hands on knees.

“Where are they going?” Marcus said between breaths.

Shy shook his head. He couldn’t comprehend any of it. Not the slaying of the survivors or the chase up the hill or why they’d just stopped and turned around. But he knew it wasn’t over.

Many of the trees and bushes down the hill were in flames, which lit up the darkening sky.

The three of them waited in silence.

“I’ll go look,” Shy said.

“You’re staying right here!” Carmen said, latching herself on to his arm. “What if they’re waiting for us?”

“We have to help the sick people,” Shy said.

Marcus was shaking his head. “Let’s get off the trail. Maybe we’ll be able to see the ship from the edge of the cliff.”

They stepped off the trail together, Shy leading the way, until they were at the edge of the cliff, where they looked out over the ocean. Their angle was poor, but Shy saw one of the rafts at the side of the ship, and the researchers pulling the dead bodies up into the ship. They didn’t want to leave any evidence of what they’d done.

“Where’s Shoeshine?” Shy asked.

No one answered.

As soon as the last of the bodies was loaded onto the ship, the gunmen climbed aboard, too, and then a group of them pulled the rafts up.

“They’re all on,” Shy said. “We have to go get the sick people out of the hotel and down to the beach. Part of the hotel is already on fire.”

Just after he said these words a ball of fire shot across the water from the ship and crashed into the side of the hotel, and the wall exploded in flames.

More thunderous shots came from the ship, the sound exploding all around the island, the hotel taking blow after blow until the whole thing was in flames, including the penthouse where some of the patients had still been alive. Shy had never seen anything like it. The men were firing rocket launchers at the island, trying to burn everything down. He was choking on fear now.

They started running again, back down the trail, Shy leading with no idea where he was going. But then a ball of fire landed in the brush right in front of them and without saying a word all three of them spun back around and took off, back up the hill.

Every other tree and bush they passed was on fire, the flames leaping from branch to branch, reaching into the sky, lighting up everything. Smoke blanketed the path, and soon they were all coughing and covering their mouths with their shirts. There was nowhere to go, no safe place. They were going to be burned alive with everything else.

Suddenly, another man came ripping through a patch of burning bushes and fell to the ground, rolling to put out the flames on his clothes. Then he sprang to his feet.

Shoeshine.

“It’s napalm!” he shouted. “They’re torching the entire island! Follow me!”

Shy sprinted after Shoeshine, Carmen and Marcus right behind him. They took the trail up the hill, fire spreading all around them.

Shy couldn’t think, but he could run. And he was hyperaware of his surroundings. The flames and the smoke and each twist and turn Shoeshine made and Carmen and Marcus running behind him.

But the farther up the trail they went, the more it became clear to him that they would be trapped. The only way down from the towering cliff was the stairs, where they’d be in clear sight of the men on the ship. But the rest of the island would soon be engulfed in flames. There was no way out.

Shoeshine led them off the path, toward the edge of the cliff, and Shy recognized the helicopter launchpad. It was where he’d slipped and almost fallen. The four of them stood at the very edge and stared down at the water some sixty feet below, the fire already pushing up against their backs.

“What now?” Shy shouted.

Shoeshine grabbed the radio out of Marcus’s hands and the duffel bag off Shy’s shoulder.

“What are you doing?” Marcus shouted.

“I’ve got it!” Shoeshine shouted back, shoving the radio inside the duffel and zipping up. He then leaned into Shy’s ear and told him: “You make sure they follow.”

He turned and leaped over the edge, throwing the duffel out in front of him.

Carmen screamed as the three of them scrambled to the edge to watch Shoeshine falling feetfirst, arms and legs flailing, until his body exploded into the water.

“No way,” Marcus said, shaking his head. “No fucking way.”

Shy glanced at the flames surrounding them.

There was no choice.

He moved toward Marcus, holding up his hands and saying: “We don’t have to jump. We can just go back down the trail—” Then he shoved Marcus, as hard as he could, off the cliff, watched him fall screaming toward the water.

Shy took Carmen’s hand and looked at her.

Her face was contorted with fear but she nodded to him, and they both took two hurried steps toward the edge and leaped together.

In the air, Shy reached out for nothing with his arms and kicked, the air whipping past his ears and the lost feeling of weightlessness and freedom, and he saw the comb-over man falling from the ship and he saw Carmen’s bugged eyes beside him and then he smacked into the water and sank down into it, deeper and deeper, even when he fought to stop himself, and then he let his body go limp and the water wrapped its arms around him and lifted him back up toward the surface, slowly and steadily, and he fought his burning lungs, waiting until he burst back through the surface to suck in a huge breath, and then he spun around in the water, desperately, until he found Carmen staring back at him.

50 Five Knots

“Over here,” Shoeshine said, waving for them to follow him. He was in the water with the duffel bag, against the cliff.

Shy’s entire right side was numb where he’d slammed into the ocean. And his mind was numb, too. He saw Carmen and Marcus swimming up ahead of him. And he saw the sailboat with the torn sail floating off to the right. The one Carmen claimed Shoeshine had been obsessed with. It seemed impossible that he’d gotten it to the point that it could float again. But here it was.

Shoeshine was slowly climbing up the rocky cliff now, which didn’t seem like a good idea since the entire island was still engulfed in flames.

By the time Shy got to the cliff, he saw that Shoeshine was crawling toward a cave in the side of the cliff, about fifteen feet above the water. Shoeshine reached down for Carmen and helped her into the cave. Then he helped Marcus. Shy climbed up after them and Shoeshine pulled him up and in as well. Inside, the cave opened up much wider. Shoeshine walked over to a pile of life jackets, tossed one to each of them, saying: “You’re gonna need these.” They all strapped the jackets on. Then Shoeshine lifted a large folded blanket.

“What are we doing?” Carmen said.

“Getting on that sailboat out there,” Shoeshine said.

Shy was shivering as he turned to the water again.

“We can’t!” Marcus shouted. “The ship’s moving toward it!”

They all rushed to the cave opening and looked out, saw a ball of fire screaming through the air, toward the boat. It landed only fifteen feet away and quickly died in the water.

“They’re trying to burn it down!” Carmen shouted.

Shoeshine leaned out of the cave and shouted at the research ship: “Come on, you bastard! Just get up to five knots!”

Another fireball fell short of the boat.

Then a third.

Shy watched the ship start gaining momentum toward the boat and he watched the balls of fire continue arcing through the air toward it. One landed right next to the boat, nearly turning it on its side. The fire jumped up and set the tattered sail ablaze.

“Come on!” Shoeshine shouted. “Speed up for me!”

Above them, Shy heard the earth-shaking sound of fire sweeping over the island. He was so confused. “Why do you want it to speed up?” he said.

“I spent all afternoon rigging the damn thing. Just in case.”

Carmen slid up next to Shy to watch the ship bearing down on the helpless sailboat.

Another fireball missed, and then the research ship itself exploded in a burst of flames that shot into the sky. A second explosion followed on the back half of the ship and pieces of it blew out in every direction, some of them landing as far as the mouth of their cave.

The three of them looked at Shoeshine all bug-eyed as Shoeshine nodded calmly.

“What the hell happened?” Carmen asked.

“I rigged their own explosives to the ship’s propeller,” Shoeshine said. “Soon as it got to five knots she was gonna blow.”

“So you knew they were gonna kill everyone here?” Marcus said.

Shoeshine shook his head. “Just knew it wasn’t a research ship.” He looked out over the water, at what was left of the ship. “Didn’t set the trigger, though, until I realized they were aiming to torch the island.”

“What if we had all gotten on the ship?” Carmen asked.

“I would have disarmed it.”

They all stared at Shoeshine in awe.

“Jesus, dude,” Marcus said. “Who are you?”

“A guy who shines shoes,” Shy interjected, recalling all the times he’d asked the exact same question.

Shoeshine grinned at him and added: “May have spent some time in the military, too. Special ops.”

Shy turned with everyone else to watch the flames continue to engulf the decimated ship, lighting up the sky. And they watched the shadow of the flames on the island, flickering against the water in front of their cave.

Shoeshine pointed to the sad-looking sailboat sitting a hundred yards to the right of the burning ship. “You all ready for another swim?” he asked, tossing the duffel back to Shy.

They all nodded and Shoeshine picked up the folded blanket and let himself drop from the cave back into the water.

Shy slung the bag over his shoulder and followed right behind him.