Apocalypsis 03 - Exodus

sense.
    “Two guys named Ronald and Jamal. They say they’re twins.”
    I backed my head up involuntarily, pulling my chin in. “Who the hell are they? I don’t know anyone named Ronald and Jamal.”
    “Well, they asked for you, so you need to come talk to them.”
    I looked at Paci, lost for words.
    He reached across the space between us, putting his hand on my back and pulling me forward, moving out of the way so I could precede him. “Come on. I’ll go with you.”
    “So will I,” said Kowi.
    “Oh, no you won’t,” said Coli coming up behind him. “No way are you getting in a canoe with your gut like that. Sorry.”
    “Coli, I …”
    “No!” she barked at him. Then in a calmer voice she said, “Trip can go. He’s on his way.”
    Within seconds, the man of the hour came crashing through the trees, entering the area next to the hut, looking almost like a bull ready to chase down a matador.
    “What’s going on?” Trip asked loudly. “We got canners nearby?” He was definitely ready for a fight.
    “No, not canners. Friends of Bryn.”
    “They’re not my friends,” I protested. “I have no idea who they are.”
    “That’s why you’re going to go find out who they are and how they think they know you.” Kowi looked at the other chief. “Trip, go with her. Take a few guys. There’s only two of them that we know of, but bring weapons just to be sure. Keep at least four guys in hiding. Use the signals to let us know what’s going on.”
    “Wait!” yelled Fohi. “You gotta look at the map! We put in some traps and I don’t want anyone falling into one on the way.”
    Trip shook his head. “I knew this was a bad idea.”
    “It’s not a bad idea, Trip,” said Kowi calmly. “You know we need to get our defenses lined up, and you need to know where they are before you go wandering around on the outskirts.” He opened up the map and showed it to all of us. Someone brought over a torch so we could see it better since the light was getting dim. Fohi and Rob leaned over Kowi’s shoulders and pointed out some spots that had been marked.
    “Here and here are the pits. Here’s the one Bryn fell in today.” Fohi looked at me and added, “Sorry about that. Again.”
    Rob pointed to another spot. “Here’s the other pit. These two over here don’t have spikes yet. And those four spots there have trip wires in, but none of them are armed yet.”
    I had to admit, their positioning seemed pretty good, considering what I’d read in George’s journal and what I knew of the swamp.
    Kowi was nodding. “Good. You guys okay with this?” he asked me and Trip.
    We nodded our heads.
    “Okay, then. Good luck. We’ll see you in a few. Send a signal if you need more backup.”
    Trip nodded and then turned, speaking in low tones to Yokci before heading into the trees at a fast clip. Yokci took off in another direction. I kept up with Trip as best I could, but even with Paci’s help, I lost him pretty quickly in the brush ahead.
    “What the hell is his problem?” grumbled Paci. “He knows you can’t walk fast.”
    “He’s got boy troubles,” I said, before I thought to stop myself. I tried to cover it up with a lame explanation. “You know, cuz he’s a boy and all, and he’s troubled about the tribe and the injured kids and stuff.”
    Paci gave me a sideways glance but didn’t question me further. I tried not to sigh in relief too loudly. I was going to have to watch myself a little closer, or Peter would end up killing me when I spilled the beans about his love life. It was probably no match for what Trip would do to Peter, namely break his heart into a million pieces. I had to make sure that didn’t happen, no matter what. I forced myself to think about these two jokers who were trying to get into Kahayatle using my name as a password. No way could they be up to any good.
    ***
    Trip made us wait a few minutes before getting into the canoes. Yokci finally arrived with a couple of loaded guns, and then we left, moving silently down the river. Paci used poles to push the boat along. It was quieter than oars and he did a great job of keeping us from hitting the edges, unlike me and my paddling.
    We pulled up to the banks near the canoe rental place. Two black guys were standing at the edge waiting for us. They looked a little bit younger than me and nothing alike. All of us were on high alert.
    “Yo! What’s up!” said one of them, a big smile on his face. “Man, are we glad to