That night, Kairo came into their tent carefully holding a box with several holes punched into it, in both hands. He put it down on the table without explanation and they didn't ask for one.

Andrew peeped out to make sure the Indian was not followed, before closing the tent flap and sitting down.

"Thank you for coming," Sondra said, flashing a bright smile. Andrew's eyes narrowed as the Indian looked away, waving his hand nonchalantly.

"Right," Andrew said quickly, sitting down. "So, first things first, what will we do with Boarensky and where will we do it. My wife favours… a more radical approach to Boarensky, than I do."

"I say we kill him," Sondra elaborated.

"Meanwhile, I have no wish to be a fugitive for the rest of my life, running from the law. So I'm thinking… restrain him? Knock him out?"

Sondra palmed her face, while Kairo stroked his chin thoughtfully.

"How do you restrain someone like that?" Kairo asked. "It will not be easy, he is very strong. And trained. And armed. No, let us not do things by half measure. We must kill him and dispose of the body. He must vanish without a trace. And besides, every moment he breathes is a moment too long for the spirits."

Andrew looked at Sondra for support, but she shrugged.

"Seems you're outvoted, kiddo."

"Well." Andrew pressed on. "Where could we possibly kill him, without the whole camp knowing?"

"I was thinking about that," Sondra said. "The camp. Sometimes they take their lunch right in the pits, rather than come back to camp. On that day I'll just make sure I serve them there. Meanwhile, Boarensky always eats lunch in his tent. He never eats with the men. That will be our opportunity."

Andrew shook his head, unsettled at how talented his wife was turning out to be in plotting murder. 

"No one has answered the where question yet. As you pointed out, Boarensky is big. He's well over six feet and built like a barrel. If we kill him in his tent, it'll be a hell of a thing to drag his body into the forest. And there will be drag marks, especially with this mud."

"Which is why we won't kill him in his tent," Kairo said, getting up and pacing in the confined space. The couple looked up at him and waited. 

"Boarensky will follow me to hell and back if I grabbed either his gun or…" Kairo motioned to his neck. "His keys. He never goes anywhere without either. And it will probably be much easier to snatch his chain and run into the forest. When he follows me, he will never come out alive. The forest is my, what do you call it? Turf."

"This is all well and good, but." Andrew spread his hands on the table. "You said it yourself. He's trained and armed. Everyone was searched when they came here. He's the only one with a gun and he knows it. So how do you intend to take out someone like that?"

In answer, Kairo sat down and grabbed the box he had brought. He opened the flap and extracted a plastic container that also had holes punched into it, albeit much smaller ones. Inside was some water, mossy chunks of earth and a fat, bright gold frog. 

"The poison dart frog," Kairo said, patting the top of the container. The animal looked up and blinked, as though eager to hear what part it would play in the plot. "Caught it in the forest this afternoon."

But he wasn't finished. Kairo reached into the box and took out a hollow bamboo stick and a small box that rattled as he set it down.

"Blowgun and darts." He continued. "All I have to do is use heat to make the frog sweat and I will have one of the most deadly poisons known to man. This would drop an elephant. It will certainly drop Boarensky." 

Still, Andrew hesitated. He leaned back and brooded, while Sondra rolled her eyes.

"I will dig the grave." Kairo offered. "I will dig it somewhere in the forest and lead him there. I will hide the gun and the darts close to the spot. You need never know where I hid the body. All you have to do is play your parts. You keep the camp away and you." He raised his chin at Andrew. "Keep the boss distracted until I grab the keys."

Andrew looked at the calendar. Today was Tuesday. A week and change left in malaria hell. He wondered how many of them would make it out alive.