Chapter nineteen

Jessie's Trial

Sam shuffled through the maps, trying to get a complete picture of their surroundings. The light of the flames was traitorous and his eyes went astray. He'd have to do this in the morning.

"Sam, take a look at this." Kyle stopped next to him, holding a blue backpack high above his head. Billy was behind him, trying to snatch it out of his hand.

"You're... teaching Billy tricks?" Sam asked.

"Give it back, Kyle. I'm warning you!" Billy jumped, but Kyle avoided him.

"Oh, no, I'm shaking all over!"

Sam half expected him to thump his cousin on the head, but Kyle threw the backpack to him, instead. It was really heavy. "What's in here?"

"That's my...um, survival kit," Billy said.

Sam raised his eyebrows and rummaged inside. "It's full of food. Billy, where did you get this?"

Billy shuffled his feet. "I packed it from home."

"And were you planning on sharing it any time soon?" Kyle asked.

"I shared the supplies I've received from headquarters. This is my personal stuff. I'm not asking you guys to share your underwear—"

Kyle leaned towards him menacingly. "We would if it would help us survive."

"That's enough, you two." Sam waved, indicating that they both sit down. "You're not getting the food back. We're sharing it. Good catch, Kyle. We have more important things to discuss now." He waved his arms to get everyone's attention.

Sam spotted JT and Steve sitting on one of the higher steps of the temple, both of them bent over Steve's laptop. None of the two looked too happy. They actually appeared to be arguing. Sam decided against calling them over.

"What's up?" Angie asked.

"I think it's about time we discussed Jessie. We can't go on like this. We either trust her or we don't. Jimmy, what's the verdict?" Sam noticed Alice looking away from him pointedly.

"She's clean." Jimmy said at once. "I haven't noticed anything suspicious about her."

Sam raised his eyebrows. He'd been a bit too quick to answer.

"I agree with you. And I'd vote 'innocent' if it weren't for what she did today," Jerry said.

"What was that? Fix my shoulder?" Jimmy asked and Sam could detect a slight protective edge in his voice.

"No. Her attack on Eye Patch was completely uncalled for. She could have gotten us in so much trouble," Jerry said.

"Okay, so she has a bit of trouble with her temper—"

"Jimmy, she almost got you killed. I have no idea what was inside her head, attacking like that. No one hurt her—"

"Yes, no one hurt her. That's why she's in your tent, sick," Jimmy snapped and Jerry pulled back.

"To be honest, Eye Patch was actually aiming for you," Tom said.

"Not you, too." Jimmy turned to him. "I thought you liked her."

Tom raised his hands. "I do like her, but that doesn't mean I don't find her actions confusing. We've had enough trouble with traitors before. In case you can't remember, I almost died."

"Yeah, Jimmy. If we like her, it doesn't make her less of a traitor," Sam pointed out. He would have been ready to trust her if it hadn't been for that one, unexplainable action.

"I've spend the most time with her. I got to know her. She's confused if anything, but she's not a liar. And she's definitely not a traitor." Jimmy crossed his arms over his chest.

Sam rubbed his forehead. "Kyle, what do you think?"

Kyle hesitated. "Her attack was brainless and it got Jimmy in a lot of trouble."

"Come on, Kyle. She likes you. You can't believe that she'd—"

"But I like how he gets all sentimental about it." Kyle grinned. "I vote trust her."

"You vote for her because Jimmy's sentimental?" Alice stared at Kyle as if he were crazy. "That's the right reason not to trust a word he's saying."

"What can I say?" Kyle patted Jimmy's back. "I'm a romantic at heart."

"You're still two against three," Alice pointed out.

"So far. You girls haven't voted yet."

Sam blinked. He hadn't even considered the girls voting. Kyle was right. They had as much say in this as any of them.

Alice raised her hand at once. "I vote traitor!"

Kay rubbed the back of her head. "What she did was wrong, but I think it more likely to be plain rash than done for a hidden reason. So I'm with Kyle on this one. I think we can trust her."

"I think we can trust her, too," Angie said. "I mean, I would have probably done the same in my first fight. I've learned a lot since. She will, too."

Tina shrugged. "I vote like Jerry does. I trust his judgment more than I trust Jessica."

"I'm..." Christine looked from Angie to Sam. "You know what? I'm staying out of this. I don't see her as a threat, but you're winning without me."

"Yeah. Now that's over, let's get her lost in the jungle," Alice said victoriously.

"I haven't voted yet," Billy said. "And I vote trust her. I think she's really nice. Nicer than you, anyway." He stuck his tongue out at Alice.

"This isn't getting us anywhere. We're tied. Christine, are you sure you don't want to vote?" Sam asked. He was having second thoughts about this whole thing. Jessie was nice. Leaving her behind wasn't appealing at all. And Billy had a point. He liked her more than Alice.

"I know her best. I should get two votes," Jimmy said, his jaw set.

Sam shook his head quickly. "Wow, you're serious. But you can't have two votes. It's—"

"I'll vouch for her." Jimmy leaned back, his arms folded under his head, as though he'd found the perfect solution.

Sam couldn't believe his ears. "You'll what?"

"You guys trust her, and I'll make sure she doesn't screw up. I'll clean up her mess."

"Really?" Jerry's voice trembled with anger. "And what if you're her mess? What if she kills you?"

Jimmy shrugged. "Then I'd deserve it. But she won't. So it's settled."

"Jimmy's right. Let's drop the subject." Kyle said. "He'll continue to keep an eye on her, and that should be enough for now."

Sam sighed, but he saw no point in continuing the discussion either. He tended to trust Jessie too. And if Jimmy would continue to keep an eye on her, everything should be fine.

"Though I'm afraid that if Jessie really is working for Snitch Gravel, Jimmy will end up setting fire to our camp and joining her," Kyle mumbled.

Sam smiled. He wasn't worried.

*

Tom balanced on his hands, focused on keeping as straight as possible. It wasn't hard, but he hadn't done it in a while.

"Sorry, I can't do that," Jessie laughed.

"Aw, come on, it's the easiest thing ever." No, it wasn't, he'd practiced for years to get this good, but he liked to tease Jessie. He liked Jessie, period. She was fun, incredibly beautiful and incredibly talented. And as an added bonus, Jimmy really seemed to like her.

"How about this?" Jessie changed the rhythm of her dance, swaying her hips and twirling. She'd been so excited when he offered to help with her dance routine.

Tom had no idea she was a singer, but that kinda explained the guitar she kept dragging around. And, to be honest, he was impressed by how down to earth she was. And how fast she'd gotten back on her feet after the whole Eye Patch debacle. Of course, Jimmy doubling up her medicine dose could've had something to do with it.

"Jessie, what are you doing out of bed?" Sam asked.

Jessie raised her eyes from her feet and tripped. She knocked Tom over and both of them crashed to the ground. Ouch!

"Sam, you have a weird habit of hurting me lately," Tom mumbled, rolling off Jessie.

She sat up, laughing. "I'm out of bed because I feel better. Are we going inside the temple today?" Jessie's face glowed with excitement.

Sam bit his lip, obviously weighing something inside his head, maybe if to trust Jessie fully or not. Tom nodded in support and Sam finally seemed to make up his mind. "Come with me. I want you to read the whole document and see if you find anything wrong with it."

"What about the rest of us?" Tom asked, getting back on his hands.

"The rest of you should get some rest. That temple won't be easy." Sam waved him away and headed for his tent.

Tom fell back to his feet, a wide grin spreading across his face. That's what he'd wanted to hear. Now that Sam was busy, he knew just what to do. He practically skipped towards the river, hoping to find Angie there. They had unfinished business which involved a lot of holding and hopefully kissing.

And indeed, she and Christine were laying on the bank, soaking up some sun. At least Christine was. Angie sat on a rock, her chin resting in her joined palms, and seemed upset.

"It's very simple. Just tell him you have someone else. End of story." Christine closed her eyes, letting the sun shine on her face.

"It's not that easy," Angie mumbled. "He was there when I needed it. I don't want him to think I used him."

Tom froze in mid-step. He moved out of sight, pressing his back against a tree.

Christine laughed. "If you come to think about it, you kind of did. But don't feel bad. We all do it."

Angie sunk her face in her hands and groaned. "It's awful."

Tom's breath hitched in his throat as anger replaced the initial shock. He whipped out from behind the tree and leaned against it. "Yes, it is." He folded his arms across his chest.

The girls looked at him with wide eyes. Christine got to her feet and moved past him, a worried look on her face. Tom watched her until she was out of sight. When he turned back to Angie, she stood a few inches away from him.

"Hey, what's up?" She smiled tentatively.

Tom stared at her. Had he misunderstood what he'd heard? But why would Christine rush away like that if she didn't believe they would fight? His temper rose again, like a snake ready to bite.

"I kinda overheard what you were saying."

She sighed. "Yes, it sucks, but it's not like I have a choice."

"Damn it, Angie!"

Tom clenched his fists, trying to stop his hands from shaking. His heart beat so fast, it made his head throb. He knew he had to calm down, but he couldn't. It hurt too much. Her confession had been a hallucination. Angie still wanted revenge, and she'd gotten it. She hadn't broken down his wall, she'd completely wrecked every piece of it, leaving him holding that last brick, the one that would've completed the damn thing and finally kept him safe.

"I can't believe I almost fell for it." He had fallen for it, and fallen hard. "I've been so stupid."

"You haven't been stupid." Angie's voice trembled. "You're being stupid right now. What is it this time?" She swallowed heavily. "I'm starting to regret coming clean." She turned his back to him and started to walk away.

Tom grabbed her elbow. She whipped around and yanked out of his grip.

"I don't want this anymore. If you can't make up your mind, just leave me alone." Tears of frustration poured down Angie's cheeks.

Tom pulled her against him. Her face was mere inches from his and he couldn't help bending lower. She licked her lips, her eyes wide. Tom touched her lips. He could feel her warm breath on his face and her fruity smell was driving him crazy.

"No." He let her go. Not like this. He whipped around and walked away from her.

"Why are you doing this?" Angie's voice was drowning in tears. "I really thought we'd gotten over it. You jumped in front of me to protect me. That meant a lot to me. It means a lot to me. I thought you cared..." Her voice cracked.

Tom turned around. It felt as if a boulder had crashed in his stomach. "If it means so much to you, why are you playing me?'

Angie shook her head. "Playing you? What are you...?" Her mouth fell open. "Wait, what part did you overhear? I wasn't talking about you."

Relief spread through Tom, but only for a moment. "If you weren't talking about me...You have a boyfriend?" It felt as if his blood was boiling.

"No." Angie sighed. "Just someone I went out with a couple of times. I was trying to get over you."

He felt like screaming. So many questions swirled inside his head, the most frequently recurring one being 'Did you kiss him?' But he couldn't ask that. If the answer was 'yes' it would hurt too much. To him, Angie was the only girl who'd ever mattered. In their brief relationship, they'd never kissed. If she'd done it with some rebound...

"How do I know that at some point you won't try to let me down easy to be with someone else?" Tom was shocked by how vicious his tone had been.

"Because I love you, you bloody idiot!" Angie's eyes were full of tears, but they were more likely tears of frustration. "But you really don't seem to care." She wheeled around and stalked towards camp.

It hadn't been a hallucination after all. Angie really did love him. Ah shit! He should run after her. Yup, he should catch her and hug the life out of her and kiss every inch of her. But he stupidly stood his ground, seething like a bloody moron. She had every right to go out with someone else. Just because he'd never moved on, it didn't mean that she shouldn't either. Even if she was going to break up with the guy, it hurt that he existed.

I need to get out of here. He needed to think and get his stupid jealousy under control. And maybe cry out loud with joy that even with all the misunderstandings and stupidity on his part, Angie really did love him.

Author's note: Can't help asking. What's your vote? Do you vote trust Jessie or tie her up to a tree and leave her to the animals?

Thanks so much for reading!