Capítulo 48: INTO THE TREES [4]
The family resemblance was obvious. The boy was as gangly as the old man, and the bone structure of his face gave him the same pinched nose, hollow cheeks, and strong jaw. The boy tensed as soon as he saw the new arrivals, his eyes becoming wide and wary. The old man spoke a few rapid words to him, one of which was 'Mowen'. The boy gave a brief nod, sidled cautiously around the counter, then darted out of the shop, as if he expected to be challenged or pursued.
Jin spoke a few more words to the old man, and he grunted in response.
"What did you say?" asked Purna.
"I told him we'd wait outside."
"Tell him we're not here to cause trouble," said Purna.
"I already did. I don't think he believes me."
Logan bought sodas, and they stood in the shade of the front porch, drinking them while they waited for the boy to return with Mowen.
"Why are they all fucking staring at us?" Logan said nervously, glancing up at the large number of local people who were still sitting or standing around nearby, watching the newcomers with a kind of deadpan curiosity.
"Have you seen what we look like?" said Sam. "Have you seen what the van looks like?"
Logan frowned and stared round at Sam and the others, then at their mode of transport, as if seeing them all with fresh eyes. He realized that to someone who had no idea what had been going down, the crumpled, dented, blood-covered van and their equally gore-stained appearance must have been a pretty alarming sight. The five of them and their trusty vehicle looked as if they had just emerged from a medieval battlefield.
"See what you mean," said Logan, and then nodded at Sam, a twinkle in his eye. "You're talking about that dumb bandanna, right?"
Not for the first time Sam showed him the finger. Logan laughed.
It was twenty minutes before the boy returned with a tall, rangy black man in his early thirties. The boy jabbered a few words to the man, and then cast a fearful look in their direction, before skirting around them in a big circle and scuttling back into the shop.
"Hey, kid," Logan called after him, "we ain't gonna hurt you. We're not as bad as we … aw, what's the use?"
"He thinks you're cursed," said the man who had accompanied the kid, his voice heavily accented. "They all think you're cursed." The man's eyes were hidden behind mirror shades, and his head was a mass of black dreadlocks that cascaded over his shoulders. He wore boots, combat pants, and a sleeveless T-shirt, and carried a rifle on a strap over his shoulder.
"But you don't?" Purna said.
The man pursed his lips, as if partly amused, partly insulted. "I'm a civilized man. I know better." He flicked his head at Purna, as though throwing out a question. "You want to speak to me?"
Purna nodded. "A man called Ryder White sent us to find you. He told us you have a boat, and that you would take us off the island and over to the prison."
Mowen may not have thought them cursed, but he regarded them with the same candor as the rest of the villagers. Though they couldn't see his eyes, the movements of his head suggested his gaze was moving unhurriedly from one to the next, as if he was assessing their individual strengths and weaknesses.
Finally, he said, "Why do you want to leave the island?"
"Paradise is a little too green for us, man," said Logan.
Purna flashed a frown at him, a silent warning that now was not the time for levity. "There is a sickness," she said. "It's affecting everybody. Turning them … crazy." She demonstrated by swirling her hands around beside her head.
Mowen seemed unimpressed. "I know of the sickness. Very bad for business."
"What is your business?" asked Sam.
Mowen turned casually to look at him, his face implacable. "I buy things. I sell things." He paused, then added as an afterthought, "I help many people."
"Can you help us?" asked Purna.
Mowen shrugged. "Why should I help you?"
"Because Ryder White said you would," said Purna firmly.
Mowen's lips gave a dismissive twitch, as if that argument held no sway with him. "Is too dangerous. Nothing in it for me."
Purna looked thoughtful for a moment, as if deciding what she should tell him. Eventually she said, "You say this sickness is bad for your business?"
Mowen nodded.
"If we get to the prison," she continued, "there's a chance we can stop this sickness. Cure it."
"Why you go to prison?" Mowen said. "Why you not go to place in the jungle?"
Purna blinked. "What place in the jungle?"
Mowen waved a hand vaguely. "Is deep. Near Kuruni village. Is doctor there. Is a place of … how you say … science?"
"Like a laboratory?" suggested Xian Mei.
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