(Part 10)

Rudy rubbed his chin and then brushed a lock of curly hair from his eyes. "Well, sounds like a good deal. Almost sounds too good. What’s the catch?"

Mr. Pepperhorn chuckled. "The only ‘catch,’ as you put it, is that the resort will only be open for 6 to 8 months out of the year. But you’ll be paid plenty; enough to last you the whole year. The first year we’ll only keep it going 6 months to see how it goes—probably during the State’s winter months. Then you’d be back in the states for 4 to 6 more months. How does that sound?"

Rudy grinned. "Sounds just right to me!"

"Of course," continued the rotund man, "you’ll have to hire, I’d say, at least 3 other good people to help you run it. But that decision is up to you."

Rudy turned to Kat, Geoff and me. "Well, what do you say, guys? Want to try running a small business out here in no-man’s land with me? I can’t think of three other people I’d rather spend half a year with."

Geoff started talking so fast, it was hard to keep up with him. "Wow! What an opportunity. I can see it now: Spend a night Survivor-style on your own desert island! We can have little Gilligan’s Island huts with all the wicker furniture and cool solar contraptions sort of like they had on their show to give it authenticity. Then we could put on a short show every night and you gals can both be my assistants. And Rudy could bring them cool coconut drinks with little umbrellas while they watch from their papasan chairs and..."

"Whoa, slow down!" said Mr. Pepperhorn, raising his hand. "It will take about four to five months before it will be ready to stock. So, if you are all agreeable to this proposition, we’ll get you home, so you can make your own plans."

Kat looked and me, then grabbed my arm and drew me aside. "I don’t know about this. What do you think?"

"Are you crazy?" I gasped, my face hurting from grinning so hard. "What more could we wish for?!"

                                      THE END

                                   (Part 9)

We stared at the spot from where the voice came. A short, rotund man in a Hawaiian multi-colored shirt stepped out of the shadows. Following him were three other men, all dressed in cruise ship uniforms.

Rudy stood and offered his hand to the little, plump man. "Hey Mr. Pepperhorn. I’m surprised you remember me. You must have seen our fire after all."

"Yes, we did," he said, shaking Rudy’s hand. Now how could I forget that Chocolate Mousse you made special for me that night I came down to the kitchen for a snack? I always thought you had more talent than most of the cooks they hired." He looked around at each of us with a smile. "I’m delighted to see all four of you are OK."

Kat and I looked at each other and shrugged. Geoff cleared his throat. "Uh, Mr. Pepperhorn here owns a number of islands around here as well as the cruise line."

We shook hands with him and introduced ourselves, assuring him we were all in good health and happy. He seemed genuinely concerned, assuring us we had free future cruises to make up for our unscheduled island stay. Then he dropped the bombshell.

"Actually, the reason I accompanied the rescue crew was to propose a business deal to you, Rudy," Pepperhorn began. "I’ve recently acquired this and a few neighboring islands in the chain with the intention of building small resorts where cruise ships could drop passengers for a "night on an island" adventure. This island is one of the best and I need someone to run a small Bed-and-Breakfast here." He nodded at Rudy. "I remembered how you’d told me of your stint in the Seals. With your expertise in survival, you’d be one heck of an asset for this position. So, what do you say, Rudy?"

        (Part 8)

When I opened my eyes, Geoff and Kat grinned down at me.

"How in the world did you find me?" I said, blinking and trying to focus, wondering if this was what heaven looked like. I checked my body: still intact--no bites, bruises or wounds. I guess I did escape the cat!

Geoff laughed. "WE didn’t find you. Rudy did and told us you’d fallen in the leopard trench. Looks like we got here just in time."

"Your yells for help told us which direction to go to intercept you," explained Kat.

"So why didn’t Rudy come with you?" I asked, my voice a hoarse whisper.

"Oh, he’s back at camp getting a huge fire going," said Geoff. "We saw the smoke from a passing ship. I think they might be looking for us."

"Rudy’s really good at signal fires—said something about sending smoke signals when it was ready," chuckled Kat. "Don’t know if he was serious or just teasing us."

He’s probably still mad at me, I thought, struggling to my feet and brushing off my clothes. Patches of blue ocean shown through the palms from where we stood, but there was no sign of any ships. At least from here.

Back at camp, Rudy was preparing roasted fish and some weird green slimy stuff in a coconut shell that reminded me of cooked spinach. The scent of food made my stomach growl. I walked up to him and swallowed hard.

He turned away from the fire and looked me in the eye. "I see they found you."

"Thanks," I croaked. I couldn’t seem to think of anything else to say.

"Sure," he replied, turning back to his food.

I started to walk away, then changed my mind. "I’m really sorry for what I said earlier. I wish I could take it back," I blurted.

He turned and raised one eyebrow. "I’m not gay," he said, simply. "I suppose I over-reacted to your insinuation but I just found out my little brother is gay. When he told our family, my parents reacted the same way you did, only worse. I guess I just found your comment too much after seeing Jack’s face when my parents shunned him."

I shook my head and let out a heavy sigh. He laughed before turning back to his cooking. "Hey come over here and give this a taste and tell me what you think it needs."

There was no sign of any rescue party coming ashore as the four of us feasted that evening, watching the sun disappear into the ocean. Afterwards, we sat around the fire and sipped coconut milk. As the hot coals gave off a yellow red glow, Geoff poked at them with a stick. "I just wish we could live out our lives on this island — just the four of us."

Kat looked almost as surprised as I was by this revelation. Here was a guy who performed for a living and he secretly wanted to be on a desert island with only three other people. "Well, it’s probably my fault we’re here at all," muttered Kat, when no one else responded to his comment. The guys all looked at her like she was nuts. "It was my wish," she explained, "that Sal and I could spend our vacation on a beautiful tropic island together—and, well, here we are!"

Rudy grinned and shook his head. "Well thank you, Kat. I personally love it here. We have everything we need to live comfortably, except maybe a waterproof hut. But in a couple more days, we could have that too. We have food and..." he paused and looked directly at me, "great companions who are real people. Not like those high-society mucky-mucks that take cruises and throw meager tips at us as if we were household pets performing tricks. I’d love to just live here and cook for you guys forever!"

A deep voice came out of the dark. "Well Rudy Weatherby, you may get your wish yet!"

                                      (Part 7)

When I gazed around at the trench, it seemed to stretch on forever. Maybe if I walk far enough, I can find a way out, I thought. Why was this trench here in the first place. Was it some kind of trap to catch a large animal like I’d seen in the movies? That’s all I could figure out, shaking my head. As I tromped along the narrow path, I yelled for help. Unfortunately no one came and I wondered if there was ever going to be an end to this underground path. The sound of waves nearby drifted into my cramped space, so I must be getting close to the beach. I stopped and leaned up against the wall. This time when I reached for the top, I could put my whole hand on the ground. But it still didn’t help me get out. I let out a big sigh. Might as well keep going. I don’t know what caused to me glance back where I’d just been, but I stopped abruptly and stared. Slinking along the path behind was a large spotted cat focused on me with those huge amber eyes as he approached. He paused when our gazed met. A low growl emanated from him. I was afraid to blink. I wanted to yell but knew it was the wrong thing to do, so I hissed under my breath, "Oh my god!"

I backed slowly away but the cat matched every one of my tentative steps. My heart pounded. I’m sure if he didn’t hear it, he sensed my fear. Then his padded footsteps came faster. I wanted to turn and bolt, but I couldn’t cut my gaze. Run you fool! Run! I told myself. In a motion so slow, it seemed to take hours, I turned and lunged for the top of the trench.

My fingers clawed at the damp ground and as I tried to get a grip, something grabbed my wrist and yanked me up and out.

Before I passed out, I swear I heard the voice of John "the Duke" Wayne say, "Hey little lady. Need a hand?"

                                   (Part 6)

He looked like I’d stabbed him or something. The smile was instantly replaced by a look of disgust. "You think I’m gay, don’t you."

Somehow my voice didn’t work. I nodded.

He shook his head and turned away, looking for dry twigs under rocks and in crevices. The sun peeked over the horizon and the rest of us crawled out from beneath our protective rock.

"Listen," I said, grabbing Rudy’s arm. "I didn’t mean anything by it. I just..."

He glared at me as he jerked his arm away. "Just go see if you can find some dry driftwood." Then he took off at a jog down the beach.

Kat clicked her tongue at me. "You know, Sal, you really have to watch that mouth of yours. He’s really sore at you."

I shrugged. "I call ‘em as I see ‘em. If he can’t handle it, it’s not my fault."

"Hey," interjected Geoff. "I think you should apologize. We all need to get along here, you know."

"Apologize for what?!" I felt my face flush and my heart pound. "So what if he’s gay!"

Kat elbowed me in the side. "You’re just sore because you had PLANS for him, didn’t you?"

I rolled my eyes and motioned her and Geoff to follow as I started down the beach the other direction from Rudy. "Come on. Let’s find some of that dry driftwood that Mr. Know-it-all wants."

Dry wood was almost impossible to find after the heavy rain. However, in the trees, if one moved dead wood away, there were some dry branches underneath, which we dragged back to the beach. I left Kat and Geoff at the beach breaking them up and went back to the jungle to find some smaller stuff.

As I walked, thoughts raced through my mind as to how I was going to deal with Rudy. He was being an overly sensitive jerk, that’s all. Why in the world would he be so mad about being gay? I thought guys had a tougher emotional index than that, but I guess I was wrong. Yeah, I could apologize, but I didn’t think he’d buy it, because I couldn’t get the sarcasm out of my voice when I tried to say "I’m sorry." I said it over and over as I picked my way through the heavy brush deeper into the woods.

I don’t remember tripping over anything but suddenly I found myself on my butt at the bottom of a narrow trench almost 6 feet deep. After a few minutes of blinking and rubbing my sore hip, I managed to stand. My fingertips could reach the top of the hole but I couldn’t grip anything to pull myself out. Trapped!

                                     (Part 5)

Rudy grabbed a branch he’d used as a walking stick and knelt in front of us. Then he yelled and waved the stick towards the eyes. The abrupt stillness was almost more frightening than the growling had been as the eyes melted into the night. "Don’t worry," he said. "I don’t think they’ll be back right away. But tomorrow night we’ll keep the fire going."

"What do you think that was?" I asked.

Rudy smiled, the dimple in his left cheek deepening. He edged back into our semi-warm cluster. "Probably just a couple of island leopards."

Geoff brushed his wet hair from his eyes. "What? Are you some kind of an expert?"

"Been cruising through these islands for two years now. Actually I am sort of an expert." There was a glint in his eye. "Was a Navy Seal for a couple of tours."

Geoff raised one eyebrow and sank back further under the overhang. He grabbed Kat and pulled her closer.

I, on the other hand, edged nearer Rudy. What a relief to have such a knowledgeable person on this desert island! Life was good. No, life was GREAT! "So," I said, licking my dry lips. "Is there a missus Rudy Weatherby?"

"No on your life, sweetheart," came his reply with a chuckle. "I’m a confirmed bachelor, at least until I find my soul mate."

What an odd reply. "Your soul mate?" I asked. It sounded strange coming from him.

Rudy laughed out loud as he slid away from me and stepped out from under the overhang. The rain had finally quit. He sang off-key, "Some day my prince will come."

My heart sank. "Oh my God, you’re not..."

                               (Part 4)

I had always thought tropical islands were warm until I had to spend the night in the rain with three other people. Sure we were under a rock overhang, but it really didn’t do much to keep the drizzle and dripping from driving us nuts. I glanced over at our fire-pit that was nothing but a mud-hole now. My teeth chattered so hard, I was afraid I might break a crown. My feet were soaked and I couldn’t stop shaking. We all huddled together to try to keep warm and the guys tried to shield us as best they could, but we were all soaked to the bone.

Rudy’s upbeat attitude began to grate on my nerves as he asked half-way through the night, "So, how did you like the cruise ship?"

I couldn’t keep the sarcasm out of my voice. "I liked it better when I was on it. This is NOT my idea of a fun vacation."

"Oh don’t worry about the rain. It usually stops after a few hours. Soon the sun will be bright and warm overhead and you’ll forget all about this chilly experience,"he laughed. "Hey anybody know any good songs to sing?"

I almost slugged him. Kat looked daggers at him and snuggled into Geoff’s side further. Then she glared at me.

I shrugged. "Hey, don’t blame me. I didn’t invite Pollyanna here."

"How about we all just try to get some sleep," suggested Geoff quietly.

I pulled Rudy’s soaked shirt over my head and burrowed into the others as far as I could. When I heard the first growl, I thought it was my stomach. By the time the second growl came, everyone had jerked upright under the rocky overhang, peering into the dark night. Two pairs of eyes looked back at us from about 25 yards away.

"Oh my God!" whispered Kat. "What’s out there?"

                                                   (Part 3)

"Rudy!" we all said, dropping our arm loads of fronds.

"Yeah. Rudy Weatherby," he replied with a smile.  "You know, from the ship. I’m afraid it was my fault we had that fire aboard. I was cooking up some crabs when the whole kitchen seemed to explode. I must have been thrown into the pantry and hit my head because when I woke, I stood up all dizzy and stumbled out and over-board. It seemed like I floated for days on a crate escaped from the ship."

We all looked at each other, not believing our good luck to have a chef end up on our little island paradise. While Geoff and Kat went back and retrieved their palm fronds while Rudy and I headed to the clearing at the back of the beach to a rock over-hang where we had decided to make camp.

I pointed at the small cluster of twigs we’d collected and built into a teepee. "I hate to tell you this, but we don’t have fire yet. I don’t know how we’re going to cook that stuff."

"Worry not!" He opened his bundle of clothes and out of his pants pocket pulled a Swiss Army knife with all the bells and whistles. Wow. People actually do carried those things. Then he unscrewed the handle and out tumbled five kitchen matches. He hummed as he gathered them up, stuffing four of them back into the handle. With a snap on the rock beside him, the match flamed up.

Fire! I couldn’t believe how excited I was to see fire. I fed small pieces of wood into the growing flames, marveling at the way it crackled and made me feel all warm and safe. And now I wouldn’t have to eat sushi.

By the time Rudy had the fish impaled on sticks over the fire, Geoff and Kat had erected a make-shift hut a few yards away. Hey, maybe this deserted-island thing wasn’t going to be so bad after all. I should have known better for it started to rain.

                                      (Part 2)

It actually DID look like George Clooney: dark, gray streaked hair falling into his face, a big smile, and dazzling blue eyes! But his once snappy tuxedo was in tattered, making him appear more like a hobo than the George Clooney we had seen in pictures.

"Ladies!" he shouted. "You must be the two I saw fall over the boat railing last night. When I looked over and saw you in the water, the ship lurched and I went in too. I’ve been here a while though. Guess I must be a faster swimmer than you."

Kat couldn’t resist. "Are you really George Clooney?"

He threw back his head and laughed. "Hate to disappoint you, but no. I was hired as an impressionist by the cruise line and I DO George Clooney imitations as well as others. My name is Geoff Madison."

Kat and I both blurted "Jeff!" at the same time, then burst out laughing.

He looked bewildered. "What’s so funny? That’s Geoff with a ‘G’."

"Oh, with a ‘G’. We were just talking about Jeff Corwin – you know, from Survivor - and then you appeared and said you were Jeff," I explained.

After a good chuckle over it all, Kat and I introduced ourselves. Geoff explained how he had already explored the island and found it to be as deserted as the beach. However, he did show us where there was a giant rock with sharp edges where we might be able to open those tough coconuts. By the time the sun was finally up in the morning sky, we had managed to open one whole nut. Of course, most of the juice leaked out when we broke it, but with the help of sticks and stones, we scraped enough of the soft meat out of the shell to settle our rumbling stomachs.

Geoff seemed like a nice guy and so happy and upbeat that we didn’t have a chance to feel lost and lonely as we toured the island. Between his stories and imitations, he kept us smiling. That is, until mid afternoon, back on the beach we’d drifted up on, when hunger gripped us again.

A fish leaped up over the waves, disappearing back into the deep blue lagoon. "I sure wish there was someone here who knew some survival skills and could catch some fish. I’m so hungry, I think I could eat them raw," I sighed. "I’d give anything for someone like Ozzy, Rupert or even Rudy from that first Survivor show to end up on our beach!"

Then as we were gathering palm fronds to form a kind of shelter at the edge of the beach, there was a rustle in the trees. All three of us stopped. Out of the palms walked a tall, Tom Selleck-handsome dude in boxer shorts and no shirt holding what looked like a bundle of clothes in one hand and a string of fish in the other.

"Hi guys. My name is Rudy."

BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR

(Part one)

The poster on the wall had depicted a deserted white beach with two wooden loungers perched within a few feet of the lapping ocean waves. Two palm trees swayed in the background like sentinels guarding their paradise. "Wouldn’t it be great if we could just have a couple of weeks there to just sit back and relax?"

Now I lay on what looked like the beach in that poster, my clothes drenched in salt water. Kat sat beside me wringing out her shirt. "I knew I shouldn’t have let you talk me into this cruise. But did I listen to that little voice inside me? No. I thought it would be OK."

I glanced at my best friend and nodded. Same old Kat! "Oh, it’ll be all right," I assured her. "The ship will realize we’re missing and send out a rescue unit before you know it."

She shook her head. "And when do you think that will happen?! They were too busy trying to put out that fire in the dining room to notice we fell overboard. They won’t even miss us for hours...maybe days!"

I picked up a coconut that lay beside me and shook it. The liquid inside sloshed. "Well, at least we won’t starve. I saw how they opened these on Survivor. Now all we need is a machete..."

That made her laugh. "Right. Any minute now, Jeff Corwin will appear with bandanas and put us in a tribe."

A rustle in the swaying palms behind us made me look around. I reached out and touched her arm. "Hey, that could be him now..."

A bedraggled man stepped out onto the beach and walked slowly toward us. When Kat noticed him, she clenched my wrist and gasped. "My God! It’s George Clooney!"