The man regarded her with his bloodshot eyes. “They kidnapped you.” When Gina nodded, he said, “Welcome to the club.”

“They kidnapped you too?”

“Darn skippy they did.”

Darn skippy was something Gina’s grandfather used to say. The man next to her actually reminded her of her Pop-Pop.

“What’s your name?” Gina asked.

“Martin Lefbrevor.”

“I’m Gina.”

“I wish we were meeting under different circumstances, Gina.”

“Me too.”

Martin blinked his eyes a few times, and Gina asked, “Do you remember falling?”

“Um, not really. I remember running into the jungle, trying to escape. And then I remember hearing a shot. Then slipping, and yeah, I guess I sort of remember my head hitting something hard.”

Martin lifted his right hand up toward his head and asked, “Where did I hit exactly?”

Gina guided his hand to the back-left part of his head and said, “Be careful, there’s a big gash that’s still healing.”

Martin dusted his fingers over the top of the bandage and said, “Temporal lobe.”

“Correct. Which would explain why you had several seizures.”

“Yes, that would. How many did I have?”

“Six that I saw. You could have had more before I came on the scene.”

He exhaled.

Gina said, “But the good news is that your memory, at least your short-term memory, appears to be intact. How is your vision?”

He stared at her and said, “Well, either you are a truly beautiful young lady, or my vision is seriously impaired.”

Gina was shocked to feel herself blush. She hadn’t glanced in a mirror in nine days, but she could only imagine how grimy and filthy she looked. She was still clad in the same shorts and T-shirt she’d been wearing for her run. Her arms and legs were covered in dried mud, scrapes, and bug bites, and her hair was a twisted nest. With a light laugh, she said, “Your vision must be severely impaired.”

Martin grinned, then said, “You know what, I’m starting to feel hungry.”

“Hold tight,” Gina said. “I’ll see if I can rummage something up.”

She ducked out of the tent and made her way over to where the provisions were stored. She found a bag of Brazil nuts and a stack of energy bars. She took three, slipping two of them into her pocket.

One of the soldiers glanced up from where they were digging. Gina showed him the single energy bar in her hand. He nodded, then went back to digging. She did a quick survey for Patrick or Bill but saw neither. There was a chance they were still in their tent, but that would be out of character. Especially for Patrick. From what Gina could tell, he was usually the first one up and the last to go to sleep.

Ducking back into the tent, Gina handed Martin the energy bar. “Small bites.”

Martin tore the wrapper open and took half the bar down in one chomp.