“Four or five feet long, kind of yellow and brown and black—it moved so fast, I didn’t get a good look.”

“Wow.” She studied the wound. “How’s your breathing and your pulse?”

“Both okay now. Why did you say wow?”

“Any burning sensation around the wound?” She prodded the flesh around it.

“It hurts a little, but no burning. Why? What—”

She looked up at him. “It sounds like a fer-de-lance, which means you were lucky. I mean, really lucky. They kill a lot of people, and they’re aggressive. There’s a good chance that was what killed Toby.”

“So why am I not dead?”

“Maybe twenty-five percent of the time, the first bite is a dry bite, no venom, like a warning shot. Looks like that’s what’s happened to you.”

“You’re sure?”

She nodded. “I think so. Otherwise the venom would have started digesting your flesh by now. That’s why I asked about the burning.”

“Wow,” he said, dizzy with so many thoughts—of his parents, of thankfulness and relief, of never wanting to forget how lucky he’d been here today.

“Exactly. I’ve got some stuff to clean this better but let’s make camp first.”

She helped him to his feet.

“Kate, I…” He couldn’t even sum up how grateful he was. “Just, thanks.”

“You would’ve made it back on your own. I just figured you’d prefer some company. Isn’t that what friends do?”

He smiled and laughed a little in acknowledgment. “I’ve never been much of a friend to anyone.”

“Well… none of us is defined by who we were in the past.” She smiled at him in wonder. “We survived a plane crash, Tom. Whether we like it or not, that’s who we are now.”

He nodded and they headed back the way she’d come. Tom knew she was right too. They’d all been made new by that plane crash, and if they survived, if he managed to avoid any more snakes, these days in the jungle would be the days that defined the rest of their lives.

CHAPTER 31

Kate had been telling the truth: Tom had only been a few minutes away from reaching the ravine again, and at a place where the side had collapsed, forming a slope down into it.

It was tempting to camp for the night in the ravine itself, but it was obvious that the water, when it flowed through here, was sudden and violent. So they stayed near the lip and managed to find enough wood to build a decent fire.

As they took some of the remaining snacks from their packs, Kate said, “I noticed nuts and fruit on my way here. I didn’t have time to collect any, but we should get some on the way back—we’re running out of food.”

He nodded. “How are the others?”