Dragonfly Dreams, Part Sixteen

Frank Mason stood as still as possible. His breath was caught in his throat. Gordon Jones was holding a gun toward him, and he was threatening to pull the trigger. Frank tried not to imagine how much it would hurt when the bullet ripped through his body, ending his sorry excuse for a life as he stood trembling like a mouse in the heart of the Brazilian jungle.

Just then a shot rang out, making him jump about 3 feet into the air. It took him a second to realize that he hadn’t been killed. In fact, it hadn’t been Gordon Jones’ gun at all. Gordon was looking around with a look of alarm. The underbrush on the outskirts of the ruins was crashing. It sounded like an enormous beast was trampling its way toward them. And it was a beast….sort of….

A chubby woman who moved remarkably fast broke through the vines and ran toward them without stopping for one second. Her eyes were practically boring a hole into the ground as she ran…like she was following a trail. Frank saw that it was none other than Janet Jones. Didn’t this woman ever give up?

“She went that way!” a voice called out in the distance. Frank recognized it as Chuck’s. Were Chuck and Harry close behind? How in the world had they found this place?

As Janet heaved her massive frame beside them, she finally took the time to look up from the ground. Her eyes looked glazed over…like she was in a trance. She quickly shook her head and peered at them both with eyes that were suddenly vivid. She smiled. In her left hand, she held a small but wicked looking pistol.

“Ahhhh,” she crowed, “There you are! I knew that I could find you…and the temple! I just knew it!”

“I should have believed you in the first place,” Gordon sighed.

“That’s right! And don’t you forget it!” Janet teased, cuffing Gordon lightly on the cheek.

“You….you both know each other?” Frank was dumbfounded.

They both looked at him and then at each other before bursting into a fit of laughter.

“I’m surprised that you didn’t put it together sooner,” Gordon said, “Although I will admit that my sister has a way with her fake names. But that tattooed nuisance told you her real name….Janet….Janet JONES. Didn’t you make the connection?”

Frank thought to himself. Gordon Jones. Janet Jones. Brother and sister? Now that it had been pointed out to him, he could see the family resemblance. In fact, Janet could almost pass for a much fatter, female version of Gordon. How had he not seen this earlier?

“And you were after the temple as well?” Frank asked.

“Yes…yes I was,” Janet smirked, looking up at the ruins of the temple behind Frank, “But I wanted to find the temple myself…before Gordie here could get a lot more people involved. That just seems to complicate things.”

“But you told me that this city was impossible to find,” Frank said to Gordon who was starting to look bored, “You told me that you needed me to find it.”

“And I did,” Gordon sighed, “It’s just that my sister has a talent as well. It’s sort of like your talent…but different. She is a tracker. She can track down anyone from anywhere in the world. Unfortunately, she needed a trail to follow in order to find the city. That is why we had to have someone….you….to find this place. We tried to get the old woman Irza to show her the way…but she wouldn’t.”

“Not that it matters now,” Janet barked, “The old woman is dead now anyway.”

“Janet!” Gordon acted shocked, “You didn’t!”

“I’ve been a bad wittle gerwel,” Janet spoke like she was a three year old….a three year old with a taste for death and destruction.

Both of them started to laugh again. Frank knew then that there was no way that he was going to reason with these two. They were obviously crazy. He wondered if he could make a break for it while they were distracted. He took a step to the left.

“Hold it right there!” Gordon’s gun came up as quick as a cobra.

“I think that your employee is trying to give his notice of resignation,” Janet grinned.

“Well…I couldn’t really let him leave without his severance package,” Gordon’s gun clicked as he cocked it…ready to fire.

Janet Jones tilted her head to the left and closed her right eye. She stared at Frank with her other eye. “Say goodbye Frank,” she said.

Frank’s head was a whirl. What in the world was he going to do? There was no escape.

But then….as if by a miracle….a large ball of fur and fangs came swooping down on the two Jones siblings. As long teeth bit into Gordon’s wrist, he screamed and dropped the gun to the ground. Janet was too shocked to do anything, so she just stood and watched as the large beast continued to bite down on her brother’s arm.

“AWWWWWW GOD!” Gordon Jones screeched, “Get it off me! Shoot it Janet….shoot the dang thing!”

Frank recognized the creature as the large monkey that had been watching him earlier. Before it had seemed so peaceful….almost sleepy. Now, it was acting like a rabid beast. It made loud screeching sounds and rapid grunts as it bit and clawed at Gordon Jones. There was a crunching sound that Frank thought must have been teeth on bone. Blood was flying everywhere. Gordon’s face turned a gray ash color and his screams increased.

Janet finally realized that something was going on and broke out of her shock. She raised her gun toward the monkey…intending to kill it. Frank had to do something! It was his only hope!

“NOOOO!” he yelled, throwing himself toward the large woman and knocking the gun from her hand just as she pulled the trigger. The bullet flew harmlessly into the nearby jungle, instead of planting itself into the monkey who had by now grabbed Gordon Jones’ head and begun to pull at his hair. Gordon’s screams had stopped. Frank saw blood pouring from Gordon’s nose. He didn’t know if the man was dead or alive.

Janet….panic stricken now….pushed Frank to the ground and ran screaming toward the temple. Frank fell onto the ground. His head hit something hard and the world around him began to swirl. As everything faded into blackness, he thought that he heard the buzzing whirr of a dragonfly. And then, he was unconscious.

Until next week…class dismissed!