Chapter Twenty-Five

Savage Sanctuary Island, Misty

M isty scooted out of the way. The cat had died, and she said a quick prayer even though her father would have slapped her for saying the words over an animal. She then watched as Simon did the most amazing thing. He went to the floor, pressed on the cat's chest, then covered its mouth and nose with his hands, and blew air into its lungs. He kept repeating the process, and Misty started to worry that the cat’s death was more than Simon could handle.

She had no idea how much time passed before Simon lifted his head and waited. The cat’s chest rose on its own .

“You did it,” Misty said breathlessly. It was a miracle right before her eyes.

“The veterinarian tried to save a cub this way, and I remembered what he did.”

“The cub didn’t make it?” Misty asked sadly.

“No, and Summa might not either, but I had to try.”

“He’s breathing again, and I can stitch him up quickly. He has a chance because of you.”

Simon tried to stand but he couldn’t.

“I’ve got you,” Misty said and stood to help him.

“We’ve got you.” Paige came up behind them with Sarah. Between the three of them, they helped Simon off the floor.

He looked embarrassed, but they acted like it was no big deal. Misty sat down beside the cat again, picked up the needle, and threaded it.

“Pour this on the needle and his wound before you start.” Simon handed her a bottle of disinfectant. “It should have been put on before I inserted the needle but I forgot. I won’t hit my head again because I’m stupid, I promise.”

“What if I add that you can’t call yourself stupid again?” Misty asked sternly.

Simon smiled at her and she went to work.

“I’ve sewn the cut, but now I’m at the puncture and it looks deep.”

“Squirt the bottle directly into the puncture,” Simon told her .

Misty followed his directions and used the rest of the disinfectant. She added several stitches to the punctured area before she was finally done. She leaned back against the wall with a loud sigh.

Sarah carried a blanket over and placed it around her shoulders.

“Thank you,” Misty said. She turned her focus to Simon again. “What’s the plan?”

“The plan?” he questioned.

“You have four of the lions here. How many others do you need to collect?”

It took him a moment, and then he ran through the cats who were loose. “There are seven lions out there. I also need to find the tigers. There are two panthers, but they hide really well, and I’m more worried about the others. Some are not afraid of people, and they might walk up to the hunter without fear.”

“Are you going after them?” she asked.

Simon looked away, and Misty wondered what was bothering him. “Do you need our help?” she finally asked when he didn’t answer.

“The hunter wants to hunt me,” he said softly, then looked down at her. “I want to find him first. Jerry, my boss, needs to be stopped too. He does horrible things to the cats. He took money from the hunters so they could kill one of the cats, and now he’s paid Jerry more. Some of it is for you and Paige and Sarah. The rest is to hunt me.” His eyes pleaded with her. “He shouldn’t do that, should he?”

“No, Simon, he shouldn’t do that.” Something settled deep within Misty. There were so many things wrong with this entire situation. “We’ll help you keep the cats safe.”

“Shouldn’t you ask us?” said Paige.

Misty turned to her, putting steel into her eyes and tone, ready for the confrontation. “You know there is no way to get out of this that keeps us from going back to that horrible place. We will be caught on the island. The only person who has helped is standing here risking his life for us. Do I really need to ask?”

Paige’s chin went down, and air left her lungs before she looked up. “Why am I always so mean?” she asked.

Sarah placed her arm around Paige’s shoulder. “It’s okay because being mean is how you protect yourself.”

“I don’t know. It just comes out.”

The two girls watched as Simon and Misty cared for Summa. They applied a bandage over his wound, and Misty bent forward and gently rubbed the large head.

“There’s a good boy,” she said. “You’ll be as good as new soon.” The lion didn’t move. She looked up and directed her next words to Paige. “The hunter wants us, and we are the perfect bait. I’ll go alone if I need to, but I’m helping Simon.”

“I’m helping too, and you can’t stop me,” said Sarah.

Paige rolled her eyes, and Misty knew she would slam the idea. She waited.

“If I don’t go, the two of you will do something stupid, and I’ll need to rescue you, so I’m going.” Paige’s stubbornness showed in her eyes.

Misty hid a smile. She was scared half out of her mind, but if they didn’t help Simon, the men would find them, and very bad things would happen. And what if that horrible man did hunt Simon? She couldn’t get the image of the terrifying outcome out of her head.

She glanced at Simon and asked again, “What’s your plan?”

“I don’t want anyone to get hurt,” he said.

“You’re hurt, and so is Summa. They will do worse, and if that man caught you, what would happen to us? We need a plan.” She was taking this lesson from Paige, who had meticulously planned their escape until they stepped on the boat.

“They think you’re at the lighthouse. Maybe we could trap them inside?” Simon asked doubtfully.

He didn’t want to hurt the hunter or Jerry but he would do it for them. Misty’s thinking had changed after hearing that Simon would be hunted. They were on their own, and if they wanted to survive, it would be because they fought. Misty was tired of being abused. Her parents had done it, the school had done it, and now there were two bad men who wanted to do it again. She wasn’t running this time, and she could see the same surety in Paige and Sarah’s eyes.

“What about weapons?” asked Sarah.

“We have knives,” Paige said, “and there’s also the tranquilizer gun.”

“There’s only one gun,” Sarah reminded her.

Misty turned to Simon. “You put Summa under using one of the darts. What if we each carried one in a pocket? Are there enough?”

“I brought extras,” he answered, looking unsure.

“If we can get back to the lighthouse,” Misty said, refusing to think of the cold, “we could get to the bad guys, and you wouldn’t need to collect the lions and tigers right away.”

Simon didn’t answer, but Misty could tell he was thinking about it. Something changed in his expression. Very slowly, his lips curved into a smile. “If we got Jerry and the hunter to come here, we could lock them in one of the pens, and they couldn’t get out.”

Misty looked at the other two girls. Sarah shrugged, and Paige smiled after taking time to think about Simon’s plan.

“I like it,” she said. “We just need to figure out how to get them here.”

It was Misty’s turn to grin. “I have an idea.”