I guess even unicorns lose their luster after a while…
“I saw a patch of Sida rhombifolia somewhere back there in the jungle.” She hooked a thumb over her shoulder. When Carlos continued to frown at her, she shook her head, reminding herself that even though he was schooled in medicine, he wasn’t aware of the names of the plants that provided the extracts for so many of today’s modern cures. “It’s sometimes referred to as Queensland hemp or Indian hemp, though it’s not really in the hemp family at all.”
“Is there a point to this lesson in botany?” he asked.
This is the part where, had he been sitting beside her, she would lean over and smack him on the shoulder, telling him to stop it. Then he would take a swipe at her and say, no, you stop it. Which would then have them grinning at each other.
“Yes, there’s a point to it,” she told him, making a face. “Sida rhombifolia has incredibly high antimicrobial and antibacterial properties. It can be used to treat any number of infections including, I would suspect, whatever type of infection that little girl and her family are suffering from.”
Carlos glanced toward the jungle, a muscle ticking in the hard line of his jaw. Yep, she knew the smart thing to do would be to immediately resume their journey north. But she couldn’t stand the thought of that sweet little girl losing her eyesight when the solution was so easy and growing right in her own backyard.
“Pardon me,” Yonus said. “But could you tell me what plant you are speaking of?”
Eagerly, Abby turned to the young man. “Its leaves almost look like that of the mint plant, but it has these little yellow flowers. It grows to about this high,” she held her hand up to her chin.
Yonus nodded, relaying her description to the group of adults. A flurry of discussion commenced within the crowd, then Mamat stepped forward, bowing.
“Mamat says he knows of which plant you speak,” Yonus told her.
Yep, this was a headline she liked much better: PRESIDENT’S DAUGHTER CURES MALAYSIAN VILLAGE OF BLINDNESS! And how wonderful would it be if something good were to come from her abduction? Something worthy of the sacrifices and risks Carlos had taken on her behalf? She needed, more than she was willing to admit, one thing, anything, that she could look back on and be proud of.
“Right on!” She jumped from the stool, clapping her hands and stepping forward to slug Carlos on the arm. “How awesome is this? We’re like…frickin’ Doctors Without Borders here!”
He nodded, his expression that of a man resigned to forgo the start of their journey. The soldier in him needed to make that Thai border with all haste. But the doctor in him couldn’t leave that little girl and her family behind to suffer when there was something they could do to help. “Have I ever told you how much you amaze me, neña? How proud I am of the woman you’ve become?” His deep voice reminded her of the rhythmic purr of a big jungle cat.
“Oh, stop it,” she told him, dramatically fluttering her eyes and simpering. “My poor, swollen ego can only take so much.”
He chuckled and caught her chin between his thumb and forefinger, giving her head an affectionate shake. The key word here was affectionate.
Damnit! It was obvious now that Carlos liked her. That he trusted her. And the good Lord knew he shouldn’t.
The smile she bestowed on him was sunny. But inside, that familiar dark pain reared its ugly head…
Chapter Fourteen
“I wanted to h-hate her,” Penni cried against Dan’s shoulder. She knew she was covering him in tears, and probably some snot, too—gross—but she couldn’t stop the grief that poured from her in torrential, soul-sucking waves. “I w-wanted to—”
“I know, baby,” Dan crooned, hugging her tight. So tight she could barely breath. And yet, it still wasn’t tight enough. She wanted to crawl inside his big, strong body and hide. Hide from the pain and guilt that had been eating her alive since she saw what had been done to her friends. Hide from the fear that she would ultimately fail in her duty to see Abby safe and sound once again. Hide from the awful truth of Irdina and Jaya and the desperate inequality that existed in this cruel world. Just hide, hide, hide!
And it was so despicably cowardly of her. She was disgusted with herself, disgusted with her weakness. This was not the woman her father had raised, this woman who was having an emotional meltdown of Sicilian proportions. And if he could see her now, he’d be appalled. She was appalled. But the tears…
The tears wouldn’t stop. Because there was too much shit, and she hadn’t come equipped with enough shovels.