OASIS: The Jericho Protocol

White Waters of the Caqueta

I woke at eight the next morning. Well, that's what my watch said anyway. The sun shone through the small square window of the dingy room. I didn't realise just how dingy it was. Paint peeling from the walls. The furnitue shoddy and worn. It definitely wasn't meant for permanent residence. Just a place for a lazy or hungover cop to stay.

I sat up and swung my legs over the edge of the bed. I checked my bag to make sure nothing had been taken. Whether the police were my friends or not, Colombia wasn't a very wealthy country. And it didn't take ten seconds to sneak in, take something and sneak out. Luckily everything was there. I didn't really want to raise hell in the middle of the police station. Especially after they had been so kind.

I stood and stretched out, loosening my muscles. I walked to the door and opened it. The creaking of the door making me jump slightly. I was knackered. Only having a couple of hours sleep last night took a toll on me.

Walking into the main room I realised something was different. All the desks were in place, all the papers were to. There was no blood stains on the floor, no bodies either. In fact, there was no one in the room. I took a deep breathe in. The smell of bleach and air freshner was thick.

"Chief?" I called out. No answer. I turned on my heel and went back to my room to get my gear. Grabbing my bags and putting them on and I drew my gun. I had no idea where the chief and the other officers were. They may have just been out, but they could have been taken or something. I turned and walked down the hall towards the main entrance with caution.

I went back into the main room and looked around. Nothing. I searched for a pen and paper. It wasn't as hard as I thought it would've been. I wrote a quick note saying thanks for the hospitality, and walked out. As I was walking out of the doors something caught my eye. Backtracking I saw a notice board. It had two leaflets on it, one was about a church or something and the other was about a kayaking station on the river Caquata with a map to where it was. There was a red line that pointed to a building and a single word that said 'here'. I presumed that the building was the police station. Located in a town called Mocoa.

Walking out of the doors I saw the Jeep from last night. Next to that was a red Kawasaki Ninja. Not one that I recognised. It wasn't there last night. I walked up to it and picked up the note that was on the seat. It read: Dear Mr. Jericho, I remember you say you like motorbike. So I got you one as thanks for helping us. We surely would have died. We burying our friends and enemies. We see you for lunch. How kind of the chief. Shame I won't be there to say thanks.

I swung my leg over the bike and rested my foot on the peddle. The keys were already in the ignition. Turning the keys I twisted my right hand and started up the engine. It sounded healthy. It sounded new actually. I pulled the opened up the kayak leaflet and looked at the map. So I'm in Mocoa, that's what the map said and the officers were talking about it last night, and the kayak station is in Peurto Guzman. I had no idea how long a drive it was, or how long it would take me. I guessed there weren't any roads leading to La Pedrera.

"Screw it" I muttered out loud. Pulling out my phone, I clicked onto my GPS. I was in Mocoa as it turned out. Unfortunately, the more time I spend on the GPS the higher chance of someone finding me. And considering I was nearly shot down yesterday, I didn't really want that to happen I looked at the address on the leaflet and typed it in. Well that's just dandy. I sighed, a two and a half hour drive, without traffic. I tried something else. I searched how long it would take me to get from Mocoa to Curillo. Now that my helicopter was downed I needed another. Or a plane. Shame that the airport in Mocoa was shut down several years ago. It's abandoned and derelict. Nothing left.

"A nine hour journey!" I said outloud with an exasperated sigh. "Damn it." At least with a kayak I can sit back and let the river take me to Curillo.