With All Your Heart

5~Truth or Dare

"Run!" Parker cried.

"Not so fast," Ty ordered, pulling him down behind the boulder before he gave away their location. "I don't think they see us." He nodded. "Look."

The man who Annie thought had seen them was returning to the others with large duffle bag. He was grinning. Opening the duffle, the other men seemed excited. One pumped his fist. Another danced and hollered enthusiastically.

Josh squinted. "What's in the bag?"

"Money?" Caleb guessed. "A lot of it."

"You think they saw the lifeboat?" Tanner asked.

Ty shook his head. "No. They'd be looking for us if they did."

"They still might," Rachel said softly, seeming to notice how close the lifeboat was to the men.

Annie was on edge as well. It was a surprise they hadn't seen the bright yellow lifeboat yet, but then the men were more concerned with whatever was in the bag. Still, if they happened to glance right... She shivered thinking about it.

"The man had another bag with him before he found the duffle. He doesn't have it now," Dani told them.

"Who cares?" Parker sighed with impatience.

Annie looked at Ty. "You think there were drugs in the bag?"

"Could be. Or jewels."

"You sure know a lot about smugglers," Parker said suspiciously. "Maybe you had a side job, Deck-Boy."

Ty didn't even glance at Parker.

"Hey, check it out." Josh let out a sigh of relief. "Looks like they're leaving."

Caleb squinted. "Thank God."

"God had nothing to do with it. They got what they wanted, and they're our only way off this island!" Parker stood defiantly with fists on his hips. "I'm going with them."

"Please listen to them," Missy pleaded.

"You'll stay where you are." Caleb's tone left no room for argument. "You might be annoying, but I'm not going to let you get yourself or us killed."

Ty stood. "He's right. Until we're found, what we do affects us all."

"Do you think they'll come back?"

Ty gaze found Annie's, and he smiled. "Not tonight, but we'll hide the lifeboat in case."

"Sounds like a plan," Josh agreed.

"When do you think they will find us?" Rachel looked worried. "It's been almost twenty-four hours."

Caleb slid his arm around her shoulder. "Soon."

"Soon," Ty agreed, but Annie heard the doubt in his voice. Once they were alone, she'd ask him about it, but not now. Everyone needed to stay as upbeat as possible if they were going to survive.

They hid the lifeboat beneath a big, fallen tree and covered it with thick limbs and brush. Like he said he could Ty started a fire, and they sat around passing the bottled water and crackers she'd brought in her backpack.

"I'm still hungry," Parker complained.

Annie studied Parker. The guy might be tall and good-looking, but once he opened his mouth, he lost all appeal. Feeling guilty for judging him, Annie vowed to try to find some redeeming quality in Parker. They'd all been through a lot and people coped differently. Maybe, he just didn't make a good first impression.

"We're all hungry and thirsty and tired, but most of all we are sick of your whining," Josh snapped, turning to Missy. "Sorry. Your boyfriend is getting on my nerves."

"He's not my boyfriend," Missy announced, her chin lifting defiantly as if she dared Parker to challenge her. "Not anymore."

"Good for you," Rachel said with an encouraging smile.

Parker made a sound of protest and proceeded to drone on and on about what a catch he was and how Missy would never do better than him.

Annie's gaze caught Ty's, and she couldn't look away. A sizzling current passed between them.

"How 'bout we just be grateful we're alive," Caleb suggested.

Tanner grinned. "Like one big happy family."

"Sure, we could hold hands and sing Kumbaya," Josh mocked.

Caleb laughed. "I was serious, but if ya'll would rather hate, whatever."

"We could play truth or dare," Dani suggested, smiling with delight. "I'll go first."

Josh's eyes flickered with interest. "Truth or Dare, Dani."

"Truth."

"If you were stranded on a desert island..."

Everyone would laughed.

"Nah, seriously," Josh said. "Are you single?"

Dani flashed a flirty smile. "Yes."

"What a wasted question," Tanner groaned shaking his head. "Should have asked about her crush."

"Truth or Dare, Josh, " Dani chimed.

"Truth."

"Do you have a crush?" She seemed to immediately realize she'd misspoke, but it was too late. Groans of disappointment and eye rolls followed.

Tanner threw up his arms. "Who is his crush? Who! Pronouns people."

Once he stopped laughing, Josh's hot gaze flicked to Dani. "Yeah, I've got a crush."

"This is the most boring game of truth or dare." Caleb threaded his fingers through his short hair. "Not that I'm complaining. I never liked these games."

Annie didn't care for them either and she got the feeling Ty agreed, but it did take their minds off their problems. She noticed the way Rachel's gaze followed Caleb.

"Truth or Dare, Caleb."

"Truth," Caleb deadpanned, seeming resigned. "C'mon Josh. Sure you don't want to pick on one of the girls?"

"Nope. You said something about the captain when we first got on the lifeboat. What was it?"

Annie felt Ty tense, his gaze suddenly alert.

Caleb frowned. "I heard him radio for help, but no one answered. I'm not sure the radio was working."

"What?" Parker shrieked.

"So no one knows we're missing?" Rachel swallowed hard.

"They know." Ty sounded certain. "Even if the call didn't go through we would have been missed when we didn't dock at ten last night."

"Then why haven't they found us?" Missy asked. "We couldn't have drifted that far."

Tanner pulled his phone from his back pocket. "Has anyone checked their phones for signal lately?"

Josh shook his head. "I don't have a waterproof case."

"Parker and I lost ours."

Dani frowned. "Mine is dead."

Caleb checked his screen. "It works, but I don't have signal."

"No signal," Rachel said, holding up her phone.

"Same," Ty replied, looking at Annie.

"No bars. Maybe if we walked a ways it would work."

Ty smiled at Annie. "We'll try to find signal tomorrow." He tapped his screen and his brows drew together. "8:59 Tuesday, July 10."

Caleb's head turned to Ty. "Weird. Mine says that too. Tanner?"

"Yep."

Rachel tapped her screen and her eyes went wide. "Freaky."

Touching her screen, she confirmed yesterday's time and date. "Why would our phones read the time and date we went missing?" she whispered, but no one had an answer.

Annie felt a shiver along her spine.