"Is that...?" I whisper suddenly. I don't get to finish because JJ slaps his hand over my mouth. Ward's voice is unmistakeable, only a few yards away now. JJ nods his head, and very slowly moves forward. We push through the bushes to reveal the scene in front of us, or rather, above us. The five of us duck below the rock, barely able to see Ward above us, his back to us. He points a handgun at my dad, who's on the ground, muddy and bloody, covered head to toe in sweat. I cup a hand silently over my mouth.
John B is next to him, standing, but equally covered in mud. Sarah stands in front of John B, an enormous piece of gold in her hand. They found it. They found El Dorado. It takes everything in me to keep from gasping. "You have it all, don't you John?" Ward asks, stepping forward. He uses a cane, limping. His injury must be the reason he flew with them here in the first place. JJ holds out his hand, telling us to wait. "Now you get everything, huh?" Ward asks, keeping the gun aimed at my dad.
He keeps the pistol on my dad while reaching his hand for Sarah's. She gives him the piece of gold and he tucks it to his chest. "Thank you, sweetheart," He nods. I try not to spit through my clenched teeth. Everything good, he's going to take. I won't let him take my dad too. JJ senses my impatience. "Wait," He mouths to me. "You get to go home, back to Kildare," Ward continues. "Live happily ever after," Ward shakes his head, his back still to us. My dad looks slowly up from under his eyelids, and I think he finally sees us, but if he does, he doesn't show it on his face.
"With you son, who loves you," Ward whispers, pistol still aimed. "And my daughter...," He rasps. "Who hates me," He whispers. Sarah bites her lip as she watches him, her eyes starting to tear. "I'm sorry, John. I don't think I can allow that," Ward says, shaking his head quickly, over and over again. "Alright, so, what are we gonna do?" Pope whispers under his breath, making sure we're far enough away that they won't hear us.
"Is this ride or die?" JJ whispers back. I look at him, my lips trembling. "P4L," Cleo whispers, taking out her machete. "P4L," Pope whispers, also taking out his machete. "P4L," Kie repeats, removing hers. JJ shakes his head. "P4L?" He says as more of a question, looking at me. I bite my lip. "Fricking P4L," I nod, taking out my machete too. JJ takes my hand. "You're supposed to be dead," Ward pants, keeping his gun aimed on my dad.
Big John closes his eyes, as if he's too tired to respond. I pause for a second, wondering what's wrong with him. "I think I liked you better that way," Ward whispers. The gun cocks. JJ lets out a scream, running up from behind the rocks. The rest of us follow, also yelling. The four of them turn to face the five of us. Shouts erupt between the five of us and Ward as we circle around him, machete's raised, and he faces us, gun pointing from face to face.
"Stay back! Stop right now!" Ward screams. "Put it down!" Pope yells at him. "Back! Back! Stay!" Ward screams. "Put it down!" JJ, Kie, and I shout. "Stay back! Stay back!" He screams, swinging his pistol around. "Put it down!" I shout again. "Put it down, Ward!" JJ screams. "Stay back!" Ward continues screaming. John B, Sarah, and my dad look around at us wildly, obviously they didn't see us before and are just as surprised as Ward.
"Come on! You're outnumbered Ward!" JJ screams. "What are you gonna do, shoot us all?" Pope spits as we stay tight together, machete's still raised. "If you gotta shoot somebody, Ward, shoot me," My dad calls, his eyes on me. That's when I notice his hands pressed against his stomach, blood covering them. I take a staggering breath, stepping back slightly. Ward turns back to him, his pistol raised. John B steps in front of his gun. "Or me," He whispers.
I have to squeeze my eyes shut for a second before opening them again. Ward's hand shakes as he glares at John B, taking a threatening step forward. "Stop," Sarah says calmly, stepping directly in front of the barrel. "Enough," She says, walking forward even more so that the gun is pressed against her chest. "Don't!" Ward screams at her, but he doesn't drop the gun. "You're not gonna kill all of us," Sarah says, her voice shaking and her bottom lip trembling. "I know you won't," She says, her voice catching.
Ward grinds his teeth together, his hand shaking and his eyes practically popping out of his head. He inhales sharply. "I know you," Sarah whispers, her voice thick with emotion. "You forget that I know you," She says even quieter. Ward takes sharp breaths, and his hand loosens. Sarah puts her hand over his, holding the gun against her chest.
Ward turns his head to the ground, his features contorting. His eyes squeeze shut and his lips purse into a thin line. He exhales shakily, letting out a sharp sob. "You can't," Sarah whispers, her eyes full of tears. She doesn't let them fall. Ward shakes his head, still sobbing. Sarah finally moves her hands down against Ward's, pushing the gun away from her and towards the ground. I stand still, holding my breath.
She takes the gun from his hands and Ward lets his hands fall back to his sides. Sarah takes a deep breath. Ward shakes his head quickly as he cries. "I couldn't. I couldn't do it," He sobs, still shaking his head. He puts a hand on Sarah's cheek with a wide smile that makes me shiver. "Yeah?" A voice calls. A gun cocks. "Well, I can," The voice calls as we all turn.
One of Singh's men, the one that tried to kill John B, stands further up the rock, holding a gun towards us. We raise our machete's again, and JJ steps slightly in front of me. John B raises his gun towards him, ready to shoot, but the man, I think his name is Ryan, moves his gun to point it at my dad, who doesn't move. "Toss it," He spits at John B. "Take it easy, bud," My dad rasps, his voice weary. He stays still, his hands still over his stomach, even with a gun to his head.
John B shakes his head. "Your boss is dead, you got no reason to do this," My dad says, looking up at Ryan. Singh is dead? "I can think of a few reasons. Toss it!" He screams at John B. John B slowly holds his hands up, the gun still in one of them. He opens his palm, letting it fall to the ground. Ryan steps down from the rock instantly, raising the gun at all of us as he walks forward. "Thought you'd end up with the gold, eh?" He spits.
My breath comes quickly as he gets closer and raise my machete a little higher as JJ moves to the side slightly, keeping me further behind him. "Alright, nobody move," Ryan says as he picks up the gun John B dropped. "My mate back there is dead," He says. "Because of you," He hisses, looking at Sarah. JJ purses his lips, slowly raising his machete. "J...," I warn from behind him. Ryan raises his gun, cocking it at Sarah. "You go first," He grins.
"No," I hear Ward whisper. He turns to look at Sarah, and she looks back at him. Sarah shakes her head slowly, understanding before the rest of us what Ward's about to do. He screams as he runs at Ryan. It happens very fast. Ryan shoots Ward three times in the gut as he runs at him. Ward catches him around the stomach and falls with him off the edge of the cliff, falling at least 70 feet to the jungle floor below us. A quiet thud is the only sound we hear when they hit the bottom. It happens in less than 5 seconds.
We all drop our machete's, eyes wide as we gasp silently. "Sarah," John B whispers as Sarah walks to the edge of the cliff. She gasps, a small, choking sound, as we all join her and John B at the edge. Ward is splayed over a tree branch on the forest floor, his wounds facing us. His neck is arched backwards awkwardly, his mouth wide open. Ryan lays face down next to him, his limbs splayed at odd angles.
Sarah sobs silently, gasping for air as John B wraps his arms around her. I swallow harshly, taking a step back. "Hey. Big John? Big John?" Pope says suddenly, walking behind us to my dad. I turn, running after him. My dad has his head back, angled at the sun, one hand still on his stomach. "Hey! John B!" I shout. "Dad," John B whispers, following me over. Tears streak my face as I hold his head up. His eyes are closed. "Dad? Dad...," I whimper as his eyes open and close again and again.
Pope and John B lift him from the ground by his arms. "Okay, dad, we gotta get you out of here," John B pants. "It's alright," He nods as Big John's head droops forward again. I wince, turning into JJ's chest as he catches me. "Hey, stay up. Stay awake," Pope commands. "Come on, come on, come on," Pope and John B echo as they make their way back down the trail, the rest of us at their heels.
"Hang on, Big John, we got you, we got you," Pope murmurs as we walk silently over the hills, retracing our steps. "We just gotta get you downriver, you're gonna be okay," John B nods. "Hang in there, dad," I whimper, watching his eyes open and close again.
~~~~~~
By the time we reach El Tesoro, Pope, John B, and JJ are practically dragging Big John onto the boat. We lay him down at the back and he groans, squinting his eyes against the sun. I kneel down next to his head, tears falling against his long hair as we ride into the river. John B sits behind his head, keeping his hand on his hair, and I kneel next to him, my hands over his bloody ones, as the sun sets around us.
My dad keeps his eyes closed, grunting softly, his breathing ragged. "Hey, hey, hey, Pop. Hey, hang in there, okay?" John B murmurs. I squeeze his hand lightly. "We're almost there, okay?" I whisper, trying to keep my voice strong for him. I only just got my dad back. He chuckles softly, his eyes still shut. "But we did it together, kids," He whispers. "Yeah," John B sniffs. "Just...," I whimper, tears falling again.
JJ closes his eyes, his head falling into his fists. Cleo turns away. "Just like we drew it up," Dad whispers, looking up at us and finally opening his eyes. Sarah shakes her head sadly. "Yeah," John B breathes. "Yeah, we did," John B nods. "Bird, bee," He whispers, the effort consuming him. "Dad, yeah?" I whisper, squeezing my eyes tightly as I grip his hand. "Hey, hey, kids," He whispers, grabbing our hands. "Hey," He breathes.
"Sarah, Sarah," He mutters, reaching for her hand. "Hi," She smiles. "JJ," My dad whispers. "Yeah, yeah," JJ mumbles, lifting his head. "We're here, Big John," JJ nods, his eyes filled tears. Sarah squeezes his hands. "Bird, you got to hang on to this one," Dad whispers. Sarah smiles, her eyes filled with tears. "Take care of my daughter, JJ," He pants, staring hard at JJ. "Yeah, yeah, I will," JJ promises, his voice breaking. I shake my head, my lips trembling.
"I know that I wasn't any great shakes," My dad says, looking back up at John B and I. "As a father," He whispers. "Stop, dad," John B whispers as a sob breaks through my chest. "But you two...," He whispers. "You were the best kids any man could hope for," He smiles. "Don't lose each other, okay? Be there for each other," He whispers. I swallow back my tears, shaking as I keep my hands tightly in his.
"I want you to know that...," He starts. "You can tell us when we get home, okay?" John B whispers, pushing back his hand. I nod, knowing that if I speak I won't be able to stop myself from falling apart. "Almost there," John B whispers. "Okay," He nods. "Hold up, look, Dad, look," John B sobs, pulling the piece of gold in front of his face. "We did it," John B whispers, laying the gold on top of our hands. "You did it," John B says as he looks down at the gold.
"I'll see you... I'll see you at home, kids," He mumbles. "I love you, Bird," He whispers. "I love you, Bee," He sighs. His eyes close slowly. John B sniffs. "Dad?" He chokes. "Dad?" I ask, sobs choking their way out of my throat. I press my head into his hair, moving one hand to clasp John B's, not taking the other from my dad's hands. I close my eyes, letting the sobs shake my body. John B holds tightly to my hand and JJ wraps his arms around me, just letting me cry.