"You're not putting that on me," Derek said as he backed away from her. "Not if that's the item giving off such a... fragrant aroma."

Alex tried not to smile as she knelt beside him. Maybe he smelled her, or himself. "You know I wouldn't do this if it wasn't necessary." Her voice softened even more. "Derek, please. It will be hours until dawn, until we can even begin finding our way back to the Jeep and getting you to a doctor."

He sighed as he looked at her, and her eyes pleaded with his. A longer, louder sigh emitted from him as he sat up straighter. "Not too tight," he whispered. "My head still... hurts."

"I'm sorry I can't give you anything for it," she said as she removed the old bandage. It was still bleeding a bit, but at least the wound looked clean. She tried to keep her hands steady as she placed a wet leaf on his head gash. Was this foolishness? She had heard of its healing power, but... Her heart thudded within her as she secured it with a double-strip tie around his head.

"Do you have pain anywhere else?" Alex asked as she quickly repeated the process with his arm, noting the grimace as she retied the makeshift sling she had made from strips of his shirt.

"Just my head." Her hand gently stroked his hair. Dammit, how could she help him when all she had were leaves and water and a torn shirt? He was...

She stopped, feeling a small bump. Dear God... She fussed with the bandage, hiding her concern. At least it wasn't that big, but it was still large enough that she could feel it. A shudder ran through her. It must have happened when he fell after Jeroen shot him. Alex bit her lip. It might take longer than she thought to get him to a doctor. All she could do now was hope that the stories about the noni plant were true.

"Are you finished? If we're going... to get up at dawn..." Derek yawned widely, "we'd better get some sleep. Tomorrow looks to be... a long day."

"I think so too. Listen," she said as she pushed her damp hair off her face. "Why don't you rest your head here." Alex patted her lap. "You need sleep more than I do." She could see the challenge in his eyes, but it gradually faded with the steady resistance in hers. Whatever argument he tried, she would fight. Derek shrugged and lay back on the ground.

Her arms lightly enveloped him, being careful of his arm. This was more than wanting to be close to him. After the psychic vibrations she had sensed earlier, she felt the need to protect him, and she wasn't about to close her eyes. Would the spirits return? She had vowed to them that she would kill Jeroen, but with Derek alive...

With Derek alive. Those three simple words didn't do justice to the miracle of that. She trembled, remembering how she had found him half out of his grave. Was Derek unconscious when the young Dutchman covered him with dirt? He had to have been. Had Jeroen purposely buried Derek alive? Had he left him to slowly die? How did he drag him to the site? What if...

No, it would do no go to think of such things, she realized as her hand brushed back the wet hair from his forehead. Derek had said nothing, and she didn't want to ask. Her only concern was to get him to a doctor as fast as she could. Derek was alive, and that was all that mattered. Tomorrow they would find help and she would notify the authorities.

She wasn't sure how much strength he would have in the morning, however. He could sleep for now, but she knew that she would need to check on him through the night. A concussion was nothing to fool around with, and he had lost consciousness. Luckily he didn't seem to have a serious head injury, but she needed to be sure.

"Wake up." she said several hours later. "What's your name? Do you know your name?"

"Alex..." His voice was sleepy. "What...? Of course I know my name. Don't be absurd." His eyes narrowed as he looked at her. "Did you forget who I am?"

She tilted her head to mock glare at him. "No, I know who you are, but I need to make sure that *you* know in case you suffered a concussion. Would you humor me?"

He exhaled noisily as he settled back, his eyes closed as his head returned to Alex's lap. "My name is Derek Rayne. I am Precept of the San Francisco Legacy House and chairman of the Luna Foundation." He opened one eye. "Can I go back to sleep?" She simply laughed and nodded as he seemed to fight to suppress a grin of his own. She had no idea why sleep did him so much good, but she was grateful it did.

"Wait a minute," she said and his eyes focused on her again. "How do you feel? How's your head and arm?"

"Not too bad," he quietly admitted as he shifted around to face her. Alex saw that quick grimace before he hid it when he leaned on his left arm.

"You do look better, Derek," She smiled as she checked his head wound again, her fingers lingering to touch his skin. "Your eyes are brighter."

"I'm feeling better, and I owe that to you," he said softly. "And that weird plant." He chuckled, but she could only gaze down at her clasped hands.

"Considering it's my fault you're here. I want to apologize again for..." His hand beneath her chin stopped her and he raised her face.

"That's nonsense," Derek said as he stroked her cheek. "You had no idea of what was going to happen."

"But I should have talked to you back at the hotel, Derek," she said, closing her eyes against his steady gaze. "We wouldn't have run into Jeroen, and none of this would have happened."

"True," he nodded. She tried to pull away, but he held onto her. "But then we would not have known what the man was capable of doing."

"It seems that you had your suspicions," Alex muttered bitterly. "That night in your hotel room when the background check was delivered? I was a complete jerk to you," she said, her eyes looking past him to the entrance to the cave and the rain beyond. "I'm so sorry for..."

"Alex..." His hand moved her face back to his, but she didn't feel ashamed enough to resist him as he leaned forward and kissed her. She melted into the heat of him, ignoring everything but the feel of his mouth on hers. Drifting on the sweet sensations, a guttural sound roused her and she backed off.

"Is that a good groan or a bad groan," she asked casually, smiling to hide the embarrassment she felt over her inability to hear him. "Derek?"

He groaned once more and slumped against her. "Derek?" Her voice climbed higher as she struggled to gently ease him into a horizontal position. "It will be fine; you'll be all right."

She shivered as it abruptly became cold and dank within the cave. The hairs on the back of her neck rose once more as vapor began to form. "No... please." Alex glanced around them. "Don't do this. Leave us alone..."

A crash at the rear of the cavern startled her, and she jumped, her eyes wide as she stared at the apparition before her. The rising fury from it misted the air and drifted closer. "He must pay for what he's done," a voice rasped as a shape materialized.

Another grunt from Derek made Alex turn to see a red slash appear on his chest. "No!" The young woman threw her body across his. She gasped as pain spread down her back. "I won't... let you hurt him," she panted.

"Why do you protect this one?" the dark woman heard as she shivered against Derek. It was as if a gust of bitterly cold air had blown through the cave. "You vowed to avenge our deaths. Why do you now try to stop me from taking my revenge?"

"Because he is the wrong man." Alex fought for breath at the fire on her back. "His life has been spent fighting evil."

The ghostly figure radiated an ancient rage. "Why should I believe you? His voice is as the others. Are they not his countrymen? Why could he not lie to you as they had lied to us? I see the hate for him on your soul."

"If that is so," Alex spat as she pulled back to face the young native woman with rage of her own, "that is a mark from many years ago. The blame was not his, it was mine. I could not admit that to myself then, so I blamed him. If you wish to harm him based on that, then you must harm me too." She bent forward again, shielding Derek as much as she could.

"We should destroy him as we shall destroy the others," another young female spirit whispered.

Alex turned her head to the second spirit, lifting her body from the one she loved. "You know damn well that this man should not be made to suffer for the sins of his countryman. Look into his soul and see his suffering as you did mine, and then look into his heart to see his courage." Her eyes blazed. "The young man who murdered you deserves what happens to him. But this man..."

"...deserves to die," the ancient spirit hissed.

"No!" Alex again spread her body over Derek, yet she heard him moan as the ghostly attack reached him. "Stop, please." Her voice broke and tears fell as she stared at the spirits. "I know you want revenge... but hurting him is wrong. He has fought... and risked his life many times against evil... saving my life and those of innocents who could not fight back on their own. Please, I..."

She stopped as the cave suddenly became quiet. The atmosphere had changed, and she sensed they were alone once more. "They're gone..."

"Let's... hope so..." Derek mumbled. "Why...?"

"It's a... long story," she replied as she checked on him. "One much too long to go into at this point." Reaching for another strip of cloth, she placed it in fresh cool rainwater and gently pressed it against the cuts. He grunted softly, but his eyes remained shut. She couldn't resist kissing the top of his head. "You rest now," she said in a hushed voice as she dimmed the lantern. "I've got this watch." Alex adjusted her position, ignoring the pain in her back, and once more carefully placed her arms around him.

Her fingers played with his hair as she waited for morning, and every so often she would check on the bandages. Thankfully they looked fine from what she could see. She really didn't want to wake him to apply new dressings. He needed as much sleep tonight as he could get. She was uncertain how long she held him before the peaceful surroundings and rain falling outside eventually lulled her to sleep as well.

A loud squawking startled her awake, and she jostled the man in her arms. "What... Is it morning?" He gazed at her and the tousled appearance of him tore at her heart. After her fears of yesterday, to see him looking so good...

"It must be. I think I can actually see some sunshine out there," she said as she touched his face. "It's going to take us some time to get down, but at least it looks like we may have good weather."

"I've been thinking about that." He said it so quietly that she wasn't sure that she had heard him. That likely meant that she wasn't going to like what he had to say...

"Derek, how does your head and arm feel? I think it would be best if we got started as soon as possible." She stood and looked around the cave, her hands on her hips. "I'm not sure what we should take with us though."

"Alex, I still think that you should leave me and go on alone. It will be much quicker for you and..." Traces of the precept were growing, but she would not be deterred.

She turned to him, her eyes flashing. "Derek, we've already had this discussion. I am not leaving you, and that's the end of this conversation." She noted the surprise on his face, and the curiosity, as she helped him up. How could she tell him of her fear that the spirits might return? No, it was better if they stayed together, especially after last night's assault.

They left the cave and she had him sit while she walked around the area, noting the marae in the bright morning sun. It must have been beautiful a long time ago, a wonderful place to worship until evil came along to destroy it. She sighed before taking a last look to see if she could spot their knapsacks before they left. She didn't expect to find them, but she hoped that Jeroen might have tossed them aside and the aspirin bottle would have fallen out. She didn't hold out much hope that she'd be able to find it in the aftermath of the storm which left mud and debris everywhere.

The sun was peeking through the canopy of trees above them as she searched. It would warm them up and dry the earth beneath them, helping their footing. They would need all the help they could get. Her ankle was throbbing, as were the scratches on her back. She grinned as she spotted something. Standing beneath a dripping tree, Alex closed her eyes as cool water fell on her back.

"I would have thought," Derek said softly behind her, "that you had enough yesterday of being soaking wet and drenched by water," She laughed as she turned to him, but it died on her lips when she saw where he was about to step. "No, Derek, stop right there."

"Are we playing a game?" He smiled at her and she tried to smile back as she walked to him.

"No, I just didn't want you to fall into that large hole and have you break an ankle just as we're leaving," Alex said as calmly as she could before she took his arm and steered him away from the hole in which Jeroen had buried him.

"Wait, I almost forgot." she hurried back into the cave and took a small ritual cup for drinking any water they might find. Derek frowned but said nothing as they gingerly began their trek down the mountain. It was a beautiful morning, and the rain had left the air fresh and clean. The humidity had eased, and Alex hoped it would remain so. It would be much easier to hike, and hopefully they might make decent time.

If only they could move faster, but with their injuries it simply wasn't possible. If either of them slipped or fell, there wouldn't be the soft landing that the mud might provide. She was pleased, however, that the day was warming up. They had been fortunate, she knew, to make it through the night with little difficulty, despite the fact that they had nothing but what they had worn. She grinned. Plus that shabby blanket and each other...

If only someone could come along and find them. Nick and Rachel had to be worried about them. Had they sent anyone to search for them? They were also coming down from the opposite direction they climbed up, but she would try to shift them around to get them back to the Jeep. That might prove difficult with the leaves and trees that had fallen in the storm.

After an hour they sat and rested by a small stream as it cut its way through rocks and a thicket of large ferns. The water was cold and refreshing, but she wished they had some food. "When we get to civilization," she vowed, "I am going to buy us the biggest and most delicious dinner we've ever had."

"All right, Miss Moreau," Derek promised. "It's a date. But in the meantime..." He pointed to a tree ahead. "We need to find something to eat."

"You'd eat a piece of that?" She walked over and picked up the ripened noni fruit that lay on the ground.

"What is that saying about desperate times? We simply had the few things we brought to eat on the trail." He smirked. "Even precepts get hungry." She laughed as he rubbed his hand across his stomach.

"Okay, boss, let's see if I can open this..." She smiled at him, but it faded quickly. "Derek, I don't think..."

"Let me give you a hand." He swayed as he partially rose, and she rushed to help him, her arms out. Something beneath her foot stabbed at her ankle, making her stumble, and she tumbled down with him. They rolled a few yards, coming to rest against a tree. His body was over hers, the sling hanging down as he tried to steady himself. Alex heard him gasp before he fell to the side.

"Derek, are you all right?" She saw the contortion on his face as she now looked down on him.

"Fine... nothing..." He closed his eyes and she remained quiet, waiting for him. "So much for this," Derek said a short time later, holding up the torn sling. "I'll just hold onto my arm."

"But Derek..."

"No but's," he told her. "I'm fine. I don't need it anymore."

They slowly continued on, but she heard him gasp and grunt several times. She turned to check on him, but his face was neutral. Alex knew he wouldn't admit it, but his arm definitely needed to be cradled to relieve the pain.

They stopped for another rest and she studied his arm. "It's fine, Dr. Moreau." He tried to shrug, but the movement made him scowl. She sighed. If he continued like this, it would sap all his strength. Crossing her arms in front of her, she knew there was only one thing to do...

She eyed him steadily as she pointed down and indicated that he should sit on a downed tree trunk. "Alex, I really don't think..." His objection stopped when she pulled her dark purple top over her head. Derek's eyebrows rose and a grin tugged at the corner of his mouth. "I like the bedside manner of the doctors in this place."

"Just for special customers," she said lightly before she tore at the straps to rip them from one end.

"You know," he continued, "I doubt that this is going to make me feel better... at least for very long." The younger Legacy member struggled to suppress a giggle.

"Don't get too excited," she told him as she sat and attempted to make this new sling work. "This is all that's coming off. You need something to hold that arm steady." Satisfied that it would hold, she tied the straps behind his neck. "This had better work, fella, because I don't think my bra will be much help," she said, indicating the lilac, thin-strap garment she wore. She straightened the improvised sling, enjoying the nearness of him as she needlessly kept trying to make it perfect.

"Do you know what you're doing, doctor?" he whispered in her ear. "You're taking an awfully long time." She pulled back to look at him and flushed when she caught the twinkle in his eyes.

"All done, sir," Alex coolly told him, then gave him a quick kiss. He laughed as his good arm moved to her waist, and he pulled her to him for a longer one.

"We don't have time for this," she said, breaking the kiss after a few minutes. "We've still got a long way to go." She walked away from him to put some needed distance between them, and to catch her breath. "Look, we're losing the light, and it may rain." She pointed to the dark clouds overhead.

"Why don't I pick some fresh noni leaves and fruit, then we can get going. The tree was over there, wasn't it?" She strode over to it and began to pull at the dark green leaves, feeling his eyes on her back... and the pain in her ankle.

"Well, aren't you two talented..."

End part 31