"Do you have a way for us to plug in chargers?" Taron asked.

Brilliant question. That would make for a huge relief and the ability to use the sat phone for way more. What about charging Gus? I doubt he's able to do that for himself. I wonder how this will work out.

Lorelei glanced at Katilynn and saw disbelief as she watched Taron take her hand, rubbing the sensitive spot between her thumb and index finger. She leaned into him enjoying the deft massage and he dropped a kiss on her forehead.

He whispered in her ear, "I left your guitar in the belly hold. Do you want me to get it out later? I would love to hear you sing."

She blushed a bit considering how vocal she was when he sent her over the edge and turned to kiss him properly. "Yes," she breathed her affirmation against his lips, and he nodded.

"Hmph, I would suggest you go back to your camp, but we have a huge issue to discuss." Johnathon's dry tone brought and even deeper blush to Lorelei's cheeks. He continued.

"Yes, I have a place you can plug your chargers in. If you bring everything back here, I can handle up to six devices at once. We don't have a cell phone, as I said Gerald was thorough. Any thing that gave us a chance to get the authorities involved was removed. He didn't think it was worth the bother of dismantling the solar panels or the turbines."

Lorelei wondered if he had a wife, or Katilynn lost a relationship because of their forced incarceration on the island.

"I'm so sorry you're stuck here. I can't imagine the worry for those who you left behind."

A quick flicker of grief flashed across Katilynn's face, and Johnathon grimaced.

"You are a preceptive woman, Lorelei. Thank you for caring enough to say something. There's nothing wrong with my ears, however. So, bring your guitar up here, and we'll have a bit of a party tonight. We have crab, lobster, and clams on hand. I think a proper seafood dinner is called for in celebration. Mangoes and other fruit are ripe and ready to eat. What do you think Kati?"

"Yes, a party would be great. If you don't mind, bring whatever food, and water you have up here. In fact, I'll come down and help you haul everything up. That way we can combine resources." She seemed to have made a decision about whatever her internal conversation was. "There's edible greens along the pathway as well, we can put together a bit of a salad."

"What do you think Lorelei?" Taron asked. "I think she's right; we need to work together on this."

"As long as we sleep down there, that's okay with me." Her face turned traitor and flushed once more.

"Understandable." Johnathon stood up. "I have things to get ready. You three head down and bring what you need up with you. We'll eat just before sunset."

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"We're just about down now, do you hear that?" Lorelei asked.

"Oh my God!" Katilynn took off at a full out sprint.

"Go, Taron. Make sure she doesn't hurt herself," Lorelei, picked up her own stride to a half jog.

He took off after the younger woman.

Lorelei could hear them shouting as she lengthened her stride. Grateful for the mountain adventure course training, her ankles took the pounding easily and she burst out of the jungle to hear Katilynn's urgent shouts.

"Get him out. He doesn't cry like that unless something is very wrong."

Taron fumbled through his pocket and dug out the key.

"How do you know? Gus was an accidental stowaway on our trip. Lorelei found him in the limo she took from city hall to the airport."

"What number is he? Do you know?"

"Thirteen," Lorelei replied. "He's been an interesting companion. We didn't know anything about who you were, so we locked him into the luggage compartment with the rest of the really important things."

"Unlucky for Gus, that number. He's my engineering doctorate project. How the hell did he end up in the limo? I left him secured in a locker at the university. I wonder who was messing with him. Or stealing my work." She sounded furious, and Lorelei couldn't blame her.

"Whoa, you're an engineer?" Taron asked as he finally got the lock to respond and the compartment door raised. "Here." He handed her the wailing, bundled robot.

"He would like this." Katilynn said as she unwrapped the blanket. "I'm a bio-mechanical engineer. I specialized in miniaturization and robotics. I programmed him to be more responsive to his environment. A training aid for both medical types and childhood behavioral psychologists, and I was working on tiny solar cells to help him recharge from any light source available."

She slid a finger under his arm and hit the button. "I didn't have him turning on by himself. Someone's been messing with him. Damn it! My tools. I don't have my tools." Frustration and fury colored her words.

"I have a small tool kit with me. You can have it." Taron offered. "It should be in the pile of stuff we have in the shelter."

"Thank you!" Katilynn threw her arms around him and hugged him hard. "Thank you so much!" She tucked Gus against her belly, cradling him as if he were a baby. "This is where he thrived. Contact and warmth. He hated being cold. I was trying to make him as realistic as possible. I could even get him to heat up like he had a fever and show sensitivity to pressure at certain places on his body." Her enthusiasm for her work came through in her animated words.

"Yeah, I figured the cold thing out. He was happier as soon as Taron wrapped him up." Lorelei said with a wry smile.

"Gus is a very special robot then," Taron added.

"A prototype. And I had a military grant for some of the sensors and the miniature solar cells. The plans are secured in the lab at Texas A and M. Or they were. Now I don't have a clue." She kicked the sand, as she spoke.

Lorelei made a snap decision and said, "The guys Taron has coming to rescue us, day after tomorrow are military special ops. On leave from what he's told me. Mooch and Sparks need to know about this."

"No kidding," Taron responded. "This gets more complicated by the second. Let's get our stuff up to your shelter. We should be able to carry what we have if we split it up between us."

"Exactly. I need to get into Gus and see what's been done to him." Katilynn squeezed the little robot against her side.

"This way," Lorelei said as she went around the life raft. "You can't miss your call time with Sparks, Taron."