far up the beach, we move to higher ground. Youâll be in the last one there with the empty bed and Ari.â
âWhatâs an Ari?â
âYour roommate.â
They passed several huts. Cam could see that they were solid one-room structures, not makeshift or rickety. Each was slightly differentâall built by handâbut they appeared to be roughly the same size, and about the dimensions of the living room in the house he was supposed to be renting with his friends at the university. Farther up the beach and wedged against the bluff was a large square building built from cinder blocks, with narrow openings instead of windows. It seemed to be the central and primary structure in the compound. Its stark, angular gray walls contrasted with the vibrant and textured green jungle behind it and the churning blue water before it. It reminded Cam of a jail with arrow slits.
Beyond the block building lay a natural lagoon with shallow, calm water protected from the open sea. Cam strode past the drab structure to the lagoon edge, curious. The pool was light blue, like the sky, and so clear that, as they approached, Cam could see flashes of color darting between the rocks that dotted the sand on the bottom.
âFish!â He stared for a time, fascinated.
Ward chuckled. âYes, they come with the ocean.â He tapped Cam on the shoulder and motioned him back toward the compound. âLetâs go. You can come back and visit them during off time or during hunter-gatherer sessions, if you feel like sushi.â
Cam followed Ward, wondering what hunter-gatherer sessions were. He didnât ask. There was too much to take in. Past the lagoon, the north end of the beach was hemmed in by more cliffs. Cam noted that these appeared impossible to climb, as they were worn completely smooth, with few visible hand or footholds.
As they walked back toward the main building, a cluster of small, orange monkeys appeared on the roof and began hopping up and down, chattering among themselves and watching them come, like excited fans in bleachers.
âThey want food,â Ward explained. âThe irony is they are food. They just donât know it yet.â
âAre you saying we eat monkey?â
âIf youâre hungry.â
âIâm not hungry.â
âYou will be.â Ward laughed again.
Cam was disturbed by how often Ward laughed. Not everything he laughed about was funny. If someone told Ward heâd just stepped on a jaguarâs tail, heâd laugh about that too, Cam thought. Although, heâd probably also know exactly what to do and wind up with jaguar-skin gloves he crafted himself. Maybe thatâs why he was laughingâhe knew what he was doing. Cam, on the other hand, had no clue.
âWhen do I meet the others?â
âHow about now?â
âOkay.â Cam waited, but Ward didnât take him to the big building. âUh, where are they?â
âAll around us.â
Cam turned. He saw no one.
âYouâre fast, right, Cam?â
âReasonably.â
âDo you think you can get back to your condo without getting tagged?â
âTagged? Like touched?â
âSomething like that.â
âLast hut on the end?â
âYep. Ready?â
It was a game. A test. A something. Cam scanned the beach. He still didnât see anyone. âSure.â
âGo!â
Cam began trotting down the beach. He skirted the first of the condos, figuring the others must be hiding inside them. Instead he hugged the bluff on the landward side. He moved quickly, but didnât run at first. He needed to scope things out. With his eyes fixed on the structures, he didnât see the padded pole until it hit him in the head.
The packed sand beach was harder than it looked, and his thoughts were muddled for a moment before he looked up and saw a perfectly camouflaged person separate from the bluff. The figure was male, his age, and