Crystal Prophecy by Monica McCabe

Author:Monica McCabe [McCabe, Monica]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Atlantis, young adult, adventure, amazon rainforest, expedition, lost city, prophecy, lost legends
Publisher: Monica McCabe
Published: 2023-09-30T22:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 20

WE’D CLIMBED OUT OF the cavern using knotted vines that Reti and Som had made while we played cave explorer. Going up was way harder than falling in, but the jungle ropes proved our guides were the best in the Amazon as far as I was concerned.

When reunited with my pack, I stealthily secured the mask inside, right next to the blind lady’s amulet. I seemed to be collecting artifacts like trading cards.

In quick order, Mom had us on the march again.

We hit the trail and followed a stream until the sun dropped below the horizon, then got lucky and landed a primo camping spot, one with plenty of available water and a protective perimeter of towering kapok trees with thick-hanging vines.

“It had to be yesterday’s heavy rain,” Doc said as he dropped his backpack to the ground. “It loosened the soil and caused the cave-in.”

“We were standing in the wrong place at the right time,” Scott agreed. “Pure luck.”

“Not luck,” I said. “Fate.”

I don’t know when it happened, but I began to believe we were meant to fall in, to find the temple and the mask. The earth-shattering kiss was a special bonus. The possibility of another in the future messed with my concentration.

Still, who was I to doubt the wisdom of kismet?

“I’m going with luck,” Scott replied. “And hope it lasts long enough for Reti and Som to catch us a bucketload of fish for dinner.”

So much for the romance of fate. I glanced over at the stream, desperate for a bath and the luxury of five minutes alone to savor the memory of my first kiss, free of dust and dirt and mental wrangling. I should also contemplate why I’ve been chosen to be a goddess’s protector against evil. I’m clearly unqualified and terrified at the prospect.

I dug through my pack, grabbed a fresh change of clothes and my apricot shampoo.

“Going swimming?” Leave it to Scott to zero in on another bath.

“I have dirt in my hair, rocks in my shoes, and cave slime growing between my fingers. Darn straight I’m going swimming.”

He peered upstream where our guides disappeared a few moments ago. “Isn’t Reti fishing for piranha in that stream?”

“Yeah. What of it?”

He snorted. “You’re an adrenaline junkie, aren’t you? Sailing the Amazon, exploring underground rivers, swimming with piranha.”

“Hardly,” I said with an eye roll. “There are two kinds of piranha. The kind we eat and the kind that eat you.”

Scott looked to the stream and back. “You’re saying the kind here are harmless?”

Mom came up then, holding her own fresh clothing. “I wouldn’t say harmless, but they’ll leave us alone long enough for a bath. Mind if I join you?” she asked me.

I sighed in resignation. Time alone was clearly off the table.

“I’ll grab my swimsuit and catch up with you,” Scott said.

That was it. Nothing to do but head downstream.

We didn’t have to go far; no more than twenty yards away we found easy access to water. It boasted a fallen tree with branches to keep our clothes off the ground.

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