The Star Dunes by Trudi Trueit

Author:Trudi Trueit [Trueit, Trudi]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: National Geographic Society
Published: 2020-03-17T00:00:00+00:00

WHEN CRUZ AWOKE, the bed across from him was empty.

Ali’s bathroom door was open, and the light was off. Cruz pressed his call button three times. He tugged on his slipper socks, not caring they were inside out, and hurried to glue himself to the glass door. A figure was approaching, a blond man wearing a gray short-sleeved V-neck shirt and matching pants. No mask. No gloves. No hazmat suit. Once he was through the first door, Cruz got a look at his badge: B. Gunnar, R.N. The nurse pressed the speaker outside of Cruz’s room, and a deep voice said, “Good morning. What can I get you for breakfast?”

“Where’s Ali?” cried Cruz. “What’s going on? Is he sick?”

“Ali is fine,” drawled Gunnar. “He woke up early, had breakfast, and we sent him on his way. Doc says you can go, too, once you’ve had something to eat.”

“So then…” Cruz put a hand to his chest. “I’m all right?”

“Right as rain.” As if to prove it, Gunnar tapped the keypad, and the door separating them slid open.

It was true. Cruz really was free!

“And Bryndis?” Cruz held his breath.

“Nothing to report, I’m afraid,” answered Gunnar. “But don’t read too much into that. We won’t hear any details unless her family gives Dr. Hightower permission to share them.”

Cruz gave a nod. He caught a glimpse of the time on his OS band. It was 8:29. “Uh-oh. I’m missing class.”

“No, you’re not,” said Gunnar. “With Professor Ishikawa and the five of you in here and Professor Benedict and four other explorers down with colds, Taryn thought it was best to postpone classes for today. Now, let’s try this again. What would you like for breakfast?”

Cruz ordered scrambled eggs and toast but couldn’t seem to manage more than a few bites of either. He was washing down breakfast with some ice-cold milk when, through the hazy bottom of his glass, a dark-haired figure in pink appeared.

His glass hit the tray with a crash. “Aunt Marisol!”

Cruz shoved the rolling tray table away. Before he could even get off the bed, she was next to him, her arms around him. His aunt held him tight and far longer than usual. She released him. “You’re all right?”

“Yep. Perfect.”

“Professor Ishikawa told me what happened at Bwindi. You actually ran into the meadow under the cover of your shadow badge to bring out Bryndis?”

“With Shristine and Felipe,” he added.

His aunt chuckled. “What are you, some kind of superhero?”

“I’m not a hero, Aunt Marisol. The truth is…what happened with Bryndis…I could have prevented it.”

She pulled back. “I don’t understand.”

“I knew Bryndis wasn’t feeling good. She tried to pretend everything was okay, but I could see it wasn’t…” He wrung his hands. “She was so excited to see the gorillas, and I…I thought if something was really wrong, her OS band would alert Taryn.”

“It should have,” said his aunt. “Unfortunately, we were having trouble getting any readings from your bands. I don’t know if it was the distance, elevation, or a

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