The Swiss Family RobinZOM (6 page)

“
How are we looking?”
Bill said.

Jack and Francis sat on a
branch with a good view of the encroaching jungle. They were
attaching arrowheads and goose feathers to sticks.

“
We’re all clear,” Jack
said.

“
Strange to think they’re
on their way here now, isn’t it?” Liz said.

“
But they are,” Bill
said. “And we need to be ready.”

He took another pull of water,
picked up his shovel and started to dig again.

“
When you said a short
you break, you weren’t kidding,” Liz said.

Eleven

Jack climbed a coconut
tree.
His small hands found handholds
where a man could not even fit his toe. Twenty feet up, he looked
out at the jungle. A flock of rainbow-coloured parrots flew over
the treetops. In one hand he held a long stick. He reached over and
hit a coconut. It fell to the ground on a bed of soft moss.
Observing what Jack was doing, Nip leapt into open air and grabbed
hold of the base of a broad leaf. He seized the coconuts and tossed
them to the ground.

“
Good boy, Nip!” Jack
said.

“
Is that all of them?”
Ernest said from the ground.

“
Yes,” Jack
said.

Ernest bent down to start
picking up the coconuts.

“
Oh no, wait,” Jack said.
“There’s one more.”

Jack swung his stick and
struck the remaining coconut. It fell and landed inches from
Ernest’s head. He leapt back.

“
Are you insane?” he
said.

“
Sorry,” Jack said with a
chuckle.

Jack dropped his stick,
which fell a few inches to Ernest
’s other
side, and descended to the ground. He sat down cross legged beside
Ernest. They began tying the vines together into a latticework of
squares, forming a large net. They laid it out flat on the ground
and put the coconuts inside it.

“
Jack,” Ernest said. “Do
you think you could carry this vine up to that branch?”

Jack
didn
’t respond.

“
Don’t pretend like you
can’t hear me,” Ernest said. “Your deaf ear is on the other
side.”

Jack smiled.

“
There’s no fooling you,
is there?” he said.

Jack
took to the tree, scaling it as fast as a monkey. He got to
the branch Ernest had pointed at.

“
Now what?” Jack
said.

“
Now loop the vine over
the branch and throw it down to me,” Ernest said.

Jack
did
. Ernest took hold of the dangling
vine and pulled, but the net full of coconuts would not rise off
the ground. Ernest hauled the vine with all his weight, but it
wasn’t enough. Jack thumped his chest with his fists and went,
“A-AH-AH-AH AHHHH!” He leapt into free air and grabbed hold of the
vine. Adding his weight to Ernest’s made the coconut net rise to
the upper branches of the tree. They tied the vine to a large
rock.

“
Can you talk to the
animals too?” Ernest said to Jack. “Because that would be a huge
help.”

Jack flinched, and cupped a
hand over his ear.

“
It’s hurting again?”
Ernest said. “Go to Mum and get your medicine.”

“
I’ll be all right,” Jack
said.

“
Go,” Ernest said in a
stern voice leaving no room for argument. “Now.”

“
All right, all right,”
Jack said. “Mr Bossy.”

Twelve

Fritz
hacked at the base of a nambu tree while Ernest held a hand
to his chin in thoughtful repose.

“
I think we should chop a
bit more on this side,” Ernest said.

Fritz changed position
and chopped
where Ernest
suggested.

“
Now a little on this
side,” Ernest said.

Fritz shot Ernest a look, who
held up his hands.

“
We want to get this
right, don’t we?” Ernest said.

Fritz hacked at the tree.
It leaned to one side, creaked ominously, and
then began to fall. When it hit the ground it struck
another tree that had been felled. They lay against one another,
with no space to squeeze through. Ernest grinned.

“
Not bad aye?” he
said.

“
Shut up and give me a
hand with the next one,” Fritz said. “Dad wants this done by
tonight.”

“
Begin chopping here,”
Ernest said.

“
You’re a born
supervisor, did you know that?”

“
Know it, and love
it.”

J
ack and Francis ran out with their own axes and hacked at
the felled tree’s branches. They dragged them toward the holes and
dumped them inside. In the hole, Bill and Liz chopped the branches
into two foot-long segments, and then shaved one end to form a
sharp point. They buried these in the floor of the hole, the points
facing up. Then they climbed out of the hole and covered it with
broad leaves. The Robinson family came together.

“
It’s getting late,” Liz
said. “I’m going to go get the dinner on. What does everyone
want?”

“
Pork,” Fritz
said.

“
Chicken,” Ernest
said.

“
Steak,” Bill
said.

“
Ice cream!” Francis
said.

“
Salad!” Jack
said.

“
Shouldn’t we all have
the same thing, like usual?” Ernest said. “To reduce
waste.”

“
Tomorrow is a special
day,” Liz said. “I’ll cook you all whatever you want.”

“
What’re you going to
have?” Bill said.

Liz shrugged.

“
I’m going to have a bit
of each of yours,” she said. “I’m taking Francis with
me.”

Liz took Francis by the
hand and
led him in the direction of
Falcon’s Nest.

“
We’d best get back to
it,” Bill said. “Let’s finish building this corridor, and then you
boys can call it a day.”

“
Not for you?” Fritz
said.

“
No,” Bill said. “I have
one more thing to do tonight.”

Thirteen

Bill plucked the wire. It
was tight
, drawn taut between two nambu
trees. He turned, walked fifty paces and plucked another wire. It
too was tight. A twig snapped. Bill turned, machete ready. But
nothing materialised. He walked backwards, stepping over a third
wire. There was another sound, like crushed autumn leaves. Bill
turned to face it. Again, nothing. He picked up three spools, each
attached to a different piece of wire. He climbed onto Lightfoot
the donkey’s back, and began to trot away. The wire unfurled from
the spools and stretched across the jungle like telephone
lines.

Fourteen

The family sat round the
dining table. They had moved it outside
onto the courtyard to enjoy the dying sunlight. It was a
cool night, and the fireflies came out to dance about their heads,
adding a sense of enchantment. Liz put on an amazing spread with so
much food they couldn’t fit it all on one table, and had to reach
over to a second table if they wanted pork or mashed
potatoes.

“
This is a verifiable
feast, Mum,” Ernest said.

“
It’s a special day
tomorrow,” Liz said. “I wanted to celebrate.”

“
We’re certainly doing
that,” Fritz said.

He reached for the peas.
His arm jerked, and he grunted with pain. He rubbed his muscles.
Bill picked up his fork, and then dropped it. He massaged his
wrist.

“
I see we’re all in great
shape,” Liz said.

“
Before we eat,” Bill
said, “I thought we could say a few words.”

He extended his hands to Fritz,
who sat on his right, and Ernest on his left.

“
Are you serious?” Ernest
said.

“
We used to do it all the
time before we got shipwrecked on this island,” Bill
said.

“
That was another
life.”

“
It’s important to pray
to God before tomorrow.”

“
I don’t believe in God,”
Ernest said.

“
Then do it for me,” Bill
said.

Ernest sighed,
grumbled, and then held his father’s hand.
Everyone else followed suit and bowed their heads.

“
Father,” Bill said. “I
know it’s been a while since we last spoke to you, but we never
forgot you. We’re in need of your help, O Lord. You brought us to
this island of safety, and we are truly thankful. And we are also
thankful for the five months of peace you afforded us. Please
protect us during this, our darkest hour. Protect my family, for
they are good honest believers in you.”

Ernest cleared his throat.

“
Thank you for all your
kindness,” Bill said. “Amen.”

The
family
, including a half-hearted whisper
from Ernest, chorused: “Amen.”

“
Can we eat now?” Ernest
said. “Or shall we pray to the sun and the rocks as
well?”

“
We can eat,” Bill
said.

Everyone dug in.

Fifteen

“
I ate so much I’m not
sure if the winch can take me,” Fritz said, holding his stomach in
his hands.

“
You’d better go up last,
then,” Ernest said, reaching for the winch to their treehouse.
“Because I’m going to sleep like a log tonight.”

“
I’ll give you a hand
with the washing up,” Bill said to Liz, who was stacking the
plates.

“
It’s okay,” Liz said.
“Let’s just leave it on the table. I’ll do it tomorrow.”

“
What about the
leftovers?”

“
We’ll keep the meat, but
you can give the vegetables to the animals.”

Bill piled the leftover
vegetables onto a plate and went around the corner to the animal
pens. He went to the pig trough and slid the food into it. The pigs
made quick work of it. Then he opened the gates to all the pens and
ushered the animals out. He led the goats
and sheep out by their collars and the cows by their bells.
With Valiant the bull, he was more cautious, and left him to make
his own way out. He left Lightfoot in his stall, the door closed.
Bill shut the gates behind the other animals to prevent their
return. He clapped his hands and made loud noises, startling the
animals into running into the jungle that backed onto Falcon’s
Nest.

He went back around to
the front of the treehouse and found Liz wasn
’t there. He held onto the winch, and pulled himself up. He
stepped into the treehouse. Installed on the handrail of the
balcony were three steel bells of a similar design to those found
in old manor houses answered by serving men. Bill tugged on the
wire that led off into the jungle. He shut the swing
doors.

Liz was in the bedroom in
her nightclothes: a baggy T-shirt and shorts.
She was pinning her hair back, looking into the full-length
mirror. She was a beauty, Bill reflected. Her natural dark hair had
been bleached to a lighter tone by the sun, bringing out the
sparkle of her green eyes. The continuous activities in maintaining
the home had kept her in as good a shape as a woman ten years her
junior. Bill approached her from behind and wrapped his arms around
her. She held his arms as they rocked side to side. He kissed her
on the neck and nuzzled her ear. She turned around and kissed him
on the lips. It was slow, close, and sensual. He felt like she was
trying to pass meaning through it to him.

“
Shall we go to bed?”
Bill said.

Liz shook her head.

“
Why?” Bill
said.

“
It’ll feel like it’s the
last time,” Liz said. “I don’t want it to feel like
that.”

“
It will be the last
time,” Bill said, nodding. “The last time we do it with an island
full of Lurchers.”

Liz smiled, and leaned
her head
against Bill’s chest. He kissed
her, and then led her toward the bed.

Six
teen

Ernest sat
in the corner with a candle reading
Around the World in Eighty
Days
, clinging to it like it were a life
raft. Fritz stroked the top of Beauty’s head with a feather. She
had her eyes closed and was drifting to sleep. Jack sat with Nip in
his lap, stroking his hair. Ernest looked up from his
book.

“
Are you scared about
tomorrow?” Ernest said.

“
No,” Fritz said.
“You?”

“
No. Jack?”

“
Nuh-uh,” Jack
said.

There was a pause.

“
I’m scared,” Francis
said.

“
You don’t need to be
scared,” Fritz said, wrapping an arm around him. “You’ve got three
big brothers to take care of you.”

“
But who’ll take care of
you?” Francis said.

“
Mum and Dad.”

“
Who’ll take care of
them?”

“
You will.”

That made
Francis smile.