Violet didn't know how she let Jane talk her into this crazy idea. Traveling in
a tiny, wooden canoe down a muddy river in the Amazon. All because Jane's cousin knew a girl who knew a big secret.
The River Goddess--waker of dreams. The whole idea was insane. She must have been really bored with her life to go along with this scheme.
Whatever lay beneath her acceptance, she had also been looking forward to it. As she stared at the verdant jungle growth and listened to
the calls of exotic animals, Violet questioned her decision, as she had many times while en route to South America.
Sure, when she had been cloistered in a cozy hotel in Manaus, Brazil, it had been dreamy. The food was delicious, and the setting
breathtakingly beautiful. Even the trip to the large metropolis had been easy--a slow ride on a large ship. Manaus had a large port,
which made getting to the interior relatively smooth. Although, once she left with a small native guide down the Amazon River,
civilization had fallen quickly behind. And her sense of safety and comfort were completely shot.
What was I thinking? She didn't know the guide. Although he acted respectful and confident, his stolid silence made her nervous.
It didn't help that he was the contact she was told to get in touch with. He spoke broken English, but spent most of his time scanning
the jungle overgrowing the bank, and guiding the tiny craft past uprooted tree branches floating in the dark water.
Violet sighed. Maybe she was being too harsh. Caio seemed to be doing what he was hired to do--take her to a sacred, secret
location--to the River Goddess.
But was that where they were headed? He could sell her into slavery for all she knew, or as dinner to a cannibalistic tribe. Violet
shivered in the sweltering heat. Her imagination was going wild, but she couldn't help it.
It was not the smartest decision for a woman to be traveling alone with a native to some unknown destination. Maybe that was part of
the reason for her impulsive decision. Violet's life was ordered. She was a career woman, her business and home life organized. Pigeon
holed.
The riskiest thing she'd ever done was in college, when she attended a frat party with a friend and got drunk. Whoopee. No wonder Jane
said she led a boring life.
When her friend had broached this secretive adventure, maybe she was ready for something different. Her fantasy life was rich and often
bizarre. But what she wanted from the River Goddess seemed just as nutty as her being here now.
She didn't know how many hours Caio paddled the boat efficiently along, for she snoozed off a few times. Violet also lost track of how
many tributaries he turned down. How he could know where they were, she didn't have a clue, but he acted like he knew the way quite well.
Finally, by early afternoon, he grunted they had arrived.
As Caio nosed the canoe onto a small, cleared embankment, a troupe of monkeys screamed overhead, displeased with their presence. Violet
gasped when she spied a large snake draped over a branch.
"Python, no bother," Caio commented.
He picked up a small pack from the canoe. "You go one hundred yards that way." He pointed down river.
"By myself." Her voice screeched and the monkeys reacted with chattering screams.
"River Goddess must be seen alone."
That's right, she'd forgotten the instructions. Her heart plummeted to her stomach. As much as Caio had made her edgy, the thought
of going alone made her queasy.
Giving him a last glance, Violet pushed the canoe off and stepped in carefully. The pulse in her neck beat wildly as she watched the
bank recede further and further away. It was as if the land were creeping backward from the tiny boat.
Actually, a slight current tugged the craft toward the middle. Taking the paddle, Violet directed it where Caio had pointed. If she
hadn't already had experience with canoes, Violet didn't think she could have kept the small craft upright. It had horrible balance, at
least compared to the larger canoes she was used to.
Violet realized he hadn't even told her exactly what she was looking for. There was supposed to be a statue. But where? And would she
see it, with the jungle closing in all directions, around her?
With a shudder her eyes flitted around the muddy water as she paddled. Was this part of the river filled with crocs? They'd seen quite
a few on the way here. She just better not lose her balance and fall in. The water was infested with all kind of nasty critters. Leeches
came to mind, then piranha. Oh lord, what did I get myself into?
