Bell opened her eyes.
Ryan was still sleeping.
She thought back to that morning and how crazy it was.
She gently rubbed his forehead, and his eyes shot open.
He smiled at her.
"Good morning."
She smiled back.
"Good morning. How did you sleep?"
He hesitated for a moment, then looked away.
She put her hand on his cheek to force eye contact.
"Did you have another nightmare?"
He nodded.
She pulled him in for a hug and whispered into his ear.
"Do you want to tell me what happened?"
He took a deep breath.
"She hunted me. You stepped between us… and I ran away."
His voice cracked, as if he were on the verge of tears.
She gave him a soft kiss on the lips.
"You would never run. You're too brave."
At her words, he blushed and looked down.
She held him tighter and, with a smile, decided to confess.
"I know so much about you that I decided to share a secret with you."
Ryan locked eyes with her.
"You don't have to."
With a smile, she ignored him.
"I used to have a crush on Grizzly."
Ryan frowned and sat up.
"Really? What did you see in him?"
She sat up and faced him.
"I grew up around him, and he was always nice to me; it developed from there."
With her face on fire, she continued.
"I asked him out once. He rejected me gently. I understand now that Eena is the perfect woman for him."
Ryan smiled.
"I can only imagine Grizzly's shock. A beautiful girl half his age is asking him out. The cigarette must have fallen out of his mouth."
Bell punched him in the arm.
Ryan doubled over in pain, and Bell tried to help him.
With a smile, Ryan grabbed her wrist and spun her around.
From below, Bell spoke with a smile.
"You think I'm beautiful?"
"Yes."
He kissed her before she could say anything else.
She felt him sigh as there was a knock on the door.
He got up and answered the door.
It was Femur, and he had two cups of coffee on a tray.
"Good morning. I brought some refreshments and news. Breakfast will be served in thirty minutes, and we are five hours away from our destination."
Ryan gave his thanks and went back to Bell.
She was slightly nervous at the idea of breakfast with Ryan and Angelica.
They drank their coffee in silence.
"Isabelle. Is something wrong?"
She was startled from her thoughts.
"I'm a little nervous. I don't know…"
As she trailed off, Ryan put his hand on her shoulder.
"Don't be nervous. I will protect you."
She smiled at him and decided not to correct his misunderstanding.
They both got up and freshened up.
She really liked having him there while she brushed her teeth.
She also liked watching him get ready.
A quick shave, brushing his teeth and tying up his hair.
All these were done while standing perfectly still and were carefully inspected.
His orderly routine was so different from her disorganised one.
When she caught him looking at her, doing her best to tie up her hair, he was smiling.
"Do you like what you see?"
Without missing a beat, he answered.
"Yes."
His quick answer didn't make her feel self-concious.
Normally, a guy would add something on top of an answer.
Like how he would like to see more, or how beautiful she was.
Ryan, on the other hand, would just blurt out the truth and leave it at that.
To her surprise, she liked that blunt honesty.
When she finished, she took his hand and led him outside.
While the two young lovers were getting ready, Angelica was waiting at the table on deck.
She was nervous.
She had told Bell about her past with Ryan and wasn't rejected.
As she sat and waited, her friend approached her.
"Good morning, Angelica."
She smiled and let out a sigh.
"Good morning, Femur."
He placed a cup of coffee in front of her.
She took it and started sipping.
"Angelica. How was your conversation with Miss Bell?"
She smiled.
"It was strange. I told her what I did, and she hugged me. It made me want to help her."
Femur checked his pocket watch.
"Please give me a moment. The others should arrive shortly, and I must get breakfast ready."
Angelica stood up, and Femur gently pushed her down.
"Please sit, I shall get breakfast, and you must save your strength for the mission."
She nodded and stayed quiet.
The view of the Amazon forest would have to do as she waited.
A few minutes later, Ryan and Bell emerged from below deck.
She caught a glimpse of their linked hands.
For a second, she had a vision of her slitting Bell's throat while Ryan watched.
She forced the image back as they sat down.
As they sat down, Bell was the first to speak.
"Good morning, Angelica."
There was no malice in her voice, and that amplified the guilt she felt for her thought.
She nodded quickly.
"Good morning, Bell. Good morning, Ryan."
He just nodded at her.
She was amused when Bell elbowed Ryan.
"Good morning."
They were a cute couple, but she had a hard time fighting back her urge to take Ryan.
Instead of dwelling on those thoughts, she decided to speak about the mission.
"Ryan, what is the plan?"
Ryan was quiet for a moment.
Angelica felt a pang of anger at his hesitation.
She taught him better than this.
After he took a deep breath, he spoke.
"The original plan was for Isabelle to pose as a recruit, while I sneak into the mansion at night."
Angelica nodded.
"No wonder Aleksandar asked me to help."
Ryan shot up.
"What is that supposed to mean!"
Angelica did feel satisfaction at his outburst, but it was replaced by guilt.
She shook off that feeling and spoke.
"You can't infiltrate and take care of Bell at the same time. This way, I can look after her while you focus on the mission."
To her surprise, Ryan sat back down and apologised.
"I am sorry for my outburst."
Angelica saw what inspired this apology.
It was Bell's hand in his.
She was moments away from attacking the couple when she realised what was wrong.
She took out a flask from her pocket and took a big gulp.
The blood Aleksandar gave her went down her throat smoothly.
The thoughts of bloodshed and pain dissolved.
"What was that?"
For a moment, she didn't realise that Bell was speaking to her.
She still had the flask in her hand.
"Oh, this? It is some medicine Aleksandar gave me."
She almost started crying when she saw the concern in Bell's eyes.
"Are you sick? What's wrong?"
Angelica swallowed hard.
"I was… I am sick."
She tapped her forehead.
"I am sick up here, but this helps."
She locked eyes with Ryan.
His face was unreadable.
She hoped he would understand that she was trying.