20
Teuila sat against the knobby walls of her hut with her hands tied behind her back, staring angrily into Manaia's eyes. He returned her gaze with equal intensity, as his lips curled into a menacing sneer. His eyes darted over her exposed body, taking particular interest in her loincloth wrapped tightly around her hips and waist.
She lifted her knees and pressed them against her chest, folding her arms around her legs. The idea of Manaia violating her made her sick to her stomach. Beyond the fact that she was madly in love with Jade, there'd always been something sinister about him that gave her the creeps.
"What do you want with me?" she asked in her native Samoan tongue.
"What makes you think I need anything from you right now?" he said.
"The way you're looking at me, for one thing. I've seen that look on men's faces before. I'm never going to let you touch me like that."
"We'll see about that," Manaia snickered, glancing back down in the direction of her crotch. "We'll soon be married and you'll have no other choice. And this time you won't be able to run off with your girlfriend. We'll either find her soon or she'll perish in the jungle. Without you looking after her, she'll die of starvation or get bitten by another snake. Either way, there's no way you're going to escape this time."
Teuila huffed at Manaia, realizing he had no idea just how well equipped Jade was to survive in the jungle with her newfound skills. As long as she could evade the search dragnet currently underway, she should have no difficulty looking after herself until Te' could make her way back to their lagoon.
"You could never satisfy me like she does," Teuila taunted. "You men are only good for two things. Making war and making babies. And I have no interest in either of your plans. Her friends will soon come back for her and when they do, you'll never see me again."
"I wouldn't be so sure about that," Manaia said. "Her tiny crew will no match for our tribe of warriors. We'll be ready for them if they return, then remove any sign they'd ever been here."
Teuila thinned her eyes as she studied Manaia's face. Although her father was no fan of Western interlopers, she knew it wasn't his style to kill outside visitors. As chief of the village, Manaia and the others were still bound to follow his commands.
"My father would never do that," she said. "You know as well as he, that that would just invite more external aggression."
"Only if the outsiders have reason to suspect foul play. We have plenty of ways to conceal any evidence of visitation to our island. And besides, your father won't be chief for much longer. Soon, I'll be the one calling the shots."
Teuila squeezed her eyes together, unsure what he was alluding to. But right now, she had bigger concerns. She needed to warn her father of the impending attack and make sure Jade got to safety. She'd worry about Manaia later. The smirk on his face soon disappeared when the flap covering her hut's front door swung open and her father stormed into the hut.
"Where is she?!" he shouted angrily, standing over his daughter.
"Who?" Teuila said coyly.
"The Western woman! She can't have gotten far and you must know her hiding places. Tell me now!"
"I honestly don't know," Teuila said. "But you have more important matters to be concerned with right now. The Tuange tribe is planning to attack our village tomorrow night. You need to prepare our defenses or take preemptive action."
The chief stepped back, placing his fists on his hips.
"How do you know this?" he asked.
"I overheard their warriors discussing their plans when I followed one of their scouting missions back to their camp. They intend to steal the women and children and kill all of our men. You have to act quickly."
Manaia suddenly stood up and stepped toward me with an angry expression on his face.
"She's lying!" he said. "She's just making up this crazy story to distract our attention while she tries to escape again. We need to focus ou
r manpower on making sure she doesn't get away. What she's been doing with that fair-skinned woman is an abomination."
"Shut up!" the chief said, turning toward Manaia, thrusting his hand against his chest. "I make the decisions around here, and we need to listen to Teuila's warning. I know what the Tuange is capable of, and we cannot take any chances at being ill-prepared."
Teuila's father swung back around and looked sternly into his daughter's eyes.
"Did they say if they planned to attack by land or sea? Were they the ones who burned our canoes?"
Teuila looked at her father with a confused expression and shook her head.
“They didn't mention anything about destroying our canoes. I got the impression they were going to wait for the full moon before they struck out for our camp. What do you intend to do, father?"
The chief stood for a long moment pondering his options, then motioned to Manaia.