Survival
The waves crashed against the ocean’s shore while the moon cascaded along the beach, creating a breathtaking vision. She was exhausted; Mei stood by her husband with their sleeping son in her arms.
It was after midnight, and the seventy-two hours of traveling had drained them.
They’d flown on a private jet to a small island off the coast of South Africa. From there, they boarded a luxury cruise ship for a full day and a half of smooth seas. Security guards woke them in the middle of the night. And led to a helicopter, which had brought them to this deserted shore on this faraway, private island.
Now, as they stood on the sand and waited for an instructor to walk them to a dorm for the night, Max looked at the gentle waves, his mind miles away.
“Stop frowning, Max,” Mei nudges him with her elbow. “We belong here.”
This was the last place he wanted to be, but for the past year, Mei had insisted on attending this faraway college. Max felt confident his father had persuaded her to make this decision. He’d always wanted them to go to this college.
“Do you know what coming here means?”
He knew the speech by heart:
King Solomon University. An elite private college had been founded in 1952 by Maximilian Martinez, Jr., and had remained hidden from the public for over 58 years. The Martinez family will always be the founders and respected as the organization’s leaders. Nine families, including Maximilian's, Koroma's, Pennington's, Jameson's, Sizemoore's, Ortiz's, Witfield's, Eagelfeather's, and Hamptons', formed a school board. Each family had at least one member who attended all meetings.
Mei continued his thought, saying the university was created for those who want to
learn spiritual warfare and King Solomon's wisdom. “The wisest man to have ever lived.”
Max knew the college offered the same classes as any top-notch college, only with a difficult location to reach. The only way board members could ensure the school remained secret was to make it difficult to find. They’d also paid large amounts of money to maintain the college’s privacy.
The island had nine private vacation homes, one for each board member’s family. In the middle of the island, the college had many large buildings and amenities students could need.
“I know you have some reservations, but I’m happy you finally gave in.”
Max offered her a dry smile.
She always knew how to make him say ‘yes,’ which drove him crazy.
“Let me take him. You look tired,” Max said, walking towards his wife and picking up his sleeping son.
“Okay.” Mei looked past the shore and through the forest to see lights far off in the distance.
“Should we walk over there, or should we wait?”
An image of the security guard yelling at them moments earlier to stay put on the island replayed in Max’s mind. “No, let’s just stay here.”
“What if nobody shows? How do they know we’re here?” Mei asked as she pulled her backpack off her shoulders, letting it hit the sand with a muffled thud.
“Yeah, well, you’re the one who wanted to be here, Mei. Welcome,”
“You’re still mad?” Mei whips her head around to face him.
Max instantly regretted his comment. In no mood to argue, he rolled his eyes and sighed. “All I’m saying is that this is what I was trying to tell you. This is not your regular college. I love my grandfather, but the man was crazy. This school will challenge you on every level.”
“Don’t you think that’s important?” Mei said.
“Babe, please; not now, not here.”
“If not now, then when? Makayla said you should never go to bed angry.”
“Look around you, babe. Do you see a bed?”
“Oh, we’re doing this?” Mei glares at him.
Max knew exactly what she meant. He laughed, remembering the quiet Mei of a year ago. Now he had created a monster. “Come here. I don’t want to fight, but yes, I’m mad about being here,” he admitted.
Mei stood her ground, visibly still upset by his comment. “Shouldn’t someone be here by now?” She changed the subject and turned away from him.
Max got the message and dropped the matter. “Dad told me they might do this.” Max pulled the baby bag off his shoulders and dropped it on the sand.
“Let’s make a bed for our little angel and gather some wood to make a fire.”
“What? Why? I thought someone would be coming.” Mei said.
“Okay, welcome to crazy land. This, my dear, is your first class. Survival 101 or one-on-one, depending on how the night goes.”
Mei bit down on a laugh but couldn’t stop the giggle that escaped her lips. “Max, they just said.”
“I was standing right next to you. Dad said they might do this...leave us stranded for a night, just to see how we handle the situation.”
Mei frowned, and her lips tugged into a worried line as she looked at their son sleeping in his father’s arms. She felt terrible for forcing Max to come here. Although she had been warned by everyone of the hardship, they’d face on the island. Max and Mei had also been told that if they could survive the next four years here, nothing would be impossible for them. That’s what inspired her to attend this college. She understood what they were up against spiritually. She wanted to make sure they would handle anything that came their way.
“Hey, together, we can do what?” Max said, attempting to rally her up.
“Anything,” Mei mumbles, looking around nervously.
“Sit down, babe, and hold Uriel. I’ll go get a fire started,” Max instructed.
Mei sat on the sand while Max laid Uriel in her arms. “Max, I’m sorry.”
Max looked into her eyes, lifted her chin, and kissed her lips. “I love you. This is where you want to be. I just can’t help but want to protect you from the world.”
“Sweetie, you can’t.”
“I know, but I will die trying.” Max stood and walked off into the darkness.
“So stubborn,” Mei spoke under her breath as she brushed a curl away from Uriel’s face. She leaned over to kiss her son’s forehead and nuzzled her nose against his cheek.
Max returned with dry, old wood and palm fronds thirty minutes later. He dropped everything and headed back into the woods to retrieve more. Max made several trips to gather firewood and then came back with two logs to build a shelter. He started a fire while Mei tended to a now awake Uriel, cranky from the long trip. Max worked quickly to build a temporary shelter. They used Uriel’s baby blankets and various clothes to make a comfortable bed for the three of them.
Max watched his wife as she put their son to sleep. He enjoyed seeing the gentle, motherly affection she showered on the boy. It was soothing for him, making him wonder sometimes who was really being put to sleep.
Drenched in sweat from working so feverishly, Max took off his shirt. “I’m going to go rinse off.”
He walked towards the ocean and dove in. After a quick dip in the cool saltwater, Max returned to find Mei and the baby missing. Maybe she needed to relieve herself, Max thought. He fought the urge to go looking for her. Max knew he was overprotective and didn’t want to drive her away. He’d promised himself he would back off.
He sat in the sand, trying to change his focus, when he heard Mei scream. His heart pounding, he bolted up and ran toward her scream. Tearing through the foliage as he entered the forest, he yelled her name until she answered back.
“Max, don’t come any farther!” Mei screamed. She stood motionless on the edge of a saltwater marsh, her son gripped tightly in her arms.
“What’s going on?”
Mei didn’t want to answer him. She didn’t want to tell him she’d just been bitten by a snake, and she was sure an alligator had his eyes on her. “Um… just trust me, Max.”
“That in no way answered my question!”
Mei took a nervous step backward, and the alligator quickly crawled onto the bank, coming into Max's view. He panicked and swiftly made his way behind the alligator, jumping on its back and closing its open jaw.
“Mei run!”
“Max, no!”
“Don’t argue with me. Go back to the camp!” Max struggled with the alligator.
Mei tightly held onto Uriel as she took off for the beach. Tears blinded her as she ran into the clearing. Uriel cried in all the excitement, and she could not console him. Mei fell to her knees and prayed
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