Now in the clearing, nearly a dozen people waited. Cate studied the men; none of them had any resemblance to Rich Causey. She tamped down her disappointment.
Rich wouldn’t come to see a doctor.
On the hike in, Cate had glimpsed some large tents linked together deep in the woods and an assortment of chairs and rusted barbecues set up near the tents. Tarps stretched between the trees, offering more cover. Cate wondered if all the residents lived in tents or if some had fashioned any homes out of wood. The docks were proof that some sort of construction had happened on the island at one point. Here in the clearing were a few chairs and large logs that had been dragged to surround a firepit. It was clearly a central meeting place of some sort.
Cate counted three guns tucked into holsters on the other residents and wondered how many weapons she couldn’t see. Where there’s a gun, always assume there’s another. No one looked upset to see Henry and Cate. In fact, several looked quite eager.
“Shit,” Henry said. “Look at his leg.”
The calf of one of the waiting men was swollen to nearly twice the size of his other. Somehow he had acquired an actual medical crutch and leaned heavily on it as he watched them approach. Cate made eye contact with the two women who were present and nodded. Neither was Ashlee Garnet.
Is this a wild-goose chase?
She hoped Tessa and Logan were having better luck.
Henry headed straight for the man with the bad leg, and Cate carried her box over to the women. She’d thought carefully about what to pack to break the ice, knowing she would probably need to gain a bit of trust before anyone would answer her questions. Both women appeared to be in their thirties. One was thin and wore stained jeans. The other wore navy yoga pants with a hole in the knee. They both had expressions of curiosity, their gazes locked on the large box Cate carried.
“Good morning,” Cate said. “I’m with Dr. Powers, and we’re just checking in to see if anyone has any health needs on the island.”
“What’s in the box?” asked the woman in yoga pants.
“Women’s sanitary products and—”
“I’ll take some of those,” the woman said immediately, and the thin one nodded, her face lighting up. “The men will never buy those on supply runs.”
“They’re chicken,” said the thin woman, rolling her eyes. “Also claim it’s a waste of money.”
Cate had suspected basic women’s care would be much-needed products.
She squatted as she set down the box and unslung a large bag from her shoulder. She dug out a few packages of pads and tampons, which the women eagerly took. “Any medical issues you’d like to talk to Dr. Powers about?” Cate asked as she also gave each one a bottle of generic acetaminophen and a box of Band-Aids.
“Nah. Healthy as a horse,” said the thin woman. The other nodded in agreement.
Cate thought they both looked run down and exhausted but didn’t argue. “What about the other women who didn’t come. What do they need?”
The thin woman shrugged and didn’t meet Cate’s eyes. “What else do you got?” she asked.
Cate gave her some of the topical antibiotic cream. “I’ve got prenatal vitamins,” Cate said. “Children’s vitamins too.”
“No kids on the island,” said yoga pants.
“That’s good,” said Cate. “Anyone pregnant?”
The women exchanged a glance and didn’t answer.
I’ll take that as a yes.
“She doing okay with the pregnancy?” Cate asked, even though the women hadn’t confirmed. “I’m sure she’d benefit from some vitamins at the very least. I brought antacids too. According to my friends who’ve been pregnant, these are like gold.”