James Rodriguez

The engine spooled up and the safety briefing played automatically on cabin screens.

No flight attendants, just the cockpit crew behind a closed door.

As we taxied, Emily moved to sit across from me.

You've got questions, she said.

It wasn't a question about the island.

Several about us.

She gestured toward the team.

You're evaluating whether we be liabilities in the field?

I didn't deny it.

Standard procedure for expedition leadership.

She nodded.

I've done 17 field expeditions, including three to remote Pacific islands.

Publish work on cultural migration patterns across Oceania.

My father was an anthropologist who specialized in indigenous knowledge systems.

Before.

She hesitated before switching to administrative work.

I know how to conduct myself in challenging environments.

Your interest in this particular island, the complete absence of human habitation despite its habitability, islands with fresh water, abundant food sources and strategic positions are never left empty in the Pacific.

Not for thousands of years of human migration.

She lowered her voice and the army avoidance suggests cultural significance that contradicts typical settlement patterns.