“How do you know how she escaped if she didn’t tell you?”
“She didn’t tell me or anyone, but I’ve had years to think about it and it seems that my idea is the only way she could’ve left the island. I knew she wasn’t really happy. She’d told me in the past. I was the only one she shared her heart with, but she never told me that she would leave. At first I was hurt, but I did understand. Some of us can fool ourselves into being happy in the small spaces and with the roles we’re given, but others have to take flight. We are no good at pretending. We can’t live a life that is less than authentic. We have to leave before we suffocate.”
The ship started to rock back and forth on the waves. I widened my stance steadying myself against the swaying.
“The storm is getting closer.” She gripped the bars using her sinewy arms to pull herself to her feet letting the blanket drop to the floor behind her.
“You wanted to leave to find her?” I asked.
A smile spread across her thin red lips. “My life is not the same without her. There is nothing on the island without her. I wish for the freedom she found. We can have that freedom together.”
“How long ago did she escape the island?”
“Twenty-four mortal years ago,” she said.
The revelation hit me like a wave against the side of the ship. “She escaped on Benjamin Reznik’s ship. He really did make it to the island.”
“I don’t know whose boat she was on. None of us saw the mortal that came to the island. They only saw her. They only took her.”
The first sick baby was born not long after Reznik was found. Then after that the numbers of sick babies slowly increased year after year. “What happens when a god enters the mortal world?” Hearing the story made me think all of this was connected. “Would it interfere with the birth rate somehow?”
She shrugged. “I know not. Father always warned us that if we were to figure out a way off the island it would throw the mortal world into chaos but I don’t know how.”
I never once thought that my plan to save the babies of the world might backfire until now, but I still had to try. “I’ve given you what you wanted and helped you get off the island. Now it’s time for you to return the favor.”
She laughed. “Can’t you let me rest?”
“It’s probably beyond you as long as we have in here.” I motioned to the keeper stones. “Many children are being born sick, like almost all of them. We came to get you because we thought that only a god could make this stop. Can you make it stop?”
“I’ve never had powers to use before. I’ve been on the island my whole life and we only have power when we are in the mortal world. I do not even know what is possible.” The waves were continuing to increase in intensity. She held onto the bars to steady herself.
“Of course,” I said. I couldn’t take this as bad news. Even though she didn’t know what she was capable of I felt like I knew. The Book of Gods told us that they could do anything once they were released from the island. I had to believe that was true because we needed a god who could do anything right now. We only needed to concentrate on getting through this storm. Then we could figure the rest out. “It will only get rougher, and colder. You should sit tight and use your blanket.” I paused wondering why I was even bothering.
Pulling her knees to her chest she rested her pointed chin on her kneecaps. Her entire face was sharp with high, jutting cheekbones and a slender nose. She reached behind her grabbing the rough, gray wool blanket from the floor and draping it around her shoulders. She pulled the ends closed like curtains.
“It is an honor to meet you in person, Amara,” I said and it truly was because even though I always dreamed of meeting one of the gods I never thought this day would come. She had used me to escape her circumstances, that was evident in the story she told, but I didn’t care because we were using each other. “We could take on water. If that happens call for help and I’ll come.”
“You know I’m only here because I want to be. These bars cannot hold me.” She looked up at me.
“But the keeper stones can,” I said before turning to leave. None of us really thought we could capture a god. We hoped, and though we didn’t say it aloud I think we all knew that this wouldn’t last long. I walked toward the ladder to return above deck. I could hear the hurried steps of the crew above and the rush of the waves hitting the ship. The call of voices rang out, but beneath all of those sounds I heard something that didn’t belong. “Can you hear that?” I asked Amara.
“What?” she asked.
Then there was a louder sound. A wounded moan rose over all of the other noises. I looked back at Amara. “Was that you?” I asked.
She shook her head. “I am not alone, Damek.”
Chapter 11
The noise came again: a whimper barely audible. Amara nodded toward the storeroom. I turned. “Who’s there?” I called out, but there was no answer.
Amara shook her head wearily. “She will not answer you,” she said, but I could hear the moaning rising steadily over the noise of the storm. Then suddenly there was a splat, like someone had poured out an enormous bucket of water. I followed the sound to the small storage room behind the ladder where boxes of rations were stacked. The putrid smell of rotten food hit my nose followed by the sharp scent of vomit. I stood still and listened. My ears only filled with the noises above deck, the wind, the rain, the waves, the footsteps overhead. “Is there someone here?” I asked the stacked wooden boxes.
“Answer him,” Amara called from her cell.
A small woman with a swollen belly crawled out from behind a row of boxes in the corner. Her willowy limbs were a stark contrast to her rotund middle. A thin cream-colored dress made of the same rough fabric as Amara’s hung over her. Her eyes downcast, she said, “Sorry. I was sick.” She looked to her left at the pool of dark green vomit.
“Don’t worry. I can clean that up,” I said. “How did you get here?”
“The man on the boat was sleeping. So I hid.”
“Where?”
“In here behind the crates.”
I looked at the crates and then back at her. “No, I mean where did you get on the boat?”
“At the Isle of Gods.”
“What were you doing there? How did you get there?” We crossed treacherous waters to get to the island. It was flanked by massive boulders that even the most skilled sailor had difficulty navigating. “How did you get on the ship? We dropped anchor far out.”
“I made a raft.”
I raised an eyebrow at her. “There’s no way you could’ve gotten to the boat with a homemade raft safely.”
“Well, I did.” Her eyes lit up at the chance to contradict me. The fear she displayed before seemed to momentarily vanish.
“Why did you come aboard our vessel?”
She looked up at me briefly and shrugged. Her dark eyes flashed green.
“Are you a god?” I asked.
Amara cackled. “A god? Does she look like a god to you?”
The girl shook her head. “Not really.” She swayed a bit on her feet. Resting her hand on the stack of crates next to her, she looked up at me again. Her head pitched back, the whites of her eyes clearly visible as her knees buckled. I moved forward to catch her, my foot nearly sliding out from beneath me in the vomit. I pulled her limp body forward away from the stacks of crates toward the doorway where there was room enough to lower her gently to the floor.
Out of the shadows I could see her clearly now. Her dark brown skin was perfectly smooth. Her jet-black hair was braided in many small plaits that curled slightly under her chin.
“Is she dead?” Amara asked. She stood, suddenly looking concerned.
I watched the girl’s chest rise and fall. “No,” I answered. She definitely wasn’t dead, but I couldn’t make any promises about what state she’d be in in the near future. The boat pitched sharply. I put my hand against the wall to steady myself. The girl slid a bit on the rough floor.
/> With one long wheezing gasp, she opened her eyes. Her body tensed. Her hands balled into tight fists.
“Relax,” I said. I put my hand on her forearm and a charge of energy shot through me. It moved up my arm like fire. I let go of her as if releasing a hot object. Her brown eyes flashed green again and she sat bolt upright.
“Don’t!” she yelled.
I sat there on the floor, stunned.
“What was that?” I heard a voice call along with the clump of heavy feet overhead. Raul peered down into the darkness from above. “Do you need my help down there?” he called.
“No,” I yelled back. “I’ve got it under control.”
He yelled something else I couldn’t make out and then I heard his heavy boots coming down the ladder. “This storm looks like it’s gained power,” he said with a delight in his voice that most wouldn’t expect. He sauntered over to Amara’s cell. “Don’t you worry about it one bit though, Missy. This ship can take on even the worst storms.”
“I wasn’t worried,” Amara said. She turned her back to him, walked over to the cot at the opposite end of her cell and sat down.
“I just wanted to make sure you knew that you are under the care of one of the best crews in the world.” Raul’s back was still turned to me and the stowaway, sitting on the floor in front of me.
Amara looked around her cell and then holding both arms out said, “Is that what you call this … care? I thought I was just being kidnapped.”
Raul snorted. “Whatever you want to call it, consider yourself lucky.”
“You have a funny definition of luck, Captain.” Amara laughed even though I knew that she did indeed consider her circumstances lucky.
“Damek,” Raul said, turning around in the dim corridor.
I stood up leaving the girl sitting at my feet. There was no way I could hide her so I would just have to announce the obvious. “We have a stowaway.”
Raul’s gaze fell to the young woman sitting on the floor. His eyes drove into her like swords. “If there is one thing I don’t take kindly to it’s stowaways.” He put his hands on his hips and scowled down at her.
“I’m sorry, Sir. I had nowhere else to go,” the girl said.
“How did you get aboard?”
“At the Isle of Gods.”
Raul looked at me, as if to ask me how this was possible and I shrugged.
“I waited until you’d left the boat to go to the island and I boarded.”
“Marco was here,” Raul said. “He would’ve seen you.”
“He was sleeping.”
“But the water was rough. Where did you come from?” Raul asked her.
She put her hands on her swollen stomach, leaned forward a bit and let out a deep groan.
“Are you ill?” Raul asked.
“No, just pregnant,” the girl said.
Raul looked at me again as if I were responsible.
“She was in the storage closet,” I said.
“She made a fine mess in there for you to clean up,” Amara called.
“No one asked you to speak,” Raul yelled over his shoulder. He raised an eyebrow at me.
“I was sick,” she said. She groaned again and clamped her eyes closed.
“Are you in labor?” I asked.
“I don’t know,” the girl answered. “I’ve never been in labor before.”
“What should we do?” I looked at Raul. I asked him because he was the captain and this was what captains were supposed to be in charge of, but in reality I already knew what he would say. He hated stowaways. He once tried to make a young man he found hiding out in one of the rowboats walk the plank. I couldn’t believe he was doing it and just before he made the man plunge himself into the icy waters below I convinced him that we needed an extra man on board. We’d sailed out with one less man on the crew that time because Pete was ill. Raul agreed reluctantly, but refused to give the man any rations. I had to share my portion with him so he didn’t starve before we made it back to port.
Raul could be ruthless. That was one of the many reasons Lourdes didn’t approve of me going on trips with him. Life at sea was dangerous enough without putting Raul and his rage in the mix.
Me and Raul weren’t that different. Normally I’d never tell anyone that we had anything in common. He was a cruel man with a vision so singular that nothing else mattered. Maybe his cruelty was even less than mine because he recognized his downfalls. I chose to marry and bring a child into this world without knowing whether she would be destined to a brief life full of suffering. I was too young when I met Lourdes to realize the hazards of this life. I loved her and wanted to spend my life with her but I wanted to look for the Isle of Gods too. Even before Tati was born I was wracked with guilt for leaving Lourdes alone so much, but I was compelled to search for the island. As more and more sick children were born my drive to search for the island increased to a near frenzy. I felt the need to help, but I also knew I was needed at home. I was torn most of the time. Once Raul felt the call of the hunt, he cut his ties on land. After his wife died he dedicated himself to finding the gods. He was singular in purpose, driven and determined while I was the most selfish of them all. I wanted the sea and the gods, but the life of an ordinary mortal as well. That was not possible, not really, but the guilt I often felt made me want to help this poor pregnant teenager.
A particularly violent wave rocked the boat and Raul held onto the ladder to steady himself. “Lock her up. I’ll deal with her once we’ve gotten through this storm.”
Relief passed through me; the storm bought me some time to figure out how to keep her alive.
The girl groaned again. This time it was deep and guttural. She leaned forward pressing her protruding belly into her thighs.
“What about the baby?” I asked.
“What about it?” Raul said. “If it comes, it comes. I don’t know what you think I can do.” He started up the ladder. “Lock her up and come up here. We need you.”
The boat began to sway wildly. I lowered myself to the ground next to the girl.
“Make it stop,” she groaned. She looked at me, her eyes alternating from brown to green. She moaned and reached out taking my forearm in her grip and squeezing. “Make it stop!” This time she yelled.
“He can’t make anything stop, child. He is only a mortal man,” Amara said.
“But you can, Amara.” The girl looked over at her with glassy eyes, her face taut with pain.
Amara sighed heavily. She eased herself off the cot and onto the floor crawling back over to the bars. “I wish I could, Twee, but you know as well as I do that what is happening to you is beyond my control. I never agreed with it, not from the very beginning.”
The girl nodded slowly and tears started flowing down her cheeks.
“Twee,” I said. “That’s your name?”
“Yes,” she said.
“You two know each other?”
“Of course we know each other.” Amara’s voice was sharp when she addressed me. “The island is small. There aren’t many of us.”
“Then you are a god?” I asked Twee. I didn’t remember seeing her name on my list when I was young.
She shook her head. “No.”
The air rumbled and Raul appeared again at the hatch. “Damek, what’s taking so long?”
“Yeah,” I said, knowing that really wasn’t an answer to what he’d asked.
“I have to put you in the cell.” I pulled the ring of keys from my pocket. She continued to sit there on the ground. I reached my hand down to her. “I know you’re in a lot of pain right now, but I have to move you. You don’t have to do anything. I’ll carry you.”
She looked at Amara who nodded. She put her arm around my neck making it easy for me to put her in the smaller cell next to Amara’s.
“I’ll come down to check on you later,” I said, closing the bars. As I climbed the ladder I knew that if we did survive this storm I’d have to convince Raul to let this girl and her baby live. I coul
dn’t turn my back while he made anyone walk the plank. My conscience couldn’t take it. Even though we didn’t come here for her Twee was now my responsibility. It was the way it had to be. I looked back and saw her lying on her side on the cot, with one hand on her belly. The weight of her possible fate seemed to hang visibly in the air around her.
Chapter 12
The waves rose up over us like the claws of an angry beast. The boat lurched and swayed. We had entered the outer edge of the storm and already it was the strongest I had ever known. I spent many years dipping my toes into the danger of the wind, butting heads with Mother Nature, because I felt like it was a gamble I’d be able to win. On this day the risk seemed too great, but every time I wondered if we’d make it out of this storm alive I remembered Lourdes and Tati waiting for me back home and knew I had to. I’d only just gotten Lourdes back and when I left on this trip I promised it would be successful. I couldn’t break any promises to her. That was not what I did anymore and that meant taking this storm on with dogged determination.
As I climbed up onto the deck I clung to every object that was bolted down to prevent myself from falling overboard. The wind whipped the water at my face so hard I couldn’t see. I stumbled blindly and only by some sort of miracle made it to the wheelhouse. The storm tried to come in with me but I pushed it out latching the door as it left. “Where are the others?” I asked.
Isle of Gods I: Damek Page 8