Chapter 101

CHAPTER 101

THE BOAT WAS coming at us through the glare of the sun. I pulled the cutlass out of my belt as it got closer. My heart was thudding. Whoever it was, I was ready to fight with everything I had left.

I heard a man shouting.

I raised my hand to shield my eyes as the boat pulled up alongside. It was all wood, about forty feet long, with an open deck in front and a cabin at the stern. I could see nets dangling over the side and poles with tackle poking up from the rails.

A wave of relief washed over me.

Not pirates. Fishermen.

A slender brown-skinned man was leaning over the gunwale, both hands reaching out.

I grabbed Kira under the arms and towed her over. The man grabbed her right wrist. Then a woman in a headscarf appeared and grabbed her left. Together, they hauled her up the side of the boat and onto the deck.

I reached for the rail with one hand. Pain shot through my shoulder as I muscled myself partway up. The man and woman grabbed me by the belt and pulled me in the rest of the way. I flopped down on the deck next to Kira, spewing saltwater.

Suddenly, the man and woman backed off. I realized that I was still holding the cutlass. I stuck it back through my belt and held up both hands. "Rafiki," I gasped. "Friend."

"Friend," the woman repeated. She bent down to help Kira to her feet. The man did the same for me. They half carried us into the boat's low-roofed cabin and laid us down on thin foam mattresses. Then the woman took over. I felt my wet clothes being tugged off. Then I felt a cool cloth on my head and the sting of antiseptic on my arm. I looked over. Kira got the same treatment. The woman covered our bare bodies with a blanket and backed out of the cabin with our clothes. "Friend," she repeated.

I tucked my cutlass close to my side, then felt for Kira's hand under the covers. I closed my eyes. My brain was spinning. Maybe I had a concussion or sunstroke. Maybe I was delirious. None of this felt real. But if it was a dream, it was a good one.

And if I was dead, maybe this was heaven.