Ember (27 page)

“
When
w
ill
you
have
t
he
sh
i
p
r
eady?
”

“
T
h
e
e
nd
of
Ma
y
,
”
s
a
id
Fa
th
e
r
.
“
I
’d
lik
e
it
to
go
soon
e
r
but
th
e
r
e
is
too
m
uch
to
do.
Any
l
a
t
e
r
a
nd
th
e
cr
ew
w
ill
f
a
c
e
d
a
ng
e
rous
s
ea
s
.
”
I
n
truth
,
th
e
y
f
a
c
e
d
d
a
ng
e
rous
s
ea
s
by
going
in
Ma
y
,
for
th
e
ship
wou
l
d
be
skirting
th
e
hurric
a
n
e

season
when
it
came
upon
t
he
sou
t
he
r
n
coas
t
of
Ame
ri
ca.

M
ir
anda
t
ook
ano
t
he
r
deep
b
r
ea
t
h
and
s
t
ood.
“
We
ll
t
hen,
”
he
r
mou
t
h
cou
l
dn
’t
qu
it
e
f
o
r
m
a
sm
il
e,
“if
you
w
ill
excuse
me,
I
wou
l
d
li
ke
t
o
fr
eshen
up
be
f
o
r
e
d
i
nne
r
.
”
She
paused.
“
Who
i
s
cook
i
ng
it
,
by
t
he
way?
”

He
r
f
a
t
he
r
sm
il
ed.
“
I
h
ir
ed
a
girl
t
o
do
t
he
cook
i
ng
and
c
l
ean
i
ng.
”
He
moved
t
o
t
ouch
M
ir
anda
’
s
cheek
bu
t
s
t
opped
as
t
hough
t
h
i
nk
i
ng
be
tt
e
r
of
it
.
“
So
t
ha
t
you
may
f
ocus
on
o
t
he
r
t
h
i
ngs.
”

O
t
he
r
t
h
i
ngs.
Those
o
t
he
r
t
h
i
ngs
cu
rr
en
tl
y
ma
rr
ed
t
he
li
ne
of
he
r
sk
irt
s.
A
bemused
sm
il
e
fi
na
ll
y
pu
ll
ed
at
he
r
li
ps.
“
I
see.
”

“
T
his
v
e
ntur
e
w
ill
be
th
e
ma
king
of
me,
”
h
e
r
f
a
th
e
r
s
a
id
w
ith
sudd
e
n
ea
rn
e
stn
e
ss
.

U
nfortun
a
t
e
l
y
,
h
e
h
a
d
s
a
id
it
a
ll
b
e
for
e.

D
r
u
m
s
beat
i
n
c
e
ss
a
n
t
l
y
,
a
n
d
t
h
e
c
h
a
n
t
i
n
g
—
a
s
o
n
g
Arch
e
r
could
not
gr
a
sp
—
puls
e
d
ov
e
r
hi
m,
ma
king
hi
m
sw
a
y
.
T
h
e
sh
ama
n
,
a
s
ma
ll
ma
n
w
ith
w
ea
th
e
r
e
d
skin
th
e
color
of
am
b
e
r
,
d
a
nc
e
d
at a
str
a
ng
e
p
a
c
e,
whil
e
sh
a
king
th
e
bow
in
his
h
a
nd
.

S
udd
e
n
l
y
,
Arch
e
r
f
e
lt
foolish
.
F
oolish
a
nd
a
lon
e.
H
o
w
could
th
e
s
ma
ll
button
-
sh
a
p
e
d
disks
of
this
subst
a
nc
e
th
e
y
c
a
ll
e
d
p
e
yot
e
possibly
cur
e
hi
m
?
T
h
e
pl
a
nt
wa
s
b
e
yond
bitt
e
r
in
t
a
st
e.
He
h
a
d
been
giv
e
n
a
subst
a
nti
a
l
am
ount
,
m
uch
m
or
e
th
a
n
a
ny
of
th
e
oth
e
rs
.
N
o
w
his
gut
convuls
e
d
,
th
e
urg
e
to
vo
m
it
high
on
his
list
of
co
m
pl
a
ints
.
H
is
e
ntir
e
body
shudd
e
r
e
d
just
th
e
n
.

Bu
t
t
h
i
s
was
no
t
a
cu
r
e,
was
it
?
The
shaman
had
fi
na
ll
y
exp
l
a
i
ned
t
he
p
r
ocess.
A
r
che
r
wou
l
d
no
t
be
cu
r
ed.
The
d
r
ug
w
o
u
l
d
t
a
k
e
h
i
m
t
o
a
n
o
t
h
er
r
ea
l
i
t
y
,
a
cc
o
r
d
i
n
g
t
o
S
m
i
t
h
’
s
tr
ans
l
a
ti
on.
Once
t
he
r
e,
A
r
che
r
s
i
mp
l
y
had
t
o
ask
f
o
r
t
he
answe
r
s.
Ask
f
o
r
wha
t
he
wan
t
ed.