More Than Chains To Bind (15 page)

Hollis stared at me, and I knew he was wondering if I could do it. "Very well," he said. "Take the rudder."

I sighed with relief. I hurried to take Hollis' place and gripped the rudder. Hollis checked the sail lines were tight. "I'll rest for an hour, but no more, Liander." His tone was very solemn, and I could tell how important this was to him. I nodded agreement. "The wind is steady, but if it changes direction, you'll need to wake me right away. Make sure you track the sun precisely."

"I'll be careful." I understood enough to know he would need to tack if the wind changed direction.

He lay in the bottom of the boat. I knew he wouldn't be very comfortable, but it would have to do.

"Wake me in an hour." The look he gave me told me to obey him.

It wasn't long enough, but I would keep to our agreement. I knew he would have to recalculate his bearings as the sun rose higher.

"Hollis, Hollis!"

Hollis woke groggily as I called to him, and he looked confused for a moment. I could see the moment he remembered where we were and he struggled to a sitting position.

"You didn't let me sleep too long?" Hollis asked.

"It's been an hour as you asked. The sea is getting rougher, too."

Hollis glanced around. I sat exactly where he had told me. He nodded and his eyes flicked to check the sun and then the choppy sea around us.

"The sea is decidedly rougher," Hollis said, "and have you noticed those storm clouds forming on the eastern horizon?"

I followed his gaze and watched as the dark clouds slowly rolled west. Damn, that was the last thing we needed.

He took over control from me, re-setting the sail to take advantage of the wind.

"I hope the storm's movement will be slow enough to allow us to make landfall before it strikes," Hollis said. Though there was still no sign of any land.

"How will you navigate if we lose the sun?" I asked, and he merely looked at me. I sighed; all I could do was trust Hollis. "Surely I can do something to help other than to sit here," I said. I hated feeling so useless.

"See if you can find something to use to bail out the boat. The odds are we'll need it soon," Hollis said. "I wish we could've managed a larger boat," he added, probably not intending me to hear the comment.

"I'm sorry," I said.

Hollis frowned. "The fault is not yours, Liander. Merely circumstance."

Yes, the circumstance that I had always been too interested in learning than in more worldly pursuits. Well, now I was going to do something useful. I began to bail out the small amount of water sloshing about in the bottom of the boat.

"Stop blaming yourself, Liander," Hollis said. I should have remembered how well he could read me. "The only fault here is that of the Diolis who kidnapped and enslaved us."

"I know you're right logically, but I can't help feeling inadequate."

Hollis opened his mouth to say something, but no words were forthcoming. Hollis was now staring over my shoulder. I followed his gaze and saw a ship on the horizon. From where had it come? Was it a ship from Dioland?

"What are we going to do?" I asked. I couldn't keep the panic from my voice. We couldn't let them take us again. Especially now they knew who we really were. Now they understood what Hollis might know.

"Don't panic. Don't assume they're looking for us. Dioland has ships out all the time."

"But it
could
be looking for us," I insisted.

"It could, but that doesn't mean we should panic. It's a big ocean and they have no idea where we are. This is one time being in a small boat is to our advantage. They'll be hard-pressed to see us."

He sounded so confident, but I knew Hollis as well as he knew me. He was doing his best to keep
me
calm. I took a breath. "True," I said, "but if they
are
looking for us, it wouldn't be difficult to guess our best route. It could be a search ship."

Hollis regarded me steadily. "And what do you expect me to do?"

"Nothing other than what you are," I said. Hollis frowned. "I wanted you to know I understand and I've got myself under control. No more panicking, just lots of bailing."

"I do love you," Hollis murmured, and I smiled.

Thankfully, the storm didn't seem to be coming any nearer, at least not yet. The wind had risen and was pushing our boat faster toward the west. Was it possible we could do this, could reach safety?
Don't say it aloud; don't tempt fate.
I bailed.

It was mid-day and the sun hung high above. The wind had dropped, and the storm seemed to have stalled. We could still see lightning streaking through black clouds on the horizon, but it was less clear with each strike. It was with a sense of relief that I could stop bailing.

"Come, take the rudder a minute," Hollis said.

I was surprised at his abrupt tone, but did as he asked. He stood, balancing his weight carefully as he looked back the way we had come.

"What's wrong?" I queried as he cupped his eyes as if trying to improve his vision.

"The ship is getting closer. It could be a coincidence, but I don't like that it seems to be following us."

"Damn, I had hoped it was pure chance."

"Keep us steady," Hollis said sharply, and I watched as he worked on the sail. I didn't bother to ask him what he was doing. I knew whatever he was attempting was intended to help us get away from the ship. I closed my eyes long enough to send a quick prayer to the Lords of Creation we wouldn't be recaptured. I opened them again to find Hollis watching me.

"Say one for me, too?"

"I already did." I smiled, but Hollis didn't return it, and I was suddenly tense. He indicated he wanted to take the rudder again. I wanted to stay close to him, so I slid down into the bottom of the boat and leaned against his legs as he regained his seat. He hadn't let go of the rope he used to control the angle of the sail and he took the rudder in his other hand. He glanced at me for a moment before he turned his attention to sailing the boat.

"Liander, in case you've not realized, I'm aiming the boat straight at the storm."

"What?" I hadn't noticed. My attention on been wholly on him and now I understood his request for a prayer perhaps hadn't been as casual as I thought.

"There's no way we can outrun that ship, and I believe we have to assume it
is
looking for us. Going into the storm is a risk; I won't deny it. But there's no way I'm going to let us be taken again. No matter the consequences. You understand?"

"Yes, I do. I know what would happen if we were re-captured and I'd rather die now with you, Hollis, than be a prisoner of Briahm's whim; never seeing you again, yet knowing what they would do to you. You'd die before you'd tell them anything, I know."

"I'm glad you agree, my prince, because if you had ordered me otherwise, I'd have obeyed."

"I know." We were getting closer to the storm now.

"Take a look and see if they're still following us."

I twisted around to look and sure enough, the ship had tacked and was heading in our direction. "Yes, it is. If we weren't sure before, there's no doubt now." I squeezed his knee for a moment. "Guess I'd better get back to bailing."

After a few minutes, I asked Hollis, "Is there any spare rope on board?"

"There should be some in the sail locker, in the bow. Why?"

"I want to rope us together. We can look after each other that way."

"Liander, if I end up going overboard, the odds are I'd pull you after me."

"I know. But don't you see, if anything were to happen to you, I don't want to live without you. Does that make me a coward?"

"If it does, then I'm a coward, too." Hollis stared at me, and I saw the truth in his eyes. "Do it," he said. "As you said when we escaped from the citadel: together, always."

I roped us together leaving enough length it didn't hinder us as we worked.

We were inside the storm now and we were literally fighting for our lives. Hollis struggled to keep the wind filling the sail the way he wanted. The way he was cursing, I guessed it didn't always work the way he wanted, but he kept at it. I was bailing like crazy, but I was fighting a losing battle as the waves bombarded the boat faster than I could throw the water out again.

"It's no good," I cried.

"Keep at it, Liander. Every bit helps."

I looked at him, cowed by his determination, his strength of will. If we failed, it wouldn't be because I let him down. I re-doubled my efforts. My back and my right arm were already a sheet of pain, but I didn't doubt Hollis felt worse, struggling as he was with both the rudder and the sail with his injured back. I took a quick look behind us in the direction of where I had last seen the Diolis ship, but all I could see now were heaving seas, so dark as to be almost lost in the angry black clouds. Just at that moment, a lightning strike shot jagged white light through the storm clouds.

"Do you see anything?" Hollis shouted above the scream of the wind and the flapping of the sailcloth he struggled to control.

"No, but it's hard to see anything in this," I called back.

"I'm going to have to drop the sail. I can't hold it. I don't even know if I should have it up in a storm like this. I wanted to use the wind to get as far away from the ship as possible, but my knowledge of sailing is too damn limited. I could drown both of us."

"Whatever you think best."

"I wish I
knew
what was best! Grab the rudder," he said.

I did as he asked, while he got the sail down and tied it off. Then he took his seat at the rudder, and I went back to bailing, praying I could keep the water inside the boat at the present level. Much more and we'd probably founder. The boat was being tossed like a cork on the roiling sea. There was nothing we could do but hang on and pray we'd still be alive when the storm died.

"Hollis," I called to him, but I didn't think I could say how I felt. I wanted to be holding him, instead of crouching so near yet so far. If I was going to die, I wanted Hollis to be the last thing I touched. I wanted his scent in my nostrils, his body in my arms, his lips caressing mine.

"I know," Hollis said. "Have faith. We will survive."

"I wish I could believe that."

Hollis stared at me for a moment and then he said, "Come here."

"But the bailing?"

"I'd come to you, but I can't let go of the rudder."

I hurried to his side, and he put one arm around me and pulled me in close. His warmth sheltered me. I felt a quick brush of lips on my cheek, and I turned to capture Hollis' mouth. Breaking the kiss, Hollis said, "Now, get back to bailing, Your Highness!"

I laughed, and feeling better, I dropped to my knees in the cold water swilling back and forth in the bottom of the boat and started bailing again.

I could see Liander was exhausted. He was hurting, too, but he never said a word. I had been fighting for hours to hold the boat steady in the storm and felt guilty I hadn't been able to help him with the bailing. It was a thankless task, seeming endless and useless, but the truth was his efforts kept the boat from foundering.

"Liander, come take the rudder," I called.

He looked up at me, his face white and his eyes red-rimmed. "The water's too high. I need to keep bailing."

"I know, but the storm is lessening. I think you can hold the rudder now. I'll carry on bailing."

"Lessened?" Liander looked up and around.

He'd never even noticed. He'd been so wrapped up in keeping the water down, in keeping us alive, nothing else had registered.

"Come here," I said, reaching out a hand.

Liander took it and joined me on the bench. It was so narrow he almost sat on my lap. I sighed and pushed the thought away. He gripped the rudder, and I released it. I was still holding his other hand and I squeezed it briefly before letting go to kneel in the bottom of the boat. I shrugged at him, and he smiled wanly as I began to bail.

"I'm somewhat surprised we're still afloat," Liander said a moment later.

"Me too. Especially as I didn't even know if I was doing the right thing."

"General Hollis Amin Destriore not doing the right thing? Unthinkable." Liander laughed.

I was glad to hear him sounding more like his normal self. I kept my eyes on what I was doing, so I wouldn't see how pale and worn he looked. "A general bailing a boat is unthinkable, but look, here I am on my knees."

"I can think of much better uses for the general on his knees," Liander said, and I barked out a laugh. I couldn't help but look at him now and he was still pale, but he looked stronger and, in an odd way, he looked happy.

"The first chance we get, I'll get on my knees for you, and you can tell me what you'd like me to do first."

Liander opened his mouth as if to respond, but no words came. He half-stood, and I could tell he was straining to see. I twisted around to look where he was staring. Swells still made the sea rise and dip quite dramatically and, combined with the still falling rain and lowering clouds, it was difficult to see. Then there it was, just for a second before it disappeared again. A ship. The question now was: whose ship?

I had no idea how far the storm had blown us. When I had turned toward the storm, I estimated our direction had changed from due west to northwest and, as much as I tried to hold to that, I really had no idea how well--or not--I had managed. For all intents and purposes, we had gone the way the storm took us. I wondered if the ship we had just glimpsed had been the Diolis ship we had seen earlier. I estimated a larger vessel should have been able to fight the storm better than we had, so it could very easily be the same vessel.

"Do you know where we are?" Liander asked.

"Not really. The storm seemed to be moving northwest."

"That's good, right?"

"It might take us a little farther north than I would've liked. When the storm clouds clear and the sun shows itself, though, I'll head due west again. Hopefully, we'll make landfall in Shuin, but it might be Haflor."

"Any land that's not Dioland will suffice. And I've prayed to the Lords of Creation the ship out there is friendly."