“Rough currents could pull us off course, or a strong wind,” he begins to list off a few examples.
“So you have to be adaptable,” I conclude, cutting him off. As Alexander nods a cool burst of wind sends the sail into frantic ripples. I tense and see the small arrow on the compass swing halfway to the S. Alexander remains calm and moves to the ropes at the edge of the platform. He unwraps them and repositions them so the needle sits steady on the E again.
“Want to try?” he asks over the wind and curiosity crawls across my skin. I don’t know when I’d ever get the chance to again so I go and stand by his side. He hands the ropes to me and when I take them in my hands there’s an instant force ripping me forward. “Pull back,” Alexander instructs. He lets his right hand sit gently on the rope so he’s there to take over, but still leaves me in control. My arms shake, but I manage to pull the rope back slowly. “Good, now anchor it there,” he says and motions for me to tie the rope back down. Once I secure it I look down at my red palms.
“That wasn’t so bad,” I give a wide grin and breathe through my smile.
“You did good,” Alexander says and we take our seats back on the rough wooden beams.
“Did you learn to sail when you worked for the castle?” I ask gently as I bring up something from his past.
Alexander gives a sharp nod. “When I was signed on officially we had to go through two weeks of intense training. The first week was spent in Garth. We became familiar with the different chambers in the castle and we searched through the small radius of the forest, looking for runaways.”
“Like us,” I joke and his lips crack into a smile.
“I never would have guessed I’d be on the other side of that,” he says, processing the irony. “Then, week two we were in Sard. We got an overview tour of the city and the different jobs we may be assigned, and finally training in sailing. Not for combat, but to travel between islands.”
“You’ve been to the other islands?” I ask and my eyes widen at the impossible thought, but Alexander shakes his head no.
“I’ve just sailed around Dather’s coast. I could have been assigned to a troop that traveled between islands, but I was too new.” I nod, remembering the guards from the night I escaped the castle. They had left Alexander alone on night duty outside the castle because he was the newbie. I realize how different this all would be if they hadn’t done that.
“We’re going to the best island now though,” I offer and Alexander nods. Previously our only other islands were Sone, Hamni, and Garge, and all of them imprison the gifted just like Dather. Even worse, King Renon has them all sent to him so he can keep the other islands weak. So far they aren’t used in Alignmass, the battles to obtain rule. This is where a nation’s strength is decided. Men still believe one on one combat of skin and muscle should determine leadership.
Still, the regular soldiers of Dather beat any other islands’ forces. For now, gifted are enslaved in Dather. Some are used for tracking, like the Hounds that worked with Paylon. Many are used for tasks around the castle and town. If we ever needed to protect ourselves from an invasion I’m sure they would be used then too, but that has never happened. No other island has ever challenged Dather in war. We win Alignmass fairly and continue to rule. We sit in silence, both examining the markings that weigh on our wrists. The thought of Libertas, a home for runaways, trying to start a rebellion against the largest force in the world seems idiotic, but when you have nothing to lose you’re willing to risk it all.
Chapter 26
When Mio releases Alexander and takes the next turn at controlling the sails I move over and begin to help Cooper prepare lunch.
“What did Kimberly pack for lunch?” I ask, looking over Cooper’s shoulder into the storage bins.
“Don’t worry, it’s nothing magnificent,” Cooper mumbles pulling out a loaf of bread, thinly sliced meat, and yellow slices that I don’t recognize.
“The bread looks funny,” I say, taking it from him. “It’s already sliced?”
“Yes, it makes preparing a sandwich much easier,” Cooper says and he lays out our supplies.
“A what?” I ask.
Cooper begins to laugh at my confusion. He takes a piece of bread from the loaf and says, “Bread, meat, cheese,” as he assembles the meal.
“You’re telling me that’s cheese? Everything in Sard is so different,” I mumble.
Cooper finishes the sandwich by folding it in half. “Everyone line up to get lunch,” Cooper announces. “Here,” he says and hands me a slice of bread.
We both begin to assemble sandwiches and give everyone two of them. After everyone has received their lunch, we make ourselves some and eat in silence. The dry bread causes me to have to finish off what was left of my water. I begin to wipe the beading sweat off my forehead and realize I’m going to need more water soon.
“I’m sure Kimberly packed water, right?” I ask hesitantly.
“Of course,” Cooper says. He reaches down into the bench and hands me a cool clear bottle.
“How’s everything staying cold?” I ask, sipping on the icy cold water.
“We have coolers stored under the benches,” he says and when he sees the confusion on my face he adds, “Just another one of Sard’s weird inventions.” I nod my head in response.
I look out at the sun glistening off the calm blue ripples of water. The boat bobs
