It took several minutes for my heart to climb back into my body after Mr. Lorenzo took his hat off and announced himself as a friend of Father Stavros’s. The good news was that he was there to replenish our water supply. The real bonus was the chicken sandwiches he gave us—accompanied by a fresh apple. As early as it was in the season for them, I took it with thanks.
“I trust you own a pocket blade,” the balding, ruddy-faced sailor said.
“The Father gave us everything he could think of we might need, including this.” I pulled out the switchblade with the crucifix blazed into the wooden handle. I snapped it open to reveal a razor-sharp four inch blade.
The man grinned. “That’ll do.” He tossed me the apple, which I caught and immediately rubbed on my shirt before slicing it in half for me and Will.
Mr. Lorenzo’s stooped posture aside, he looked strong, his forearms the size of sand bags. “You’ll have to stay down here until I come back for you. I’ll let you know when we dock down the river. You two stay out of sight and keep quiet, and you’ll get out of this just fine.”
When we had settled back into our dungeon, Will unwrapped the sandwiches and handed me the first one.
“Why do you do that?” I asked.
He looked at me curiously.
“Why do you…serve me first, give me the most, the best? Why do you even think about what I want? Why do you even care about me?”
Will’s face went from blank to several contorted expressions until he finally settled on a look of patient endurance. “First,” he said, “because it’s the right thing to do. And second, I do care about you, Lily.” His hair drifted down in front of his eyes. Instinctively, I brushed it back for him, not wanting to lose sight of the look of wonder that had been there a moment before. “More than I want to,” he finished, his gaze coming back to meet mine.
“If that’s true, you’ll plan to leave me in Claverack and head in whatever opposite direction you think you have to go to find your father. I’ll wish you well, and I’ll make my own way home. Is that clear?”
The whole time I was speaking, my heart screamed at my head to listen…to forgive him…to give him another chance. But there was too much at stake. The Industry was closing in and it wouldn’t be long before they sent people out into the hills after Zeph and me. I had to get home, start Sam’s treatment, and prepare to move on. To where, I didn’t know.
Sam always said that he had a plan and that I shouldn’t worry, but as the ship plowed through the water and the rumble of engines reminded me that every minute that passed was a ticking clock counting down to nothing good, my heart took another plunge. Though the rocky motion of the ship made me feel sick, it was at least bringing me one step closer to home. I wondered if I would make it in time.
Will and I had exhausted our arsenal of small talk, both trying to avoid the topic of our inevitable departure. We focused instead on the details of our escape once on land. Come nightfall we would have to disembark and make haste getting off the docks and into the woods. We would only travel at night and then find a place to hide out during the day. We should reach Claverack by midnight the next night if all went well. Then it would be a resounding goodbye.
When he finally returned, Mr. Lorenzo led us to a lower cargo bay door. “Now, when you feel the ship come to a stop and the engines die down, be ready to jump. You can both swim, can’t you?” He looked at me skeptically.
“Of course we can swim,” I said, getting nervous about the thought of another cold, smelly dip in the Hudson. “I was just hoping we wouldn’t have to.”
“The docks are going to be full of hard men looking for a reason to ruin a nice young lady’s day.” He gave me a yellow-toothed grin and winked. “You’re better off taking your chances with the river.” I nodded acknowledgement and swallowed hard.
Will reached out and shook Mr. Lorenzo’s hand. “Thank you, Sir.” The older man’s grin faded and a genuine look of astonishment shifted quickly to appreciation.
“You be careful, now.” He shook Will’s hand and slapped his hat onto his head, then retreated into the shadows, leaving Will and me to stand waiting for the ship to dock.
Within minutes, the rumble of engines slowed to a deep grumble beneath our feet and the movement of the ship ceased. I slipped my pack over my shoulders. Will slowly opened the small square hatch that led to the outside. I peered past him, looked down, and then stepped back. “You don’t think I’m jumping into that, do you?”
Not only was it at least a thirty foot drop, the water that churned from beneath the ship looked like a gigantic bubbling cauldron of acid waiting to take the flesh off my bones. The dumping of chemical and sewage waste from up river probably made the water just as lethal.
“It’s not like we have any choice here, Lily.” Will glared at me. “Just consider yourself lucky that you can’t get sick.”
I realized once again that he was right. At least I wasn’t about to catch some wretched disease from bathing in sewage-infested river water, but the prospect of jumping from that height was no more appealing than the idea of returning to smelling like a compost heap.
I shook my head in disgust, and forced a smile. “After you, then.”
He flashed a brilliant grin back at me. “It’s nice to know that I’ll have you to cure me if I catch some nasty bug. Meet you on the south river bank. If I don’t make it, you go on to the safe house.” With that, he launched himself out the door. I watched him disappear into the muck and swore under my breath.
“Heaven help me…” heart pounding and a scream caught in my throat, I leapt into space, and dropped into the frigid, roiling depths.