“The Seventh is the largest by far. It is low tide for these islands — it shall not be high tide until dark. If it is here, we will find it. Let’s retrace our steps.”
The boat began to sweep round in a broad arc until we faced the direction from which we had begun. In truth, we had sailed around these islands for so long now that the sea and the position of those barren outcrops began to appear confusing. Yet we kept up the pretence of being alert, scanning the horizon for some clue we may have missed before.
“Do you know what we’re looking for?” I asked Peter.
He had his hand to his brow, shielding his eyes from the sun. “My dear, I haven’t a clue. I’ve been lost all my life.”
Johnny said, “There’s going to be a storm.”
“You silly monkey,” Peter said, laughing. “There isn’t a cloud in the sky.”
Johnny shrugged his shoulders and said, “I can smell it.”
Mamoru left Honey to steer and came to consult Johnny. “Are you certain?” he said, unsure of whether to dismiss Johnny’s words as mere speculation.
Again Johnny shrugged. “I think so. Not a long storm, but a sharp one.”
Mamoru nodded and rejoined Honey at the wheel. They spoke for a while and consulted the map again.
“You’re right, Johnny,” said Peter, “the air does smell different.”
It was then that we noticed it, moving like a shadow over the water in the distance. A single black cloud, heavy with rain, scattering shapes across the surface of the sea. From afar it looked as if the green waters had turned grey under this darkened umbrella. It grew larger as it moved towards us, and soon we could see how quickly it was travelling. “Christ almighty,” Peter breathed. Underneath the cloud the water was flecked white with the foam of waves; yet just beyond the circle of the cloud’s shadow the sea was as calm and green as it was under our boat. It was as if a neat circle had been drawn around those waves, herding them tightly like wild animals.
“Life jackets!” Peter cried.
Johnny remained sitting impassively on a bench, his body slumped against the shack. “There are none,” he said indifferently.
Mamoru said, “Hold on tightly to something. Everything will be fine. The storm will pass.” His voice was calm and steady. He came to me and held my hand. We were standing near Johnny. I did not draw away. “Stay close to me,” he said. “I will be steering the boat. No harm will come to you.”
Peter bumped into me as I tried to follow Mamoru. He looked at me with a wild-eyed expression.
The storm hit us before Mamoru was able to return properly to the helm. I had not even reached the shack. It was as if the storm cloud had sped up, travelling more swiftly than before in order to catch us off-guard. As I fell I saw that Mamoru, too, had lost his balance. He was thrown off his feet; his back smashed into the side of the shack as the boat rocked with the force of the first wave. In a second the air passed from being dry and salty to moist with rain; a moment later I felt as if I were breathing water. A wall of rain crashed down upon us as we gasped in vain for air. I tried to keep my eyes open, but the force of the rain was so great that I could see only blurred shapes through my half-closed eyes. The boat suddenly felt small and very light. The waves threw it clean into the air and dragged it down again. Where was Mamoru? I thought I saw him haul himself to his feet and stagger to the helm. No other man in the world had the strength to do that.
I had never before known the meaning of the expression “with all my life,” not truly, but in those few moments I did. I clung to the wooden rail on the side of the boat with all my life. I wanted to say “sorry” to Johnny with all my life, “sorry I made you love me.” And with all my life I wanted to see Mamoru again.
I fell into the sea as I knew I would. I had been stupid to believe I could resist its force. Still I kicked against it. The warm foamy wash swept into my mouth, my eyes, my nose and lungs, but I kicked some more. I felt my limbs begin to tire from the struggle. Where were the others? I had not seen any of them. I thought of surrendering, but my stiffening legs continued to kick as if obeying a will greater than my own.
