Excerpt
…“There is not much to do for an American housewife on this ship. No computers, no microwaves, no televisions or internet. Just enjoy the ride, I guess. But… stay out of the way or the captain is likely to put you to work.”
“How long will it take us to get to LA?”
“It will take us about three days since the scientists will want to make many stops,” he says as he struggles to tighten a rope.
“Three days! I can’t believe this is happening to me.” She leans against a post and stares off into the horizon.
The day passes with bright sunshine and warm salty air whipping about. In the late afternoon, the gentle swaying of the ship seems to sedate its crew and Denise begins to wonder if the ship knows its own way home. Night falls and Dominique brings her a plate of food from his rations.
“What is it?” she asks as she leans over the plate to sniff.
“Poisson Cru. Its tuna marinated in lime juice and tossed with coconut milk. It is served with red peppers, tomatoes and carrots, onions and garlic. And that is taro chips on the side there.”
“It smells wonderful.” She again devours her food like there is no tomorrow.
“I asked the captain about your call to America. He says we can call the coast guard in the morning.”
“What about tonight?” she asks between bites.
“He says that there may be a storm moving in tonight. He wants the radio waves to be clear for any possible weather reports.”
“Oh, that’s comforting.”
“You should get some sleep. If a storm hits later, you will not be able to sleep then.”
She goes down below again and searches for a place to sleep. She finds a spot against some bags of produce. She curls up beside them and drifts off to sleep.
During the night, she awakes to a distant rumble. The darkness is thick in her face and she strains to focus on objects in front of her. Again she hears a gentle rumble. She starts to drift back to sleep when the room is lit with a bright flash. This time the rumble is louder. “It’s a storm.” She can feel her heart begin to beat a little faster. “I hate storms.”
Lightening begins to flash and loud thunder follows instantly. The ship begins to sway a little more aggressively and she can hear the rain on the deck above her. She begins to hear the sound of footsteps running above her and the men are yelling at each other in foreign words. She clutches herself and buries her head in her knees waiting and hoping that the storm will pass quickly. The old iron ship seems to shriek and cry as the ocean juggles it like a toy. The wind howls and the ship bends to allow its breath. Lightening flashes again and again and thunder roars on for what seems like forever. She can’t bear it anymore, she must find Dominique. She runs up the stairs and turns her face into the rain. It whips against her face like an angry child spitting at her. She searches among the men for Dominique. A man yells at her in undistinguishable words and motions for her to go below. Just then, a strange howling noise begins that is almost deafening. The wind blows with such force that it seems like the ship is being shoved aside. It begins to tip violently and Denise grabs on to the rail to keep from sliding. The wind is unforgiving and the ship continues to tip. It tips completely on its side and cargo begins to jump into the sea. Denise’s fingers start to slip from the wet rail and the wind grabs her into its arms. It tosses her into the ocean and she sinks down under the waves. She struggles to hold her breath and she thrashes and kicks to come to the surface. Finally, her head pops up above the waves and she gasps for air. The salty sea water burns her eyes but she tries to see the ship. It seems to be upright again, but it is much too far away now to hear her screams. The storm seems to finally be passing but the waves are still tossing her like a cheap carnival ride. A piece of cargo is floating nearby and she struggles to swim to it. The harder she swims, the further it seems to be from her. Finally, she reaches the crate and she grabs onto the side. Her arms and legs are aching now and she can barely hang on. She cries out loud and begs for God to save her. The ocean seems to be calming a little now and she is able to climb onto to the crate. She collapses onto the crate and hangs on for dear life. She lies on the crate floating in the sea for hours and finally when she sees the horizon beginning to shed its morning light she drifts off to sleep.
The next day, Denise awakes to the sound of waves gently crashing on a beach. She realizes that the crate is not floating anymore. She rises up to look around and she can see that she is in a lagoon. She lifts herself off the crate and stumbles onto the beach. She scans her surroundings again and again, searching the entire length of the beach for signs of civilization. “I can’t believe this,” she finally admits. “I am a cast away.” She falls to the ground and beats the sand with her fists. Tears stream down the sides of her face and drip onto the sand. Finally she fades back to sleep as the warm white sand seems to cradle her with sympathy…