The captain shook his head slowly. “That current was stronger than anything I’ve ever experienced. The maelstrom came up faster than I would have believed possible.”
He looked back at the ship’s stern, and Heath followed his gaze. The maelstrom was fading out of sight, its thunder already a dull roar. Heath could feel Bianca, even through her exhaustion, directing the wind to propel them eastward again. They were no longer being drawn into a rocky whirlpool, but the water was far from calm. The swells were alarmingly large, and the ship slapped at each one as it fell from the peaks. The day had been clear before all the chaos began, but the very air was darkening now, as if fog was descending.
“We’ll have to turn back,” the captain said. “I don’t know what you were hoping to find out here, but we’ve reached the edge of the passable stretch of ocean.”
“No!” Heath protested. “We’re almost there!”
He turned his face toward the east, focusing with all his might on Vazula. It sprang instantly into his mind’s eye, and he knew it wasn’t a memory. It was Vazula as it currently looked, sparkling like a jewel under a midday sun. His physical eyes saw the gathering fog, but with his other sight, he could see that the island was close, almost within reach.
“I won’t risk my crew,” the captain said bluntly. “I don’t know what force is at work here, but these waters aren’t supposed to be traveled. There’s a reason no one sails this way.”
Heath felt frustration bubbling up within him. They were so close—he couldn’t turn back now. What if his grandmother was right? What if Merletta was there, even now? He’d done his calculations when planning the trip, and he knew it was a rest day for the trainees in her program. He tried again to picture Vazula, and it appeared in his mind. But he was seeing it from the sky, as it looked to the dragon’s eye. He couldn’t see the detail he needed. He had to get closer.
“If I wasn’t asking you to go further east,” he said, turning suddenly back to the captain, “could you safely sail around in this general area for a few hours?”
The captain’s brow was furrowed, but he considered the question. “Aye, I reckon we could,” he acknowledged, although he cast a glance back in the direction of the maelstrom, which was no longer visible. “But what would be the use of that? What are you expecting to happen?”
“You never know,” said Heath vaguely.
The captain regarded him shrewdly for a long moment, and Heath had the sense that he was remembering the promise of double payment upon return to Valoria.
“A few hours,” he barked at last. “Then we sail west, back to Valoria.”
“Thank you,” Heath said gratefully.
He turned back to his cousins, who were both watching him warily.
“What are you planning, Heath?” Brody demanded.
Heath was already striding to the stairs, ready to gather some things from his cabin. “I think we’re as close to the barrier as a boat full of non-power-wielders can get,” he said briskly. “I’m going to take one of the rowboats and try to get through it on my own. I think I’ll be able to pass when it’s just me.”
“You think?” Bianca echoed, her voice a little shrill. “Heath, that’s a terrible idea. Have you seen the state of the sea out there?”
“Of course I have,” said Heath impatiently. “But do you think I came this far to give up because of a few waves?”
“Heath, you’re going to get yourself killed,” said Brody firmly. “You may not care, but I for one have no desire to throw my life away.”
But Brody’s eyes flicked to his sister as he spoke, and Heath could tell he wasn’t concerned only for himself. He didn’t blame Brody for being anxious. Bianca looked incredibly pale, still exhausted from her prolonged efforts with the wind.
“I’m not asking either of you to come with me,” Heath said quickly. They’d reached his cabin by now, and he slung his bow over his back. “I just need some help getting a rowboat into the water—I have a feeling the captain will put up a fight if I tell him my plan.”
“I wonder why,” said Brody dryly.
Heath ignored him. A minute later, he was back on the deck, trying to look inconspicuous as he moved toward one sturdy rowboat, hoisted above the edge of the ship. The other two trailed behind him, not looking excited, but apparently resigned to his determination.
With difficulty, the three of them began to operate the capstan, causing the rowboat to swing outward. It hadn’t quite cleared the side of the ship when a cry went up, and a crew member raced toward them. Heath leaped into the boat, and Bianca, apparently more sympathetic to his mission than Brody, hastily worked the ropes. The boat was dangling fully above the water by the time a few of the sailors reached them.
Brody leaped into motion, loosing one of the ropes so that the rowboat tilted crazily.
“Try to convince the captain to wait for me!” Heath shouted, as he pulled out his bow. “Give me three hours, and if I don’t come back, then…”
But he had nothing to suggest for what they should say or do if he disappeared into the ocean, so he gave up trying to yell across the wind and the sound of the water lashing against the ship. He loosed two arrows in quick succession, his eyes finding no difficulty in locking on the target of the main rope still connecting the rowboat to the ship. It frayed dangerously, and a third arrow detached it completely.
With a stomach-churning drop, the rowboat fell onto the choppy surface of the ocean. Heath returned his bow to his back and seized the oars. He wasn’t sure if the captain would try to pursue him, or cut his losses and sail for home. Heath pulled at the oars, straining with the effort of fighting the waves. He could feel Bianca’s power reaching out across the water between them, sending a helpful gust of wind that supplemented his uninspiring efforts.
Heath moved slowly but steadily east, the rowboat rising and falling dramatically with each swell. Water sloshed over the sides, and more than once the edge of the rowboat dipped dangerously close to the water’s surface, but Heath felt no fear. Perhaps it was foolish, but he was convinced he could reach Vazula, convinced it was barely out of sight. And if he made it there, he didn’t much care what the captain did. It would be awkward to be stranded, but Heath didn’t think he was at risk of dying alone on Vazula. Despite their current estrangement, he was almost certain that if his life depended on it, Reka would come for him.
He was just reassuring himself of this conclusion when he felt a familiar ripple pass over him. The magic was potent, a thousand times more so than the power Bianca had been pouring into the wind for the last day and a half. Immediately, the swells began to lower, the ocean calming, and the fog-like gray dissipating.