"What happened?” Telma stood up hugging her sisters forcefully. The young man took a quick look at the deck.
"We have a leak.” Almices rose quickly to try to plug the gap that had formed in the bow. It wasn't a big hole, but the water was already threatening to flood the boat. They wouldn't get far if they didn't plug it. The little ones cried again, and the tension gripped them all.
"Can I help you?” Telma had stopped rowing to reassure her sisters and then approached the bow.
"Pass me the pitch and hemp. They are down there.” He pointed to a pine box wedged under one of the banks.
Telma was surprised at her brother's ability to solve the unexpected problem. They fixed the leak, but the storm was still raging, and they nervously discovered that Telma's neglected oar had disappeared, taken by the sea. With just one oar, guiding the ship in the middle of the ocean was a near-impossible mission. Almices decided to lift the sail, just by a third to use wind and thus guide the boat through the hectic waters.
The day gave way to the night and the wind accelerated. The momentum of the boat, even with so little sailing space, gave it an unmeasured speed. The hole was still leaking, but was not a concern at the moment. Almices calculated that, at that speed, they would arrive at Kos before dawn. The sail was being forced to its limits and he kept his eyes constantly fixed on it. The ties he had made to keep only part of the sail unfolded were loosened without warning and the entire sail suddenly inflated. The ship swung sharply toward the bow and the mast gave a dry roar. The children looked up. They saw that the sail had torn and was fluttering violently. The ship drifted through the strong waves. The four of them hugged each other, praying for the mast to withstand and to avoid the coastal breakers. Almices mustered some courage and tried to lower the rickety sail with the intention of repairing it. His efforts were fruitless, and he realized that it was impossible in the midst of the storm. With dusk they lost the reference of the coast. The boat was now carried by the whims of the waves and soon Almices did not know where the storm was pushing them.
Dawn surprised the Theopoulos boat. It had been a long, tense night in which they had finally fallen asleep one after the other. Telma was the first to wake and she checked quietly that all four were still on board. Despite some damage, the ship had endured the storm. She looked up at the remnants of the sail, then turned to look at the horizon. There was no land in sight. She was concerned, so woke her brother.
"Brother, wake up," she put her hand gently on his shoulder. Almices opened his eyes. Lying face up, he saw the sky was cloudy, but it didn't seem to be raining. He sat up.
"Good morning, Telma. How are you and the little ones?”
"Exhausted, it's been a very long night. I'm still dizzy. You fell asleep and then the little ones wet themselves.”
"Yes, I can smell it.” He gave them a loving look. They were still asleep. “Last night I was so exhausted it was hard for me to keep my eyes open,” he tried to excuse himself.
"Almices, I'm worried. I can't see land anywhere; we have to do something.”
"We don't have another sail on board. We will have to use one of the blankets as a sail.”
"Do you think it will work?" Telma was ready to pick up one of the blankets that was soaked by the storm.
Noon was approaching and the wind, as strong the day before, did not show signs of abating. Janira, tired by the rugged voyage, was alternating between sleep and waking, between sobs and nightmares. Nerisa had closed herself off. She woke up shortly after her older siblings and without a word curled up in a corner looking toward the sea as if she were a statue. Telma had tried to talk to her on several occasions but she only replied with monosyllables, her gaze fixed upon the horizon. The old blanket tied to the mast was so heavy that it wasn't even blowing in the breeze. Almices constantly tried to steer the boat eastward, fighting the current with one oar while Telma held the helm.
“A boat!” Nerisa exclaimed with hope in her voice. “Look Almices, a, boat, over there.” Nerisa pointed insistently to the port side. Her brother glanced to where she was pointing.
"We don't know if they are friend or foe, Nerisa. It’s better if they don’t see us. We must be cautious," Almices replied. Indeed, a small sail could be seen on the horizon.
“We won't be able to get anywhere like this, brother," Telma chipped in. “We’ve almost ran out of water and we don't know where the nearest land is. Maybe they can help us.”
"It's very risky," her brother insisted, doubting whether it would be the best.
"Almices, you’re just like mother, always distrusting people," his older sister responded. “We cannot risk any more, Janira has to rest, or we will lose her too. We have no choice but to ask for help.” Nerisa nodded in agreement.
"Okay, we'll turn to that boat, see if they can see us." He took over from his sister at the helm and changed direction, then began rowing with the only oar toward the boat that appeared to approach them.
The sail was slowly approaching. The Theopoulos’ took for granted that they had been spotted. Almices calculated they were about five hundred stokes away when the ship turned to them. The die was cast. They had some money, if they were fishermen the children hoped they could pay their way to Kos; if they were not, better that everything happened quickly, the boy thought. It was a much larger vessel than the battered boat of Hermes Theopoulos. A large triangular sail pushed her decisively toward them. From the small boat they could see several people moving about on deck. The animation onboard warned Almices that they were preparing to board them, they began to retract the sail.
"Ahoy there! who are you?” a voice arose from the bow, a man with a strong complexion raised his hand with a friendly gesture. Almices was prepared to respond.
"We come from Samos, the storm broke the sail and we’ve been drifting. We need help getting to Kos.”
“Your ship is damaged, come on board, we’re going to Nisyros, which is next to Kos. I guess we'll be able to leave you somewhere on the island.”
The two ships were placed next to each other and the children went on board leaving the small boat empty, drifting by. The burly man who had spoken to them appeared before them.
"Good morning, children. I am Zamar, the captain of this ship, welcome.” He smiled sardonically. “These are my men.” He gestured to the crew. A dozen men of various ages, each more dishevelled and dirtier than the next. The siblings feared that they were not fishermen. Some of the sailors leered at Telma's breasts, which stood out thanks to the girl's clothing, still soaked by the storm. The ship was certainly large, had to have several compartments for the crew and considerable space for cargo. No nets were seen anywhere.
"Thank you for picking us up," said Almices. “What can we offer you as compensation?”
"Don't worry about that now, go and rest, and in a couple of hours we will eat and talk about everything.” The captain smiled, made a gesture to go below deck. The children, a little suspicious, felt exhausted, and after speaking briefly discussing the offer, ended up accepting the invitation.
The ship’s interior was sparse. They descended down some rough wooden steps and found themselves in the cellar. On both sides, some jars were irregularly stored near bunk beds that must be used by the crew. The sailor who guided them went to the bow and made them enter a small chamber. The sailor left, leaving the door open and the Theopoulos children relaxed. It was a small room, smaller than the deck; but it was dry and laying down they all fit perfectly. Almices and Telma were still uneasy, but their escape had been exhausting. They soon surrendered to sleep.
“Let me go, damn you! Get off me! Almices, help me!” Telma's screams woke her siblings up. The first thing Almices thought was that his sister was having a nightmare. He opened his eyes to see what was happening.
“Get