“Have you tried it?”
“No. I didn’t want to waste any.”
“Is it lethal?”
Eva Fathom hesitated. “Of course it is. It must be, if it’s the most powerful spell ever created.”
“Well, what’s their . . . what’s the little saying that goes with it?” Aaron’s annoyance grew. He had plainly instructed Eva to bring him scatterclips since he knew their power and how to use them. And he hated that he couldn’t think of the word the Artiméans used. It made him feel uncomfortable and ill-prepared. With this sudden opportunity, he wasn’t sure if he could pull everything together by tomorrow. But he’d have to.
“Heart attack,” she said. “Throw it at the person, it grows wings or some such thing and strikes your opponent in the chest. He then collapses. And . . . is dead.” She glanced over her shoulder and pressed her lips together.
“You kept one for yourself, I hope. The only way we’ll gain the power we need is by getting rid of all the key players, especially Mr. Today. He’ll never expect it from you.” Aaron smiled. “He’ll never know what hit him if you do it right.”
“That’s the plan,” Eva said. “I’ll take care of him, don’t worry. I’m more worried about you mucking things up.”
Aaron narrowed his eyes but said nothing. It was just the challenge he needed. He might be up working all night, but tomorrow . . . tomorrow he’d be turning Artimé into a disaster zone, causing Necessaries to flock back to Quill, and once again he’d climb his way up the ruling ranks when the Quillens saw how he saved them.
And, if all went well, he’d also rid the world of Alex, Mr. Today, and all of their stupid Unwanted friends, once and for all.
Meanwhile
The white boat flew over the waves, almost as if it were skimming the surface, giving Samheed, Meghan, and Lani a smooth and most enjoyable ride. It had been a cinch to start it’the instructions and spells were posted right next to the compass, practically begging them to take it for a ride.
“This is more fun than flying on Simber’s back,” Lani shouted from the helm. She turned the wheel slowly from one side to the other, leaving a lazy S wake behind them.
Meghan agreed. Her face, now rosy from the wind and sun, looked decidedly healthier than just hours before. She stood on the seat next to Lani, gripping the top edge of the windshield and letting the wind rush past her, trying not to smile too much in case there were bugs.
“It’s not bad,” Samheed said. He sat in a seat near the back of the boat, leaning forward and gripping his stomach. His face looked anything but healthy. “Can you stop going back and forth like that, though?”
Lani glanced over her shoulder and straightened out the wheel immediately. “Sorry’hey, you’re not about to glug up your lunch, are you?” She slowed the speed a hair as well. “Because if you do, try going for anywhere except inside the boat, right?”
Samheed scowled. “I’m fine. Just stop the spinning already.”
The girls exchanged smirks but kindly left poor Samheed to suffer the queasies in private.
After a quarter of an hour or so, Meghan scanned the horizon and turned to Lani in surprise. “Are you aiming for the island?”
Lani shrugged. “I thought we could get near it. See what’s there.”
Meghan squinted. “What if people are there? That would be so weird.” They’d never seen people from other lands before the two visitors landed on the shores of Artimé. They’d never even known there were other lands, or other people, until recently.
“Yeah,” Lani said. “This is where Mr. Today came from. He said it was beautiful and the people were nice.” She stared ahead at the looming island, every now and then looking back over her shoulder so she would know how to get back to Artimé. She watched the compass too, having learned a little bit about sailing in her vast amounts of reading.
After a while, Samheed got up and walked to where the girls were. He stood behind Lani, taking mental notes on how she was driving.
“Feeling better?” Lani asked kindly.
“Yes, now that we’ve stopped rocking side to side,” he said. “Thanks.” He looked around at the vast ocean, then ahead at the island. “It’s so strange to see it getting bigger,” he said.
Lani nodded. She didn’t quite understand the feelings that were swirling around inside her stomach. She was nervous and excited. And scared, too. But most of all she was intrigued to learn more, as was often the case with her. She couldn’t get enough stories of other worlds, like the ones they’d read in her literature class and Actors’ Studio, and the ones that she’d made up and told to friends and neighbors back in Quill, which got her sent away. Now she was determined to see another new world for herself, rather than just read about it, or make it up in her head. It was a lofty goal, and it was happening right now.
By midafternoon they drew close enough to see that there were few visible rocks along the shore and lots of sand. There was no lawn, no mansion, no people or creatures walking about as far as they could tell. Just a length of beach and a grove of palm trees behind, and then the land built up toward the middle of the island, where enormous rocks rose grandly into the air. Water tumbled from the rocks and rich green vegetation grew thick and tall all around.
Lani slowed the boat and they drifted toward the island. It was so quiet that they couldn’t even hear the calm lap of the waves on the beach. The three began to whisper without realizing it as they grew near, perhaps feeling the sacredness of their discovery, realizing this truly was the same paradise that Mr. Today had talked about. It was pure beauty to look at.