The Swift by Ali Cross

Author:Ali Cross
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: family, siblings, twins, pirates, time travel, childrens fantasy, oak island, altzheimers
Publisher: Ali Cross

Sour stomach or not, I still ate the second roll. Mainly because I didn’t think I could shove it into my pocket, not with the cheese still in there. I didn’t know what I’d do with the cheese—maybe eat it later. Or maybe I’d give it back to Cook on a trip down to the hold.

It’s just cheese, I told myself. But still, it seemed to mean so much more.

Like that I was a bad brother.

Like I was way worse than Henry, no matter how bad he could be.

Like Grampa would be disappointed in me if he knew.

Jack came up beside me and slapped me hard on the back. “You ready?”

I had no idea what he was talking about but I nodded my head anyway.

He looked up the foremast. “Up you go, then—you’ll be on your own. The men’ll help ya hoist the sails, but then, it’s all up to you. With Danny gone and John and Allan out of commission, we can’t spare anymore men for the sails.” He gripped my shoulder and squeezed until I made eye contact with him. “You okay with that?”

This was the moment—my chance to say no, I’m not okay. But I didn’t. Instead I glanced behind me, wishing for just a moment that Henry could join me. Every summer we’d get to sail the tall ships when they came to port in Halifax and Henry used to work the sails right alongside me. That was before. Before the Pride, before Dad—before, when we used to be friends. Now Henry stood beside Captain Sam, working the sextant and studying the map.

I turned to Jack. “I’m ready.” I sounded in control. Strong, even. Guess I was a pretty decent faker.

“That’a boy,” Jack said. For a moment I forgot he was a sixteen year old guy. For a moment, he was just Gramps.

I’d barely started to climb when Jack called up to me. “Hold for a second there, Pete.”

I looked down and saw him stride over to the Captain, but I couldn’t hear what they were saying. I dropped back down to the deck, but I wasn’t sure if I should join them, so I hung out by the railing, one hand on the mast rope.

“Come on, then.” Jack gestured and I walked on wooden legs to the table where a map was spread out, a rock at each corner keeping it from flying away. As I approached, Captain Sam turned and leaned against the table, one elbow propped on its surface. His gaze made me feel like he was judging me, trying to decide if I was ... something. Good enough? Capable? I’d show him I could pull my own weight.

I squared my shoulders and sent a stabbing glare at Henry who stood a little behind the Captain, his eyes wild with an emotion I couldn’t recognize. Was it fear? Henry never seemed afraid of anything—not even after Dad died.

“Henry says you’ve torn a path around some giant beast of a rock on these here

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