Archipelago N.Y.: Flynn (28 page)

Flynn looked back
at the sonar. The blinking dots were right above them now, moving quickly
towards the stern. They had managed to slide under. Lucked out! Any second, and
they would be clear... Then…Flynn spotted the other two blips on the screen,
just ahead! Very close! Too close! He looked out of the window and his eyes
widened.

Flynn was staring
at the last two mines which had dropped lower than the rest. They were now
directly at eye-level…rushing at them at an alarming speed! How could he have missed
the damned things!

“Up, up, up!” Mr.
Kowalski’s cry forced Flynn to jump into action. He grabbed the steering column
and pulled it all the way back towards him.
The Ark
’s bow rose sharply,
throwing Mr. Kowalski off his seat. He grabbed for the nearest railing to
steady himself then cried again, “Full speed ahead, boy! Go, go, go!”

With both hands
holding on to the steering column, Flynn used his right foot to kick the
throttle all the way down. The engines roared… The
Ark
lurched forward
and started rising. He looked at the sonar for an instant, and then closed his
eyes shut. What was the point? They would either make it, or…not! There was
nothing more he could do.

The noise was
deafening…the groan of the engines, the painful scream of the hull pushed to
its limit…A long moment passed before the vibration started to ease a little…
then stopped. Flynn cracked an eye open and checked the sonar. The mines were
behind them. His eyes shifted to the depth gouge. They were now twenty feet
under the surface.

He leveled the
Ark
and pulled the throttle back, then wiped the sweat off his forehead.

“You did it,
Flynn!” Mr. Kowalski’s hand squeezed his shoulder.

“I guess...” Flynn
took a deep breath and exhaled loudly.

“Didn’t think
she’d make it…” Mr. Kowalski’s hand stroked the dashboard lovingly, “But she
did… I’m so proud of her! We built her well, I suppose.”

Flynn kept the
Ark
sailing underwater for another ten miles, before he brought her up
above the surface. Everyone was now free to unbuckle and move their weary legs
about the deck. Hatches were opened to let fresh air in. The journey was on.
There was a long way to go.

Flynn engaged the
autopilot, opened the cockpit skylight, climbed up and sat on the roof deck.
The sun was rising above the ocean. Another hatch opened nearby. Tony Romero
squeezed through it, walked over and sat next to Flynn.

“Do you think
we'll find it, amigo?” he asked. “Dry Land, I mean?”

“Oh, yeah!” Flynn
replied. “We’ve got to… For Duncan's sake… and for everybody else we left
behind…” His words were barely audible, his mood dark, his heart clenched like
a fist.

The two of them
sat in silence for a while, staring at the wide horizon, bathed in all shades
of orange and pink.

“Look!” Tony
pointed suddenly at the sky.

Flynn glanced over
his shoulder. He saw a small black dot, coming closer…A bird? So far out? It
appeared to be heading straight for the
Ark
.

“I think it's a
pigeon!” Tony exclaimed as the bird swooped over their heads.

And Tony was
right.

Seconds later, the
pigeon landed on the deck, cocked its head sideways, its little red eye staring
curiously at the boys. Flynn reached out and picked it up. There was something
wrapped around its leg... A message! Gently, Flynn removed the small roll of seaweed
paper, unfolded it, and with his heart pounding, read the three simple words:
I
love you
. They were written in squid ink, still wet round the loops of
Madison’s beautiful letters.

Flynn’s lips
stretched into a big smile. He moistened the tip of his finger, smeared
whatever was left of the ink and drew a little heart at the bottom. Then he
rolled the note and attached it back to the bird's leg. The pigeon flapped its
wings, rose up and began its flight back east, in the direction of the
Archipelago.

“What did Madison
say?” Tony grinned.

“Mind your own
business, Tony!” Flynn laughed, his heart now soaring just like the little bird...
his strength suddenly restored…

Finding Dry Land
was only the beginning, he thought. Sooner or later, he would be back… and no
matter what, the Archipelago and Madison Ray would be waiting for him.   

THE END