The Evolution of Normal

Chapter 20

When the morning finally arrives, the rain has slowed considerably, but everything is wet, we have a hard time starting a fire so we can cook our food. Eventually, some tinder we kept with us in the tent lights, and we get a very small, sad, and damp fire burning. But before our water can boil, the fire goes out, and we can't get it going again. So we pour the semi-warm water into our breakfast packages and wait for them to reconstitute in the tent.

"I don't think the water was hot enough," Mona says as she eats. "My eggs are still crunchy."

"Mine too. It's kind of nasty." We finish eating them anyway, because today we paddle out to the island. First Cox, then Lanz. So we need the nutrition, the calories. "How many miles to the first island, Mona?"

"Umm, not sure, let me check the map." She digs around in her pack and pulls it out, folded and wrinkled and stuffed in a plastic bag along with several other papers. "It's just about six miles to Cox Island. Then one more to Lanz."

"Our biggest day yet, then."

"Yes. We should check the tide tables."

"Good idea." She shuffles through the bag and finds the chart. "Let's see. High tide was early this morning, at five thirty. Next low tide is close to one. High tide again at six thirty. Then low tide at almost midnight."

"We should try and get to Lanz Island as close to high tide as possible, I would think."

"Yeah. That means we need to get moving, because it's almost ten already. How's your leg?"

"Manageable. It's stiff and it aches, but I can walk on it. I'll be fine, it's not like you use your legs all that much when you kayak. What about you?"

"Limp's almost gone, and it doesn't hurt. Unlike you, I'm not really looking forward to sitting all day. Damned tailbone still hurts."

"And somehow I don't feel the least bit sorry for you."

She scowls at me, and with that we pack everything up, take down the tent and head down to our kayaks. We tromp across the wet sand to the three kayaks and untie two of them.

"Should we leave Lex's kayak?" I ask.

"I don't know what else we'd do with it. Is there anything in it that we can use?"

I start looking through the compartments, dreading the task. I shudder, feeling queasy. The familiar stain of guilt starts to bleed into the foreground of my consciousness. A hard lump forms in my throat.

"There's nothing we can use. Just his thermos, some spare clothes, and another bag of marshmallows." There's a hitch in my throat as I say marshmallows, and I start to cry despite myself.

"Oh, God, I'm sorry, Chloe. I should've looked, not you. You okay? I totally wasn't thinking. Will you be alright? We need to go, we'll be hard pressed to make it to the island in time."

I sniffle and nod, wiping my tears. I grab my kayak, dragging it with me as we head out into the tide pools. It's halfway to low tide, so we have quite a ways to walk before we find the ocean. And it's tricky going. We pick our way further out, amongst the sea anemones and starfish, the deep red seaweed that strings across the pools and algae covered rocks. I'm busy paying attention to my footing when I hear a crash. I look up, and ahead of me Mona has fallen. Her red kayak lays tilted sideways, she isn't in sight.

"Mona!" I shout, scrambling over as quickly as I can. Before I can get to her, though, she's standing up, muttering a string of curses and looking at her elbow. She's standing knee deep in a tide pool. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I whacked my elbow really good, though. I mean, really good. It doesn't feel like I broke it, thankfully. But now I'm pretty well soaked. Not like I wasn't before. At least I'm wearing my dry suit."