June 23, 2017 - Escape

Escape

“Where are we?” I asked the sailor as he untied my hands.

“We will be in Brindisium in the hour.”

“Italy?”

“Yes.”

I ate the bread, but was too weak to eat quickly.  My fatigue and sorrow was such that I didn’t care.  The water slid down my throat.  It was rancid, but strengthened me.

Nobody was watching me, so I untied my feet.  Slowly I devised a plan.  As we came nearer to the shore, I would jump in the water.  I recalled the boys in Delos and how they swam so successfully.  Either I would die from drowning and this nightmare would be over, or I’d swim to safety.  I doubted the latter.  My body was burned by the sun.  I ached and felt feverish. 

I could hear the waves and the gulls circled overhead.  I knew we were close.  The captain saw me as I stood, but he was so assured of my captivity that he ignored me.  I looked at the shore, realizing I had made it all the way from Asia to Italy.  Either I would die today, or escape.  Either way, I would be free.

To the right, the docks were lined with row upon row of ships, some anchored offshore because the docks were so crowded.  To the left, where we headed, there were just a few ships, and further away a rocky shore.  I decided quickly and dived into the water, like I had seen the boys do. 

A green haze surrounded me.  Sparkles of light broke ever my head.  My hands touched a muddy bottom.  I turned my body around and pushed my feet into the mud as hard as I could.  I came out of the water gasping for air.  I looked and saw I was farther from the ship than I anticipated.

I heard the laughter of the sailors as I went back in the water, taking a gulp of water instead of air.  I came back up coughing.  I turned in the direction of the shore, remembering how the boys had swam.  I pushed my right arm out in front of me and pulled it back through the water like an oar.  I repeated that motion with my left arm.  I was moving.  It took a few stokes to get the rhythm of one arm then the other.  I then realized my feet were trailing behind me, not helping my speed.  I started kicking them and it made me move forward.  I quickly grew better.  I would not drown.  I would make it.

The minutes passed before I felt the rocks under my feet.  I stood and pushed through the waves.  When I finally looked at the shore, I saw a half dozen men waiting for me, including the captain.  I stopped, realizing I had failed.

Two men came into the water and took me by the arms.  I didn’t struggle.  It was useless.

What you just read is an excerpt of my newest novel, which will be published in the next few days, named Onesimus.  It is the story of a boy taken into captivity, who one day escapes and finds a life of freedom in Christ.