at the oars with every ounce of strength he could muster, and more besides. He didn’t stop to consider whether he had the strength or not, he had to get away from those eyes on the surface of the water.
“Hege!” he shouted wildly.
There was no chance at all of her hearing him, but still he had to shout her name. It had always been Hege he’d turned to for help.
Meanwhile the boat moved slowly toward the island. The water was rising, it was coming in through cracks higher up now. The fishing rod was bobbing up and down more forlornly than ever.
Then he stopped shouting. I’m going to make it, he thought, I’ll soon be there. He pulled at the oars, full of blissful certainty. And get there he did – before he knew it, the rocky island was right behind him.
The board grated against the bottom and came to rest, with the bow up on land. Mattis climbed ashore, so out of breath that he had to fling himself straight to the ground. He brought up his hand and began to wipe the sweat from his forehead.
That was close.
But he was safe.
He was filled with a deep sense of gratitude.
The island was nothing more than a large rock, with a few small patches of grass in the hollows. That’d be somewhere to sit, anyway. Mattis remembered to try and rescue the boat. Tried to bail it out first of all, but had to give up. He couldn’t drag the waterlogged hulk far enough up on land to do any good. The boat got even fuller it was so rotten, and seemed to dig itself in. The water was shallow so it didn’t sink, but it remained stuck fast. Mattis sat on the shore with the end of the rope in his hand.
There was nothing to do now but wait. He was stuck here until another boat turned up. Mattis gripped the rope firmly. There was nothing to tie the boat to. Actually, it was safe enough in the calm weather, but Mattis dared not to let go, a wind might spring up and set the wreck adrift – and that mustn’t be allowed to happen, the boat was going to be usable again, Mattis promised himself happily.
It was blissful to relax and gradually begin thinking again. Not that he was in any hurry about that just yet. The sun beat down upon him – no bad thing when your clothes were soaking wet; he got so hot he hadn’t the energy to take them off. As yet he hadn’t given a thought to getting back home; he’d saved his life, the rest would follow of its own accord.
“And a pretty mess things would have been in if I hadn’t!” he said in a loud clear voice. Out here you could talk to yourself to your heart’s content.
He felt weak and tired, basking blissfully in the sun, after all the strain and excitement. Getting back on land again wouldn’t be much of a problem. Sooner or later someone was bound to come out on the lake and see him. He wasn’t hungry either, just sleepy. He could take a nap until someone turned up.
But he was afraid he might let go of the rope if he fell asleep. It was the one link between him and everything he held dear. So when he felt sleep approaching with overpowering force, he tied the boatto the only thing there was: himself. He wound the rope round one of his ankles and made a firm knot. Admittedly the boat was resting securely on the rocks at the moment, but no one could tell how long it would stay there.
“If I look after you, then you’ll look after me,” he said to the boat. Soon afterward everything went blank.
21
MATTIS DIDN’T HAVE any dreams this time. And when he woke up he had no idea how long he’d been asleep, he didn’t even think about it, for he was awakened by rousing cries of heave-ho!
Girls’ voices: “Heave-ho!”
At the same time the rope was tightening round his ankle. And he was being pulled toward the edge of the water with violent jerks.
What on earth?
“No!” he shouted, frightened and confused, sitting up and rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. And sleep vanished completely.
“Come on! Again!” came a call.
“Right! Heave-ho!”
Another jerk nearer the edge
“Hege!” he shouted wildly.
There was no chance at all of her hearing him, but still he had to shout her name. It had always been Hege he’d turned to for help.
Meanwhile the boat moved slowly toward the island. The water was rising, it was coming in through cracks higher up now. The fishing rod was bobbing up and down more forlornly than ever.
Then he stopped shouting. I’m going to make it, he thought, I’ll soon be there. He pulled at the oars, full of blissful certainty. And get there he did – before he knew it, the rocky island was right behind him.
The board grated against the bottom and came to rest, with the bow up on land. Mattis climbed ashore, so out of breath that he had to fling himself straight to the ground. He brought up his hand and began to wipe the sweat from his forehead.
That was close.
But he was safe.
He was filled with a deep sense of gratitude.
The island was nothing more than a large rock, with a few small patches of grass in the hollows. That’d be somewhere to sit, anyway. Mattis remembered to try and rescue the boat. Tried to bail it out first of all, but had to give up. He couldn’t drag the waterlogged hulk far enough up on land to do any good. The boat got even fuller it was so rotten, and seemed to dig itself in. The water was shallow so it didn’t sink, but it remained stuck fast. Mattis sat on the shore with the end of the rope in his hand.
There was nothing to do now but wait. He was stuck here until another boat turned up. Mattis gripped the rope firmly. There was nothing to tie the boat to. Actually, it was safe enough in the calm weather, but Mattis dared not to let go, a wind might spring up and set the wreck adrift – and that mustn’t be allowed to happen, the boat was going to be usable again, Mattis promised himself happily.
It was blissful to relax and gradually begin thinking again. Not that he was in any hurry about that just yet. The sun beat down upon him – no bad thing when your clothes were soaking wet; he got so hot he hadn’t the energy to take them off. As yet he hadn’t given a thought to getting back home; he’d saved his life, the rest would follow of its own accord.
“And a pretty mess things would have been in if I hadn’t!” he said in a loud clear voice. Out here you could talk to yourself to your heart’s content.
He felt weak and tired, basking blissfully in the sun, after all the strain and excitement. Getting back on land again wouldn’t be much of a problem. Sooner or later someone was bound to come out on the lake and see him. He wasn’t hungry either, just sleepy. He could take a nap until someone turned up.
But he was afraid he might let go of the rope if he fell asleep. It was the one link between him and everything he held dear. So when he felt sleep approaching with overpowering force, he tied the boatto the only thing there was: himself. He wound the rope round one of his ankles and made a firm knot. Admittedly the boat was resting securely on the rocks at the moment, but no one could tell how long it would stay there.
“If I look after you, then you’ll look after me,” he said to the boat. Soon afterward everything went blank.
21
MATTIS DIDN’T HAVE any dreams this time. And when he woke up he had no idea how long he’d been asleep, he didn’t even think about it, for he was awakened by rousing cries of heave-ho!
Girls’ voices: “Heave-ho!”
At the same time the rope was tightening round his ankle. And he was being pulled toward the edge of the water with violent jerks.
What on earth?
“No!” he shouted, frightened and confused, sitting up and rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. And sleep vanished completely.
“Come on! Again!” came a call.
“Right! Heave-ho!”
Another jerk nearer the edge
Similar Books
