The Brothers....Their Story Continues

Chapter Eight

They both were battered and worn, with every inch of their bodies throbbing in pain, but they had fought their way through that storm. It had released them as quickly as it had grabbed them, with the clouds disappearing and the sun kissing the waters, making it sparkle as if nothing had happened. Efe slumped over on the wheel of the boat, his chest heaving, as he tried to catch his breath, " Kadir, are you ok, are we on course." His voice weak and strained. Kadir was  struggling to to keep his voice from trembling, " I'm good, but the best I can tell we are off about 6 nautical miles,....are you ok." Stretching across to touch his brother on the shoulder. Efe closed his eyes, he took a deep breath, " I'm not really sure yet, my whole body is numb. Let me rest a bit and we'll get back on course." He laid back on the bow of the boat, with his arms crossed over his head.  

They drifted along for about 30 minutes, as Kadir tried to keep them on a steady course. Efe had made a trip to the head and grabbed a bottled water, looking around he said, " Ok, give me the coordinates and let's get the hell out of here. I'm ready to get to Ibiza." Within minutes Kadir had the direction and speed workout and they were on their way. Efe had been strangely silent for quite some time, so Kadir made sandwiches and fruit and brought to him. " Here Abi, you need to eat something,....and by the way, you did a hell of a job through that, Dad would be proud." Efe smiled, " Thanks." Ruffling up his brothers hair, " You never know when it's your time,   but I guess it wasn't this time." Kadir shook his head, " You're right, I guess that's why you live your life like you do, like you might not get another chance... I get it..  

All this time, all that was going through his head was, what if something had happened to Kadir, what if he hadn't been able to keep their boat together, what if he would have been the reason......well he didn't even want to think about it. " Hey kid, take over for a minute while I go to the head, will you." He stuttered, tying to keep it together until he made it below. After a few minutes of a harsh conversation with himself, he made his way back to the deck and took over the wheel, " Well I think we will travel for a while tonight, just to make up some time, the faster we get to the Islands the better. I'm sure there's some party's going on there, and I don't want to miss them." He winked at his brother, hoping to get him to loosen up some when they got there. 

The night had slipped in around them like a warm blanket, the wind had all but disappeared, forcing them to fire up the motor. They watched the stars as they flashed about, like a thousand lightning bugs In the sky, nothing was more peaceful than that. They had made up the distance that they had been blown off course and had their sights set on the Ibiza Island, slicing through the water a pretty good clip. Kadir had fell asleep stretched out on the bow of the boat, but Efe was wide awake, still feeling the adrenaline pumping through his body. His mind wandering off, thinking about home, his Mom and Dad, the safety he always felt when they here around. He was glad he didn't come on this trip alone, he really didn't think he would have made it. He had stared down the length of this boat for hours now, his eyes straining to see through the darkness. They felt like they had grains of sand embedded in them, he glanced at the time, 3:15 it said, he didn't know if he could continue much longer. He reached down pulling back on the throttle and switching over to auxiliary power to run the lights, he just needed an hour or two to rest his eyes. He dropped the anchor and flopped down on the deck bench, giving way to a sleep that he needed so badly.

Kadir woke up with a jerk, his mind reliving the nightmare they had gone through the day before. The sun was just spreading is colors out across the water, as he looked around for his brother. He saw him their on the bench, asleep, but twitching about and mumbling some thing that he didn't understand. He rubbed his face hard with his hands, trying to clear his head. He headed for the galley to make a cup of coffee, a strong cup, he had a feeling he was going to need it. After he washed his face with cold water to wake himself up, he grabbed his coffee and took his place behind the wheel. He checked the coordinates to make sure they were still on their course, started up the engine and headed to Ibiza Island. He watched his brother sleep, he knew the storm was still on his mind, it had unsettled him more than he let on. He would let him sleep, although he's wasn't quite as good a sailor as Efe, he knew he could get them to Ibiza. That's the least he could do for his brother, since he had risked his life for him..

The quiet hum of the motor and the warm mist of water that blew up over the side of the boat had made his eye heavy. He searched the horizon ahead for a sign of land, but all he could see was an endless view of water, or was it sky, at this point it was hard to tell. Looking at the map he was convinced they were getting  close to the island, he hoped he hadn't taken them off course. His brother had slept for hours, and Kadir was beginning to worry about him, "Efe.....Efe, you need to wake up, I might need your help." He raised his head slightly, " What, Kadir where are we." He looked around as in a daze, " Why didn't you wake me, what time is it." Kadir smiled, "It's almost party time Abi, we should be getting close to the island." Efe sat up on the bench, stretching his back and arms to release the knotted up muscles, "So how far out are we, do you know." He asked, placing the map on the table to have a look at. " I think maybe another hour, and we should be there. Is that what you see." He questioned Efe. 

Efe studied the map for a minute, " You did good kid, we are right on course, should be seeing the port within an hour." He smiled at his younger brother, " Thanks for taking over, I guess that storm took more out of me than I thought. You did great, now are you ready to party. I think you deserve it don't you. The thought of a night of partying had Efe excited, he was in desperate need of  a distraction from the events of the last days, and was eager to show his brother a good time. 

"Yes, and good bottle of whiskey, and a beautiful, willing woman, and he could put that raging storm behind him"......

But the hardest thing would be to get Kadir to relax and accept  a good time.....He was determined to  make a man out of him on this trip......