Read Online To the Edge of the World by Michele Torrey - Free Book Online Page B

talking, wondering if the other could understand. “Ship,” I said, tracing the
Trinidad
in the sand. “Ship,” she replied.
    It was late afternoon when, after eating some fruit together, she took my hand and began to lead me through the jungle. “Aysó? Where are you going? Where are you taking me?” A wave of giddy happiness rushed over me and I thought, It does not matter. I would follow you anywhere.
    After a while I realized we walked a trail. A tiny thread of earth snaked up the side of a mountain. We walked a long time, our hands entwined, no longer talking. We pushed gigantic leaves aside and stepped over branches and fallen logs. Frogs chorused and butterflies danced just out of reach. We crossed creeks, leaping from stone to stone, giggling when I slipped in the mud.
    Suddenly there it was. A waterfall. It tumbled from a rock cliff and cascaded into a pool of water below. Water misted the air in a rainbow. Aysó slipped into the pool and then swam under the waterfall, beckoning me to follow.
    “I cannot swim,” I said, hungering to follow her.
    When she motioned again, I could no longer resist. I turned away from her to undress, knowing it was ridiculous. Aysó never showed embarrassment over her nakedness. But I had never been naked in front of a woman, even if it was just for a swim. Had Rodrigo ever felt this shy?
    Covering myself with my hands, I crept over the rocks and waded into the pool, going deep as quickly as I could, hoping my face was not as red as it felt. To my relief, the water was only chest-deep. Water rained on my head, streaming down my face, into my eyes and mouth. I spit out water, laughing, and when Aysó laughed, too, I pulled her toward me. “Waterfall,” I said, pointing up.
    Then, to my surprise, she reached up and pressed her lips to mine. Her lips, so soft. She tasted like rainbows of mist. My body melted into her kiss. My heart thundered. But when I tried to wrap my arms around her, she slipped away, under the water. “Aysó, come back!” My voice echoed through the jungle and up the cliff. Birds scattered from nearby treetops.
    Now she was in the middle of the pool, laughing, shaking water from her long black hair. You are so beautiful, I thought. Just as I neared her, she dove, gliding past me under the water. I tried to catch her, but she slipped away, nimble as a dolphin.
    It became a game. Each of us laughing, breathless, joy bubbling within me like fresh rain. Whenever she surfaced, I lunged after her, hoping to catch her, to kiss her. On and on we played for what seemed hours, until Aysó pointed to the sinking sun.
    I sighed.
    It was time to return.
    Later, as we arrived at where I’d left my guitar and things, a new and surprising warmth overwhelmed me. It is love, I realized. My heart bursts with love. “You are so beautiful, Aysó. You make me so happy. I—I love you.” I took her hands in mine, my heart racing, hoping she understood.
    Aysó brushed her lips across my cheek. “Waterfall,” she whispered in my ear. Then she was gone.

IX
    December 22-27, 1519

    “I love her,” I told Rodrigo that night as we lay on our bedding aboard ship.
    “It is what we all think with the first one. Do not worry. It will pass.”
    “But I am serious. I truly love her.”
    “I believe you. You truly love her until you meet the next pretty native.”
    “Pah! Why did I even think you would understand?”
    “Believe me, Mateo, I do understand. It is you who are brainless.”
    “If you understood, you would not speak to me so. If you understood, you would agree that I am really in love.”
    “Truly, Mateo, sometimes I think you are the stupidest person alive. What good is love on a voyage like this? You will only have to leave her.”
    “You are a liar, Rodrigo, and I will never talk to you again.”
    “God be praised.”
    I rolled over, pulling the blanket over my head, hating Rodrigo for always speaking the truth.
    We sat beneath the full white moon, the fire