The day I stumbled across my captain...

Judging how quick these days fly by, I decided to jump on the tail of this banner and shout-- 22 days until Night Bird is released!

I was talking with the hero, Travis Howland, over the weekend. Nothing rattles my composure like standing on the beach with a handsome sea captain. Whoa! His presence left me more than a little shaken. Suppose someone happened by? I quickly devised an excuse of searching for sea shells and let me say I got one heck of an eye full, basket full, er, whatever, you know what I mean!

Have a peek.

Anyway, I thought it’d be nice if I shared a little bit of our conversation.


Excuse me…um, Mr. Howland. What brings you to this particular part of the world, where your story takes place?
You can call me Travis. And if you're referring to the South Pacific, my Falcon and crew followed a mighty herd of sperm whale and found the real prize to be in the Pacific. An unfathomable amount of beasts inhabiting that part of the ocean. There are some Yankee whaleships who prefer the Atlantic and a 'plum-pudding cruise,’ and are content to make due with the declining number of whales rather than attempt to sail around the Horn. By our sucessful navigating we mastered Cape Horn and relied on instinct and skill, and thus were rewarded in terms of the amount of oil we secured. But I suppose you meant how did I end up here, at Lost Isle? Having grown up on Nantucket it came as no surprise to my father when I announced my desire to pursue my fortune by supplying oil to a new Industrial Revolution. A single trip can double or triple the amount of money invested. One such voyage earned nearly $90,000!
Me: That’s quite impressive. But excuse me for saying this. You don’t exactly have any oil now, do you? I mean…I don’t see a ship or even one keg.


Travis: Bah! Yes, well. Life has a way of disrupting the best laid plans, I suppose. It’s a fact, I’m on foot at the moment. Thanks to a double-crossing business partner. But I’ve written everything down in the journals aboard my ship The Falcon, which, sorry to say, is either charred or splintered wood at the bottom of the ocean. Sadly there’s nothing left to supply even a hint of my whereabouts to my family. And I wholeheartedly presumed all was lost. I actually believed there would be no justice for me and my crew or closure for my father. But all that has changed after meeting the Night Bird.

Wow! She’s beautiful! I can see why you’re not too disappointed then. I mean, it’s probably no big incovenience to find yourself shipwrecked with someone who looks like that, huh?

Travis: I agree. Emma has made this turn of events worth all of my...um, suffering.




NIGHT BIRD

“Tell me exactly what has happened these past few days?” he said, grabbing her by the shoulders. “Explain damn you! What has become of me?”
“You have died, to put it frankly.” And then more gently, she said, “Upon the beach. I found you and…gave you a new life.”
Surely, she was toying with him. And yet, he couldn't mistake the seriousness in her voice, the unbending stance as she turned in front of the window. His mind clouded with a rush of horror. The frightening visions he'd wrestled through long, dark nights. Images so horrible even the most hardened of men couldn't conjure up.
“I remember swimming endlessly, never reaching the end. And a light that drew me closer, beckoning me. Warm and reassuring, filled me with a certainty that once I’d reached it, I’d be safe.”

He turned and leveled an accusing glare. Despite the fact he was much bigger than she and could easily toss her aside, Emma didn’t back up. He couldn’t help but admire her. She’d given up many hours, days’ she claimed, to see that he had the time he so desperately needed.
He released a weary sigh and acknowledged the possibility that maybe what she said was true. “I thought it might be a lighthouse and followed it.”
As a seaman, he knew the conditions of the treacherous sea, the razor sharp rocks and icy cold water. Travis recalled the crashing blows he had endured as he fought against the waves, the biting sting as water filled his lungs. Even the strongest swimmer could not have survived such conditions.
In his heart he must accept that what she’d told him could very well be true. Maybe he had died upon the deserted beach. And she’d come to offer him the means to save his father. Would he be willing to follow this mysterious woman to aid his plight? Without question, he’d agree to whatever terms necessary if it meant saving his father.