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“Father, just a couple more steps. We’re almost there.” Sweat ran down Liberty’s face and her arms quivered from the strain of trying to support his weight and keep them both from falling backward off the ladder. She eyed Airus’s railing with longing.
They were so close but so far away. The long trip out of the subway and back to Airus had sapped most of Aapeli’s strength and so with each step he had pressed more of his weight onto Liberty. They had stumbled several times over the last few yards to the airship but by some miracle she had kept them both upright. When they’d finally reached it, Liberty had held him against the ladder to give him time to catch his breath and regain some of his strength. She suspected he would have liked to lay down instead, but feared she would never get him back on his feet if he did. Now they were both too exhausted to finish the last leg of their journey. On the first step of the ladder he had tripped and almost sent them both flying backwards. That was the moment Liberty began to doubt she would ever get her father back on board the airship.
It took several attempts but they finally found a rhythm to the climb: her using her shoulder under his hips as he pulled himself up onto the next rung. Each time they paused Liberty drew in a deep breath and then pushed again until her father had his feet on the next. Even though every muscle in her body screamed for her to stop and rest, she closed her mind against their protests and continued the effort, determined to make it on board. During all this time her father never complained, but she could feel that with each victory they achieved he was more dependent upon her strength to reach the next goal. If they didn’t make it on board soon, they might both fall from the ladder.
Liberty dared not look down. They were too far up now to give up, and the fall would certainly kill them both.
Besides, the sun was setting and Liberty needed its light to see by to clean her father’s wounds and stop the bleeding. They were both now completely covered in his blood. With his back press up against her, it seeped through his shirt onto her clothes and face, and she couldn’t help but notice that with each missed step and fumble it oozed out faster. Liberty was on the verge of panicking but tried to remember that for once her father needed her to be the stronger one.
Liberty’s voice trembled from her fatigue and fear. “Just a few more steps and I’ll fix you a nice cup of cider.” She lowered her shoulder and nudged him upward again. The moment he reached the railing, she used both hands to push him over, using the last of her energy to follow him.
She took her father’s hand, her heart turning when he managed a weak smile.
“You did good, Daughter.”
Those words and being back on her home turf energized her. She pushed her hair out of her eyes. “Thank you, Father.” She squeezed his fingers. “So did you.”
She knelt next to him and examined his wound again, drawing in a deep breath at the sight of the blood now freely running down his back.
Not wanting to frighten him, she patted his shoulder and smiled. “I’ll be right back.” When he smiled too, she nodded once and took off running toward the galley. The entire way she mentally made a checklist of the things she’d need, both from there and her cabin. Once in the galley, she grabbed a jug of cider, a wide-mouthed bowl, a small drinking cup and a bag of clean rags she kept in the cupboard to dry dishes. She carried them back to him and sat them next to him. She again grinned at him, to reassure him everything was just fine, before tucking the bowl under her arm and dashing off to her cabin for a needle and thread. She’d soon filled the bowl to its rim with hot water from the drum.
She carefully carried the water to where her father lay and sat the bowl next to him. She filled a small cup with cider and slipped a hand under his head before pressing the cup to his lips. “Try and drink this. It will make you feel better.”
Aapeli sipped at the liquid but most of it ran down his face and onto his neck. By the time the cup was empty he had at least managed to swallow a few drops. But doing so had sapped the rest of his strength. He closed his eyes, and his head would have lolled out of her hand if she hadn’t been quick enough to hold it.
Liberty lowered him back onto the deck and grabbed one of the rags, soaking it in the steaming water before wringing it out.
She smiled and tried not to sound as nervous as she felt. “I know you can hear me.” She took great care not to hurt him further as she pulled off his shirt and then dabbed at the open wound with the cloth.
“So listen up. We didn’t just hike our way out a treacherous tunnel, crawl up hundreds of steps, traverse across dangerous terrain and tug, pull and push ourselves up that damn ladder for you to give up on me now.”
As soon as she had a clean view of the wound, she threaded the needle she used to make her clothes and began stitching the jagged cut closed. By the time she’d finished the sun had all but disappeared from view, carrying with it its much needed light. They were now bathed in long shadows. The wind had picked up and sent a chilly breeze across the deck. Goose bumps popped up on her arms. This wasn’t good. If she was cold then her father had to be too. She hurried herself on. In no time she had finished the stitching and had the area covered in honey, the whole thing wrapped in some of the dry pieces of cloth.
Not once during any of this did Aapeli moan or give any indication she had caused him pain. She was relieved to hear his breathing didn’t sound as labored. Hoping to make him more comfortable, Liberty rolled his bloody shirt into a tight ball and placed it under his head, then ran to her cabin for some bedcoverings to keep the chill wind off him. When Liberty had done all she could to ease his pain and make him comfortable, she sat and waited for him to regain consciousness.
The night passed by in a long blur of checking to make certain the stiches hadn’t broken open and struggling to keep them both warm. At some point during the night exhaustion won over and she dozed off.
“Why are we sleeping on deck, Daughter?”
Liberty slowly opened her eyes and saw Aapeli’s quizzical look. She wiped the drool from her cheek and sat up. “How are you feeling?”
His voice was a mixture of exhaustion and pain. “I feel like shit. What happened?” Aapeli tried to push himself up on his elbow but stopped and groaned.
She touched his forehead and was cheered to note he wasn’t feverish. “You don’t remember?” Liberty stood and rolled him onto his side so she could check his stiches. Seeing the bleeding had stopped, she helped him onto his back again.
Liberty smiled. “You did exactly what you’ve warned against a million times. You took the shortcut. In the dark you must not have noticed that a new section of the subway had collapsed and you took a tumble.”
Even though Liberty tried glossing over the horrific nature of the accident, is was easy to see he was embarrassed, so she tried to sound more chipper. “All’s well, though.”
Liberty offered her hand. “Do you think you can get up?”
Aapeli ignored her hand and rolled onto his side before pushing himself up onto his knees. After attempting to stand and failing, he relented and took her hand.
Once on his feet, Aapeli swayed, so Liberty wrapped her arm around his waist to steady him. “Let’s try and make it to your cabin. You’ll feel much better out of the direct sunlight and resting on something softer than this deck.”
“I’m fine. Help me to the captain’s chair.”
“But...”
Aapeli straightened his spine. “Just do it.”