Author's notes to reviewers: Again thanks a lot for all those encouraging reviews! This story is turning out much better than I thought it would at first. I feel I should warn you this will not last all summer, but I do have a partially formed alternative story that is a completely different continuation of Exodus that might work out.


As the powerboat sideswiped the raft, jarring Sawyer awake, Michael grabbed for a railing and vaulted onto the boat. The boat was moving too fast for Michael to keep his balance, and he fell over backward, sliding against the back wall of the cabin. He scrambled to his feet, got over to Walt, who was still clutching the steering wheel with one hand behind his back, and gave him the biggest hug of his life. "Oh Walt, I was so afraid I'd never see you again!"

Walt was crying tears of happiness, and was fighting for breath against the bear hug to point out that they needed to get back for their crewmates. Michael recovered, fumbled for the boat's throttle in the darkness, and eventually slowed the boat down. He was about to ask Walt why he hadn't managed to control the boat's speed, when Michael noticed that Walt was still holding the wheel in that peculiar position. Grimacing at what the kidnappers had done to his son, Michael helped Walt turn the boat around, and headed back for the raft, whereupon Michael and Jin assisted Sawyer into the boat. Jin took the wheel and headed for the star Michael had been trying to paddle toward.

The next order of business was to untie Walt. It was too risky to use a pocketknife in the dark and on the choppy ride to try to cut the ropes; a slip of the knife and Walt might be bleeding like Sawyer had been. Therefore Michael resorted to untying Walt's hands, when Walt pointed out that his feet were tied as well. With one functioning arm, Sawyer was useless for untying knots, so he ordered, "Let me take the wheel!" After a few seconds of gesturing and pointing at Walt's feet, Jin got the message, and went to work at that task. While he would never admit it out loud, Sawyer relished the fact that he was now participating in the rescue. At least he was going to be a hero in this portion of their odyssey.

It took several minutes for Michael and Jin to release Walt, who wound up in considerable pain. The ropes had left marks clear down to the bones, and it would take some doing to get circulation restored properly. As Walt brought his arms in front of him for the first time in about an hour, a sharp pain seared through his shoulders as well. To address all his aching joints, he ended up rubbing his wrists while sitting on the passenger seat next to Sawyer, with Jin massaging Walt's ankles, and his father working on Walt's neck and shoulders. This was not an activity Jin had envisioned ever performing, but he readily accepted it as part of his penance and was grateful for the opportunity to help.

While massaging his son's neck and shoulders, Michael had a flashback to the same activity that took place nine to ten years before. Back then, baby Walt loved the touch of his parents' hands. He was so happy, everything would be so perfect, … and then how could anyone have foreseen what this child would have to go through. What no child should have to go through, but in this far-from-perfect world many did. Michael would do all in his power to see that Walt would never suffer like this again. Snapping back to the present, Michael concentrated on his job that now entailed not just making Walt feel good, but also restoring the full use of his arms. The night was far from over, and it was impossible to predict what events were yet to come. It was imperative that everyone be in the best possible physical condition.

Walt was feeling re-energized with the rubdown, and he related his remarkable experience to the crew. Well, at least to the two-thirds who could understand him. Jin would have to wait a day for a translation. Given the night's events Walt was going to be honest and tell everything. It must be best that everyone know the whole truth now. When Michael heard about the visualization of the shark, a chill went down his spine as the image of the rapidly retreating carnivore had been permanently etched into his mind. Sawyer harrumphed and expressed his opinion that the stressful events of the night had caused Walt to exaggerate or hallucinate, and it was nothing more than coincidence, but Michael had seen and heard of enough of these incidents to doubt that. There was something odd about his son, but he felt it best to keep that opinion to himself, and simply agreed with Sawyer, "Yeah, I'm sure you're right, it's just a coincidence."

The first hints of sunlight penetrated the darkness of the night sky, and they could see the outline of the mountain near the north side of their island. The minutes passed, the sky brightened, and half a mile from shore the helmsman Sawyer made a slight course correction to head for the nearest point of the beautiful beach that beckoned to them. The crew was all smiles at the imminent approach of landfall. Sawyer estimated they were close to a quarter mile away, when they heard a most unpleasant sound.

… to be continued