like I knowed something about de murder of dat child. It could look like I was an obeah worker, workin woe dere, cause dere was a basket in my house dat I always used to use for tellin what de future gone to bring. You know—just to play with and have fun, see what come to de top. Cause I didn’t need no old basket to tell me things, dat was just for fun. Y’see, Speedy, I one dem people dat gets
sign
of things to come, I born with dat. Oh, dey lots of people dat gets sign, but some is more open to it den others, and I got known for it some way so dat people wanted to pay me and all dat. So it were easy to throw de blame on me.
A sound of ringing in the kettle.
What you keepin in dat basket?
Oh, lots of nothin at all—cracked bones, funny-lookin stones, old bits of wood, red beads and shiny things, sea shells, shark teeth—
He lifts the shard of mirror.
Things like dis, y’see. Keep away de Evil Eye. De Evil Eye don’t like to see itself.
The mirror glints.
Evil Eye, huh?
Speedy, I see you lookin at me funny, so I tellin you now dat I never took de left-hand path, dancin widdershins, and witchin people, all of dat; I never worked obeah in my life. But de same day dat dey accused me, something tell me to turn around in de road, and dere I see one of dem take a nail and drive it down into my footprint where I left it in de white marl road dat run down past dere cabin. So y’see, it ain’t de law dat made me sail from home.
Speedy is silent. Wodie lies back again, sighing.
Oh, yes. To go up dere in dat high thicket of bush, and den cut all of dem tops in de day, and den come back out. And after all dat, you never made nothin anyways. I very hoppy I don’t have to do
dat
no more. It like de old people say: I ain’t gone to bother fungo with
dat
.
Speedy is silent.
Oh, yes. I must be honest, I thought a while before I come aboard, for Copm Raib is famous in de whole length of de island for sayin his opinion just de way it come to him. But it seem like de thing for me to do was to sail down to de Cays.
The
Lillias Eden
moves off the bank into deep water. On the new course, the pitch increases, and the windlass soars and plunges on night skies.
The men crouch outside the galley, clutching their supper plates and cups, bracing hard with their legs and shoulders. The evening meal—cornbread and rice—is gulped down quickly in the weak light from the naked bulb that swings back and forth over the engine hatch.
Bad thing we never got a fish.
Bad sign. Not even a domn barra.
I seen a ring around de sun
too rough. Water all cloudy dat
way, fish can’t see.
Maybe it de bait. Dat goddom lard.
Mon get sick of rice and beans. Least he could do is corry a little bacon, little cornbeef, something like dat. Mon dat don’t eat meat get kind of dizzy.
Meat worth
money
, mon. Ain’t like de old days. And crews ain’t worth shit with so many lookin for a job.
Well, a mon dat would sign aboard of de
Eden
ought to be fed for nothin. In de insane asylum. (
laughter
) In de
insane
asylum!
Dat coffee something
bad
!
Dass cause de scuttlebutt never cleaned into de proper fashion. More oil in dere den water.
Dass right. All de food taste of dat diesel.
What say, Buddy? Got big ears dere?
Dat boy okay. He not say nothin to his doddy, dat right, Buddy?
Dat cause he scared. Raib scare’m fore he learn’m.
He back dere right now scarin poor old Vemon.
Well, Vemon deserve dat, Speedy, he such a goddom fool.
No, mon. He just
play
de fool, cause for him dass de way life go de best.
boom
The ship shudders under jolt and buffet of night seas. In the bow, legs spread, Raib keeps his balance, taking bearings on the stars.
What he up to now?
If he can figure how far we is from de point where de star is directly overhead, and den he do dat with another star, den de ship’s position is at de longitude where de two lines crosses.
Shit! Dey too much weather to know where de
stars
is at, nemmine dis goddom boat!
We
sign
of things to come, I born with dat. Oh, dey lots of people dat gets sign, but some is more open to it den others, and I got known for it some way so dat people wanted to pay me and all dat. So it were easy to throw de blame on me.
A sound of ringing in the kettle.
What you keepin in dat basket?
Oh, lots of nothin at all—cracked bones, funny-lookin stones, old bits of wood, red beads and shiny things, sea shells, shark teeth—
He lifts the shard of mirror.
Things like dis, y’see. Keep away de Evil Eye. De Evil Eye don’t like to see itself.
The mirror glints.
Evil Eye, huh?
Speedy, I see you lookin at me funny, so I tellin you now dat I never took de left-hand path, dancin widdershins, and witchin people, all of dat; I never worked obeah in my life. But de same day dat dey accused me, something tell me to turn around in de road, and dere I see one of dem take a nail and drive it down into my footprint where I left it in de white marl road dat run down past dere cabin. So y’see, it ain’t de law dat made me sail from home.
Speedy is silent. Wodie lies back again, sighing.
Oh, yes. To go up dere in dat high thicket of bush, and den cut all of dem tops in de day, and den come back out. And after all dat, you never made nothin anyways. I very hoppy I don’t have to do
dat
no more. It like de old people say: I ain’t gone to bother fungo with
dat
.
Speedy is silent.
Oh, yes. I must be honest, I thought a while before I come aboard, for Copm Raib is famous in de whole length of de island for sayin his opinion just de way it come to him. But it seem like de thing for me to do was to sail down to de Cays.
The
Lillias Eden
moves off the bank into deep water. On the new course, the pitch increases, and the windlass soars and plunges on night skies.
The men crouch outside the galley, clutching their supper plates and cups, bracing hard with their legs and shoulders. The evening meal—cornbread and rice—is gulped down quickly in the weak light from the naked bulb that swings back and forth over the engine hatch.
Bad thing we never got a fish.
Bad sign. Not even a domn barra.
I seen a ring around de sun
too rough. Water all cloudy dat
way, fish can’t see.
Maybe it de bait. Dat goddom lard.
Mon get sick of rice and beans. Least he could do is corry a little bacon, little cornbeef, something like dat. Mon dat don’t eat meat get kind of dizzy.
Meat worth
money
, mon. Ain’t like de old days. And crews ain’t worth shit with so many lookin for a job.
Well, a mon dat would sign aboard of de
Eden
ought to be fed for nothin. In de insane asylum. (
laughter
) In de
insane
asylum!
Dat coffee something
bad
!
Dass cause de scuttlebutt never cleaned into de proper fashion. More oil in dere den water.
Dass right. All de food taste of dat diesel.
What say, Buddy? Got big ears dere?
Dat boy okay. He not say nothin to his doddy, dat right, Buddy?
Dat cause he scared. Raib scare’m fore he learn’m.
He back dere right now scarin poor old Vemon.
Well, Vemon deserve dat, Speedy, he such a goddom fool.
No, mon. He just
play
de fool, cause for him dass de way life go de best.
boom
The ship shudders under jolt and buffet of night seas. In the bow, legs spread, Raib keeps his balance, taking bearings on the stars.
What he up to now?
If he can figure how far we is from de point where de star is directly overhead, and den he do dat with another star, den de ship’s position is at de longitude where de two lines crosses.
Shit! Dey too much weather to know where de
stars
is at, nemmine dis goddom boat!
We
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