l be heroes....

* * * * *

Which is the way it turned out--almost.

The Santa Maria and Pinta pursued all through August and September and
into October, but the Nina kept its slim lead. The ships were never out
of sight of one another and once or twice Columbus even hailed them,
imploring them to return to Spain with him. When they ignored him, his
deep voice boomed to his own crew and the crew of the Pinta: "Then sail
on, sail on!" It was these words, Danny knew, that history would record.
Not the others.

One morning in October, he awoke with a start. Something had disturbed
his sleep--something ...

"Good morning, captain," a voice said.

He looked up. It was a giant of a man, with a hard face and
brutal-looking eyes. He knew that face. Pietro! The giant of the tavern.

"But you--"

"I was aboard all the time, my captain," Pietro said. "An auxiliary
rower. You never knew." He said nothing else. He lunged at Martin's
bunk--for I'm Martin again, Danny thought--a knife gleaming in his big
hand.

* * * * *

Martin-Danny sat up, bringing the covers with him, hurling them like a
cloak at Pietro. The giant's knife-hand caught in the covers and Danny
swung to his feet, shoving the big man. Pietro stumbled into the bunk,
then lashed around quickly, unexpectedly, the knife loose again. Danny
felt it grating across his ribs hotly, searingly. He staggered and
almost fell, but somehow made it to the door and on deck. He needed
room. Facing that knife in the close confines of the cabin, he was a
dead man and knew it.

He hit the stairs and headed for the deck. He reached the door--tugged.
It held fast. He heard Pietro's laughter, then threw himself to one
side. The knife thudded into the wood alongside Danny's shoulder.

Then the door came open, throwing him back. He stumbled, regained his
balance, plunged outside. With a roar, Pietro followed him, knife again
in hand.

Danny backed away slowly. Only a few crew members were on deck now, and
a watch high up in the crow's nest. The watch was crying in an
almost-delirious voice: "Land, land! Land ho-oo!" But Martin-Danny
hardly heard the words. Pietro came at him--

Suddenly Don Hernan was in front of him. Don Hernan's hand nipped up and
then down and a knife arced toward Danny. He caught it by the haft,
swung to face the giant. But, he thought, I don't know how to use a
knife. I'm Danny Jones, I ...