Joey stared into his eyes, as though trying to find a hint of a lie.
"Take care. I know you're a capable man. If..." Anderson looked grave, hesitating before he continued, "I mean, if you find a way to break the curse... forget it. I'm leaving."
Watching Anderson's retreating back, Joey never did find out what he had meant to say.
Anderson and Professor Remo really left.
The yellow dinghy rose and fell among the waves until it disappeared from sight.
When Joey returned to camp, only two people stood on the sailboat's deck. Their eyes met, and all three chose to remain silent.
Chris curled his lip and cursed, "Damn it, more afraid of dying than a woman."
Something sounded off in Chris's tone. It wasn't genuine mockery, but a kind of melancholy.
Beside him, Gul sighed softly. "Everyone should be free to make their own choice."
Chris said, "Who doesn't know we'll all die once the curse contaminates us? Didn't we come here to take one last shot before we die? What the hell is this, running away now?"
"My life's not worth a damn anyway. Makes no difference where I die. Even if all of you run off, I'm staying."
Joey looked slightly surprised to hear those words from Chris. He took two steps forward and said quietly:
"All right, go lie down. Get a night's sleep, and all this crap will blow over."
"Gul, have you got time to take me to that pool?"
Chris said, "Back to that place again? I'm not going. Go yourselves." With that, he turned and went back into the cabin.
Gul's expression briefly stiffened. He gave Joey a strange look, but finally nodded.
The pool wasn't far from camp. Neither spoke on the way. There was only the wind, and