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Eastbound Sailing
a novel by
Todd Foley
Cedar Rock Publishers
Eastbound Sailing
Copyright 2012 by Todd Foley. All rights reserved.
Published by Cedar Rock Publishers.
ISBN: 978-0-9880417-1-4 (paperback).
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, or by any information storage or retrieval system – except for brief quotations for the purpose of review – without written permission from the publisher.
Printed in the United States of America. Registered with Library and Archives Canada.
Cover art by Daniel Sicolo (www.danielsicolo.com).
Connect with Todd on Twitter @tdiddy1234 or at Scribbledrevisions.com.
The following story is entirely fictional.
DEDICATION
To my parents for enabling me to risk, fail and try again.
To Mrs. Simpson for teaching me to love literature.
To Fred D. for teaching me to cut text mercilessly.
To Cecilia B. for holding me accountable in completing this project.
To Fred B. for helping me rework my thoughts into cohesive sentences.
To my beautiful wife Kristen for being my much-needed cheerleader along the way.
Finally, to Gram, my maternal grandmother, for recognizing the writer in me.
Table of Contents
2. FIRST IMPRESSIONS, AGAIN.. 7
16. WHISPERS FROM PARCHMENTS PAST. 23
17. CONFESSIONS AFTER MIDNIGHT. 24
28. EAGER BUT FOR DAYLIGHT. 37
31. SAILING AGAINST SUNRISE. 39
AUTHOR’S NOTE
Aiden Lawrence is fictional, but he’s real.
Cielo Island doesn’t exist, but it’s true.
This story may seem hopeless, but it points to hope.
It’s human.
That’s what we are, and we all need hope.
PART I
1. EMBARKMENT
Aiden Lawrence never did like public transit. He rode a fair amount in his young life. Subways, buses, taxis. Regardless of the form, it tended to be overcrowded, uncomfortable and unpleasantly aromatic. And for some unknown reason, it brought with it a sense of anxiety.
He didn’t recall ferries being that different. His dad took him on one to Cielo Island for his 13th birthday, a father-son excursion to their summer cabin, though they rarely took summer trips there. Mom was wheelchair-bound,