But even then, could he reach them?

He wasn’t sure.

Back and forth … back and forth …

Blood filled his head, setting it to pounding. His vision darkened at the edges. He knew he was close to passing out. He reached out again. His middle finger touched one of the iron keys, setting it swinging; but he came to a hopeless realization. No matter how far he swung, he’d never reach that ring.

He let his body go slack, giving up.

Dizzy from the effort, he flashed into the past, to a moment he thought he’d forgotten. He was riding a carousel with his mother. They were at an old amusement park on the coast of Maine where the operators still hung brass rings for the carousel riders to try to grab. He remembered straining to snatch one as his wooden horse rode up and down. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t get one. He was too small.

He again heard his mother’s laughter as she rode behind him.

Jakey, you can do it! Don’t give up!

With that encouragement, he stood in his stirrups on the next pass. He jumped for the ring, managed to hook it, and fell back into his saddle with the prize.

But that was then …

Jakey, you can do it!

His mother’s words echoed in his dazed brain.

I can’t, Mom. I can’t.

“Jake!” The shout was louder than before, but not the least bit encouraging, only threatening.

His head cleared enough to recognize his sister’s voice. “Kady …?”

“Why did you stop, lamebrain? You almost had it.”

“I can’t. My arms aren’t long enough.”

She sighed. “C’mon! You can do it!”

At that moment, her voice sounded so much like their mother’s. Jake closed his eyes, holding back tears.

“For you, Mom,” he whispered, and began to swing again.

His friends crowded at the window, fighting to watch.

Marika called to him, “Just a little farther!”

Pindor was not as optimistic. “If you fail, we can always join the Blood of Ka! As they say among my people, when in Rome …”

Bach’uuk shoved Pindor out of the way. He used his turn at the window to worm an arm out and wave, urging Jake on.

With his friends’ encouragement, Jake used all his weight and strength to propel himself even higher. He reached out for the ring, straining his shoulder. Still it was no good. He touched the longest key with a fingertip, but he couldn’t grab it. His arms simply weren’t long enough.

Pindor groaned, expressing what Jake felt. There was nothing he could do. The hopeful faces of the other prisoners also sank away from their windows, equally defeated.

He had failed them all.

Still, his mother’s words echoed to him.

Jakey, you can do it! Don’t give up!

Kady offered her own final words of encouragement: “Do something! You’re supposed to be the smart one!”

Smart or not, there was nothing he could do. No matter how determined, no one could break the laws of physics. The science could not be defied.