Eko considers for a moment, and we both study the wrinkled face of the old woman. She’s climbed onto the raft and is looking across at the beckoning island, smiling toothlessly at the trees on the far shore.

“Sometimes you just have to trust people,” Eko tells me, and steps onto the raft. The shaman follows her, as do the two warriors bearing the Mysterious Kidah.

I hesitate a second more. “I hope you know what you’re doing,” I tell Eko, and climb aboard.

The old animal-skin sail is raised and we push off. For a horrible moment we’re caught by the swirling current. There’s a sucking sound around us as we begin to circle the island at ever-greater speed, and I can feel the hemp ropes straining and the old logs beginning to weaken and crack.

Eko, we’re circling the drain and we’re about to be flushed down! I cry out telepathically.

Suddenly the old sail billows as if it’s caught a wind. I don’t feel even a faint breeze at my back, but whatever force is driving us is strong enough to push us out of the grip of the whirlpool. We sail straight across as if pulled by an invisible tugboat.

When our raft bumps gently against the green bank of the island, I immediately hop off, glad to be on solid ground again. But the bank is not solid—it’s a soft bed of moss and grass that extends right down to the water. My toes sink in an inch, as if I’ve just jumped onto a luxurious carpet.

We pull the raft onto the green bank and set off to explore the jungle Eden. The surrounding cliff walls are barren, which makes the explosion of life on this island even more striking. The smell hits me first—it’s a sugary but not cloying odor of fruits, leaves, and flowers that reminds me of a candy store.

Flowers are everywhere, underfoot, high above us, and on hanging vines. Eko names a few of them for me—rainbow orchids and golden Amazon roses and scarlet forest flames that are so bright I can barely stand to look at them.

The old woman begins to walk toward the center of the island, and we follow her. She seems to know just where she’s headed, and her eyes shine brightly like those of a little girl leading the way to her secret playhouse. The foliage is lush but not impenetrable—unlike in the rain forest, sunlight shines down here, filtering through the trees and reflecting off the walls of the chasm.