Second chance summer, p.8
Second Chance Summer, page 8
Lily was seized by the urge to capture the scene. It only took a moment for her to scramble down the few feet to the beach, which was even more beautiful close up. The sand was strewn with tiny shells, in delicate shades of palest pink and cream. She hadn’t beachcombed for years and couldn’t resist popping a few shells into the pocket of her shorts. Soon, she’d abandoned her sketch pad and paints on a rock and given herself over to shell collecting.
She recognised limpets, cockles and periwinkles, and even some of the cowries that had given her cottage its name. All were tiny and perfect. She would take some back to the retreat and draw a still life. Perhaps she might collect enough to make a bracelet.
With the sun warm on her back, she felt completely absorbed in her task and soon climbed off the beach and onto the rocky spit that separated the sand from the pool. Its blue-green depths looked so inviting, she was tempted to strip off and dive in, especially as there was a sea cave on the far side that just begged to be explored. Its mouth reminded her of a sea monster gaping wide.
She poked around in the rock pools for a while, marvelling at scuttling crabs, urchins and jewel-like sea anemones. There was so much inspiration here.
‘Oh!’
She let out a cry as a wave rolled into the pool, crashed onto the rocks and wet her with its spray. That water was colder than she’d expected.
Lily decided she’d better go back and start sketching while all the marine life she’d seen was fresh in her mind. Bursting with ideas, she finally turned to head across the rocks to the beach again.
Only to find it had vanished.
It was now underwater, and waves were crashing onto the base of the bluff she’d climbed down. She couldn’t see her sketch pad or the rock she’d left it on; it must have already been washed away.
The cliffs on the other side of the cove were too steep and jagged to climb and she could feel spray on her face as more waves rolled into the pool, turning its unruffled surface into a churning whirlpool and crashing into the cave.
A desperate glance out to sea showed a yacht and a fishing boat, both much too far out for anyone to be able to hear her if she called for help.
She was cut off and no one knew where she was.
CHAPTER NINE
An hour later, Lily was trapped on a small ledge of rock.
She’d grazed her hands trying to climb up the rough cliffs and waves were now breaking over her knees. No one was coming to her rescue and the tide could only recently have turned, which meant there were hours to go until it started to recede.
The fishing boat was at anchor further out. She could make out the man hauling in his pots. Was it Rory? The yacht had gone, although another had sailed past in the opposite direction.
Even though she was trying to stay calm, every moment brought fresh dread as the tide flooded in. The waves seemed to roll in in sets, with much larger ones every ninety seconds or so. She’d counted the interval: one elephant, two elephant.
She’d given up shouting. It was pointless and only made her throat raw, and besides, she needed to conserve her strength for what now seemed to be her only course of action: she must enter the water and try to swim back to the little cove. It was about two hundred metres away. She had a badge for a thousand metres. She would be OK.
Even as she told herself this, she knew she was being ridiculous. Any serious swimming she’d done had been at school. Even if she’d kept up her visits to the pool at the health club, how could she battle the cold, churning water with rocks lying in wait under the treacherous Scilly surface? Sam had said that the jetty was the only safe passage to the shore, apart from risking holing a small boat by running it onto the beach.
Yet Lily had no other choice but to swim. She’d weighed up the risks, as she had many times in her business life, and calculated that this was the only course of action left open to her. The tide would carry on rolling in, the waves growing bigger and swamping the rocks on which she was now perilously perched.
She pulled off her trainers and stuffed them in a rough niche above her, though she may as well have flung them into the water. They were her favourite pair, bought the day that the new design had been released. They’d cost two hundred pounds. How ludicrous they seemed now.
She took a deep breath. Swim or die. Both, probably.
She turned towards the cliff face, lowering her foot until it felt a slender ledge. The sharp rocks hurt her feet, though a few grazed toes were the least of her worries. Slowly, she let herself down to a narrow platform six feet below, that would soon be buffeted by the waves.
She had sixty seconds left before the big set rolled in. A quick check for hidden rocks during a moment when the water receded, and … jump.
Instantly she regretted her leap. She was stunned by the icy cold and disorientated, but kicked her legs until she reached the surface, gasping for air and thrashing at the water in a parody of front crawl. The swell and cold were way worse than she’d anticipated: like being tumbled inside a washing machine. She continued to flounder, kicking as hard as she could in an attempt to move forward, but the little cove seemed to come no closer. Her limbs were growing heavier much quicker than she had expected.
She screamed ‘Help!’ and then heard the roar of water. The ninety seconds had ticked away, the next set of waves just a heartbeat away. Her last heartbeat.
She felt the swell lift her, closed her eyes and dived under before the wave engulfed her. She’d closed her lips tightly but water still entered her mouth. Everything was a churning mass of green; she didn’t know which way was up or whether at any second she’d be pushed down onto rocks or hurled towards the cliffs.
She attempted to breathe but began to choke on the salty water.
This was the end, then.
Her parents’ Ruby wedding party flashed into her mind. She would never have the chance to celebrate their next. She would never see her nieces again. All those missed occasions: the anniversary party, forgetting to pick the girls up from the theatre, neglecting her friends … what she would give for that time back.
Above all, when she reached the other side, would Cara forgive her for throwing her life away?
CHAPTER TEN
A hand plunged down through the water.
It grasped her arm, hauling her above the surface like a brutal rebirth. She spluttered as she gulped in air then coughed violently.
‘Hang on to me! I’ll pull you up.’
Sam’s face was above her, leaning over the side of a fishing kayak. Lily’s throat was on fire from the seawater and she felt like throwing up but he held on to her by the shoulders and the back of her T-shirt.
‘Don’t give in now!’ he ordered. ‘Come on, kick hard! Help me get you on board before the next wave comes.’
Lily thought she was kicking, though her legs were so cold and weak she could barely feel them.
‘I – I’m try – ing.’
Somehow Sam dragged her half over the edge of the kayak, almost capsizing it as he did so. She kicked again and felt herself thrust upwards before his eyes widened in horror.
‘Lily! Hold on! I––’
A deep roar drowned out the rest of his words, then a wave – bigger than any before – broke over the kayak and toppled it sideways, tossing Sam into the waves and Lily back into the maelstrom.
She went under again briefly but was flung upwards amid a whirlpool of foaming white water.
The kayak rolled past her, its sharp rudder just inches from her face, and she choked back a scream. Before she could think, another wave hurled the craft into a rock where it bounced off again, this time the right way up.
Eyes streaming from the salt, almost choking, she trod water desperately as she scanned the sea for Sam. What if he’d drowned trying to save her? She was still being tossed around like a cork. She had to reach the kayak before another set of massive breakers rolled in.
‘Sam!’ she screamed as loud as she could, even though her throat was raw. ‘Help!’
Everything was green and black and white, the roar of the surf deafening her and the salt stinging and blinding her.
‘Sam!’
‘Here!’
Gloriously, miraculously, he was swimming out of the gulley that separated the cave from the rocky ledge.
‘Grab the kayak!’ he shouted.
Lily struck out, her clothes weighing her down, her limbs cold and numb. The kayak seemed no closer until a wave lifted it and brought it towards her, almost on top of her. The wave set had passed – for now – but she had to get hold of the craft. She clung to the side while Sam swam over. Even from a few metres away, she could see the blood on his forehead.
A few strong strokes later, he was beside her in the water. ‘Get in!’ he shouted, shoving his hand under her bum so she could haul herself into the craft. With one last monumental kick, she scrambled into the base and held her hand down into the water for Sam, who was still clinging onto the kayak.
‘Come on!’ she said, desperately.
‘No, I might capsize it.’
Fresh strength flooded her. She wasn’t going to leave him now. ‘Get in!’ she said, reaching for his hand. After a moment’s hesitation, he took it and her arm felt as if it was being ripped from its socket while he struggled aboard, the kayak rocking under his weight.
His forehead was gashed and he was breathing hard but he sat down on the seat and issued orders to Lily, who was half-lying in the stern.
‘The rudder’s probably done for, but we have to get away from the rocks. There’s a paddle strapped to the side, grab it and use it.’ His bent legs worked frantically to propel the kayak away from the jagged teeth of the rocks.
Fumbling with cold fingers, Lily unfastened the paddle from the inside of the kayak.
‘Use it like an oar – both sides, as hard as you can,’ he said.
She saved her breath for paddling. With Sam propelling them, the little craft began its agonising escape from the cliffs. Foamy crests of waves appeared ahead. Lily wanted to scream but she was too busy paddling. The waves broke over the kayak but it stayed upright.
‘Keep going!’ Sam shouted.
Even though her muscles screamed for mercy, Lily didn’t give up. She remembered the moment when she’d gone under; all the opportunities to be with loved ones that she’d missed – and the second chance she’d been given now.
No, she wouldn’t give up this close to safety.
Once the kayak was out of the breaking waves, Sam heaved a huge sigh of relief and turned back to her.
‘You can ease up now,’ he said.
‘No, I have to keep going.’ Lily kept paddling even though her arms were on fire.
‘Lily, you can stop.’ Sam let the craft drift for a few seconds to take the paddle from her hands. ‘We’re safe.’
Safe.
Twice in the past few minutes, Lily had thought that was impossible: had almost given up on the idea, had – in those few seconds when she was underwater – almost accepted that her end had come.
‘Are you OK?’ he asked, twisting to look at her while still piloting the kayak around the island.
She hugged herself to try and stop trembling. ‘I th–think so.’
‘I’ll check you over when we get back. I lost the radio when the kayak capsized so I can’t call the coastguard.’
‘D–don’t – please don’t call the coastguard. There’s no need. I’ll be OK.’
He started paddling again. ‘There’s such a thing as secondary drowning, you know,’ he said. ‘You must have swallowed water.’
‘Yes, but I’ll take the risk.’
‘We’ll see when we get back. Now, rest, and for God’s sake, try to stay awake.’
He said no more, clearly saving his energy to paddle back to the quay as soon as possible. Lily sank back in the now-empty rear of the kayak. It stank of fish but all the gear and tackle must have gone to the bottom of the sea.
They passed the pest house, its blank windows like accusing eyes.
Although physically exhausted, Lily didn’t think she’d ever sleep again. Adrenaline surged through her, making her hyper aware of the landscape: the gulls shrieking, the waves breaking on the shore. She was shivering with cold and shock. All kinds of strange stuff must be happening to her body – none of it good – yet she felt euphoric, as if she could fly out of the kayak, above Stark, looking down on everything.
She’d come a whisker away from dying – not once but twice. She still didn’t know how she’d made it out of the sea alive. If Sam hadn’t been in the right place at the right time … if the kayak hadn’t righted itself when it had bounced off the rocks … if Sam hadn’t managed to swim out of the gulley … if he hadn’t been able to push her into the boat or steer them away.
The moment when she’d gone under flashed back again: the moment when she’d half-accepted death.
‘OK, we’re almost here. Hold tight, the steering’s shagged and we might bump into the jetty.’
She snapped to attention, clinging on while the little craft – their saviour – slipped through the rocky gap and bumped the stone wall gently.
She looked up at the walls of the haven, cradled in its shelter, hearing only the gulls crying.
Sam seized an old iron ring in the wall and tied the kayak to it. He climbed onto the steps and offered his hand to her. ‘Careful, they’re slippery.’
Only then did she notice his knuckles were grazed and bleeding before he grasped her hand and helped her stagger up to dry land.
Eyes closed, Sam lifted his face heavenwards and let out a sigh. ‘Jesus, that was a close one.’
Though her legs felt wobbly Lily forced herself to stay upright, saw the pink stains on his T-shirt and what a mess his face was in. He was bleeding from above his temple and from cuts across his cheeks.
‘Sam. You’ve cut yourself …’
‘Have I?’ He touched his head and looked at the blood in surprise. ‘Must have been when the kayak fell on me. It pushed me into the gulley. It’s only a scratch.’ He stared at Lily. ‘What happened? I was out fishing and rounded the rocks by the cove to see you jump into the water.’
‘I got cut off by the tide and had no choice but to swim for it. I didn’t know you’d be along at any moment.’
‘No. It was – fortunate – I was.’
‘Until that wave capsized the kayak,’ she said, hearing the sea rolling in again and recalling her terror and exhaustion. The moment when Sam capsized and she went under for the second time, into the darkness, she really had thought her time was up.
He touched her arm gently. ‘You’re shivering. Are you sure you don’t want me to call the coastguard or air ambulance? Or I could take you over to Bryher in the boat now if you like? Get you checked out by the island nurse?’
‘No. Thanks. I don’t want to get on a boat right now …’ Or ever, thought Lily. She also didn’t want her family to know anything about the incident. They’d freak out, especially her parents. ‘I just need a shower, warm clothes, a hot drink.’
‘We both do. Come on.’
As soon as they reached the hub, he found a blanket from the sofa and draped it around her without asking. ‘I’ll take you to your cottage and bring the first-aid kit.’
She tugged the blanket tighter, grateful for the warmth yet determined not to be fussed over. ‘I’ll be fine now. It looks like it’s you who needs the first-aid kit. Why don’t we both get dry and warmed up and meet back here? I’ve done first-aid courses for work. I can take a look at the cut on your head and those grazes on your cheek.’
He nodded and they parted, Lily to her cottage and Sam to his flat.
She’d said she was fine but the moment she shut the cottage door, her legs threatened to give way as the adrenaline ebbed. However, she also knew she needed to warm up. She drank most of a glass of water, showered and put on jeans and a sweater.
She’d stopped shivering. She’d be fine. Fine.
It was Sam who worried her. That cut on his head might not be the only injury he’d sustained. He really needed to be checked over, not her.
She slurped the rest of the water and was halfway out of the door to go and join Sam when a flashback gripped her, causing her to lean against the door frame for support.
The shock of the cold water, the roar of the waves … the kayak overturning, just at the moment she’d thought she was safe … and Sam nowhere to be seen.
Slamming the door on the cottage and the memories, Lily hurried to the hub, hoping that she wouldn’t find Sam passed out on the floor.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
‘Sorry, I didn’t expect you yet!’
‘I can come back,’ Lily said, confronted by Sam in the bar, a towel slung round his neck and another slipping low over his hips.
She let her gaze linger too long on his broad shoulders, toned stomach, and a trail of dark hair that vanished below the towel. Was that wrong after a near-death experience? She shivered again. Surely anything that took her mind off the moment when she’d sunk beneath those waves was a good thing …
‘I was worried about you,’ she said, trying to calm her racing pulse. ‘Your head, I mean.’
Sam clutched the towel tightly to his waist. ‘Yes. Thanks. No. I mean, hang on. Let me put some clothes on.’
Lily heard him thumping around in the upstairs flat then he was back, still barefoot but in jeans and a hoodie. He also carried two mugs of tea and handed one to her. ‘I put sugar in it.’
‘Thank you, just what I need.’ She took the mug, hoping her fingers would stop trembling. She sipped the hot sweet tea. It was, without a doubt, the best drink she’d ever had in her life.
‘Are you OK?’ he asked, sitting down next to her.
‘A few bumps and bruises. My shins are grazed and my elbow’s a bit sore but other than that, I think I’ll survive.’ She stopped, recalling the moment she’d dived under to avoid the wave. She hadn’t expected to surface and then Sam’s hand had reached out to her. A shudder travelled through her.
