Chapter 5 #5
“Holy shit,” he said as he swiped water from his face, unable to believe his eyes. But the dolphin was still there, and then another broke the surface beside it. “Mark! Look!”
Mark stared at them with exhausted confusion as he spat out more seawater. “What’re they doing?”
“I hope they are going to help us,” he said, willing the dolphins to come closer. To his relief, they closed the gap, then one of them turned to present its fin to Mark. “Grab on! I think they’re going to take us to the boat!”
“Oh, thank God….” Mark reached for the dolphin’s fin, his face suffused with relief. “Thank you too, dolphin.”
As Mark latched onto the first dolphin, the other presented its fin to Terry. He debated for a moment before releasing the life ring. It would only slow them down and put more strain on the dolphins. If they had any hope of actual rescue, he needed to trust in their cetacean friends.
The rain had lessened, but Terry still couldn’t see the boat.
The dolphin set out firmly in one direction, however, as if it knew exactly where it was going, so he decided to trust that they knew something he didn't. The dolphins were used to working with the boat; they knew the boat had fish. It had to be their intention to return them to the place where they could get their well-deserved reward. After several minutes of being pulled through the waves, however, Terry started to worry. They should have reached the boat by now, shouldn’t they?
How far had they been swept by the storm for it to take this long?
He didn’t say anything since he didn’t want to worry Mark, and for the moment at least they were safe, or they were as long as the dolphins didn’t decide to abandon them.
But it wasn’t long afterward that Mark threw a glance back at him, his eyes wide, as though he, too, had realized they should have caught up with the disabled boat by now.
Attitude was everything; as a lifeguard, Terry had learned what killed people the fastest in the water was panic. So he kept his expression as calm as he could. “I wonder if they’re towing us to port. Maybe we were closer than we thought!”
“I sure as hell hope so!” Mark didn’t look or sound terribly reassured, but he still clung to the dolphin’s fin.
“Just hang on.” Terry encouraged him. “Think of the story you can tell everyone when we get back!”
Despite his hopes that port wasn't far away, he didn't spot any signs of land or other boats. The dolphins kept going through another, less intense, squall line. By this time, even Terry’s arms were growing tired from the strain. Then a shadow loomed on the horizon, and he shouted to Mark. “There’s land up ahead!”
“If we make it there alive, I will throw myself on the ground and make out with it.” Mark stared at the distant shoreline as if he could will it closer somehow.
Terry laughed in a combination of relief and amusement, as hope surged within him. They were still a distance away, but knowing that there was land close by was a relief. He didn’t know why the dolphins had towed them here instead of to the boat, but he was grateful they would survive.
Not long afterward, he felt the tide pulling them toward the island, and soon he could make out trees and the line of a wave-lashed beach.
The dolphins swerved away as the water grew shallow, and Terry released the fin he’d clung to so desperately when his feet brushed the sandy bottom of the water.
Nearby, Mark released his dolphin as well and floundered for a moment before realizing he could touch the bottom. He stood up straight, looking at Terry with dazed disbelief. They were wet and exhausted, but it finally looked as if they might be safe at last.
“We made it,” he said as he glanced around. “We actually made it.”
“Almost!” Terry said, pushing through the water to Mark’s side. He put his arm around Mark’s waist and started toward the island again. “Watch for undertow. We still have to get up on the beach.”
They were maybe a hundred feet from shore, but struggling through the surf was as exhausting as anything they’d already been through.
The waves would push them from behind, but then the backwash would pull at them, causing them to have to stop and brace against the current.
But they slowly made headway. But the tide was coming in, which was in their favor, and some interminable time later, they were in water up to their hips and then their knees.
With a groan of relief, Terry pulled Mark forward, and they splashed the last few yards to the loose sand beneath a row of palm trees.
Terry collapsed in a boneless heap, not caring about the sand or the continuing rain pelting them. “Now we’ve made it. Never say I don’t keep my promises!”
Mark crumpled to the sand beside him and lay face down, breathing hard.
After taking a moment to rest, he pushed himself up on his elbows with a groan and then bent to kiss the ground.
“Never say I don’t either,” he said as he spat out some sand and wiped his mouth.
He rolled onto his side and fixed Terry with a somber look. “Do you recognize where we are?”
“I have no clue,” Terry said, but he smiled at Mark’s antics. “Just rest. We’ll worry about it in a little while. We might be on someone’s private beach, and I’m in no shape to argue with a Karen yelling at us for trespassing.”
“Sounds like a solid plan to me.” Mark flopped onto his back and draped his arm across his eyes. “Man, what a roller coaster of a day.”
“You can say that again,” Terry murmured.
The force of the rain lessened, which was a good thing since he didn’t think he had the strength to move an inch from his current spot.
He felt his heartbeat slowing down as the adrenaline rush of the last few hours wore off, leaving him feeling boneless and lightheaded.
They were safe, and whatever happened next was a problem for later.
Reaching out, he touched Mark’s shoulder, and between one breath and the next, he slipped into darkness.