چشم طوفان

Chapter eight

The eye of the storm

On the Elizabeth Hiru shook his head as he put the radio down. It must be a dream, a bad dream. Ikemi had got her American boyfriend to fly out into a hurricane to save him.

The boy must be completely mad. To fly into a hurricane in an old seaplane. What a crazy idea! Then to calmly tell Hiru that he was going to save him as if Hiru were a three- year-old child.

It was unbelievable! But the boy was brave. And he was a fighter. And if that boy was going to try to fight the storm, then Hiru was going to fight it, too.

Hiru did not think they were going to win this fight, but he was not going to give up before Max did.

Hiru watched the Manatee fly closer. The plane was flying very low and Hiru could see how much it was being thrown around by the wind.

One moment it was at a safe height above the waves, then the next minute so low the waves were almost breaking over it. Hiru shook his head again.

That boy certainly was mad - mad and brave. A huge wave broke over the Elizabeth. The boat began to sink. If Hiru could get into the life raft he had a chance, a very small chance, of being alive tomorrow.

He climbed onto the top of the boat which was still above the water. From there, he could see the plane clearly in the light of the flare. It was very close.

Suddenly a door in the side of the plane opened. A moment later, the bright yellow life raft was thrown out. There was a long line behind it.

Hiru watched the life raft and the line behind it fall. It fell very close to the boat. Just then, the Elizabeth turned on her side and sank.

Him fell into the water which seemed almost warm after the coldness of the wind. Almost immediately, he felt the line touch his neck. He put the line twice round his waist, then pulled.

Slowly, he pulled himself along the line to the life raft at the other end. He took hold of the raft and pulled hard on a line. Like a beautiful yellow flower, the life raft opened up.

It was a big life raft, and very strong. Hiru pulled himself out of the water and into the raft. He just had time to close the raft before a huge wave hit it.

The raft turned over and over, but very little water came in and after a few moments, Hiru could feel the raft turn right side up.

This was not going to be very comfortable, but the raft might just be strong enough to get him through the hurricane. And if Max could get into the eye and pick him up there he shook his head.

He could not believe that Max was flying that plane up there. He certainly knew how to fly. The raft drop had been just right. And if Max could fly as well as that, there was just a chance that he could pick up Hiru in the eye.

Hiru tied himself onto the raft and began to look around. He found a light, some water, chocolate, and blankets. He ate the chocolate and drank some water.

Away from the wind and the waves, warmed up by the blankets, Hiru felt a little better. But this was not a fishing trip he was going to forget.

On the Manatee, Max and Ikemi flew back over the water. They could not see the Elizabeth, and they could not see the life raft. The flare still lit the sky, but the sea was empty.

“It’s gone down. The boat’s gone down,” whispered Ikemi. “Max! It’s gone down! We were too late.”

“Wait. Just wait a bit. Look! Over there!”

Suddenly, on the dark water, they saw the yellow life raft open up.

“He made it! He made it to the raft!”

Just then a wind hit the plane and threw it to one side, like a child throwing a toy plane across a room. Ikemi screamed.

“Look at this” shouted Max. “The wind has gone up to 250 kilometers an hour in the last 90 seconds! This is it! We’ve hit the hurricane!”

A strong up-wind threw the plane into the air. The height meter jumped from 200 meters to 1300 meters in seconds. It was as if the plane was in a huge elevator, going up fast.

Then just as suddenly, the plane began to fall like a stone. 1000 meters, 800 meters, 600 meters, 400 meters, Ikemi watched the height meter fall. It fell so fast.

“Max, can’t you stop it? We’re going to hit the sea!”

300 meters, 200 meters. At 100 meters, Ikemi shut her eyes and put her head in her hands. Max was trying to pull the old seaplane out of the drop, but she was very slow.

“Come on, come on,” whispered Max.

The height meter stopped going down at 50 meters. At last, the plane stopped falling. Max brought it back up to 200 meters. And suddenly, like a new world, they were in the eye of the storm.

Above them the sky was clear and blue, and the sun was bright on the blue water below them. The sea was still quite rough, but there were no breaking waves and no wind.

“Well done, Max. We made it,” Ikemi was staring through the window at the calm and beautiful late afternoon sunshine.

“We’ll have to pick up Hiru fast,” said Max. “The eye is probably only about 20 kilometres wide.”

He turned the plane and flew back. They could see the dark clouds of the hurricane and flew towards them. There was blue sea, blue sky, but no bright yellow life raft.

“Where is he?” asked Ikemi. It was not raining and she could see very clearly for several kilometers.

“He must be still inside the hurricane wall,” replied Max. “But the storm will blow over him soon. We’ll see him any minute.”

Ikemi looked worried.

“But maybe the wind and the waves are pushing him towards the land. Maybe he won’t come into the eye.”

Max had not thought of that. The raft was small and light. The wind was blowing towards the land. The waves were traveling towards the land.

The storm wave could easily carry the raft to land. Then it would send the raft crashing onto the land.

It would hit the beaches, the rocks, the houses, and be thrown along the roads beside the sea. Hiru would die inside the life raft.

“He should be out of the wall by now,” Ikemi was saying. “Where is he?”

“There he is! Over there! Over there!” Max shouted as the raft appeared. He turned the plane and flew over the life raft. The top of the raft was open and the raft was full of water. But as the plane came near, they could see Hiru.

He was lying in the bottom of the raft, in the water. He was not moving.

“Get ready to land” shouted Max. He had wanted to fly around the raft several times to decide how to land, but now there was no time for that. He flew round the raft once and then brought the plane in to land.

The Manatee jumped a couple of waves, then hit the water. The plane stopped not far from the raft. The moment the plane had come to a stop, Max took off his seat belt and put on a life jacket. He tied a line onto the life-jacket and gave the other end to Ikemi.

“I’ll swim over to him. I’ll tie him to the line and you can pull us in. We haven’t got much time.” Ikemi nodded. Her face was white.

He jumped into the water and swam to the raft. Hiru’s face and hands were cold and blue. Max put his face against Hiru’s mouth. He was not breathing. Max looked back at Ikemi. She was standing very still by the door of the Manatee.

“Is he OK?” she shouted.

Max did not reply. He pulled himself into the raft. He held Hiru’s head back and began to blow air into his mouth. Hiru’s lips were cold as stone.

As Max blew air into Hiru’s mouth, his chest rose and fell. Max put his face against Hiru’s mouth again, but still there was no breathing.

He looked quickly at his watch and continued the mouth-to-mouth. How long could he do this before the hurricane hit them from the other side?

They had to be back in the plane and in the air before it came. How long did they have? How fast was the storm traveling? Was Hiru dead? If he stayed too long like this, then he and Ikemi would die, too.

Once again he stopped the mouth-to-mouth to see if Hiru was breathing. He looked quickly at Ikemi. Her eyes were shut and her hands were together.

As far as Max knew, Ikemi never went to church and didn’t believe in God. It didn’t look to Max as if he had much choice.

He could either bring Hiru back to life or die when the storm hit them again. What he could not do was bring Ikemi the cold dead body of her father. He began mouth-to-mouth again.

“Max! Listen! The storm’s getting close! It’s coming!”

Max could already hear it, the noise of the storm. A few minutes ago it was a soft whisper, but now the noise was loud and angry.

“We’ve still got some time” Max shouted.

Then Hiru coughed. It was the best sound Max had ever heard in his life. Max turned Hiru onto his side. He coughed again and was sick.

Max untied the line that held Hiru to the raft and tied on the line that Ikemi held.

“Pull us in” he shouted. Ikemi pulled. Max held Hiru’s head above the water. They got back to the plane and Max climbed up.

They both pulled Hiru into the plane. He was breathing easily now, and his face was not so blue.

They lifted him into a seat and did up the seat belt. Ikemi threw her jacket over him and held his cold hands.

“Daddy! Are you all right? Daddy! Daddy!”

Hiru opened his eyes.

At first, he did not seem to see anything. Then he looked at Ikemi and smiled. Slowly, his eyes began to move around the plane.

He looked out of the door at the blue sky and the wall of noisy black clouds that were now very close.

He watched Max shut the door of the plane and move quickly into the seat beside him. Max looked at him and saw that his face was its normal color and his breathing was normal.

“Let’s get you home, sir.”

Hiru nodded and listened to the engine start. The plane began to move.

The next day, Hiru was sitting in the hospital reception waiting for Ikemi to pick him up. The doctor had wanted him to stay in hospital for one night just to be safe, and he was feeling much better now.

His night in hospital had also given him some time to really think about things, and especially about Ikemi.

Hiru looked up and smiled as Ikemi and Max came through the doors.

“Daddy, how are you feeling?” asked Ikemi.

“Hungry,” Hiru replied.

He turned his head to Max who was standing quietly beside Ikemi.

“Max?” Hiru said.

“Yes, sir?”

“You like sushi?”

“Yes, sir,” replied Max.

“You hungry?”

“Yes, sir.”

“So where’s the nearest sushi bar?” he asked.