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The woman was clutching Evanna’s hand. ‘We had a terrible night,’ she whispered. ‘The baby cries all the time and my husband and I are both exhausted so I said I’d bring them both down to the beach for an hour to give him a chance to catch up on some sleep. When Jason asked if he could take the boat in the sea, I didn’t even think it would be dangerous. I imagined he’d just stay by the shore.’
‘It shelves quite deeply here and the currents are strong,’ Fraser said solemnly, and Evanna saw the woman’s face pale. And then noticed something.
‘There. Can you see the lifeboat?’ She lifted a hand and pointed. ‘They’ll be able to help in the search.’
‘But if he’s at the bottom of the ocean…’ The woman choked on the words.
Then Logan’s head bobbed above the water for a few seconds before he disappeared again, this time further out to sea.
Three times his head appeared and then disappeared and on the fourth occasion he came up holding the body of the little boy.
‘He’s got him. Cool.’ Fraser’s voice was triumphant but Evanna saw what the mother immediately saw. That the little boy was limp and lifeless.
‘Spread out your rug,’ Evanna ordered. ‘Dr MacNeil is going to need somewhere to put him. And get all the layers you can find.’
‘It’s August.’ The woman looked at her blankly and Evanna saw the shock in her eyes.
‘It doesn’t make any difference that it’s August. The sea is still
freezing and we’re going to need to warm him up. Fraser.’ Evanna looked at the boy. ‘You and your friends clear a spot for the helicopter to land. You know the drill. Everyone to secure everything that moves. Go. Move.’
But she spoke the last few words to the air because Fraser had already sprinted off to do what needed to be done.
Logan strode out of the water, carrying the boy level in his arms. ‘I’m going to try tipping him upside down.’ His expression was grim. ‘He was stuck on the bottom. He must have caught his foot in seaweed. It took me several goes to free him.’
‘No!’ The mother was screaming with horror and another holidaymaker took her to one side and put her arms around her, giving the medical team space to work.
‘Evanna?’ Logan’s voice was sharp as he laid the boy flat on the rug. ‘Did you get my stuff from the car?’
‘Fraser did. It’s all here.’ She flipped open the case. ‘His name is Jason and he’s six years old. Do you want to start CPR?’
‘Not yet.’ Logan felt for a carotid pulse. ‘I’m hoping he’s just bradycardic. Come on, Jason. Wake up, for us. Damn. He’s in respiratory arrest.’
‘Logan—’
‘Respiratory arrest precedes cardiac arrest in drowning. He’s got a pulse.’ Logan started to examine the boy more thoroughly, his hands swift and skilled. ‘Did Fraser manage to bring the oxygen?’
‘It’s here.’
There was a clacking sound overhead as the helicopter arrived but Logan was focused on Jason, leaving others to deal with the arrival of the helicopter. ‘He’s breathing but his core temperature is thirty-four degrees. We need to warm him up. What layers do we have?’
Evanna reached forward and covered the boy, noticing that his face was chalky white. ‘Do you want to aspirate his stomach?’
Just then the boy screwed up his face and started to cough violently, and Logan gave Evanna a swift nod. ‘We have lift-off. Jason? Speak to me. You’re worrying your mother. Wake up.’
The boy’s eyes fluttered open and he started to cough again.
Logan turned him into the recovery position. ‘Good boy. You’re all right. You’ve swallowed a bit of seawater but you’ll soon be feeling better. Evanna, this oxygen mask doesn’t fit properly. I need something smaller.’
The paramedic from the helicopter sprinted across to them with a case of equipment. ‘How’s he doing?’
Logan wiped a forearm across his forehead. ‘Better than we could have hoped. He’s breathing but he’s very cold still and he seems to have aspirated water so he’ll need to go to hospital for a check.’
The mother sank onto the sand beside Jason, tears pouring down her cheeks. ‘He needs to go to hospital? Can’t you just watch him here?’
‘This is a small island,’ Logan said gently, ‘and while we are capable of dealing with dire emergencies if the need arises, we do try and anticipate and avoid them whenever possible. I’m sure Jason is going to make an uneventful recovery but, to be on the safe side, I’d rather he made that recovery in the hospital. I’m sure they’ll only keep him in for a night.’
‘They have rooms for parents,’ Evanna said quickly as she found a smaller oxygen mask, ‘so you can be with him the whole time.’
