‘Surely we can’t be far away now.’
Charlotte held up her phone for the umpteenth time and waved it around.
‘Oh my God. I’ve got a signal! At last.’
Maddie heaved a big sigh of relief.
The voice of an operator asked for the details of their emergency.
‘Char, tell them we have a head injury and possible concussion on board. And also, we’d really appreciate an escort back to the old harbour, as we have no idea where we’re going or how much petrol’s left.’
She’d kept that particular fear to herself. She had no idea where Thanassis stored his petrol, and they were in no position to search for it. The thought of running out in the middle of the sea at night didn’t bear thinking about.
Charlotte’s voice on the phone was back to its usual efficient self.
Five minutes later, with the sun going down in a blaze of glory in front of them, the lights of a coastguard vessel flickered on the water and a boat steamed towards them.
The male voice on the Tannoy was loud and clear.
‘We have you. You’re safe and only two minutes away from the port. Please, follow us.’
Maddie thought her eyes were deceiving her, because as she rounded the harbour wall, it looked like a whole throng of people were waiting on the pathway. The most welcome sight was the waiting ambulance and the blue-suited paramedics on the dock.
She steered the boat towards the gap between two similar vessels and cut the engine.
It took some major concentration to nose the boat into the space, but the moment she did, a huge cheer went up and the crowd surged forward. As her eyes adjusted to the gloom, Maddie realised there were also several policemen holding people back. They must have interrupted some sort of major celebration in the town, maybe a wedding or a birthday party.
Two men came through the cordon, grabbed the ropes to secure the boat and unfolded the gangway to allow the paramedics to board.
One of paramedics was speaking, although it was hard to hear what he was saying above all the noise.
‘Can you stay where you are please, until we have removed the patient from the boat.’
The three of them stayed still and silent as Thanassis was carefully taken off the vessel on a stretcher and placed in the back of the ambulance.
Maddie couldn’t stop herself giving him a little wave as he was carried away. She hoped they’d given him a fighting chance.
A policeman helped each of them off the boat in turn, as the crowd’s clapping and cheering got louder and louder.
Maddie could barely keep upright after being in one position for so long, and she ached in places she didn’t know she had, plus the noise was overwhelming. She just wanted to climb into a very hot shower.
‘What on earth is happening?’ she asked the policeman in a shaky voice.
The young man waved his hand encompassing the crowd.
‘It is for you. They are clapping for you. All of you. Thanassis is well loved on the island, and you three have saved his life.’
It was too much. They’d just done their best to help. They’d done what anyone would have done in the circumstances. Saving this man was a good thing, but she hadn’t been able to save the man she loved. The memory of holding Tony in her arms and giving him CPR on the kitchen floor waiting for an ambulance was one she’d never be able to erase. She’d failed at the biggest test she’d ever faced, and the last thing she wanted was to be hailed a heroine now. The flashes of phone cameras left her dazed for a moment.
She turned back towards her friends, who looked as shellshocked as she felt. Sofia and Charlotte moved forward to link arms with her on either side.
‘Ow.’
The muscles in her arms that had held the engine steady and absorbed all the stress screamed in pain.
‘OK?’ Sofia whispered in her ear.
‘Fine, just need to get out of here.’
