Deep Wate - Sarah Epstein Page 0,107

into his back, burying my face into his sodden hoodie. My potato. My astronomical nerd. My sweet, funny Raf.

‘Help’s coming,’ I assure him, even though I have no idea if that’s actually true.

My limbs start trembling uncontrollably. I try to relax them but they shudder of their own accord. Shock. So much to take in.

Raf. Tom. Henry.

Henry.

We’ll never know where he is now.

My eyes close and I pull Raf to me, hearing him murmur softly. Something in my body releases. It feels like I’m clutching Henry close, too.

Somewhere deep in the trees, somebody is yelling. I jerk my head up and seek them out. Heavy footsteps, running, echoing across the water. I can’t figure out which direction they’re coming from.

‘Chloe!’ a deep male voice calls. ‘Tom!’

I release my grip on Raf and stumble to my feet.

‘Chloe!’ the voice calls again. Closer now, on the walking track from the southern car park. Not the northern one. Damn. They went to the wrong one.

‘Here!’ I yell, waving my arm even though I can’t see anybody yet. ‘Hurry!’

There’s thrashing through the undergrowth and then a figure bursts into the clearing, his head whipping around left and right. It’s Sergeant Doherty.

‘Ben!’ I call. ‘Ben, over here!’

He turns at my voice, sprinting across the picnic area and hurdling the small shrubs and boulders around the edge. He’s dressed in a white T-shirt and pale trackpants, his runners flicking up tiny stones along the bank.

‘Are you okay?’ he says, breathless, as he pulls up in front of me.

I nod quickly and gesture at Raf.

‘Rafi Nolan?’ he says, confused. He crouches in front of Raf, ducking his head to check he’s breathing. He rests a gentle hand on Raf ’s shoulder, lowering his face to reassure him with a few words. Raf ’s head moves up and down in a weak nod. It’s such a relief I have to bite back a sob.

‘You did CPR?’ Doherty asks me. I nod again.

He stands and pulls his phone out, pacing away from me towards the water’s edge. I hear quick words about Raf and ‘drowning incident’ and paramedics and Raf ’s parents. Something about my dad. Something about me being in shock.

Doherty moves his phone away from his mouth and asks me, ‘Where’s Tom Lawson?’

I point a shaky hand towards the way I came in. ‘Northern car park. He’s in Mason Weaver’s blue Subaru.’

Doherty turns away, talking quickly into his phone.

My legs start wobbling again, though I’m not sure they ever really stopped. I take a few shaky steps back towards Raf ’s limp body, my own wet clothes sending a wave of shivers through me. My teeth chatter and my throat spasms. I start to double over.

Doherty hurries back to me, shoving his phone into his pocket. He grabs me by the upper arms and folds me into his chest.

‘I’ve got you.’ He places a hand on the back of my head and strokes my hair. ‘I’ve got you, Chloe.’

I sink against him and he lets me sob, loud and messy, all over his white T-shirt.

Now

The ride is tough going in the dark, his head pounding like a drum. Mason shakes himself awake every time he feels like he’s starting to droop. Sergeant Doherty should be at the reservoir soon. Maybe he got there in time. Maybe Chloe and Raf were able to stop Tom from leaving.

Tommy.

Mason can’t picture his face without a pain in his chest. The betrayal stings like a thousand tiny cuts. Mason can’t let his mind really comprehend what Tom has done because that would mean he’d have to think about Henry. He can’t let himself go there or else he’ll fall down and never get up.

Just get this done.

He turns onto Roberts Road in the direction of Shallow Reservoir. This is the only way out of town, no matter which car park you’re coming from. He doesn’t want to slow down and try calling Chloe again. The last call went straight to voicemail, which immediately made Mason think the worst. What was going on down there? Did they catch up with Tom or has he already left town?

Maybe Mason will never see him again.

No. He’ll be easy enough to trace in the stolen vehicle. Mason wishes he hadn’t given Tom all those driving lessons last year – he’ll be familiar with the Subaru’s quirks. It only now occurs to Mason that his car will be taken into evidence when Tom’s caught. They’ll have to analyse it for any traces of …

Henry.

He crushes his