the academy, right?—but there are fingers sticking through the grate.
“Ranger!” Church shouts, and then he's on his knees next to the grate, pulling on it as hard as he can. When I get over next to him, I can see Ranger's face, choking and coughing in the small bit of air that's left. “Where's the crowbar?”
“Dunno,” Ranger chokes, his sapphire eyes wide. “Man, I'm not getting out of this.”
“Don't fucking say that!” Church screams, rising to his feet and looking around for something to pry the grate up with. He heads straight for the shed and kicks in the door.
“Hey,” Ranger chokes out, his voice weak, sputtering as he tries to speak past the rising water. “Can you tell Mom I love her?” I drop down on my knees next to him, curling my fingers around his. Am I going to sit here and watch him drown when he's so damn close to freedom? No. No. This can't happen. “And … give all of Jenica's stuff to the police. Maybe they …” Ranger swallows some water and starts to cough.
That's when I remember: I have the hammer in my bag.
I dump the contents on the ground, grabbing it in shaking hands. There's a lock holding this particular grate in place. I hit it as hard as I can, but nothing happens. It's so rusty though, surely …
Ranger's head disappears under the water, but I can still see his eyes, pleading, begging … I use both hands and hit the lock right at the thinnest point.
It cracks.
I hit it again, and the rusted bits snap off. I yank it off and scream for Church. He's there in a second, a rusted metal pole in hand. He uses that to push the grate off, and then drops down.
Together, we reach in and grab Ranger's hands.
He's freezing cold. And he's still. And it's beyond hard to pull him out, almost impossible. My muscles are screaming, and I'm crying, and I'm not sure this is going to happen when finally, Ranger's body hits the shore and Church and I both fall back.
He's the first to scramble up, turning his friend over and putting his ear near his mouth.
“He's not breathing,” he states calmly, almost too calm. It sounds like Church might just snap if I don't do something. I reach out and put my fingers against the side of Ranger's throat to check for a pulse. No pulse, fuck.
“I have CPR training,” I explain, taking over and trying to remember all the things I learned back home. Living on the beach has its advantages; I know exactly what to do right now. Ranger's face is cold and pale as I tilt his head back. “Put your hands in the center of his chest, at the nipple line, and start compressions. A hundred or more per minute. Let the chest rise completely between pushes.” Church complies immediately, and I wait, checking again to see if he's breathing yet.
Nothing.
“We need to get some air in him,” I murmur as I pinch Ranger's nose and lean down, sealing my lips to his with a little tingle. No time for that, Charlotte. Gross. I breathe into his mouth once, twice, and then pull back. Nothing. I do it again. “Thirty chest compressions.” My voice is a cold, quiet command, my teeth chattering so hard they hurt.
“Wake the fuck up,” Church murmurs, following my instructions.
Again, I share my breath with Ranger.
More compressions.
More breath.
This is not going well. He should be coughing up water by now.
“We have to keep this going until help arrives,” I whisper, my eyes filling with tears. There is no help coming, not anytime soon. We both know that. You never know: the twins may have found their way back by now.
“We'll go as long as it takes,” Church replies, like he's discussing the weather. I nod. I won't stop. I won't. Leaning down, I give two more breaths, and then pull back, waiting for Church to do the compressions.
Just as I'm bending over again, Ranger's body spasms and he throws water up.
“Turn him over,” I instruct, my voice as calm and cool as Church's. On the inside, I'm screaming. Please, please, please be okay! I put two fingers into Ranger's mouth to clear his airway as he throws up again and starts coughing.
Church and I keep him propped up as he curls his fingers into the grass, taking these long, strong breaths that make my heart so goddamn happy.
“Hey,” Church whispers as Ranger sits up,