“Come on, Wolf, breathe.” Cooper continued the cycle of one breath and fifteen chest compressions, each time checking for signs of life. Passengers from their raft and others turned to watch, their minds no longer focused on their own woes.
“Wolf, come on, man. Don’t make me face Tori. The girl terrifies me.” Cooper got more desperate as the chest compressions became more violent.
At that moment a slight gurgling could be heard as Wolf cracked open his eyes. “That’s it, spit it out, buddy.” Cooper sat Wolf up, patting him on the back. An explosive spray of water came out of his mouth as his lungs took in a deep breath of fresh air.
Applause could be heard from the bobbing rafts as the passengers showed their appreciation to the pilots for saving their lives. Exhausted from this traumatic event, Wolf laid his head on the side of the raft. He grabbed Cooper’s hand and with a raspy voice said, “Thanks, man. I owe you one.”
Cooper cracked a smile.
“We’ll discuss terms later.”
Now it was time to find out how many people had been hurt.
“What is the status on injuries?”
“As far as I know, Captain, lots of bumps, bruises, cuts, scrapes, and some broken bones. However, nothing life-threatening.”
“That’s good to hear. Let’s make sure we attend to the wounded the best we can and try to pass out as many blankets as you managed to snag.”
“How about we get you bandaged up first?” the flight attendant asked.
Cooper reached up and wiped blood from his gash. He’d completely forgotten, during all the commotion, that he’d been wounded.
The flight attendants began doing what they could to bandage the wounds and keep the passengers warm. Although the water was calm, the slow-pulling currents moved the rafts farther away from the sinking plane.
As the rafts drifted, the plane went down quickly. The sea water bubbled and sprayed into the air as the creaking metal frame dipped below the water’s surface.
Everyone turned to watch as the last portion of the jet, its tail, was claimed by the sea. It seemed surreal to Cooper as he watched the Trans Pacific logo disappear from sight with a swirl of sea water marking the grave of the only casualty of this horrific event.
The night became colder and the passengers fought to stay warm while adrift in the middle of the sea. Only a few random spots of burning jet fuel remained unextinguished by the lapping water. A few hours seemed like days as the hope of a rescue started to fade. Why wasn’t the helicopter back?
“I thought they’d be here by now,” a passenger said from an adjacent raft.
Everyone’s attention seemed to be on Cooper, as he was their leader. “What should we do, Captain?”
Cooper turned and looked out over the survivors as they gazed back at him, hoping for some modicum of reassurance. This was what his father had always wanted out of him, to be able to lead, to assure, and to make a difference. His head was spinning with how much had changed in the past six years. His heart ached that his father wasn’t there to see the man he’d become.
“They’ve already spotted us and we have our locator beacon activated. It shouldn’t be too much longer.” These words seemed to satisfy them as there wasn’t much of a response. Not thirty minutes from the last spoken word, a low rumble accompanied by a consistent splashing sound could be heard.
“Look over there,” a passenger shouted as they pointed into the darkness.
“It’s a ship!”
Out of the darkness came the sharp white and orange bow of a Coast Guard cutter. The large ship was accompanied by three smaller boats with bright lights that pierced through the now approaching fog bank. The deep whine of the smaller boats brought a sense of relief for the passengers and Cooper.
Not long after the boats arrived, helicopters started circling above. He didn’t see the Coast Guard orange on their sides. As he looked closer, he caught a glimpse of the side of one of them labeled NEWS 19. Fury filled him as he glared up at the vultures hoping to get the first pictures of dead bodies floating in the water. Well, they were out of luck.
Cooper turned to Wolf. “They’re here to get us, bud. We’re going home.”
Wolf nodded his head, still out of it from the crash, but he managed to crack a smile.
The Coast Guard began to pull passengers on board, immediately giving them dry clothes and warm blankets. Cooper waved to one of the boats to come in his direction. It approached alongside his raft, its wake causing the light boat to move up and down in the water. A Coast Guard lieutenant leaned over the side.
“I have one that’s injured and needs immediate medical attention,” Cooper told him.