Читать книгу Davey Jones's Locker - C.R. Cummings - Страница 9

UNDERWATER

Andrew was more tired than he realized and slipped into a deep sleep. He was roused from this by PO Walker calling out. As he opened ‘gummy’ eyes Andrew realised that Muriel was snuggled right against him with her head on his pillow. She was so close he could detect her very pleasant scent and see the details of her skin: the pores, the tiny hairs. It made him sigh with longing and sent his hopes up.

‘Has she just done that by accident in her sleep?’ he wondered as he tried to move without disturbing her. He decided she must have. ‘She wouldn’t be that forward,’ he reasoned. But he wasn’t sure. What he was worried about was that the two cadet Instructors could see them. It wasn’t a cadet activity so the usual strict rules on ‘fraternisation’ did not apply, but Andrew did not want to give them the wrong impression. He sat up, moving to one side as he did.

Muriel opened her eyes and blinked sleepily up at him, then stretched. “Oh I needed that,” she said, “and I had such a good dream.”

Andrew had too, but he did not want to ruin his chances by being too pushy. Instead he stood up and rubbed his eyes. Carmen met his eye and winked and that caused him to blush furiously. ‘I hope she didn’t see,’ he thought. He had no wish to be teased by his sister.

PO Walker stood at the side door of the van while drinking water from a plastic bottle. He turned and called out, “Where are Blake and Shona?”

“Don’t know P.O.,” Andrew replied. “I think they may have gone for a walk.”

“Well go and find them. We are supposed to be diving, not snogging,” PO Walker called back.

“Yes P.O.,” Andrew replied. He hurried off along the beach to the left.

“Hang on, I’ll come with you,” Muriel called. She hurried after him.

Andrew wanted her to but didn’t want to make that too obvious so he nodded and kept on walking, skirting an outcrop of rocks at a slow stroll. As Muriel caught him up Andrew spotted Blake and Shona. They were walking along the beach towards them and were holding hands and conversing happily. That was exactly what Andrew wanted to do with Muriel and he experienced a spurt of genuine jealousy. ‘Lucky Blake,’ he thought, wondering how his friend had managed to make so much progress.

What made it hurt even more was the obvious way the pair were engrossed in each other. Shona’s face was alive and her eyes seemed to sparkle. When Blake said something to her she laughed and clung to his arm. ‘How do I get Muriel to do that with me?’ Andrew wondered.

At that moment Blake saw them. He grinned and Shona waved. “What’s happening?” Blake asked.

Andrew pointed behind him and said, “The instructors sent us to get you. It’s time for our next dive.”

Andrew turned and led the way back around the rocks. As he did Muriel caught his eye and smiled. He was so surprised he stubbed his toe, then tried to pretend it hadn’t happened as he didn’t want to look a fool. Hiding the tears in his eyes he led the way.

Back at the vehicles the two adults were laying out SCUBA tanks and equipment. Carmen was helping. The teenagers were told to suit up. Now all romantic ideas were driven out of Andrew’s mind by anxiety about the test he was about to face. Feeling decidedly scared he hurried to prepare for the dive. Wet suits were tugged on and then air cylinders secured to BCDs. Andrew’s anxiety was now a help as it made him concentrate on the equipment and the drills. He turned on his air and checked the pressure, then helped Muriel to hoist on and secure her tank. After sorting out her air hoses he checked that her air was turned on and then made sure the tank was secure, plus all the straps. She then helped him on with his gear and did the same checks. They then both checked their regulators and alternate air sources and did a quick practice of breathing from each other’s alternate.

Next they walked down the beach and helped push the safety boat out into knee deep water. Sub Lt Sheldon climbed in. The outboard motor was started and the boat puttered out into the little bay, its bow lifting gently to the small waves. The group, now joined by PO Walker, Blake and Shona, waded into waist deep water carrying their fins and face masks. Here Muriel stood beside Andrew and adjusted the straps on the tanks, then tested the valve before sitting to pull on her flippers.

As she did she whispered, “Shona and Blake must really like each other.”

“I think they do,” Andrew replied. For a second his eyes met Muriel’s and his mind raced. ‘I wonder if I have a chance?’ he thought.

Feeling puzzled and anxious he turned his attention to the diving. He spat into his face mask and rinsed it, then pulled it on and adjusted the fit. Satisfied, he placed his snorkel in his mouth and slid forward to begin swimming, his mind now dominated by the fears of underwater swimming. The water was only a metre deep at that point so he swam with half his face mask above water and half below. The split picture intrigued him and it was something he enjoyed doing. He liked to check on the sky and on where the safety boat was at the same time as seeing below the surface.

He also kept glancing around to see if there were any triangular fins slicing through the waves towards him. He knew it was most unlikely he would ever spot any shark in time as they mostly swam underwater and he tried to tell himself that shark attacks on divers were very rare. But the rational mind could not completely conquer the fears and he kept glancing around in spite of himself.

Several small, striped fish suddenly flitted into his vision, causing his heart to miss a beat. A moment later they vanished in a flash as Blake came swimming past. His flippers churned up the surface and the silt on the bottom and obscured Andrew's view. He moved aside and found Muriel swimming up alongside on his left. Shona and Carmen were splashing along beyond her.

PO Walker stopped them when the water was too deep to touch bottom. He instructed them to keep swimming but to practice a snorkel/regulator exchange. By this time Andrew’s heart was beating fast with anxiety but he knew he had to try or be shamed so he swapped the snorkel for the regulator. Andrew allowed himself a minute or so to get used to breathing through the regulator. As always he felt anxiety tightening his chest and he had the feeling that he was struggling to breathe, that the valve was not giving him enough air, even though he knew it was a demand valve and would give him as much as he needed, and at the pressure of the surrounding water.

To calm himself he deliberately kept his face in the water looking down at the sandy bottom. He also enjoyed the view. But it could drive out that nagging fear that soon he would have to dive and then would come the ordeal of deliberately flooding that face mask!

PO Walker led them out until they reached the safety boat, which had anchored in water about ten metres deep. Here they hung onto a large, orange polystyrene float with handles on it. A blue and white diver’s flag fluttered above the float. To Andrew, looking fearfully around, they seemed to be a long way from the shore- right out in deep, spooky, dark green waves.

PO Walker detailed what he wanted them to do: “We will dive and wait on the bottom in a line,” he explained. “I will then get you one at a time to do a regulator recovery and clearance. Then you will do a partial mask flood and clear it. When everyone has done that you will do a stationary alternate air source use. Finally we will ascend. All understand? Good. Now, let’s have a practice of recovering your regulator on the surface.”

They did that. Andrew had no problem and was confident he could do it, but the mask flood began to loom ever larger in his mind. Secretly he wished something would happen to delay or prevent the dive. But nothing did and with a sick feeling of near panic he saw PO Walker give the signal to dive. Reluctantly, but on cue, Andrew lifted the release valve and began letting air out of his BCD. In spite of his fear he even managed to return Carmen’s smile before slipping under.

To his annoyance Andrew found he could not seem to go right under. He bobbed about with his face half submerged. Annoyed, he pressed the release valve again and this time went down- too fast. Almost at once he felt the squeeze of pressure and had to quickly blow air into his BCD to stop the descent then pinch his nose and blow to try to equalize the pressure in his ears. This worked and he was able to get his descent under control. Having the anchor line of the raft to cling to helped as well, keeping him from becoming disoriented. Only after he had his breathing and pressure under control did he look around, noting Carmen near the bottom, Muriel sinking steadily below him and Blake and Shona still above him.

Releasing air from his BCD in tiny amounts got Andrew sinking again. The sandy bottom seemed to rise to meet him and he settled on the points of his fins, then tucked them behind him and sank down on his knees beside Muriel. PO Walker swam down in front of them and indicated that they should move sideways to make room for Blake and Shona. Having successfully reached the bottom Andrew felt better. He even looked up and noted with some satisfaction that both Blake and Shona seemed to be having trouble coming down. In Shona’s case it was obviously an equalization thing and Blake appeared to be staying with her. PO Walker rose to help and slowly coaxed Shona down.

Andrew now tried to calm himself even more, telling himself to relax. Despite that his anxiety remained high and he kept glancing around into the green murk and shadows. Even just breathing was a challenge and he had to continually fight down the desire to pull the regulator out of his mouth and swim to the surface.

‘I hope they can’t see I am scared,’ he thought, noting that Shona was looking quite wide-eyed and worried.

Then the testing began. PO Walker moved slowly along the line, kneeling in front of each diver and watching while they carried out the test of skill. Carmen was first in line and Andrew watched her take out her regulator and toss it away from her without any apparent concern. Then she calmly swung her arm back, recovered the regulator and put it back in her mouth. As she vented to clear it Andrew’s eyes followed the rising bubbles.

‘I can easily reach the surface if I have to,’ he told himself, again trying to calm the fluttering nerves while Muriel did the test.

Then it was his turn. As PO Walker signalled Andrew kept telling himself what to do. To his own surprise he did it all quite easily, only being ashamed that PO Walker had to remind him, by signalling, to keep his mouth open and not to hold his breath. Nodding with embarrassment Andrew emitted a gentle flow of bubbles while he recovered the regulator. After that it was easy and he quickly purged the regulator and resumed breathing.

‘Phew! One done,’ he thought. But the anxiety kept rising because that mask flood was next!

Andrew disliked this exercise very much. He had done it several times in the swimming pool and knew it was important for safety, but here in the ocean it all seemed quite different. While he waited he was unable to stop himself glancing to his left to where the seabed sloped away into deeper water; a murky green and purple that could contain anything. He tried to comfort himself by estimating the visibility at about 15 metres.

‘I might just spot a shark before it attacks and be able to fend it off,’ he thought. ‘Besides, there are six of us. It might go for one of the others.’ That reminded him of the sardonic joke that said: swim with a friend, it reduces the chance of shark attack by 50%.

Then the test he dreaded began. With mounting apprehension Andrew watched Carmen partially flood her mask, then blow to clear it. Then it was Muriel’s turn and she did it with apparent ease. ‘Oh no!’ he thought, aware that his heart was racing and that he was gulping breaths much faster than he should. Through a mist of rising apprehension he saw PO Walker give Muriel a congratulatory clap, then move himself sideways to face him. In a state close to panic Andrew saw PO Walker signalling to carry out the partial mask flood.

‘I must do it!’ he told himself. His rational mind told him he could easily swim to the surface if he had to but that wasn’t much help. Knowing that PO Walker was one of his cadet instructors was more helpful. ‘I don’t want him to think I am a coward,’ Andrew told himself. Driven by that thought he took a deep breath and put his hands up to the top of the mask. Even then it took a deliberate act of will power to break the seal and allow water in. He hated it. As the water squirted in he shut his eyes and held his breath. The salt stung his eyes and some water went up his nose, making him splutter and sneeze. On the edge of panic, but trying to appear calm and unruffled, Andrew opened his eyes and saw that the water now half-filled his mask. Breathing as steadily as he could manage he tilted his head back, pressed his fingers to the top of the mask, and blew strongly through his nose.

He was only partly successful in expelling all the water and had to try a second time, leaning back, holding the top of the face mask to press it against his forehead while blowing hard. This time he managed to expel most of it. Through eyes that were watering he saw PO Walker give him a clap and he sighed with relief.

‘Now act as though it was all just a boring chore,’ he told himself, aware that Muriel would be watching. He turned to her and grinned, then pointed to her pressure gauge and did a check, thus taking both their minds off his efforts. Then he nodded and turned to watch Blake flood his mask. Blake did it without any apparent effort, causing Andrew mild jealousy. Shona on the other hand made a real drama of it, blowing half a dozen times to clear the water out. She appeared to be on the edge of panic but PO Walker calmed her and she managed it at last.

Through all of this Andrew was still trying to get himself under control, blinking and telling himself to calm down. He knew he was alright but the sound of water snuffling in his breathing equipment was no comfort either. As soon as he could Andrew looked around fearfully, to check that no monster of the deep had come sliding up while he could not see. None had but he remained anxious.

The test of using another diver’s alternate air source was much less of a problem. Andrew was confident he could swim up. Just in case, he fingered the valve that inflated his BCD, telling himself that, if worst came to worst, he could just inflate and go up. He even toyed with the quick release on his weight belt. However when the test came he did it easily. Apart from getting a couple of signals in the wrong order he was able to exchange his regulator for Muriel’s alternate. That put them very close together and he looked, as instructed, straight into her eyes. ‘Is she laughing at me?’ he wondered. Her eyes certainly seemed to be twinkling.

During all this they had remained kneeling on the bottom, held down by their weight belts. Even so he and Muriel had bumped against each other a lot. Most of the time her knee was touching his and he suspected she was doing it deliberately. However it had no effect in stimulating him. He was too scared for that and really just wanted to get the exercise over and get out of the water.

Thus he was very relieved when PO Walker signalled to surface. They did this in pairs, practising an ascent using their buddy’s alternate air source. In this case it was Muriel using his. They rose easily and broke apart at the surface. Andrew quickly inflated his BCD and then lay back with a huge sigh of relief. Only after a few minutes did he remember to look around for sharks.

The dive had lasted nearly half an hour and Andrew found it a real relief when Sub Lt Sheldon indicated they should swim ashore. In the shallows they removed fins and face masks, Andrew being chided for pushing his up onto his forehead.

“That is the sign of a diver in trouble,” Sub Lt Sheldon reminded. Blushing at his mistake Andrew hastily pulled the face mask right off.

They then walked up the beach. Andrew found this a real effort, weighed down as he was by weight belt and SCUBA gear. Glances at his companions showed they were all finding it a strain as well, which was some comfort. He was surprised at how tired and weak he felt, as he considered himself to be fit.

Once under the trees they helped each other off with tanks and BCDs and then loaded all the diving equipment into the van and ute. Wet suits were peeled off and they then picked up their clothes and followed Muriel up to the house. This time they went in through the garage door. Inside was not only space to park two cars (a gleaming silver ‘Mercedes’, and a lovely maroon ‘Jaguar’- ‘his and hers’, Muriel explained), but also for a laundry, workshop and downstairs bathroom and toilet. A passageway led off under the house to other rooms.

“We can all have a shower to wash off the salt,” Muriel said.

“What? All together?” quipped Blake.

“Oh poo to you!” Muriel said with a laugh. “You and Shona can if you like.”

That got Andrew’s imagination racing. He had a vivid flashback to the previous January when he had been joined in the shower by Letitia after he had tried to find the drowned boy. It was the first time in his life he had been alone with a naked girl and it had been a glimpse of heaven which gave him hot memories. For a few seconds he remembered sliding his hands over Letitia’s lovely smooth skin, and of fondling her ample breasts while she had held him. They had come so close to having sex that Andrew trembled with emotion every time he thought about it. He was sure that only the interruption by others had stopped them and that troubled him badly. This was because he liked to think he had good self-control. It was also one of his beliefs that sex was a very special and intimate thing that should only be done with a person during a state of mutual love. He did not want to openly admit that he was of the opinion that sex should only be between people who were married but he knew that idea lurked deep in his sense of morality.

Thus it troubled, yet excited him, when he found his thoughts straying to contemplate having a shower with Muriel, of his hands sliding over those lovely breasts, of her....

‘Stop it!’ he told himself, aware that he was torturing himself, and was worried lest he expose himself to be a weakling and a hypocrite. To push these thoughts out of his mind he stood and talked boats with PO Walker while the others took turns at having a shower.

Carmen got a bit anxious about how long Shona was taking and asked Muriel, “Won’t we use up all the water?”

Andrew pictured the relatively dry bush on the surrounding hillside and also wondered.

Muriel shook her head. “No, there is a little dam up the creek,” she replied. “We swim in it sometimes. There is plenty of water.”

Andrew wasn’t sure which creek, as he could not remember seeing one, but he was reassured and quite happily took his turn in the shower. As he stripped off to rinse himself he had more thoughts of Letitia, Muriel and of sex. He examined himself and was satisfied he was quite normal but the thoughts and touch got him stiffening up so he hurried his shower, quickly dried and dressed in dry clothes, then went up to the patio via an internal stair well.

On arrival on the patio Andrew found Carmen talking to Old Mr Murchison. Andrew seated himself and at once inquired of the old man how he was. On being assured he felt fine- ‘as fit as a flea’- Andrew said, “I’m sorry for upsetting you sir.”

Old Mr Murchison smiled and shook his head. “That’s alright boy. You weren’t to know. It was a long time ago. Tell me, how old are you?”

“Fourteen sir,” Andrew replied.

Old Mr Murchison nodded and pursed his lips, then said, “I’d say you will be the spitting image of your grandad when you are a bit older. Now that I know who you are I can really see the resemblance.”

“It must have been a bit of a shock,” Andrew replied.

“Yes, a sort of ‘ghost from the past’ thing,” Old Mr Murchison replied. “So tell me about your family. I haven’t seen any of them for twenty years at least.”

Andrew and Carmen proceeded to describe how their father, Cuthbert Collins, ran a tourist business, while their mother owned a small but very trendy ‘boutique’. It was while trying to explain the family history that Andrew realised just how little he actually did know about his own family background. He resolved to remedy that by talking to his parents as soon as he got home.

However such thoughts were thrust from his mind by the more immediate problem of what to say to Muriel as they said farewell. She and her family were staying over at the house so he would not see her until the following Saturday at cadets. ‘Unless I can organise something for Friday night,’ he thought.

As they all said goodbyes and made their way down to the lawn Andrew paused and met Muriel’s eye. He was sure now he was really in love and he badly wanted to see her again. “Can we meet again?” he asked.

“I’d love to,” Muriel replied. “What did you have in mind?”

“Oh....er... maybe the movies on Friday night or something?” Andrew suggested.

Muriel made a face. “Maybe, but only in a group. Mum and dad think I am too young to be going on dates yet.”

“With Blake and Shona then?” Andrew replied.

“Yeah, OK. Phone me tomorrow night at home and we will discuss it,” Muriel said.

Andrew wanted badly to kiss her but restrained himself. Instead he smiled and then hurried down the steps to the driveway. As the van drove up past the house he saw her waving from the terrace and waved back, his spirits soaring. ‘She wants to see me again!’ he thought happily. All the way home he sat in a haze of romantic euphoria, day dreaming of wonderful things they might do together. To give him hope were the thoughts that she would be at cadets the following Saturday afternoon, and that there was another dive trip planned for the next Sunday.

Only when he and Carmen were dropped off at home did Andrew remember the old photos and think to ask his mother. She nodded and said there were several old albums around, and to ask his father. Andrew did this at once. His father had just got up from his Sunday afternoon snooze and was a bit grumpy but became interested when Andrew described the photos at Old Mr Murchison’s.

Mr Collins led the way downstairs to the storeroom. On the door being opened Andrew’s hopes nose-dived at once. The room was a jumble of boxes, bags and assorted junk. Mr Collins snorted with annoyance and gestured in. “Now, there is a job long overdue! Instead of sailing around the bloody bay you might clean up the house.”

“Yes Dad,” Andrew replied, his hopes sinking even further. “Would you know where the photo albums are?”

“No, but they are in an old brown leather suitcase I think. So, if you really want to find them, get to work, but only after you have done your homework.”

“Yes Dad,” Andrew added with a sigh. His father insisted he show him his completed homework before school every day and he knew there would be no escape from this. Reluctantly he made his way back upstairs.

Thus it was four hours later, at 9pm that Andrew returned to the storeroom. For a while he stood in the doorway, all but overwhelmed by the magnitude of the task. ‘This is hopeless!’ he thought, but even as he began to turn away, his stubborn streak took over and he stopped. ‘There must be a smart way to do this,’ he mused.

So he began to systematically clear a path in through the room so that he was able to see what was stacked on either side. The displaced articles were taken out to the workshop area, to be re-stowed later.

An hour later his mother called him from upstairs, “Time for bed Andrew. Give it up and come up for your Cocoa. You’ve had a long weekend and you don’t want to be tired for school.”

“Yes Mum,” Andrew called back without conviction. He backed out along the ‘gully’ he had cleared in the junk and reached for the light switch. Then, just as his finger closed on it, he saw the brown leather suitcase.