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skidded across the deck to join George and Nick, ‘How’s that?’
    ‘Better,’ said George, her hands gripped on the wheel. ‘But we’re still drifting. She just won’t go where I want her to.’
    At that moment we topped a wave and a beach came into view. It was little more than a ribbon of sand between massive cliffs at one end and a rocky point at the other.
    Nick nodded towards it. ‘That’ll have to do,’ he said. It was as if all his optimism had simply got up and left. ‘We’ll get as close to shore as we can and then we’re going to have to swim for it.’
    ‘ Swim? There’s no way –’ I started.
    Nick interrupted me, ignoring the stunned look on my face. ‘George, you and Matt go below and pack as much stuff as you can into the backpacks. Anything we can use. Water, torches, food, matches, first-aid kit, whatever you can find. And get some rope. And there are some fenders down there, too.’
    ‘Fenders?’ Matt asked, looking confused.
    ‘Big rubber pillows that will help us float,’ Nick explained. ‘They’re blue and white. C’mon, just hurry.’
    Matt and George obediently scurried toward the cabin steps, bouncing around the deck like a couple of air-hockey pucks as The Dolphin bucked wildly. I grabbed hold of the wheel and turned it towards shore, setting a treacherous course across the waves. Nick sat next to me, doubled over and nursing his shoulder.
    I was still trying to come to terms with the idea of swimming to shore. But mostly I was worried about Nick. ‘You all right, mate?’
    ‘Yeah,’ he replied weakly, ‘I’m okay. You?’
    ‘Good,’ I lied. ‘You sure about swimming? I mean it’s – ’
    ‘Yep,’ he interrupted without looking up. ‘No choice now.’
    I could feel my heart thumping. The thought of jumping into the ocean was just insane. We had barely survived the capsize. I couldn’t for the life of me see how we could swim to shore, especially with Nick’s shoulder busted up. But it was clear he didn’t see any other option, and as I tried in vain to steer The Dolphin I realised he was probably right.
    Matt appeared with two coils of rope slung across his shoulders and a couple of large rubber fenders in his arms. George was right behind him, lugging two bulging backpacks. She took the wheel as I stuffed a coil of rope into each pack, then put one on and helped her shoulder the other one. The bags were already soaked and weighed a ton. Trying to swim with this on my back is going to be impossible , I thought. But there was no time to dwell on that.
    Nick grabbed me by the life jacket and pulled me close. ‘It’s going to be ugly in there,’ he yelled into my ear. ‘Who’s the strongest swimmer?’
    ‘George, I think. Matt and I are about the same.’
    Nick beckoned the others over and we gathered around the wheel, leaning in close to hear him. ‘Matt, you go with George. Tie the fender around your waist and share it with her in the water.’
    Just then it struck me that Nick didn’t even have a life jacket on. The one he’d dropped at his feet earlier was long gone, washed overboard. He was now slumped against the wheel looking worse by the minute and there was no way I was going to let him get into the water without a jacket on. I slipped off the backpack and my life jacket. Despite his efforts to brush me away I managed to get it on him.
    I looked out at the water and knew we were out of time. The current was pushing us across the shoreline and with each wave surge we were edging closer to the rocks at the end of the beach. It was time to jump.
    I wanted to make sure that Matt and George got a clean jump, so they had to go first. On impulse, I leant in and, for the first time in as long as I could remember, gave Matt a hug. ‘Stick to George, she’s part fish,’ I managed to say, trying to keep the emotion out of my voice, ‘… and if you get in first you can have the good mattress.’
    ‘You’re on,’ Matt said, with a weak smile.
    My