Chapter 2 – Near Death By Drowning

The small, converted bomber was buffeted by a strong wind and rain as it headed to the region north of Metz. They'd zigzagged across France to avoid radar and flak installations but still made good time. The men were sitting on each side of the fuselage trying to keep their minds occupied as the plane butted its way through the turbulence: Chief was leaning back quietly with his eyes closed, Actor was smoking his pipe, engrossed in an old book he'd found in the library, Goniff and Casino were playing cards and bickering as usual, Garrison was going over the plan for the hundredth time trying to find contingencies to use if Plan A failed – so far he'd got to Plan H.

The co-pilot came through. "Okay lads, five minutes to the drop zone, get your lines hooked up."

Chief stepped up and attached his line first. Actor was second, Casino third and Goniff fourth. Garrison always went last so he could keep an eye on them and make sure they landed safely.

"Why you always goin' first Chiefy?" asked Goniff.

"First out, first down Goniff," replied Chief over his shoulder.

Goniff shrugged. "Oh, ok."

"Yeah and the first to be shot if there's any Krauts waitin' down there!" jeered Casino.

"Can it Casino," Garrison shouted above the noise of the wind as the door opened.

"Don't forget you'll make a pretty juicy target for me as you come down Pappy," said Chief giving Casino a warning glance.

"GO."

Chief leapt out of the plane and spread his arms. He loved this part of the drop, it felt as if he was flying. This was the freedom he had been yearning for while in prison and he revelled in the sheer exhilaration of it. If this was going to eventually cost him his life it was a price he was willing to pay.

The parachute opened with a jerk and Chief looked at the landscape below him. This was the reason he always went first, there were no other parachutes to block his view. He noted the river, it looked swollen from the recent rainfall. He looked for any landmarks that might be useful and committed them to memory. The land was mostly open fields and forested areas but there were signs of habitation scattered around. He scanned the roads for any sign of German patrols, it all looked clear.

Actor neither liked nor disliked parachuting – it was a necessary evil and the sooner he landed the better. The wind was getting up so he watched Chief's chute and followed him down to land as close as possible. The scout had proven to have a knack for finding good ground to land on during their practice jumps and so everyone followed his lead.

Casino felt like a piñata hanging from the ceiling at a kid's party. The wind buffeted him and he was fully expecting to be hit, not by a stick but by a bullet or a shell from somewhere below. "Jeez if I ever get out of this alive I'm gonna walk everywhere," he muttered to himself through gritted teeth.

Goniff was faring no better than Casino. He was the lightest of the team and the wind threw him around unmercifully. He'd closed his eyes for the first part of the jump but them decided it might be a good idea to see how close he was to the ground. He was relieved to see the other three in front of him, he pulled on the lines and curved around to follow them in.

Garrison made sure all the parachutes had opened before he jumped. The wind was really getting up and he was sure it was stronger than had been forecast. He wasn't really worried as he'd made dozens of jumps, many in worse conditions than this. He followed his men down keeping an eye on them all.

GG-GG-GG

Chief landed first. The wind had blown them closer to the river than he would have liked but that couldn't be helped. He landed lightly on his feet and took a few steps before stopping, he pulled at the flapping chute and collapsed it. He took off the harness and gathered the silk into his arms.

He wiped the rain from his face, dragged his fingers through his hair and looked round to see where the others were landing. Actor landed heavily a few yards away and his chute started to fill and billow. Chief ran back towards the conman, releasing his blade, he ripped a hole in Actor's chute to let the air out and helped him get it under control. Actor looked surprised at the unexpected help and nodded his thanks.

Chief then went over to Casino who was slipping in the mud, struggling with his and did the same. "Thanks Geronimo, but I had it all under control"

"Sure you did Pappy."

Goniff grinned and bobbed his head in gratitude, he'd been dragged for some yards before Chief got to him and was afraid he'd end up in the river. "Thanks mate, couldn't have done that without you."

Actor and Casino came running up with their chutes rolled into big wads. Chief looked up to see where Garrison was. He seemed to be coming in to touch down right next to them. Suddenly a great gust of wind lifted the chute high in the air and sideways towards the raging river. Chief's heart leapt in his mouth as he realised what was happening. Garrison was desperately trying to control his descent but the result was inevitable.

"Warden's goin' in!" yelled Chief, he sat down and quickly pulled off his boots then stood up and yanked his heavy jacket off. He sprinted down to the river, keeping his eyes on the parachute, calculating where it would go in. He dived headlong into the water and struck out to where the splash told him Garrison had landed.

"Casino, Goniff get the ropes we'll need them and follow me," shouted Actor as he ran down to the bank. The other two did as they were told and followed him.

GG-GG-GG

Garrison first thought he had everything under control but the whirling water got hold of his chute and started pulling him down. The river was running fast and strong and he was dragged along the bottom weighed down by his gear. He realised his arms were tangling in the lines and he couldn't do anything to save himself. He was being toyed with by the relentless current and was helpless to do anything about it.

His chute got tangled on a submerged branch and he was swept past it until he reached the limit of the lines and was violently brought to a halt. He was thrown from side to side by the strong current but couldn't reach the surface to breath. Everything was a maelstrom of bubbles, weeds and swirling water. He crashed against a large rock and the last of his breath exploded from his lungs. How could it end like this? The last thing he remembered was something banging into him.

"Can you see anythin'? Where's the Warden? Where's Chief?" shouted Goniff as he stood anxiously watching the swirling river.

"Can't see anythin' Limey, I don't think anythin' could survive out there." Casino was scanning the scene with worried eyes. "Come on Geronimo, where are you?" he muttered to himself.

"Over there," shouted Actor pointing to a large rock in the middle of the roaring current. They looked desperately in that direction and watched as Chief climbed out of the water onto the rock. He stood bent over peering intently into the water around him, wet shirt flapping from his body in the cold wind. He was obviously trying to see something down there. He hesitated and dived back in.

"Has he found him?" asked Goniff.

"Ask me again in a minute," replied Casino watching the scene unfolding in front of him. He was worried sick but didn't want to let the others know. He liked Garrison and had developed a soft spot for the kid but years in prison had taught him not to show weakness of any kind.

Chief landed almost on top of Garrison, he could see that his eyes were half closed and he appeared limp and unresponsive. He pushed up out of the water, took a huge breath and went back down, he pinched Garrison's nose and breathed into his mouth, he did this twice more. The next time he surfaced he threw up his arm, flexed his hand and grabbed his knife as it shot into his palm, he snapped it open, took another deep breath and dived down. He went to work on the lines cutting his way through them as quickly as he could with his blade.

"What's Geronimo doin'?" Casino asked Actor.

"I don't know Casino, all I saw was his head come up a couple of times and now he's been down for over a minute." Actor was really worried – Garrison had been underwater too long!

"Over there, look, there's the Warden," Goniff shouted and pointed. They watched as Garrison surged up out of the water held high under his armpits by Chief, his arms hung limply and his head lolled to one side. Chief dragged him back on to the rock and knelt over him. He bent down and tried to breath air into him as he lay, spreadeagled on the wet surface.

"Is he kissin' him?" exclaimed Casino peering intently across the water.

"No you idiot, he's giving him mouth-to-mouth, Garrison's not breathing," said Actor, concerned at the situation. He felt frustration at not being able to help the young scout's efforts.

Chief looked desperately around for them and saw them standing on the bank. He shook his head and waved for the rope to be thrown.

"Don't miss Casino," warned Actor

"Trust me Actor, I won't." Casino threw the rope with all his strength, it landed next to Chief, he quickly tied it around himself and Garrison, took another couple of deep breaths and motioned for them to pull them in. As the three of them hauled desperately on the rope the pair disappeared under the water again.

Chief held onto Garrison tightly and kept trying to breathe life into him from his last lungful of air. He turned his body so Garrison was upstream to him, this meant that Chief acted as a buffer and took the brunt of them banging into rocks and branches as they were dragged to the bank.

At last they were on dry land, it seemed like it had taken hours to get there. Actor took the limp body from Chief's arms and he and Casino quickly carried the Warden up the bank.

Goniff helped Chief untie the rope, he noticed the scout's worried eyes followed where Garrison was being taken. "You alright Chiefy?" he asked, voice full of concern. Chief shivered in the cold air, nodded and then raced off after the others.

Actor laid Garrison down on a level piece of ground. He knelt next to him and desperately felt for a pulse, it was weak but there was one. "Grazie a Dio," he said as relief washed over him.

Chief and Goniff ran up. "How's the Warden, Actor," gasped Chief as he fell to his knees.

"You managed to keep him alive Chief, but he still isn't breathing on his own. Can you carry on breathing for him and I'll keep an eye on his pulse."

"Ok, I can do that." Chief bent over, pinched Garrison's nose and breathed into his mouth. Garrison's chest rose and fell as Chief worked steadily on him. "Don't you go dyin' on me now Warden," he whispered between breaths.

"How'd he know to do that?" asked Casino as he watched in amazement.

"If you'd paid attention to the first-aid classes during training instead of fooling around Casino, you would know what to do as well," replied Actor keeping his full attention on Garrison and Chief.

Goniff crouched next to Chief and put the scout's previously discarded jacket over his shivering, wet body in an attempt to keep the wind off him, he patted him on the shoulder. "Well done Chiefy mate, keep up the good work, you'll get him back." Chief was too busy to notice the contact that would have normally made him flinch away and reach for his blade.

After ten minutes Actor put Garrison's hand down and shook his head as he looked at Garrison's limp body. "You can stop now Chief, it's no use."

Chief's head shot up and he glared at Actor. "He still got a pulse?"

Actor nodded. "Yes, but it's so weak I can hardly feel it. He's not breathing for himself, he's too far gone, I don't think he'll make it."

Chief shook his head. "Then he's not dead. Not gonna give up on him Actor. I'll do this for as long as he needs it."

Actor sighed at Chief's obstinacy, he turned to Goiff and Casino, they were watching intently. "You two make yourselves useful and get the gear and the parachutes."

For once Casino obeyed without argument. "Come on Geronimo," he muttered as he retrieved their gear. "You can do it, you just gotta."

They came back with the heavy bags just in time to see Garrison lurch over to one side and cough up half the river into Chief's lap. He fell back, took a couple of deep breaths, turned and let Chief have the other half.

Chief looked down in disbelief. "Nobody just says thanks any more, they gotta give you a present!" He gave a deep sigh of relief and sat back watching Garrison as he struggled to get air in his lungs. He took a few deep breaths himself, the effort of forcing air into Garrison's lungs had been excrutiating. His chest ached and he didn't know if it was from the bullet wound or the battering he'd gotten in the river, either way it hurt like hell. He forced himself to stay still and not let the others know he was in pain.

Actor shook his head in amazement as he checked Garrison's pulse, it was getting stronger by the minute. "Well done Chief, I didn't think it was possible."

Casino walked up behind Chief and tousled his wet hair. "Great job Geronimo, never doubted you for a second," he darted off before Chief could react. Chief couldn't be bothered, he was too cold, too tired and too beaten up to do anything.

"We need to find some shelter before it gets dark," observed Actor as he tended to Garrison.

"There's a hut 'bout a quarter mile in that direction," said Chief pointing away into the nearby forest.

Casino stared at him. "How the hell you know that, you been here before Geronimo?"

Chief shivered. "Saw it on the way down and remembered where it was."

"Ok let's get a move on while we can still see where we're going," ordered Actor. Casino took a dry jacket out of one of the bags and, with Actor's help, exchanged it for the Warden's waterlogged one. Chief pulled on his boots and put his jacket on properly, then he and Actor pulled Garrison up, they put a shoulder under each arm and lifted the unconscious man between them.

Actor looked at the scout as he took Garrison's weight. "You ok?" Chief nodded. "Alright, lead the way Chief. Casino, Goniff can you two fetch the bags? Bring the parachutes as well we may need them for bandages and blankets."

"Yes sir," Casino was back to his usual self now the worry about the Warden was gone. "I'll carry your luggage for you!"

"Stop it for once mate," chided Goniff

"Can it Limey," the safe-cracker retorted.

The hut was dark, slightly dilapidated and obviously unoccupied. Nevertheless Chief motioned for them to stop and look after Garrison while he scouted around the area to make sure everything was safe. He melted into the shadows as they crouched down trying to keep quiet. Suddenly Chief was among them again, he retook his place under Garrison's arm, lifted him up and lead them to the hut.

"How the hell does he do that? He almost gave me a heart attack comin' outta nowhere!" exclaimed Casino hoarsely to Goniff.

"He's Chief," replied Goniff, satisfied with that simple explanation.