Disclaimer: All characters belong to HiT Entertainment.

Chapter 4

That evening, after I'd finished work for the day, I walked down to the quay to watch the sunset. A cool breeze floated around me, making me feel a little cold, but it was a welcome relief after everything that had occurred that day. The sun had almost set when Charlie joined me.

"It's quite a view, isn't it?"

"Yes," I agreed.

"Bronwyn wanted to know if you'd like to join us for dinner."

"I suppose I could. Thanks."

Charlie turned and he gave Bronwyn, who was inside the café, a thumbs-up to indicate that I'd agreed to stay for dinner. He then turned his attention back to me.

"What you did today was very heroic. Joe said you didn't even hesitate before you dived in. You're bound to get another bravery medal for sure!"

I sighed sadly. "You're wrong, Charlie. I got a fine and a warning from Chief Fire Officer Boyce."

Charlie gasped in disbelief. "What? He must be mad! You're a hero, Sam! You saved Penny's life!"

"For the last time, I am NOT a hero, Charlie! In fact, I was very lucky I didn't get demoted."

"I don't understand, Sam."

I drew in a deep breath, and I stared down at my hands, which were grasping the railing in front of me. "I broke the rules, Charlie. Penny nearly died because I didn't follow basic health and safety procedures."

"But surely, that's Penny's fault…"

"No, Charlie. I am the leading fireman, so if something goes wrong during a callout, I'm the one who's held responsible. That's just how things are in the fire service. Yes, Station Officer Steele did get warned for not having enough of us trained in scuba diving, but I should've told Ben to make the dive with Penny. There was no reason why I couldn't have driven Titan instead of Ben." I sighed despondently.

"Oh. I see," Charlie muttered. "How much is the fine?"

"A quarter of my wages for the next four weeks. And don't even think about offering me financial assistance, Charlie. You have a family to support. I'll be fine. I have some savings, so I shouldn't be any worse off than I currently am. I don't need much anyway."

Charlie placed an arm around my shoulders and he pulled me closer to him. "I know. I'm sorry I didn't understand. And I'm sorry you got into trouble."

"At least I've learned my lesson. I'm going to be much more careful from now on. I'm getting too old to be taking these kinds of risks anyway."

"You're not that old, Sam! Otherwise, what does that make me?"

"Ancient history," I teased. Charlie took a swipe at me, but I managed to dart out of the way.

"Well, I do have to admit that your reflexes are sharper than mine," Charlie said with a chuckle.

"Charlie! Sam!" Bronwyn called from the doorway of the café. "Dinner's ready!"

"We'll settle this later over a game of Tiddlywinks," Charlie said.

"You're on!"

…

The following morning, I woke up a little bit earlier than usual, so I could send out an email before I went to work. This is what I wrote while I sipped on my morning cup of tea:

Re: Correct scuba diving operations.

After the events that occurred during a coastguard rescue yesterday, it is my duty as leading fireman to inform all coastguard personnel that from this moment on all scuba dives MUST be carried out by at least two qualified divers. Solo dives will no longer be permitted under any circumstances. Any member of the coastguard who makes a solo dive during a callout will be severely disciplined in accordance with coastguard procedures.

Please make sure you confirm that you've received this email, or I'll keep sending it to you until you do!

I sent the email off to Station Officer Steele, Ben, Penny, Elvis and Tom. I didn't need to send it to anyone else, because they weren't qualified in the coastguard, so it didn't apply to them.

About fifteen minutes later, I entered the fire station, and I signed on for work inside the Control Room. Station Officer Steele entered just as I'd put the pen down.

"Morning, Sam. Are you ready to lead the team in the big salvage operation?"

"Yes, sir."

"Excellent! Well, you'll have Penny and Elvis with you, so Ellie and Arnold will be on duty with me here."

I frowned thoughtfully. "I think I'll take Mercury and Juno today, just in case I need to get back quickly."

Station Officer Steele nodded his approval. "Good idea! Have you had breakfast yet?"

"Yes, sir."

"Sam, you can relax. I know we both had a good ticking off from Chief Fire Officer Boyce yesterday, but you don't need to be quite so serious now."

I nodded slightly, but I still didn't relax. "I think we'd better get going. I'll contact you once we've managed to salvage as much as we can."

"Okay, Sam. And please don't do anything risky. You gave me a huge fright yesterday."

"I'll try not to, sir."

…

Before long, Ben, Penny, Elvis and I were on our way out to Pontypandy Island. I rode Juno, while Ben drove Titan. I'd ensured that we had several spare oxygen tanks with us this time, since I was sure we would need them. When we arrived at the wreck site, I secured Juno alongside Titan before climbing aboard.

"All right, Ben and Penny. I want you both to stay together and be careful. If it is the wreck of the Pontypandy Pearl, it'll be almost two-hundred years old, so the wood will be extremely delicate. One wrong move could send a pile of it crashing down on top of you."

"We know the risks, Sam," Ben said as he pulled on his scuba diving tank.

"It doesn't hurt to be reminded though, does it?" I said. "Now, have you double-checked everything?"

"Yes, Sam," Ben and Penny replied in unison.

"Let me just check it as well."

While I was going over their scuba diving gear, Penny and Ben started whispering to each other.

"What's bitten him this morning?" Ben asked.

"He got a severe telling off from Chief Fire Officer Boyce after yesterday's drama."

"Oh!"

"Okay, you're both clear to dive," I said a bit louder than I intended to.

Ben and Penny put on their face masks before they flipped backwards out of Titan. When they resurfaced, they gave me the 'okay' signal with their hands. I returned the signal. Then, they disappeared into the murky water.

"What do you want me to do, Sam?" Elvis asked.

I handed him a pen and a notebook. "Take notes about everything they bring back. State what each item is, its condition and where it was located within the wreck. Ben and Penny will tell you that last detail."

About ten minutes later, Ben and Penny surfaced carrying a few bits and pieces from the wreck. They handed the items up to Elvis and myself before they removed their masks.

"There's an old writing desk and a cannon down there, Sam," Penny reported. "We'll need the winch to bring them up."

"Okay, I'll pass it down to you," I said, and I went over to the winch. "Do you both have enough oxygen to make another dive?"

"Yes, Sam," Ben and Penny replied in unison again.

"Okay, here's the winch. See if you can bring up the flag too. Be very careful with it though. The fabric could tear easily."

"Okay, Sam," Penny replied as she took hold of the winch. She replaced her face mask before diving beneath the surface. Ben followed her.

While we waited for Ben and Penny to return, Elvis and I started cataloguing the first few items. There was an earthenware decanter, a rusty sword, a lantern and a rusted metal jug.

"I don't think any of this stuff will be able to help us identify the wreck, Sam," Elvis said as he dried the decanter.

"You're wrong, Elvis. That decanter is of great importance."

Elvis didn't look convinced. "I can't see anything special about it."

"The Pontypandy Pearl sank during a storm in 1832. If that decanter can be dated to that time period, then we'll know it's the Pontypandy Pearl."

"But I thought decanters were made from glass?"

"Usually, yes. But if you're constantly at sea, pottery is less likely to break if it falls. Wine was worth a lot of money back then, so Pontypandy Pete wouldn't have wanted to spill a drop."

An alert sounded inside the cabin, so I went to attend to it. The alert was Ben and Penny's signal to start activating the winch. I turned the knob, and the winch began to wind.

By noon, Ben and Penny had retrieved as much as they could from the wreck. The wooden shell was far too delicate to be brought to the surface, so it had been left at the bottom of the ocean for now.

"Good work, everyone," I praised as Ben and Penny removed their scuba diving gear. They'd gone through three tanks of oxygen each, but I was just relieved that the dive had gone well. "I'll just radio Station Officer Steele to let him know that we're on our way back." I returned inside the cabin and I picked up the handset. "Fireman Sam to Station Officer Steele, come in."

"Reading you, Sam. Go ahead."

"We've just finished the salvage operation, and we're about to head back to shore."

"Good work, Sam. I'll meet you at the Ocean Rescue Centre."

"Copy that, sir. Out."

"Hey, Sam!" Penny called. "Come and take a look at this!"

I put the handset back on its hook, before I joined Penny at Titan's stern. She held up a large metal platter.

"Look at what's inscribed in the centre," Penny said as she handed it to me.

I looked closely. The inscription was difficult to make out, but it was definitely writing. Elvis and Ben leaned over my shoulders too try and see it too.

"I can't read that," Ben said. "Can you, Sam?"

"It's not English," I replied. I carefully scratched a bit of the rust away. "It's Welsh. Look, you can just make out a Celtic cross in the centre."

"What does it say, Sam?" Elvis asked excitedly.

"Most of it's been eroded away by the rust, but I think I can make out a few words on this side… i'r Mhontypandy Perl."

Penny gasped. "Sam! It doesn't really say that, does it?"

"Mae'n yno mewn Cymraeg plaen," I replied.

Excited, Penny snatched the platter out of my hands. "Gadewch i mi weld!"

"Huh? What did you just say, Sam? I don't get it," Ben said with a shrug.

"The writing on the platter says, 'to the Pontypandy Pearl," I explained. "So, that confirms that this shipwreck must be the Pontypandy Pearl!"

"Oh, wow!" Elvis exclaimed. "We've found it!"

"We'd better get back to shore," Ben said. "The President from the museum will definitely be interested in this!"

I climbed aboard Juno and Elvis untied her for me. "I'll meet you back at the Ocean Rescue Centre!" I called as I started up Juno. Then, I took off heading towards the shore. Ben started up Titan, and he followed along behind me.

When we arrived back at the Ocean Rescue Centre, we carefully moved the artefacts upstairs, and we placed them in an area on the quay that Station Officer Steele had marked out for us. I gave Station Officer Steele the list of the items we'd recovered, and he checked to ensure that they were all accounted for. Joe, Hannah, Bronwyn, Helen, Dilys, Mrs Chen and Lily soon gathered around the tape to see what was going on. We didn't mind them looking, as long as they stayed outside the tape. Then, I saw Norman, Mandy, James and Sarah run over to us.

"Keep back, everyone!" Station Officer Steele ordered as soon as he saw the kids. "This is a very delicate historical find."

"Where?" Norman asked, looking around. "Is it behind that nasty, stinky pile of rubbish?"

"That 'nasty, stinky pile of old rubbish', Norman, is the wreck of the Pontypandy Pearl!" I corrected. How dare he! What are they teaching kids in history these days? Surely, he didn't expect us to find everything intact?

"The Pontypandy Pearl?" Sarah asked scrupulously. She didn't sound convinced that it was.

"Did you find the treasure map?" Norman demanded to know.

"No, Norman!" Penny replied with a small chuckle. "Well, not yet, anyway."

Station Officer Steele cleared his throat. "Ahem! Thank you. People of Pontypandy, in celebration of our historical find, I hereby declare tomorrow, Pontypandy Pete Day!"

The kids and most of the adults started cheering and applauding. I just stood there quietly, too tired to really care. The last day-and-a-half had been mentally exhausting for me, and all I wanted was a quiet afternoon. So, I wasn't exactly enthralled in the idea of having a Pontypandy Pete Day.

"I bet if I rummage through this lot, I could find that treasure map," I heard Norman mutter to himself.

"Er, no-one's rummaging through anything, Norman Price!" I told him sternly as I removed my helmet. I went over to him, so I could get my point across. "The president of Newtown Museum is on his way to Pontypandy now."

"Who's that?" Norman asked with a whine of disappointment.

"Never you mind," I retorted. "And I want you to stay well out of the way while he's here. Do you understand me?"

"Yes, Fireman Sam," Norman muttered. Then, thinking that I wasn't listening to him anymore, he nudged Mandy. "What is he so cranky about?"

"I heard mum telling dad last night that Chief Fire Officer Boyce yelled at Sam yesterday," Mandy whispered in reply.

"Oh!"

"Sam?" Station Officer Steele called. I turned to face him.

"Yes, sir?"

"I want you to go and fetch the Mobile Command Unit from Newtown, please. I'm going to have these artefacts moved into the park, where we can protect them inside a marquee. It'll be easier for us to keep an eye of them if we have the Mobile Command Unit with us."

Oh, daro! He's only sending me because he doesn't want to have to deal with Chief Fire Officer Boyce again so soon… I guess that's the disadvantage of being subordinate.

"Yes, sir. I'll go straight after I've had my lunch. And I think I'll take Arnold with me. He needs to spend more time driving Venus."

"Good thinking, Sam," Station Officer Steele approved.