by M A Comley
“Well, if you’re serious about a career move, then I think you’d be wasted as a bodyguard. I’d willingly put in a good word for you at work. We’re crying out for bright people like you to join up.”
“Let me think about it. I was leaning more towards being a bodyguard than a copper. I know how tough your job can be at times and how frustrated you are most of the time.”
“You’re not kidding, especially with the case—or should I say cases—I’m working on right now.” Hero put the car into gear again and drove off.
“What case is that?”
He spent the next ten minutes going over what the Krull Gang had been up to during the past week or so, while Cara listened without interruption. At the end, she said, “See, that just proves my point about your career being a frustrating one. I’d go in there and string the bastards up by the balls. How the fuck are you supposed to combat a gang like that without proper backup from the CPS and your superiors? It’s crazy. What does Fay say about the situation?”
“She says to think outside the box on this one.”
“She’s right. I think you’re going to have to.”
Hero expelled a deep breath. “She also says that maybe I should consider setting the gang up in some way. I’m going to think about doing that over the weekend if I get the chance.”
Cara sniggered. “Hey, we could have a word with a few of the TA guys, get a kind of vigilante group together and go after the gang. My name would be the first to go on the list.”
Hero shook his head at the idea. “Maybe you should consider going into the bodyguard side of things. Looks like it’s more suited to your talents.”
“Seriously, though, why not discuss it with a few guys over the weekend. Between us, we might be able to come up with a plausible legal way of bringing this gang down. Our tactics training should come in useful somewhere along the line.”
His sister had a valid point. Their TA division was filled with people from all walks of life—even a few solicitors that he knew, if only to say hello to. He could indeed get a consensus from various people once their manoeuvres were done with. He’d heard talk that this weekend, they were due out on some rescue-mission practice up on the Yorkshire Moors, but that was liable to change at the drop of a hat if an emergency cropped up in their area.
Hero pulled the car to a stop at the entrance, showed his Territorial Army ID, and waited for the barrier to rise. He parked in the car park, and the pair of them swiftly made their way into the main hall, where the other team members had already assembled.
“Nice of you to join us,” the sergeant said offhandedly. “Right, here’s the score. We were supposed to be heading for the Yorkshire Moors this weekend, as you know, but there’s been a change of plan. Several rivers have burst their banks due to the heavy rainfall we’ve been having this past week or so. No doubt you’ve seen all the devastation on the news. We’ve been asked to help out, to rescue people in the remotest areas where the rescuers on the ground have been unable to reach them.”
“Excuse me for interrupting, sarge. But does that mean we’ll be going in by air?” Cara asked, trepidation making her vocal chords restrict slightly.
Sergeant Milton approached and stood in front of her. She gulped as she stared into his broad chest. “You got a problem with that, Nelson?”
“She cleared her throat. “Umm… I’m scared of flying, sir.”
Hero winced because he knew damn well what was coming next, and he felt sorry for Cara on more than one level.
“Scared of flying, you say? Well, there’s only one way to combat that, isn’t there, Nelson?”
“Yes, sir,” Cara mumbled.
“I can’t hear you, Nelson,” the sergeant bellowed back.
“I have to throw myself into it in order to combat my fears, sir,” Cara replied loudly, pulling back her shoulders and straightening her back.
The sergeant walked back to his position and surveyed the crowd before him. “Anyone else want to voice their fears with the group?” When no one responded, he clapped his hands and started issuing orders, loudly and quickly.
The next ten minutes passed by in a whirlwind, and the group fetched supplies from the store—everything from tinned meats and sleeping bags to first-aid kits and tents. When everything was assembled and lined up outside, a coach came to a halt beside the equipment.
“We’ll get as near as we can to the affected area by bus. The helicopter will meet us there and ferry us in a few at a time. Team up with a buddy. You know the drill. Take on your buddy’s life as if it were your own. Do not put each other’s lives in danger. Think, and more importantly, work as a team throughout. We’re heading out now, and we’re due to return here no later than six p.m. tomorrow. That’s eighteen hundred hours on Sunday,” the sergeant told them before he started packing the supplies away in the coach’s boot.
Once they were settled in their seats on the coach, Hero whispered to Cara, “Are you sure you’re up to this? You could pull a sickie and go home.”
“What? And have this lot talk about me for months, calling me a wimp? No chance. I’ll be relying on you to hold my hand up there. Planes scare me, but helicopters terrify the crap out of me.”
“I know. I’ll be there right beside you, hon’. Don’t worry.” Hero squeezed her cold hand and released it quickly before the others could see. During the trip, the entire coach remained silent, except for the drone of the engine as they motored up the motorway. Hero would have loved to have spent the time talking over his problems with the case with the people he felt could aid him, but he knew better than to interrupt the team at such an important time. Everyone was in “the zone,” trying to psyche themselves up for the rescue attempt that lay ahead of them. They had excellent training behind them. However, when people’s lives were at risk, an added danger was always thrust upon them.
Two hours later, they pulled into a large car park that was usually used by sightseers on the edge of the pretty village called Appletreewick. “Let’s hope this place doesn’t get affected by the floods,” Hero said to Cara as they stepped off the coach and surveyed their surroundings.
“It seems pretty risk free to me. Too high up, I think.” She tilted her head and glanced up into the distant sky as the thwack thwack of the copter blades drifted through the chilly air.
“Here comes our next form of transport, people. Nelson, you okay with this?” the sergeant asked above the deafening noise as the copter hovered overhead and started its descent on the other side of the car park.
She saluted the sergeant and shouted back, “Yes, sir. One hundred percent, sir.”
The sergeant clapped his hands and ushered them to stand in line side by side as yet another copter came around the hill to the right of them and landed alongside the other one.
Hero and Cara were the second pair in line. As the pair in front ran towards the first copter, Hero glanced at his sister to give her a reassuring smile. Cara returned a half-smile and shooed him into the copter. He held out his hand to help pull her aboard, but she ignored it, climbed in, and quickly strapped herself in. Hero noticed that his sister took three attempts to connect the belt into the clasp because her hands were shaking so much. Once Cara was secure, she and Hero both gave the pilot the thumbs-up. Then the copter lifted off the tarmac and into the air.
This was Hero’s first time in a copter, too, and the excitement mixed with the trepidation of the rescue mission caused his stomach to twist and turn into large knots. He dreaded thinking what his sister’s insides felt like at that exact moment. As they dipped over the large hill, the unbelievable devastation confronted them. Water was everywhere, as far as the eye could see. Hero could make out only the odd rooftop in the ocean of muddy waters. Through the binoculars the pilot had given him, Hero searched the area, and far off in the distance, settled on one of the red-tiled roofs, was a family of five.
He tapped the pilot on the shoulder and spoke through the headphone mic. “There, to the right.”
<
br /> The pilot angled the helicopter in the direction of the family, then he contacted the base to make them aware of the situation and arrange for extra backup.
Hero heard the response that help was at least thirty minutes away. His heart started pounding when the realisation dawned on him that the family’s rescue would be down to him and Cara. As if reading his mind, Cara looked at him and grimaced. He reached out and patted her hand reassuringly. She shook her head and mouthed, “I can’t do this.”
He raised her hand to his lips, kissed the back of it, and returned a nod. “Yes, you can. Follow my lead. Just remember people’s lives are at risk. They’re relying on us to get them safely out of there.”
His sister swallowed hard and gave a brief nod before she closed her eyes. Hero knew she was setting herself up to deal with the circumstances.
“Are you two ready for this? I’m going to assess the situation first. There’s a winch on board. We might be able to rescue the children, but the adults will have to wait for the larger helicopter to arrive.”
“We’re ready for our orders, aren’t we, Sis?”
Cara inhaled a large breath and nodded at the pilot.
“Wow! You two are related? Not sure I’ve ever carried a brother and sister team on an emergency before.”
Hero could tell the pilot was trying to put them both at ease with his banter. “We’re twins, actually. Not like ordinary brothers and sisters who tend to bicker all the time. Cara is one of my best friends.”
The pilot smiled before he started the descent. Hero looked through the binoculars again and gave Cara and the pilot a running commentary. “I’m seeing two adults and three children. Two of the kids are in their early to mid-teens, while the little one—a girl, I believe—is around four or five. Not sure how they got up on the roof, but they seem to have made themselves secure up there, at least. Hey, maybe there’s a boat crew in the area. Just a thought if the other copter is going to be a while.”
“Good idea. Base, this is Romeo Alpha…”
While the pilot put in the call, Hero nudged his sister in the ribs. “You can do this, Sis. It’s going to be a doddle.”
“I know. I’m almost there. Just a few gremlins to ditch, and I should be good to handle it. Leave me alone for a few minutes while I kick these suckers into touch.”
“That’s my girl.” He watched his sister close her eyes for a second time and then picked up the binoculars again to scan the expanse in front of him, looking for more people needing to be rescued. A feeling of disappointment ran through him when his search came up blank. Surely this wasn’t the only family to have made it out of their home?
The pilot broke into his thoughts. “There’s a team on the ground about five minutes away. They’re in a rescue dinghy. Can you locate them at all?”
Hero shook his head. He hadn’t spotted the crew during his search seconds earlier. “Nope. Can’t see them yet. How are we going to tackle this? Rescue the kids and leave the parents for the ground team?”
“That’s what I was thinking. There’s megaphone in the back. Use that to let the family know what’s about to happen.”
The helicopter hovered over the roof. Hero opened his door and shouted down to the family, “How’s everyone doing? If there are any casualties, please point them out. If not, give me a thumbs-up?”
The man on the roof, who was presumably the father of the family, gave the thumbs-up in return.
Hero moved the winch out of the cabin and motioned for Cara to join him. She slid along the seat and glanced up at him for further instructions. He slipped one of the harnesses over her head and attached the winch to it. “If I could go myself, I would, but I think it’s better if you went down. You’re lighter, anyway.”
Cara exhaled and inhaled deeply a few times as she got closer to the edge. “Nice and slowly, please.”
“Of course. If you’re in any difficulty, point up with your thumb. I’ll winch you in right away. Slip this other harness over the smallest child first. Tell her to hold on around your neck. I’ll winch you up as fast as I can. It’s quite windy out there, and you’ll be in a kind of vortex from the blades too. So just hold tight to the winch cable whenever possible. Good luck, Sis. Remember the signal.”
Cara nodded and eased herself away from the helicopter. Hero watched her twist in the wind and saw her nervously look up at him on more than one occasion.
“Is she all right?” the pilot asked after a few seconds.
“She’s doing great for someone who hates flying and heights.”
“Damn, I had no idea. She’s got some balls. I’ll give her that,” the pilot said with admiration.
“She has indeed,” he replied proudly as he watched Cara land on the rooftop alongside the stranded family. The father stood up and passed the little girl to Cara. The child was screaming and really didn’t want to leave her family behind. Cara gave the signal, and Hero pulled his sister and the girl back up. When they reached him, he gripped the child’s arms and hauled her aboard. She was no longer crying and smiled at him as he buckled her in the seat.
“Everything all right?” he asked before engaging the winch a second time.
“I’m actually enjoying myself. Come on, slacker, get me back down.”
As he lowered her a second time, the pilot pointed out the window. “Looks like the cavalry has arrived. We’ll set the other members of the family in the dinghy. We don’t have room for everyone, anyway.”
Hero called down to Cara, “We’ll drop you in the dinghy with the others, Sis. All right?”
Cara glanced over to where Hero had pointed and gave the thumbs-up.”
The whole rescue took over half an hour to complete, after which he pulled Cara back up into the helicopter. “Aww… I was enjoying that,” she said as she slipped off the safety harness and returned it to the storage hook.
Hero laughed and motioned for her to take his seat alongside the little girl, while he sat on the floor opposite them.
The girl smiled and cried at regular intervals, seemingly confused by the frightening experience. Cara leaned in close and asked her, “What’s your name, sweetie? I’m Cara, and this is my brother, Hero.” Hearing Hero’s name made the little girl giggle.
“I’m Molly Granger,” the girl said shyly, tucking her chin into the collar of her little red coat.
“Well, Molly, that was exciting, wasn’t it? Not every little girl gets to be rescued and fly in a helicopter.”
“When can I see my mummy?”
“In a short while, sweetheart. I promise.” Cara patted her knee.
Hero watched his sister interact with the little girl and thought what a wonderful mother she would make one day, despite her insistence that she never wanted to have a family of her own. That was another thing that had united them through the years. He’d taken a lot of ribbing from his sister when he’d thrown in the towel and married Fay.
The helicopter landed back at the car park and waited for the dinghy crew to arrive with the rest of Molly’s family. The ambulance team at the scene checked over the little girl and her family then gave them the all-clear, and a minibus transported them to a local community centre, where all the other rescued and displaced people were being looked after.
Hero and Cara went out on seven more missions with the pilot that day and ended up rescuing over twenty people and two dogs. When they arrived back at the hostel where they were staying, they joined the rest of the team at the long table for a warming bowl of beef stew. After comparing rescue stories, everyone showered and turned in early for the night, tired from their exertions.
In spite of being bone-tired, Hero struggled to sleep that night, what with the adrenaline still pumping through his veins. He felt good, as if he’d achieved something remarkable. How many people could truly say they had saved someone’s life? Amongst them, his TA team had saved over a hundred people so far, and there was more to come the next day. The weather report for the following day said the air temperature was s
upposed to be higher.
Hero’s thoughts drifted back to the case he still hoped to share with his TA pals. He doubted that would happen this weekend, though, which was a shame. He managed to slot some things into place that he wanted to chase up on Monday morning until he eventually drifted off to sleep at gone one in the morning.
Someone’s travel alarm woke him at five thirty the next morning. The team leapt out of bed, ready to start another day of rescue. They bolted down a hearty breakfast and set off in their established groups. They travelled the deluged area continuously for the first three hours or so, and Hero noticed that the water appeared to have subsided slightly. They didn’t come across anyone else in jeopardy until just after noon. They spotted a young farmer on a slight hill, surrounded by a small flock of sheep.
He was frantically waving his arms, trying to get the helicopter’s attention. When the pilot hovered near him, the sheep scattered, and the farmer ended up gesturing for the pilot to pull back.
“Can we call for the dinghy crew to help us again?” Hero asked, trying to think of a viable option to get the farmer out of danger. By the look of him, he had no intention of leaving his flock, and Hero couldn’t blame him if they were the man’s livelihood. Farmers had it tough enough without having to deal with crap like this.
“I’ll get on to it right away,” the pilot agreed.
“How the hell will they get the sheep out of there?” Cara asked, looking down at the farmer and his fifty or so sheep, concern written all over her face.
“I doubt they’ll be able to. I can see the poor bloke asking for a tent so that he can stay with the animals until the waters subside. There’s signs of it doing that already. However, this place won’t be totally clear and back to normal for a few weeks yet.”
“They’re on their way,” the pilot informed them.
Hero picked up the megaphone and relayed the information to the farmer. He returned a thumbs-up and waved them off. Hero wished him luck before closing and locking the door to the helicopter again.
They searched their designated area one more time, and finding no other people or farm animals in distress, they returned to base at three in the afternoon. An hour later, they had boarded the coach and were heading home to their loved ones.