by Kate Messner
Once lifeboat two was in the water, Patrick and the other crewmen moved on to the collapsible lifeboats. The band’s music still drifted up from the deck below, but it was harder and harder to stay calm. Twice, Patrick lost his footing on the wet, sloping deck. Was that how this would end? Would he simply slide over the edge into the frigid sea?
Patrick crossed to the starboard side of the ship, where collapsible A was tied, and started hacking at its lines with a knife. As long as he did his job, he could distract himself. As long as he kept working and sweating, it was almost possible to imagine this was just another day at the shipyard and soon the whistle would send him home for supper.
Home. Patrick’s breath caught in his throat. He’d told his mother he’d have a promotion in the shipyard when he returned. He couldn’t die here in the North Atlantic!
Patrick blinked away the tears burning his eyes. “Hurry!” he called to a group of women huddled nearby. “Get in the boat!”
The whole ship lurched then. There was a sound like iron ripping apart.
“What’s happening?” one of the women called out.
“She’s coming apart!” a crewman shouted. The center of the ship was buckling. Water streamed down the decks.
“Hold on!”
Patrick grabbed a railing.
Ranger spread his toes as wide as he could. He’d done some of his search-and-rescue training on wet days. He’d practiced walking on slippery, uneven surfaces. But nothing like this.
People ran everywhere, slipping on the deck, clinging to the rails. Others huddled in tight little circles and prayed.
“Watch out!” someone shouted. Across the ship, crewmen tipped collapsible B off the roof of the officers’ quarters onto the flooded boat deck. It landed upside down. Before it could be righted, a rush of water surged over the deck and swept it into the sea.
Hundreds of people ran up the deck, trying to stay in the center so the rushing water wouldn’t sweep them off the ship, too. Patrick spotted two men climbing way up to the stern of the boat. He stared as they climbed over the railing, held on, and then, one by one, let go. Did they have a chance of surviving in the freezing ocean?
“Quickly!” Patrick shouted as the last women boarded collapsible A.
The Titanic plunged again. A giant wave surged over the deck. The lifeboat was afloat, but still attached to its ropes like a dog on a too-tight leash.
“Cut the falls!” someone shouted. Crewmen hacked at the ropes with knives to free the boat while more passengers pushed forward, trying to climb in.
“Whoa!” A steward who’d gotten tangled in the ropes tripped and tumbled into the water.
The man cutting the rope on collapsible A hacked his way through the last fibers. Just then, another wave washed over the ship and swept him into the sea.
Ranger’s paws slid on the deck. He tried to stay close to Patrick, but how could he possibly help? He couldn’t stop the waves. He couldn’t keep the ship afloat. He’d lost track of his first aid kit a long time ago, but it didn’t matter. How could he go home when there was nothing he could do to save all these people?
Screams rose up from the water. Patrick clung to a railing. He tried to breathe, tried to think.
The rockets hadn’t brought help. There was no rescue ship in sight. There were no more lifeboats. But there were wooden chairs in the water. And boats that had launched half-full. They’d rescue people from the water. They’d have to.
Patrick took a deep, shaky breath. He’d have to jump. It was his best chance — his only chance — to see his mother again.
He found an abandoned life jacket on the deck and put it on. He took off his boots and emptied his pockets. Any extra weight would drag him down. But then he felt the little pouch with the pennies from his father, and his eyes burned with tears.
Ranger stepped up to Patrick and nuzzled his hand. It wasn’t enough. Nothing would be enough on this awful, icy night.
But Patrick said, “Good dog … come on now …” He grabbed Ranger’s collar and pulled him close. “We’ve got to jump,” he whispered. “You and me. We’ll go together.”
Patrick took one of the pennies from the pouch and stared down at it in the moonlight. If there was any luck in the little coin, he needed all of it. He tucked the penny deep into a pocket of his trousers. He left the other one in the pouch and tied that onto Ranger’s collar. “They’re lucky pennies, dog. This way, we both have one. And if I don’t make it, then —” Patrick swallowed hard. “Then you’ll have it to remember me.”
Patrick clung to the railing with one hand as he climbed to the edge. With the other hand, he kept a firm grip on Ranger’s collar. He tried to ignore the screams and cries coming from the water below. He peered down into the blackness. Then he let go of Ranger and climbed over, holding the railing tight. “Ready then, dog?”
He took a deep breath.
And let go.
Patrick disappeared over the edge of the ship, and Ranger knew what he had to do. He bounded over the railing, used his hind legs to push off into the dark sky, and plunged into the sea.
Ranger’s belly smacked hard on the surface. Then the ocean swallowed him up. It was the coldest water Ranger had ever felt, like a thousand needles pricking under his fur. Ranger swam to the surface. He paddled as hard as he could. He tried to keep his face out of the water so he could breathe.
Above him, the ship was making horrible popping and cracking noises. The air smelled of dead fish and ice and terror. And people. So many people!
Ranger paddled through the sea of floating baggage and passengers. Some of the men swam toward lifeboats in the distance. One woman hoisted herself onto a decorated wooden wardrobe as it floated past. Others bobbed in their life jackets, screaming and crying into the dark. Ranger hated hearing so much hurt. But even worse were the ones who didn’t make any sound at all.
The water felt colder and colder. With every minute that passed, more passengers went quiet. Where was Patrick?
Ranger barked. He was running out of time. He didn’t know how long he could keep swimming. He couldn’t feel his paws anymore. When a wooden chair floated past, Ranger scrambled up onto it. His hindquarters were still in the water, but it was better than nothing.
Ranger lifted his nose in the darkness, hoping to catch Patrick’s scent. He could smell the icy ocean air and smoke coming from the sinking ship. Passengers floated all around him. Ranger could smell their perfume and their wet wool coats and their fear.
Finally … there!
The Patrick smell!
Ranger slipped off the floating chair and started swimming again. The smell went away, but then a wisp of wind brought it back. Ranger swam in that direction until he saw Patrick, bobbing in the water. He was quiet, and his eyes were closed.
Ranger paddled up to him and barked. He pawed at Patrick’s life jacket and barked again.
Patrick opened his eyes. He reached for Ranger. He couldn’t speak. His teeth were chattering so hard they seemed like they might crumble to pieces. He needed to get out of the water.
Ranger barked and swam away from Patrick, toward the chair that was still floating nearby. But Patrick didn’t follow him. Could he still swim?
Ranger paddled back to Patrick and poked at his face with a paw.
“Wh-wh-what?!” Patrick spit out a mouthful of seawater and blinked hard.
Ranger swam away. This time, he went all the way to the chair. He paddled up beside it and barked again.
A wooden chair! Patrick’s heart leaped. He’d been certain he was going to die in this icy sea. Now, he took a trembling breath. The frozen air burned his lungs, but he had to find one last bit of strength.
Patrick reached out an arm and forced himself to start kicking. His whole body was numb, but somehow he was moving forward. When he reached the chair, he flung an arm over the seat and pulled the top half of his body out of the water.
That was all Patrick could do. Unless a rescue ship arrived soon, it wouldn�
�t be enough to keep him alive. He was frozen and exhausted. He’d already given up back there, before the dog found him. He’d decided that he would close his eyes and just go to sleep. But now his arms and legs were awake and hurting again.
And the dog was here. Maybe he could hold on a little longer.
Ranger wanted to climb up next to Patrick and keep him warm, but he was afraid the whole chair would tip over. Patrick was so exhausted and cold, he might not have the strength to climb up again.
At least Ranger had fur. But he felt himself slowing down, too. He wouldn’t be able to save Patrick by himself. He needed to find help.
That’s what Ranger had learned to do in search-and-rescue training with Luke and Dad. He’d practiced finding Luke when Luke was pretending to be lost or hurt. Then Ranger would give an alert. He’d bark so Dad would come and find Luke, too. But tonight, there was no one left to help.
The big ship had tipped in the water. It was nearly vertical, with its stern pointing up at the night sky. The Titanic groaned and roared with explosions as its insides pulled apart. On the highest deck, ropes snapped. With a grinding roar, one of the towering funnels toppled over and slammed into the sea.
It sent a giant wave heading straight for them.
Ranger barked and pawed at Patrick’s arm. He had to stay awake! He had to hold on!
Then the wave hit. It lifted their deck chair as if it were nothing more than a splinter.
When it splashed down again, Patrick was gone.
Ranger swam all around the floating chair. Where was Patrick?
Ranger dived under the icy waves again and again. He could barely breathe, but he couldn’t give up. He swam a wider circle, and finally … there!
Patrick was still afloat. He was trying to kick his way to an overturned lifeboat — one of the collapsibles that had washed into the sea. Five or six men were already balanced on top, trying to keep from toppling into the water. But there was room for one more person. There had to be.
“C-c-co-come on. D-d-d-dog!” Patrick said. He tried to kick harder. He reached out his arm and pushed through the water. Again. And again. Until finally, it landed on the edge of the boat.
But a man shoved it off with his foot. “There’s no room!” he said. The others seemed to be arguing behind him. The man turned to them. “Even one more could tip the boat and send us all to our deaths!” The other passengers quieted down, and two men started rowing away.
Patrick felt his hope slip away, too. The people on the boat wouldn’t help. There was nothing left to do but go to sleep. But the dog wouldn’t stop barking.
Ranger kept getting mouthfuls of seawater as he struggled to keep himself afloat. Patrick had to get out of the water. If the people on the boat wouldn’t help, Ranger would have to find someone else.
There were other little boats nearby. Ranger couldn’t make Patrick swim to them. All he could do was bark. And he wasn’t going to stop.
Finally, one of the lifeboats came closer. People were arguing in that boat, too. Ranger recognized two of their voices.
“But we have room!” a girl shouted. “We can’t leave them!”
And then, a boy’s voice. “Maryam, that’s Patrick!”
Patrick’s eyelids fluttered. Was he dreaming? Or was he staring up at the lifeboat that Maryam and Hamad had boarded?
“Absolutely not!” a man said. “There are hundreds of people in the water. What if they swamp the boat?”
“That’s our friend!” Hamad shouted.
“We can’t, children,” a woman said quietly. “We just — ”
Then there was a splash and a scream.
“She’s jumped in!” the woman shouted. “Get that child in the boat!”
“Maryam!” Hamad called. “Come back!”
But Maryam was swimming away in her life jacket. Gasping for air, she reached out to Patrick and grabbed at his arm.
“Wh-wh-wha — ” Patrick couldn’t make his mouth work anymore.
“Swim!” Maryam coughed on a mouthful of ocean. “Come on!” she sobbed. But Patrick closed his eyes.
Ranger paddled over to Patrick and licked his cheek. It tasted salty, a mix of seawater and frozen tears.
Patrick couldn’t feel the dog’s tongue on his cheek, but he breathed in Ranger’s warm breath.
He opened his eyes. Ranger was there. And Maryam.
He wouldn’t give up. Not yet.
Patrick reached out and started to swim. He couldn’t even tell if his frozen legs were kicking, but little by little, he moved forward. Maryam and Ranger swam behind him.
When they got to the boat, a man reached out to grab Maryam, but she pushed herself back. “You have to help my friend!” she cried.
“For goodness’ sake, get them both in the boat!” a woman cried. The men argued, but two other women overruled them. They reached down, grabbed Patrick’s arms, and dragged him onto the floor of the boat. Maryam landed next to him, and one of the women wrapped them both in a thick wool blanket.
Ranger was still in the water.
“D-d-d-dog …” Patrick tried to point, but the men were already rowing away.
Then there was a ripping sound louder than any of the others. The men stopped rowing. Everyone stared as Titanic split in half. A shower of sparks exploded into the sea. Two more funnels came crashing down, and the great ship’s stern rose higher into the night sky. It hung there for a moment. Then it sank, faster and faster, until even the flag on the stern was swallowed up by the sea.
Patrick couldn’t believe what he’d seen. It wasn’t a dream.
The great ship was gone. Every beam his father had laid. Every rivet he’d helped to place in her sides. Every gleaming chandelier.
Gone.
The men in the lifeboat started rowing again.
“Where did the dog go?” Maryam said.
Patrick squinted into the darkness. He couldn’t see Ranger anymore. He whispered a quiet “thank you” into the night. And hoped, somehow, the dog would be all right.
Ranger was already paddling away from the lifeboat. He found his way back to the floating deck chair and scrambled up onto the seat. There was more room now, with Patrick on the lifeboat. But there was nothing else he could do to help. He heard cries in the distance, but they faded away as the night dragged on. The lifeboats had rowed away. The people in the water around him were all quiet.
Finally, Ranger saw lights approaching in the darkness. They were hazy at first but grew stronger and nearer. It was a ship. A big one, coming to rescue Patrick and Maryam and Hamad and all the people in the little boats. Distant cheers and cries of relief floated over the water from far away.
And then Ranger heard another sound. A quiet humming.
It took him a little while to spot it, but there, amid the floating furniture and hatboxes, was his first aid kit. Ranger slipped into the water and paddled toward it. The humming was already getting louder. Beams of light spilled from the cracks in the box and danced on the black water.
Ranger ducked his head under and brought it up with the old leather strap around his neck. The box grew warm at Ranger’s throat, and heat spread over him like a warm bath.
The humming grew louder and louder. Ranger felt as if he were being squeezed through a hole in the sky. The light from the cracks was so bright he couldn’t see the ship in the distance anymore. It grew so bright that he had to close his eyes.
When he opened them, Luke and Sadie were walking into the mudroom with their life jackets.
Ranger lowered his head and let his first aid kit drop onto his dog bed just as Luke knelt beside him.
“Hey, Ranger!” Luke said, giving him a scratch behind his ear. “Did you miss us?”
Ranger nuzzled Luke’s hand. He had never been so happy to be warm, and dry, and home.
“You missed a good picnic,” Sadie said. “I saved you a little of my lunch.” She rummaged through her bag and pulled out a triangle of a ham sandwich. Ranger wolfed it down in one bite.
“That’s a weird penny,” Sadie said.
Luke squinted at it. “It’s old. And it’s from somewhere else. Maybe Zeeshan and Noreen gave it to him. They visited Europe last summer, didn’t they?”
Ranger pawed at Luke’s hand. Luke laughed and tucked the coin into its pouch. “Don’t worry. I’m giving it back,” he said. He dropped it into Ranger’s dog bed and turned to Sadie. “Let’s get the boat stuff cleaned up so we can go outside before dinner.” They headed to the shed to put their life jackets away.
Carefully, Ranger picked up the little pouch in his teeth. He pawed at the blanket on his dog bed until he uncovered his other treasures — all gifts from the children he’d helped on his journeys. There was a little quilt square, a funny-shaped leaf, and a piece of an old metal brooch. There were two feathers — one brown and white, and one bright yellow — and a folded-up scrap of paper that smelled of seawater and sand.
Ranger dropped the little pouch with the penny beside them. He pawed at his blanket until everything was covered up. Then he flopped down in his bed to rest. It felt good to be warm. He was so glad his job was finally done. Somehow, he knew that Patrick and Maryam and Hamad were safe and dry now, too.
Luke and Sadie came running back inside. “That was so much fun today!” Sadie said.
“Sure was,” Luke said. He knelt beside Ranger, and stroked the fur on his neck. “You missed a great day, Ranger. We went tubing and dropped anchor near an island in the lake and jumped off the rocks.” Luke sighed. “I wish you liked boats more. Then you could have had an adventure, too.”
Ranger yawned and snuggled into his blanket. Tomorrow, he’d go outside with Luke and Sadie and chase some squirrels. And that would be adventure enough.