Page 45 of Infamous

Something about the way she was moving felt odd to Eddie. She didn’t even seem to be attempting to swim, just bobbing in place in the water. Juno seemed agitated; she took a step forwards and then stopped, looking at Eddie with urgency, as if to ask what on earth she was going to do about this.

‘Is she all right?’ Eddie said to Nash, who had turned to look. She waved a hand at Rose, but Rose didn’t seem to see her.

‘Oh, yes. Just floating about like a duckling. Now, I know just the thing for getting warm – if I throw down the gauntlet, will you consent to a foot race, Miss Miller? I know it’s not the done thing for ladies to run, but I think it’s a skill best practised often, in case of—’

‘I think something is wrong,’ Eddie insisted.

Albert had snapped to attention, and was shading his eyes with one hand as he attempted to get a better look.

‘If something werewrong, would she not be shouting and waving for us to come to her aid?’

‘I don’t know,’ Eddie said, starting to feel faint stirrings of panic. ‘Perhaps she can’t. Will you go in and see? Just to ease my mind.’

Albert got to his feet.

Nash grimaced. ‘I’m just out! I cannot go back in now, the very thought of it is repulsive.’

‘I shall go,’ said Albert, hurriedly taking off his shoes. Valentine was appraising him with raised eyebrows.

‘I thought you said you weren’t a particularly good swimmer.’

‘I don’t swim if I have a choice,’ said Albert as he shrugged out of his jacket, already on the move. ‘But in this case – I do not have a choice.’

He ran off down to the shore still mostly dressed, and Nash laughed after him.

‘Albert, don’t be ridiculous – you’ve still got your breeches on!’

Eddie didn’t think it was ridiculous at all – in fact, as Albert plunged into the water and began swimming clumsily towards Rose, she was starting to feel light-headed with panic. Juno had followed him and was standing in the gentle surf, keeping watch. Once he reached Rose, Albert hooked one arm around her and started towing her back to shore; Eddie’s pounding heart was just beginning to slow when she caught a proper look at the expression on Rose’s face. She was immediately up and running down to meet them, stumbling on the rocks, ignoring the stabbing pains in her feet.

Eddie reached them just as they found dry land, and Albert laid Rose as gently as possible on a bed of pebbles and pushed her hair out of her face as she coughed wretchedly.

‘Bring towels!’ he shouted to Nash and Valentine.

Eddie immediately took off her own and laid it over Rose, taking hold of her limbs and rubbing them hard in an attempt to warm her. She was ice-cold to the touch and deathly pale, her eyes wide and unfocused, her teeth chattering despite the sun.

‘Rose? You’re all right now. We’ve got you.’

‘I can see that,’ Rose said very faintly, her voice thin and scratchy. Juno tried to nose at her face, and Eddie pushed her away.

‘Whathappened?’ she said, as she and Albert hauled Rose upright so that Eddie could pull the towel around her shoulders. She continued to shake; Eddie shifted so that she could pull Rose against her, trying to warm her with her body as she rubbed vigorously at her shoulders, her arms – every conceivable part of her that she could reach.

‘I don’t .?.?. I don’t know,’ Rose said through violent shivers. ‘I was .?.?. I was fine, but then my foot caught on something, and .?.?. by the time I got it free I was .?.?. having trouble staying afloat. I tried to shout for Kitty, but .?.?.’

She succumbed to another round of chattering teeth just as Valentine arrived with the remaining towels and started heaping them on top of her. The other swimmers seemed to have finally noticed the commotion, and were making their way back to shore.

‘It’s no good, she needs to be properly warm and dry,’ said Albert. ‘Mr Nicholson, would you run ahead to the house and ask them to prepare a bath?’

Nash looked slightly puzzled by this request.

‘Well. I suppose—’

‘I’ll go,’ said Valentine, already half-jogging away.

Liza, Kitty and Dayo were approaching; Eddie tried not to look directly at them, as they were rather indecent, and then realised that since giving Rose her towel she was faring no better.

Liza surveyed the scene in front of her and then took charge.

‘We should carry her back to the house – Mr Rednock? Mr Akerele?’