Agent 21: Reloaded: Book 2 Read Online Free Page B

Trying not to panic, he gripped hold of Raf even harder because he knew that if he let go now, his friend was a goner.
    And when he was sure he had a good hold on him, he pulled the rip cord on his own inflatable vest. Compressed air shot sharply into it. One second later they were moving.
    Don’t let go , Zak told himself. Don’t let go!
    The speed with which they rose to the top was frightening. Like a parachute drop in reverse. Zak felt the water rushing past his ears as he gripped Raf even harder. Water rushed into his nose and he forced himself to breathe out as hard as he could to stop it rushing into his lungs. Seconds later, they crashed through the surface of the water.
    After the silence, the noise up here was almost deafening. The wind was screaming and the waves, which were half a metre high, crashed against each other. Zak spat out his mouthpiece and looked around. He was desperately trying to find the RIB, but he couldn’t see it at first because of the swell of the sea. When he finally did catch a glimpse of the small black launch bobbing on the horizon it was only for a couple of seconds and it seemed horribly far away – maybe thirty metres. He started shouting. ‘ Gabs! Gabs! Over here! ’ But he wasn’t at all sure that he could be heard against the elements.
    He had to think about Raf. Think of all the first-aid techniques his Guardian Angels had taught him during his months of training. Raf needed CPR – rescue breaths and possibly chest compressions. He needed to be put into the recovery position so the water could drain from his system. And it needed to happen now, before he sustained brain damage anddeath. None of this could happen in the water, though. He had to get to the boat, but he couldn’t see it again. Where was it? Where was it ?
    ‘ Gabs! Over he —’
    Suddenly she was there. The motor of the RIB caused an extra swell to crash over Zak’s head, but then he felt Gabs’s strong arms pulling him and Raf towards the boat. ‘Help me get him in!’ she shouted. Zak did what he could to lift Raf out of the water, but he was suddenly feeling weak and dizzy and Gabs had to take the bulk of the weight. She managed it, though, and five seconds later had Raf in the boat.
    ‘He needs CPR!’ Zak shouted, but Gabs was already on it. As Zak scrambled up over the side of the RIB, he saw that she had Raf flat on his back, was pinching his nose and blowing a rescue breath into his mouth. She did this twice, then laid her hands, one on top of the other, over his chest and pressed down sharply thirty times.
    ‘Is he going to be OK?’ Zak gasped. He struggled to remove his air canister and felt like the RIB was spinning.
    ‘You need to keep calm, Zak. Tell me what symptoms you get.’ Her face was deadly serious as she leaned over and gave Raf another two rescue breaths. Symptoms? What was she talking about ?
    A river of salt water exploded from Raf’s mouthand he started coughing violently. Zak felt a wave of relief. It didn’t last long. The dizziness was getting worse. His muscles had started to ache and there was a horrible itchiness all over his skin. ‘Er, Gabs,’ he said weakly. ‘I’m really not feeling great.’
    But Gabs was already moving. She’d pushed herself to the rear of the RIB and was knocking the outboard motor into drive. ‘What is it?’
    ‘I feel kind of …’ He realized he was slurring his words.
    ‘You decompressed too quickly,’ she shouted. ‘We’ve got to get you to Galileo . Now.’
    The RIB shot through the water, bouncing up and down on the waves. Zak grabbed hold of one of the row locks on the side and gripped it as hard as he could. Which wasn’t that hard. Everything was spinning and it was nothing to do with the violent movement of the boat. When he’d been sixty metres below sea level and needed to get Raf to the surface, he hadn’t given decompression a moment’s thought. Before he’d arrived on St Peter’s Crag, he’d heard about ‘the