Beach Rescue

Copyright Oggbashan January 2021

The author asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

This is a work of fiction. The events described here are imaginary; the settings and characters are fictitious and are not intended to represent specific places or living persons.

My phone rang at nine-thirty am on Saturday.

"Mike? There are two women cut off by the tide at West Beach. One of them has an injured ankle."

"OK, Joyce. I'm on my way."

"The others will be there about ten minutes after you. Be careful!"

"I will be, Joyce."

"I know you, Mike. You take too many risks."

"But I know what I'm doing. Bye."

I looked at the tide table on the notice board by my phone. High tide would be in about an hour and a half from now. It wouldn't be the highest so there should still be some of West Beach uncovered by the tide, but that would be underneath a cliff overhang and difficult for a rescue. It couldn't be done from the sea. There were too many offshore rocks, so it would have to be up the cliff.

I went out to my car. Everything I needed was already in it. I drove towards West Beach, about five minutes away.

Joyce is the coordinator of our cliff rescue team. She is disabled, wheelchair bound, but is always by the telephone, day or night. She would have rung the main unit with their Land Rover but they need a few minutes to assemble. I can go alone and get there fast to assess the situation before the others arrive with the equipment.

At the cliff top I parked my car parallel to the cliff, about thirty feet away. I attached my rope to an eye set into the car's chassis. A dog walker came up to me.

I called the Coastguard," he said. "The two women had written 'Help' on the sand, but that's covered by the tide now. One of them has an injured ankle."

"OK, thank you. I will go down to them and see what's up."

"You're not the Coastguard?" He seemed worried.

"No. I'm a first responder from the cliff rescue team. My colleagues will be here in minutes, at least half an hour before the Coastguard could get here."

"And you're going down alone?"

"I am. That's what I do."

The dog walker watched, incredulous, as I wrapped a bare rope around me and jumped off the cliff. I abseiled down and in ten seconds I was on the small area of beach. Two women were at the back of the beach under the cliff overhang.

The one who was standing rushed across to me and hurled herself into my arms.

"Mike? I am very pleased to see you," she said.

"Hello, Linda. What's happened?"

"I was walking along the beach with my sister Diane when she slipped on some rocks. She couldn't walk so I pulled her up the beach..."

I could see the marks on the sand where Linda had dragged Diane. They were being covered by the tide.

"I hoped someone else would come by, but no one did and the tide was rising. I wrote 'help' on the sand and someone called down from the cliff top. But I was afraid we would be more than cut off, we might be submerged."

"You wouldn't, Linda. There's the high tide mark. You would still have had ten feet of beach left but It could have been difficult to rescue you from there."

"But the tide is still rising, Mike."

"It is, Linda, but it has over an hour to go. We'll have you two off the beach long before then. How is Diane?"

I went across to Diane. She had her eyes shut until I spoke to her. I examined her ankle as she winced with pain.

"OK, Diane," I said. "Your ankle isn't broken. It is badly strained. We'll get you up the cliffs and then to hospital. You should be able to walk with crutches in a couple of days and by next weekend you should be well on the mend."

Diane pulled me down into a kiss.

"You'll look after Linda, please. Mike?" she whispered. "She's hurting."

"Linda is?" I whispered back. "She doesn't seem to be."

"Not physically, Mike. She dumped her boyfriend last night. We came for this walk so she could talk about it, and then I slipped, stupid me."

"OK, Diane. We'll get you off this beach and to hospital. When Linda is up the cliff as well I'll take her to see you and I will not let her be alone. OK?"

"Thanks, Mike. You're a good bloke."

Linda, Diane and I work in different rooms in an office. We knew of each other as colleagues but not much more. I was hurting because my long-term girlfriend, Joanne, had dumped me two weeks earlier. I had intended to propose soon and had been amassing a deposit for a home for us both. The reason seemed stupid to me. I am large-built, sometimes described as being built like a brick shithouse, and I can't dance. I do, but even my friends fall about the floor laughing at my performances.

But Joanne liked dancing and was good at it. Before we met she had competed in some regional competitions but I was a useless partner. I hadn't objected when Joanne wanted to continue competing but recently she had acquired a new dance partner, a Royal Marine, who was of her standard. Now she had dumped me for him...

Or she hadn't dumped me, although it felt like it. We had sat down over a coffee and discussed things like adults before agreeing to part.

"We're both scared of heights, Mike," Diane said.

"Don't worry, Diane. You can shut your eyes all the way up. So can Linda. I'll look after you."

"Mike?"

It was a shout from the top of the cliff.

"Yes, John," I shouted back.

"We're ready. What do you want first?"

"A shell stretcher first. We have a badly sprained ankle. Then a double harness, please."

"OK, Mike. Stretcher on the way down."

I could see the A-frame they had erected at the edge of the cliff. The stretcher frame banged its way down the cliff. I carried Diane to it and strapped her into it firmly.

I had to stand up to my hips in the sea to ensure that the stretcher didn't hit the cliffs as it was raised.

"Mike! You'll get wet!" Linda protested.

"That's what I do, Linda," I replied. "I'm trained for surf and cliff rescue."

The double harness came down for us. I strapped Linda facing me. Despite myself I had an erection with Linda pressed so hard against me.

"I can feel you're pleased to see me, Mike." She said.

"What do you expect? I've got a beautiful woman strapped to my chest."

"OK. I'll shut my eyes and just appreciate your salute."

Linda's eyes were shut until we were safe on the cliff top. When the harness was taken off she still held me close and rubbed against the bulge in my trousers.

"Thank you, Mike." She said, "not just for the rescue but for showing that someone finds me attractive."

Diane was loaded into the Land Rover, still strapped to the stretcher. I stripped off my wet clothes, dried myself with a towel and put dry clothes on. Linda was no help because she was hugging me.

"Mike? John said. "We're going to take Diane to hospital. Can you stay here with Linda until we return to collect the gear?"

"Of course, John. Are you OK with that, Linda? When they return I can take you to see Diane in hospital. Until then there's the back seat of my car."

"The back seat of your car? Yes, Mike."

Once the Land Rover had left, Linda was all over me. The back seat of my car had been the scene of several encounters but none quite as passionate as Linda. I know I had rescued her, but her thanks seemed excessive. When I could speak, I asked:

"Why, Linda?"

"Because," she said. "Because you rescued us, and because I dumped my boyfriend yesterday. Having Mike with me is great for my morale."

"Why the dumping?"

"We had been together for nearly a year. I thought he would propose soon and we were saving for a house. There is a house that would do but I didn't quite have enough deposit. He was supposed to be saving too. I only needed another hundred pounds so I asked if he had it. He hadn't because he had been spending it on drinks and the local prostitutes. He didn't tell me that -- his brother did when I started crying."

"Which was worse?"

"The prostitutes. I wouldn't have minded the money so much. I might have been able to borrow it from relations, but the thought that he might be infected and that he had been lying to me for months? That was too much."

"I'm sorry, Linda. You didn't deserve that."

"And what hurts more is that the house is impossible now even if I found the deposit."

"Why?"

"I couldn't get a large enough mortgage on my pay alone. I needed two incomes."

"Where is the house/"

"Newtown. I could have walked to work. I would have to for the first couple of years because of the mortgage costs, but..."

"Can you show me the house when we take you home after going to the hospital?"

"I suppose so, but why? It will just make me cry -- again."

"Pleas humour me, Linda. I have an idea..."

"OK, but..."

Just then the Land Rover returned. I could leave them to pack away the equipment. I drove Linda to see Diane in hospital.

We were told that Diane could be discharged in about an hour. We would come back for her. We drove to the house that Linda had intended to buy. It was a recently renovated Victorian detached house. It was small but with reasonable gardens and off-road parking plus a wreck of a garage.

Linda started to cry again. I kissed her.

"Linda? This is my idea. We are not boyfriend and girlfriend."

"No, we're not. I'm not sure I want another boyfriend now, or ever, Mike."

"Perhaps not. But how about a house share?"

A house share?"

"Yes. A sensible arrangement between two people who work together. You and I buy the house, share the deposit, share the mortgage, and share the house -- until one of other of us can buy the other out."

"Is that possible? Financially I mean? Can we get a joint mortgage when we're not married or even engaged?"

"Yes. Three of my male cousins are jointly buying a house in a London suburb. They have had it for five years and will be selling it next year by which time all of them will have enough capital to buy flats each with a small mortgage."

"But you already have somewhere to live, Mike. I don't. Diane and I live with my parents."

"But I am renting, Linda. The half mortgage will probably be less than my rent. How large is the house?"

"It has three bedrooms but the third is small."

"OK. If not with me, how about with Diane? Can she afford to pay half a mortgage?"

"Maybe, Mike? Or we could share it three ways. If we did, we could pay off the mortgage much quicker."

"So you think it is a possibility?"

"Yes, Mike, if the building society accepts it."

"After we've taken Diane home, how about going to them to talk and see if it could work for the two or three of us?"

Linda kissed me frantically.

"Thanks for giving me hope, Mike. Yes, we'll go, and I'll talk to Diane as well. Let's go and get her now. I want to go to the building society this afternoon. If it is possible? We'll buy the house..."

We collected Diane. I had to use a wheelchair to get her to my car and return the wheelchair. As I drove to their parent's house Linda and Diane were talking quietly on the back seat. I had to help Diane out of the car, balance her on her crutches and be prepared to catch her if she fell. All three of us went into the kitchen where their mother made us some tea.

Diane's mother helped her to go to the downstairs toilet.

"Mike? Diane doesn't want to buy the house with me."

"Why not?"

"She's engaged to George and they intend to buy a house together in two months' time. They have got approval for a mortgage but it can't be processed for a few weeks. They have found their house and made an offer."

"OK. But you and I can see if we can, together."

"Yes, please, Mike. You have given me hope, at least, even if the building society say no."

"They shouldn't. I have a deposit and had been talking to them about a mortgage. I might have been able to buy a two-bed mid-terrace on my own.

"OIK. Can we go and talk to the building society now? This afternoon?"

"Of course, Linda."

"When Diane comes back we can go."

We did. Half an hour later we were talking to a customer advisor at the Building society. They hadn't had any house share proposals locally but after consulting their manager, agreed that they could and because my salary was more than Linda's ex-boyfriend, the mortgage was approved subject to a legal agreement being made between the two of us. We rang the large solicitor's company that dealt with both of us and arranged to see them Monday lunchtime.

We went to a local sandwich bar for a late light lunch.

On the Sunday we got keys from the house agents and Linda showed me around the house.

On Monday, Diane would be off work, probably until Wednesday when the swelling on her ankle might have reduced.

Linda and I went to work on Monday,

The solicitors had made enquiries because they hadn't made such an agreement before. By the time we arrived during our lunch hour they had typed agreements for both of us to sign which would be faxed to the building society. There were numerous clauses about disputes and failure by one to fail to pay their fair share etc. But since Linda and I were friends and colleagues neither of us saw any real need for the agreements except to satisfy the building society. Linda had a phone call that afternoon to confirm that the mortgage would be available. Both of us left work early and went to the house agents to offer to buy at the asking price. A phone call to the vendor, and that was agreed. It seemed so easy. Three days after Linda was miserable because she had lost any chance of the house purchase, we were now buying it.

Once we were back on the street Linda attacked me. I was hugged and frantically kissed.

When I could speak I said:

Linda? I'm not your boyfriend. We are sharing a house, not a bed..."

"I don't care, Mike. You've saved me, saved our house, given me hope. All that is more than my boyfriend ever did. You may be just a friend, but I love you for what you have done for me. So I'll kiss you."

She did.

+++

Over the next few days I drove Linda home after work and we discussed what we needed in the house. I had an unfurnished flat so I had most things such as white goods, cutlery, some furniture etc. I arranged for a man and van to move it all when the purchase was completed.

Linda didn't have much except that some of her relations gave her some surplus furniture. She had her own single bed. That would go in the third bedroom for Diane to use if she was staying after a night out. But we had to buy a new double bed for Linda. Her wardrobe was a relation's chuck-out.

For the first few months some of the rooms would be unfurnished and we only had curtains for the main living room and the two bedrooms we would use. We didn't care. Just having our own house would be enough. Other things could come later.

From the Wednesday onwards, I collected Linda and Diane to take them to work and home again. Diane couldn't have managed her usual public transport. It cost me more in fuel but I didn't care. Once we were in the house, my share of the mortgage would be less than two-thirds of the cost for my rent. Our joint savings were more than adequate for the deposit and the legal fees and we would still have some capital left for emergencies.

Sharing a house and its costs seemed to be a win/win for both of us. My only worry was that Linda was far more demonstrative towards me than just someone sharing a house. I was hugged and kissed often. But Diane and their mother did that too. The whole family seemed happier. Once Linda had moved out, and Diane goes a couple of months later, the parents would be able to downsize to a smaller house in the city too. They were all slightly worried that the bus service to the village that they all relied on was losing money and might be ceased, leaving them stranded. Although all four of the had driving licences, they didn't own a car.

+++

Less than a month later. Linda and I had moved in. I had to tell Joyce that my phone number had changed. Until the Post Office could install an extension, which would probably take a couple of months, I had to sleep with my bedroom door open so I could hear the telephone in the hall.

Linda was surprised how often I was needed. My period of cover was from 6 pm on Friday to 6 pm on Sunday evening and most calls came between 12 midnight and three am on Saturday night/Sunday morning when drunks thought they could climb cliffs and got stuck.

Every time I was called out in the night, Linda got up and waited for me. That was unexpected but it was great to come home and have a cup of tea pushed into my hand, followed by a hug.

One Saturday afternoon I had a call out we all dreaded. A corpse was floating in the surf, held up with a lifejacket. I had to go down the cliff and swim out into the surf. I attached a rope to the lifejacket and towed the corpse ashore. My colleagues sent down a body bag and I had to stuff as much as I could inside. I missed one foot which had become detached as I brought the corpse to the beach.

I thought he was a Spanish fisherman reported lost at sea three months ago. The markings on the lifejacket were in Spanish. The state of the body was about right for that time in the sea but it was difficult to see what sex or age the body was. It had been pecked by birds, nibbled by fish, and had deteriorated badly.

The autopsy and coroner's inquest eventually confirmed what I had thought. He was able to be sent back to Spain to his relations.

When I got back to the house Linda wanted to hug me. I told her to wait until I had showered and changed because pieces of the body were all over my clothes. Until then she hadn't appreciated just how an unpleasant being a cliff rescue person could be. Since I had rescued Linda and Diane, every rescue had ended with someone alive and eventually well.

This was the first corpse I had had to deal with since then but last year I had retrieved the mangled remains of three people who had been smashed by falling off a cliff. But they were fresh bodies, not three-month old ones.

I put my clothes in the washing machine. Linda and I had been cooking for both of us on a rota. It was my turn that evening but Linda sat me down in the kitchen, pushed a cup of tea in my hand and announced she would be cooking one of my favourite meals - sausage casserole.

When she had put the casserole in the oven Linda stood behind me and pulled my head back into her cleavage.

"Why do you do it, Mike?"

"Why? Because I am only one of three people qualified for cliff and surf rescue, and of the three, I'm the best."

"But retrieving a dead body upsets you."

"It does. But I do I for the relatives. One as old as today's is unpleasant but at least I hope he can have a proper funeral -- of what's left of him."

Linda's arms tightened around me and she kissed my cheek.

"Why, Linda?" I asked.

"Why what?"

"Why kiss me?"

"Oh, that, Mike? Several reasons. One -- you are nothing like the man I dumped. Two -- you rescued me from the beach and then rescued this house for us. Three -- you can still see Joanne and treat her as a friend..."

"Why not? I loved her and liked her too. But dancing was a large part of what she is, and I can't dance. With her Royal Marine they have won two competitions recently and he seems a good bloke. She's better off with someone who can be her dance partner."

"But if I met my ex-boyfriend I'd kick him where it hurts, Mike."

And why not? He betrayed you. Joanne didn't do that to me. We agreed to part even if it was her idea first. She considered my feelings -- and his. He felt awkward with the situation too. Now they are happy."

"And you're not, Mike?"

I stroked her arms still wrapped around me.

"I have a friend who looks after me. That's great."

"And that friend wants more..."

I turned my chair around to face Linda.