Страница 33 из 55
“No sense in getting too far away from the crash site,” says the man who has been giving the orders. There’s something military about him, A
“I suggest we introduce ourselves,” he says; he’s used to directing.
There are not as many people in the boat as A
“We’ve been damn lucky,” says the older man, and they all agree.
“What are we supposed to do now?” says the ta
“Just sit around and wait to be rescued, I guess,” the bearded schoolteacher says, with a nervous laugh. “It’s an enforced vacation.”
“It’ll just be a matter of hours,” says the older man. “They’re more efficient about these things than they used to be.”
A
She’s about to toss the plastic sandwich trays overboard, but the older man stops her. “No, no,” he says, “can’t throw those away. They might come in handy.” She can’t imagine what for, but she does as he says.
The plump woman has stopped crying and has become quite talkative; she wants to know all about the food column. In fact they are now a festive bunch, chattering away as if they are on a huge sofa in a recreation room, or in the waiting room of an airport where the flights have been temporarily held up. There’s the same atmosphere of time being passed, from necessity but with superficial cheer. A
The sun sets in its usual abrupt, spectacular fashion, and it’s not until then that they begin to get worried. No helicopters have appeared, and none of the other lifeboats is in sight. Perhaps they paddled away too quickly. They haven’t even heard any sounds of distant rescue operations. But “They’ll be along, all right,” the older man says, and his wife suggests they have a singsong. She begins with “You Are My Sunshine,” warbling in a church soprano, and continues through a repertoire of once-popular favourites: “On Top of Old Smokey,” “Good Night Irene.” The others join in, and A
She awakens feeling groggy and clogged. She can’t believe they’re all still on the boat, it’s begi
The older man is awake, smoking in silence; so is the one with the beard. The student is drowsing still, curled in a heap, like a puppy.
“What should we do?” A
“Stick it out till they come for us,” says the older man. He doesn’t look so military any more with his day’s growth of stubble.
“Maybe they won’t come,” says the bearded man. “Maybe we’re in the Bermuda whatchamacallit. You know, where those ships and planes vanish without a trace. What made the plane go down, anyway?”
A
“The main thing,” says the older man, “is to keep your mind occupied.” He flicks his cigarette butt into the water. A
He wakes the others and puts them to work constructing a shade, which they make from A
“If it rains,” Bill says, “this boat is perfect for catching water,” but it does not look like rain.
Bill has a lot of good ideas. In the afternoon he spends some time fishing, with a hook made from a safety-pin and a line of dental floss. He catches nothing. He says they could attract seagulls by flashing A