Page 87 of Sheltering Instinct

Levi made his way to her, bringing three jugs in each hand.

“I counted,” Tess said. “You all did a great job finding this many. I think we have two for each child, three each for us adults, and one for Mojo.”

“You’re making floatation devices?” Levi wrapped his legs around the stove pipe and crossed his ankles, and then he joined Tess, emptying bottles. “Is this a theory, or have you seen this work before?”

“We did this once when it was rainy season. For months, at that point, we had been playing hide and seek in our survival game. Well, for us, it was hide. The tribesmen did the seeking. We were living in a flood zone, hidden in the grasses. We had been doing all right finding food there. The bark and the fruit from the trees and bushes. But this huge rainstorm came up. It was very similar to this. Abraham took the gallon jugs we used to store fresh water and emptied them. Mama Ya was screaming at him that was all the water we’d been collecting. He ignored her. Then, using ropes, he tied the jugs together for each of us. I didn't know how to swim. Because of the wild animals in Ghana, it wasn't safe to get into natural waters. And there were no swimming pools where I was.” As she spoke, she took the spool of thick cotton roping, cut off a length with her knife, then configured a life preserver,

“So the construction that you're tying, that’s how Abraham did it?

“To the best of my memory, yes.”

“And you survived the flood, obviously. Was the water as roiling and difficult as this flood?”

“I was nine years old. I remember being in the water. I remember having jugs on my chest and the rope running under my armpits and between my legs, keeping everything snug. I remember clinging to the handles to save my life, lifting my chinover the swells of the flash flood. I remember that Abraham had jugs on his chest, too, and that we made a line, Abraham, then me, then Mama Ya, then Moses, all floating along, all locking arms. Abraham yelled for us to kick. I didn't know how to kick, but I tried my best. As I kicked, there were things in the water—animals, tree limbs. Eventually, I remember that Abrahan shoved me onto a branch of a tree. He tied me in place so I could rest for a while. And after that, I don't remember how we got out of the flood. I don't know how long I was in the tree. But Abraham's creative thinking gave me a shot at survival. And I don't know how else to protect these children.”

“It's a good idea, Tess. It's a very good idea. But this mess is like white water rapids.”

“If they can keep air in their lungs, they can survive. I want to give them at least a chance. Look, their teacher is sitting up again. That’ll give them hope.”

“She really needs to see a doctor and get to the hospital so they can take a look at her lungs. The amount of muddy water that poured out of her was crazy.”

“She was drowning?”

Yeah, Levi hadn’t had time to catch Tess up, and he could see the incredulity in her eyes. “A few rounds of CPR, and she woke up. Right now, she seems fine. But a near-drowning always needs a doctor.”

“I didn’t know that. Why?” she asked as her hands busily worked.

“Secondary drownings happen when there’s water in the lungs, and there isn’t the proper exchange of oxygen.”

“How soon can that happen?” Tess hadn’t stopped her pouring and capping, knotting and tying. Every two jugs, she signaled a child to her. “How fast do you have to get them to a hospital?”

The wind whipped away her question, but Levi was good at reading lips. “Fast, a couple hours is the most I’d give it.”

“As if we have any control.”

“Surviving the fight means you can stay in the battle. We need to keep racking up the wins.” He lifted an empty jug. “This is the last of them.”

As Tess stood up to tie her flotation device into place, the corner of the school dropped to the side.

The children released the tarp and grabbed at each other as they slid.

Levi, pressing his foot against the stove pipe, got his hand around one of their legs. As long as the children could keep a good grip on each other, they might be able to stay on the roof.

Tess screamed, “Hold on. Hold on to each other.”

But one of the little ones slipped by.

Tess scrambled after her, yelling, “Mojo!”

Mojo leaped toward the child as Tess doubled over with both hands and feet on the roof, bear-crawling her way as fast as she could.

Levi couldn’t release the children until the school righted itself—if the school ever did right itself.

The child slid over the side.

Mojo too.

And all Levi could see of Tess was her bottom and legs as she bent over the roof's edge.

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