Chapter 18

The firewood was damp, some even sodden. With difficulty, Eleanor eventually lit the fire in the oven that Andrew built for her. It was nothing elaborate, just bricks carefully stacked into three sides, with a steel plate sitting on top. To turn part of it into an oven, Andrew had devised a system for easily sliding another plate down and blocking the opening to the oven section. It worked well when the wood was dry.

She felt more cheerful after Mrs. Moore"s visit and it brought a smile to her face when she thought of the surprise she would have for Andrew. Eleanor put more wood into the fire to bring her oven to temperature and, with the flour given to her, she began to prepare her meal.

She turned to the pigpen - it was empty! Pork-Chop had disappeared. She ran over and looked closer, seeing where the animal had simply moved the loose mud and crept underneath the lower railing. She knew the little pig must only now have escaped and couldn"t be far away. She examined the area and couldn"t see her anywhere. She continued to search and carefully peered into the shadows and then she saw her. There she was, heading towards the river,Pork-Chop"s little legs powering their way through the thick mud.

Quickly covering the food she was preparing, Eleanor gave chase and dodged dangerous puddles of unknown depth as she ran through the deep muddy track. She lost sight of the animal as she approached the river and then saw her emerge from behind a tent, running along the raised riverbank where it was less muddy.

Risking a quick glance to ensure no one was watching, Eleanor lifted her skirts and quickly bore down on the errant and determined little beast. Only a step or two away, Pork-Chop, realising she was being chased, instinctively tried to evade.

Heavy rains filled the swollen Hutt River and threatened to overflow its banks yet again. Gone was the meandering, golden, sparkling river. Now it was a swiftly-moving, muddy, brown mass. Felled by strong winds, the surging river propelled branches and trees downstream. Caught in the current, the floating debris posed a serious threat to boats and people in its way.

As Pork-Chop slowed, she turned to see Eleanor quickly bearing down on her - the game was up. With a frightened squeal, the small pig slipped on some wet grass and rolled over, tumbling down and into the river. Seeing the animal about to slide into the water Eleanor desperately reached out. She skidded on the same wet grass and fell heavily, sliding down the small embankment into the fast flowing and very cold Hutt River. With a yell, she landed on top of the struggling pig, briefly submerging it before lifting it safely from the water. She held the frightened animal firmly with one arm and reached out with the other towards the bank and a clump of overhanging grass. The roots weren"t enough to hold her and pulled free from the wet soil. The river"s current slowly dragged her and Pork-Chop away from the safety of the bank.

The two labourers watched in delight as Eleanor pursued the fleeing pig. To their surprise, they saw her hoist her skirts and chase after the animal with athleticism normally reserved for boys, not attractive young women. They were still watching Eleanor run along the low embankment when they saw her arms flail and then disappear from sight.

Realising what had happened, they ran quickly and appeared on the bank to see Eleanor fighting to keep her head above water, her sodden clothes weighing her down. They needed rope or a long stick, neither of which was handy.

Further downstream they could see a bend in the river where Eleanor would be closer to the shore and reachable. Shouting for anyone to help, they ran, but few people were about to hear their panicked yells. They could hear Eleanor"s cries as they sprinted past.Slipping frequently, they managed to keep from sliding into the river and soon arrived at the bend. Breathing hard, they searched for anything they could use. Every tree they saw had all their low hanging branches cut, used for firewood or for tent frames. There was nothing accessible unless they could reach higher limbs.

"Up there!" shouted Danny, pointing to a dead branch that was a suitable length.

Young Willy stared up helplessly at it.

"Here," Danny bent down, interlacing his hands together beneath the branch. "I"m gonna toss you up. Grab the branch, it"ll snap if you can reach it."

Willy stepped onto Danny"s hands and with a huge heave Danny launched him upwards. Willy"s upstretched hands found the branch and he grabbed it, but it didn"t snap. He hung by his hands suspended.

"Jiggle, Willy! C"mon! Hurry!"

Willy began bouncing. With a crack and a resounding snap, Willy and the branch landed on the soft muddy ground.

"Ouch, that hurt!"

"Hurry!"

Danny grabbed the branch and ran to the bank. He extended the branch outwards hoping that the young lady would grab it. She was almost there, drifting towards him, and he could see her fighting to keep her head above water.

Eleanor was cold, her extremities were numb. Even though she"d only been in the river a short time, the frigid water drained her of vital energy and her heavy skirts threatened to pull her under. She was struggling and her attempts to keep afloat were weakening. She still held Pork-Chop, who was suffering from the frigid water temperature as she was. It was cold - so cold.

"Grab it!" yelled Danny, snapping her back to reality. "Grab it!" he yelled again.

She was drifting down towards the outstretched branch the young man held. She reached out with numb fingers and held fast to the proffered branch. Her downstream momentum slowed, and she was pulled towards the bank, but she had no strength to hold-on and the branch slipped through her numb fingers.

Danny quickly threw off his coat and leapt into the water as Eleanor passed. He lunged - snatched at her and seized a fistful of clothing - he pulled and held on but was now in danger of being carried downstream.

Willy had stood rooted to the spot as he watched his friend leap into the water.

"The branch, get the branch!" spluttered Danny.

Finally comprehending what was needed, Willy retrieved the branch Danny dropped and ran a few steps to catch up to them. He extended it out across the water as Danny and Eleanor drifted past. Danny reached out and easily grasped the branch. He held on tightly as Willy pulled them all to safety.

Eleanor lay shivering, her lips blue. Danny put his coat over her, and then took Willy"s coat and put that over her as well.

"Find some dry wood, we need to light a fire," shivered Danny. "Get some from the tent over there," his teeth chattered.