He barely budged, and I knew that wouldn’t work. So I let go and he fell back where he’d been. The life vest he’d worn off the plane still sat in the corner. Kneeling in front of him, I struggled to put the vest on him. My voice was as calm and soothing as I could make it. “It will just be for a while, until I can get the raft bailed. I won’t leave you. I promise.” Rolling him onto his side, I got close behind him and pushed. The bottom was slippery, so he slid easily over to edge. Using all my strength, I managed to get Max’s left arm and leg over the side. He was half in, half out, sprawled like a bug on the side of the raft. My vision was blurry. Was I crying? “I’m sorry.” My plan was to roll him the rest of the way over, so he would be faceup in the water. Just until I could empty the raft. A few minutes, at most. If I saw a shark, I’d get him back inside.
