Chapter 632:
But when Herbert looked at me, shouting his name, he gave me only a pale smile. He shook his head, as if he had given up.
“Help! Help him! He’s in great danger!” I screamed.
“He doesn’t have any strength left!” someone yelled back.
Herbert was pushed further by the current, and soon I could only see the top of his head. People around me began to shake their heads.
“We need to be good swimmers if we’re going to help him. He’s too exhausted; he’s probably cramped up.”
“This is serious. He won’t be able to swim with a cramp,” another person commented.
Hearing their words made my panic swell like an uncontrollable tide.
No! I couldn’t let anything happen to Herbert. I couldn’t live without him, and neither could Lucas and Lucky live without their father! In that moment, all I could think about was getting to him.
Without thinking, I ran frantically towards the middle of the river. As I ran, I screamed, “Herbert, come back!”
Although I knew how to swim, I had only ever swum in a controlled indoor pool, and I wasn’t a strong swimmer. I had no idea what I would face out there.
But one thought kept racing through my mind: “Save Herbert. I have to save him…”
Betty’s POV:
When Betty jumped down, my mother fainted. Hank, overwhelmed by emotion, tried to jump in to save them but was stopped. They said Hank couldn’t swim, and jumping in would only make things more chaotic.
“Betty, Anne…”
I was overwhelmed with sadness. Were the two lives about to be lost in front of me? And they were my family. At that moment, all I could think was that I could swim. I wanted to save them.
I was about to jump in when I reached the riverside, but a pair of hands stopped me.
I turned around and saw Herbert standing behind me.
“Let me do it,” said Herbert. He was already taking off his tie and shoes. I was immediately worried for him.
“Do you know how to swim?” I asked, my voice shaky.
Herbert gave me a reassuring smile.
“Don’t worry. I was the swimming champion in college!”
With that, he turned and jumped into the river.
“Herbert!” I cried, grabbing the railing of the bridge, feeling a wave of panic.
Everyone watched Herbert, swimming with all his might in the river. They were all silent, their eyes fixed on him, hoping he could find and save the mother and daughter who had jumped in.
Soon, Herbert emerged from the water, holding Anne tightly in his arms. He swam to the shore, and the crowd cheered. They called him a hero. Hank and I rushed to the shore, where kind-hearted people had already taken Anne from Herbert’s arms. Although Anne’s face was pale, she was alive. She coughed twice, spitting out river water.
