Mats looked aghast. ‘Look, man, fire me when we get back if you want, but this is a technical ride –’

‘I said no! I told my son I would skipper us back, and that’s what I’m going to do!’

‘Dude, it’s because of your son I’m taking over! He’s ten, for chrissakes! Look at him!’

Emil turned around, taking in the expression on Linus’s face. The wonderment and awe of even twenty minutes earlier had gone, and he was now rigid with terror.

Emil’s face went slack, his hands lifting off the helm. ‘Linus!’

Mats moved fast, stepping in and clipping himself on. ‘Go and sit down!’ he yelled, before his eyes widened so that they were more white than brown. ‘Look out!’

He grabbed Emil’s lifejacket, trying to pull him down as he lunged for the floor, but Emil saw nothing but his son’s terror. He didn’t see the boom coming, and it caught him above the left ear. He crumpled like an autumn leaf.

‘Emil!’ Bell screamed, scrabbling on her hands and knees to try to reach him as Mats staggered up again and got a hand to the wheel. He was standing in a wide straddle above Emil’s limp body as he struggled to gain control of the boat. The wind tossed them both about like they were paper bags.

‘Have you got him?’ Mats yelled, checking she had a hand on Emil’s lifejacket before he freed his harness from the steering column. Linus was crying now. Bell tried to drag Emil towards her, out of Mats’ way, but he was out cold and a dead weight. He was unsecured to the boat except by her left hand. One large wave would be enough to wrench him from her grip, free-falling in the boat, overboard . . . She looked up desperately. The crew were leaping across the nets again, in full defence mode as the swell grew. There was no one to help.

‘Look out!’ Mats yelled, and she tightened her grip as hard as she could while a large wave rocked them, the forward momentum pitching the boat – and Emil – forward. She strained to hold on to him, giving a cry as his full body weight was held in place by her one hand – then, in the next instant, the wave passed and the boat rocked back, sliding him straight towards her, limp and inert.

‘Oh my God!’ she gasped, immediately clipping him to their rails and stretching out her legs so that she could lay his head in her lap, to protect him from any further impacts. She checked him for signs of injury. He wasn’t bleeding, that she could see. No open wounds. But he was unconscious again, from a head injury. Oh God. Oh God.

Linus was sobbing.

‘Emil, can you hear me?’ She shook his shoulders. ‘Emil? Wake up. You’ve got to wake up. You hear me? Linus is here. You son needs you.’ She looked across at him. ‘Linus, talk to him. Let him hear your voice. He needs to hear your voice.’