Chapter 229 He Is Here
Due to severe weather and slippery road conditions, the road to Elmwood Bend had been barricaded with a "No Entry" sign.
Leopold ignored it and drove around the barrier, continuing forward.
The windshield wipers quickly swept away the rain from the glass, only to have the view blurred again by the downpour the next second.
Maddox's call appeared on the screen. Leopold pressed the answer. "Where are you?"
"Almost there, about ten more minutes to Elmwood Bend."
Maddox was driving an off-road vehicle with an inflatable boat in tow.
He loved outdoor extreme sports, and these were things he normally used. Not only did he have professional equipment, but he also had plenty of driving experience and skills.
Leopold said, "Caroline said there are lots of rocks underwater, and the inflatable boat could easily flip. Don't push yourself. Only go in if you're confident."
Without seeing the actual situation, Maddox didn't dare make any promises.
"Okay, I'll decide after checking the scene."
When Leopold called to borrow a boat, Maddox came right away without a second thought. Erica came along too.
"How's Caroline doing now?" Erica asked anxiously.
The phone was on the console on speakerphone. Leopold's voice came through, "Her phone died. I don't know what's happening now either."
Hearing this, Erica became even more worried. "Is there a rescue team on site?"
Leopold said, "Yes. The rescue team has already tried to save them. Caroline said they used a drone to deliver life jackets, but with the strong wind and heavy rain plus poor visibility at night, the drone failed several times."
Hearing the restrained anxiety in his voice, Erica knew that Leopold was the most worried person right now. She comforted him, "Don't worry, the rescue team is there. Caroline will be fine."
Leopold was also praying she'd be safe.
Maddox suddenly said, "I see it. Leopold, don't worry, I'm here."
Erica looked ahead and saw car lights and moving figures in the distance. "I see it too. There are quite a few people there, don't worry."
"I'm almost there too."
Leopold hung up. His car entered Elmwood Bend, where the flooding had already reached people's calves. Unfamiliar with the area, he could only follow the GPS.
When Leopold's car stopped at the GPS location, he got out and ran toward the riverbank without even grabbing an umbrella.
In the deep night and dense rain, the searchlights seemed weak and powerless. In the beam of light, besides the crisscrossing rain, he could vaguely see the electrical tower in the middle of the river.
Leopold raised his hand to his forehead to block the rain, trying to find Caroline, but after looking for a while without seeing anyone, he asked a nearby rescue team member, "There's a woman on the electrical tower. Where is she?"
The rescue team member looked Leopold over. Seeing he wasn't with the rescue team, he said, "It's dangerous here. Leave immediately."
Leopold said, "My wife is on that tower."
The rescue team member asked back, "You're Ms. Tudor's husband?"
"Yes. How is she doing now? When can you get her to shore?"
The string of questions stumped the rescue team member. He explained to Leopold, "I understand how you feel, but the situation is too complicated. Our drone got caught on the tower, and our inflatable boat was damaged during the rescue attempt. Look, the boat is right there."
By the car lights, he could see the inflatable boat tilted on the riverbank, its hull damaged and the motor visibly broken too.
Leopold asked, "Where is she? Can I see her?"
The rescue team member adjusted the light angle and pointed to a spot. "See? She's wearing a dark raincoat, so she's hard to spot. On the right side of the tower, a bit higher up."
Following the beam of light, Leopold finally saw the person on the tower.
Caroline had her head down, hanging on the tower like a piece of clothing, completely motionless.
Maddox spotted Leopold in the crowd and quickly had Erica go back to the car for an umbrella. "Leopold's here."
"Where?" Erica asked.
"Over there." Maddox took the umbrella and headed toward him, with Erica following behind.
Suddenly, the rain above his head stopped. Leopold looked up to see the umbrella, then turned to see Maddox and Erica. He continued talking with the rescue team, "If we have an inflatable boat, can we go back in the water?"
The rescue team member shook his head repeatedly. "Can't go in. You saw our boat. The water's too fast right now, and the conditions underwater are complicated. We almost lost two team members just now. Good thing they had safety ropes, or they would've flipped in with the boat. Right now, we can only wait for the rain to lighten up and the water to calm down a bit."
Maddox looked at the water surface, thought for a moment and said, "I brought an inflatable boat. It's got a powerful motor, and I know about wilderness rescue. Can I try?"
The rescue team member said, "No. Our boat was swept away as soon as we put it in. The current is even faster now than when we first went in. It's too dangerous. The rescue conditions aren't met."
Leopold asked, "What about other options?"
The rescue team said, "After the drone got caught on the tower, we requested a helicopter rescue, but the wiring on the tower is too complex, so that didn't work. Then we thought about having personnel on the helicopter use ropes to drop life jackets to the people trapped on the tower, but there are too many interference factors for low-altitude hovering, and it's very dangerous. If the helicopter went any lower, it would affect the tower's stability and cause it to collapse, so the helicopter rescue was also forced to stop."
Hearing this, Leopold's mood grew heavier. He looked again at the huddled figure on the tower. Even though he couldn't see her expression, he could feel her fear and suffering at that moment.
Ulysses looked at the person on the opposite tower and shouted, "Ms. Tudor, Ms. Tudor."
He called out several times before the person moved slightly. Caroline slowly lifted her head. She'd been in this position for over two hours now, and her arms and legs were starting to go numb.
Ulysses said, "Ms. Tudor, hang in there. The rescue team will definitely find a way."
Caroline nodded, then lowered her head again to rest on her arm. Her limbs were weak, and she was somewhat dehydrated. Without the two chocolate bars Leopold had given her, she probably would've run out of energy long ago.
The rain was getting heavier, and the water level in the river was rising rapidly.
Caroline felt water washing over her feet. She looked down and said to the worker beside her, "The water's rising. We need to climb higher."
"They're climbing up again," someone suddenly shouted.
Everyone's attention turned to the electrical tower in the river. Leopold stared at Caroline as she climbed with difficulty. Compared to the person next to her, she clearly had little strength left.
"Caroline, Caroline." Leopold shouted.
The sound of rain drowned out his voice. Caroline didn't hear him.
"Caroline," Leopold yelled at the top of his lungs. Finally, the person on the tower reacted. She turned to look toward the shore.
A figure stood in the light. Although she couldn't see his face clearly, Caroline could recognize at a glance that it was Leopold.
The two looked at each other across the rushing floodwater. Although nothing was said, Caroline knew—he had come.