"Is there no dessert today?" Edana asked, pouting so childishly for such an old lady that Eve couldn't hide her laughter.

"No, there's nothing sweet for breakfast this morning. Dr Taylor says you shouldn't eat so many pastries," said Eve, chuckling as Edana wrinkled her nose and pouted.

"Dr Taylor is a very cruel man. He enjoys your treats, and then he forbids me to eat any of them,« the old lady said indignantly, "he wants everything for himself, I'm sure of it."

Eve ignored the strange undertone and pushed the tray onto the table when a scream made her stop. The young woman turned her head, as did Edana, and they both frowned.

Had she made a mistake, or had Ray just called out to her?

His voice sounded strangely urgent. Almost rushed?

'What if something has happened?'

The dark shadow of thought rose in her mind, and her fingers automatically tightened their grip on the tray. But the hunch didn't have enough time to solidify.

Then it called again.

Ray's voice sounded rushed. Urgent.

No, much worse: his voice sounded panicked.

Edana couldn't even open her mouth when Eve let go of the tray and ran out of the room. There was a clatter behind her as the plate and cup tipped over and the contents scattered across the floor - she couldn't have been more indifferent.

There was no thought in Eve's mind. There was only the wild pounding in her chest and the growing panic as she took two flights of stairs at once and almost fell because she tripped over a rug and slipped due to the restricted view.

No! No, no, no!

Nothing could have happened.

Eve ran out the door without her shoes and only fleetingly felt the gravel and dampness seeping through her socks. Outside, the autumn chill hit her and immediately prickled her heated skin, but none mattered. Her head whirred back and forth in search of Ray and Liam. Chief's loud bark led her in the right direction - and Eve's blood froze in her veins when she saw the churning water.

Chief had jumped into the lake.

"Liam!" Eve shouted, but her voice sounded shaky and brittle.

A tremor gripped her body as she hoped this was just another nightmare and that Liam would come to laugh proudly at his prank. But he didn't come.

No, this wasn't real.

She told herself over and over again.

Her stomach was queasy, her fingers icy.

It simply couldn't be true.

Liam knew he wasn't allowed at the lake. Never by the water without someone with him. Because neither her son nor she could swim. He was only allowed on the shore if someone was with him. And Liam was a good boy. He always obeyed her. He didn't go to the lake. He wouldn't do that.

Still, she could see the lake's dark surface where the dog was barking like crazy. The waves, the bubbles that rose...

Her body moved as if of its own accord as she hurried towards the lake.

Colors, feelings, and every thought blurred.

Ray's head emerged from the deep black of the lake water, and he paddled with his arms to keep himself and Liam on the surface. The Boy was gasping and spitting up water. Ray was visibly struggling to fight the pull of his body, fighting for his life with Liam as Chief swam around him, yelping loudly and visibly trying to help.

"Liam! Oh my god! Liam!"

Hot tears of fear welled up in Eves eyes and clouded her vision as she sprinted across the gravel. Pointed stones and twigs pressed their sharp edges through her socks and soles, but Eve didn't feel it. Far from reason and restraint, she plunged into the lake and the icy water with her first steps. Her body pushed through the water like a ship, her eyes wide open, her arms outstretched to save the most precious thing she had and would ever have in her life.

Nausea choked her throat; dizziness sent her senses and thoughts spinning like a merry-go-round under a malfunction.

Eve forgot that she couldn't swim and how stupid it would be to go too deep into the water. She couldn't think about anything. There was only a mother's instinct to hold, protect, save, and clutch her child. She couldn't say anything; her mouth was dry, and the threads of her mind were cut—loose ends without support or pattern.

The blonde was already up to her waist in water when she reached Ray and her son, instinctively reaching out to grab him.

Liam was freezing cold, and his whole body was shaking. He coughed, choked up water, and spat it on her shoulder as he wrapped his arms around her shoulders - but she didn't care.

Ray was also coughing and gasping, but Eve didn't realize the seriousness of his situation because she was dragging her child to the shore as quickly as possible.

Only then did her eyes fall on the man struggling to the shore, coughing. Ray was also shaking and fell onto the gravel.

"R-Ray! A-Are you all right?" she asked mechanically. She saw Ray turn away, and in other situations, she would have asked immediately, but with her coughing boy in her arms, she didn't wait for an answer this time.

Soaked from the water and at his age, Liam was anything but light, so Eve was already panting heavily on the lake shore herself, audibly gasping for breath as she set him down. The boy bent over the gravel and spat out the dirty water until he could cough hoarsely, and saliva smeared his chin.

"Liam! My darling... Liam! Can you breathe?" She put her hands on her son's cheeks to look at him. She wiped the wet strands of hair from his forehead and face with frantic movements. The boy nodded stiffly and squeezed out a breathless, hoarse "Yes Mommy," then cried and pressed himself against his mother. He stammered that he was sorry for trying to get Chief's ball, and the rest was lost in his sobs.

Chief, meanwhile, jumped out of the water and shook himself before coming closer, squeaking and barking. He nudged Eve's elbow with his wet nose, but her nerves were on edge.

"Not now, Chief!" she said sternly as he ran crouched over to Ray and nudged him, being the helpful dog he was. He was visibly confused, just like his can openers on land.

Only when she heard the voice behind her did Eve finally turn around; the jammed gears in her head slowly began to mesh again.

Her gaze settled on the coughing rescuer a short distance away.

"Ray," Eve gasped, then turned back to Liam; this time, her voice sounded harder. "Wait here," she ordered sternly, then stumbled towards the man and grabbed his shoulders and arm to help him. Something was wrong. He was still shaking as if he were trapped in freezing water.

"Ray, what's wrong?"

He squinted his eyes, blinked repeatedly, and then pointed to a spot behind them with trembling limbs.