Free Titanic by Tom Bradman

I’ll ever have. You offered me your friendship once and I didn’t take it. I hope you’ll forgive me, Billy.’
    Billy smiled and took his hand. ‘There’s nothing to forgive, George.’
    â€˜Right, come on, lads,’ said Mr McElroy. ‘We might still be able to help some of the passengers. And we should find out what’s happeningin the Marconi Room. I think Mr Phillips and Mr Bride are still in there.’
    â€˜Don’t worry, sir, I’ll check on them,’ said Billy. ‘I’ll be right back.’
    Mr McElroy was right. Mr Phillips and Harold were in the Marconi Room, tapping away at their Morse keys, even though the cabin was now leaning at a crazy angle.
    â€˜Good to see you, Billy,’ said Harold. ‘We’re about to pack it in.’
    â€˜Did you hear from any ships?’ said Billy. ‘Are there any near?’
    â€˜Yes, there’s one, the Carpathia,’ said Harold. ‘It’s on its way.’
    â€˜It will be at least four hours before they get here,’ said Mr Phillips. ‘We’ll be long dead by then, you mark my words. A watery grave is a terrible thing…’
    â€˜Hark to old misery here!’ said Harold. ‘While there’s life, there’s hope, that’s what my dear old Ma always used to say. Come on, Jack, leave it.’
    He dragged Mr Phillips away from the desk and thrust a lifejacket at him.
    â€˜I’ve a spare one for you, Billy,’ Harold added. ‘Here, put this on, and make sure you do it up.’
    Billy did as he was told, and the three of them left the Marconi Room. The panic was worse than ever, the ship sinking ever further under the cold sea, its insides groaning ever more loudly.
    â€˜Hang on, what are they up to?’ said Harold, pointing at a group of men on the bridge. They were wrestling with something, a long wooden shape – and as Billy looked he saw that it was a boat.
    He ran off to tell Mr McElroy and George.
    â€˜Of course, the collapsible lifeboats!’ said Mr McElroy. ‘I saw two being launched so I assumed they’d all gone already. But there are another two stored on the roof of the bridge…’
    Moments later they climbed the ladder that led to the roof of the bridge. It leaned down at a steep angle and one edge was below the water. Harold and Mr Phillips were there, along with a dozen men – a couple of officers, deckhands, even some passengers. They were all working on the two remaining boats, raising their canvassides and knocking into place the ribs that would stiffen them.
    Suddenly the roof of the bridge juddered and a huge wave surged across it, sweeping away one of the boats and the men working on it.
    â€˜Don’t let the other one go!’ yelled an officer, and they tried to hold on to it, Billy and George leaping forward to grab the wooden gunwale. The ship seemed to judder again, the roof dipping further below the water, and the second boat was swept away too, tipping over as it hit something – and dragging Billy into the sea with it.
    There was no great splash. One minute Billy was on the roof of the bridge and the next he was in the water, completely disorientated. He kicked and thrashed and the sea roared in his ears, and just when he thought his lungs were about to burst he shot into the air and bobbed on the surface. The lifejacket had saved him.
    But where was everybody? And where were the two boats?
    He coughed and spat out seawater and tried to focus, but his eyes stung and for a while hecouldn’t see anything at all. He could hear the shouts and screams of people in the water around him. He shouted too, calling ‘George!’ and ‘Mr McElroy!’ over and over again, but there were no replies. Then he heard a terrible grinding noise and looked round just as his eyes cleared.
    He found himself looking at the stricken Titanic. The wave that had swept him off the roof of the bridge