Jack was barely alive, but had somehow managed to lift himself up onto some wooden planks. He examined the shard sticking out of his thigh. Thankfully, it hadn’t hit the artery but he was bleeding heavily. He clenched his teeth and took hold of the shard, trying to ignore the excruciating pain. He pulled it out and then, having torn his shirt, he bandaged his thigh as best he could. It was a very nasty wound. It would soon be infected and he needed urgent medical attention, but he had no idea where he was. He felt his life and strength ebbing away.

Late afternoon. Patong Beach

Jack slipped in and out of consciousness. He was lying on his back, staring at the vastness of the sky. His body was bruised and broken beyond anything he’d ever experienced. He couldn’t even remember how he’d landed on this pile of dirt. He hoped with all his heart that Mina was safe and wondered if he’d ever see her again. Images of the first time he met her came back to him, when Professor Almeini had left them together in her office. How much had happened since that day in Iraq. He thought of all his accumulated hatred towards Wheatley and Natasha. He had fantasised so often about how he would make them suffer. But in the end, Wheatley’s devious plans, his own bloodlust, Mina’s quest, the few truthful moments they had lived together, all of it had been washed away in one fell swoop. He couldn’t think anymore and felt the drowsiness creeping over him again.

Mina and the French survivors were air-lifted to safety. As the helicopter slowly rose into the air, the full horror of the scene unfurled before her eyes; ruined remains everywhere. Mina made a silent prayer for Jack, hoping against all odds he was still alive, somewhere on the beach. She saw the bloated, drowned bodies of men, women, children and babies, scattered all over the place. Apart from a few hotels, all that was left of this popular beach resort was a huge pile of wreckage.

It would only be later that evening and over the coming days that she would learn the full extent of the devastation caused by the tsunami in South India, Indonesia and Sri Lanka, and the hundreds of thousands of lives lost to this cataclysmic event. As the helicopter flew over a row of swaying trees and left Patong beach, she couldn’t help but keep her eyes fixed on the ground far below in search of Jack, even though she knew it was hopeless. With a heavy heart, she raised her eyes to the sky.

It was bright blue and peaceful, as if nothing had happened. A majestic rainbow arched over the scene below. She followed the rainbow’s curve through the sky, and wondered how such beauty could emerge from so much devastation. In a flash she heard the words, the covenant between God and Noah, and a shiver ran down her spine.

My rainbow I do give in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth… And I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living-soul among all mortals; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all living creatures. (Genesis 9:13-5)

Epilogue

6 months later. New York. East Village. Cafe Mogador

Mina played nervously with her cigarette. She felt restless, sitting on the terrace of Cafe Mogador, her favourite hang-out. She fidgeted with her soft pack of Camel filters, not like an addict, but more like an actor in need of a prop. She’d been suffering from anxiety for months, and her state of mind had hardly improved. Whenever someone alluded to or spoke about the tsunami her head would start spinning. Sometimes, all it took were a few simple words, ‘sea’, ‘wave’ or ‘blue sky’ and she’d start to feel queasy. The only person with whom she’d even tried to talk about the tsunami was her counsellor. But every time she was about to speak, she froze up. She’d bottled it all up inside her, and thought about the tsunami like something that had happened, but not really to her. Even worse, as far as her parents were concerned, she’d been to visit Jack’s family in West Virginia for Christmas. She didn’t know how to begin to explain that she was in Thailand on December 26th and was, in fact a tsunami survivor. Not being able to talk about her experience made it impossible for her to deal with the existential questions that had haunted her ever since that day.