Panic filled the air, Cecelia's heart raced, and gasps sounded all around her.
Nobody seemed to move, all as frozen as the ice that still remained beneath her own feet.
But one person did move.
George!
Cecelia's heart skipped a beat as she watched him break free of Elizabeth's grip, surging forward on the ice with not a care for himself.
Turning back to her mother and the viscount, she insisted, “We must do something!”
Yet, they remained as frozen as everyone else.
Realizing that if she spent all her time trying to call others to action, she would fail her sister, Cecelia turned, and on shaking legs, skated towards the centre of the lake.
“No!” George snapped at her, waving his arm at her as he reached the hole in the ice where Catherine had disappeared. “Stay where you are, Cece!”
His order made her halt.
Heart racing, she watched on hopelessly as George leaned over the edge of the ice, his body spread in a way that hopefully wouldn't crack the ice further.
Cecelia's heart leapt into her throat when he yelled, “I can't see her!”
“There!” someone called, and Cecelia glanced over her shoulder to see Walter pointing. “I see the pink of her jacket!”
In an instant, George was moving. Cecelia watched in astonishment as he swiftly removed one of his skates and started to hammer at the ice.
Unable to breathe, Cecelia placed her gloved hand over her mouth, her throat constricting painfully.
The ice cracked audibly, and Cecelia could barely comprehend George's speed as he dove into the water, disappearing for only a second before he reappeared with Catherine in his arms.
“Somebody help him!” Cecelia screamed, unable to move as she remembered his urging her to remain still.
Yet, it appeared he did not need any help as he shoved Catherine out onto the ice and hoisted himself up.
The cracking sound of ice filled Cecelia with dread as she watched George grab hold of her sister and scramble away from the growing hole.
“Oh, please God, no!” Cecelia uttered under her breath as she started to skate the shortest way around the lake to meet them.
The seconds seemed to tick by with agony as she urged her feet on quicker and quicker.
All around her, people watched on in horror. Only she dared move, coming to meet George and Catherine at the edge of the lake.
Without a second thought, Cecelia dropped to her knees over her sister, who George had already laid on her side. He slapped her back so hard that for a second, Cecelia wanted to snap at him to stop.
Then, Catherine coughed, her entire body shuddering as a mouthful of water came up.
Everyone finally began to move. Their mother, Walter, Mary, and even Lord Greystone came to stand around them. Others came too, all verbally expressing their hopes that they were alright.
Cecelia almost scoffed in their faces. Not a one of them had done anything to help.
Nobody had moved save forhim. And she stared at him over her sister's trembling body, their gazes meeting without restraint.
Unable to utter a word, Cecelia mouthed, “Thank you.”
George didn't respond, though his gaze softened as a cloud of breath bellowed from his mouth.
His nod of acknowledgement was barely perceptible. His shivering, however, was enough to make Cecelia's insides twist with concern.
