[Veritas]

"Sinking?" Criss cried. "Oh my GOD!!" He grabbed my binoculars and searched for the sinking craft. I got on the radio to summon help. "Mayday! Mayday! Emergency! Shipweck off the coat of Cheboygan! Send help!"

I was suddenly thrown off balance as the Angel lurched forward. As soon as I got my balance, I saw Criss at the controls, gunning the engine full throttle, racing toward the wreck full speed ahead. "What the hell are you doing?!" I demanded.

"What the hell does it look like I'm doing?!" he shot back. "Can't this tub go any faster?"

"It's a cabin cruiser, not a hydrofoil!" I reminded him.

"What the (bleep) ever! We gotta save those people!"

I was about to remind him about who was in charge here when Andi stepped onto the bridge, wanting to know what was going on.
I explained the situation and instructed her to go down into the cabin and wait for further instructions. She did, casting an adoring glance at her hero at the helm before she left.

Criss pulled up short of the wreck and bolted out to the main deck toward the bow. "Everyone all right?" he called out. "We're here to help!"

I found the emergency ladder in the storage compartment and rolled it out over the side, hooking it securely over the railing of the Angel. The woman handed her screaming child to Criss as she and her husband climbed up the ladder. Criss cradled the poor kid in his arms, shushing her, even producing a lollipop from somewhere on his person (the guy's a magician, after all).

I told Andi to bring up some blankets and bottled water. I turned to the bedraggled couple sitting on the deck, out of breath and shaking. Suddenly, the woman bolted upright. "Harry?" She looked around frantically. "Where's Harry?!"

"Harry?", the man echoed. "Oh, my God! He must still be down there!"

Criss, the couple and I began searching for Harry, whoever he was. We did not see him by the boat from our angle. I was beginning to lose hope for the poor guy when Criss dove overboard and swam toward the wreck, calling out "Harry!" between breaths. This guy is a total wack job! I thought.

Andi had emerged from the cabin with the blankets and water; she demanded to know where Criss was. I pointed out toward the sinking ship. She dropped everything and bolted for the bow, leaning over the railing a little too far for comfort. "CRISS!" she screamed. "Criss, where are you?"

Criss emerged from the other side of the quickly-sinking wreck, dragging someone behind him. I tossed a life preserver ring for him to grab onto, and pulled him toward the boat. I pulled whom I hoped was Harry, while Andi helped Criss back on board. The little family gathered at our side.

"Harry!" the man called out to his semi-concious friend. "Cmon, old man, pull through for us!"

"Uncle Harry?" the little girl whimpered, "please don't die!"

Harry coughed up a gallon of Lake Huron and gasped for air.

"Son of a (bleep)," he wheezed. "What the hell happened?"

"We sprang a leak somewhere. We almost lost you." the man explained. "This guy"--he thumbed back at Criss--"pulled your ass out of the lake just now".

Harry looked wearily, but gratefully, at Criss. "Thanks, buddy," he said. "I owe you a big one".

"Hey, man, don't sweat it." Criss replied. "It was nothing".

"Nothing, my ass!" Harry protested. "Nothing but saving my life, is all! We get to shore, I'm buying you a beer!"

The mother and child, meanwhile, had taken advantage of the media on board to send a reassuring message to loved ones back home that they were safe. One of the cameramen shot footage of the boat, gently, slowly sinking to the bottom of Lake Huron. We were suddenly aware of another sound, this one of a large motor boat and a voice amplified by a bull horn.

"THIS IS THE UNITED STATES COAST GUARD!", it boomed. "WE ARE HERE IN RESPONSE TO YOUR EMERGENCY SIGNAL! PREPARE TO BE BOARDED!"

[RACHEL02189]

Awwwwwwwwww Criss is a hero

[Veritas]

Fast response, I thought, as I guided the CG officers aboard the Angel. They must have been in the general area when I radioed in.

Harry, recovered from almost drowning, explained the whole thing to the two officers. His boat, the Southern Cross, had sprung a leak; how, he didn't know. They started sinking fast. He got his brother, Larry, his wife, Irene, and niece, Chelsea, to the top deck while he tried to save the boat. Larry flagged down the first boat he saw (ours) and, God bless them, they came to the rescue. Unfortunatly, he was still underwater, and would have been done for if not for "this guy over here"--he jerked a thumb toward Criss--who pulled him out and got him on board this one. He was going to buy him a beer when they got on land, he said.

The CG officers congratulated Criss on his heroism; they shook hands all around. Andi gazed adoringly at Criss. He was her hero, her idol, her dream guy! Nothing could tear her away from her beloved Criss Angel! Nothing, that is, except the Coast Guard. Turned out that there had been a report about a certain thirteen-year-old girl missing from home and had allegedly stowed away on board the cruiser, the Angel of the Lakes. They had orders to escort her back to Alpena and to her parents.

Andi was aghast. "Please, Aunt Vicky!", she pleaded. "Don't let them take me away! Please! I'll do anything!"

"Sorry, sweetie," I shrugged. "But if the Coast Guard says you have to go, then you have to go."

She turned to Criss in one final, desperate attempt to stay. "Please, Criss! Tell them I can stay here! They'll listen to you! Please don't let them take me away from you!" She flung her arms around him, sobbing.

"Andi," Criss spoke gently, stroking her hair, "You remember what we talked about earlier, about honoring your parents?"

She nodded, her face still buried in his chest.

"Well, your parents really loved you enough to go through all this trouble by calling the Coast Guard to bring you home safe. The least you can do is go with them."

She looked up. "You want me to go?" she asked disbelievingly. " I thought you loved me!"

"I do," he said, "and so does your family and a lot of other people. You hurt them by running away and scaring them, you know?"

"But I want to stay with you!" she wailed.

"Andi," he said, "when you love someone, you have to let them go when the time comes."

He grasped her by the shoulders, kissed her on the forehead, and gently turned her around to face the CG officers. "It's time," he whispered in her ear.

Criss guided her forward. One of the officers grasped her by the arm. "Come on, miss," he ordered. "We're taking you home."

He guided her to the patrol boat and helped her on board, along with the survivors of the Southern Cross, now at the bottom of Lake Huron. Andi gazed tearfully at Criss, who waved good-bye and blew her a kiss, as the patrol boat pulled away from view.

I sighed deeply. At least she'll be back with her parents, I assured myself. Management, as always, reminded me about our destination. We had to get to the Mackinac Bridge within the hour, or we would be behind. I was livid at the man's callousness. A family almost drowns and he's worried about "schedule"? I wanted to choke that guy with his own necktie! But, I restrained myself as I headed for the Mackinac Straits.



We arrived at the Straits by midafternoon, and you should have seen the crowds! Every form of watercraft was jamming the Straits: motor boats, cabin cruisers, bass boats, yachts, anything that floated and could carry people were there. The bridge itself was lined with people, all the way from St. Ignace to Mackinac City. Cheers rose and airhorns erupted in one huge blast the minute we pulled up. Signs, banners, flags, flowers--you'd think this guy ended world terrorism from the reception he got!

A half dozen jet-skiiers charged forward like some watery calvary and surrounded the Angel, positioning themselves as a makeshift escort. It loked mighty impressive, but I slowed to a crawl so as not to plow into our new "friends". I docked at St. Ignace, and Criss disembarked. It was then I could see why they had chartered a boat. No way could Criss have gotten through this mob!

Governor Granholm and the mayor of St. Ignace were there to welcome him, this idol of millions. I won't bore you with the speeches and all the ceremony; you probably saw it all on TV already. In a nutshell, he was welcomed to Michigan, and was awarded a commendation by the US Coast Guard for bravery for his rescue of the Southern Cross survivors. So was I, for that matter, but I'm not much for publicity. This was Criss' moment. Besides, he drove the boat to the wreck, remember?

Once all the formalities were out of the way, I finally found out why Criss chose the Mackinac Bridge for his TV show.

[RACHEL02189]

Can't wait to read more

[Veritas]

I had a few cameras and microphones shoved into my face for interviews. To me, it was an invasion of privacy, but I tried to be gracious about it. It would be good publicity for the charter-boat business, I reasoned.

I answered their questions as best I could. Yes, it was a pleasure having Criss Angel on board. No, the boat had always been the Angel of the Lakes; it was just coincidence. Yes, Criss did help rescue the Southern Cross victims. Yes, my niece did stow away, but she's home now. And on and on and on.

A news reporter located the family we rescued right there at St. Ignace. They all gushed about their "guardian angels" coming to their rescue. Little Chelsea showed them the lollipop, still uneaten, that Criss had given her. Harry once again made his promise to buy Criss a beer for his heroism.

I went back to the Angel. Criss was escorted to the base of the bridge to begin his "demonstration"--levitating himself across the entire length of the bridge--all five miles of it.

"ARE YOU READY?!" Criss shouted into the microphone given him. Everyone within earshot sanwered with an affirmative cheer. Criss began psyching himself for whatever was going to happen. Then, I swear Sweet Jesus, that man actually floated up to almost the first girder of the bridge! Up, and then forward, like he was literally walking on air, over the heads of the astonished crowds! On and on he floated, perfectly vertical, perfectly calm, as some in the crowd mounted shoulders to try to touch him, but he was out of reach. Slowly he progressed across the Mighty Mac with no signs of straining. I tell you now, this guy was amazing!

As he approached the end, the police cleared a spot for landing. Criss floated slowly down, down, down, and touched Terra Firma. And the crowd went wild! Criss collapsed in exhaustion; two assistants rushed to his side to help him on his feet. He wearily waved to the cameras in victory, then was practically carried to a waiting RV.

The media were all over it like a feeding frenzy of sharks, photographing, taping, filming, recording every incredible minute for posterity. At that moment I felt sorry for Andi, how much she wanted to see this, to be part of it. She would have loved all this, Criss' latest, greatest triumph. If she just hadn't stowed away like that, if her folks had let her go with me under my supervision, she would have. But no, it was better this way; her obsession got her in big trouble. Maybe she'll learn to reign it in from now on. Maybe.



Well, to wrap things up: Management paid me the fee agreed on (and then some). I posed for a few pictures with the Angel for some fans (Criss' fans, not mine), and made preparations for departure. Criss, bless him, bought me a pound of Mackinac Island fudge as a thank-you gift--he knew my weakness!--before he went on his way back to Las Vegas. Told you he was a nice guy.

The next day, we made not only the local papers, but the major dailies like the Detroit News and Free Press. Even the weekly news magazines carried articles about it. People made much of the rescue--"Angels of the Lakes" we were called--with big color photographs splashed all over the page. I paid it no mind. I had my fifteen minutes of fame, and I'm glad it's over and done with.

As for poor Andi, not only was she not mentioned in the press, she was grounded for a month: no TV, no phone, no computer, and all her Criss Angel memorabilia was confiscated. Homework and housework were all she was allowed. If I know Andi, she will be slipping some Web time on the sly. She still blames me for the Coast Guard picking her up and taking her home, though. Maybe someday she'll forgive me.

Well, that's my story, and I'm sticking to it. By the way, if you happen to be in Michigan and you want to tour the Great Lakes, don't hesitate to give me a call. The Angel of the Lakes is at your service.

*****************THE END***********************[/