Ten – part 5
My back pack bounces of rocks and I tumble forward. Beneath me a waterfall drops away. A narrow twisting hose of high pressure water sliding into a small glen. I try to grab at something to stop my fall but the rocks are worn smooth and when my head smacks on an outcrop I curl up and try and ride out the fall. I pinball down the slope and hit the bottom with a wet slap and an injection of pain. Water pours into my jacket as I lie in the stream at the foot of the waterfall. I let the water wash over me as I try and unscramble my head. I force myself to sit up and water pours either side of me, crashing over my legs. I have pain registering in three or four places. The worst in my left ankle which feels like someone is pumping it full of hot lead. I need to get out of the water. It may be late summer but the ice cold of the water is draining heat and my cheap walking clothes are proving about effective as a cotton hanky in keeping me warm and dry.
The stream channels into an artificial race about twenty yards down stream from where I’m sitting and beyond I can see a glass framed balcony sitting above a small lake with white buildings beyond. Whisky barrels lie scattered on a path to my right.
‘Do you want me to phone an ambulance son?’
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