Poldark: Saving Ross and Demelza

Pray I do not lose the love of my life

Ross watched as his Demelza stared back at him, eyes locked, both of them lost in time as she began falling backwards into the sea.
Ross broke free from the trance and lept across the sharp and jagged rocks, as spray from the violent waves shot up. He knew he wouldn't make it, but he had to try.
"NO! MY LOVE!" He stretched out his hand, he was too late, Demelza plunged into the watery depths.
The storm still devouring the shores, Ross fumbled at the fastenings of his cloak, and threw it off. The laces of his boots would take too much time, but the weight of them added danger to himself being lost in the sea, he hadn't seen his wife reappear at the surface, therefore it was time he would have to forsake and a danger he would have to face.
With a deep breath, he dove in without another hesitation.

The water was numbing,instantly making his body repel against its freezing touch. Ross was a strong swimmer, even so, the current tugged at him tossing him about like a rag in the mouth of Garrick. 
Ross could feel his lungs screaming as he tried to swim deeper feeling for her hand, her hair, her dress. He felt nothing, he had to breathe.
He frantically swam to the surface , rain rushing down on to his face, taking a few escaped breaths refilling his lungs, he dove back under.
It felt like it had been hours, in reality barely half a minute had past since her foot had slipped.
Ross began to scramble around the rocks beneath the water, kicking to keep himself from surfacing.
Please my love, please God, please do not let me lose the love of my life. Ross pined within. 
She hadnt fallen far out from the rocks, he pulled himself round the edge of one more rock mass, the force of the current causing his arm to tear against it, blood began murking the water. His instinct was to open his mouth to cry out, angered. He held the pain in. He pawed at the rock, Damn it! It's no use!
The screaming pain began to rise his chest one more, and just as he was about to lift to the surface...he felt a familiar fabric of a dress collar.

Ross traced the material with his fingers urgently and with glassy eyes through the blood stained water saw the silhouette of his drowning  wife.
He grappled at her body , lifting her behind her neck . Her dress weighed her body down, he pulled at the corsette laces of her dress ripping at it in in pure disarray. She was freed from her prison, he lifted her kicking hard towards the surface, eager to breathe, and free himself also. Relief filled his lungs as he surfaced, as if coming back to life, he lifted Demelza's head above water urging her to do the same.
He swam with the last of his energies, adrenalin forcing his will to keep living, towards the shore, away from the rocks. The storm was not yielding, it pursued the coast, thunderous crashes and lightning illuminating the sky. Ross reached the sand bank where he could finally feel the seabed beneath him.
The waves were still up to his waist and he stumbled as the drag of the tide, still tried to pull them back out to the blackness.  Using his last efforts lifted Demelza into his arms, he felt a sharp stab to his left arm, forgetting he had injured himself. He ignored the pain, he had been through war, this was nothing, his mind was focused on the life of his wife.
The rain continued, and the wind soared, he carried her into the nearest cave, sheltering them from the elements.
Ross leaned over Demelza's seemingly lifeless body. Her face was pale, and lips blue. It reminded him of the last time his wife had faced such peril, when they had lost their Julia. Pain ripped through Ross' chest.
He pulled at the remaining laces on Demelza's corsette, releasing her from the last of its hold, "please my love, breathe" " I'm so sorry" Ross' felt the water dripping from his hair onto her face as he leaned over her.
He shook her shoulders, " Please Demelza,hear me"
he stroked her hair out of her face, as he did this he saw blood on his fingertips, he noticed cuts and little streams of blood tracing down behind her ear and along her jaw.
He cried out "NO! Please do not leave me!" he sat her up lifting her underneath the arms and craddled her into his chest, her head fell onto his shoulders. he hugged her gently, and wept.
"Tis all my fault, look what I have done to you," Ross absorbed in grieve lifted her head to his and kissed her on the lips.
he prolonged this kiss willing life back into her, he was not a praying man, but he prayed for her to feel his touch, urging her to open her eyes.
He felt Demelza's body jerk involuntarily in his arms. he saddened, this is what Julia's last moments felt like.  He waited for her to go still. But instead, felt a bubbling rising up her back beneath his hands, Demelza began to groan and cough, water spewed of her mouth, in what seemed like torrents. Ross jumped round to her side, rubbing and patting her back, whilst keeping her in his embrace. Demelza weakly opened her eyes disorientated and nauseous.
"Oh my darling! Your alive!" Ross held her up taking her weight.
Demelza spluttered and let out a faint groan.
" Pray, do not speak, or startle yourself, I am here, I am here" he reassured her.
Demelza fell back into his arms,   exhausted and dishevelled. Ross took her in his arms, and watched as her chest rose and fell. she was breathing, she was alive. Battered, but she had came back to him. God knows why. i dont deserve her. A passing thought echoed. The rainstorm still claiming it's hold on the bay, he knew regardless he would need to get home and tend to her wounds.
He strode out into the downpour, his clothes so sodden he felt no longer affected by the rain, grateful that he was taking his wife home. Alive.
He found the straying horse Demelza had rode on it was startled and frightful of the storm " Easy girl," he said as he took the reigns. He walked to meet where he had left Darkie posted. A faithful horse, stood strong against the elements, he lifted Demelza and used the saddle buckles to rest her in place. he mounted Darkie sitting behind Demelza.
With his arm tightly wrapped her, he rode home to Nampara.