A major rescue is in progress, involving both the team (Sean, Jessie, JD) and the Coast Guard. The CG helicopter hover over the water while a woman is hoisted into the rescue basket. Another woman, about to be rescued, is hysterical because her 270 pound hus-band is still in the water. Sean and JD find him face down and begin immediate CPR. The Rescue Swimmer, NICK MONTGOMERY, gets the woman into the basket. The man is too big, though, so a strop sling is lowered. The Flight mechanic tells JD and Sean to raise the man’s arm. Because they are unfamiliar with the procedure, they raise the wrong arm and the man tips over, flailing to regain his balance. Worse, the victim starts spinning in the prop wash-upside down! Sean and Nick redo the strap and the man is hoisted into the helicopter. Because the chopper is crowded, Nick will come back with the team. He climbs aboard the scarab and is immediately smitten with Allie.
Back at headquarters, JD offers to massage Kekoa’s leg. She has a terrible cramp. At just the wrong moment, Jessie walks in and sees what’s going on. She immediately jumps to the wrong conclusion. Things are not helped when Dawn insinuates that Kekoa probably faked the leg cramp. Still smarting over this, Jessie walks by Sean’s office, where she sees him hanging a picture of a naked Polynesian woman swimming in a shimmering ocean. She is offended by the picture, but Sean explains how Polynesians often swim naked as a purification ritual. He does so himself. Jessie looks at the painting again, fas-cinated.
At a ranch, Tanner and Mitch meet with MONA, a Hawaiian woman who is helping them plan their day’s itinerary. She tells them about Shark Island and its legend: a man, MANO KEALANI, lost his son, KAI, an expert swimmer who had disappeared during a swim to Shark Island. Since that time, he has lived on Shark Island and plans to stay there until he gets a sign that his son is at peace. She remembers this happening when she was about Tanner’s age. Mitch and Tanner take a dugout to the island, knowing this will be the best trip ever. Mitch wants to tell Tanner something, but realizes the timing is not right.
The team gets together to discuss what went wrong with the rescue. Sean points out all the problems that occurred because the team wasn’t aware of all the CG’s tricks of the trade. He says that they will train with them the next day. Over the water, the team is lowered one by one to see what a rescue is like from a variety of positions. They learn how to jump into the correct part of the wave; how to stop their harness from spinning; and how to stay out of the helicopter’s wake. There is only one position, Sean says, that they have not learned. Jason is quick to say that they don’t know how the victim feels. Sean says that Jason is right: until they know what the victim feels, they won’t be fully prepared.
Mitch and Tanner set up camp, swim, hike and explore the island. Tanner sees some movement in the bushes and insists it’s the man from the legends. Mitch agrees to inves-tigate, but they find nothing. They eat during magic hour, and watch as a storm brews on the horizon. Mitch tries to broach the subject of the kid who was stabbed in school, but the timing doesn’t seem to be right. Unbeknownst to them, someone seems to be watch-ing from afar. Could it be Mano, the man who lost his son? Later that evening, Tanner thinks/dreams he sees a shadow creeping over them.
JD is increasingly unable to take the way Jessie is behaving towards him. Finally, he confronts her. She suggests that they might have been moving too fast in their relation-ship, and perhaps they should “cool it” for a while. Kekoa overhears them and tells JD she never had any intention of breaking up his relationship. For the time being, they should just consider themselves as friends. JD has gone from someone with two women to someone who is suddenly alone! Dawn, who has observed the whole thing, licks her lips liciviously.
Sean goes out on the deck to enjoy the evening. He sees Jessie walk to the water and, obviously remembering what he said about the picture, strip off her clothes and start swimming. Suddenly, a surfer starts screaming for help. Jessie, naked, realizes she must perform a rescue that way!
Sean sees what is happening and immediately dives into the water himself. Jessie is able to grab the surfer and bring him to the surface, just as Sean drives by in the IRB. Sean casually tosses her the swimsuit. The Surfer, realizing Jessie was naked, comments on how it’s like a great dream. Sean collars him and reminds him that Jessie saved his life, and, if he knows what’s good for him, he had better keep his mouth shut.
Mitch and Tanner are asleep. A gnarled hand comes near Tanner and brushes his face. It is Mano. He whispers to Tanner to not be afraid. Tanner tells the old man he knows of his son, and all his son wants is peace. Mano says he feels he has found peace. Mitch bolts awake. Mano is gone, but Tanner insists he saw him. The next morning, Mitch and Tanner go for a hike. Mitch almost eats poisonous berries, but Tanner stops him at the last minute. Mitch asks him about the knife fight. Tanner confesses that the fight was over him: two rival gangs each want him to join. Mitch doesn’t understand why Tanner feels he has to join either group. Tanner feels that Mitch just doesn’t understand. Mitch, though, says that the two of them can fight the gang problem together.
While launching jet skis, JD and Dawn have a chance to talk: she confesses that women like to change the rules on men because they know if they don’t, they fear men will view them as interchangeable.
Jason immediately volunteers to be the “victim” in the next stage of training. Sean knows that he must give the young man a real test, so he has Jason wear a set of blacked out goggles. Jason cannot see where they are going or what they re going to do. The Rescue Swimmer then lowers Jason onto a thin ridge on a cliff. The helicopter takes off. Jason is cocky at first, but after being alone for a while, he begins to get nervous. What he does not realize is that the other lifeguards are in rescue vehicles in the water under the cliffs, and Sean is hanging suspended from a rappelling line. Sean watches Jason’s be-havior very closely, seeing what the young man will do.
Tanner is determined to find proof that Mano was with them. He thinks he sees some-thing and runs up ahead. Mitch hears Tanner scream and say he has seen Mano. Mitch believes him. It is now getting darker. Jason is starting to really feel like a victim. He yells out to Sean, suspecting that he is somewhere near. But he refuses to take off the goggles. He starts moving along the side of the cliff, to see if there is any place to sit or any other way down. Sean, seeing there might be trouble, lowers himself on the rappelling line so he can catch Jason if he falls. Jason comes to the edge of his ledge and reaches for a hand hold. The rock pulls free and falls, banging Sean in the head. Jason hears Sean groan, and knows that Sean has been there all along. At first, he thinks Sean is still testing him, but Sean asks him for help. Jason removes his goggles and climbs down to get Sean. He picks up Sean’s radio and calls the rescue helicopter back to help them.
Tanner and Mitch are ready to leave Shark Island. On their way out, Tanner sees the old man waving at him. Tanner waves back. Mitch and Tanner agree that they can face the problems of the gangs together.
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