Fatal Tide - Iris Johansen [67]
“He means it, Melis,” Nicholas said. “If that whistle you wear will do any good, you'd better start using it.”
She shook her head in despair. “Nothing will do any good if they don't want to come.”
“You want me to do a little shaman magic?”
“No, but a prayer might help.”
“No problem. Christian, Hindu, or Buddhist? I don't have any influence in any of the other religions.” His hand touched her shoulder in comfort. “You should remember that old saying about as the tree is bent, so it will grow. The dolphins have affection for you. They won't forget.”
“They're not here.” She shook her head. “But they will be. I just have to be patient.”
At noon the dolphins had still not come.
Nor had they shown by two-thirty.
At three-fifteen a huge explosion of water broke five feet from where Melis stood at the rail.
Pete!
He clicked loudly and rapidly as he backpedaled and then dove into the sea.
“Where's Susie?” Kelby had run to stand beside Melis. “I don't see her.”
Neither did Melis. But Pete wouldn't have left Susie.
“Over here.” Nicholas was on the opposite side of the ship. “Is that a dolphin or a shark out there?”
Melis ran to the rail. A dorsal fin was homing toward them, a dorsal with a V in the center. “Susie.”
Her head jutted out of the water and she clicked furiously at Melis as if trying to tell what had happened to her.
Then Pete was beside her, urging Susie closer to the ship.
“It's about time you got here. I've been waiting for—” Melis broke off. “She's hurt. Look at her dorsal.” She dove off the ship into the water. As soon as Melis's head broke the surface she was calling to the dolphin. “Closer, Susie.”
“What the hell are you doing?” Kelby asked. “Get back on board and suit up.”
“I want to take a look at it first and see if we need to get her out of the water. If it's bleeding, it'll attract sharks.”
“And you'll be dinner.”
“Hush, I'm busy.” She examined the dorsal. “If it was bleeding, it's stopped now. I think she's okay.” She swam around Susie, checking her out. “No other wounds.” She patted Susie on the nose. “See what happens when you go honky-tonking out on the town?”
Kelby threw her a line. “Get out of the water.”
She caressed Pete's nose, then grabbed the line and headed for the ladder. “Nicholas, get them some fish, will you?”
“Right away.”
He was tossing herring into the water by the time she reached the deck. She took the towel Kelby handed her and stood drying off while she watched Pete and Susie devour the fish. She couldn't stop smiling.
“It's good to have them back,” Kelby said. “I never imagined I could become so attached to a couple of dolphins. I was beginning to feel like the father of a delinquent teenager.”
“What a concept.” Melis went back to the rail and stood looking down at Pete and Susie. “Maybe they had reason to be delinquent. I think that was an abrasion, not a bite, on Susie's dorsal.”
“And that means?”
“Other dolphins often express their displeasure by rubbing against invaders. They're not gentle. There's a possibility Pete and Susie weren't welcomed enthusiastically. It could be that they had some interaction problems to work out before they felt comfortable about leaving the band.”
“They're here now.” His gaze lifted to the sky. “But they only have four or five hours until sunset. Will they leave again?”
“I think so. Unless they had a really rough time and are scared. But they don't look scared. They're blessedly normal. And if they came back once, they'll do it again.”
“How do you know?”
“They remember the pattern we formed six years ago.”
“And they like you,” Nicholas said over his shoulder.
She grinned. “Hell, yes, they like me.”
“So what do we do next?” Kelby asked.
“As soon as Nicholas finishes feeding them, I suit up and let them get used to swimming with me in these waters.”
“I said we. They're going to have to get used to me in the water too.” He raised his hand when she started to protest. “I'm not going to be like Lontana and harass them. You call the