The Girl by the Thames

by Peter Boland

  Everyone in the boat cheered.

  The whale’s thrashing became more intense as he struggled to get to what he thought was his mother. The rioters tried to get away but the water was much deeper now, hampering their progress. Every time the whale convulsed it sent out another wave, knocking them off balance. Rioters trampled over each other to reach the safety of the ramp and their terrified screams rang out in every direction.

  “Whale: one. Humans: nil,” said Greg.

  “I can’t believe he’s still alive,” said Tanya.

  “Ah, he’s a tough lad, that one,” Greg replied.

  The whale’s movements were getting more violent as his massive body pounded the shoreline. It was painful to watch his gigantic body flailing around uselessly. He’d heroically banished all his attackers but didn’t have the strength to move any further. The mud bank still had him imprisoned.

  “Hold this, Tanya,” Greg said, handing her the cable to the underwater speaker. “Don’t let go, whatever you do and keep the speaker submerged.”

  Tanya nodded and kept her eyes focused on the job. Greg climbed to the front of the boat and started the engine.

  “What are you doing?” asked Rog.

  “Giving him some more encouragement.” Greg gently opened the throttle, moving them slowly downstream. “If he thinks his mother is swimming away, it might give him the motivation he needs.”

  “I think he’s going for it,” said Tanya.

  What seemed like chaotic movement before had now settled into a rhythm. The whale’s mighty tail slapped down hard again and again, sending thunderous booms out across the water. The effect sent a wave through his body, the force of it raising his head momentarily, gradually nudging him forward.

  “He’s moving,” said Rog. “Slowly, but he’s definitely moving.”

  “Come on, big fella,” said Tanya. “You can do it.”

  The tide was much higher now and surrounded his body. With every movement there was an explosion of white water and spray. Then suddenly it all stopped. The thrashing ceased and the river went calm. Just the bulge of his head could be seen peeping out above the water.

  “Why isn’t he moving?” Tanya asked. “He was doing really well.”

  “He could be resting,” said Rog. “Poor thing must be exhausted.”

  Greg stopped the boat and cut the engine. He turned to look. “That probably took everything out of him,” he said, “especially as he was already stressed and dehydrated.”

  “What, you mean, that just killed him?” Tanya snapped.

  “I didn’t say that.”

  “Well, why isn’t he moving?”

  “I can’t see him anymore,” Lena said.

  The tide was at its highest and had completely submerged the whale. All they could see was an area of calm where before it had been a maelstrom of colliding water.

  They waited, hoping to see some sign of life but nothing stirred. It had only been a minute or two but it seemed like hours had passed.

  Rog put his hand on Tanya’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, Tanya.”

  “What? Why?”

  “Once the tide covers his blowhole, he’ll drown if he can’t keep it above the water line,”

  “No, that’s impossible, he’s a whale. Whale’s don’t drown.”

  “I’m afraid they do,” said Greg. He stepped away from the wheel of the boat and knelt down. “Come on, Tanya. We gave it our best shot.”

  “Well our best shot was rubbish.”

  “We tried and did the best with what we had. And that’s all you can do.”

  Tanya went numb. She was angry and upset at the same time. The two emotions cancelled each other out, so she sat in a kind of negative equilibrium, staring blankly across the river. Somehow she felt to blame for all this. It was crazy to think that anything she was involved in would be a success. She’d always been a loser and had probably jinxed the whole thing. It felt like she had killed the whale just by being there.

  The boat went silent. Nobody knew what to say.

  “We need to get moving,” said Lena, slightly dazed. She was at the back and had stood up and moved into the centre of the boat. Everyone else ignored her. “Did anyone hear me? We need to get out of here.”

  “Oh shut up, Lena.” said Tanya, “is that all you can think about, getting home?”

  “No, not that. He’s heading straight for us.”

  Everyone looked. There was a subtle disturbance in the water, a distortion in the surface, as if a small submerged island moved towards them.

  “Hold on to something,” Greg shouted, as he leapt to the wheel and fired up the engine. “Gotta move or he could capsize us.”

  The boat pulled away as the dark shape closed in on them. Tanya held the underwater speaker tightly, the dark mass of the whale moved behind them as if pulled by an invisible cord.

  “He’s still following,” said Tanya, hysterically.

  “Lena, well done, eagle eyes,” said Greg. “We’re going to take him all the way out to sea.” Lena allowed herself a little smile. It was first time anyone grown up had praised her for doing something right. She sat down next to Tanya at the side of the boat. Spray flicked in their faces but neither of them cared.

  Tanya gave her friend a punch on the arm. “Nice one, Lena. I told you he was awesome, didn’t I.”

  “Is he following us because of that sound?”

  “Yep,” said Rog.

  “And it’s all thanks to Tanya,” said Greg.

  “Really?” said Lena.

  “I didn’t do nothing, it was Greg’s idea.”

  “Yeah, but you gave me the inspiration. It’s true.”

  Tanya felt uncomfortable taking the credit; she felt like she didn’t deserve it. But it was a nice feeling, knowing someone wanted to acknowledge her part in this, no matter how miniscule she thought it was.

  The boat snaked its way around the Thames towards the sea, serenaded by the buzz of the engine and the melancholy whale song. It was this bizarre sound track that accompanied them as they passed rows and rows of warehouses and ridiculously expensive apartment buildings. The whale kept pace with the boat, beckoned on by the call of its surrogate mother. Lena tried to film it but her phone was soaked and had stopped working.

  “Here, use mine,” said Rog, handing her his phone. “I’ll send it to you and you can stick it on New Tube or whatever it’s called.”

  Tanya and Lena laughed. “It’s Youtube, Rog,” said Tanya. Rog just grumbled.

  Greg proudly radioed the London Port Authority to alert all watercraft that they were escorting the whale down the Thames and out to sea. He said they were doing 10 knots. Tanya had no idea how fast that was; she didn’t care, as long as the whale could keep up. It was getting harder and harder to see him so Rog pulled out a couple of powerful torches from a compartment near the steering wheel. He took one and gave the other to Lena. They shone them off the back of the boat, illuminating the whale’s glossy back as it followed them through the water.

  Soon they had left the City of London and Rog showed off his geographical knowledge, informing them of Essex to the north and Kent to the south. He pointed out each town as they passed it: Tilbury, Gravesend, Canvey Island; Tanya had heard of them but had never set foot outside of the Woolwich area, and the only time she’d ever done that was if there was the promise of free beers and a party. She realised just how much other stuff there was out there and how little she’d seen of it.

  As they left Canvey Island behind, the river widened into the estuary. The water had been smooth and fairly calm in the Thames but now it became dishevelled with small waves. Water flung itself at the side of the boat from every angle. Some came over the side, drenching them and giving them the shivers. They weren’t bothered by it. Nothing mattered apart from getting the whale away from the Thames and back to where he belonged. The waves became larger and larger as they passed the twinkling lights of Southend on Sea until finally they were in open water. The front of the boat sta
rted rising and falling, like they were on a roller coaster.

  “Welcome to the North Sea,” said Greg. “Lovely isn’t it.” Greg started singing some weird sea shanty, like a demented pirate. He was clearly enjoying the whole experience.

  “Girls, you better put these on,” Rog said handing them a life jacket each. “I can’t believe I let you get in a boat without putting on a lifejacket.”

  “Don’t worry, Rog,” Tanya said, patting his arm. “It’s been quite a night.”

  “Are you girls cold?” asked Greg.

  “We’re toasty,” Tanya said sarcastically.

  “I’m fucking freezing,” said Lena.

  “Sorry about that. Not far now, said Greg. “Hold tight.”

  The swell slapped the boat around from side to side. The whale swam beneath the water now, and only emerged every so often to take another gargantuan breath. Each time he did, Tanya’s shoulders relaxed, relieved that he hadn’t turned around and headed back up toward the Thames.

  “We should turn back soon,” Rog said to Greg, wiping the spray from his face. “Otherwise we won’t have enough fuel to get back.”

  “Agreed. Once we’re about 12 miles north east of Margate, we’ll be in deeper water. Hopefully that’ll be far enough for him to get his bearings.”

  They ploughed on and on through the ragged black sea that spat water at them from every angle. It terrified and thrilled Tanya simultaneously. She’d never seen the sea before let alone been on a boat. It was vast and wild, empty and alien. The only thing between her and death was a thin shell of fibreglass, an inflated tube and the life jacket she wore on her back. This was the whale’s territory and now they were the ones who didn’t belong. Like being on the edge of a cliff, Tanya had that weird urge to throw herself in. Where it came from she had no idea. There was something mesmerising about the sea, as it slid past the boat.

  Greg suddenly told Tanya to turn the ipod off.

  “What’s happening?” she asked. “Is he still behind us?”

  “Don’t know, can’t see him. I just don’t want him following us back to London when we turn around.”

  Just as Tanya looked toward the back of the boat, the whale broke the surface of the water right behind them. Lena and Rog found him with the beams of their torches. This time he didn’t dive back under but followed them with his huge back rising up through the water.

  “I think he’s getting closer,” said Lena.

  Greg opened up the throttle to outrun him but the whale had the drop on them, flying towards them fast like a black ghost. “I think he’s going to hit us,” shouted Rog. Tanya was now glad Rog had made her put on a lifejacket.

  “Everyone, hold on.” Greg cut the engine. The impact was imminent and he didn’t want to risk injuring the whale on the propeller. Tanya held the side of the boat tightly but didn’t take her eyes off the whale. She braced herself for the collision.

  Just as he was about to hit, the whale suddenly arched like a coil of giant black cable and dove straight down to the bottom. As the rest of its body followed through, the huge tail rose up into the air momentarily, inches away from the engine, like vast black angel’s wings.

  Tanya let go of the speaker, leapt up and hung off the end of the boat, her arm outstretched. She managed to reach out and let her fingertips slide against the silky surface of its tail as it descended into the depths.

  “Tanya, no!” shouted Greg.

  As the whale submerged, the force tipped the back of the boat down, then up again, violently seesawing. Tanya lost her footing and slipped, but Greg just managed to get to her and grab her by her life jacket. He pulled her back in, and they collapsed in a heap.

  “You could’ve been pulled down with the whale. What were you thinking?”

  Despite nearly drowning, Tanya looked pleased with herself. “I just wanted to say goodbye and touch him for the last time.”

  They looked around, scanning the surface of the water for signs of the whale, but there were none.

  “I think he’s gone,” said Rog.

  Tanya allowed a tear to escape from her eye. Nobody saw it because it mingled with the spray covering her face. She’d never see him again or touch that wonderfully glossy body. But there was no point feeling sorry for herself. He was back where he belonged. She wondered what he was thinking right now as he dove down, letting all that ocean embrace him? Relief? Freedom? Or perhaps anxiety? He’d been duped by a recording. Was he swimming around down there, desperately trying to find a mother that never really existed? It had saved his life, but had it also condemned him? Would he forever be searching for her? Tanya knew that feeling well. It was a pain that never went away and it ached like an amputated limb.

  Lena put her arm around her as they crouched in the boat.

  “So how was your Free Willy moment?”

  “Shut up,” said Tanya rather too harshly. In all the drama, she had forgotten what Lena had been through tonight. “Sorry, I didn’t mean that. How are you doing?”

  “Well, I’m soaking wet and my phone don’t work, but apart from that, good.” There was no mention of the shooting or what happened in the lock up. Maybe it was best not to go there. “Tan?” Lena whispered.

  “Yeah.”

  “Will you stay round mine tonight?”

  “Of course I will.”

  Their conversation was suddenly cut short as Greg interrupted. “Er, Tanya, where’s the ipod and the underwater speaker?”

  “Oh bollocks, I think let go of it, when …”

  “When you had your Free Willy moment,” Greg said, winking at Lena.

  “I’ll pay you back, I swear.” Tanya said.

  “So you mean to say, my all-time best ever play list, including Simple Minds Greatest Hits, is now heading to the bottom of the sea?”

  “What’s Simple Minds?” asked Lena.

  “Only the best band in the whole world,” Greg replied.

  “I’m so sorry, Greg.” Tanya said.

  “I’m not,” said Rog, “Simple Minds are terrible. Now Genesis, that’s a band.”

  “Oh please,” said Greg, “Genesis are shite. Don’t listen to him girls, he’s talking out of his arse. Come on let’s go home and I’ll tell you why Simple Minds are the best band in the world. For a start, they’re from Scotland.”

  Chapter 20

  When they arrived back in Woolwich, Greg was relieved to see his car hadn’t been torched and turn upside down. The riot had swept through like a tsunami. Cars had been set alight, bins thrown through shop windows and bricks and broken glass were scattered everywhere. The rioters had disappeared and Woolwich was back under the control of the police.

  Rog returned the boat to its mooring while Greg gave the girls a lift back to Lena’s place.

  “I’m going home now to sleep for a week,” he said just before driving off.

  Lena pushed open the front door to the flat. A second later her mum clamped her arms around both of them in a massive hug.

  “I was worried sick about you,” she said, breaking off her embrace to light a cigarette. “I thought you’d both been killed in those riots.”

  Lena went to speak but Tanya beat her to it:

  “Oh no, we were miles away from them in a boat, taking the whale back out to sea.”

  “A boat? Oh no wonder I couldn’t get through, I’ve been calling your mobiles all night.”

  “They don’t work, anyway,” said Lena, pulling hers out of her pocket. “They got soaked.”

  Her mum took them both by the hand and dragged them into the flat, squeezing and kissing them as they went. “I’m just glad to have you back. Now let’s get you out of those wet things. Are you hungry?”

  They spent the next hour wrapped in pyjamas and dressing gowns, sitting on the sofa with trays across their laps eating mouthfuls of spaghetti on toast. Lena’s mum flicked through the TV channels to catch different reports on the riots. Lena shifted uneasily, almost making the tray slide off her legs.

  “Mum,
could we watch something else? This is doing my head in.”

  “Okay, let Tanya decide. She’s our guest.”

  “Is there anything about the whale?” Tanya asked.

  “Yeah,” Lena joined in. Her mum searched and searched but there was nothing. The whale had been overshadowed by the riots.

  “Maybe they’ve got bigger fish to fry,” Lena’s mum said, attempting a joke. Tanya smiled politely but Lena didn’t. “Right, I’m off to bed now I know you two are safe.”

  When her mum was gone, Lena got up and turned off the TV. She went to her room and returned with a bottle of vodka.

  “It’s no good, Tan,” she said. “I’ve got to get lashed. My head’s messed up. I keep seeing that boy get shot. It won’t go away.”

  Tanya snatched the bottle out her hand before she could get the top off.

  “Gimme that back.” Lena jumped up and tried to grab it, but Tanya kept it out of her reach, holding it high above her head.

  “I will give it back. I promise I’m not going to stop you drinking, just listen to me first.”

  Lena stopped and flopped back down onto the sofa, arms folded. “Well?”

  “Drinking will block it out for now, but once you’ve sobered up it’ll come back ten times worse.”

  “So I’ll just keep drinking.”

  “Really? And what happens when you run out?”

  “I’ll figure it out, now hand it over.”

  Tanya tossed her the bottle. Lena cracked it open and took three large gulps. It was followed by a long harsh wheeze and several hacking coughs. She put the lid back on and threw the bottle on the sofa beside her.

  “I don’t know what I’m doing, I don’t even like vodka.”

  Tanya sat beside her. “I think you’re still in shock that’s all.”