by Marx, J. A.
Akiko groaned his exasperation at having to keep up the religious front. For all their sakes. “We’re vacationing from church.”
“But not from truth.” Sabio’s integrity scuffed his nerves. “‘People knew God but wouldn’t worship Him as God. When they began thinking up foolish ideas of what He was like, their minds became dark and confused.’”
Desperate to get out of the sauna-like boathouse, Akiko scanned the wall for the pump. “What does this have to do with Hope?”
“‘Claiming to be wise, they instead became fools.’” Sabio leaned against the shelves, staring at him. “‘They started worshiping idols made to look like people, birds, animals, reptiles.’ Like the scarab beetle I found at the falls.”
Sticky with perspiration, Akiko scratched at the tingly beetle beneath his shirt. “Where is the air pump?”
“‘God abandoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. So they did vile and degrading things with each other’s bodies. They traded the truth about God for a lie and worshiped things—’”
“Okay!” Akiko smacked a shelf. “Amen. I got it.”
Sabio pointed out the inflator in front of his face. “I don’t think you do.”
This vacation is killing me. He blew out a long breath and seized the pump. They turned the large white raft around to where he could inflate it. “I wanna tell you what’s going on. But I … need to think through the consequences.”
Sabio thumped his own chest with his fist, the Foursome’s gesture of commitment and loyalty. “I’ll be here.”
Nausea hit. Akiko wiped his brow. Life hates me.
Chapter 34
Hope awoke, startled by the excessive amount of sunlight, yet not surprised that she’d overslept. Last night, Isaac had asked her to be his friend. He said his soiled shirt could be replaced but their relationship couldn’t. This profound philosophy had stumbled around in her mind, keeping her awake while it searched for a foothold.
Wrapping the sheet around her shoulders, she scurried over to the kitchen stove. Ten o’clock. Where was everybody?
The glass door opened. “Morning, princess.” Jase and his guitar walked past. “You two are on yer own for eats. I’ll wake up Ize.”
Princess? Surely, she misunderstood the greeting.
She fastened the sheet around her like a toga then pulled two plates out of the cupboard and popped two bagels in the four-slot toaster.
The dime on the counter caught her eye. LIBERTY … IN GOD WE TRUST. Ohio sounded more and more like a place she wanted to be. A utopia.
She had to wonder if amnesia had created the noxious flask. Was the memory shortage causing her mind to fabricate miserable sensations and impressions? Could she be linking these ominous delusions to her past out of a fear of not knowing what awaited her? How freeing, if this were true.
Isaac staggered up to the kitchen counter, rubbing his eyes and yawning. He smiled at breakfast. “Good grief.” He trotted back to the bunkroom and returned with Charlie Brown.
Cool. Hope bagged the last bagel and tossed it on the counter. Sliding both plates across to Isaac, she walked around and stood next to him and the comic book.
Racing with GI Jane down the shaded footpath, Isaac burst onto the sundrenched beach. He met up with Jase and Akiko transporting the six-passenger raft past the helipad. Sabio tailgated them, carrying the outboard motor in one hand and the fishing tackle in the other. Isaac sent Hope ahead with the fishing rods while he grabbed five orange lifejackets from the boathouse.
He hurried down shore. “Hold up a sec.” Sliding the first jacket off his arm, Isaac handed it to Sabio who’d just finished attaching the motor to the transom.
“Ahhh man.” Jase whined. “We all know how to swim.”
Isaac threw him a jacket. “Wear it or you’re not going.”
Sabio snickered. “Is the Cay’s lifeguard nervous around water?”
“I’m not taking chances in the open sea.” After tossing a jacket to Akiko, Isaac shook the last one at Hope. “I’d make you wear two if I could.”
Thrusting an arm through each sleeve, she rolled her eyes. “Do all lifeguards impose this inconvenient treatment upon females?”
“It’s not for your safety.” Isaac briskly zipped up the front of her jacket. “It’s for my peace-of-mind.” He offered her a hand into the raft.
She clutched his wrist and boarded. “You’re spoiling me.” Her sassy tone compensated for the polite smile.
I know you appreciate me. Isaac liked watching her blush.
Once she was seated, he took a spot at the bow, ready to catch the wind in his face.
Sabio and Jase sat in the middle.
In the back with Hope, Akiko steered them out to sea and paralleled the coastline eastward. He killed the motor at the point opposite Turtle’s Head. The raft drifted, gently bobbing. Circling the island in the helicopter four days ago, Mr. Fletcher had indicated this spot as the ideal fishing hole.
The sun reflecting off the mild swells practically blinded Isaac as he straddled the raft’s tubular side. Should’ve worn shades. He grabbed one of the rods and the bait carton, hoping this boring chore would pass quickly.
“Fins approaching from ten o’clock.” Sabio’s unnerving announcement made Isaac yank his foot out of the water.
He aligned his gaze with the scholar’s pointing finger.
Akiko appeared between them, breathing fretfully. “Do you think they’re sharks?”
“Can’t tell.” Isaac considered turning back, postponing this outing. Another mishap might drive his nerves beyond their peak of resistance.
Hearing a splash behind him, he whipped around. His heart imploded at the sight of GI Jane pushing away from the raft.
Jase lunged partway over the side, grabbing at her ankle and missing.
The raft tipped.
Isaac countered the reckless maneuver. “Don’t panic. You’ll flip us.” He shoved the fishhook back into the cork grip. “Hope! Get in the raft!”
“Join me! The water is superb.” Where was her brain?
Snapping his gaze back and forth between the orange-jacketed bait and the fins, he crawled to the outboard, which Akiko should’ve been actively attending. Isaac yanked the starter rope but got only a deadened gurgle.
Sabio picked up an oar and paddled toward Hope. Jase did the same. Movement was slow.
No emergency radio. No sickbay.
Why is she doing this to me? “Get back here! They might be sharks.” Isaac ordered the restless threesome to stay in the raft. “One casualty is enough.”
Daring him to jump in after her, Hope swam several yards before treading water.
The fins disappeared.
Visions of chomped-off feet and mauled legs pelted Isaac with fear. He yanked the fickle starter rope again.
Another gurgle.
A gray beak popped up near Hope.
“They’re not sharks!” She glided her fingers across a dolphin’s back as if she’d been expecting them.
Nearly weeping, Isaac forced his stomach to retreat from his throat. Behind him, the threesome supplied a banquet of groans and moans.
“Stank,” Jase’s voice quivered. “Gotta admit our princess has spunk.”
Spunk was an understatement. Isaac flipped the shift lever to neutral. “That woman’s gonna give me a coronary before sundown.”
“Warned you,” Akiko muttered.
Only Sabio’s eyes showed empathy. “Don’t forget Who’s really in control here, Ize.”
A reluctant confession of weakness made it to Isaac’s lips. “Not me.” He stood and would remain standing as long as the intrepid amnesiac was in the water.
Jase slapped a leg. “I’ve got it. She’s a mermaid. Wait ’til her fins pop out.” Only a Simon cracked jokes at a time like this.
Isaac shaded his eyes and scouted for enemy fins.
Akiko snorted. “That’s the ticket, McFly. Why don’t you ask her? Maybe it’ll spark a memory.”
> “Hey, princess!” Jase shouted. “Kiko wants to know if you’re really a lost mermaid and we just haven’t seen your fins yet.”
“Loser.” Akiko whacked him upside the head.
Isaac stiffened his lip, determined not to smile at the comical bantering.
Dramatically placing her hands on her head, Hope sported a mischievous smirk. “You’re right, Kiko. I am a mermaid. And look!” She pointed in the water. “I have fins.”
She removed her lifejacket.
Grunting in protest, Isaac wished he had a life hook to snare the mermaid.
A dolphin rolled over and let Hope grasp both pectoral fins. Belly-to-belly, human and fish started gliding across the water.
I’m trippin’ out. Isaac rubbed the trickery from his eyes. He’d seen her make motions with her hand that must have been cues, like the signals he gave his Golden to make her sit or lay.
Jase chuckled. “Type in awesome sense of humor on her character list.”
The aquatic performance redefined surreal. Inching the corner of his mouth into a smile, Isaac secretly savored her latest and most captivating talent. Her sense of adventure had a gravitational pull.
Rascal Jane, shrieking blissfully, circled the raft twice and dismounted where the dolphin had picked her up. “See? I even swim like a mermaid.”
Slipping back into her lifejacket, she swam to the raft. Her nose poked over the edge, and she eyed each companion. Except Isaac.
Sabio reached out to help her in. “People don’t just do that spontaneously. How did you?”
She stayed put. “Not sure. Who’s next?”
“No!” Isaac skipped reprimanding her for abandoning ship since her mischievous mug showed sufficient guilt. “One person in the ocean is enough.”
She singled Jase out with a sharp stare. “By the way, why do you call me princess?”
Jase’s cheeks reddened. “Beee-cause you’re the only girl on the island?”
The royal title tickled Isaac, even though he thought her unladylike mannerisms conflict—“Whoa!” He ducked at an explosion of movement off the stern.
A dolphin leaped in an arc as high as his head. Two others danced in the water.
They’re huge. He marveled at the display of strength. Hearing Hope giggle, he turned back around—and bristled at the sight of his best friend in the water with her. “Jase! What the heck are you doing?”
“I’m enjoying my vacation.” He swam away, and the dolphin trio followed.
Isaac growled reprimands too rude to speak.
“Don’t have a cow.” Sabio situated himself in the middle. “They’ve got lifejackets. They’re not that far away.” The scholar struck a rational cord.
Realizing his emotions had fallen into pandemonium, Isaac reclaimed control. He had to think straight to handle emergencies. So what if Jase wanted to enjoy the ocean? With Hope. Alone.
But no one else. Isaac folded his arms.
“Anything else bothering you, Ize?” Sabio raised an eyebrow as if hinting at a specific issue.
Akiko’s copycat expression implied agreement.
Did they know something Isaac didn’t? Examine your feelings, Sabio had advised yesterday.
Isaac fired his gaze back to the mermaid-princess at play. Intense pleasure verged on affection. His heart soared to the clouds then plummeted in crisis. Why had she invited his best friend and not him?
What was Jase thinking anyway, participating in her mischief?
I am her lifeguard. Isaac had motives of protection. He had not forgotten their purpose here. Their noble mission. That’s why her defiance bothered him. It was a security issue.
Shifting his feet on the hot rubber, he considered ordering the rebels to return.
“No way.” Akiko sounded envious. “I bet J-boy is gonna ride a dolphin.” He and Sabio glanced disapprovingly at Isaac.
Shrugging in a way that vetoed further disobedience, he realized they were only staying put to honor him.
What if she invited them out next, but not Isaac?
J-boy had better drag the rascally mermaid back to the raft soon. If he didn’t, Isaac would have to … think up some penalty.
Chapter 35
Temptation knocked, and Jase couldn’t resist. He slithered out of the raft while the dolphins distracted his friends. Happy to sponge up rays instead of hook fish, he’d deal later with the safetyman’s killjoy attitude.
Sea World, in the flesh. He couldn’t believe he was actually swimming with dolphins. “They’re so friendly. What kind are they?”
“Bottlenose. And I think they’re hunting for food.” Hope winked at him. “They crave musicians in red trunks.”
Jase faked fear, embellishing with shivers. “I think I’ll head b-back to the raft now.”
“Can’t out swim them.”
“Mom!” A belch spoiled his panic act.
Busting out with contagious laughter, Hope revved his fun engine. She had a gazillion friends somewhere. A person with her sense of humor and playfulness never had a weekend night free.
Rejecting his initial theory about her difficulty at making friends, Jase tagged her clumsy beginnings as a side effect of trauma. And he hated admitting it, but her amazing beauty intimidated him. A first, in his book.
Or maybe it was the mysterious bubble of innocence encasing Hope that struck him with fear. A fear of violating her. Yet darkness hung on her as equally as the bubble did—darkness and light co-existing.
He shook the mystic weirdness from his mind. “How can you tell they’re hunting?”
“Because there are so few of them. They often break off into smaller units to search for supper.” She stroked a passing dolphin. Effortlessly. As if she were one of them.
Wanting the same intimacy, Jase lunged at the creatures. They darted away with presto speed.
“You’re trying too hard.” Hope instructed him to hold his arms out and let his fingers touch their backs if any came close enough. “But don’t force it. And stay away from the blow hole.”
She stared at the water, spellbound. A now familiar expression.
“What do you see, princess?” He liked calling her that.
“I was in a lagoon, in a boat …” She jiggled her head. “It’s gone.”
Something rubbed against his fingers. “I touched one!”
The dolphin rolled over, belly up.
Flattening his hand, Jase caressed its smooth, rubbery white skin. Amazement widened his mouth. Rapture seized his breath. “This. Is. Totally. Excellent.”
Another dolphin rose from the water and held still enough to rub noses with the mermaid.
Not wanting to disturb the special bond, Jase whispered, “You’re awesome, Hope.”
“They are awesome,” she said quietly.
He studied her playmate’s eyes before it submerged. “It looked like it was crying.”
“The jelly-like substance you saw helps keep the salt from irritating their eyes.”
Jase’s eyes wouldn’t mind borrowing that jelly. “What do they eat? Besides guys in red trunks.”
She giggled. “Anything from eels to crabs. Shrimp. Sharks.” Lying back, she brought her feet up to the surface.
He copied her, staying shoulder-to-shoulder at the mention of sharks.
A frightening, sleek mass of blue-gray leaped over him and dove smoothly into the water on the other side of Hope.
Stank. Jase tinkled.
“They use sound waves to find food.”
I’m okay. No sharks. “Echolocation?”
“Affirmative.” She smiled at him, perhaps impressed that he knew the word. “They’re so good at it, that they can detect something as small as a sardine ten feet in front of them.”
“Cool.” A response that understated his deeper sentiment. Despite the overwhelming awe, this communion with nature brought a soulful healing.
“Salubrious, isn’t it?”
“Better than building sandcastles.” Jase indexed the word with a fresh take on
its meaning. Sick of fixating on Hope’s oddities, he inserted well educated into the rapidly growing list of her admirable traits. “Do you think I could ride a dolphin?”
She put herself vertical. “I thought you’d ask. Discard the jacket.”
“I’d better not.” Even with his back to the raft, Jase’s neck hairs were singed from Isaac’s laser gaze.
As instructed, he waited for a dolphin to swim close and roll onto its back. Aware of his audience, Jase psyched himself out to replicate the mermaid’s glorious dolphin act.
The first water taxi passed, then a second and a third, all too far away. The next one came up from behind, bumped against his foot, and rolled over at his side.
He latched onto both pectoral fins and situated himself belly-to-belly. The creature’s length exceeded Jase’s height. Excited and terrified, he bent his knees, expecting the tailfin to smack him.
Hope made a noise, and the dolphin accelerated into a smooth ride.
Its body heaved against his, but the tailfin never touched. Jase wished he had ditched his jacket so he could bond with the dolphin’s humbling strength.
Whistles and hoots rose from the raft, and Hope came into view again. He had completed a loop.
The dolphin plunged.
Jase collected a mouthful of water before remembering to let go. Sputtering and gagging, he sent a thumbs-up to the rafters. Happier than a puppy with his master’s slipper—and sorely guilty for having chewed on it—he returned to face the safetyman.
“Balance the raft.” Isaac braced his knees against the side while Sabio and Akiko rolled to the far ends.
Since Hope held back, Jase climbed in. Go easy on her, Ize.
Grasping the strap on the back of her lifejacket, the safetyman suspended Hope partway out of the water. “We had a potentially dangerous situation, and you did not listen to me.”
Her stare of terror clashed with Isaac’s placid tone. She scrambled into the boat.
Alarmed at her dead-man-walking reaction, Jase double-checked the friendly spark in Isaac’s eyes, which apparently went undetected. Hope had responded similarly to certain Etiquette Academy deeds, but never to this degree.
