Exhale (7 page)

“Fine.” Elizabeth huffed, crossed her arms, and pouted. “You can have it.”

“Oh, come on. Don’t be mad, baby. It’s not my fault I’m better at tagging than you.” Dani grinned as she flipped her glasses up, then reached for the sunscreen.

“If
someone
wasn’t such a whale hog, I could get in a little more practice,” Elizabeth mumbled, holding the cantilever out to Dani.

“If you didn’t have such mad camera skills, you’d
get
more practice.” Dani stuck her tongue out, snatched the collapsible pole, and leaned it against the seat. After refreshing her sun block, Dani climbed around the bumper to the bow.

The Wonder Twins were like an old married couple. Zoe envied them.

She patted Elizabeth on the arm and offered a sympathetic smile. “Your turn next. I promise.”

Elizabeth nodded and joined the other two up front.

Dropping their speed to a creep, Zoe swept the seascape for signs of life. Lulled by the rocking motion of the boat, occasional splashes against the bumpers, and the fresh smell of ocean, she listened for whale songs over the low thrum of the Zodiac’s motor.

It didn’t take long before a hint of music teased her ears. She turned the wheel clockwise. Closing her eyes, she sifted through all the other sounds—the lapping waves on the boat’s hull, cawing shearwaters, Dani and Elizabeth’s soft banter—until she pinpointed the animal’s location deep under the water, about five or six hundred meters away. She opened her eyes and nudged the Zodiac in the right direction, pressing forward slowly.

Adriene faced her, smirked, and resettled in her seat.

Zoe grinned.

The two of them had been friends long enough that Adriene trusted Zoe when it came to the whales. She’d always shared a certain kinship with them, and Adriene never questioned her.

Five minutes later, a blow saturated the air, dead ahead, followed by two more. Two adults and a calf.

Eager to meet them, Zoe inched closer.

But as they got within tagging range, a weird, disjointed vibe nestled under her skin. She turned her head and listened some more. Something wasn’t right.

Panic. Frenzy. Fear.

Anxious to find the source, she scanned left and right, but saw nothing. She cut the engine and waited. Maybe the whales would come to her.

“What’s the matter, mama whale?” she called out. “Is your baby okay?”

Lips pressed tight, Elizabeth faced her. Sudden movement disrupted the water. The mother whale breached about a hundred meters off port. The calf followed suit.

The tingling in Zoe’s joints told her the whales’ jumps weren’t the typical playful communication lessons she’d witnessed hundreds of times before between mother and calf. These were fear-motivated warnings. But for whom?

“We’re just here to put some tags on your backs. Promise you won’t feel a thing,” she assured them as every hair on her body stood up at once.

Something had spooked these animals. And considering the mother was about fourteen meters long and weighed around forty tons, it must have been something pretty damn scary.

Something of the Elemental variety?

She shook her head and put a lid on it.

“These guys are way too feisty,” Adriene said. “I think we should leave them alone.”

“No, let me give it a try,” Dani begged. “I think I can get the calf at least.”

Zoe leaned to the side for a better look. “Mama doesn’t want us anywhere near her baby. Better not mess with those two. Let’s see if the escort settles down.”

Dani took up position, carbon fiber pole in hand, as Zoe eased the boat into range. Elizabeth snapped several photos of dorsal fins and the calf’s fluke as it went under.

Adriene interrupted Zoe’s racing thoughts. “We have company at six o’clock.”

Zoe whipped her head to stern and scowled. A recreational boat moving in fast. Idiots. When would these people learn?

“The male’s coming up at nine. Stay on him.” She turned the wheel to give Dani a better angle, but the whale threw a lobtail right next to the Zodiac like a warning shot over the bow. The sharp dip of the vessel pitched everyone forward.

Shit. Zoe grabbed the dashboard to steady herself, then popped her head up to check on the others. “Everyone okay?”

All three girls looked back and executed a synchronized nod.

“G’day, CRN Zodiac,” a male voice broke through the radio. “You ladies need some help? We’re right behind you.”

Zoe grabbed the receiver and trained her sights on the mother whale to her right. “Thanks for your offer, but we’re fine. I’d appreciate it if you’d move off about three hundred meters, as the law requires. We have a research permit to get close to the whales. Unless you do as well, you’re violating endangered marine mammal laws.”

“Apologies…” The guy said something else, but she wasn’t listening. She snapped the receiver back in place.

Leaning over the bumper, keeping one hand on the wheel, Zoe whispered to the mother whale, “What happened?”

My baby and I were attacked
. The mother’s massive body trembled—a heart-rending sight that shot a jolt of acid up Zoe’s gullet.

Just like Lily. Except
her
baby hadn’t been as lucky as this one.

She brought a hand up to cover her quivering lips. Lily had forgiven her for not being able to save the calf from the whalers in the Southern Ocean. Said she didn’t blame Zoe for what happened. Still—

She pulled her thoughts together, mentally crushed all the anxiety into a tight little ball, and tossed it into the ocean. Better. She studied the whale with a clinical eye. A large, rough patch of raised bumps covered her back. Looked like sunburn, which didn’t surprise her. Thanks to the growing hole in the ozone layer over nearby Antarctica, the brutal sun spared no one in Queensland—human or otherwise. They didn’t call this place the Skin Cancer Capital of the World for nothing.

“Who attacked you?”

The whale’s cringe rippled the water.
Fire from above
.

“You mean the sun?” God, that burn was nasty. She’d never seen one so big. This female would be scarred for life.

A monster. Like the sun.
The mother angled away, raking her flukes sideways through the water as she slunk back to her calf.

Zoe held her hand out. “Wait, where did this happen? Is the monster still there?” Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Elizabeth staring at her with a puzzled expression.

North
, was all Zoe got before the pair disappeared into the blue.

Shit. What did the mother mean by ‘a monster’? Could have been orcas or sharks, which were the only known predators of humpbacks—aside from bloodthirsty, capitalistic
Homo sapiens
. As for the ‘north’ bit, unusual behaviors and altered migratory patterns were bound to surface with all this screwy weather. Food sources to the south could have shifted too. Cause and effect were the king and queen of the ocean. Life here was all about balance.

A commotion up front brought her out of her reverie. The male was splashing, though being an alpha with a one-track mind, his behavior seemed more of a macho display to impress a potential mate than a genuine hissy fit.

Dani swore as she missed another opportunity to tag him. “I’m all thumbs today. Maybe you should do it, Zoe.”

“Adriene, can you get back here and take the wheel?” Zoe asked. “Just until I tag this boy. Only take a minute.”

Careful not to get her cast wet, Adriene pressed her good leg to the bumper and kneed her way back to the driver’s seat with Zoe’s help.

Her mind whirring over the mother and calf, Zoe grabbed one of the handholds on the cover hanging over the wheel and swung around to the bow. Taking the pole from Dani, she looked for the escort while balancing against the rolling waves.

After several minutes of silence, a huge black shadow rose from the deep blue-green, and a blow broke the surface of the water. The whale circled. Adriene maintained position as Zoe perched on the side, riding the pitch and roll of the boat, white-knuckling the cantilever. The male dipped under them, his massive tail stirring up frothy currents to their right. Zoe spun around and made for port. “Perfect,” she hollered back to Adriene. “Don’t move.”

The animal’s head came up fast, bubbling and blowing. She angled the pole down, hoping to catch his back as he made the pass, but he had other plans. After clearing the boat, the whale tail-slapped three meters off the side, dousing Zoe, who took the brunt of the water that churned up. She jumped back, and Dani thrust the camera into her chest to protect the lens from the splash.

“You okay?” Adriene yelled.

Soaked from head to toe, Zoe recovered fast. “Keep it steady, Adriene,” she shouted as the whale threw another lobtail. Grimacing but undeterred, she shook off the water. The whale had gone under again.

“Zoe, this is getting dangerous,” Adriene called up front. “I think we need to let this guy go.”

“No way. I almost had him. One more.”

A long moment passed, and the whale came up with a blow. Adriene drove the boat closer. Bracing one leg on the bumper, Zoe gripped the cantilever, poised and ready.

The whale hung at the surface as if waiting for something to happen. Zoe angled the pole and pushed the digital tag onto his back. The suction cups slurped. She released the tag with a quick yank. “Got it.”

“Woo hoo!” Adriene eased the Zodiac away from the whale. “That was awesome.”

Zoe high-fived Dani, Elizabeth, and then Adriene.

A round of applause from behind them reached Zoe’s ears. The other boat. Why were they still here? A loud whistle pierced the air. “Good show, ladies,” the same voice from before came through the radio.

Whatever. Zoe turned to Adriene and lifted her chin at the other boat. “See if you can get rid of them, will you?”

Adriene nodded.

The male escort lingered about fifty meters away. Zoe sat on the bumper, leg dangling off the side, as he cut and glided through the water.

What had the mother and calf seen that frightened them so? And why were they heading north, when they should have been going south to where the food was? The mother said ‘fire’ came from the north. Why would she risk her calf’s life by returning?

The rising thrum of a motor interrupted her darting thoughts. She faced the approaching recreational boat.

The adrenaline rush wore off. She was soaked to the bone. Teeth chattering like mad, Zoe stood up and squeezed out her hair. Elizabeth grabbed a towel from a dry bag and tossed it to her. After wrapping up, Zoe leaned over the starboard side to see what the guy wanted.

Four men, all shirtless and tanned, looking like twenty-something Australian beach gods, greeted her. Probably a bunch of friends out for some alcohol-induced fun. Shouldn’t they be working or surfing or something? As they pulled up alongside, waves shook the tiny Zodiac, and they came to a stop.

“You girls all right?” the driver, a blond with dreadlocks, called. They were all various states of gorgeous—

Oh, shit.

One of them was Gavin Cassidy. And the other guys were his band mates, if she remembered correctly. She and Adriene exchanged amused expressions.

Australian gods, indeed.

Gavin faced her, black sunglasses hiding his eyes. Heat flooded her cheeks, and she dipped her head so the shadows from her CRN cap would cover the blush.

Adriene got her hoodie off lickety-split. Her too-small bikini top flashed bodacious cleavage their way. Smiling at them, she rested her elbows on the side. “We’re fine. All in a day’s work.”

Zoe shook her head and concealed her grin, pretending to be busy with some ropes. Which was ridiculous since they were nowhere near a dock.

The blondie driver licked his lips, admiring Adriene from top to bottom. And who wouldn’t? With beautiful ebony skin and warm brown eyes to match, Zoe’s best friend had a stacked body—big boobs, slim waist, and a perfectly round ass Zoe had always been jealous of. Long, black ponytailed hair peeked out from the back of her CRN cap, but Zoe guessed the guys didn’t notice that.

Adriene removed her sunglasses and regarded the blond with a lopsided grin. Even with a broken leg in a cast, she oozed charm.

The guy smiled at her like all guys did. “I’m Mike,” he said.

“Adriene,” she called back.

Gavin did a double take at his friend, then slammed down a couple gulps from the bottle in his hand. Zoe slid on a pair of sunglasses. She sensed his gaze locked on her. Jesus, it was hard not to stare back, especially when the ripped muscles lining his chest and abs begged for her attention.

And his ink. The swirling tattoos dancing down his arms mesmerized her. True art. She wished she could see them up close. Along with that lip ring she wanted another taste of.

Stop it.

Mike rested a hand on the wheel and pushed his boat closer. “You girls gave us a bit of a scare.”

“Yeah, well, we’re fine. You really shouldn’t get close while we’re tagging,” Adriene warned, her voice more professional now, despite the boobs pouring out of her bikini top.

Mike looked nothing like the bass player he’d been on stage a week ago at Shaggy’s. Today he wore a pair of blue and green plaid board shorts. A tattoo ran the length of his forearm, but Zoe couldn’t make out the design. He was a good bit shorter than Gavin but just as gorgeous—in an impish kind of way. His tanned chest rose and fell, glistening in the sun.

He flipped up his sunglasses, revealing bright green eyes framed by a tumble of dreadlocks. “Sorry about that. We didn’t mean to get in your way. Thought you might need some help.”

Zoe busied herself with loading another DTAG onto the cantilever, pretending boredom with the conversation. “We have it under control.”

“How about a drink after work? You look like you might need one.”

“Sure,” Adriene agreed.

“No, thanks,” Zoe said.

They both scowled at one another. Zoe shook her head.

Adriene poked a thumb at her. “Our boss is a tight ass and doesn’t let us have any fun.”

Zoe stiffened at the gibe but kept quiet.

Mike turned his attention to her. “Oh, come on, boss. Just one beer?”

She had to admit, with a smile like that, he could probably get anything—or anyone—he wanted. Just like Adriene. Lightning already crackled between them. Man, those two together…trouble in River City.