Whale Song (8 page)

Working up my nerve, I said, “There’s this girl at school. Annie. She’s the one who cut my hair. And she gave me a chocolate bar with bugs in it.” I took a deep breath and looked at my mother. “Everyone teased me and Annie called me
white girl
.”

My mother was appalled. “That’s horrible. I’ll talk to your teacher.”

I shook my head. “No! That’ll make things worse.”

“
Annie must be a terribly sad and angry girl.”

I stared at her, confused by her comment. How could my mother feel any sympathy toward the girl that was bullying me?

“
What do you mean?” I asked in a sulky voice.

She patted my hand and entwined her elegant fingers through mine. “Usually when kids act like that toward someone else, it’s because
they
are unhappy. Annie may be jealous of you. Or maybe a white person treated her badly at one time and that’s why she seems to hate white people.”

I opened my mouth to argue, but she cut me off. “That’s called racism, Sarah. When you judge someone or dislike them for the color of their skin or their race. When Nonno Rocco and Nonna Sophia first came to North America, many people were mean to them because they were Italian. People can be spiteful sometimes
―e
specially children. Some people just don’t know any better. No one’s taught them that it’s wrong to judge others by the color of their skin.”

I pouted. “Why didn’t Annie’s parents teach her it’s wrong?”

She gave a sad shrug. “I don’t know, honey. Sometimes kids learn from their parents how to hate other people. I really don’t know why Annie feels the way she does.”

I clenched her hand, wondering how she could always see something good in everyone, no matter how nasty they were. That was why my mother was so special.

But I wasn’t like her. I
hated
Annie.

The bed shifted as my mother rose to her feet. “What are you going to do, Sarah?”

I moaned. “I don’t know, Mom. What
can
I do?”

“
Hating Annie will suck out your own goodness and energy. You’re so much better than that. If you choose to hate her, then you become just like her―no better.” She kissed my forehead and hugged me. “Life’s too short to not forgive those who hurt us. I trust you to do what’s right. Right by your own heart.” She placed her palm against my beating heart. “Forgiveness sets you free.”

Outside the bay window, the sky was woven with fiery cumulus clouds and the sun drifted below the trees. A bald eagle dipped low, soared past the window and disappeared into the night.

As I went to sleep, the last thing I thought of was my mother’s parting words.

“
Forgiveness sets you free.”

Two days passed by without any repercussions from Annie.

Throughout the week, I kept my mother’s advice close to heart, trying to find a way to forgive the girl. But forgiveness didn’t come easily to me. I eventually gave up my ideas of revenge when I noticed that even Annie’s friends were ostracizing her. I figured that was punishment enough.

When she showed up at school on Wednesday with a black eye, I almost felt sorry for her. She told Mrs. Higginson that she’d been hit by a ball at the park. Goldie and I suspected that she’d run into someone’s fist. Wishful thinking on our part.

That night, my father bounded into the house. He had a huge smile on his face.

“
Guess what? Jeff Boyd, the research coordinator, just announced that the new schooner, complete with the best echolocation equipment, will be arriving tomorrow.” He pulled my mother close and grinned like a circus clown.

“
Will you get to drive it?” I asked, bouncing on my chair.

He chuckled. “No, there’ll be a real skipper doing the driving. My job is to monitor the electronic sound equipment. I’ll be out in the schooner for the next two months.” His eyes gleamed suddenly. “Sarah, do you think your class would be interested in a field trip aboard the
Finland Fancy
on Friday?”

“
Really? You’ll take us all out?”

In my imagination, I was already on that boat.

My mother smiled. “That’s a wonderful idea, Jack.”

There was such excitement in the air as he picked my mother off the ground and spun her around in his arms. She laughed breathlessly and batted at him with both hands.

“
Jack!” she shrieked. “Put me down!”

His eyes held a wicked twinkle. “And what if I don’t?”

“
You’re making me dizzy,” she warned.

He set her down and she stumbled against the table.

“
See?” she chastised him. “If I walk into a wall, it’s your fault.”

I forgot all about my mother’s clumsiness as we celebrated the arrival of the schooner and my father’s new job. My parents’ happiness was infectious. We rode a wave of joy that night and all my problems seemed to have disappeared.

But even I should have known that things would change.

After all…all good things must come to an end.

On Friday morning, I bolted out of bed, dressed hurriedly and raced downstairs. I couldn’t shut up about the field trip that my father had arranged with the principal and Mrs. Higginson. It was set for ten that morning.

“
Finland Fancy field trip,” I announced.

My mother grinned. “Fun and fabulous Finland Fancy field trip.”

I sang that phrase repeatedly, fascinated by the tongue twister effect. I think my parents were relieved when I headed to school.

After a boring lecture on boat safety, Mrs. Higginson corralled us toward the bus and we piled in, chattering in youthful anticipation. We endured a bumpy bus ride to the harbor and then raced down to the dock where the
Finland Fancy
was anchored.

My gaze swept across the names on the boats. “Where is it?”

Goldie’s smile drooped. “Over there.”

As soon as I saw the boat, my heart immediately sank.

The research schooner was in rough shape. Its neglected hull was a battered white and needed painting. The trim was pine green and the cedar deck was weathered and uneven.

“
I thought you said the
Finland Fancy
was new,” I complained as my father helped me onto the boat.

“
Well, it’s new for us. It just needs some sprucing up, maybe some fresh paint.”

“
Or a sledgehammer,” I mumbled without missing a beat.

He laughed. “Come on. She’s not that bad. And she’s fast.”

I wasn’t impressed. I had spent the last few days telling everyone how great the boat was going to be, that it had come all the way from Finland…that it was new.

“
Hope this thing doesn’t sink,” I said dryly.

“
Me too,” the skipper said behind me.

Skip, as he was known, was a weathered-faced jovial seaman with snow-white hair and a bushy beard. Because he puffed on a sweet-smelling tobacco pipe, I wanted to call him
Captain High Liner
, after the frozen fish my mother liked to buy. But I never worked up enough nerve.

“
Welcome aboard,” he said. “I’m your skipper for today’s adventure aboard the
Titanic
.” He grinned at me. “I mean, the
Finland Fancy
.”

Nervous laughter trickled from my classmates while I suspiciously eyed the boat.

Goldie elbowed me. “I hope we don’t hit an iceberg.”

“
Or an ice cube,” I muttered.

Mrs. Higginson seemed a little
‘green at the gills’
, as my father put it later. She gingerly gathered the folds of her denim skirt and stepped onto the twenty-foot research schooner. The kids in my class filed on board behind her. Some appeared quite nervous, but they were all impressed by the boat―and by my father.

Skip directed us to deck chairs and bench seats, and Goldie and I were just settling down beside each other when Bobbie, who was sitting across from us, snorted loudly.

“
Jeez, would ya look at Annie,” he said.

Heads swiveled in unison and we all gaped as Annie awkwardly climbed aboard the schooner. All eyes were drawn to her left arm and there was a collective gasp of shock. Annie had a broken arm. And it was wrapped in a cast and sling.

Mrs. Higginson rushed to her side. “What happened, dear?”

Annie shrugged. “I fell off my bike.”

Goldie and I watched in disbelief as our teacher fussed over and pampered my archenemy. Annie sat down on a deck chair and let out a soft whimper. The sound sent Mrs. Higginson scurrying for a pillow.

“
Think she’s faking?” I asked Goldie.

“
Naw, the cast is real.”

“
I don’t think she fell off her bike. I think she got into a fight.”

Goldie snickered. “I wonder what the other guy looks like.”

I couldn’t resist a grin―until I glanced at Annie and caught her eye. She looked away too quickly and I knew that something wasn’t right.

The schooner pulled away from the harbor and I quickly forgot all about her. Holding onto the rail, I stood beside my best friend and watched the houses grow smaller. The ocean became more restless the farther out we went and the schooner bobbed up and down in rhythm. Rays of light bounced off the metal equipment as the sun beamed across the deck.

Some of my classmates had never seen the ocean in such a way. Many had never even been on a boat. I thought that was odd, considering they lived on an island surrounded by water.

“
Okay class,” Mrs. Higginson called. “Move a bit closer to Professor Richardson.”

“
Does anyone know what this is?” my father asked.

He held up a small black object. It had a long cord that was attached to a forbidding piece of equipment with various colored knobs.

“
A microphone,” Adam answered promptly.

My father nodded. “But this is a special microphone. It’s designed to go underwater, to pick up sounds that sea creatures make.”

“
Can we hear them?” Goldie asked.

“
Once we’re out far enough you can listen with a pair of headphones. That’s what I do when I don’t want any distractions. Or I can turn up the volume and we can all listen at the same time.” He pointed to a large black knob.

He spent the next half-hour answering numerous questions, especially from the boys in my class. Adam appeared very interested in my father’s work. He was glued to his side for the entire day. I think that was one of the happiest days for my father. His work captured all of our hearts that afternoon, and he handled a barrage of questions and kept all of us kids in line. I was so proud to be his daughter.

When Skip shut off the engines, all we heard was the sound of waves rippling against the boat. Before us, the ocean was endless, and its beauty and power captured us.

“
The water is calmer out here,” my father said. “In a few minutes we’ll drop the microphone overboard.”

“
What sounds can you hear with it?” Mrs. Higginson asked, propping up her sunglasses with a chubby finger.

“
You can hear almost any sea creature with this. Especially ones that use echolocation, such as whales, dolphins, seals, sea lions and many species of fish.”

He reached over the side, unhooked the microphone and tossed it out into the ocean. Then he cranked up the volume and motioned us to wait.

Minutes went by. Nothing. Not a sound.

Then we heard a soft chirping noise.

“
What’s that?” Adam asked.

“
Fish,” my father said, smiling. “Halibut.”

While we listened and waited, I stared out over the sea. Foamy waves dotted the horizon and pieces of deadwood floated around us.

I sighed impatiently. “I want to see killer whales.”

Goldie nodded, her eyes searching the surface of the water. I knew that she was looking for telltale evidence of a whale pod. Or maybe her brother.

“
I don’t see anything,” she said, disappointed.

My father sat next to the equipment, made some adjustments and listened with the headphones. Minutes later, he grinned, yanked off the headphones and handed them to the nearest child―Adam Reid, of course.

Adam’s eyes lit up and I wondered what he was listening to that had him smiling so much. As soon as he removed the headphones, my father unplugged them and cranked up the speakers so we all could hear the strange sounds coming from below.

I shut my eyes and listened.

Something made a rapid clicking noise. Then I heard an eerie, forlorn wail. It reminded me of a baby crying for its mother. I heard it again, and a shiver tingled up and down my spine.

After a moment, I opened my eyes and looked at Goldie.

Her face was beaming.

“
That’s a killer whale,” my father said. “In fact, it’s a pod―a family. And they’re coming closer.”