Chapter 16

Getting Kitik back in the lagoon proved a tricky proposition.

As soon as the truck pulled up to the waterside Maggie could hear the two dolphins chattering at each other in their mix of clicks and whistles and hums, and Kitik began squirming restlessly in the cradle. Three times the Flagler crew that had brought him nearly had him in position in the winch’s sling, and three times the dolphin wriggled enough to force them to start over. Jason, who’d come with the van, was doing his best to still the animal but was having little success.

Finally Maggie called to Minacou to tell him to be calm so they could get him into the water safely. Two of the crew heard her and smiled at each other indulgently. But Kitik did indeed quiet, and they were at last able to winch him out of the cradle and gently down into the lagoon.

Jerry arrived just as the delivery was being finished. He gave her a friendly hug and walked over to watch the two dolphins reuniting. They were nosing each other gently as their chatter continued unabated. Finally they submerged and then leaped in tandem—a paltry jump only just clearing the surface, which Maggie automatically ascribed to Kitik’s weakness after his long recovery from being shot, but she figured it would soon improve now that he had room (and medical clearance) for exercise.

“Come on, Jerry, let’s give them a little time together,” she said. “We can have lunch over there in the great outdoors and watch them.” She walked him over to one of the apronside tables.

“Neat to see,” he said appreciatively. “She his mate?”

“Sure is.”

“How’d you manage that?” he asked. “They usually won’t hook up well in captivity. We haven’t been able to get a good pairing back at the facility. Did you—”

“She was his mate before,” Maggie interrupted. “In the wild, before he was captured.”

He stared at her, frowning. “You didn’t capture them together, did you? Somebody told me Morris got only the one and he was griped about it. Short-paid the captain.”

“That’s right.”

“Then all this business about their being mates in the wild is just speculation, isn’t it? I mean, if you captured them separately— Come to think about it, how’d you get her? A while back Morris told me he wasn’t going after a second one, and anyway I usually know about it when the boats go out. You buy her off another place?”

“Not really,” she said. “That’s part of what I have to show you, though it’s only a small part. But we didn’t ‘get’ her at all, she’s a volunteer. She came in on her own.”

“Say what?” he said incredulously.

“On her own,” Maggie repeated. “It’s not speculation that they were mates. After he was captured I think she went looking for him. I have no idea how she found him, but one morning Jason and I showed up here and there she was.”

“Where, outside? How’d you coax her—”

“No, right here in the lagoon with him. In the evening we had one, the next morning we had two. She’s been here ever since.”

He was shaking his head. “That doesn’t make sense. How did she get in, a hole in the fence or something? And if she could get in why didn’t—”

“No hole,” Maggie cut him off again. “Over the top. You—”

“Where?” he interrupted in turn, looking out at the formidable sea-wall and even more formidable fencing across the mouth of the lagoon. “You have some sort of breakdown in your wall or your fence?”

“Not,” she said. “It was— see the wall just to the left of the fence? Where it’s a little bit lower. Right there.” Minacou had confirmed Maggie’s speculation about her entry.

He stared where she was pointing, assessing. He shook his head. “You’re not thinking, girl. The dolphin hasn’t been born that could clear that.”

“One has,” she corrected him. “Minacou. You have to see her to believe it.”

“Maggie, I did see her,” he said patiently. “Remember they went up just after I showed? I know he’s been sick, but I would have expected her to make it a little higher.”

“She doesn’t do it with him. She always stays right with him when they go together. I think she doesn’t want to show him up, or maybe it’s just courtesy. It’s only when she’s alone that—”

She stopped abruptly as Minacou erupted from the center of the lagoon in as high a leap as Maggie had ever seen her make. A small lunch crowd had been gathering at the outdoor tables, and the ones fortunate enough to have had their heads turned in the right direction broke into spontaneous applause as the dolphin re-entered the water following a graceful mid-air twirl for emphasis.

“See?” she said, grinning delightedly at the fortuitous timing.

“Holy mother of God!” He was gaping. “What do you have down there, a catapult? I’ve been hearing stories about some big jumps here, but I’ve never seen anything like that. Not even close.”

“Told you,” she said smugly.

“That why you wanted me to come?” he asked. “I mean, it’s spectacular as all hell, and I guess it was worth the trip just to see it, but you know I can’t do grants just for that kind of thing.”

“Just wait.” She held out both hands palm outwards. “I said that was just a little bitty part of what I’ve got to show you. But be patient, I want you to get the full picture all at once. We’ll finish up and go down there in a while, but meantime let’s give them a little time to celebrate and give us a little time to have some food.”

Their order had arrived and they were talking companionably when he again brought up her certainty that the dolphins were long-standing mates. “You know, you’re probably right,” he said. “If she came in over the sea-wall to get to him there had to be some pretty strong attraction.”

She nodded. “It’s not just that,” she said casually. “Minacou—” she stopped herself with a reflexive shushing motion with one hand. “That’s part of what I’m going to show you. The big part. But not yet, not until you see for yourself.”

“Where the hell did you get those names, anyhow?,” he asked. “Indian?”

“Not really. Just hang in for a bit, that’s part of the story too.”

He chuckled. “You sure do a nice job of building the suspense,” he said. “OK, I’ll wait. But not too long, huh, Maggie? I’ve got a two o’clock back at the office.”

“You’ll make it,” she said. “That is, if you still want to.”

Maggie’s watch was showing just shy of 1:00 p.m. as they rose from the table.

“All right, Jerry, now for the big one,” she said. “You’ve got another half hour before you need to leave for your meeting, and I’ll guarantee that it’s going to be one of the most exciting half hours you’ve ever spent.”

“Lead on,” he said indulgently.

Her heart was pounding as they walked out on the apron.

“You have a coverall or something?” he asked, breaking stride as he saw they were headed to the water’s edge. “I’m not exactly dressed for this.”

“We don’t use them,” she replied. “I’ll tell her— well, trust me, you won’t get wet.”

“Okay,” he said dubiously. “If I do you get the dry-cleaning bill.”

The dolphins weren’t in view, but when she called Minacou’s name and simultaneously slapped the concrete sharply both of them appeared almost at once.

“Hello, Kitik, welcome home,” she said. “Minacou, this is the one I told you about. His name is Jerry. And don’t splash him, all right? Tell Kitik too.”

“Hello, Jerry,” came the dolphin’s quacking voice. “No splash.”

Jerry looked at Maggie questioningly. “Talk to her, Jerry,” she said. His gaze became almost accusatory, but he obligingly turned to the dolphin with a sigh. “Hello,” he said in a desultory tone.

“Ask her something,” Maggie persisted.

“Oh, come on, Maggie, so you’ve taught her some verbal responses. We’ve done that much—”

“Jerry, put away the skepticism just for a minute, OK? Like—” she held out her arm. “Minacou, what’s this? The name?”

“Arm.”

“You try, Jerry,” Maggie urged him.

“Oh, hell,” he said with annoyance. “OK, Minacou, what’s this?” He held up one hand and used the other to point to it.

“Hand.”

“And what’s two and two?” he snapped in exasperation.

“Numbers,” the dolphin responded. “Why numbers mean so much human? Two, two four.”

He looked at Maggie with surprise. “Pretty good,” he said admiringly. “How are you signaling? Or is it somebody else—”

“Foolish,” Minacou said suddenly. “Same other one. Ask foolish things you know. Arm, hand, two-two. Then talk Maggie, not talk me. Maggie say important her I talk you, but not can talk you when you not talk me. Not talk foolish, make me foolish like you. I talk enough, give Maggie money she want.” The two dolphins submerged almost in unison.