Lulu Bell and the Sea Turtle (4 page)

Everyone headed back to the boats. Dad carefully packed up his fishing gear and stowed it under the seat. He hadn't caught any fish. Anthony stowed his fish in a bucket.

Dad fired up the engine. To get back to Ardyaloon, they had to navigate in a loop around the rocks and sandbanks. The boats chugged slowly. They were having trouble making headway against the strong rush of the tide.

The water gushed and surged, swirling in eddies. The boat was tossed from side to side. It was a long ride back towards shore.

After a while, Anthony turned his boat towards a small deserted island. It rose straight from the sea, rocky and barren. Lulu could see a small beach of powdery white sand. The rocks were banded in rusty red, topped with a haze of greenery.

Dad followed Anthony's lead. They steered the boats under a rock overhang.

‘Look up,' called the boys from the boat in front.

Lulu craned her head upwards. There were paintings on the rocky roof. Figures were marked in red and cream ochre and black charcoal. She could tell they were sea creatures –
stingrays, sharks, dolphins, fish, turtles and whales. The whales reminded Lulu of the ones Anthony had painted. Carved deep in the rock were the outlines of boomerangs and spears.

‘It's beautiful,' said Mum. ‘It feels very ancient in here.'

‘Our people have been coming here to fish and hunt for thousands of years,' said Anthony. ‘Although in the old days they came on rafts, not with outboard motors!'

‘Could I take some photographs of the art?' asked Mum. ‘I think it would be interesting to include some photos with the show.'

‘Yes,' replied Anthony. He grinned. ‘Just as long as you remember to send me some copies of your photos.'

Next stop was the beach for a swim. The beach was littered with dozens of beautiful shells. There were large white clam shells, pale beige bailer shells and delicate purple conch shells.

Dad started digging a hole in the sand with Gus. The other boys took their spears. They scrambled over the rock pools hunting for stingrays.

Lulu pulled out her snorkel, diving mask and flippers from the bag of swimming gear.

‘Keep your shirt on, honey bun,' said Mum. ‘This sun is strong.'

Lulu splashed into the water. It was clear and clean and calm. Little waves rippled on the shore. She swam out towards the deeper water. Rosie stayed in the shallows with Mum.

‘Don't go too far out,' called Mum.

Lulu floated face down. She breathed through the snorkel. She could hear it rumble and bubble. With her diving mask on she could see for metres through the sunlit water. She kicked with her flippers and shot away.

Suddenly Lulu saw a dark shadow. It swam towards her. Lulu breathed in quickly. Her heart thumped.
What was it? Could it be a shark?

Lulu turned and kicked. In her panic she sucked in sea water through the snorkel.

She coughed and spluttered. Her arms flailed. Lulu spat out her snorkel. She stared under the water.
Where was the shadow?

It was closer now, and stood out against the light sand. Lulu recognised the shape. It wasn't a shark. It was too round. It was a big sea turtle.

Lulu sighed with relief. But something was not right. The turtle was wreathed with a necklace. A necklace of knotted fishing line.

It was tangled around the turtle's neck and front flipper. As the turtle struggled, the snarled noose pulled tighter. The turtle was slowly being choked.

Lulu took a deep breath. There was no time to waste. She kicked her flippers and dived. Deeper and deeper. Lulu reached the turtle. She wrapped her arms around it. The injured creature didn't struggle.

She turned her face towards the surface. She kicked and swam. The turtle was heavy. She kicked harder. Her breath ached in her chest. Blood pounded in her head. She had to breathe. But the heavy weight was holding her down. She kicked even harder. Lulu was determined not to let go of the turtle.

At last she broke free into the fresh air. Sea water showered from her hair and face.

Lulu blinked in the sudden hot sun. She lifted the turtle's head out of the water so it could breathe. The turtle spat out a spurt of sea water. Lulu sucked in a deep breath herself. It felt good.

‘Dad, Dad!' called Lulu. ‘There's a turtle that needs help.'

Lulu swam towards the shore. She pushed the turtle along in front of her.

Dad splashed into the water. Together they hauled the injured turtle up on the sand. The turtle lay still.

Dad had his fishing knife attached to his belt. He unsheathed it. Slowly and gently he cut the fishing line away. The line was tough and strong. Lulu held the turtle still on the sand. Zac helped her.

Anthony crouched down beside Zac. He used his own knife to cut from the other side. At last the fishing line fell away.

By now everyone had gathered around. The fishing line lay in a tangled heap. There were metres of it. Dad examined the turtle.

‘Good work, sweetheart,' Dad said. He grinned at Lulu. ‘He's quite weak. It looks like you found him just in time. He is one very lucky turtle.'

Lulu gave a big grin back. She had saved the sea turtle.

‘Actually he's a she,' said Anthony. ‘You can tell by her front flippers. The male flippers have claws.' He pointed to the turtle's leathery front flipper.

‘You won't eat her?' asked Rosie. She looked worried. Lulu's heart gave a lurch.

Anthony laughed. ‘No, Rosie. We have plenty of fish for dinner.'

Dad picked up the tangled fishing line. He packed it away in the bag.

‘People are so thoughtless,' he said. ‘Someone probably threw this overboard without thinking about how dangerous it could be.'

Anthony nodded. ‘That can be a big problem. It was probably from a tourist boat.'

He picked up a handful of sand. He rubbed it around the turtle's mottled shell in big circles.

‘This is how we clean the turtle's shell. The sand removes the algae and growths. This keeps the turtle healthy. Our kids have to learn how to care for the animals as our people have always done.'

‘Turtle dirty,' said Gus. He wrinkled his nose.

All the kids took turns to polish the turtle's shell. Lulu loved the feeling of rubbing sand over the hard shell. They splashed handfuls of water to wash away the sand. The shell sparkled in the sunlight. The turtle stared at Lulu with beady black eyes.

‘Now I think she is ready to go back,' said Anthony.

Dad and Anthony picked up the turtle. They carried her out into the water. Lulu followed. The turtle paused,
floating for a moment. Lulu and the other kids swam beside it. Then the turtle dived and swam away.

Goodbye, turtle,
said Lulu to herself.
Swim hard and stay safe
.

The next few days whirled past in a blur. The Bell family went swimming, snorkelling, boating and fishing. Pearl took all the girls out gathering oysters and shellfish. She warned them to stay close. The old man saltwater crocodile had been seen swimming nearby.

Mum spent the mornings visiting the artists, talking about their artwork and choosing the very best pieces for
the show. She was so happy with the collection.

Finally it was the last day of their stay. The next morning they would get up very early for the drive to the airport. Lulu felt sad. The week had passed so fast.

Pearl and Harry invited everyone to a huge farewell feast to say goodbye. Anthony took the boys out fishing. Pearl took the girls out to collect oysters. Harry took Dad to catch mud crabs.

As the sun went down, the two families gathered around the fire. Everyone had made something to share. There were chunks of fish barbecued over the fire. Hot, smoky damper was cooked in the coals. Pearl had made a big pot of chilli mud crab. Mum had made salads and fried rice. The children had picked mangoes from the old tree.

Everyone sat on camp chairs around the fire chatting and laughing. They ate with their fingers from paper plates. Chilli the pup lay on Lulu's feet. His tummy was round and fat from eating scraps.

‘This is the best fish I've ever eaten,' said Dad.

Lulu licked the crumbs from her fingers. ‘Mmm. Food cooked over the fire always tastes best,' she said.

A full moon rose over the sea. Its silvery reflection shimmered on the water. The fire flared up as Harry threw his paper plate on the flames.

Zac stood. He beckoned to the other boys.

‘The boys have prepared a special surprise for you,' said Harry. The five boys slipped away into the shadows. They soon returned wearing bright blue cloths around their waists. Their bodies were painted with bands of white ochre.

They each carried two bark shields. The shields were painted in bright patterns of white, clay-red, blue and black.

Lulu felt a shiver of anticipation.

‘The boys are going to dance for you,' explained Harry. ‘They are going to dance the story of a great turtle hunt near Sunday Island.'

Harry pointed out in the darkness towards the distant islands. ‘A big storm comes in over the sea during the hunt.'

Harry picked up a pair of wooden clapping sticks. He began to beat out the time. Several members of the family started to sing and clap. Lulu couldn't understand the words, but she thought they sounded magical.

The boys danced. They stamped their feet and paddled with their shields. The dance was energetic and beautiful.

Suddenly Lulu smiled. She realised there were now six boys dancing. Five of them wore blue cloths and white ochre marks. One wore red board shorts and white ochre markings. It was Gus. He danced behind Zac, copying his movements.

‘Gus, honey bun,' called Mum. ‘Come and sit down.'

Harry smiled. ‘It's okay,' he said. ‘The boys invited him to join in.'

The dancers finished. Everyone burst into applause. Gus bowed.

‘Thank you, Harry,' said Mum. ‘Thank you, boys. That was wonderful. But now my little chickens need to go to bed. We have a
very
early start in the morning.'

Rosie yawned. Lulu stood up slowly. She didn't want to go to bed yet. She didn't want the last day at Goorlil to end.

Anthony smiled at Lulu. He turned to Mum and Dad.

‘Perhaps a little while longer?' said Anthony. ‘I think we should walk down to the beach. It's a full moon. That would be a good way to say goodbye to Goorlil.'

Lulu jumped up with excitement. Mum hesitated.

‘Great idea,' said Dad. ‘The kids can sleep on the plane tomorrow.'

‘We'll need to be very quiet,' said Anthony. ‘Just in case.'

Just in case what?
wondered Lulu.

Everyone followed Anthony down to the beach. He held up his hand to tell them to stop. The sand glowed white by the light of the moon. The sea rippled with a silvery shimmer. Lulu could hear the gentle
lap, lap, lap
of water on the sand.

Anthony crouched down in the sand dune. Everyone followed, crouching in the shadows. Anthony scanned the beach.

‘Look,' he whispered. He pointed to the ripple of waves.

Lulu saw a low, dark shape creeping out of the sea. In a moment she realised it was a sea turtle.

The turtle crawled slowly up the beach. Finally she reached the sand dune just a few metres away.

The turtle stopped. She used her four flippers to dig a wide, shallow hole. Then she used her back flippers to dig deeper. It took a long time. The turtle grunted and huffed.

‘She's laying her eggs,' whispered Anthony.

Next the turtle used her flippers to cover the eggs. She scattered fine, dry sand over the top to hide the nest.

At last the turtle was finished. She turned and crawled. Slowly, carefully, she inched her way back to the moonlit sea.

Goodbye, sea turtle
, thought Lulu. She looked up at the stars.
My wish came true.