The Sound of Whales (10 page)

CHAPTER 16

H
ayley clambered up to the cave, sensing the dark rolling in with the tide. She could still taste Fraser's lips. She had kissed quite a few boys in recent months – too many, she was getting a reputation. Scottish lips tasted much the same as Texas lips, a little saltier. Was that the sea or just her imagination? The kiss had been a ruse, nothing more, but it
had
been quite nice.

Jonah stood at the cave entrance. ‘I did not realize that you were dating.'

In unison Hayley and Fraser said, ‘We're not.' Hayley felt her denial was a little more insistent.

‘Who was that man?' Jonah asked.

‘Just one of the locals,' said Fraser.

‘What was he doing?'

‘Taking a walk. He didn't see you.'

The African peered out cautiously, scanning the beach. Fraser squatted on the floor and Hayley stood by the entrance, ready to run if she had to.

‘How did you get here?' Fraser asked.

‘As I have said already, I swam.'

‘All the way from Africa?' asked Hayley, astonished.

Jonah laughed – a deep, throaty laugh that echoed from the cave walls. She had yet to hear him laugh. It made him much less scary.

‘Only the last part.' His gaze moved out beyond the cave and he sat in silence contemplating the ocean.

Hayley checked her phone but there were no messages, no missed calls. Her mom was probably having too much fun to even notice she was gone. The time said ten o'clock. She was surprised at how late it was, wondered what had happened to the hours. She imagined that in this far corner of the world time washed in and out with the tides. Minutes and hours spilt in with the breaking waves and made the days so long. Each hour of daylight had another one added by the pounding surf. Later, as the tide receded, it sucked time back into the water and made the night last mere moments, a brief passing of darkness before the next tide brought in the next endless day

Jonah was talking again. ‘I have been travelling north for several weeks, through Africa to the Mediterranean and from there to Europe – Italy, I think. From Italy I have travelled here.'

‘How do you get from Africa to here?' Fraser asked. ‘How do you organize such a thing?'

Jonah pinched his lips together. Hayley thought,
He's still wondering if he can trust us
.

‘I did not organize anything,' he said eventually. ‘There are others who did that for me. For the right price, of course.'

‘There is a name for people who do that,' Fraser said.

‘I can think of many names for those people.'

‘So what is the right price?' Hayley asked.

‘All that I have.'

‘Human traffickers!' Fraser exclaimed.

Jonah went quiet again and Hayley thought about the journey he had undertaken. Her geography wasn't great but it was much better than it had been before the summer. In Texas she had examined a map of Europe to see where Nin was located and had been horrified to discover how much on the edge of everything it lay. There would be no day trips to London to take in a show, no jaunts to Milan for the fashion, no popping over to Paris for coffee and cake. Her mother had promised her only a trip to Loch Ness to see a monster she was certain didn't exist.

‘You sailed to Scotland?' Fraser said.

Jonah took a breath and released it slowly, his eyes wrinkling, forehead rumpling as if remembering was painful. ‘Solomon and I boarded a small boat which sailed for two days and two nights. The weather became very bad. I had no idea where we were and I was afraid. We were supposed to change boats and land somewhere. It was not supposed to be this island.'

‘I was out in that storm myself,' Fraser said. ‘It was not a night for sailing.'

Jonah nodded grimly. ‘When the boat change did not happen, we were told to swim for the land. Solomon and I refused.'

‘It would have been crazy to try,' Fraser said.

‘One of the men had a gun. We had no choice. I shook Solomon's hand and together we jumped into the water. We were not given life jackets. I swam for my life and eventually crawled on to the beach just over there. I hoped London was not too far but it seems I am further away than I hoped.'

Hayley thought back to the night Jonah had come ashore, the same night she had stood on a clifftop with Dunny. She had no idea there had been so much going on down below her. She wondered if Dunny knew, if that was the reason for his tears and wailing. Was he crying for the drowning man or the dying whale?

‘I knew I saw someone swimming,' Fraser said. ‘You called for help but we never came.'

‘I did not see your boat,' Jonah said quietly. ‘I did not call for help.'

‘Oh,' said Fraser.

Hayley watched the realization cross Fraser's face: if it wasn't Jonah calling for help, it must have been Solomon. And Solomon had drowned. Fraser's face seemed to crumple and she felt his agony.

‘I never saw my travelling companion again after we jumped. Then today I discovered his body washed ashore.'

There was silence for a while until Fraser asked, ‘Did you knife him in the belly?'

‘I did not.'

‘Who, then? And why?'

‘The first question I cannot answer. As to your second, why a drowned man would be cut open, that much I know.'

Before he could say more the cave was filled with the out-of-place sound of a musical ringtone. Hayley watched Fraser delve into his trouser pocket and pull out his phone. He pressed the button and held it to his ear, nodded a lot but said nothing except, ‘Hello,' at the start and, ‘Right then,' at the end.

‘What is it?' she asked as he finished the call.

Fraser sighed, his shoulders sagged. ‘It's Dunny. He's gone missing again. He was at the ceilidh but now he's disappeared. They want us back.'

He paused, seemed peeved.

‘Well, they want
you
back. You found him last time. They need you to find him again.'

CHAPTER 17

D
unny.

The mute boy.

The town curiosity.

His brother.

For most of his life Fraser hadn't given much thought to why Dunny was the way he was; he was family. They played together sometimes, walked together to the small Skulavaig primary school, ate dinner around the table with Mum and Dad. It was only when Fraser moved to high school and stayed during the week in the school hostel, when he made friends with boys with normal little brothers, that a distance formed between Dunny and him.

Dunny became an embarrassment. Even on Skye everyone knew of him. Fraser wondered if they had heard of him in Inverness. Maybe even in Glasgow.

And come the new term Dunny would be going to high school with him. Fraser would have protect him and explain him and defend him from the jibes, the looks, the bullying that would inevitably come. If his brother wouldn't speak up for himself he would have to become the voice of Dunny.

Was it any wonder he resented his silent brother?

‘Is it any wonder?' he said aloud.

‘What did you say?' Hayley asked, trudging beside him on the sand as they headed back to town.

‘Nothing.'

The beach was completely dark now, the dwindling light finally masked by black clouds gathering in the sky. The wind was picking up. Ahead the harbour glowed with street lights and house lights.

‘Where do you think he is?' Hayley asked.

‘I wish I knew.'

‘You're really pretty clueless about most things, aren't you?'

Fraser stopped and looked at her. ‘Why do you have to be so annoying?'

Hayley looked affronted. ‘Why do you have to be so grouchy and serious and
 . . . 
and
 . . .
' She searched for a third adjective. ‘And sad.'

That one hurt. Their kiss seemed a long time ago.

‘It's not my fault Dunny's disappeared again,' Hayley said.

They walked again in silence until they reached the harbour wall. A crowd of people milled around, spilling out of the mission. For a moment Fraser thought his parents had organized a search party but then he heard singing and laughter. The ceilidh had obviously just finished. There was no sign of his mum and dad.

‘What now?' Hayley asked.

‘I'll try his phone.'

‘How does
that
work?'

‘It's just texting. It's the way we communicate. Not that he writes much. Even less since he started those stupid shells. And I'm not doing that.'

‘Text him, then.'

‘My mum tried already. It's as if he doesn't want to be found.'

Fraser pulled out his phone anyway, wrote ‘Dunny, where R U' and hit send.

‘What about Jonah?' Hayley asked.

They had left in a hurry, with a promise to return tomorrow.

‘We make sure that the police don't find him. Or anyone else.'

‘Why are you helping him?'

‘Because I didn't help Solomon. And look what happened to him.'

‘You need to tell your mom and dad.'

‘I promised Jonah I wouldn't.
I
can do this, I can help him. We both can.'

Fraser searched the faces of the people at the harbour, looking for someone who might be involved in people trafficking. In summer the island could be full of strangers – day-trippers or holidaymakers or yacht people.

‘Jonah can't stay in the cave for ever,' Hayley said.

‘We have to get him off Nin and on his way to London.'

‘How do we do that?'

‘It would be easier if we had some money. Have you any money?'

‘A few nickels and dimes. And ten pounds of British money. One brown note. I like the way your notes are different colours.'

In his head Fraser calculated how much money he had. There was money in his savings account but that would mean a trip to the bank on Skye and that would arouse suspicion. To hand he had about twenty pounds in loose change.

‘I don't have much either. We can maybe muster thirty pounds between us.'

‘And what will that get us?'

‘It might cover the train fare to London.'

‘And where do you catch this train to London?'

‘Inverness, I suppose.'

‘And how do we get Jonah to Inverness?'

‘How do we get Jonah off the
island
? He can't just walk on to the ferry.'

There was a beep from his pocket. He checked his phone and said with surprise, ‘Dunny's replied.'

‘Not so silent after all,' Hayley said.

He read the message aloud. It was short and didn't make sense.

‘On boat. Whales.'

They both looked at the only vessel out there: the rusting lobster boat, bobbing gently and tied to the harbour wall.

‘Is Dunny on Ben's boat?' Hayley asked.

‘He could be hiding there.'

‘Would Ben not find him?'

‘Ben is probably in the pub.' Fraser wondered if Hayley's mother was there as well.

‘Well, we better get your brother.'

Together they walked along the harbour wall towards the
Moby Dick
. Hayley asked, ‘What did Dunny say about whales?'

‘Nothing. Just the word,
whales
.'

At the boat, Hayley asked, ‘Are you going aboard to search it?'

‘I best not. Not without Ben being here.'

‘Why will he care?'

Fraser remembered Ben's angry face and harsh words at the ceilidh. The boat was his home and it didn't seem proper to go sneaking around without permission.

‘Best not.'

‘Fine,' the girl said. ‘I'll do it.'

‘No.' He grabbed hold of Hayley's arm.

She tugged it free. ‘I'll go if I want.'

‘Just let it be. Please.'

‘Why should I?'

‘Because
 . . .
' It was hard to find the right words to describe how he felt. ‘Because he's
my
brother.
I
need to find him this time.'

Hayley looked set to continue the argument, but then threw up her arms in defeat. ‘Well,
someone
will have to go aboard and find him.'

‘Let me call him first. If he's down below, he'll hear me.'

With sarcasm Hayley said, ‘Yeah, that will work. Shout his name.'

‘He's mute. He's not deaf.'

Fraser leant over the harbour wall. ‘Dunny!' he called down to the boat. ‘Dunny, it's Fraser. Are you in there?'

They waited in silence for a moment and from the corner of his eye Fraser noticed the locals by the harbour looking in his direction.
Just the Dunbar boys
, he could almost hear them whisper.

‘Dunny,' he shouted again. ‘Come out.'

There was the sound of banging and a commotion from below deck. The cabin hatch began to rise. Fraser gave Hayley a smug smile.

Ben McCaig's head popped out. He looked up at the jetty, seemed flustered and annoyed and not completely sober.

‘What are you playing at, Fraser?'

In that moment Fraser knew for definite his whale-spotting trips were over. He tried to say something but despondency washed over him and choked the words in his throat. There was the brief thought that perhaps this was how his brother felt every day.

‘We're looking for Dunny,' Hayley said by way of rescue.

Ben pulled himself on to the deck. ‘And why the
 . . .
' He paused, glanced down into the cabin. ‘And why on earth do you think he might be here?'

‘We got a text message from him. He said he was on a boat. There's no other boat.'

Ben contemplated the sky and sighed, as if the heavens themselves were conspiring against him. ‘Well, I can assure you he is not on board mine.'

Fraser found his tongue. ‘Can we check?'

‘Of course you can't bloody check. I've told you he's not here, that's enough.'

From the cabin below came a woman's voice. With an American accent.

‘Is that you, Hayley?'

Sarah Risso pulled herself through the hatch and on to the deck. Her hair was dishevelled, her face red and she too looked slightly drunk.

Well, well, well
, thought Fraser. He understood now Ben's reluctance to have his boat searched. And his conviction that Dunny wasn't aboard.

‘Mom!' Hayley exclaimed.

Fraser looked at the girl. Her mouth hung open and her eyes were wide. Her face worked its way through various emotions: aghast, angry, embarrassed, confused, disappointed.

‘What are you doing, Mom?' Hayley asked.

Sarah took a moment before replying. ‘Ben and I were having a nightcap.'

‘Did you not drink enough at the ceilidh?'

‘It's not your job, honey, to set the limits on my alcohol intake.'

‘Well, clearly somebody has to.'

Sarah was about to reply but Ben got in there first.

‘That's quite enough, Hayley.'

Hayley looked outraged. Her mother ignored her. ‘What's happened to Dunny?' she asked.

‘My brother's gone missing again.'

Ben crossed the deck to the wheelhouse. He opened the door, took a quick look inside and declared, ‘He's not in here.' His face took on a worried look, as if he had had a sudden idea and was troubled by it. ‘Have you checked the dinghy?'

He headed towards the back of the boat and Fraser followed along the top of the jetty. They both saw the empty space at the stern beside the rusty ladder.

‘It's gone.' Fraser said.

‘What's gone?' Sarah asked.

‘The dinghy,' said Ben. ‘It's a small inflatable that I keep for emergencies. It's tied to the hull here.'

Fraser said, ‘The paddles are gone as well.'

‘Has Dunny taken it?' Sarah asked.

Ben kicked a few old lobster creels out of the way. ‘He's missing, and so is my dinghy.'

All four looked out to sea, which was beginning to roll in the gathering wind.

‘Oh, God,' Sarah said.

‘Would he do this, Fraze?' Ben asked.

‘I've no idea. I've no idea what Dunny is capable of doing. This, probably, aye.'

‘Why would he take off in the dinghy?'

It was suddenly crystal clear to Fraser what his brother was doing, what his cryptic text meant. Dunny had waded into the ocean the previous night and now he had set sail for a similar purpose.

‘He's gone to see the whales.'

‘What whales?'

‘The ones we saw last night. The orcas.'

‘Enough with the orcas,' Ben said. ‘There were no orcas.'

‘There were,' Hayley said. ‘Killer whales. Big black-and-white things. Dunny saw them first.'

‘I doubt it.' Ben rubbed his forehead, looked at the ocean. ‘But suppose for a minute they
do
exist and they
are
out there. Would Dunny take my dingy to find them?'

‘I think so,' Fraser said.

‘So where is he?' Sarah asked.

Fraser voiced the thought they all were having. He pointed beyond the harbour, towards the ocean that was dark now under the night sky. ‘Out there somewhere. And he's not the greatest swimmer.'

‘We should tell your parents,' Ben said.

‘We should tell the coastguard,' said Sarah.

‘No,' Fraser said to them both, looking down from the jetty. He imagined the taunts and sniggers that would come his way on the first day back at school. He saw the photograph that would be in the local paper, the wet and bedraggled Dunny after his rescue. ‘No. We don't want to make a fuss. We don't know exactly where he is yet.'

Sarah ignored him, asked Hayley, ‘Who was the coastguard man you told me about, honey?'

‘Mr Wallace.'

‘Let's find him.'

‘No,' Fraser said once more.

‘Your brother is out there in a small boat by himself. We need to tell the coastguard.'

‘No, Sarah,' said Ben. ‘Fraser's right. Not yet. If the coastguard gets involved, we'll have lifeboats and helicopters and it becomes a whole other thing.'

‘We need lifeboats and helicopters. Dunny has drifted out to sea in your rubber boat.'

‘Maybe.'

Fraser now had a picture in his head of Dunny being winched aboard a Sea King helicopter with the whole town watching and jeering. He couldn't shake the image that was going to be his downfall, his everlasting shame. Brother of Dunny ‘Dinghy' Dunbar. He only vaguely heard Ben say, ‘We have the
Moby Dick
.'

Sarah scoffed. ‘You're not taking this boat anywhere in your condition.'

‘I'm fine.'

‘You're drunk.'

‘Just a little.'

‘Enough to sink yourself and take Dunny with you.'

‘Nonsense.'

‘If you try to sail this boat, I will call not only the coastguard but also the police. I'm sure driving while intoxicated applies to boats as well.'

‘Fraser can steer.'

‘Don't be ridiculous.'