Ben Archer and the World Beyond by Rae Knightly

Author:Rae Knightly [Knightly, Rae]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781989605059
Publisher: PoCo Publishers
Published: 2020-04-08T22:00:00+00:00

* * *

Uncle Pete squeezed Ben’s shoulders. “Son! Mijn jongen[5]!” he exclaimed, breathless with wonder. “You saved the orcas! How did you do it?”

Ben swallowed. He didn’t want to lie. But he couldn’t tell the truth, either. “I didn’t do anything, really…”

“Pa,” Wilson gave Uncle Pete a warning look. “The Zeefluisteraars work in mysterious ways. It is not our place to question them.”

Uncle Pete’s face beamed, the corner of his eyes creasing with laughter lines. “Indeed,” he said. “Let us leave it at that.” They walked towards the group of men, among whom was the Sheriff.

“There’s something I need to tell you,” he said, eager to change the subject. “Something confused the orcas and beached them. I think I know what it was. When I was out there, I saw a ship hidden behind an island. It’s called the SOVA. It was making a lot of noise.”

Uncle Pete glanced at the Sheriff. “I see,” he said.

Ben continued. “We should go to the SOVA and let them know that they are putting the local wildlife in danger.”

Uncle Pete lifted an eyebrow but did not answer. The Sheriff glanced at the other police officers.

Ben stared at them. “You already know about it, don’t you?”

The Sheriff nodded. “We do. Now, don’t you worry yourself with this. Let us take care of it.”

“But…”

“That’s enough, Ben!” Uncle Pete’s tone of voice startled Ben.

The man softened his stance. “You’ve done quite enough, son. And you should leave that ship alone.”

Ben opened his mouth.

The Sheriff spoke before he could say anything. “I will report it to the Coast Guard as soon as I head into Tofino tomorrow.” He saluted by tapping on his hat, then walked away.

“Tomorrow?” Ben glanced at Uncle Pete.

“Yes, tomorrow.” Uncle Pete confirmed. “You did good today, son. Leave it for now. I want you and Kimi to head home and get some rest.” He turned and followed the group of men. Glancing back, he urged, “Go on.”

Ben watched them retreat down the beach. He set his jaw and glanced at Kimi, wondering what she thought of all this.

To his surprise, she did not acknowledge him but turned and walked off.

“Hey! What’s the matter?” he called, suddenly realizing she hadn’t said a word ever since he had docked at the pier.

She walked faster.

“Kimi? What’s wrong?”

Her shoulders shook. She glanced back, her face twisted in anger. She seemed so upset she could not speak.

“What is it?” he exclaimed, truly worried this time. “Tell me what’s wrong!”

“You really don’t know, do you?” she burst.

“Huh?”

She walked swiftly, her face flushed. “You went without me!” she yelled.

Ben flinched. “I… what?”

She stopped and balled her fists. “You saved the orcas without me! I know it was you. You did something, and you didn’t wake me. My mom said, ‘Don’t you question him, Kimimela, don’t you bother him’. And I obeyed. I’ve been silent all this time, trying to respect your private little life. But after everything I’ve done for you, you could have at least shared that moment with me.

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