Orca in Open Water by Emma Carlson Berne

Author:Emma Carlson Berne
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: fiction; Stone Arch Books; Seaside Sanctuary; animals/marine life; social themes/friendship; mysteries & detective stories; 9781496578624; 9781496580313; 9781496578662
Publisher: Capstone
Published: 2019-01-01T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 7

“Are we sure this is a good idea?” I asked the next day. We stood in the bright sunshine, staring up at a wide blue-painted arch that read Oceanarium.

“I think it is,” Olivia replied. She pulled me toward the entrance, making our way through crowds of families and vacationers outfitted in shorts and ball caps.

“It definitely is,” Cooper said on my other side. “I want you guys to see this in person.”

We made our way past tanks of turtles and fish, an outdoor habitat for seals and one for otters, and a large dolphin pool. Cooper led us up onto concrete bleachers that surrounded a huge pool on three sides. A large digital sign above the pool read: Orca Show featuring Kaya and her trainer, Samantha!

It was strange to realize we’d be seeing an orca soon. I felt more like I was at a public swimming pool. The water in the pool was so blue, and the concrete was hot under my shorts. The bleachers around us were filled with kids grasping melting ice-creams and couples aiming their phones at the pool.

Suddenly music filled the air, and a voice on a loudspeaker boomed, “Oceanarium patrons, welcome to the Orca Show! Please welcome Kaya and her trainer, Samantha!”

Gates I hadn’t noticed before opened at one end of the pool, and with a giant splash, an orca swam into the pool with a trainer in a wet suit riding on her back. The trainer was almost surfing above the water, smiling and waving, as the orca swam rapidly around the perimeter of the pool. The crowd around us cheered as music played.

“The beautiful Kaya!” the announcer’s voice boomed. The orca suddenly dove, flinging her tail up, and the trainer did a somersault and landed beautifully in the water.

As we watched, the trainer swam to the edge of the pool and jumped out. She tweeted a whistle, and Kaya swam over to a large white platform that extended out from the side of the pool, just below the surface of the water.

The trainer knelt beside the orca and gave some kind of hand signal. In response, the whale blew a plume of water out of her blowhole, soaking the first two rows of people, all of whom shrieked with delight. Another signal followed, and the orca flopped off the platform and back into the water.

My stomach felt sick as I watched the show. I looked over at Olivia and Cooper. They both had the same expression on their faces, like they were being forced to hold something sour in their mouths.

“Oh, oh, oh,” Olivia was muttering. Her hands were clenched in her lap.

“I’ve seen enough,” I told the other two.

My friends nodded, and we edged past people out to the aisle. Everyone else seemed enthralled, but I couldn’t watch another minute. We made our way down the steps and away from the pool.

“Sick!” I exploded as soon as we were away. “That’s sickening!”

“They’re treating that orca like a trained dog,” Olivia agreed.

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