Stingers--A Sharks Incorporated Novel by Randy Wayne White

Author:Randy Wayne White
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press

TWENTY-ONE

A DIAPER CHANGE AND TAGGING SHARKS

Luke paced the beach while Winifred Olivia Chase spoke with the girls on the patio. Baby Izaak, who had interrupted lunch by yowling, was asleep on the boy’s chest. The kid had the sniffles. Maybe a slight fever, too.

When the meeting was over, Maribel gave Luke a private wave. Sabina stuck out her tongue, then grinned to show she was kidding.

The boy was getting used to walking around carrying a baby. The kid’s stuffy nose and the occasional sneeze didn’t bother him. What he wasn’t getting used to was changing Izaak’s diapers.

Whew! Pigs and chickens weren’t nearly as bad. It wasn’t fair. Why did the baby scream when one of the Estéban sisters tried to take him?

“I guess those girls are sorta scary,” Luke confided to the infant. “Look, dude, I’m tired. Was up most the night hunting crabs. Those things got great big claws that hurt.”

The boy displayed his bandaged index finger as proof.

The baby’s tiny fist whacked Luke on the chest. From the baby’s lips came a sleepy bubble, then a sneeze. From the baby’s other end came a belching sound. It was not a burp.

The boy grimaced. He sniffed. He wrinkled his sensitive nose.

Maribel recognized the expression on Luke’s face. “Time for a diaper change,” she said to her sister. They were walking side by side.

Sabina grinned. “I’m so glad babies don’t like me. They’re even more irritating than adults.”

Maribel, who liked babies, said, “We’ll help Luke change Izaak while we tell him the good news.”

The meeting with the famous author could not have gone better.

Winifred had read through the list of activities. She’d asked a lot of questions before saying, “I’ll try anything. That’s the way I’ve lived my life. Plus, I found a very interesting old book about Katt Island in the library.”

More important, the woman loved the food here.

The sisters helped Tamarin with the lunch dishes while they shared the best part. “She came here to write an article for World Traveler Magazine. Not just about shark diving, but about a big company that’s buying up a lot of land in the Bahamas.”

“Why would anyone buy land here?” Tamarin asked. “It can’t be worth much.”

Maribel wasn’t sure. The company built something called “tourist destinations,” she said. Big hotels and casinos. “Ms. Winifred was in Nassau before she came here,” Maribel continued. “Depending on how her visit goes, she might mention Katt Island and the Dilly Tree Inn. Wouldn’t that be great?”

Tamarin’s expression changed. “Did she say anything about turtle poachers?”

“No, but she probably knows,” Maribel replied. “She was a newspaper reporter before she started writing books. She’s helped catch criminals before.”

“Winnie isn’t afraid of anything,” Sabina bragged while scrubbing another plate. “She’s been all over the world. Written about wars and hurricanes. I’m going to be just like her when I grow up.”

Lost in thought, Tamarin grimaced. Sabina, unaware, kept gushing about the author, but Maribel knew that their friend was worried about something.

The turtle poachers, maybe?

No, the older sister decided.

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