Dolphin Tale 6

Chapter [17]

C h a p t e r    S e v e n t e e n

IT WAS WORSE THAN THEY thought. Nobody would have ever imagined-let alone been prepared to see-the amount of damage that the storm had caused. And even if it was for Clearwater Marine Aquarium to be rebuilt, it would never be the same. The storm had taken away a member of their family; a friend to some, a brother to others. He had like a class clown, always fooling around and making someone laugh. But now he was gone and they would never be able to see his contagious smile again. They'd never be able to play with him again, watch him splash around the pool. They'd never be able to see him and Nicholas swimming together again . . .

A cool breeze made their teeth chatter as they watched the divers slowly lower themselves into the pool. The storm had caused Clearwater Marine Aquarium to-literally-become a shell. Many of the walls had crumbled, just like the walls that had once enclosed Dr. Clay's emotions. The normally strong walls had suddenly collapsed, and all of his emotions had come pouring out. He wasn't alone, though; everyone had let their guard down, letting their emotions free.

Phoebe was huddled in a corner, crying softly into a towel. Kat was right by her side; the two of them had been pretty close before all this had happened, but now they were so much closer-that's what tough times did; they could tear you apart, but they could also bring you closer together. The two of them were looking at anything besides the pool; neither of them wanted to see the divers extract Bondi from the pool.

In the adjoining pool, Nicholas was floating by the gate that separated the two pools. He just floated there, unmoving. Kat had tried to coax him into eating, but he had simply ignored her.

Dr. Clay sighed as he watched Nicholas. The dolphin had been silent for most of the day, but then he tilted his head up slightly and, all of a sudden, he let out a high-pitched, ear-splitting whistle.

Everyone turned to face Nicholas, their hearts aching in sorrow. His head was still tilted up towards the heavens, waiting for the reply that would never come.

It had been their thing: Nicholas would call out to Bondi, and Bondi would answer almost immediately. But now there was no one to answer his call; Bondi was gone. Gone. And not coming back.

For a heartbeat, everyone stared into the pool where Bondi had once resided, hoping that he would reply . . . but there was nothing - just echoing silence. There would never be an answer to Nicholas' call ever again; Bondi was gone.

"Dr. Clay?" someone said softly, as though unsure of how he would react.

Dr. Clay's eyes locked onto the man who was talking to him. It was one of the divers who had retrieved Bondi from the bottom of the pool. His eyes held no trace of emotion - it was probably all hidden behind closed doors. "Yes?"

"Where would you like us to take him? I assume you're going to perform a necropsy, right? To determine the cause of . . . death."

Dr. Clay inclined his head. "Take him to theater two. We'll be there soon."

"Yes, Dr. Clay," the diver said matter-of-factly. He turned to leave, but not before saying, "I'm sorry about your loss."

Dr. Clay watched him leave before jumping into action. He walked over to where Phoebe and Kat were huddled together, clearing his throat to catch their attention.

Phoebe lifted her head up from the towel, tears still slithering down her face, leaving glistening trails in their wake. A sheen of fresh tears formed in her eyes as she caught sight of the divers carrying Bondi away in a stretcher.

"I know that it's going to be difficult, but we still need to do a necropsy in order to find out what caused Bondi's . . . passing. After that, we can decide what we want to do with his . . . body."

A tear slipped down Phoebe's face, but she nodded, determination written all over her face. "It must be done, and we must be the ones who do it."

Kat patted her on the back. "And we owe it to Bondi to make sure that we get to the bottom of this."

* * *

A few hours later, the necropsy was complete and the samples they had taken from Bondi were sent to the lab for further testing. The atmosphere was somber as Dr. Clay, Phoebe, and Kat stared at each other, silently asking the same question.

It was Kat who spoke up, her eyebrows furrowed, sadness evident within her eyes. "What do we do now?"

Dr. Clay said one word, the tiredness weaved into his tone: "Cremation."

Phoebe bowed her head. "Of course."

Clearwater Marine Aquarium had a tradition, that if an animal was to pass on, they would be cremated and have their ashes scattered in the location where they were originally rescued - in Bondi's case, the beach where he was found. This way, they could be back where they belonged - free and home at long last. And it was this thought that put everyone's minds ever so slightly at ease.