Gertrude Warner - Great Shark Mystery

Emily waved her hand above her head and the dolphins jumped in the air and sprayed water out of their blowholes.

“That looked like a fountain!” said Violet.

“Did you know that dolphins are some of the smartest animals around?” Emily asked the crowd. “They have many ways of communicating.” Emily motioned and the dolphins came over to where she was standing. On command they made a series of different noises—clicks, whistles, even something that sounded like a person laughing. “That was great, guys,” she told the dolphins, rubbing their heads affectionately and tossing them some more fish from her pouch.

“Scientists are working to understand what all of these sounds mean,” Emily told the audience. She made another signal, and the dolphins dived underwater and smacked the surface loudly with their tails. “This is another way dolphins talk to one another,” Emily explained. “Perhaps to warn others of dangerous animals nearby, like sharks.”

“That is so cool,” said Henry.

“Dolphins are so smart, they’ve been known to rescue people who are shipwrecked and save people from sharks. Some have been trained to help children who are physically or mentally challenged,” Emily said.

“I didn’t know they could do all that,” whispered Violet.

Emily went on, “And they’re also able to learn a lot of commands and signals, so they can do some neat tricks.” She whistled and then held her arm up straight in the air. The dolphins came up out of the water as if standing on their tails. When Emily waved her arm in a circle, they spun around as if dancing. Then she swung her arm a different way. The dolphins went down in the water and swam very fast. All of a sudden they leaped out and touched a ball that hung from a wire high above the water. With each new trick the audience cheered more loudly.

Violet looked around at the cheering crowd. Suddenly, she noticed someone she’d seen before. He was sitting at the other end of their row, watching the dolphins perform. It was the man in the blue baseball cap who had watched them through the gate the night before.

Who was he? And why did he keep showing up where they were?

“Jessie, look!” Violet whispered to her sister.

“What is it?” Jessie asked.

“Look down there!” Violet motioned with her head. “The man in the blue baseball cap.”

“What about him?” Jessie asked.

“Remember, we saw him yesterday, and he seemed to be trying to get our attention?” Violet said.

Jessie wrinkled her forehead. “Oh, yeah, when we first got here.”

“He stayed by the gate after Emily took us down the path to our cabin,” Violet said. “He stood watching us for a long time.”

“He did?” Jessie said.

“Yes, and now he’s sitting right near us,” Violet pointed out. “Does that seem a little … strange to you?”

“It could be a coincidence,” Jessie said. But she knew what her sister was thinking—that the man was there for a reason. “Let’s tell Emily about it after the show,” she said.

The dolphins did several more tricks, but Violet wasn’t able to concentrate. She kept wondering about the man in the hat.

The show ended with the dolphins waving good-bye with their flippers and blowing kisses at the crowd. As the dolphins swam away, the audience cheered with delight.

“Wasn’t that great?” Benny said.

“It was,” Jessie agreed. “It’s amazing what the dolphins can do and how well they understand Emily.”

Violet nodded her head absently. She looked to see if the man in the baseball cap was still there. His seat was empty. She looked around but didn’t see him anywhere. Maybe he was just here to see the show, she thought. I’m probably just imagining there’s more to it.

Violet followed her brothers and sister down to the platform where Emily was standing.

“That was great!” Benny cried.

“I wish I could play with the dolphins like you did,” Jessie said.

“Then go get your swimsuits on,” Emily said.

The Aldens looked at Emily their eyes wide. “Really?”

“Sure! I could use some helpers,” Emily told them.

“We’ll be right back!” Henry cried, as the children took off for their cabin to change.

Ten minutes later the Aldens were back, dressed in their swimsuits. Emily was standing at the far end of the arena.

“That was fast,” Emily said. “Before I bring out the dolphins, there’s something I’d like you to try.” She took off the whistle that was around her neck. “Which one of you would like to be the trainer first?”

“I will,” said Jessie, stepping forward.

“All right,” said Emily, handing her the whistle. “And who’d like to be the dolphin?”

The Aldens laughed.

“I will,” Benny offered.

Emily smiled. “This will give you an idea of what it’s like from the dolphin’s point of view.” She turned to Jessie. “I want you to teach Benny a trick, but you can’t use words because dolphins don’t speak our language. Instead you have to use hand signals and the whistle. And when he gets something right, you’re going to reward him.”

“Reward?” Benny asked.

“Yes,” said Emily, turning to Benny. “What do you like?”

“Food!” said Henry, and everyone nodded.

“How about candy?” Emily suggested, pulling a small bag of chocolate candies from behind the platform. Benny nodded eagerly. “Okay, Jessie will give you one every time you get something right.”

“This is kind of like training our dog, Watch,” Jessie said. “We give him dog biscuits.”

“You’re right,” said Emily. “Now let’s see if you can train Benny.”

Jessie blew the whistle, and Benny pretended to swim over. Jessie waved her hand in the air, and Benny tried several tricks he’d seen the dolphins do during the show. He jumped up in the air, spun around, and waved his arms like flippers. But Jessie just shook her head and repeated the arm motion again and again. Henry and Violet wondered what kind of trick Jessie was trying to teach Benny. But Jessie couldn’t just tell Benny to do something.

“This is hard,” Jessie said.

“You’re telling me,” said Benny, out of breath.

Emily grinned. “Now you know how hard the dolphins work, learning to understand us.”

Benny laughed, and suddenly Jessie nodded and smiled. She pulled out a chocolate and handed it to Benny.

Benny’s eyes lit up. He took the candy and ate it. Then he laughed again, and Jessie nodded and handed him another chocolate.

“You got it,” said Emily. “Jessie wanted to make you laugh. That was the trick.”

The children took turns playing the role of dolphin and trainer until they’d each had a chance. Then Emily said, “All right, I think you’re ready. Follow me.”

Emily took the Aldens over to the far end of the arena. She helped each of them put on a life jacket.

“One more thing,” Emily added, handing them each a pouch of raw fish to hang around their necks. “You’ll need these to reward them.”

Benny made a face. “I liked my reward better.”

“Now wait here,” Emily said, leading them into the shallow end of the tank.

“Where are you going?” Benny wanted to know.

“To get some dolphins,” Emily said, flashing a smile. She ran back to where the dolphin tank fed into the arena and opened the gate. A few minutes later, she was swimming back over to the Aldens with two sleek gray dolphins.

The children were so excited they could hardly speak.

“Henry, you and Violet can work with Pearl, and Jessie and Benny will work with Rainbow,” Emily said. “Feel how soft they are.”

The children stroked the dolphins’ backs the way Emily had. “I’ve never felt anything so soft and smooth,” said Violet.