River Rescue

For Lizzie Ryley

Table of Contents

Cover Page

Title Page

Prologue

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Copyright

About the Publisher

Prologue

Agroup of dolphins were playing follow my leader along the seabed. In and out of the rocks they chased each other in a long, wiggly line.

“It’s my turn to be leader now,” clicked Swift, one of the older dolphins.

Swift swam fast, weaving between the rocks, turning somersaults and rolling in the water. The dolphins chased after him, squealing with delight.

“This is so much fun!” exclaimed Bubbles.

“Let’s go and play in the kelp beds,” said Swift. “That’ll be even more fun.”

“Bubbly,” clicked Bubbles. “You lead and we’ll follow.”

But as Swift headed out to sea, a tiny dolphin named Dot called from the back, “Mum doesn’t let me go to the kelp beds on my own.”

“You’re not on your own. You’re with us,” said Swift.

Dot stopped swimming and shook her head. “Sorry, but I’m not allowed to go there without a grown-up. Please can we play here?”

“I’m going to the kelp beds,” said Swift firmly. “Stay here if you don’t want to come.”

“But I won’t have anyone to play with,” squeaked Dot.

“I’ll stay behind with you,” said Bubbles.

He darted out of the line and swam over to her.

“You said you’d go to the kelp beds,” said Swift crossly. “You can’t just change your mind.”

“I can,” said Bubbles.

“Well, I’m not changing mine,” said Swift crossly. “Follow me, everyone.”

The other dolphins hesitated, then some followed Swift and some stayed with Bubbles and Dot. They immediately started a new game, unaware that Spirit and Star were watching them.

“Bubbles was right,” said Star proudly. “You can change your mind.”

Spirit uttered a long sigh. “If only all choices were that simple. I sense much harder decisions ahead for the Silver Dolphins.”

“Can we help them?” asked Star.

“No,” said Spirit sadly. “The Silver Dolphins must choose for themselves.”

Chapter One

Antonia Lee woke with the sun on her face and a wonderful feeling bubbling inside her. It was the first day of the spring holiday. Two whole weeks of fun and spending as much time as she liked helping at Sea Watch, the marine conservation charity run by her friend Cai’s great-aunt Claudia. Hurriedly, Antonia washed and dressed then went downstairs for breakfast.

Mum and Dad were drinking tea in the kitchen.

“You’re up early,” said Dad. “Did you forget there was no school?”

“I’m going to Sea Watch,” said Antonia, pouring herself a bowl of cereal. “There’s a lot to do because it’s just volunteers today Cai and Claudia aren’t there this morning.”

“Of course!” exclaimed Mum, passing Antonia a mug of tea. “They’ll be on their way to the airport to collect Cai’s parents.”

Cai was living with his great-aunt Claudia in Sandy Bay because his mum and dad had temporary jobs in Australia.

“How long are they over here for?” asked Dad.

“Ten days,” said Antonia. She finished her breakfast then sat on the kitchen floor to put on her trainers.

“Are you coming back for lunch?” Mum stepped over her to get to the dishwasher.

“No, I made some sandwiches last night. I’ll be home for tea, though.” Antonia’s voice trailed away as a very familiar feeling swept over her. It made her tingle with anticipation. The dolphins needed her! Any minute now the silver dolphin charm Antonia always wore round her neck would call her to the sea.

“Got to go,” she said, hurriedly jumping up. “See you later.”

“Have a good day,” called Mum.

As Antonia closed the front door her silver dolphin charm vibrated and its tiny tail tapped against her neck. The charm was as soft as a real dolphin. Antonia shivered with delight as suddenly a high-pitched whistle that only a Silver Dolphin could hear shrilled from it.

Silver Dolphin, we need you.

Spirit, I hear your call, Antonia silently answered as she headed towards the beach.

Both Antonia and Cai were Silver Dolphins, or guardians of the sea. They had special magical abilities that let them swim and communicate with dolphins! With these amazing abilities came the responsibility to care for sea life. Antonia wished that Cai was there too as she ran towards Gull Bay. He’d be frustrated that he’d missed Spirit’s call, even though he was really excited about meeting his parents at the airport. Antonia jumped down on to the deserted beach. The soft, white sand shifted beneath her feet as she ran over to the rocks. Pulling off her trainers and socks, Antonia left them under a rock and ran down to the sea. The water was chilly and her teeth chattered as she waded deeper. There were goose bumps on her arms and legs, but Antonia kept walking. When the sea was deep enough she gracefully dived in. The water was so cold it made her gasp, but she quickly warmed up as her legs melded together to kick like a dolphin’s tail. Hands paddling like flippers, body arching in and out of the sea, Antonia swam to find Spirit.

It wasn’t long before she saw four silver heads in the water. Antonia swam on, pleased that Spirit had brought his family Star, Dream and Bubbles with him. She greeted Spirit first, rubbing her nose against his. Bubbles impatiently bobbed in the water, waiting for his turn, then greeted Antonia enthusiastically.

“Thank you for answering our call, Silver Dolphin,” said Spirit. “Bubbles and Dream have found an old fishing net on the seabed.”

“Show me where,” said Antonia at once. Lost or abandoned fishing nets posed a serious threat to sea life. If animals got stuck in them they either starved or drowned.

“Follow me,” said Bubbles importantly.

Antonia dived under the sea and swam after Bubbles, with Spirit, Star and Dream following.

“There,” said Bubbles, pointing with his nose.

“Don’t get too close,” Spirit clicked in warning as Bubbles swam nearer.

The net was like a hideous brown monster slumbering on the seabed. Antonia swam round it, her eyes quickly sliding over the rotting fish and the dead starfish trapped in its squares. It was large and would be awkward to carry, but she thought she could manage it on her own. Fighting back her revulsion, Antonia pulled the dead creatures away then carefully folded the net in half and rolled it into a bundle.

“Stay back,” she warned as Bubbles inched closer to see what she was doing.

Antonia scooped the net up and swam upwards until her head broke through the water’s surface.

“Phew,” she panted. “It’s heavy.”

“When he arrives the other Silver Dolphin will help you get it ashore,” said Bubbles confidently.

“He’s not coming,” said Antonia. “He’s gone to meet his parents. They’ve come back from Australia to visit him.”

“That’s lovely. He must really miss them,” clicked Star sympathetically.

“He does,” said Antonia.

Bubbles looked scared. “What if he decides to go and live in Australia with his parents?” he asked.

Antonia laughed and said confidently, “That won’t happen. Cai loves it here. Being a Silver Dolphin is the best thing that’s ever happened to him.”

The net was weighing her down so she headed to shore. The dolphins swam with her, clicking encouragement but not offering any help nets were too dangerous. Soon Antonia was red in the face with exertion.

“Not far now,” she panted as the beach drew closer.

“Can the Silver Dolphin come back and play when she’s taken the net ashore?” asked Bubbles hopefully.

“Yes, if she’d like to,” clicked Spirit.

Antonia shook her head sadly. “I’d love to, but I can’t. I’m needed at Sea Watch today. I’ll play another time.”

Bubbles looked disappointed as he said goodbye, splashing his tail in the water.

Antonia headed straight for the beach. When it was shallow enough to paddle, she dumped the net in the surf while she caught her breath. Sea water poured from her clothes like a miniature waterfall, leaving everything as dry as if she’d never been in the water. Antonia ran her hand through her long, blonde hair, straightening out a few damp tangles. A nasty odour was coming from the net. Antonia wrinkled her nose and, holding it carefully away from her, carried it up the beach and fed it into the dustbin. If Cai had been there to help she would have taken the net back to the Sea Watch bin rather than fill the one on the beach, but it was too heavy and smelly to carry to Sea Watch on her own.

Antonia put on her shoes and socks, chuckling as she remembered Bubbles’s comment about Cai returning to live with his parents. Cai was very excited about seeing his mum and dad, but there was no way he’d go back to Australia with them. His world was here in Sandy Bay. Thinking about the fun times they’d had together, Antonia hurried to Sea Watch.

Chapter Two

It felt funny going to Sea Watch, knowing that neither Cai or Claudia would be there. The door was unlocked, but the building had an empty feel to it.

“Hello, is anyone here?” called Antonia.

“Hi, Antonia, I’m in the back room,” Sally, an adult volunteer who took charge when Claudia was away, called out.

Antonia opened the door and found Sally sitting on a chair, feeding a fox cub with a baby’s bottle.

“You’re early,” Sally said, smiling at Antonia.

“Not as early as you,” said Antonia, smiling back. “Oh, how sweet! When did the fox cub come in?”

“This is Rusty. A motorist brought him in last night. His mother was killed by a car. The motorist found him lying next to her at the side of the road.”

Antonia stood very still, watching the cub suck lethargically from the bottle of milk. He had chocolate-coloured fur, large ears and a tiny black nose.

“He’s so cute,” she whispered.

Rusty couldn’t finish the bottle. Sally looked worried as she put him back in his pen.

“I’ll try him again later,” she said, shutting the door.

Rusty settled down with his nose in his tail and closed his eyes.

“Maybe he’s tired,” said Antonia.

“Let’s hope so. He had quite a traumatic night. Claudia said he was terrified when he first arrived. Poor Claudia! She was up half the night dealing with Rusty, so she didn’t get much sleep before she had to get up and go to the airport.”

Sally poured Rusty’s milk down the sink and washed the bottle.

“What do you want me to do today?” asked Antonia.

“The razorbill and the herring gulls need cleaning out and feeding, but if that’s too much for you I could find something easier?”

“I’ll do the birds,” said Antonia, pleased to be busy. Sea Watch felt weird without Claudia and Cai. It was far too quiet and empty. Antonia hoped that some other volunteers would arrive soon. Putting on a disposable apron and a pair of gloves, she collected cleaning materials and went outside to the aviaries. The first one contained Billy the razorbill, who was recovering from getting oil on his feathers. He sat on a perch watching Antonia navigate the porch with its double-door system designed to stop birds escaping.

“Urr,” he said conversationally.

“Urr,” answered Antonia, mimicking his throaty growl.

She removed the soiled straw from his sleeping quarters and replaced it with a fresh batch. Then she cleaned out his water bowl and refilled it. After that, Antonia swept and mopped the concrete floor. Finally, she left Billy with a fish breakfast and went outside to sweep round the aviary, clearing away the bits of straw and bird seed.

“Hi, Antonia.”

Antonia was so engrossed in her job that she hadn’t heard Emily arrive.

“Do you need any help?”

“Yes, please,” said Antonia. “I’m just about to start on the gulls.”

It was fun working with Emily. She made Antonia laugh telling her stories about life in Year Seven at Sandy Bay High, the local comprehensive. They finished the gulls in half the time it had taken Antonia to do Billy and then went inside. To Antonia’s surprise it was mid-morning and time to stop for a break. She sat with Sally and the other volunteers and was drinking squash and eating a biscuit when Cai arrived back from the airport with his parents and Claudia.

“Everyone, this is my mum and dad,” announced Cai, pinching a biscuit from the plate.

Antonia had met Cai’s parents before, but hadn’t seen them for ages and was overcome with shyness. She quickly recovered when Mr and Mrs Pacific hugged her warmly.

“How was your flight?” she asked, hugging them back.

“Good,” said Mr Pacific, “until we stepped off the plane and remembered how cold it is here in April.” He shivered dramatically and chattered his teeth.

“This isn’t cold, it’s warm!” exclaimed Cai.

Mr and Mrs Pacific looked as sleepy as Rusty the fox cub after their long flight, but Cai was too excited to notice and insisted on showing them round with Antonia.

“Come and see outside,” he said, after they’d looked at everything indoors. “We’ve got new aviaries, a deepwater pool and our own beach.”

“Is it the same beach that was here the last time I visited Claudia?” Mr Pacific joked.

Cai laughed. “You haven’t seen the deepwater pool, though,” he said persuasively.

“We’ll see the outside later, honey,” said Mrs Pacific, smothering a yawn with her hand. “Right now I need to lie down before I fall down!”

Antonia didn’t go up to the house with Cai. Expecting him to stay with his parents, she went down to the beach with Emily to take some sea-water samples. But it wasn’t long before Cai joined them.

“That was quick,” said Antonia.

“There wasn’t much point in hanging around,” said Cai. “Mum and Dad are having a sleep in Claudia’s spare room.”

“Don’t you miss your parents?” asked Emily curiously. “I’d miss mine if they lived on the other side of the world.”

Cai sighed. “I do miss them loads, but when we all lived together I didn’t see them much because they were working such long hours. In a way, it’s better like this. Now when I see them they take time off work so we can do stuff together. Dad’s taking me windsurfing and he said you could come too, Antonia.”

“Really? I’ve always wanted to try that,” said Antonia enthusiastically. She was pleased Mr Pacific had invited her.

There was so much to do at Sea Watch that the day sped by. Claudia was concerned about Rusty, who still wasn’t feeding well, and she rang Mr Singh, the vet, for a chat. She looked a little happier afterwards.

“Mr Singh thinks our cub might be cold. He told me to put a heat lamp in his pen and see if that helps. He’s also suggested getting in touch with the Sandy Bay Badger Sanctuary. They take in injured or orphaned fox cubs as well as badgers, so I’m going to see if they have room for Rusty. Mr Singh thinks he’ll be much better off there because they have lots of experience dealing with young cubs. They’ll have other foxes for Rusty to socialise with.”

At the end of the day Antonia and Cai couldn’t resist going to visit the cub before they went home. Rusty looked so small and cute curled up in the pen on his own.

“I wish we could keep him here until he’s big enough to release back into the wild,” said Cai.

“Me too,” Antonia agreed. “But it wouldn’t be fair. He’ll be much happier at the badger sanctuary.”

“I wonder if he misses his parents,” said Cai with a soft sigh.

Antonia gave Cai a look as he headed for the door.

But Cai sounded his usual cheery self as he called back, “See you tomorrow, Antonia. And don’t forget to ask if you can go windsurfing while my parents are here.”

“I’ll ask as soon as I get in,” said Antonia, following him.

Chapter Three

The moment Antonia arrived home her little sister Jessica swooped on her.

“Come and play with me,” she said. “I’ve built a den in my bedroom with blankets and pegs. It’s really cool.”

“In a minute, Jess,” said Antonia. She wanted to ask Mum about going windsurfing first.

“That was nice of Cai’s dad,” said Mum. “Of course you can go.”

“Good, now you can come and play with me,” said Jessica.

Laughing good-naturedly, Antonia let Jessica pull her upstairs.

“Close your eyes,” said Jessica bossily.

Antonia closed them and Jess flung open her bedroom door, declaring dramatically, “Open them again.”

“Wow!” exclaimed Antonia. “This is really cool, Jess.”

The den took up most of the bedroom and reminded Antonia of a Bedouin tent in the desert. It was built from blankets pegged to various objects in the room. There was a string of pink and blue flower-shaped lights hanging around the entrance. The bedroom curtains were drawn and the lights glowed prettily in the darkened room. Antonia crawled inside and found that the den was comfortably furnished with cushions and pillows. The bathroom radio was playing softly in the background and Jessica had put a framed photo of Mum, Dad and Antonia on a table made from an upside-down box.

“I love it,” said Antonia, settling on a cushion.

They only had a short time to play before tea, so after they’d eaten, Jessica asked Antonia if she’d come back to the den to play some more.

“Not tonight,” said Mum, stacking the dirty plates. “It’s time to take the den down and get in the bath.”

“Can I leave it up?” asked Jess. “I want to play in it again tomorrow. Antonia does too, don’t you?”

“I’d love to, but I’m going to Sea Watch,” said Antonia. “I’ll play with you when I get home, though.”

“Is that a good idea when you’re going windsurfing with Cai?” asked Mum. “I thought you might give Sea Watch a break for a day or two. Cai’s not seen his parents for ages and he might like some time alone with them.”

“Then Cai won’t come to Sea Watch, he’ll stay up at the house,” said Antonia reasonably.

Dad sighed wistfully. “Lucky you! Before I started my garage business I used to go windsurfing. Those were the days…when I had time for hobbies!”

Antonia groaned loudly. It was a family joke that Dad never had time for anything because he was always working.

“Just don’t overstay your welcome,” said Mum. “Cai’s a good friend. He might not tell you that he doesn’t want you around all the time in case he hurts your feelings.”

“Cai knows me better than that!” said Antonia indignantly. “We don’t have secrets from each other.”

“What about my den?” Jessica interrupted. “Can I keep it up or not?”

Mum hesitated. “All right, but no more playing in it tonight. Go and get in the bath.” Mum followed Jessica upstairs to get her a towel from the airing cupboard.

Antonia went outside and stared at the bay. The blue sea shimmered invitingly and she longed to be swimming in it. She screwed up her eyes against the slanting evening sunshine, hoping she might see her dolphins. But the only things in the water were the bright-green canoes of the Sandy Bay rowing club. Disappointed, Antonia went indoors.

The next morning, Antonia was the first volunteer to arrive at Sea Watch. Claudia was pleased to see her and handed her a warm bottle of milk, saying, “Can you feed Rusty for me?”

“I’d love to,” said Antonia.

“Great,” said Claudia. “I need to put in an order for supplies and if I don’t do it now we’re going to run out of things. Please can you make a note of how much milk he drinks? He took a little more last night, but it’s still not as much as he should be having. His record sheet is by the pen.”

“I’ll do that. Where’s Cai?” asked Antonia as she pulled on a pair of disposable gloves.

“Cai’s having breakfast with his mum and dad. He’ll be down later.” There was a catch in Claudia’s voice, and Antonia looked at her in surprise.

“Is everything all right?”

“Yes.” Claudia abruptly began rummaging in the cupboard, giving Antonia the strong impression she was hiding something. Remembering the conversation she had with her mum, Antonia suddenly felt uncomfortable. What if Mum was right? What if Cai didn’t want her around now that his parents were back?

“There you go.” Claudia backed out of the cupboard and handed a towel to Antonia.

“You know the drill,” she said, smiling warmly. “Sit Rusty on this when you feed him so you don’t spoil your clothes.”

Claudia sounded normal again so Antonia decided she must have been imagining things.

“Thanks.” Taking the towel in one hand and the milk in the other, Antonia went to the back room to feed Rusty.

The cub was a little livelier today, but he took a while to latch on to the bottle and he didn’t finish the milk. Antonia sat patiently, wiggling the bottle to encourage the cub to drink more. It was peaceful in the back room. Sun streamed through the window, warming Antonia’s face and making Rusty’s coat gleam like molten chocolate. Her thoughts wandered to Cai. She was surprised that he was still having breakfast. Cai was an early riser. He must have waited to eat with his mum and dad.

When it was obvious that Rusty wasn’t going to take any more milk, Antonia put him back in his pen. The cub clung to her, but Antonia was firm.

“I’m not allowed to cuddle you,” she said, pushing his paws away. “Sorry, but it’s for your own good.”

Antonia wrote down the amount of milk Rusty had drunk on his record sheet, then emptied the remainder down the sink. She washed the empty bottle and soaked it in sterilising solution. There was still no sign of Cai and none of the other volunteers had arrived either. As Antonia collected the things she needed to clean out Billy and the gull’s aviaries, she wondered whether she should have stayed away too.

“Thank goodness you’re here,” said Claudia, suddenly looking up from her computer. “I would never have managed on my own.”

Antonia smiled gratefully. She knew Claudia meant it. They were good at reading each other’s minds. Feeling much more cheerful, Antonia went outside to the birds. As she reached the aviary she heard footsteps behind her.

“Antonia!”

Antonia was pleased to see Cai and waited for him to catch her up.

“Hi, sorry I’m late. Mum and Dad took ages to get up this morning.” Cai’s smile didn’t quite reach his eyes as he opened Billy’s aviary door for her. Arms full of mop, bucket and cleaning things, Antonia went inside. Cai squeezed in after her and when he’d shut the outer door, Antonia opened the inner one.

“I thought you might not come today,” she said.

“Why? Cos my parents are here? It’s brilliant having them around, but we don’t have to do everything together.”

“I wouldn’t mind if you did.”

“Well, I don’t,” said Cai forcefully.

Surprised at Cai’s snappy tone, Antonia started cleaning Billy’s cage. She and Cai worked in silence until the razorbill cocked his head and said cheekily, “Urrr!”