by Bentley, Sue
“Okay then, if I have to,” Callum grumbled.
Lorna heard the bathroom door close, and then Ruth came down the stairs behind her. “What are you waiting here for?” she asked.
“Nothing,” Lorna said quickly, feeling a little guilty for eavesdropping.
She, Flame, and Ruth went into the kitchen. Callum was sitting with his chin propped on his hand, slowly stirring a spoon around in a bowl of oatmeal.
“Hi, Callum,” Lorna said.
Callum grunted a reply.
“Hello, girls. Help yourselves to oatmeal,” Hugh said cheerfully, waving his spoon toward the steaming pot on the stove. “Eat up. We’ll have to get going soon.”
“Where are we going, Uncle Hugh?” Lorna asked as she fed Flame, before spooning creamy oatmeal into a bowl.
“We’re driving to one of the coves. I have to do a beach clean-up and litter survey,” Hugh replied.
“Dad’s just been made a part-time warden for the nature reserve,” Ruth said proudly.
“Big deal,” Callum said under his breath.
Hugh grinned patiently. “Cheer up, son! I know picking up litter isn’t very exciting, but with a bit of luck, we’ll see some seals with their pups.”
“Seal pups? Wow!” Lorna didn’t care if she had to pick up litter all day, if it meant she got to see some seals. She couldn’t wait to see what Flame would make of them.
Chapter
* THREE *
“Bye! See you later!” Lorna called to her parents and her aunt, who were staying behind at the farm. She picked Flame up before getting into Hugh’s Land Rover.
Flame sat on Lorna’s lap for the short drive to the cove. Lorna stroked his soft ears as he peered out at the cliffs and the sun sparkling on the blue sea.
Once they were all standing on the white sand of the little cove, Hugh handed out black plastic bags and protective gloves. “Just throw any litter inside. Cans, plastic bags, pieces of old beach balls, whatever. Then we’ll list everything you’ve collected when we meet back here in an hour or so,” he instructed.
“Okay, Dad,” Ruth said. “Come on, Lorna. Let’s do our collecting together.”
As Lorna and Ruth headed toward the shore, Hugh and Callum went off toward the cliffs. Lorna could see that her cousin’s shoulders were hunched, and he was dragging his feet. “Looks like Callum would rather be ten million miles away!” she said, frowning.
Ruth glared at her brother. “Or fishing with his new best friends!” She stomped on a discarded paper cup until it was as flat as a pancake and then stuffed it into her sack. Turning her back, she moved away up the beach and began picking up litter.
Lorna stared after her, blinking in surprise. “I thought we were supposed to be doing this together,” she whispered to Flame. “Ruth’s as bad as Callum! One minute she’s all friendly, and then she’s so mad! I don’t get it.”
Flame’s furry brow crinkled in a frown. “Perhaps you could ask her what is wrong when she is in a better mood.”
Lorna nodded. “Good idea, Flame. I’ll do that. Come on, let’s collect litter.”
The tiny kitten pawed at shells and pebbles, scooting sideways and play growling. Lorna laughed at his antics and soon forgot about her two unpredictable cousins. As she gradually filled the bag, Lorna found that she’d moved closer to a big cluster of rocks at the shore.
One of the small grayish rocks was half submerged in the sea. But to Lorna’s surprise, it suddenly moved. It wasn’t a rock. It was a baby seal!
“Look over here, Flame!” she whispered, slowly moving closer. Flame padded after her, his ears pricked expectantly.
“Oh no,” Lorna gasped in dismay as she spotted the tough fishing line that was tangled around the seal pup’s flippers and tail. “The poor little thing. It looks exhausted. I bet it’s been trying to get free for ages.”
Flame gave a mew of sympathy.
The pup struggled weakly, looking up at her with big helpless dark eyes. Its head drooped and it flopped back down onto the wet sand.
“Don’t worry. I’m going to help you,” Lorna crooned. She went over to the pup, bent down, and began gently trying to untangle the fishing line.
Then from out of the corner of her eye she caught a sudden movement as an enormous seal appeared from behind the rocks. Baring its strong teeth and barking with rage, it came toward Lorna.
The mother seal! It thought Lorna was trying to hurt its baby.
“It’s okay. I’m just . . . just trying to help.” Lorna gulped, edging backward. Her foot struck a small half-buried rock, and she fell backward onto the damp sand.
The mother seal rolled her dark eyes and hissed with fury. As she lunged forward, ready to attack, Lorna bit back a scream.
Time seemed to stand still. But then a warm tingle flowed down Lorna’s spine. Huge silver sparks began to glow again in Flame’s soft fur. The kitten lifted a tiny amber, white-tipped paw, and a bright stream of sparks shot out from it, raining down gently on the enraged mother seal and her baby.
The mother seal stopped abruptly and seemed to calm down. Lorna looked on in surprise as, with a loud whipping noise, the tangled fishing line instantly began to unravel all by itself. In a few seconds, the pup’s flippers and tail were free, and the fishing line lay in a tangled heap on the sand. The pup shook itself and then began slithering toward the sea.
The mother seal took a last long look at Lorna and then followed her baby.
Lorna got up, her heart still beating fast. She brushed wet sand from her jeans as she watched the seals move into deeper water and then swim away together. She was happy they were both okay, even though she still felt shocked by what had just happened.
She turned to Flame. “Phew! Thanks for saving me! That was way too close.”
“You are welcome,” Flame mewed.
Just as the very last spark faded from Flame’s amber-and-white fur, Hugh, Callum, and Ruth came dashing around the rocks. “Are you all right?” Uncle Hugh cried, white-faced. “I heard a seal’s distress cry, then saw a mother and her pup swimming away! What happened?”
“I’m fine.” Lorna told her uncle about finding the baby seal, but played down the part about the mother seal. “I . . . um, managed to untangle the fishing line and pull it off,” she said, fibbing a little.
Hugh frowned. “Thank goodness for that! You seem to have done a good job, but don’t ever, ever try anything like that by yourself again. You should have called to me for help. Mother seals can be very dangerous when they’re protecting their young! She could have attacked you.”
Tell me about it, Lorna thought; her heartbeat was only now returning to normal.
Ruth looked at Lorna admiringly. “Wow! You were brave.”
“Not really. I was scared to death!” Lorna admitted.
Even Callum looked impressed. “Way to go, Lorna,” he said, giving her a big grin.
Lorna grinned back. It was the first time since she’d arrived that Callum seemed like his old self.
Hugh picked up the broken fishing line. “I wish the idiots who leave this stuff around could see what harm it causes. Most fishermen are responsible, but the few who aren’t ruin it for the others . . .”
“Do you need me anymore, Dad?” Callum broke in impatiently. “I’m supposed to be meeting my friends, remember?”
“What?” Hugh looked at his son. “All right. I suppose I can manage without you now. Where are you going?”
“Just to a classmate’s house. See you later, everyone!” Callum called, already jogging toward a path that led inland from the beach.
“Callum!” Ruth called after her brother, but he didn’t turn around. Only Lorna saw the worried look on Ruth’s face, which she quickly changed to a smile as she turned back toward her dad.
Chapter
* FOUR *
Lorna and Ruth f
inished helping Hugh list all the beach litter for the survey. It seemed to take forever, and Lorna was glad when they were finally putting the clipboards, pens, and bags of litter into her uncle’s car.
“Thank you very much, girls—and kitten,” Hugh said, bending down to stroke Flame’s fluffy amber-and-white fur. “I think you all deserve a treat after your hard work. How does hot chocolate with extra whipped cream sound? Come on. We’ll go to the café in town!”
“Yes!” Lorna and Ruth chorused. Flame gave an eager mew.
Hugh laughed. “Sounds like Flame’s looking forward to a saucer of cream! I reckon that little kitten understands everything we say.”
Lorna smiled to herself. If only Uncle Hugh knew!
It was a short drive to the stores in town. On the way, Hugh discovered a grocery list in his pocket. “Oh! I just remembered that I promised to bring some things back for Marie. I just need to pop into the supermarket.” He pulled into the parking lot and parked the car. “This won’t take long. You may as well wait in the car, and then we’ll go straight to the café.”
“Okay, Dad,” Ruth said.
Lorna sat in the back of the Land Rover with Flame on her lap as Hugh disappeared into the supermarket. She glanced around idly and noticed some boys messing around near a row of shopping carts. One of them looked familiar.
“That looks like Callum over there,” she said.
“Where?” Ruth turned her head. “It is him! I knew he wasn’t going to his classmate’s house. He’s with those older boys again. The one with the black hair is called Sam and the one with a round face and freckles is Larry.”
“You don’t seem to like them very much,” Lorna said.
“I don’t!” Ruth said. “Sam and Larry are always getting into trouble. Mom and Dad don’t know that Callum hangs out with them.”
Things started to fall into place for Lorna. “But you knew, didn’t you?”
Ruth nodded unhappily. “I found out when I saw Callum with them at the park.”
“Maybe you should tell your mom and dad what’s going on,” Lorna suggested.
“I’m not a tattletale!” Ruth said indignantly, glancing over at the three boys again. “But if Dad sees them together, he’ll go nuts. I have to warn Callum to stay out of sight.” She got out of the car and started hurrying over to the shopping carts.
“Come on, Flame. Let’s follow her!” Lorna said, setting Flame down on the ground. As she ran after Ruth, he scampered along at her heels. Lorna saw Sam climbing into a shopping cart, and then Callum and Larry began dragging it around in circles.
“Hey!” Ruth called. As she almost reached the boys, they gave the shopping cart an extra-big shove and let it go.
It zoomed past Ruth and hurtled straight at Lorna and Flame. Lorna quickly stepped sideways, but Flame’s tiny legs couldn’t move fast enough. The heavy cart veered toward him, wheels rattling. He was about to be run over!
“Flame! Look out!” Lorna cried. She knew he couldn’t use his magic without giving himself away.
Throwing herself forward, she reached desperately for the shopping cart. Her fingers brushed against the metal side and then just managed to grab hold of it. The cart swung sideways, wrenching her arm painfully and missing Flame by a whisker, before it rolled away across the parking lot.
“Ow!” Lorna cried out as a hot wave of pain shot up her arm.
But Flame was safe. He bounded up to her and twined himself around her ankles. “Thank you, Lorna,” he purred softly. “But I am sorry that you were hurt when you were saving me.”
“I’ll be okay,” Lorna whispered bravely, although she could almost feel the color draining out of her face. “I’d hate it if anything happened to you.”
The cart had stopped now and Sam climbed out. “What did you grab it for? It almost tipped over!” he shouted at Lorna.
Callum came running over with Larry at his side. “What are you doing here, anyway? Are you spying on me, you nosy little brat?” Callum hissed at Ruth.
Despite her sore arm, Lorna felt her temper rising. “Oh, shut up, Callum! Ruth didn’t even know you were here! Uncle Hugh just stopped by to go shopping. But you and your stupid friends almost ran Flame over!” she stormed.
Sam’s eyes narrowed, and he took a step toward Lorna. “What did you just call us?”
“It’s okay, Sam. She’s my cousin,” Callum said hastily. He turned to Lorna. “You shouldn’t have interfered. It’s your fault if that kitten got in the way!”
“For goodness’ sake, Callum! Can’t you see that Lorna’s hurt her arm?” Ruth shouted, almost in tears.
Callum’s face straightened. “I didn’t realize. Sorry, Lorna. Is it bad?”
Sam and Larry exchanged sly looks. “Gotta go!” Sam said.
“Me too! Let’s get out of here!” Larry said.
“Typical!” Ruth said to Callum as both boys ran away. “I don’t think much of your special new friends!” She turned to Lorna. “Let’s go and find Dad. He’ll know what to do.”
Lorna’s arm was aching so much now that she didn’t argue. She scooped Flame up with her good arm and held him against her side as she followed Ruth.
Callum stood there, undecided.
“There’s no point in me coming with you. I can’t do anything. What are you going to tell Dad?”
“I don’t know yet,” Ruth called back. “Shouldn’t you go after Sam and Larry before he sees you?”
“Ruth . . . ,” Callum began, but then he stopped and his face took on the grumpy expression that Lorna was getting used to seeing. “I hope your arm’s okay,” Callum said quickly to her, before turning and going after his friends.
“If you can find somewhere where we can be alone, I will make your arm better,” Flame purred softly to Lorna.
Lorna nodded, wincing. As they went inside the supermarket, she spotted the ladies’ bathroom. “I’m just going to pop in here,” she said to Ruth.
“Should I come in with you?” Ruth asked.
Lorna shook her head. “No. I’ll be fine.”
“All right. I’ll wait outside,” Ruth said.
Luckily there was no one else in the bathroom. As Lorna closed the door, big silver sparks were already igniting in Flame’s amber-and-white fur, and his whiskers crackled with electricity. He lifted a tiny paw and sent a spray of twinkling glitter toward Lorna’s sore arm. It showered gently onto her, and immediately her arm felt all warm and tingly. The pain increased for a second and then it seemed to drain down her arm and flow right out of the ends of her fingers.
“Wow! Thanks, Flame. My arm feels fine now,” she said. She gave him an affectionate cuddle, and he licked her chin with his rough little tongue. A few seconds later she emerged from the bathroom carrying Flame in both arms.
Ruth gave her a puzzled look. “Your arm seems a lot better.”
“It’s absolutely fine now. I, er . . . splashed cold water on it,” Lorna said. “Mom did that when I hit my knee once. It worked great. No need to say anything to Uncle Hugh.”
“Hello, you two. Did you get bored waiting for me?” Hugh came toward them, holding plastic bags of groceries.
“Yes, we did,” Lorna said, smiling brightly. “Can we go to the café now, please?”
Chapter
* FIVE *
“Dad has to go across to one of the smaller islands today. We’re all going with him and taking a picnic lunch,” Ruth said the following day.
“Sounds great!” Lorna said. “Is Callum coming, too?”
Ruth nodded. “He’s been on his best behavior since yesterday. I think he’s still worried that I’ll tell Dad about what happened in the parking lot.”
“Are you going to?” Lorna asked.
“No!” Ruth shook her head, grinning. “But don’t tell Callum!”
They both laughed.
Lorna went to fetch her shoulder bag. She put the bag onto the floor so that Flame could jump inside before they all walked down to the small jetty, which was just past the garden.
As Lorna climbed into Seagull, Hugh’s small but powerful motorboat, the sea breeze ruffled her short red hair. She shaded her eyes with her hand, looking at the humped shapes of the islands across the narrow channel.
Callum stood waiting until everyone except Hugh was on board. “Can I go across in the dinghy instead of coming with you, Dad?”
Hugh thought about it and then shook his head. “It’s not safe today. There’s a chance of storms and high tides. I’d rather we all went in Seagull.”
“Aw, Da-ad. I’ve been over to the islands in the dinghy lots of times. I’m a strong rower,” Callum grumbled.
Hugh gave him a level look. “I’m not going to argue with you, Callum.”
Sighing heavily, Callum got on board Seagull and flopped down next to Lorna. Hugh got into the cabin and started the engine, and the boat moved away from the jetty.
Flame sat on Lorna’s lap, his nose in the air as he sniffed the sea breeze. The waves slapped against the boat, and Lorna tasted salty spray on her lips.
In only a few minutes they were drawing level with some sandbanks. Dozens of mother seals and their pups were dotted all over them.
“I wonder if the pup we . . . er, I mean I, untangled is over there with its mom,” Lorna said. She felt Flame nudge her hand as she corrected herself in front of the others.
“The pups only stay with their mothers for a couple of weeks. Then they’re off to fend for themselves,” Hugh told Lorna. He slowed Seagull’s engine so everyone could have a good look at the seals before then steering the boat toward the island.
Once Seagull was moored, everyone got out and trudged up the beach with the picnic things.
As Lorna helped spread out a picnic blanket, hundreds of gulls and fulmars wheeled overhead and puffins flapped inland, their yellow beaks stuffed with sand eels. Flame craned his neck, looking up at all the birds excitedly, and almost tripped over his own paws.