by Ruby Loren
This holiday had looked like a great opportunity to sort a few things out, but now the schedule seemed to be filling up. I’d hoped that Ben and I could film our silly interview today, but it was clear that nothing was going to happen fast on that front. I also wasn’t convinced this documentary was something I actually wanted to be a part of. Of course, I’d have to break it gently to Colin, or he’d quite possibly have a meltdown. It was strange that I hadn’t seen him all day. Strange and concerning. I shook my head again, nearing the top of the stairs at long last. Perhaps Auryn and I would be able to salvage the day with another nice afternoon and evening to ourselves.
Wait. No. I’d agreed to go to a stupid meal with a woman who looked like she had some pretty serious mood swings.
Everything was ruined.
Auryn had been at the top of the building in the outside area. However, Nile, if he’d ever been up here, was long gone. The PA hadn’t been lying about the view either, it really was beautiful being able to look out across everything and everyone.
When I’d explained about the unfortunate evening meal agreement, Auryn hadn’t been angry at all. He’d merely shrugged and looked resigned, which actually felt ten times worse. But at least he’d agreed to come with me. Since then, we’d kept our conversation strictly to small talk, and by the time the evening rolled around and a text with the name of the restaurant came through, I was starting to get worried that this was some kind of fight between us.
“It was interesting talking to Nile today,” Auryn said, walking out of the bedroom dressed for dinner. I was having a bash at doing some makeup and was pulling all kinds of silly faces in the mirror.
“Did it go well?” I asked, my heart already leaping at the sudden return to actual conversation.
“Not exactly. Nile seemed pretty stressed about the documentary. Yesterday, I thought he was worried about the protesters making a scene and how it might look, but now I think he’s genuinely worried that this documentary is going to ruin the park and that his decision on the great white is going to be the final nail in the coffin.” Auryn ran a hand through his blonde hair. “I didn’t know what to say to help him. Do you think he’s right to worry?”
I bit my lip and then realised I’d just applied lip paint. Drat. I would have to do it again and clean the residue off my teeth. “He might be. The only person I got to speak to in any detail was Ben Ravenwood.”
“Yeah, I saw you two sticking together,” Auryn said, cluing me in with his tone of voice.
“He wouldn’t stop talking to me. He wanted to draw me in to an argument over whether having animals in captivity is bad in all cases.” I rolled my eyes and then looked across at Auryn. “I told him I’m a zookeeper, first and foremost. He just kept on pushing for my opinion on the marine park and whether or not it was right - all the things they’re doing to help with conservation.” I sighed and shook my head, feeling just as annoyed now as I had then. “The man is living in some weird daydream of idealism. Of course in an ideal world there wouldn’t be zoos, but it’s not an ideal world. I really do believe that what we do helps species to survive. It teaches us about them and it educates people. It helps us all to realise what we need to do to stop the mass extinction that scientists say has already begun.”
“Well, I’m convinced,” Auryn said with a lopsided grin.
“I’m pretty sure Ben is just trying to bait me into saying something exactly like that in this interview we’re supposed to be doing together. I don’t think it’s such a great idea. I mean, all of this is a bad idea. We’re supposed to be on holiday.” It was starting to sound like a catchphrase.
Auryn smiled and got up from the sofa, coming to stand behind me. “This isn't so bad, is it? We’re on the outside looking in, not caught up in it all for once. Would you really rather be lazing around by the pool?”
“I guess not,” I confessed. “But I will be super glad when this dinner is over and we can come back and have all of the snacks we bought on the way back from The Big Blue.”
“Isn’t it a bit warm for hot chocolate?”
“It’s only just April!” I teased. “We’re lucky we live in England where there’s a good chance it will be hot chocolate weather in the middle of August.”
“Amen to that,” Auryn said, grinning at me in the mirror. “You’ve just painted your cheek with mascara,” he pointed out.
“No! I already did that bit,” I said, seriously put out. I didn’t even know why I was making such a big effort. It was only politeness that had stopped me from turning down the dinner invitation and there was no need to show off, was there?
Leona will be there, the little voice whispered in my head. I told it to be quiet.
It was a surreal experience dining with the select group of people from the documentary. The entire top floor of a prime position restaurant had been booked, and even before we’d sat down the restaurant staff were doting on all of us. It was as though being a little bit famous meant we were treated as better than everyone else.
I didn’t like it.
Fortunately, a shared glance with Auryn was enough to assure me that he felt exactly the same way.
He leant in close. “Just think of the snacks.”
I was still smiling when a bunch of latecomers walked in through the doors at the top of the stairs. Darius Villi was among them, laughing away with Skye, the other reproduction actress who had invited me to this dinner. As I watched, he reached out and rested his hand on her lower back whilst leaning in to say something that started her laughing again. I looked away. Darius was acting a little over-friendly, but being full-on wasn’t actually cheating. Even so, it didn’t make me happy for my best friend and I made a mental note to keep an eye on her boyfriend, even more than I was already doing. Darius had been involved with the publishing company, and my good friend paranoia still made me wonder if he'd known more than he’d let on…
Ben Ravenwood had also arrived with the gaggle of people. I looked away immediately, not wanting to go through another round of heated discussion. Unfortunately, he came right over, and as fate would have it, at the same time that Leona Richards approached from the other direction.
“Hi Madi,” Ben said, nodding at me and then Auryn.
“So glad you both could make it,” Leona said, her eyes skating from me to Auryn and then staying there.
A strange silence fell as the four of us struggled to find something to say.
“Do come and sit with us when the food arrives. I’d love to hear all about your zoo and the story behind the comic,” Leona said, eliminating the pause.
Ben remained silent and when Leona walked away, he also left, following her with purpose.
“Is it just me, or is there a weird vibe between those two?” I asked Auryn when we were once more left alone.
“I see it, too. Do you reckon they’re seeing each other?”
“I did hear something along those lines,” I said, thinking back to what the fixer, Bryony, had told me.
It was strange. If anyone had asked for my first impression, It would have been that there was workplace tension between them, but now I thought I could see why Ben and Leona were acting strangely. Either they’d just started seeing each other, and were trying to hide it, or, something had already happened to make things go a little wobbly. I suspected it was the latter.
“Sounds like another thing we don’t want to be dragged into,” Auryn said in my ear.
All of that was forgotten when the owner of the establishment walked in carrying a giant platter of shellfish and set it down on the long banqueting table. He even gave a little welcome speech, which I used to sidle closer to the shellfish arrangement. We’d been waiting around for a long time just so people could mingle and chat, and I’d realised I hadn’t managed to snag a sandwich at lunchtime. It was so very unlike me!
“I wonder what Ben thinks about eating shellfish, if he’s so against keeping animals in captivity,” Auryn whispered
“Oh, don’t… he�
�s probably a vegan,” I said, with a small smile. Normally, I really didn’t have a problem with people’s choices relating to food. It was exactly that - their choice. However, much like being told that animals should never be in captivity, I didn’t appreciate being force-fed doctrine.
“No, he just ate a crab stick,” Auryn said, glancing over his shoulder.
“Don’t! You might encourage them back over,” I teased.
After the shellfish starter was done, we all sat down to order our food. As requested, Auryn and I sat near to Leona. Ben also sat close to the head of the table, as did my actress acquaintance from earlier and, more annoyingly, Darius. I was still wondering about his strange visit to our villa and the questions he’d asked. He’d been fishing for something for sure, but why and for whom?
I banished the thoughts from my head and focused on dinner.
“I’ve got an idea, shall we order paella for all of us?” Leona suggested, like it was the most original idea ever. There were noises of agreement all round. I placed down my menu. There was nothing wrong with paella, but there were other Spanish dishes available and it would have been nice to try them… although, not tonight, I accepted. This was all about being courteous and hopefully showing there were no hard feelings if or when I did decide it wasn’t a good idea to do the interview. In that spirit, I slapped a smile on my face and nodded along.
In spite of the fussing of the waiting staff and the various loud and false laughter, no one really seemed to want to engage in conversation up our end of the table. I could actually see Skye texting underneath the table while Darius toyed with the remnants of his prawns, looking bored.
Without my realising, my gaze slipped away from the table towards the sea view, probably a sign of my wanting to escape this situation. I’d been expecting to see a beautiful sunset and perhaps a few boats bobbing in the bay. So, seeing my publicist, Colin, came as quite a surprise.
I must have breathed in too suddenly or tensed because Auryn looked across at me and then followed where I was looking before immediately turning away again.
“He’s insane,” he whispered to me.
I nodded in agreement. Colin had somehow managed to scale the outside of the building, the one that faced the sea, and was peeking over the low concrete wall on that side. Trailing flowering vines hinted that perhaps there was a trellis that he’d climbed, but I didn’t really care about the how right now. I just wanted this nightmare to end.
“Should we just pretend not to have seen him?” I whispered back to Auryn. Colin had ducked back down out of view. Or at least - I hoped he had. There’d been no sudden scream.
“I…” Auryn started to say, but conversation must have finally picked up because we both heard the phrase ‘what do you think?’ and then a sudden pause. We retrained our attention on the table and realised all the attention was focused on us.
“Sorry, I must have zoned out for a moment,” Auryn said, rising to the occasion in the likeable way he always did at Avery Zoo. It was a talent I lacked and I was glad to have him onside tonight.
“You’re both zookeepers, right?” Ben said, looking smug when he said it, as if he’d already somehow won an argument.
“Madi’s a zookeeper. I was only ever an apprentice, but I now own the family zoo and Madi owns another zoo close by. We’re partners in business,” Auryn cheerfully announced. I knew he meant partners in business as well as in love, but quite a few of the female attendees, and even a couple of the male ones, perked up when he said it.
Leona brushed her dark hair back over one shoulder. “Fantastic. It’s so lovely to get the opinions of people who actually work with animals in a captive environment. You have such a different view of things from the one we see, always out in the field.”
I did my best to hide my frown. She’d worked in animal sanctuaries before becoming a TV presenter. I knew it wasn’t the same as a zoo, but that was still keeping animals in captivity - however non-permanently it was. I wondered if Ben’s presence was making her gloss over her past. Not that it was anything to be ashamed of! I silently reminded myself. These people had their views but I believed in the work of zoos, and these idealists weren’t going to change my view, or the harsh realities of the world we lived in.
“We were talking about the shark that the park is keeping to get the visitors in. Pretty nasty, right?” Darius drawled, looking nearly as smug as Ben.
“You must agree it’s completely irresponsible to keep a great white in captivity. Especially when there has never been a longterm success story. They’re open water sharks. They categorically do not do well in captivity.” Ben jumped in and received admiring glances all round for his little speech. Of the documentary team, only Leona looked less than pleased.
“Madi and I really don’t know that much about marine animals. That’s actually why we came to The Big Blue in the first place. We wanted to learn about the work they’re doing and seek advice on potentially expanding and improving our care for the few aquatic animals Madi and I have within our care. We’re here to learn,” Auryn said, still managing to look cheerful.
“But you must have an opinion on the shark? I for one completely understand why there are protesters knocking down the door. If it weren’t for my job, I’d probably be one of them,” Ben said with an easy grin.
I opened my mouth and shut it and then opened it again. It was too late. I was being drawn. “What are your thoughts about the protesters you seem to empathise with breaking in, removing animals without any training or proper equipment, and releasing them into the sea?”
Ben raised his eyebrows and I realised he hadn’t known that piece of information. I silently cursed, wondering if Nile had wanted that kept a secret. He probably hadn’t wanted other people to get the same idea and now I’d gone and put my foot in it.
“Has that happened at the marine park?” he asked and I started to squirm.
Auryn shot me a knowing look and stepped in. “We believe it happened to a loggerhead turtle a couple of months ago.”
“Well, I think it sends a message to the marine park! The public aren’t going to stand for animals to be put on display when they should all be in the wild. Anyone who wants to see them should go out there and see them in their natural habitat. That’s the only way to appreciate an animal’s true character.”
I blinked at the image of thousands of sightseeing boats, practically hunting down turtles and other animals now that all of the animal-keeping institutions had been done away with. I imagined the pollution and the destruction of habitats that would occur. And I remembered why I approved of zoos.
“I didn’t actually finish,” Auryn said, still managing to sound polite. “Unfortunately, the turtle died pretty quickly after it was released.”
Ben shrugged. “It had probably been domesticated. It couldn’t possibly have survived in the wild.”
“I’m not so sure about that,” Auryn gamely replied. “If you spoke to the head keeper, you’d know they limit human contact and do everything they can to keep the animals’ habitats as close to the ones they’d experience in the wild as possible. The Big Blue has a lot more plants and hiding places than your average aquarium. The visitors might not get to see as much, but it makes for happier animals. They have to forage for themselves, too. I really do believe that the staff are doing everything they can to recreate a natural habitat and - although I’m not an expert - all of the bred in captivity animals look to be in perfect health. And I think you know better than to expect the same for the animals who have been rescued and then deemed too injured for release.” He shot a stern look in the direction of the producers and director, who were sitting at the other end of the table. I realised that, just as I did, Auryn suspected the documentary makers of attempting to skew opinions against the marine park. Filming animals who didn’t look their best without revealing their stories was an obvious way to do that.
“You say that, but the turtle still died,” Ben said, looking quietly satisfied. I found I
really did regret meeting my idol.
“It died because the sea was too cold. Turtles migrate to warmer waters in the winter, and this year the water around the Balearics has been a lot cooler than anticipated.” Auryn paused for a beat. “But I’d have thought you knew all that being an expert on marine life?”
A rare blush of colour rose up Ben’s neck.
It was a relief when the double doors burst open and five waiting stuff staggered through with a giant paella pan. The further four waiters walking behind carrying indoor fireworks were more of a surprise, but the biggest surprise of all was reserved for the horde of photographers who poured in immediately afterwards, surrounding the table and shouting at us to smile, or give us a fierce look, ‘like a tiger, baby!’.
I looked at Auryn in horror as the press zeroed in on us.
“Let’s get one of you with Leona and Ben, Madigan!” one photographer said, actually resting a hand on my bare shoulder. I shook him off and stood up from the table.
“Let’s go,” Auryn hissed in my ear. I couldn’t have said it better myself. All around the table, the documentary people were doing pretty poor jobs of pretending to be shocked by the intrusion, but the way they were fluffing their hair and posing proved otherwise.
“Come on, Madi! It’ll be a really nice picture,” Leona said, smiling at me like we were best friends.
I was saved from answering in a way that I might later regret by the sudden appearance of Colin over the side of the balcony where Auryn and I had spotted him flailing earlier.
“I’m her publicist! All of your enquiries and photo requests must be directed to me! I can arrange personal interviews and shoots,” he said, babbling with enthusiasm. I half wished that I’d pushed him off the balcony when I’d had the chance.
I reached out and grabbed Auryn’s hand and together we fought our way through the crowd. We didn’t get far before Leona was somehow in front of us and managed to pull Auryn away from me.