Up A Notch

by Breanna Hayse

  “Don’t be so defensive, son! I know you two. Not to worry, just watch yourselves. I’ve got your back here. If your sister has a need to break an arm or throw someone to the sharks, make certain she’s protected afterwards.”

  “Does this mean you’ll complete the paperwork?” Michael asked, double checking the unit. Scott laughed, agreed and said goodbye.

  “What took you so long? I’m bored,” his sister asked when he popped the surface.

  “I was coordinating the unit with Scott and the interrogation.”

  “Did you tell him about the jerks?”

  “Yeah, he’s in our court. Let’s get to the next site. It’s a deep one.”

  “I’ll do it. Just drop the unit in shallower water so I can drag it.”

  By the time they finished the placement, the sun was starting to set. Ton took them within site of the Laguna Beach pier where they fell exhausted on the sand after fighting through turbulent surf.

  “I thought I was in better shape than this. I’m so tired!” Sam fell back on the sand, catching her breath.

  “We haven’t spent this amount of time in the water in a while, and never with this type of lifting and upper body work. Thank God we had Ton to haul those units for us. Let’s go find our hotel. It should be that real nice one on the beach.” Michael reached his hand to help her to her feet.

  The Montage Resort was glowing warmly with beautifully lit grounds and an elegant inviting lobby. Sam squeezed her brother’s hand with excitement as she skipped towards their gorgeous accommodations. Michael checked in, ignoring the looks that were being directed towards the two wet-suited divers, and requested that they not be disturbed except by room service. Taking the key, he led his dragging little sister to their large luxury suite.

  Sam peeled off her wetsuit as soon as the door was shut and went straight into the hot tub in the center of the room. After a while, she left to shower and emerged wearing a hotel robe and fell on the bed with a groan. Michael followed close behind.

  “We need to call dad,” he said, not moving.

  “I know,” she mumbled. “Can’t get the phone, it’s too far away.” It was on her nightstand but her hand couldn’t reach it without moving.

  “We need to eat, too.”

  “Food is too far away.”

  “I’ll call room service,” Michael grunted, turning over to pick up the phone.

  “While you’re on the phone, you can call Daddy too. Tell him I’m sleeping.”

  Michael rubbed his temple, trying unsuccessfully to focus on answering his father’s extensive questions. “Dad, I’m beat. Sam’s already passed out. Can we talk later?”

  “Then wake her up,” Dr. Quimby insisted. “I want to talk to her.”

  “Hi Daddy, I’m tired.”

  “It’s a lot of exercise you are doing. Please eat well and don’t make me worry. You need to drink fresh water too, so hydrate often.”

  “You sound like a doctor,” the girl moaned, laying her face on the phone and closing her eyes.

  “I am a doctor, a real one, not like Scott and Mike. Ow! No punching,” Dr. Quimby said to his friend. “Are you behaving for your brother?”

  “I am the model of perfection. Aren’t I, Michael?”

  Michael was back on his bed, eyes closed, nodding.

  “He’s nodding. See? I know how to be good. What I don’t know is how I’m going to do this run every day.”

  “You’ll get used to it. You only have one drop tomorrow mid-day then up to Pismo Beach. It shouldn’t be too strenuous.”

  “Says the man who is sitting on a fluffy couch at home in front of the TV and eating ice cream,” Sam said in one breath. “I love you Daddy, but I’m going to sleep.”

  “It’s only 630! You need to have your dinner, too.”

  “Good night, talk to Michael,” Sam grumbled as she tossed her brother the phone before putting a pillow over her face.

  Michael finally ended the call when room service arrived. It took every bit of effort for the young man to make his way to the table where he made a plate for his little sister and brought it to her. “Come on, squirt, and sit up. There’s some soup too.”

  “Not hungry. Too sleepy,” she murmured into her pillow.

  Michael put her plate down and brought his own over to sit on her bed. “I know baby, so am I, but we have to keep our strength up to prove to the folks that we can do this.”

  She opened one eye. “I don’t like that coast guard ship.”

  “Me neither,” Michael agreed, “especially the OIC. I’m going to talk to the skipper tomorrow. Stay with me at all times, okay? We have to stay on board for a couple of nights.”

  “I have diplomatic immunity. If I killed one of them to protect myself, I wouldn’t lose any sleep. Don’t worry, I’d be okay,” she commented disdainfully as she sat up and accepted the bowl of soup. It was lobster bisque, hot, rich and creamy and it didn’t take long for her to dive into it with gusto. Michael smiled as she started to perk up a bit, especially when she saw the sizzling cut of steak and stuffed mushrooms. He knew her well.

  “You are certainly making sure Daddy is paying big time for that little prank, huh?” she said, chomping down on a piece of fresh baked bread.

  “You bet. I wish we had some clothes, it would be nice to roam around.”

  “You just want to look at the girls. Scott said they were sending some stuff up to Monterey so we can dry out over the weekend. Michael?”

  “What sweetie?”

  His sister leaned over the kiss his cheek. “I’m still hungry. What’s for desert?”

  “That’s my girl. Tiramisu.”

  ***

  Sam woke at 0730 that next morning, a little disoriented as she sat up in bed. Michael was still asleep with his head buried under the blanket to keep out the morning light. Since they weren’t scheduled to meet the cruiser until after lunch, she opted to lie back down and close her eyes.

  “Wake up, lazy bones,” a deep male voice whispered in her ear.

  Groaning, she opened her eyes. Michael was sitting on her stomach with a glass of water in his hand. Her eyes grew big. “I’m up! No!” she shrieked as he dumped it on her head.

  “This was payback for all the mornings you tormented me. Betcha thought it would be cold, huh? I chose not to dump a bucket of ice on you because you let me sleep in. Get up, breakfast is on the way.”

  Grumbling, she stumbled to the bathroom to brush her teeth and started to struggle with the long, thick hair which had dried in knots. “I’m gonna cut this off one day,” she snarled.

  “Don’t ever cut it. I love your hair. Promise me,” Michael said, hugging her as he stood her between his legs and began to work out the tangles. He had become quite the expert over the years and developed skills that included gum, sticker and mud removal. He brushed the hip long auburn waves until they shimmered and then braided it into thick fishtail plaits.

  “I promise. Thanks. By the way, I’m not sick of you yet,” she smiled gratefully as he opened the door for room service.

  He winked. “That’s because I’m being very nice to you. I haven’t had the energy to get on your nerves yet.”

  “I don’t think you ever really have. I’m having fun with you. I probably don’t tell you enough, but you’re the best brother in the whole world.”

  “Ditto, sis. Now sit and eat. I ordered light,” he said, watching her devour a bagel. Good, her appetite was normal and one less thing for him to worry about.

  ***

  The next two days were routine. After a heated discussion with the skipper, all inappropriate comments and leering ceased. Michael postulated it was due to the fact that their profile was revealed and their threats were no longer considered empty. Finally done with the unit placements, the two started up the coast towards Monterey. Michael received an emergency alert as they neared Morro Bay that involved a shark attack with multiple sightings.

  When the team arrived, the emergency crews were still trying
to gather swimmers and get them to safety. The lifeguard was oblivious to the insignia on their wetsuits and shoved them toward the anxious crowd. Someone yelled out as the fin broke surface. The team raced to the water’s edge, nullifying all attempts from lifeguards and police officers to prevent their entry.

  Diving into deeper water, Michael cited the battle plan. “It’s a rogue. We can’t trust it to respond to the band. Contact Ton to eliminate it,” he ordered.

  “He’ll want to feed which could cause more to enter. I don’t know if I can get him to take the carcass into open water.”

  “Do what you have to do. Let’s find this little bastard. In the meantime, I need to get these idiots away from here. The damn boats will chase it off before we can catch it.”

  “Good luck. See you soon!” Sam said as she began her hunt. Michael went in the opposite direction to decoy the rescue boats from her location. The ploy worked, and the police unsuccessfully chased him to the other end of the bay before he disappeared underwater and out of site.

  Ton was an effective weapon against the huge fish. The whale stealthily marked his target and grabbed the rogue shark in his large jaws. In a single bite, the fish’s head was crushed and the carcass dragged out to open ocean for consumption. Little was left before the whale felt satisfied.

  An hour passed when Michael joined his sister. She had settled comfortably on the whale’s back and rubbed her hands over the rubbery skin. “Dinner and a massage, huh, boy, you did good,” Michael praised the whale. He received a wet snort in response.

  “We couldn’t have handled that beast without my buddy here. It was a Tiger shark and a good 9 plus feet. Dunno what it was doing in this neck of the woods, though. They usually like warmer waters. How’s the guy who got bit?”

  “Not sure. They would have arrested me if I stopped long enough to ask. We need to get an all clear before we can issue a safety report. Those cops are jerks and I don’t want to go to jail.”

  It took yet another hour before they were able to get shore patrol clearance to return to the beach to report the shark’s elimination. Scott reminded them to keep details to themselves which annoyed Michael. “The man still talks to me like I’m five,” he complained to his sister as they made their approach. “Like I don’t know what Top Secret means. Shit, that doesn’t look good.”

  The two slowly exited the water and walked straight to the line of police with IDs held high. Michael stepped in front of his sister. “Please listen. Shore patrol already cleared this. First, call in for verification. It’s in your data banks. Second, I apologize that my partner and myself had to disarm several of you. Time was of the essence to remove this danger before it went back out to open sea. The shark has been destroyed.”

  “Oh, did you beat that up with your bare hands, boy?” barked an older officer who had tried to intercept Michael and found himself face first in the sand.

  “No, she did,” he tilted his head towards his sister. “If you don’t mind, I’d like to introduce ourselves. We are Lts. Quimby, Special Force Unit with the Naval and Marine Corps sea groups. Out there is Ton. He killed and consumed your shark.”

  Sam imaged to Ton to breach. He responded happily then quickly swam to bank himself on the beach where the growing crowd of people stood and snapped his jaws as he whipped his head side to side. Sam placed her hand into the whale’s mouth to rub his tongue. She withdrew it after dislodging an item embedded between his sharp, conical teeth.

  “A souvenir from your shark,” she said, handing the lead officer a broken shark tooth. “Please give the victim our regards and reassure him that he should be safe now. Lieutenant, we need to go. We have a schedule to keep.”

  They helped Ton wriggled off the beach and back into the water. With a large splash, he rolled over and rocketed himself into the deeper section. Michael nodded to his sister and both plunged in, grabbing Ton’s dorsal fin and hauling themselves onto his back. For once, the large animal was very cooperative in providing transportation, his mood uplifted by a full tummy and a chance to show off to land walkers. His exhausted riders were grateful for the reprieve and ready for a couple of days on dry land.

  “I thought they were going to open fire on us. Damn civilians,” Sam whispered into her brother’s ear as they rode the whale up the coast line towards the anchored naval research vessel about ten miles offshore of Monterey.

  “Yeah, me too. We really need to find a way to communicate with coastal authorities better. I’m just glad we get a break for a while. How about you, boy,” Michael asked the whale. He received a face-full of spout in return. “Gross. Whale buggers. Not funny, Samantha.”

  Upon reaching their destination, and without warning, Ton rolled and dumped his passengers before swimming off.

  “He’s laughing at us, the jerk,” Sam said, coughing.

  “Asshole,” Michael agreed after swallowing a mouthful of water.

  Chapter 9

  “I can’t wait to lie down. I feel like crap,” Sam grumbled, grabbing the dropped ladder behind her brother. He helped her over the rails where they were met with smart salutes.

  “At ease, gentlemen. Does anyone have a towel, please?” Michael asked, watching his sister with concern. She looked pale. Thanking the man who handed one to each, he asked for the detail’s commander.

  “Well, well, well, look what we have here! A couple of guppies washed onto the beach.”

  “No way! Major Fox!” Sam shrieked, forgetting all military decorum and running into his arms. He picked her up, swinging her around before planting a big kiss on her lips.

  Michael grinned, shaking the man’s hand. “We had no idea you would be here, Jim. I thought you were at the hole?”

  “I got transferred from the islands last month. I heard from Master Sargent Higgins that you guys were coming. Girl, what the hell did you do to that man? I served with him a few years back and he was a nasty old codger. He’s actually pleasant now and said it was your doing,” the shorter, stocky man smiled, arm still around Sam’s shoulders. He snapped his fingers at his gaping crew. “Get back to work and stop staring. She’s not available. Sorry, Sammi, we’ve been at sea a little too long.”

  He took them to his quarters where he had hot tea and coffee waiting with chow on the way. He also had dry clothing for them. After showering and changing into soft sweats, the two finally collapsed on the couch.

  “Thank you so much. I didn’t know I could feel so waterlogged.” Michael said, accepting a cup of hot coffee.

  “Glad to help. So what’s been going on? I’ve heard a lot of rumors, some very disturbing ones. Last time we talked, you were getting ready for the cruise. That was almost a year ago.”

  Michael caught his old friend up on the events of the last year, including the occurrence with his sister. Jim looked over at her. She was sound asleep in a little ball on the couch.

  “Oh, my God, that poor baby,” he said softly, “is she okay now? She looks washed out.”

  “Yes and no. We are still discovering things. Dad worries constantly. He and Scott have been coming down real hard on her after she recovered and began her old antics. She’s so careless sometimes,” Michael said quietly, covering her with a blanket.

  “Remember that little stunt she pulled during our training? She was what? Ten?”

  “Like I could forget! To this day, none of us know how she managed to get on base, let alone into the training area,” Michael chuckled.

  ***

  Dr. Quimby had sent Michael to Camp Pendleton to train with the Marine Corps Recon team with the purpose of challenging the boy’s skills and increase his confidence. Jim was a newly commissioned 2nd lieutenant and in command of the squadron. Despite the reports of the kid’s intelligence and his connections, Jim had significant doubts about allowing the tall, gangly 14 year old join his squad. Michael quietly and efficiently wormed his way into Jim’s heart that first day and charmed the men with his smile, aptitude, natural leadership and fearlessness. The two became frie
nds in record time with Jim feeling the need to watch out for this young civilian like a kid brother. And then it happened.

  The trainees were bivouacked in the center of the steep mountain range for hard terrain maneuvers. Although rarely seen, the base was home to several herds of wild buffalo and the squad was cautioned to avoid the ill-tempered beasts at all costs due to a recent history of mortal gorings. Michael was sitting with Jim and some of the other men in front of a fire pit one morning when the ground rumbled lightly and was accompanied by a low sound of snorting in the distance.

  “Shit!” Jim yelled. “Open ranks! There’s a herd coming through. Mike, get over here!”

  Michael was in the middle of the corridor and supporting a man who had tripped and injured his knee. He froze as he saw the lead bull galloping towards him. He shielded the man with his body and waited breathlessly for the impact.

  “You leave my brother alone! Go away!” a high little voice commanded, followed by a rock hitting the head bull on the muzzle. The buffalo stopped in its tracks and pawed the ground with its head lowered towards the tiny ten year old girl. Before anyone could do anything, she slid off the side of the hill, marched up to it and looked fearlessly up into its eyes.

  Silence filled the camp. Michael’s heart was in his throat. Should he go to her? Would it make the angry animal charge? What the hell was she doing there anyway!

  The animal snorted and started to back away. Within five minutes, the entire herd had scattered. Michael had rushed to his sister and bundled her into his arms to squeeze her tightly. He was terrified, angry, confused, relieved… and wished desperately that he had permission to spank the living daylights out of her. He remembered telling Jim the same thing.

  After contacting headquarters to get a message to her frantic family, the girl completed the rest of the exercise with the men. By the end of the week she, like her brother, won them over. Several of them found every opportunity to serve with the team since.