Deep Trouble (3 page)

He just wasn’t himself.

Finally, on Christmas Eve, my dad couldn’t take it anymore. He told Dr. D. to
shape up or ship out.

Dr. D. ended up spending a good part of Christmas Day in the bathtub playing
with my old toy boats. As long as he stayed in the water, he was back to normal.

I never wanted to see Dr. D. stranded on land again.

“Don’t worry, kids,” Alexander said. “Dr. D. has always found a way to get
by.”

I hoped Alexander was right.

I studied another strange dial, marked Sonar Probes.

“Hey, Alexander,” I said. “Will you show me how the sonar probes work?”

“Sure,” said Alexander. “Just let me finish a few chores.”

He walked over to the first fish tank. He scooped out a few guppies with a
small net.

“Who wants to feed Biff today?”

“Not me,” said Sheena. “Yuck!”

“No way!” I said as I stepped to a porthole and peered out.

I thought I heard a motor outside. So far we had seen very few other boats.
Not many people passed by Ilandra.

A white boat chugged up to the side of the
Cassandra.
It was smaller
but newer than our boat. A logo on the side said Marina Zoo.

A man and a woman stood on the deck of the zoo boat. They were both neatly
dressed in khaki pants and button-down shirts. The man had a short, neat
haircut, and the woman’s brown hair was pulled back in a ponytail. She carried a
black briefcase.

The man waved to someone on the deck of the
Cassandra.
I figured he
had to be waving at Dr. D.

Now Sheena and Alexander stood beside me at the porthole, watching.

“Who’s that?” Sheena asked.

Alexander cleared his throat. “I’d better go see what this is about,” he
said.

He handed Sheena the net with the guppies in it. “Here,” he said. “Feed Biff.
I’ll be back later.”

He left the lab in a hurry.

Sheena looked at the squirming guppies in the net and made a face.

“I’m not going to stay here and watch Biff eat these poor guppies.” She stuck
the net in my hand and ran out of the cabin.

I didn’t want to watch Biff eat the poor fish, either. But I didn’t know what
else to do with them.

I quickly dumped the guppies into Biff’s tank. The eel’s head shot forward.
His teeth clamped down on a fish. The guppy disappeared. Biff grabbed for
another one.

He was a fast eater.

I dropped the net on a table and walked out of the lab.

I made my way down the narrow passageway, planning to go up on deck for some
air.

I wondered if Dr. D. would let me do some more snorkeling this afternoon.

If he said yes, maybe I would swim toward the lagoon, see if I could find any
sign of the sea monster.

Was I scared?

Yes.

But I was also determined to prove to my sister and uncle that I wasn’t
crazy. That I wasn’t making it up.

I was passing Dr. D.’s office when I heard voices. I figured Dr. D. and
Alexander must be in there with the two people from the zoo.

I paused for just a second. I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, I swear. But the man
from the zoo had a loud voice, and I couldn’t help but hear him.

And what he said was the most amazing thing I had ever heard in my whole,
entire life.

“I don’t care how you do it, Dr. Deep,” the man bellowed. “But I want you to
find that mermaid!”

A mermaid!

Was he serious?

I couldn’t believe it. Did he really want my uncle to find a real, live
mermaid?

I knew Sheena would start chanting, “No such thing, no such thing.” But here
was a grown man, a man who worked for a zoo, talking about a mermaid. It
had
to be real!

My heart started to pound with excitement. I might be one of the first people
on Earth ever to see a mermaid! I thought.

And then I had an even better thought:
What if I was the one to find her?

I’d be famous! I’d be on TV and everything!

William Deep, Jr., the famous sea explorer!

Well, after I heard that, I couldn’t just walk away. I had to hear more.

Holding my breath, I pressed my ear to the door and listened.

“Mr. Showalter, Ms. Wickman, please understand,” I heard Dr. D. saying. “I’m
a scientist, not a circus trainer. My work is serious. I can’t waste my time
looking for fairy tale creatures.”

“We’re quite serious, Dr. Deep,” said Ms. Wickman. “There is a mermaid in
these waters. And if anyone can find her, you can.”

I heard Alexander ask, “What makes you think there’s really a mermaid out
there?”

“A fisherman from a nearby island spotted her,” replied the man from the zoo.
“He said he got pretty close to her—and he’s sure she’s real. He saw her near
the reef—
this
reef, just off Ilandra.”

The reef! Maybe she lives in the lagoon!

I leaned closer to the door. I didn’t want to miss a word of this.

“Some of these fishermen are very superstitious, Mr. Showalter,” my uncle
scoffed. “For years there have been stories… but no real reason to believe
them.”

“We didn’t believe the man ourselves,” said the woman. “Not at first. But we
asked some other fishermen in the area, and they claim to have seen the mermaid,
too. And I think they’re telling the truth. Their descriptions of her match,
down to the smallest detail.”

I could hear my uncle’s desk chair creak. I imagined him leaning forward as
he asked, “And, how, exactly, did they describe her?”

“They said she looked like a young girl,” Mr. Showalter told him. “Except for
the”—he cleared his throat—“the fish tail. She’s small, delicate, with long,
blond hair.”

“They described her tail as shiny and bright green,” said the woman. “I know
it sounds incredible, Dr. Deep. But when we spoke to the fishermen, we were
convinced that they really saw a mermaid!”

There was a pause.

Was I missing something? I pressed my ear to the door. I heard my uncle ask,
“And, why, exactly, do you want to capture this mermaid?”

“Obviously, a real, live mermaid would be a spectacular attraction at a zoo
like ours,” said the woman. “People from all over the world would flock to see
her. The Marina Zoo would make millions of dollars.”

“We are prepared to pay you very well for your trouble, Dr. Deep,” said Mr.
Showalter. “I understand you are running out of money. What if the university
refuses to give you more? It would be terrible if you had to stop your important
work just because of that.”

“The Marina Zoo can promise you one million dollars,” said the woman. “
If
you
find the mermaid. I’m sure your lab could run for a long time on that much
money.”

A million dollars! I thought. How could Dr. D. turn down that kind of money?

My heart pounded with excitement. I pushed against the door, straining to
hear.

What would my uncle’s answer be?

Leaning hard against the door, I heard Dr. D. let out a long, low whistle.
“That’s quite a lot of money, Ms. Wickman,” I heard him say.

There was a long pause. Then he continued. “But even if mermaids existed, I
wouldn’t feel right about capturing one for a zoo to put on display.”

“I promise you we would take excellent care of her,” replied Mr. Showalter.
“Our dolphins and whales are very well cared for. The mermaid, of course, would
get extra-special treatment.”

“And, remember, Dr. Deep,” said Ms. Wickman. “If you don’t find her, someone
else will. And there’s no guarantee that they will treat the mermaid as well as
we will.”

“I suppose you’re right,” I heard my uncle reply. “It would certainly be a
big boost to my research if I found her.”

“Then you’ll do it?” asked Mr. Showalter eagerly.

Say yes, Dr. D.! I thought. Say yes!

I pressed my whole body against the door. “Yes,” my uncle answered. “If there
really is a mermaid, I’ll find her.”

Excellent! I thought.

“Very good,” said Ms. Wickman.

“Excellent decision,” Mr. Showalter added enthusiastically. “I knew we had
come to the right man for the job.”

“We’ll be back in a couple of days to see how the search is going. I hope
you’ll have some good news by then,” Ms. Wickman said.

“That’s not much time,” I heard Alexander remark.

“We know,” Ms. Wickman replied. “But, obviously, the sooner you find her, the
better.”

“And, please,” Mr. Showalter said,
“please
keep this a secret. No one
must know about the mermaid. I’m sure you can imagine what would happen if—”

CRASSSSSSSH!

I lost my balance. I fell against the door.

To my shock, it swung open—and I tumbled into the room.

I landed in a heap in the center of the cabin floor.

Dr. D., Mr. Showalter, Ms. Wickman, and Alexander all gaped at me with their
mouths open. I guess they hadn’t expected me to drop in.

“Uh… hi, everyone,” I murmured. I felt my face burning, and knew that I
was blushing. “Nice day for a mermaid hunt.”

Mr. Showalter jumped to his feet angrily. He glared at my uncle. “This was
supposed to be a secret!”

Alexander strode across the room and helped me to my feet. “Don’t worry about
Billy,” he said. He put a protective arm around me. “You can trust him.”

“I’m very embarrassed,” Dr. D. told his visitors. “This is my nephew, Billy
Deep. He and his sister are visiting me for a few weeks.”

“Can they keep our secret?” asked Ms. Wickman.

Dr. D. turned his gaze on Alexander. Alexander nodded.

“Yes, I’m sure they can,” said Dr. D. “Billy won’t say anything to anyone.
Right, Billy?”

He narrowed his eyes at me. I really do hate it when he does that. But this
time I couldn’t blame him.

I shook my head. “No. I won’t tell anyone. I swear.”

“Just to be on the safe side, Billy,” said Dr. D., “don’t mention the mermaid
to Sheena. She’s too young to have to keep a big secret like this.”

“I promise,” I replied solemnly. I raised my right hand as if swearing an
oath. “I won’t breathe a word to Sheena.”

This was
so cool!

I knew the biggest secret in the world—and Sheena wouldn’t have a clue!

The man and woman from the zoo exchanged glances. I could see they were still
worried.

Alexander said, “You really can trust Billy. He’s very serious for someone
his age.”

You
bet
I’m serious, I thought.

I’m William Deep, Jr., world-famous mermaid catcher.

Mr. Showalter and Ms. Wickman seemed to relax a little.

“Good,” said Ms. Wickman. She shook hands with Dr. D., Alexander, and me.

Mr. Showalter gathered up some papers and put them into the briefcase.

“We’ll see you in a few days, then,” said Ms. Wickman. “Good luck.”

I won’t need luck, I thought, watching them roar away on their boat a few
minutes later.

I won’t need luck because I have skill. And daring.

My head spun with all kinds of exciting thoughts.

Would I let Sheena be on TV with me after I single-handedly captured the
mermaid?

Probably not.

That night I sneaked off the boat and slipped into the dark water. I swam
noiselessly toward the lagoon.

I glanced back at the
Cassandra.
It floated quietly. All the portholes
were dark.

Good, I thought. No one is awake to notice that I’m gone. No one knows I’m
out here. No one knows I’m swimming in the sea at night, all alone.

Swimming steadily, easily, under the silvery moonlight, I made my way around
the reef and into the dark lagoon.

I slowed my stroke just past the reef.

My eyes darted eagerly around the lagoon. The waves lapped gently under me.
The water sparkled as if a million tiny diamonds floated on the surface.

Where was the mermaid?

I knew she was there. I knew I would find her here.

From deep below me, I heard a low rumble.

I listened hard. The sound, faint at first, grew louder.

The waves tossed as the sound became a steady roar.

It rumbled like an earthquake. An earthquake on the ocean floor.

The waves tumbled and tossed. I struggled to stay on top of them.

What was happening?

Suddenly, from the middle of the lagoon, a huge wave swelled. It rose higher,
like a gigantic geyser.

Higher. Over my head. As tall as a building!

A tidal wave?

No.

The wave broke.

The dark creature pushed up underneath it.

Water slid off its grotesque body. Its single eye stared out darkly at me.
Its tentacles writhed and stretched.

I screamed.

The monster blinked its muddy brown eye at me.

I tried to turn and swim away.

But it was too fast.

The tentacles whipped out—and grabbed me, tightening, tightening around my
waist.

Then a slimy, cold tentacle wrapped around my neck and started to squeeze.

“I—I can’t breathe!” I managed to choke out.

I tugged at the tentacle twining around my throat.

“Help me—somebody!”

I opened my eyes—and stared up at the ceiling.

I was lying in bed.

In my cabin.

The sheet was wrapped tightly around me.

I took a deep breath and waited for my heart to stop thudding. A dream.

Only a dream.

I rubbed my eyes, lifted myself, and peered out the porthole. The sun was
just rising over the horizon. The sky was morning red. The water a hazy purple.

Squinting past the reef, I saw the lagoon. Perfectly still. Not a sea monster
in sight.

I wiped the sweat from my forehead with my pajama sleeve.

No need to be afraid, I told myself. It was just a dream. A bad dream.

I shook my head, trying to forget about the sea monster.