Island Ambush (2 page)

It was late afternoon when Meena steered the boat to its mooring in Male Atoll harbour. Bindi and Kelly helped her cast the anchor and tie up.

When everything had been washed down and put away, they unloaded their belongings and jumped onto the wharf.

‘How do we get to police headquarters, Meena?' Bindi hadn't been joking when she declared there was no time to waste. She wanted to report the shark finning immediately.

‘It's not far,' Meena said. ‘I'll show you.'

As they made their way along the wharf, they passed all kinds of vessels, from old wooden dhonis and tin runabouts to gleaming white cruisers and large mechanised fishing boats.

Suddenly Kelly grabbed Bindi by the arm. ‘There it is!' she hissed, giving a surreptitious nod in the direction of a boat just up ahead.

‘That's it, all right,' Bindi whispered back.

‘Shhhh,' was all Meena said as they walked past.

Bindi stole a glance at the boat. It was moored behind another fishing boat. Two men were cleaning the upper deck. Now she could read the red writing on the side.
Feyrun
, it said.

Bindi pointed the name out to Meena. ‘What does it mean?'

Meena snorted. ‘It means “weaver”, but it can also mean “pirate”.'

They were now well past the boat and out of earshot.

‘Probably just the right name for it,' Kelly said. ‘If they're doing the shark finning, they're nothing but pirates.'

‘Sea robbers,' Bindi piped up.

‘Exactly,' Kelly agreed.

Meena looked at both girls and smiled. ‘Now, no name calling just yet,' she said. ‘We don't know for sure whether they're the culprits.'

‘Maybe not, but all things point to it,' Bindi said. ‘And that's what I'll be telling the police.'

Kelly gave her a slap on the back. ‘You go, girl!'

The police station was a tall, imposing building not far from the port. As they crossed the lobby their footsteps on the dark tiles echoed.

Two policemen were sitting at the front desk. As Bindi and her friends approached, one looked up from his computer and said something in Dhivehi, the local language.

Meena answered.

‘So how can I help you?' the policeman said in English to Bindi and Kelly.

‘We want to report a case of shark finning,' Bindi said, trying to sound as confident as possible.

‘Interesting. So you saw someone doing this to a shark, did you?' The policeman showed no expression.

‘No, we didn't see anyone do it, but we saw the sharks. Two of them. Without their fins.'

‘And one of them was floating not far from a big fishing boat called
Feyrun
that's now sitting down there in the harbour,' Kelly added in a loud voice.

‘Hmm, well, you may know that shark finning is now illegal in the Maldives,' the policeman said, ‘but unless we can catch someone in the act, it's very hard to prove.' He looked hard at Bindi. ‘So you didn't actually see anyone fin a shark?'

‘No-o-o,' Bindi said, trying to buy time while she thought of something to say that would convince the policeman.

‘Well, in that case, I'm afraid there's nothing the authorities can do.' The policeman smiled at Meena and said something the girls couldn't understand. Then he stood, collected his papers and nodded before walking across to a side door and disappearing through it.

Bindi and Kelly looked at each other.

‘This is so not cool, Bindi Irwin,' Kelly said.

‘So not cool,' Bindi agreed.

‘Come on, girls. I better take you home.' Meena looked tired. It had been a long day.

Bindi and Kelly didn't budge.

‘Quickly, you two. It's getting late. Time to go.'

Bindi noticed the other policeman sitting at the desk. For the first time he spoke.

‘I'm sorry we couldn't be of more help,' he said, ‘but we really do need proof.'

Bindi spotted something on the policeman's arm. It was staring at her. ‘Um, you have a gecko on your arm,' she said, pointing to a small striped lizard that was clinging to his shirt sleeve. It had bright pale eyes and a slinky tail.

The policeman smiled. ‘That's Lucky. He's my partner, as they say in the movies.'

‘Oh, he's so cute!' Kelly reached out to pat the gecko, but it scuttled up the policeman's arm and out of sight. ‘Why's he called Lucky?'

‘In my culture, geckos bring luck. So he's Lucky.' The policeman smiled again. ‘You can borrow him, if you like. He's very tame and friendly. Maybe he'll bring
you
luck.'

The policeman reached around behind him. Then he held out his hand. The little gecko was sitting in his palm, staring at them and flicking out his tongue.

‘Really?'

‘Of course.' The policeman nodded encouragingly. ‘Here, take him.'

Bindi reached out her hand. The policeman gently placed the gecko in her palm.

‘You can bring him back tomorrow. He needs a holiday from the police station!'

Bindi and Kelly looked at each other and then at the lizard, which was nestled in Bindi's hand, staring up at them.

‘What do I do with him? What does he eat?'

‘You can carry him in your pocket. Let him roam around at home, and he'll catch his own dinner.'

‘Thanks so much!' Bindi said. ‘We'll bring him back tomorrow.' She looked at Kelly and Meena, and added: ‘Along with some proof that those people on the
Feyrun
are finning sharks.' There was a steely tone in her voice.

The policeman raised an eyebrow. ‘Well, don't do anything silly. If you need me, I'm here until late tonight, then back again tomorrow afternoon. Just ask for Ali.
Dhanee
. Goodbye.'

‘Thanks, Ali,' Bindi said.

She looked down at her new friend. Lucky flicked out his tongue and licked one of his eyes. Then he licked the other.

‘My brother, Robert, would love you!' Bindi gave the gecko a little kiss on the head. ‘Come on, Lucky. We've got work to do.'

‘No. It could be dangerous. Your parents would never talk to me again!' said Meena.

They were standing on the steps of the police station. Bindi and Kelly were keen to go back to the wharf to check out the suspicious boat. Meena was not.

‘We're going straight back to my place where you can have a shower and a snack and watch some TV before dinner,' stated Meena firmly. ‘And that's final.'

Meena's phone buzzed. She answered and talked to the caller in Dhivehi, sounding concerned. Finally she hung up.

She put her hands on her hips. ‘Okay, there's been a slight change of plan. I have to go into the office for a short meeting. You two will have to walk back to my place. I'll see you there soon.'

She handed Bindi her door key. ‘So you know how to get there?'

The girls nodded. Meena lived in a little apartment a few streets away.

Meena narrowed her eyes. ‘Once you get there, don't leave, okay? Just shut the door, make yourself at home, and I'll be back soon.'

‘Okay,' Bindi said. She gently took Lucky out of her pocket. ‘At least you'll get some dinner, tiny buddy.'

Lucky flicked out his tongue.

Meena hailed a cab and climbed in. ‘Remember what I said? Once you get to my place, stay there!' She smiled. ‘See you soon.' She closed the car door and the cab drove off.

Bindi and Kelly looked at each other.

‘Once we get to Meena's place, we'll stay there, won't we, Bindi?'

‘We will, Kelly. I promise. But until then, let's go catch those shark finners!'

‘What can you see?'

Bindi and Kelly were pressed up against the back of an old tin shed only metres from the
Feyrun
.

Bindi peeped around the corner. The afternoon light was beginning to fade, but she could see the vessel quite clearly. ‘There's a fisherman in a captain's cap inside the cabin,' she reported in a whisper. ‘The door's shut. No-one is on deck. But there might be someone down below.'

‘Well I reckon we should get onboard and see what we can find. If Cap'n Sharkbait comes out, we'll just pretend we're naughty kids. And if he tries anything funny, we'll scream blue murder!' Kelly had a way of getting straight to the point.

Having checked no-one was watching, the two girls walked quickly to the boat side. A set of steps led up to a short gangway with handrails that crossed onto the deck. So long as they weren't spotted, they'd have no trouble getting onboard.

They checked on the fisherman in the cabin. He had his back to them, and was looking down at something.

As fast as geckos they ran up the steps and jumped onto the deck. Keeping out of the man's sightlines, they sized up their surroundings.

‘I bet we find a shark fin or two lying around,' Kelly whispered.

Bindi wasn't so sure. Everything looked shipshape.

She spotted the long line on a big mechanised reel at the back of the boat. ‘That's what's causing all the trouble.'

Kelly nodded. ‘Yep. Not as bad as drift net fishing, but close.'

Bindi looked around. ‘Where are all the fish they caught, do you think?

‘Maybe below deck? Let's check it out.'

With one eye on the fisherman in the cabin, the girls bent low and ran across to the open hatch near the rear of the deck. They peered down into the hull.

It was dark, but they could see that it was empty. No fish and, by the look of it, not much of anything else either. The boat's crew must have already unloaded the catch.

Bindi glanced back to check on the man. He'd turned around and was heading for the cabin door. He hadn't seen them, but he would any second.

She grabbed Kelly's arm. ‘Quick. Down the hatch!'

The girls scrambled down the ladder into the darkness. When they reached the bottom, they held hands and shuffled forward, their arms stretched out. They quickly found the side of the boat, and followed it around.

Looking back, they could just make out the man, standing by the hatch above. He hadn't begun to descend the ladder, but he looked like he was about to.

Bindi's foot struck something. She reached out her hands. It was a stack of heavy plastic crates. Pulling Kelly with her, she felt her way around the crates. They crouched down behind them.

It was dark, dank and smelly in the boat's hull. Bindi's heart was pounding. She felt in her pocket for Lucky. He was still there. She gently lifted him out and patted his head. ‘We really need some of your luck now, Lucky,' she whispered so quietly even Kelly didn't hear.

At that second the place was bathed in light. The man must have flicked a switch above deck.

It gave them a start – especially Lucky. He leapt out of Bindi's hand, scuttled through the side of the bottom crate and vanished.