Spirit’s Key (11 page)

Yasmine stands. “We have to turn ourselves in.”

“What? Why?”

“We touched that baldie on the beach.” She rubs her hands on her pink shorts like that'll get the germs off.

I stare from her to her brothers. “So?”

“So we should tell Dr. Wade,” Gomez says as if I'm stupid. He picks up his bike.

“But we're not sick,” I argue.

“We should probably tell,” Nector agrees. “My mom says they've taken your dad and Mr. Selnick to the old whale station.”

The whale station is an abandoned carcass of a building on a nearby barrier island called Whales' Cove. It sits alone with a bunch of old oil drums and giant bones.

“They've locked them up,” Nector continues. “No one's allowed in or out. They're asking anyone who touched a baldie to come forward.”

“They can't do that,” I say, even though I have no idea who
they
is and if
they
can or not. “My dad shouldn't be there. This isn't why he's sick.”

“It reeks of seagull poop and whale guts in there,” Gomez says. He moves his foot off his bike pedal and puts it back on the ground like maybe he isn't in such a hurry to be locked up in the whale station after all.

“Not to mention it's haunted,” Yasmine adds.

Yasmine and Gomez share a scared look.

I squeeze the dog tag in my palm, thinking hard. Sky thumps his tail, like he's thinking, too. “I don't feel sick. And I refuse to believe baldies make people sick until I have proof.” I have a terrible feeling about all this. Like I'm holding the key to all our futures and things are going to turn out bad if I don't do something. But what? I think for a minute, then I decide. “I'm not going to volunteer to be shut away in the smelly whale station, and none of you should either.”

“What if we're contagious and we make other people sick?” Yasmine looks worried.

“The first sign of sickness, we'll tell someone,” I say. “Until then, we have to stick together or we're all going to end up there.” I look at Nector.

He nods. Gomez and Yasmine do, too.

My handle comes across our walkie-talkies. “Repair Wizard calling Zookeeper. Got your ears on?” Repair Wizard—that's Mr. Hatterask.

“Zookeeper here,” I answer.

“Zookeeper, report to Repair Wizard's house tonight. Copy that?”

Yasmine steps forward. “Since your dad's sick. You're going to stay with us, okay?”

Nector nods, but Gomez looks like he's going to object. His sister elbows him in the side.

“What's going on?” I ask Mr. Hatterask over the walkie-talkie.

“Dr. Wade is taking care of your dad. He doesn't want you or anyone else to be infected. And you can't stay by yourself.”

I have questions, so I start firing them off. “How does Dr. Wade know the baldies are to blame? How can it be their fault?”

“I know it must be frightening. I'm sorry,” Mr. Hatterask says. “All of you kids come on home, and we'll talk about it over dinner. Repair Wizard over and out.”

“Zookeeper over and out,” I say.

But I can't imagine Dad would rather be recovering in the old whale station. “No matter how sick, my dad would never leave me like this. He'd want me to be with him.”

The Hatterask kids watch me with nervous eyes.

“If he's sick, I should be there to help take care of him. You'd do the same for your dad, wouldn't you?” I ask them.

Nector looks toward the woods behind my house.

If I go through the woods, I can take a raft to get to the cove, because the ocean distance is shortest there. Otherwise, I'll need a bigger boat. But it's a long trek through those trees.

“You can't go,” Nector insists. “Dad said we should come home now.”

“I want to see my dad,” I say.

“It'll be dark soon,” Yasmine points out. “You could get lost.”

Gomez smirks, like he's hoping for it.

“I might be a dingbatter,” I snap, “but I know my way around.” Besides, I won't be alone. I'll have Sky. Sky is all I need.

But Yasmine speaks before I can. “We want to help, is all.” She gives Gomez a long look. They seem to silently agree on something. “We should go with you. We wouldn't even be alive if it weren't for your dad. This is our chance to repay him.”

I'm stunned. They never talk about what my dad did for them. And their mom acts like it was a bad thing. “That's nice of you, but…” I don't need their help. Dad and I have taken care of ourselves for a long time.

Nector scolds his siblings. “You know you're not allowed in the woods. What if Dr. Wade is right and you get sick?” He shakes his head. “It was so stupid of us to touch that baldie. Of course they carry bacteria and diseases. Don't you pay attention to your science lessons?”

Yasmine and Gomez lower their eyes.

I hate to admit he has a point. A deep memory surfaces of Dad making me wear gloves around Sky when we first found him, until we knew what was wrong with him. I love the baldies, but even I know they're wild.

“We had to burn him,” Yasmine says to Nector, “and you helped. We're going with Spirit. She can't go alone into the woods. Are you going to tell on us? Please don't. This is our chance to repay Mr. Holden.”

Nector sighs. “Well, if you go, I have to go. Someone's got to look out for you.”

“Yay!” Yasmine claps her hands like she's won pink cereal instead of a sweaty hike through bug-infested woods.

“We have to tell Mom and Dad. If I radio them, they'll say no.” Nector puts his hand on his walkie-talkie for a minute like he's thinking of what to do. “Gomez, you go home and tell them, and Yasmine and I will go with Spirit. By then it'll be too late for them to stop us.”

Gomez shakes his head. “No way. I'm not going to be the one left out.”

“I said, you go home,” Nector repeats.

Gomez folds his arms. “Make me.”

Nector sighs again. “Fine. I'll go home to talk to Dad then. Mom will be furious if you little brats aren't back in time for dinner. You better hurry. It's a long way.”

“First we should get supplies,” Yasmine says.

I think about the mosquitoes that ate up my legs last time and the ticks I was afraid would bite me. “Okay.”

We say goodbye to Nector, and I invite his siblings inside the Holden supply house. I put them to work digging through boxes while I check for a note from Dad.

“Why do you need all this?” Yasmine asks. They are as amazed as Nector at the incredible stash.

I shrug. “Never know what might happen.” Surrounded by Dad's thoughtful preparation, I miss him so much. I don't only need Sky. I need Dad, too. I try my walkie-talkie again, but there's no response. “He didn't leave a note. He's not answering when I call. Something's bad wrong.”

“Maybe he's too sick to talk,” Yasmine suggests.

There's a knock at the door. I open it to find Eder Mint. He tips his sailor's hat at me and smiles. “Everything okay here, Lavender Spirit?”

I'm not sure where to start with all that's wrong, so I say, “Yes.”

Eder frowns like that isn't the answer he was expecting. “Well, I'm concerned. With your dad away, you can't be without a guardian. It isn't safe, particularly with this sickness going around. There's a children's home on the mainland where you can stay until things settle down. We can call right now—”

“I'm staying with the Hatterasks.”

“What?” Eder looks flustered. “Well, I really think…”

Behind me Yasmine shakes her head, like she'll be really disappointed if I don't stay with her.

“I'll be all right there,” I say.

“Isn't that too many kids for your parents to look after?” Eder asks Yasmine. He pokes his head around the door and sees Gomez digging through Dad's boxes. “What are you kids—”

Yasmine steps forward. “Spirit will be fine at our house. Thanks, Eder!” She closes the door before Eder can object.

I turn to her in surprise.

“That orphanage on the mainland is almost as bad as the whale station,” Yasmine explains. “Mom used to joke about sending us there when we misbehaved. Trust me, you don't want to go there.”

“An orphanage? But I have a dad. And I don't care what anyone says, I'm going to see him.”

Yasmine nods. “Eder's just a busybody. Ignore him.” But after a moment she scrunches her forehead like something doesn't add up. “I'm surprised Eder would even suggest a thing like that. He sure wouldn't go away from his
own
parents.”

“What do you mean?” I ask.

“People say his mom still tucks him in at night.”

I can't help laughing.

Gomez sticks his head out of a box and shouts, “She doesn't anymore!”

Yasmine shoots him a glare. “How do
you
know?”

Her brother shrugs.

“Well, she used to,” Yasmine insists. “Even after he was grown and living in his own house!”

“These backpacks are cool,” Gomez says. He pulls one out of a box of a dozen. It's bright orange and made from the strongest material known to man.

“We have a few buried in the yard, too,” I say.

Gomez looks shocked. “Why?”

“In case the house is destroyed. We can dig them up, and the supplies inside will be okay.” Dad researched backpacks for weeks, looking for the best survival packs they make. Ones that can survive earthquakes, hurricanes, fires, you name it.

Gomez stares at me in wonder.

“I know. Dad thinks of everything.”

“This could be useful.” Yasmine holds up a pellet gun.

“Why?” I can't imagine what Dad was thinking when he ordered that.

“Protection,” Yasmine says. She doesn't mention from what, but I can guess.

“We're not going to shoot a baldie,” I protest.

Yasmine loops the gun into the strap on one of the orange survival backpacks. “Like you said, you never know what might happen.”

I almost protest again, but she's right. I don't
know.
Maybe if I did, Dad wouldn't be gone.

 

16

T
RESPASSING

We spray ourselves down with bug spray and fill the orange backpacks with water and food. We bring snacks like apples and carrots and some cute little travel-size packets of peanut butter that Yasmine and Gomez got really excited over. We also pack flashlights, a compass, a whistle, and a flare in case we lose our way. A raft that's folded into a tiny square will blow up to carry us from the woods' edge to the barrier island of Whales' Cove. Dad ordered so many useful things. Did he get lucky? Or did he
know
?

I think deep down he
knew
Sky was special. He used to say,
Spirit needs Sky.

I touch his tag.
Why are you here, boy? To protect me? To lead me to Dad?

But Sky hasn't gained the ability to speak. He stands next to us, wagging his tail, happy to be invited along on our adventure.

I don't tell Yasmine and Gomez, but Sky is leading the way. He trots out in front, tall and proud.

I grip his dog tag in my palm as we walk. His spirit is here for a reason. He has something to do with my gift. I know that now. I believe he has things to show me. When I let him, he leads. It's my job to follow.

When we get to the woods, Sky puts his nose to the ground. He seems to catch the scent of something. Something that makes him move faster.

I run after him. The other ghost baldies appear to help blaze the trail, but the trees still far outnumber the dogs.

Yasmine and Gomez lag behind. They push and shove and giggle. It's hard keeping an eye on them and the ghost baldies. I begin to regret letting the Hatterask kids come.

“We should pick up the pace,” I suggest. “You don't want to be late for dinner.” Really I don't want to lose Sky and his friends.

Gomez grumbles.

“Come on!” I yell, wishing I had a way to make them hurry.

But suddenly Sky stops at a tangle of brambles. His stance is firm and strong in front of the more difficult path.
This way,
his body says. The other ghost baldies stop, too. Naturally, Yasmine and Gomez run ahead, choosing a path less dense.

“Wait.” I pull back some of the brambles, wishing I'd brought the gloves Dad uses when he loads and unloads boxes. “This way's better.”

“Why? We'll get all scraped up,” Gomez argues.

“It's a shortcut,” I lie. Of course I can't know if Sky is taking us the shortest way, but he seems to be leading us somewhere important. For all I know Dad isn't even at the whale station. Maybe Sky knows things I don't. If he's part of my gift, I have to trust him.

“How can it be a shortcut?” Gomez asks. “There's only one way—straight through.”

“I'm going this way. Follow or not,” I insist. I don't have any more reasons to give. The truth—that we're following the ghost of a dead baldie, four of them in fact—won't help. They wanted to come along. I can't help it if they don't like the path Sky and his friends choose.

Yasmine and Gomez share one of their looks, which I assume means,
Fine, follow the dingbatter,
because they plow after me through the brambles.

On the other side, Gomez jumps in front of me and grins. “Beat'cha.” As if who got through the brambles first were a contest.

I shrug. If he wants to make a game of it, fine by me. Maybe it will make him hurry up so we don't lose Sky and his pack of ghost baldies.

Gomez seems eager to race. “Last one there's a rotten oyster.” He pinches his nose and takes off.

We all tear into the woods. Unaware he's on the tail of a baldie, Gomez catches up quickly. Yasmine isn't far behind now either. It's a relief, because the deeper we go into the woods the darker it gets, making it harder to see Sky and his team through the trees.