Whispers Read online

  “Pua and Nui?” Dan asked.

  “Whales,” Mark answered, as if he weren’t used to having to distinguish between humans and whales in most of his conversations. “They’re blue whales like Mabel. Sort of self-appointed aunties. Almost like midwives. It took almost an hour, but little Jonah came out just fine, all twenty-five feet of him.”

  “And he came out tail first?” Teri asked.

  “No, head first. He’s a baleen.”

  “I thought he was a blue whale,” Teri said, just as the salads arrived.

  “He is. See, there are two basic kinds of whales. Toothed and baleen. Baleens feed on krill. Blue whales are baleens. Actually, three kinds of blue whales are in the rorquals. Mabel’s a pygmy blue.”

  Teri smoothed her salad dressing around and tried not to look as confused as she felt. It was as if Mark were speaking a foreign language.

  “The rorquals have that triangle shaped fin on their backs, near the tail.” Mark pointed over his shoulder and then looked at Anita and Dan to see if they were following him.

  “Oh,” Teri said. She broke into a wide smile and said, “I guess I have a lot to learn about whales. All this is new to me.”

  “It’s not really as complicated as I’m making it sound,” Mark said.

  “I’d like to go out with you sometime,” Teri said.

  Mark’s eyes widened.

  “I mean, on your ship, or boat, or whatever you call it.” Teri laughed at herself. “I’m such a novice I don’t even know what you call it.”

  “It’s a boat,” Mark said.

  “Well, sometime, when it’s convenient, I’d like to go out on your boat and learn more about your great blue, rorqual, baleen friends with the triangle fins on their tails.”

  “The fin is actually on their backs. By their tails.” Mark smiled back. But he didn’t extend an invitation for Teri to come out on the boat with him.

  She made a mental note of that and brought it up later that night when she and Anita were alone in the living room.

  “Didn’t he seem a little aloof to you?” Teri asked. “He didn’t ask me to go out on the boat.”

  “That doesn’t necessarily mean anything.”

  “Yeah, but he seemed so distant, not like I thought he would be. Do you think he’s starting to have a hard time relating to humans because he’s with whales so much?”

  “That’s a crazy thing to ask.”

  “No, it isn’t. Mark seems different to me. A lot different than he was last year. Do you think I’ve changed much?”

  “No.”

  “Then it’s he. I think he’s emotionally involved with someone else.”

  “Why in the world would you think that?” Anita said.

  Teri could hear the low hum of the ceiling fan as it stirred the night air. “It’s just not the same. At all.”

  “Why are you jumping to conclusions, Teri? You haven’t given him a fair chance. One dinner is not enough to throw out your relationship. Didn’t you feel anything when you saw him?”

  “Not like I did last year. But last year it seemed mutual from the start. I think I was hesitant to let myself feel anything tonight until I knew where he was coming from.”

  “Maybe he was doing the same thing,” Anita said. “You both are making this complicated. You need to wait and see what happens. You’ll see him tomorrow.”

  “I might see him tomorrow. Didn’t you hear what he said? If the boat stayed in dock he might come to the luau. I had the impression that if he showed up at all it would be at the last minute. He sure didn’t commit himself to anything, did he?”

  “Is that what you were expecting? An instant commitment? Teri, you’re analyzing all the romance out of this. You have a tendency to do that, you know. Don’t turn this into another Luis relationship.”

  “It’s not,” Teri said, instantly on the defense.

  “Why don’t you sleep on it and see what happens tomorrow? I’m going to bed.” Anita gave her a hug before heading off to the bedroom where Dan was already asleep. “Good night!”

  Pulling out the Hide-A-Bed and slipping between the cool sheets, Teri wondered if Anita had ducked out so quickly because she didn’t want to talk about Luis. Teri curled up and let her mind fill with memories of him. Luis was a terrific man. Everyone thought they would marry. They were from the same backgrounds, had the same major in college, liked the same things, and had dated for almost a year. But one day they looked at each other and mutually decided to end it, even though neither of them could articulate a clear reason either for themselves or for their shocked friends and family.

  Teri remembered saying something about how they needed either to marry or break up, but they couldn’t go on any longer the way they were. It was too easy, too comfortable, and too unexciting. They were more like two cousins together at summer camp than two people deeply in love. There were no fireworks. Teri needed fireworks.

  Since Luis and Teri had broken up during their senior year of college, no other significant man had been in Teri’s life. Now, with a glimmer of a relationship with Mark, Teri wondered if her sister were right about her analyzing all the romance out of her relationships. Still, the fact remained: she needed fireworks.

  Chapter Three

  A good night’s sleep and a long, hot shower did Teri a world of good. By noon the next day she was feeling much more positive about seeing Mark again. She was ready to settle into the island tempo, to slow down and take things as they came.

  The first item that came was the company luau at the Halekuali’i Resort.

  “Are we going for the whole day?” Teri asked. “Or do you need to come home and get some work done?” Anita had a home business centered in their one bedroom where she had a small computer set up in the corner. She took in a variety of clerical work, including preparing résumés, translating children’s stories into Spanish for a Christian publisher in Arizona, and transcribing medical tapes that arrived in the mail weekly from a large group of physicians in Honolulu. Anita also wait-ressed on Friday nights at a small restaurant.

  “I’m pretty well caught up. I can finish the tapes tomorrow. But I’m going to run into town to FedEx some reports I finished this morning. Do you want to go with me?” “I think I’ll stay around here.”

  “I’m going to stop by the grocery store, too. We need to take a salad with us to the luau. I’ll be back in about an hour, and then we can leave.”

  Teri busied herself around the house, putting up the Hide-A-Bed, washing the few dishes in the sink, and running the vacuum. In the process, Teri discovered a distinct advantage to the small house Dan and Anita lived in: the cleaning could be done in less than an hour. She settled in on the couch, did some channel surfing with Dan and Anita’s tiny old set, and enjoyed feeling warm. Warm and relaxed.

  Anita returned and whipped up a tossed salad. Then they were out the door. It was another beautiful day in paradise. Thin white clouds hung over the west Maui mountains, and the ocean glimmered on their left as they drove to the resort.

  Halekuali’i sat on a flat peninsula of land on the northern tip of the island. The resort covered more than one hundred acres and had four swimming pools, a private beach, and a five-star rating. Only the elite could afford the luxuries of this “house befitting royalty,” which its name meant.

  As soon as they turned down the palm tree lined drive that led to the main lobby, Teri felt out of her league. She had a friend back in Oregon who was a millionaire, so it wasn’t as if she had never been around anyone who had money. But Jessica never flaunted her wealth. She actually had kept it hidden from Teri and many others for her first few months in their small town of Glenbrooke. Still, Teri knew the difference between those who have it and those who don’t. Dan was only an employee here. Teri felt her position was established as well, a visiting relative of an employee.

  “Does any of this bother you?” she asked Anita as they pulled down a side road that led into an employee parking area in the back.

&n
bsp; “What do you mean?”

  “Well, it’s all so extravagant here. I don’t know if I could work at a resort like this. I’d always feel like a peon.”

  “I don’t feel that way. On Maui it’s the kama’ainas and the haoles. I think we have the advantage being the kama’ainas.”

  “And what is that?”

  “Kama’ainas? Long-time residents. We’re the ones who get to live here, not just visit for a week. So what if we have to work to serve all the tourists? Danny says we’re the lucky ones because we’ll still be here after they check out. He’ll probably still be carrying their bags when they come for a visit next year. And that’s the point. Tourists come and go. We stay.” Anita parked the car and turned off the engine. “No, I never think of us as peons. We’re kama’ainas.”

  Teri wondered if she would feel the same if she ever moved to Maui.

  “Can you carry the salad dressing?” Anita asked. “I’ll take the towels and the salad. You did bring your bathing suit, didn’t you?”

  “Of course. It’s on under my clothes. I have a feeling I’ll be dressing like this for the rest of my visit.”

  Anita led the way to one of the pools where long tables were set up along a lush lawn under scattered coconut trees. It looked like a scene from a vacation brochure. They added their contribution to the bountiful assortment of salads and set out to mingle with the other employees.

  Teri hated this first step at social gatherings, especially when she didn’t know anyone. She was by nature an outgoing person and even felt comfortable speaking in front of a group. But making small talk at parties was not her thing.

  “Do you want to see where they roast the pig?” Anita asked.

  “You’re kidding, aren’t you?”

  “No, they built a special pit. It’s called an imu. They cook the pigs the old-fashioned way at their weekly luaus here. They call it kalua. It’s a sort of combination of roasting and steaming. They line the pit with hot stones, and I do mean hot! Then they cover it and insert a bamboo tube so they can pour water in to create the steam. Ours is the most authentic luau on the island.”

  “I guess so! I suppose we’re going to be entertained by hula dancers as well.”

  “Of course. Fire dancers, too. We get the whole program.”

  “You’re kidding.”

  “Nope. They treat their employees really well here. And once a year the management throws this big party to let the employees enjoy everything the tourists experience at the luaus. All this for the low admission price of one tossed salad. Not bad, is it?”

  Teri shook her head and tried to peer into the steamy pit where the pig was cooking. It was covered with palm branches, and the fragrance that floated toward them was spicy and rich.

  “Poor little piggy,” said Teri.

  “Smells good, doesn’t it? They cook it over Hawaiian kiawe wood coals. I told you. It’s all authentic.” Anita fingered the ends of her short dark hair where it curled at the nape of her neck. “I’m going to find Danny and tell him we’re here. He’s supposed to get off in about an hour.”

  Teri noticed a man standing a few yards away by the pool. He was by himself with a can of something in his hand, scanning the crowd as if he were looking for someone. Something vaguely familiar about him made Teri stare.

  “Do you want to come with me?”

  “No, I think I’ll just hang out around here,” Teri said.

  “Then I’ll meet you back here in about twenty minutes. Are you sure you’ll be okay by yourself?”

  Teri gave her sister a pained expression.

  “Okay, okay! I thought I’d ask. I know you don’t like this social stuff when you don’t know anybody. Here, find a lounge chair by the pool for these towels, will you?”

  “Sure,” Teri said, accepting Anita’s towels and stuffing them under her arm. “I’ll find a seat and enjoy the view.” She tried hard not to look at the man when she said that.

  “Okay. See you.”

  Teri watched her sister leave and stood there studying the man’s every move. No one joined him. No one greeted him. It was as if he were a stranger, a haole like she, who didn’t know anyone else at this picnic swarming with hotel employees and their friends. Something about him intrigued Teri.

  He wore his thick blond hair combed straight back and had the deep, golden tan of a lifeguard with a physique to match. He looked like a strikingly handsome movie star yet at the same time he appeared approachable.

  Teri glanced over her shoulder to make sure Anita was gone, and then clutching the towels, she headed for the pool and the mysterious man.

  She had a relationship developing with Mark, didn’t she? Why did she hope this stranger would notice her?

  Teri slowly walked past him. He glanced at her, and she gave him a generic, friendly smile and kept on walking. Now she knew she had seen him before, but she couldn’t place where.

  Maybe he’s a movie star, and he’s staying here and just happened to stumble into the employee area.

  Teri found two lounge chairs and spread a towel over each of them. She chose to keep her back to the man so she wouldn’t be tempted to see if he had noticed her.

  “I know you,” a deep voice behind her said, causing her to jump.

  Teri hadn’t heard the man approaching. She turned and looked at him. “Hi.”

  “I’m sure I know you,” he said, “but I can’t remember where we’ve met.”

  They stood by the lounge chairs, each examining the other. Teri scanned her memory. “I thought you looked familiar, too. But I don’t know where we met.” Something inside her began to set off sparklers.

  “I’m Scott Robinson,” he said. “Did we meet in Trujillo?”

  “Trujillo?”

  “Peru. The excavation site of the Moche warrior priest’s tomb?”

  Teri couldn’t help but laugh. Scott looked surprised.

  “I have to tell you,” she said, still laughing, “I’ve heard some pretty creative pick-up lines in my time, but that one wins a prize!”

  “I’m serious,” he said.

  “No, I’ve never been to Peru,” Teri said, trying to suppress her laughter. “I take it you have?”

  “About three or four years ago. You remind me of someone who worked there on the archaelogical dig.”

  “I can guarantee you it wasn’t me,” Teri said, her smile refusing to go away. “I’ve been a high school teacher in Oregon for the past three years. I don’t even teach archaeology. I teach Spanish.”

  “Maybe I mistook you for someone else,” Scott said, looking apologetic. “It’s your hair. A man could get lost in tresses like yours.”

  Inside Teri a screaming firecracker had been lit and was flying through her head at high speed.

  “We must have met somewhere,” Teri said, thinking he was about to turn and walk away. “Because you look familiar to me, too. And I know your name, but I don’t know from where. I’m Teri. Teri Moreno. Does that ring any bells?”

  “Teri,” he repeated. He had a rich, smooth, radio-announcer voice. “Teri Moreno.” He said it again with his eyes closed, as if he were announcing a contest winner’s name. “Teri Moreno!” His eyes snapped open, his face lit up, and he said, “Kelley High, Escondido, California.”

  “Right! You were on the football team a year ahead of me. Scott Robinson, top scorer at the homecoming game against Vista High.”

  “And I remember Rick Doyle announcing your name at the year-end assembly when you made cheerleader.”

  Teri started to laugh again. “Scott Robinson. I can’t believe it. I don’t think I talked to you once during my high school career, but I sure knew who you were! I have a sister who graduated the same year as you. Anita. She married Danny Romero. Did you know them?”

  “Danny Romero. I think so.”

  “They’re here. Dan works here at Halekuali’i. I’m visiting them for the summer.”

  “Amazing,” Scott said. “I just started to work here yesterday. I wonder if Dan an
d I work any of the same shifts. That would be something, wouldn’t it?”

  Teri noticed Anita coming across the grass toward them. Teri waved and called out, “Annie, over here.”

  When Anita joined them, she looked at Scott as if perhaps she recognized him as well.

  “Hi,” Scott said.

  Teri cut in. “Don’t tell her your name. See if she can figure it out.”

  “You went to Kelley High, didn’t you?”

  “That’s good for one point,” Teri said. “Keep going.”

  “You were on the football team.” Anita looked as if she were trying hard to come up with a name. “And you hung out with Rick Doyle.”

  “Three for three,” Teri said. “Do you remember his name?”

  Anita pressed her lips together. “No,” she finally said. “I know I should, but eight years is too long for my memory.”

  “Scott Robinson,” he said. “And I remember you. Anita Moreno.”

  “Anita Moreno Romero,” she added. “Do you remember Danny Romero? We were married the summer after we graduated and then moved to Maui. Danny will be here in a little while. I hope you two have a chance to see each other.”

  “We might actually be working together,” Scott said. “I started here yesterday.”

  “Pretty amazing, huh?” Teri said to her sister. “And get this: before coming here he was excavating some ancient Mayan ruins in Peru. Quite a diversion from the old days in Escondido!”

  “Actually, it was Mochica ruins north of Trujillo. And that was several years ago. I sailed here from San Diego with Bob Newcomb. Do you remember him? He was two years ahead of me at Kelley High.”

  Both Teri and Anita shook their heads. “Too old for me,” Teri said.

  “I hope you don’t think I am,” Scott said, looking at her with his soft gray eyes.

  Anita cleared her throat and took a step backward. “I think I’ll go talk with some of my friends over there. When Danny comes I’ll look for you, Scott. I know he’ll be glad to see you.” Anita excused herself, giving Teri a look that said, Three’s a crowd here.