Child's Play

 

Bruceport Park, Washington

 

Sea World animal-care supervisor Pete Soderblom patted Tootie lovingly on her bumpy snout, then stood in the eighteen-wheeler's open cargo container to stretch his legs.

"Hey, Andy, looks like we're pulling into Bruceport Park."

Zoologist Andrew Furman continued attaching the first of two radio transmitters to the nineteen-thousand-pound, thirty-one-foot gray whale calf.  "It's about time," he said.  "I've been carsick for the last two hours."

"Better not get sick now, there's about two dozen news vans waiting for us by the dock," Pete said.  "Hey, remind me to put up the 'Sea World Rescue' banner before they start filming."

"Did you see the shirts Anheuser-Busch had made just for today's event?  There's a picture of Tootie on the front, above the caption, 'HELP US SAVE THE WHALES.'  Sea World's logo's on the back.  They want us to pass them out to the first two hundred people in attendance."

"At least it's not a picture of Tootie drinking a six-pack."

The truck maneuvered its cargo beneath a towering crane positioned a the edge of the dock.  The Coast Guard Cutter, which would be escorting Tootie out to sea, was already in place, and a flotilla of pleasure boats was waiting for them a hundred yards offshore.

Pete watched as a stocky man wearing and NBC – Today show windbreaker approached the truck.

"Hi, I'm Brian Dodds.  Which one of you is Pete Soderblom?"

"Right here."

"Nice to meet you, Pete.  Here's what's going to happen:  I want to get some footage of the whale inside the truck so our viewers can get a good look at . . . what's the whale's name?"

"Tootie."

"Tootie."  Dodds wrote the name down.  "Good.  Anyway, we'll continue shooting right up until she's released.  How far are you planning to take the calf out to sea?"

"About two miles."

"Fine.  From here, I understand you're flying out to our studios in New York."

"Yeah, I'm supposed to be doing a live interview with Matt Lauer tomorrow morning.  I gotta tell you, I'm really nervous about that—"

"You'll do fine, Matt's a terrific guy.  Before we begin, how about we do a quick preinterview so I can get some background information about this whole rescue operation."  Brian signaled his cameraman over.  "Don't look at the camera, just talk to me.  You ready?"

"Uh, I guess—"

"Brian Dodds, Today show, interviewing Peter Soderblom, animal supervisor with Sea World.  Pete, how did this whole rescue operation come about?"

Pete forced himself not to look at the remote camera.  "About fourteen months ago, Tootie, that's what we named the calf, was found stranded about fifteen miles south of her in Ocean Park.  She was in really bad shape, probably less than a month old.  Lifeguards and bathers loaded her into a U-haul and drove her up to our facility in Seattle."

"And how large was she when you first saw her?"

"She only weighed about fifteen hundred pounds.  If fact, when she finally arrived at Sea World, she was comatose.  Fortunately, our animal-care specialists were able to revive her.  Within a few days we had her eating again.  From that point on, she gained a good two pounds a day."

"And now how much does she weigh?"

"She's up to nineteen thousand pounds.  By the time she's full grown, she should weigh close to sixty-thousand pounds."

"Why release her now?"

"We believe she's strong enough, and the timing's right.  For the next few months, thousands of gray whales will be migrating up the Pacific coast to spend the summer months feeding in the Bering Sea.  Releasing Tootie at this stage gives her a chance to join up with one of the whale pods."

"Will she be in any danger?"

"If she can stay with the pods, she should be okay.  Hopefully, she'll be able to learn to feed fairly quickly and avoid killer whales.  My assistant is attaching two remote radio transmitters to Tootie, which will allow us to keep tabs on her over the next several months.

Great, that should do it.  Anything else you'd like to add?"

"Yeah," Pete said, slightly embarrassed.  "Could you make sure our banner's in the shot when you begin filming?  Our corporate sponsor's pushing a new 'get back to nature' campaign.  I think they want Tootie to become the next Spuds McKenzie."

 

Tanaka Lagoon

Dusk

 

On the beach side of the arena, sixteen-year-old Jake Howell took a long drag on the joint before flicking it at his buddy, David Caine.  The two teenagers were sitting on the private beach located directly behind the Tanaka lagoon's arena.  Fifty yards north, the concrete seawall of the access canal stretched out into the Pacific like a highway off-ramp.

"Cop—"

David buried the joint in the sand as a security guard crossed behind them.

"Asshole, that's not a cop.  Look what you made me do—"

Jake snickered, rolling on his back.

The security guard turned.  "You boys shouldn't be back here."

Jake smiled.  "We're waiting for our parents, Officer."

"Move—or I'll have you moved."

Jake stood, rubbing the back of his shaved head with his middle finger.  The two boys followed the beach south past the arena until the guard was out of sight.

"Hey, assholes—"

They turned to see David's cousin, Doug, running toward them.  He held up a crowbar.

"Come on.  I found a way in."

 

*        *        *        *        *

 

Jonas watched as the crimson glow of the setting sun faded behind the brightly lit arena.  From the open bay window, he heard the crowd noise escalate as the underwater tank lights flickered on, turning the dark lagoon waters a bright teal.

He turned to face one of the technicians.  "Is she still in the canal?"

"Yeah, but she stopped pounding the gate about an hour ago.  Probably has a headache."

Jonas put the binoculars to his face.  There were no lights in the canal, making it impossible to see the Meg underwater.  He turned to his left, watching Manny and another assistant struggle to hook an immense side of beef onto the chain of the A-frame.

Moments later, the outdoor lights were dimmed and the deep baritone recording of timpani drums began, ushering the visitors to their seats.

Mac took a seat next to Jonas.  "I spoke to my guy, I'll have the transmitter by tomorrow morning.  Here comes your fish."

An enormous phosphorescent mass glided into the lagoon.

 

*        *        *        *        *

 

The three teens listened for the crowd's crescendo before prying open the fire door.  They jogged past souvenir stands and had already entered the outdoor arena before the first guard noticed the alarm bells ringing.

In the southern end of the lagoon, rising waves slapped against the Plexiglas barriers.

Jake pointed to the concrete structure supporting the A-frame.  "See that door?  It leads to an underwater observation room down below."

"How do you know?"

"Saw it on TV.  Doug, give me the crowbar."

Jake led David and his cousin to the steel door.  They stood behind him, shielding his movements from the crowd while he pried open the lock.

 

*        *        *        *        *

 

Jonas focused his binoculars on he pallid beast as it viciously tore the remains of its meal from the chain.  As he pulled back to locate Manny, something caught his eye.

He trained the glasses on the observation-room door.

"What is it?" Mac asked.

"I don't know.  Probably nothing.  I thought I saw the door leading down into the observation area swing open."  Jonas handed him the binoculars.

"Hard to tell from this angle.  Want to take a look?"

"Yeah, maybe we'd better."

 

*        *        *        *        *

 

The teens ran down the stairs and into the corridor.

"Whoa, Jake, check this out."

The three boys stood before the underwater bay windows, staring into the depths of the lagoon.

David pressed his face against the glass.  "Where's the fucking shark?"

"Gone, ass-wipe.  The show's over."

"Bullshit," Jake said.  "This show's about to begin."  He banged against the LEXAN glass, the others following suit.  "Here Angel—here girl!"

 

*        *        *        *        *

 

Jonas followed Mac down the concrete steps of the upper deck.  He looked up to see the Megalodon glide slowly back toward the canal.  As they made their way to the southern end of the outdoor arena, the creature suddenly turned.

 

*        *        *        *        *

 

"Here she comes!" Doug yelled.

"Hey, Caine, watch this."  Jake pulled his baggy Jnco shorts and boxers down and pressed his bare buttocks against the window.

David and Doug fell down laughing as the Meg accelerated toward the viewing window.  Jake ducked beneath the window frame, laughing as he rolled on the damp concrete floor.

The creature slowed, then banked sharply, slapping its great caudal fin hard against the reinforced glass.  The LEXAN rattled within its frame.

"Hey, Jake, check out this sign.  No movement while the Megalodon is in the area."

Jake stood, pressing his face against the glass.  The creature was circling, its back arched.  "I think she wants to play."

Jake and Doug banged on the glass while David took out a can of black spray paint, laughing hysterically.

 

*        *        *        *        *

 

Mac led Jonas through a crowd congregating around the southern end of the lagoon.  Instead of leaving, people seemed to be moving toward the tank, jostling to get a better view.

"Jonas, what's going on?"

"I don't know.  Something's drawn Angel back into the main tank.  Oh, shit, look at the door.  Somebody broke in, all right.  You better get security down here."

 

*        *        *        *        *

 

David stood back and admired his handiwork.  "Here she comes—"

All three boys stood by the window, wide-eyed, adrenaline pumping.  The Megalodon accelerated toward them like a Boeing 747.

"Now!"

The juveniles dropped to the floor.

Losing its prey once more, the creature slowed, swiping the glass barrier with its snout and upper row of teeth and gums.

"Oh, man—what a rush?" Jake said.

David stood—then stopped laughing.

Just above the freshly painted words, "BITE ME," a blazing slate-colored eye was staring at him.

The Meg turned, moving off into the lagoon.

Jake and Doug stood, ready to play again.

"No, wait," David said, "maybe we ought to go."

"You go.  I've gotta do this one more time.  You in, Doug?"

"Hell, yeah.  Come on, man.  Don’t be a pussy."  They started banging.

David watched the creature approach.  He felt his hands trembling.  What had started out as fun and games was becoming dangerous.  Still, he didn't want to chicken out.  "This is it, the last time, okay?"

"Fine," Jake said.  "Let's wait until the last second—wait until you see her ugly-ass eyes."

The three boys readied themselves, hearts pounding, staring  into the charging face of the sixty-two-thousand-pound monster.

"Now!"  The boys ducked below the window, laughing.

The Megalodon struck the LEXAN window like a locomotive plowing through kindling.  Shards of glass and bone-chilling water exploded into the corridor as the creature's snout and upper jaw slammed into the back wall, knocking out a dozen teeth.

David and his cousin registered the white torpedo a split second before its crushing girth drove them backward against the concrete wall.

An icy torrent lifted Jake off his feet.  He squeezed his eyes shut and curled up as his body was tossed within the corridor.

 

*        *        *        *        *

 

Jonas ran down the steps as a deafening crash rocked the stairwell.  Racing down the corridor, he was greeted by an incoming wall of frothing water.  He turned and ducked, the eight-foot wave pummeling him against the concrete floor, sliding him back toward the stairwell.  Before he realized what was happening, the flow ceased.  He opened his eyes, lying on his stomach in a pool of water, gasping to regain his breath.

Yellow lights flashed through the corridor.

Jonas stood, dripping wet.  The emergency doors had activated, sealing off the viewing area from the rest of the corridor.  He sloshed over to the steel door, looking through its eighteen-inch porthole.

Angel, what have you done?

What he saw made him nauseous.

 

*        *        *        *        *

 

Jake's lungs were on fire, his limbs like lead weights.  He felt his body floating up from the floor and opened his eyes.

The image jolted him awake as if he'd been struck by lightning.  He opened his mouth to scream, gagging on seawater as the cavernous maw surrounded him.  Thrashing about, he paddled and kicked furiously, slipping out of the monster's closing jaws, trying to surface.

Jake's head struck the ceiling.  The realization of his predicament sent a surge of panic through his limbs.  Through blurred vision he searched the flooded corridor, only to find himself pinned against the back wall.

The Megalodon pushed forward, homing in on the vibrations.

Jake felt his body being sucked backward in a vacuum of water.  With nowhere to maneuver, he ducked instinctively as the nine-foot maw jutted forward and clamped shut over his head.

In pitch darkness he gasped a putrid breath as the water momentarily drained away from his face.  He gagged, then registered his own muffled screams within the creature's mouth as unseen scalpels sliced and pulverized his body into mincemeat.

 

*        *        *        *        *

 

Through foamy swirls of pink Jonas saw the creature shake its imposing head, retracting its body from the underwater viewing room.

"Goddamn it!"  Jonas ran up the stairs, emerging outside in time to see Angel surface, the remains of a lower body held aloft in her jaws.

Screams rent the night.  News crews jostled for camera angles, nearly pushing one another into the tank.  Rising to the surface, Angel shook her head to and for like a mad dog, tearing apart the carcass as her twisting upper torso sent great swells in every direction.

The beast disappeared, submerging somewhere beneath the floating pool of blood and mangled limbs.  Then the hyperextended jaws rose majestically from the tank and, in one horrific bite, engulfed the remains from below.