Eighth Circle

'They've had enough time to come back.'

'Don't expect them to rush back just because I'm here. They don't know who is with me. They are very upset. They have just lost Elsa. She was like a big sister and they saw her being torn apart by the orcas. That was very distressing ... they feel vulnerable.'

Allain wasn't convinced.

'You can't be sure they are here ... can you?'

'I can feel their presence.'

'What do you mean by that?'

'It's like bees on a hot summer day. You can't see them but you know they are there. It's like a hum. It fills the air.'

She turned to Bryn.

'You know what I'm talking about ... don't you?'

'I could feel the dolphins when you were with them,' he smiled. 'It was like a hum in the water. All around. I couldn't tell where it was coming from. I sort of felt it with my skin.'

'Do you think you could feel them now?'

'I might be able to.'

Bryn took off his boots and put his feet in the water. He sat quietly holding her hand. Liala noticed that he no longer complained about the pain in his backside. Holding hands seemed to have solved that problem.

'I can feel them,' he said. 'A sort of tingling.'

She squeezed his hand.

'My brother, Crispin, says your body picks up the high-pitched sounds they make. Your ear can't hear them but your skin can feel them. I don't know if he's right but I feel them now and they are very close.'

A thought crossed her mind.

'Would you feel them if I wasn't here?'

'You mean the tingling?'

'Yes. Bryn. The tingling.'

He thought for a while.

'Not if you weren't here, Liala.'

Bryn saw Allain watching and let go of her hand.

Liala beckoned to him.

'Allain. The dolphins will have sensed your presence. That's why they are hiding. You need to let them know that you are a friend. You could be a troll for all they know. They might think you have taken me prisoner.'

'What do you want me to do?'

'Come and sit beside us. Let them see your face. They will have seen you out in the boat fishing with Bryn.'

Allain removed his shoes and sat with his feet in the water.

'Shall I shine my torch on our faces?'

'That's a good idea, Allain. The dolphins can see with both their eyes and their ears. But they can only see with their ears if they make clicking sounds. That gives their positions away so they don't like to do it when they are hiding.'