Will and his dad walked to the north edge of the village and joined the villagers to help pull the forty-ton whale up on land. They stayed to watch it being butchered. The meat‚ maktak [muk-tuk] (skin with blubber)‚ and baleen were put on sleds. The villagers took their prize home joyfully. Nothing was better to eat than bowhead whale. When all of it had been distributed and the women had cut off the last bit of meat from the bones‚ Will took out his binoculars and focused on the birds again. Suddenly an Arctic gyrfalcon streaked before him‚ pursuing a ptarmigan.

“I think I’ll stay ashore awhile‚ Dad‚ and look around‚” he called to his father‚ who was heading for the restaurant.

“Okay. Radio for a launch when you’re ready.”

Thrilled to be finding birds he had never seen before‚ he started walking. He walked until a car stopped and offered him a ride to the trading post. Suddenly‚ he realized he was cold. He jumped in and rode to the post and went inside for a cup of coffee. Before long‚ he was conversing with the man who worked on an exploratory oil rig in a remote area. Fascinated by of the complexity of the project‚ Will began to ask a lot of questions.

“Hey‚ I’m flying out there for a few hours‚” the man said. “I have a small Cessna airplane. Want to come with me?” Will immediately accepted and radioed his father to tell him. The pilot loaned him a warm parka and polar boots. They flew to Cape Simpson.

As he stepped out of the plane on the remote airstrip‚ he saw a rare Mongolian plover fly by.

“Wow‚ I’m going to follow that bird‚ if you don’t mind‚” he said to the pilot. “It’s a new one for me.”

“Okay‚ but keep the rig in sight. I’ll meet you back here in two hours.”

Will knew that the Mongolian plover was very rare in this area and so he followed it. Soon he found himself far out on the tundra.

And then‚ suddenly‚ the fog set in and he was lost. Whiteouts are one of the perils of the Arctic. He tried to orient himself by the sun‚ but it was no help. The fog was too dense and the sun never set in the Arctic to tell him which way was west. His dad had once said that in the far Arctic the sun sets first to the north. So in which direction was the oil rig? Were the birds flying to it or away from it?

He looked north. Nothing. He turned a complete circle‚ and there on the horizon for a brief instant‚ were the distant poles and cranes of the rig. Then the fog quickly set in again. He tried to maintain a heading toward the rig‚ walking for hours. When the fog lifted again‚ there was no rig in sight. He had walked the wrong way and was lost.

An Eskimo appeared in the distance‚ coming toward him. Will sighed with relief. The man could lead him back to the airstrip where the Cessna had landed. He waited.

The Eskimo turned into a young woman carrying a sack on her back. When he saw her‚ he burst into a jog.

“Help me‚” Will said. “I’m lost.”

“I am too!” said Emily.

They stared at each other‚ smiled‚ and burst into laughter. Her face was brown with sunshine‚ her smile framed beautiful teeth‚ and her dark eyes sparkled.

“Oh‚ look‚ could that be the oil rig?” she asked pointing to a faint object on the skyline. Will turned around.

“Yes‚” he said‚ “it is‚” and began to walk toward it. He faltered and stopped.

“Wait‚ I think that’s a mirage. We should be going this way‚” he said‚ and started walking in the wrong direction again.

She grabbed him by the shoulder‚ turned him around‚ and faced him toward the distant rig.

“Walk‚” said Emily Toozak. She took his hand and pulled. “I’m Emily Toozak.”

Will’s feet felt cold and tired. But he went toward the rig step by reluctant step. While they walked Emily Toozak told him an amazing tale of living on the tundra for three weeks‚ with a whale for a guide‚ and as he listened to her words‚ Will forgot he was lost. He had no idea that Emily had been missing for almost a month. She seemed so oddly comfortable with her situation. The rig grew larger and more distinct with each step they took toward it.

“You say a bowhead whale saved you?” he asked as they came to the runway and walked onto it. She looked him straight in his eyes.

“Yes‚” she said‚ “but now I’m back in civilization. I have to radio my parents and let them know I’m safe.” She smiled a million words.

He believed her story. The Arctic was unlike any place he’d been before. He felt like anything could happen here.

The pilot had been patiently waiting for his passenger for hours. He was worried the young man had gotten lost in the fog. He knew how unforgiving this country could be. He‚ Emily‚ and Will ducked and climbed into the small Cessna and took off to the west.

The airplane rolled to a stop on the Barrow tarmac and Will climbed out. He reached up to give Emily Toozak a hand‚ but she was still sitting‚ her eyes closed. He thought he heard her whispering‚ “Siku.”

Emily Toozak opened her eyes‚ pulled her hood over her head‚ and climbed out of the plane. She walked slowly across the tarmac to the passenger terminal‚ up the steps‚ and into the building. She gave a whoop and ran forward. There were her parents‚ Benny‚ his son James‚ and Oliver. The pilot had radioed ahead that she had been found and was in good health‚ and the airport had called her parents. It was a small town.

At home‚ she was greeted by her family and dozens of friends. She was overwhelmed to be back with so many people she loved. The village seemed huge. Her mother had roasted a caribou shank and brought out the best of the summer’s berries. Emily thought of the last caribou and plants she had eaten. When they were done‚ Emily Toozak spoke quietly of her adventures.

Robert Toozak took her hand when she was finished.

“Emily Toozak‚” he said‚ “do you really think that Siku pushed your floe to shore and saved your life?”

“Yes‚ I do. The curse is lifted‚” she replied‚ though she believed in her heart it was never a curse. “We both have helped each other.”

Later‚ Benny beat his dance drum far into the night.

Not many days after this‚ Will applied for and got a job at the Navy Research Lab.

In a few years‚ he and Emily Toozak were married.

They named their firstborn son Agvik (meaning “whale”)‚ with no numerals. The Toozak curse had been lifted. That was the year 1989.