CHAPTER 1
Fourteen-year-old Gabby Moore glared down at the ocean. She said, “Since I haven’t seen any whales, do you think the whales are hiding out there, watching us?”
She whirled around. Her friend Skylar laughed. Miles, Gabby’s 16-year-old brother, smirked. Gabby could tell that he was trying not to laugh. When Skylar glanced at Miles, he walked to the other side of the boat.
“You knew there might not be anything,” Gabby’s mother said.
“Captain Steve can’t promise that we’ll see whales,” their father said.
“I’ve been taking folks out on the Gusto for twenty-two years,” Captain Steve said, patting the railing of the boat. “In all that time, the people sure have changed, but the animals haven’t. They’re still as hard to find as they were when I started.”
He pointed to a vinyl banner that hung on the boat. “Whale They or Won’t They Show Up?” was printed on it in silver letters. There was a cartoon picture of a whale winking.
“Just like the poster says, Gabby,” Captain Steve said. “The whales will show up if they feel like it.”
Captain Steve was friends with Gabby’s mom. Recently, Gabby’s science teacher had assigned the class to do projects about different animals. Gabby and Skylar got whales. Gabby’s mom called Captain Steve, who agreed to take the Moores and Skylar out on his boat.
“It’s okay, Gabby,” Skylar said. “We don’t need to see live whales to do a great job. After all, Gina and Rachel won’t be looking in the woods for black bears.”
“That’s right,” Gabby’s mother said. Then she sighed. “Girls, it’s 80 degrees outside. Please put on more sunscreen.”
Gabby rolled her eyes, but she put some sunscreen on her face and bare legs. Then she checked her watch. They’d been on the boat for an hour and hadn’t seen a single whale. That was a bad sign.
She sighed and walked over to where Miles was standing. “I can’t decide what’s more boring about this,” Gabby said. “Being stuck on a whale-watching trip without whales, or being stuck on a boat all day with you.”
“Don’t take this out on me,” Miles said. “It’s not my fault the whales don’t like us.”
“Mom said you could’ve stayed home,” Gabby said.
“I came for research,” Miles told her. “Not like your little school project. Real research.”
“Oh, I forgot,” Gabby said. “This is your first official mission as a lifeguard.”
“I didn’t know you passed your lifeguard test,” Skylar said as she walked up behind them.
“He needed a change from his first two tries,” Gabby said.
“That’s really cool, Miles,” Skylar said, ignoring Gabby and smiling at Miles. “Congratulations.”
“Hey, kids, come check this out!” Gabby’s dad yelled. He was pointing off the side of the boat. “That’s a whale, isn’t it?” he asked.
Everyone headed over, including Captain Steve and the first mate, Holly.
“Wow,” Holly said. “I’ve never seen one of those in the wild before.”
“It’s beautiful,” Captain Steve said as the glossy black and white animal came close to breaking the surface. “It’s an orca. A killer whale.”
“Killer whale?” Miles asked. “Around here?”
Skylar took out her digital camera. She snapped photos.
“What’s that?” Gabby asked. “Another one?” She pointed toward something large swimming several yards away from the first one. Both animals were headed toward the Gusto. Fast.
“It looks like they’re following the boat,” Mom said.
Captain Steve frowned. “Everyone away from the edge,” he said. Gabby had never heard him sound so nervous before.
The group did as they were told. Dad stood on his tiptoes so that he could see over the side of the boat. “That looks like a third one,” he said.
Gabby heard a loud splintering sound. The 36-foot-long boat lurched forward. Everybody screamed.
“What’s happening?” Gabby shrieked.
“The whales are attacking the boat!” Captain Steve said. He stuffed a waterproof pack of flares into a vest pocket.
Gabby’s mom grabbed some life preservers from a stack. She threw them at Gabby, Miles, and Skylar, who put them on.
“It’s okay,” Captain Steve said. “Orcas do that sometimes. As long as they don’t hit us again, we’ll be fine.”
Another hit made the boat rock. Jets of water, mixed with pieces of wood, shot up. Everyone was thrown around the deck. Gabby’s dad slid hard into a railing. Skylar bumped her knee on a bench.
Captain Steve and Holly stood up quickly. They ran to a large canister that was attached to a wall of the boat. Together, they heaved it overboard.
When it hit the water, the canister split open and a red piece of fabric burst out. Then the fabric filled with air. In seconds, it inflated into a four-person life raft. It looked like a small castle. It even had a small boarding ramp.
“We have to abandon ship!” Captain Steve shouted. The boat shook as the orcas rammed into it a third time. “Now!”