CARLA KISSED DANIEL, hugged Nim, patted Selkie and almost patted Fred, all at once and all while she was talking. ‘Glad to help out. I thought Daniel must be kidding, but you’re for real all right. You can tell me your story on the way – where is it you need to go?’
Daniel gave her the address, ruffled Nim’s hair, and jogged back to the dock where the tugboat was waiting.
‘We’ve got a few deliveries to do on the way,’ said Carla. ‘Cakes can’t wait! I’ve stacked up the boxes so the sea lion can fit – Selkie, is it? – Selkie, can you hop right in there, honey? Just don’t squish the boxes!’
Selkie flopped in to the back of the van, in front of the stacked cake boxes. It was cool, and if she sat up high she’d be able to see out the back window. She gave a honk of approval.
‘And what about this little guy?’ Carla asked, pointing to Fred.
‘He’s not going to climb all over the boxes, is he?’
‘He might,’ said Nim.
‘Okay, Freddy, in the front with Fritz. And you too, Nim. Fritz, stop barking, I’m sure Fred’s much nicer than he looks. Buckle up and off we go; we’ve got a bunch of cakes to get where they’re going.’
Fritz was a dachshund, a short-legged long-bodied dog about the same size and shape as Fred. At first he squeezed himself against Carla, but then he wiggled up against Nim. Fred sneezed jealously; Fritz barked in surprise and then crawled across Nim to the side window so he could stand and look out, carefully ignoring Fred.
Fred did the same, carefully ignoring Fritz.
A bus went by. It was completely covered by the same Nim’s Island picture as the water taxi.
Carla laughed. ‘Would you look at that! How do you feel about people staring at you all over Manhattan?’
‘A bit strange,’ said Nim, because it seemed more polite than saying it made her feel sick.
‘So?’ asked Carla. ‘Spill the story. What’s a kid doing in New York City all on her lonesome? Or another way to put it, what’s a kid doing with a sea lion and an iguana and their picture on a bus? You know, I see a lot of strange things driving around this town, but I’ve never seen that before. Now, where did I put the address for that Dalmatian cake? There it is, under your feet, just grab it for me, will you?’
A yellow car with a Nim’s Island sign on the back blared its horn.
‘Hey!’ Carla shouted back. ‘I’ve got the real thing in here, so just watch who you’re honking.’
Fritz barked in agreement. Fred sneezed.
‘Here we are!’ Carla exclaimed a few minutes later, turning into a side street and stopping with a jolt. ‘We’ll have to get Selkie out so I can reach the cake … will you guys be okay while I run it up? It’s only half a block, twelfth floor, this says – won’t take me more than ten minutes.’
‘We’ll be fine,’ said Nim.
But Selkie had seen a pond.
It was a wide shallow pond in a small park, with a splashing fountain in the middle. Two boys and a girl were standing in the fountain, and a mother and baby were slapping at the shallow water at the pond’s edge. Selkie galumphed down the sidewalk, through a big marble arch, and cannonballed in. The pond was even more shallow than she’d realised, and instead of sinking down she skidded right across to the other side.
The baby laughed and clapped his hands. His mother whisked him up and stood ready to run.
‘She won’t hurt him!’ Nim called, jogging across with Fred and Fritz close behind.
‘Okay,’ said the mum, and after a while she put the baby down again to splash and watch.
Selkie rolled on her back and Nim splashed water over her dusty belly. Fred waded across to the fountain. Fritz followed him, until Fred climbed into the jet of spray and was bubbled up and over the edge.
‘Cool!’ said one of the boys.
‘Is he yours?’ asked the other.
‘And the sea lion?’ asked the girl.
‘They’re my friends,’ said Nim.
‘Do you belong to a circus?’
‘We don’t belong to anyone,’ said Nim. ‘We’re just us.’
But now she could see Carla crossing the street back towards the park. ‘Fred!’ she called, ‘Selkie! Fritz! Time to get going!’
The kids ran back to the van with them, waving goodbye as they drove off.
ALEX SAW THE Statue of Liberty out her cabin window as the ship sailed past. She had nothing to pack but the pyjamas and toothbrush she’d bought, and the book that Delia had sent her.
For the first time, she opened her new book and began to read.
The ship slowed to nearly a full stop. The engines were barely purring. There seemed to be quite a long wait before a tugboat towed it to the dock.
Alex began to smile as she read.
The ship docked. Ropes were run out and looped over the bollards on the dock; the gangplank slammed down.
Alex looked up, wishing she were reading the book aloud to Jack and Nim, with Fred, Selkie and Chica looking on.
People were walking past her window, wheeling suitcases and carrying backpacks.
The mother of the next-door children called, ‘But I asked you to pack this morning!’ and the children shouted, ‘We were busy!’
Alex went on reading.
Virginia knocked on the door to tell her it was time to leave the ship and ask if she needed help with her bags.
‘No thanks,’ said Alex, and went to stand in the queue to say goodbye to the crew. It was a long line, and she went on reading as she stood.
She shook hands with the captain, and saw that the family in the cabins next door had lined up behind her. The children looked as bouncy and friendly as they’d sounded through the walls, and Alex wished she’d been brave enough to meet them. She joined an even longer line to show her passport and leave the dock – and very nearly finished the book.
‘But I do know the ending,’ she reminded herself. ‘At least, I think I do.’
Suddenly she could hardly wait to get off the ship and sort out the ending to her even newer story.
‘DO YOU SEE that woman’s book?’ Ben asked Erin.
Erin stared hard. She read the title and she felt a bit sick. ‘Do you think Nim just read it and made everything up?’
‘She couldn’t have. She had Fred.’
‘And Selkie.’
‘It’s still very weird.’
‘What’s even weirder is that woman’s wearing pants like Nim’s. Nobody has pants like Nim’s.’
‘And she hasn’t got a suitcase.’
‘As if she got on in a hurry …’
‘… like Nim.’
‘Do you think it could be?’
‘Let’s ask her!’
But by the time all their passports were stamped and bags checked, Alex had vanished.
Ben and Erin followed their parents and the twins out to stand in line for a taxi. The first one to pull in had a sign on the roof: Nim’s Island by ALEX ROVER. In stores July 7!
‘That’s today,’ said Erin.
‘So the only person on the ship who could already be reading it …’
‘… is Alex Rover.’
Ben started to giggle. ‘Can you imagine what she’ll say when she sees Nim!’
‘And Selkie and Fred!’
JACK’S PLANE DIDN’T go all the way to New York; he had to change planes twice. He rushed to check his email again at an airport computer as he waited for the last plane. This time he went straight to the Trash bin. It was crammed with messages.
As he skimmed down the list, his heart started thumping so fast he could hardly breathe.
To: jack.rusoe@explorer.net
Date: Wednesday July 7, 11:30am
Subject: Very very urgent about Nim
Dear Mr. Rusoe
I’m the girl who sent Nim’s emails to you before. I hope you don’t think I’m rude but I think it’s very mean that you haven’t written to Nim yet. Anyway, I thought you’d like to know that the ship is in New York now and it’s going to dock in about half an hour. We’re getting off at the cruise ship terminal but Nim and Selkie and Fred jumped off when everyone was looking at the Statue of Liberty.
‘Jumped off the ship?’ Jack exclaimed.
Nim didn’t ask me to write to you this time but I hope it’s okay because she’s worried that you’re angry at her about Alex. And she’s my friend so I don’t want her to be upset, so could you please write to her soon. I guess she can check her email when she finds Alex.
From Erin Caritas
Jack felt hot and cold and didn’t know if he was going to be sick or explode, or maybe both at the same time. He read the email again even though every word was already burned into his brain, especially ‘jumped off the ship’, and ‘when she finds Alex’.
Then he went down through all the emails that had gone straight into the Trash every time he’d checked for mail from Nim or Alex.
He found all five messages that Nim had asked Erin to write. When he’d finished reading he knew that:
• Nim, Selkie and Fred had jumped off a ship in the middle of New York Harbour about two hours ago
• They weren’t with Alex
There were lots more things that he didn’t know, but the most important were:
• Did Nim, Selkie and Fred drown when they jumped off the ship?
• If they hadn’t drowned, where were they now?
• Where was Alex?
The other things he really wanted to know but would worry about later were:
• Why did they get onto the ship?
• How did they get onto the ship?
• When did they get onto the ship?
• Why did Alex leave?
But the most important question of all he couldn’t even ask because no one knew the answer:
• Would they all find each other again?
To: erin@kidmail.com
From: jack.rusoe@explorer.net
Date: Wednesday July 7, 12:01pm
Subject: Re: Very very urgent about Nim
Do you really mean that Nim jumped off a ship and swam to land?
I’m arriving in New York at 6:00 this evening on Flight 123. If you talk to Nim please tell her.
I’m very sorry I didn’t read your emails before.
Yours truly,
Jack Rusoe
P.S. Thank you for being Nim’s friend.
He started another email.
From: jack.rusoe@explorer.net
To: aka@incognito.net
The airport loudspeaker crackled. ‘Passenger Jack Rusoe, please go to Boarding Gate 46 immediately. Your flight is about to leave.’
Jack left the computer and raced to the gate. ‘Five more hours till I’m there,’ he thought.
It was going to be the longest five hours of his life.