“You want to dip your face in the water and try it?”
Sofia nodded and dunked herself. When she came back up, she was laughing from the inside of the glass.
“Just like the ones you wore before, right?”
“Yes. But nicer!”
Alison laughed with her. If little Sofia only knew.
Next, Lee and Juan laid a bundle down on the edge of the tank. It was a small oxygen tank wrapped in a floatation cushion with another dozen feet of tubing coiled on top. It was a simpler design used by many vacation resorts, allowing a swimmer to breathe underwater without the encumbrance of having to wear heavy scuba gear. Instead, the tank and regulator would float on the surface above the swimmer and follow as needed.
The team’s plan was to accommodate Sofia in the water at least enough to float with Dirk and Sally. They weren’t sure how much her illness would allow, but now an excited Alison found herself carefully explaining the precautions they would take to keep Sofia safe. She also tried to convey how much more exciting it was to both swim and talk with the dolphins at the same time. If at all possible, she and her team wanted Sofia to have that experience.
When Sofia pulled the mask away, her father looked at her softly. “Are you ready?”
Sofia glanced around, looking first at Alison and her team. Then she spotted Dirk and Sally, watching patiently nearby with their heads out of the water. She nodded at her father. Together they untied the scarf and pulled it gently off her small bald head.
The women continued smiling warmly at her, fighting back a sudden surge of tears. Without even looking, Alison was sure the guys were doing the same.
Sofia stared up at them nervously with her large blue eyes. She was so beautiful.
Chris never skipped a beat. He lowered his voice just above a whisper. “Are you ready to put it on?”
She nodded and tilted her head forward, allowing Chris to slide the soft straps over her head, pulling on each one until snug. He delicately moved his fingers around the edge of the mask, checking the seal.
“How does that feel?”
“Good,” she replied, her voice distorted.
“Still breathing okay?”
“Yes.”
“Excellent.”
Alison watched Chris next pick up a small weight belt. He snaked it gently around her waist and secured it in front. The swimsuit Alison had bought for her was a tad loose but still a close enough fit. Now that Sofia was comfortably breathing inside the mask, Alison reached out for her own gear.
Her Hollis unit was a rebreather. A redesign of the older scuba units allowing a radically more efficient use of its breathable oxygen. Even more important was the ability to allow the diver to breathe almost silently underwater, compared to the older regulators which sent out waves of loud bubbles with every breath. Minimal noise or interference was critical for IMIS’s ability to translate accurately.
Alison smoothly clipped her buckles together in front and grinned at Sofia. Next, she pulled their waterproof vest over her front, turning so that Chris could secure it around her back. Finally, she pulled her own mask over the top of her head and wiggled it into place. She leaned forward, touching her mask gently against Sofia’s.
“Can you hear me?” she called out.
“Yes.”
“Are you scared?”
Sofia shook her head.
“Good,” Alison winked. “Nervous is okay. But if you’re scared we won’t do it, okay?”
“Okay.”
Alison took Sofia’s hand and helped her slide down onto her rear in the water. She then turned to the dolphins. “Sally. Dirk. Can you hear me?”
Their response was immediate. Yes Alison.
“Remember. Very slow. Okay.”
Slow, Sally replied.
Sloooow, Dirk repeated playfully.
Alison smiled and shook her head. He was such a boy.
Behind her, Dirk and Sally moved in and propped themselves on the tank ledge. Sofia leaned back apprehensively but slowly reached out to pet them each on the head. Their skin felt like wet leather. Smooth but almost spongy.
Sally lowered her nose and nuzzled affectionately against one of Sofia’s skinny legs.
Alison, still holding the child’s other hand, spoke loudly again through her mask. “Okay, ready?”
All she got was a nervous nod. With that, Alison fell into the water and quickly bobbed up, floating in front of Sofia. She gently pulled her small, delicate hand forward until Sophia slid in next to her.
Alison secured the girl with both hands. “Still okay?”
“Yes!” Sofia felt light again in the water. Like she used to before it became too hard to walk. “I’m floating!”
“Yes, you are.”
Alison guided her slowly away from the edge, watching Dirk and Sally wiggle back into the water. Together the pair began swirling around them, gently brushing as they passed.
Sofia’s eyes were as wide as she could make them. She reached out and skimmed fingers over their bodies as they passed. “WOW!”
“Look under the water.”
Sofia lowered her face beneath the surface to watch the dolphins. When she lifted her head back up, Alison leaned in and examined the mask. She needed to check for leaks. Because what they were about to do was going to feel like magic.
“Okay, Sally.” Alison rotated Sofia’s frame just as Sally came up smoothly beneath her, and she helped guide the girl’s tiny legs down around Sally’s sides.
“Can you lean forward?”
Sofia complied and instinctively wrapped her arms around Sally.
“Are you ready for a ride, honey?”
Sofia was almost shaking but still managed to nod, even with her mask pressed against the back of Sally’s light gray head.
“Okay, Sally. Nice and easy.”
Come Sofia.
Sally gave a thrust of her tail and swam forward. Dirk quickly fell in beside them as Alison latched onto his tail. Together all four continued across the tank, circling at the far end and slowly returning to where Alison had checked Sofia.
“Still okay?”
“YES!”
“Here comes the best part!”
Alison patted Sally, who then took off again. Her speed was no faster but this time she ducked a few feet below the surface and swam in a tighter circle.
As the warm water enveloped them both, Sophia heard the sound abruptly disappear into the cool air above them, leaving only Dirk and Sally’s mechanized voices in her ear.
Now okay Sofia?
“Yes, I’m fine!” she replied, still beaming inside the mask.
Faster? Dirk asked.
“YES! FASTER!”
The water flow surged faster around them and the pressure increased against their bodies from below, giving Sofia the sensation that she and Sally were flying together.
Sofia felt as happy as she had ever been.
9
Admiral Langford stepped out of the elevator as soon as the metal doors separated. He turned left and walked briskly down Corridor Nine on the third floor, toward the Pentagon’s “A” ring, avoiding eye contact with two generals approaching from the other direction.
The military was as much about status and rank as any organization on the planet, and the Pentagon served as a prestigious symbol of that system. A building filled with colonels, admirals, and generals, all of whom were seen as the best the country’s Armed Forces had to offer. Men who embodied the very image of accomplishment and greatness.
Yet deep down, these same men all shared a common secret. A dark secret. A character flaw that few would admire, let alone celebrate. Each man had long ago sacrificed the priorities of his own life, and those of his family, to attain the unattainable. Men who helped shape the most powerful government in history, who shaped the very world as much as any politician ever would. Men who inevitably chose to sacrifice what most of the world would never relinquish.