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realized after living and working in the ocean for so long, that it was a dumping ground like no other. At least people could see and smell dirty air, and could see trash dumped on the ground. When it came to the seas, however, they were so vast and deep that they concealed much of the junk and industrial waste that had been left in them, either intentionally or carelessly, or through accidents. Nowadays, for companies and individuals who polluted the water, it was like sweeping dirt under the proverbial rug, putting it where it would not be seen easily. Centuries and centuries of trash were under the water and immersed in it.
    With all that in mind, Kimo had been delighted at the initiative Gwyneth McDevitt and J.D. Watts had taken on the California coast, tossing the oil rig, a boat wreck, and other trash back onto the land, where people could not avoid having to look at it. For a moment he considered doing something like that in the Hawaiian Islands, because wrecked boats and other trash were in the water, and could be brought ashore. But Hawaii was so incredibly beautiful that he didn’t have the heart to litter it. Hawaii had been the home of his family for generations, and he didn’t want to dishonor the sacred land that had nurtured them. Maybe he would consult with Ealani, to see if she could come up with another solution.
    Now Kimo was looking forward to hearing from Dirk Avondale about the results of his mission to push the floating plastics and other debris onto the mainland of the United States, ejecting it from the sea.
    As he and Alicia were swimming back toward their remote islet headquarters, Mattie Bickel came back on the molecular connection, transmitting her thoughts hesitantly, reluctantly: “Please tell Alicia that her grandfather has been seriously injured by a gunshot wound to the head, and is in the hospital. I heard it on the local Hawaiian news. They say he’s recovering, that he just came out of a coma.”
    Looking over at Alicia, Kimo saw that she had heard. She looked shocked, transmitted her own response to Mattie: “Which hospital?”
    “The one in Wanaao Town. I’m not sure why they didn’t fly him to Honolulu, but expensive specialists are reportedly with him, and he has a chance of recovering.”
    Mattie closed the connection, and Alicia sent her own message to Kimo: “I must go to him. Is a jetfish pod available for me? It would be faster than swimming or riding a wave.”
    “Not yet. It will be a couple of hours more before the jetfish could arrive, and the conglomeration process would take a while after that.”
    “I can get there faster on my own,” she said. “But if you can have that pod ready for me as soon as possible, waiting for me by the Wanaao Town dock, I’ll take it to the West Coast, as you instructed. First, though, I must see my grandfather.”
    He nodded sadly, and watched as she returned to the grotto to pick up a waterproof pack with a change of clothes in it, which would enable her to go ashore more easily.
    A short while later, he saw her generate a wave to carry her south to Loa’kai Island faster than she could swim.

    For more than two days, Jeff had been staying with Ealani Pohaku, but not through any force or threat, because he had told her he would leave her alone if she wished, and go away. To his surprise she had graciously invited him to stay, and had shown him every kindness. Sometimes when she thought he was not looking he’d seen her performing healing rituals, and he’d heard his own name mentioned. Ealani had also helped him conceal the Jeep where no one would find it.
    All the anger he’d felt against her family had dissipated after he’d gotten a chance to know this remarkable woman, and after he’d seen that his grandfather was alive and likely to recover. Jeff’s reasons for hating the Pohakus had been confused anyway, he’d come to realize when he listened to Ealani telling him the story of her family. The Pohakus were just a