a number of smaller stories inside: 'ArBonCo chief was target – page 2';'Brave bodyguard loses his life – pages 2 and 3'; 'Shooter took revenge for spill – page 4'; 'Editorial comment – page 8'; 'Letters – page 10'. Paulo spread out the paper so that Hex could see it too.
'They used Lynn's photo,' said Danny.
Lynn got up. 'Yeah, that'll help pay some of the bills while we don't have any customers. When's the next cliff diving championship? The money might be useful.'
'September, in Rio,' said Danny. 'Oh – the compensation forms for the guest refunds arrived this morning. I put them on your desk.'
Lynn picked up her plate and mug. 'Yeah, I'm going to go and do them right now. See you later, guys,' she said as she left the room.
Li looked at her watch. It was eight o'clock. 'What time do the ArBonCo guys start on the beach?'
'Most days it's been about eight-thirty,' said Carl.
Li looked at the others. 'We'd better get cracking before they arrive.'
Hex, Paulo and Amber stepped lightly on board the Fathom Sprinter, which Carl and Danny had brought in close to the beach. Alex and Li had already manhandled on board a large object wrapped in a blue tarpaulin.
Hex noticed the smell. 'Phew, Alex, what is that?'
Alex pulled back the tarpaulin and the smell intensified. A sharp smell of the sea and fish. But that wasn't nearly as bad as the sight of what was inside the tarpaulin: the head and fin of a shark, torn apart as if by some ferocious force. The air shrieked as seagulls got wind of the carcass lying below.
Li got to work with the video camera. She filmed the head and then zoomed in on the blast marks like tiger stripes on the inside of the body cavity, the glint of shrapnel like embedded mirrors, the little trails of greyish flesh that were all that was left of its internal organs. From one angle she could see out through the mouth. The whole thing was glistening in the morning sun, the creases of the tarpaulin collecting pools of watery, oily blood. Although they could have filmed it the previous night with the underwater lights, it wouldn't have been as clear as it was in the morning sunlight.
Paulo realized what the mysterious picture had been. Alex, you're a rotten photographer. I was wondering for ages what that was.'
'I'm a rotten photographer?' exclaimed Alex. 'What have you guys been on? Hex sent me a picture of his toes, and I'm not even going to try and guess what that thing you sent was, Paulo.'
'It's those phone cameras,' said Li, sweeping carefully over the whole carcass. 'They don't have the resolution. They're fine for snaps but you can't do anything arty or abstract with them.'
'I think those two have gone soft in the head,' said Amber. 'Look what Hex sent me.' She passed her phone to Alex. There was a picture of a pink fluffy toy.
'It was in the cupboard in our room at the medical centre,' explained Hex. 'Someone must have left it there.'
'What you keep in your closet is your own business,' said Amber. 'No one else needs to know.'
Carl and Danny stood with their hands over their mouths and noses. The shark was really gross, yet these kids were laughing and joking as though they saw shocking things all the time. Above them, seagulls were wheeling in the air, waiting like vultures. 'Er – why are you filming this?' asked Carl.
'Li likes that sort of thing,' said Paulo. 'She's a weird girl.'
Li looked up from the camera and glared at him, then answered Carl's question. 'It's for Mara; I don't think she'd like us to take the actual shark over to her nice clean clinic.' She straightened up. She had finished.
'Let's give it to the birds,' said Paulo. He, Hex, Alex and Amber took one corner each of the tarpaulin and tipped the shark head over the edge. As soon as it hit the water the air was full of diving seagulls, shrieking and tearing at the flesh.
One by one, they stepped off the boat. 'The beach is looking a bit paler,' said Amber. 'It was a lot blacker than this before. All that
'They used Lynn's photo,' said Danny.
Lynn got up. 'Yeah, that'll help pay some of the bills while we don't have any customers. When's the next cliff diving championship? The money might be useful.'
'September, in Rio,' said Danny. 'Oh – the compensation forms for the guest refunds arrived this morning. I put them on your desk.'
Lynn picked up her plate and mug. 'Yeah, I'm going to go and do them right now. See you later, guys,' she said as she left the room.
Li looked at her watch. It was eight o'clock. 'What time do the ArBonCo guys start on the beach?'
'Most days it's been about eight-thirty,' said Carl.
Li looked at the others. 'We'd better get cracking before they arrive.'
Hex, Paulo and Amber stepped lightly on board the Fathom Sprinter, which Carl and Danny had brought in close to the beach. Alex and Li had already manhandled on board a large object wrapped in a blue tarpaulin.
Hex noticed the smell. 'Phew, Alex, what is that?'
Alex pulled back the tarpaulin and the smell intensified. A sharp smell of the sea and fish. But that wasn't nearly as bad as the sight of what was inside the tarpaulin: the head and fin of a shark, torn apart as if by some ferocious force. The air shrieked as seagulls got wind of the carcass lying below.
Li got to work with the video camera. She filmed the head and then zoomed in on the blast marks like tiger stripes on the inside of the body cavity, the glint of shrapnel like embedded mirrors, the little trails of greyish flesh that were all that was left of its internal organs. From one angle she could see out through the mouth. The whole thing was glistening in the morning sun, the creases of the tarpaulin collecting pools of watery, oily blood. Although they could have filmed it the previous night with the underwater lights, it wouldn't have been as clear as it was in the morning sunlight.
Paulo realized what the mysterious picture had been. Alex, you're a rotten photographer. I was wondering for ages what that was.'
'I'm a rotten photographer?' exclaimed Alex. 'What have you guys been on? Hex sent me a picture of his toes, and I'm not even going to try and guess what that thing you sent was, Paulo.'
'It's those phone cameras,' said Li, sweeping carefully over the whole carcass. 'They don't have the resolution. They're fine for snaps but you can't do anything arty or abstract with them.'
'I think those two have gone soft in the head,' said Amber. 'Look what Hex sent me.' She passed her phone to Alex. There was a picture of a pink fluffy toy.
'It was in the cupboard in our room at the medical centre,' explained Hex. 'Someone must have left it there.'
'What you keep in your closet is your own business,' said Amber. 'No one else needs to know.'
Carl and Danny stood with their hands over their mouths and noses. The shark was really gross, yet these kids were laughing and joking as though they saw shocking things all the time. Above them, seagulls were wheeling in the air, waiting like vultures. 'Er – why are you filming this?' asked Carl.
'Li likes that sort of thing,' said Paulo. 'She's a weird girl.'
Li looked up from the camera and glared at him, then answered Carl's question. 'It's for Mara; I don't think she'd like us to take the actual shark over to her nice clean clinic.' She straightened up. She had finished.
'Let's give it to the birds,' said Paulo. He, Hex, Alex and Amber took one corner each of the tarpaulin and tipped the shark head over the edge. As soon as it hit the water the air was full of diving seagulls, shrieking and tearing at the flesh.
One by one, they stepped off the boat. 'The beach is looking a bit paler,' said Amber. 'It was a lot blacker than this before. All that
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