A Dolphins Dream Read Online Free PDF Page B

contrary was lying down in several hundred feet of water, and even if it was retrieved, nothing could be proved. These options ran through Compton’s mind in a millisecond and he saw them as a witness, detached and separate from their source. “I screwed up,” he said, removing his facemask. “My BC wasn’t working properly and I shouldn’t have made the jump. I tried to fix it, and things got out of hand.” He heard himself say the words as if it were someone else. There was a release in the truth, a lack of burden that seemed to free him from his terrible act. He sat on the bench and looked down at the floor.  “I panicked.”
    Scott, taken aback by the directness of the admission, let his breath go in an audible sigh and shook his head. “Well, that was a close one. We were pretty deep.” Then, in a whisper to himself, “Close to one eighty. I can’t make another dive today. Emily will do the guide by herself, she’ll be fine.” Then back to Compton. “You feel okay? Any sickness or dizziness?”
    “No,” said Compton, running his hand through his hair, subconsciously monitoring his vital signs, “I’m okay, I feel fine. Thanks, John. I owe you one.”
    Scott was taking off his gear, his anger falling away with each article. “You don’t owe me anything, all in a day’s work.” He paused and watched Compton as he put his head in his hands and stared at the floor. “You never dove the Andrea Doria did you?”
    Compton did not look up from the floor, could not meet the eyes of his savior, and slowly shook his head.    
      Later, when the other divers began to trickle back on board, the boat was an odd mix of joyous tourists back from the wonders of the deep and a dark foreboding that cast a pall that was all but suffocating.
    Billy was the first to come over to Compton. “Man, I saw it all. I was looking up and saw the BC go, just exploded in your face. ”
    Compton nodded, couldn’t bring himself to a full confession. He knew that if he said nothing, made no explanations, people have a tendency to fill in the blanks.
    “I guess you wanted to take a closer look at the dolphin. Emily says they are rare out here.”
    “You saw it, you saw the dolphin, too?” Compton’s voice was animated and Billy took a step back unsure of its purpose.
    “Well, yeah we all saw it. It was pretty deep though. I figured you knew what you were doing.”
    Compton hadn’t really been sure about the dolphin. The whole episode had been dreamlike. He smiled without realizing it. “Yeah,” was all he said. This explanation seemed to satisfy Billy and he returned to his seat to further explain the real truth of the event to his wife who waited anxiously for news from the source.
    Ian and Jason were sympathetic and gave him a comforting pat on the shoulder and inquired as to his wellbeing. Compton nodded and said he was okay, all the while looking at Bernard who sat acrs from him, sucking on a bottle of water. His small eyes tracked the group, taking it all in, like some trial lawyer who was patiently waiting for the proper moment to reveal the true culprit and have the whole case thrown out of court. Humiliation lingered in the waiting and there was nothing Compton could do to forestall it. He sat in the knowledge that he would not lie and suffer any further degradations. Particularly in light of the fact that Scott was within hearing distance and he would not compromise the truth of his confession for Bernard or anyone else, no matter what prevailed.
    Bernard waited until the boat had slowed as it neared the dock, then stood and strolled casually over to Compton, who hadn’t moved from his place. Looking down at him in the pathetic way of an adult about to reprimand a child, he took a pull on his water. “Looks like you had a little trouble back there, Mike.”
    Compton looked up at him, annoyed, but said nothing. No sense in prolonging the punishment.
    All on the boat had stopped talking and were fixed on the