the microphone.
'Yes?' she said. 'Who are you?'
'Governor, I tried to stop her…' Kim began.
Rachel talked over him. 'Governor, I'm Rachel Tanaka, the hotel manager. A tsunami warning is about to be issued.'
'About to be issued?'
'Ma'am, my husband is Kai Tanaka, the…'
'Kai Tanaka? The head of the PTWC?'
'That's right, ma'am. You know him?'
'I met him three months ago during a tsunami drill.'
'Governor, he told me that there's a good likelihood that a tsunami is heading this way and will be here in a little more than an hour.'
'An hour?' Kim said, startled. Then he went on the defensive. 'Governor, she didn't tell me that…'
'Be quiet, Bill,' the governor said. The hush of the crowd was starting to give way to murmurs. 'Mrs. Tanaka, you're sure about this?'
Kai might be forgetful about personal matters sometimes, but he was one of the smartest people Rachel had ever met. He wouldn't have issued the warning if he didn't have a good reason.
'Ma'am, my husband knows tsunamis. If he says there might be one coming, then we need to get ready.'
'I agree. Bill, get my car. I'll tell the audience what's happening and then turn it over to Mrs. Tanaka.'
'Certainly, ma'am,' Kim said and hurried off the stage. If he'd had a tail, it would have been between his legs. Rachel stayed on the dais.
The governor turned back to the crowd with a somber face, and the audience silenced immediately.
'I apologize for the interruption. I have just been informed that a tsunami warning is about to be issued for the Hawaiian Islands.' A buzz ran through the crowd, and the governor raised her hands to quiet them. 'Now as you might have guessed, this will require me to cut the speech off here so that I may attend to the emergency…'
Rachel's walkie-talkie squawked to life, and she stepped off the dais to answer it. It was her assistant, Marian.
'Rachel, are you there?'
'Marian, did we get a tsunami warning?'
'It just came in a few seconds ago. How did you know?'
'That's not important. Get the book out and start following the emergency procedures. Make sure you notify the staff first. They need to keep the guests from panicking. I've already informed the governor.'
'Got it.'
'Hopefully, it's just a false alarm, so let's make sure this goes as smoothly as possible. I'll be down when I can.'
'But…' Marian sputtered.
'The governor's wrapping up. I've got to go. Just keep calm.' She replaced the walkie-talkie and stepped back onto the dais next to the governor.
'…so I urge you to stay where you are, and Mrs. Tanaka, the hotel manager, will see to it that you are well taken care of. Let us all pray that this is a false alarm so that we can continue with our holiday remembrances at the Hawaii State Veterans Cemetery later this afternoon. I hope to see you there. God bless us and God bless the United States of America.'
The crowd applauded as the governor left with her gaggle of assistants, and Rachel took the podium. Hundreds of concerned faces looked up at her. She paused and then, making sure to keep her voice calm and professional, she addressed the group.
'Ladies and gentlemen, my name is Rachel Tanaka, the hotel manager. This tsunami warning is an unpleasant development, but we'll try to do our best to make you comfortable until this is over. This hotel has been designed with the latest in tsunami safety design elements, and you are more than 60 feet above the ground here. Of course, you are free to leave if you desire, but we recommend that you stay where you are, enjoy our hospitality, and wait for the all-clear to sound. We will inform you about further developments as we get them. So sit back, relax, and I'm sure this will all be over quickly.'
Chapter 14
Teresa Gomez had just dozed off, soothed by the warm sand and light breeze from the ocean. When the warning siren went off, it startled her so much that the book resting on her hand went flying and landed next to an elderly couple sitting in beach chairs five feet away.
She sat up and looked around to see where the sound was coming from. After a few seconds, she spotted a bright yellow siren atop a pole a few hundred feet along the beach. The wail rose and dropped in pitch, not unlike the air raid sirens she had heard in movies.
The man in the chair rose and picked up the book. Although he wore a hat and had slathered his nose with zinc oxide, the man was only another hour from a severe sunburn on the rest of his body. He handed the book to her.
'Here you go,' he said with a thick southern drawl. 'You look pretty surprised.'
'I was taking a nap,' she said. 'I wasn't expecting something so loud.'
'Yeah, I wonder what the heck is going on. We getting bombed by the Japs again? And on Memorial Day, too.' He laughed at what he thought was a good joke.
Teresa smiled wanly at the politically incorrect statement.
'I'm sure it's just a test,' she said. 'They probably do it every month.'
'Oh yeah, I read about that on the plane over here from Mississippi. Hattiesburg is where we're from. Never been out to Hawaii before. Wanted to read all about it. Couldn't get Eunice here to read a bit of the book. Said she just wants to relax.'
'So it's for the tsunami warning?'
'I guess. Thought the book said it was sometime around the beginning of the month. Maybe I didn't read it right.'
The siren continued to wail. Teresa thought it would go off after just a minute, but the minute passed. It didn't stop.
'Darryl,' Eunice said, 'what is that siren?' She picked up a radio that had been at her side and nervously twiddled with the knobs.
Darryl patted her reassuringly. 'It's a tsunami warning. Don't worry about it Eunice.'
Teresa scanned the beach, and few of the other beachgoers even seemed to notice the siren. Most of them went on with whatever they were doing-playing, sunbathing, swimming. The siren seemed to have no affect on them, except that she saw several small children with their hands over their ears.
'That's funny,' said Eunice. 'The radio just said there was a salami warning. I thought that meant there was something wrong with the lunch meat on the island.'
'It's just a test. And it's tsunami, not salami. You know, a tidal wave.'
'They didn't say it was a test. It just keeps repeating.'
Teresa walked over to the radio to hear it for herself. An even, measured male voice issued from the ancient-looking device. She supposed the voice was intended to convey a sense of calm about the situation, to prevent panic, but she thought it seemed mechanical, too detached, as if he was describing the potential for afternoon showers.
'…warning for the Hawaiian Islands. This is not a drill. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center has advised that a destructive tsunami may be approaching the coastline of Hawaii. Evacuation procedures are under way. It is recommended that you move to high ground immediately. All Hawaii telephone books include maps that show
