My mom bit her lip, considering.
Kelly tugged at her sleeve. “I think he’s really hurting, Dr. Hetzger.”
My mom gave in. “Fine,” she said, throwing up her hands. “We’ll take Joe to this town hospital. But I’ll go get the pain medicine from mine.”
“Do you want help getting back there?” I asked. The last thing we needed was my mom getting lost in the network.
“I remember. I’ll just follow the open links like you said.” She disappeared into the fort, and we waited for an anxious minute before she returned. “Here,” she said, holding out a small plastic bottle. “I’m not happy about this, but these will help Joe for now.”
“Thank—goodness,” said Uncle Joe. I ran to get a glass of water.
“Great idea, Kelly,” said Abby as I helped Uncle Joe with the medicine. “Now, how exactly are we going to get Joe to his hospital?”
“Why don’t we take this truck out back?” called Mark, pointing out the kitchen window. “Does it run okay, Joe?”
Uncle Joe, breathing shallowly, gave a thumbs-up.
“Cool, looks like we’ve got a plan, then,” said Matt. “I can drive. Is everybody— Whoa!”
He cut off as the entrance flap of Fort Orpheus billowed dramatically and Samson appeared, purring like a freight train at the sight of everyone, Creepy Frog dangling from his snagglepaw.
“Samson!” cried Abby. “The legend continues.”
“Well, the gang’s all here now,” said Mark.
“So that’s Samson,” Kelly said, kneeling down to pet him. Samson rubbed her fingers with his cheek.
“Where did that cat come from?” asked my mom. “And what on earth is that thing he’s dragging?”
“He’s my cat,” said Abby, freeing him from the stuffed animal. “He likes to wander through our network. And this is Creepy Frog.”
“It certainly is,” said my mom. “And Samson is very handsome, but we can’t afford to get distracted right now.”
But it was too late for that, as Abby chucked Creepy Frog at me, Samson got caught on Kelly’s bathrobe, Matt and Mark started arguing over who was going to drive the truck, and I missed Creepy Frog and knocked over my cocoa.
Eventually we all settled down, but the plan hit a new snag as my mom tried to decide who was going to help deliver Uncle Joe to the hospital.
Obviously, everyone wanted to go.
“Absolutely not!” said my mom, shaking her head over and over. “I am not taking you all on a nighttime joyride across the Alaskan tundra. It would be wildly irresponsible of me, both as a parent and a doctor.”
“But we can’t just go home,” I said. “Not after everything we’ve done!”
“Oh, yes, you can,” she retorted. “And as the only uninjured adult here, I’m ordering you and Abby back home immediately and Kelly back to the hospital. Matt and Mark,” she said, speaking over our objections, “will ride in the bed of the truck and look after Joe while I drive.”
“Sure, Ms. H.,” said Matt. “But how are you going to know where to go? It’s not safe to read a map and drive at the same time.”
“I’ll manage,” said my mom. “Joe won’t fit up front with his splint, and I need two people in the back to stop him from rolling around.”
“Maggie and I can do that,” said Abby, her hand in the air. “We can keep him steady. That way the twins can ride up front with you and read the map, and if anything goes wrong in back I can handle it because I learned all about first aid and stuff at Camp Cantaloupe.”
My mom wasn’t convinced.
“Kids, this is a very, very important thing we’re about to do. Joe needs serious medical attention, and I’d be better able to help him if I knew you were all safely at home.”
“We can do it, Ms. H.,” said Abby. “We want to help. Just give us a chance. Please.”
My mom stared at her for a long moment, then sighed.
“Fine,” she said. “But only because this is a real emergency.”
“What about me?” asked Kelly.
I nodded. “Kelly has to come too.”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” said my mom, raising her hands. “Who’s the parent here?” Uncle Joe, who’d been keeping quiet, chuckled. “Kelly, no, you are absolutely not coming; it’s just not safe. What if you caught a cold or developed a cough?”
“But I’ll be with you,” said Kelly. “What’s safer than being with my doctor?”
“Being back in the hospital where you belong!” said my mom. She was turning red. “Okay, I don’t know what I was thinking. I’m canceling this whole wild circus. Joe, you’re coming back to my hospital with Kelly and me. The rest of you are going to help us carry Joe through the pillow forts, then get yourselves home and stay there. No argument, no discussion.”
We’d only just started arguing and discussing when Uncle Joe sat halfway up and shouted, “Hey! Everybody quiet!”
In the ringing silence that followed, a long, sweet, ghostly noise filled the cabin, rising and falling like a bird on the air. It was coming from the underwater speaker. The hair on the back of my neck stood up.
“What is that?” whispered the twins.
“Whale song,” said Uncle Joe, his eyes wide. “It’s Orpheus. He’s here! You!” He pointed to Mark. “Hit Record on the receiver! Quick!”
Mark scrambled over to the table and pressed a button on the ancient machine. Uncle Joe let out a breath and lay back.
“Oh, wow, finally! You have no idea how cool— Might be the first people to ever hear this.”
The song coiled around us, eerie and beautiful. I turned to look out the window, shivering at the thought of that huge, warm body slipping through the icy water just offshore.
“Orpheus . . . ,” said Uncle Joe. “You’re not alone, buddy.” He looked like he might cry. He turned to my mom. “That settles it. I’m not going back to Seattle. I’ve waited my whole life for this moment.”
My mom gazed around at our circle of rebellious faces. Samson hopped off the desk and crossed the room to sit
