Page 48 of Echo and the Homicidal Sea Panda

Echo released a sigh. While a child being hurt was absolutely horrendous, he was glad the tension wasn’t over Maelstrom’s deadly fight. He’d seen how discussing that had effected Mael the last time.

“Why would anyone attack an infant?” Diego asked.

“He’d gotten a taste for children,” Havoc said.

Both Echo and Diego gasped.

“Two missing children over two years—and Kaiden nearly became the third,” Havoc added.

“And you didn’t stop him after two?” Diego asked.

Mael growled. “We investigated and couldn’t find solid proof that he’d done it. We had circumstantial evidence and a nearly blind witness to the second. I caught him in the act with the third.”

Echo blew out a breath. “Was Kaiden hurt?”

“He’d been drugged, and he was seconds from being…” Mael’s jaw worked, like he was grinding his teeth. “Cut open.”

“Oh, my gods,”Echo said, rubbing Mael’s back. “I can’t imagine witnessing something like that. But you caught him, right?”

The three Marinos all grew even more tense.

“We caught him, but he slipped through our fingers,” Mael replied.

“Is there an actual homicidal orca shifter out there on the loose?” Diego asked.

“He got some justice, but not enough. We tried our best…”

“Apparently your best wasn’t good enough,” Diego snapped.

Mael’s gaze whipped to Diego.“Your podstopped us from getting the justice Kaiden and those other two boys deserved!”

Echo sat with that a moment, his mind racing. “Oh, my gods… it’s Pete, isn’t it?”

Mael’s jaw tightened. “When he was caught, an angry mob formed. They beat and kicked him before tossing him over a cliff. Witnesses saw him hit the rock below. We assumed Pete was dead, though we never recovered his body. I assumed sharks or other scavengers had snatched it. We didn’t find out until months later that he’d washed up in Dolphin Cove. Once your people patched him up, he told themI’dmurdered those boys and he’d been nearly killed when he tried to stopmefrom doing it again. So your pod gave Pete sanctuary and said if we touched one hair on his head, we’d break the treaty. Our matriarch decided it wasn’t worth another war and the loss of orca lives. We’d told your council what really happened. If they wouldn’t listen to reason, that was on them, not us.”

Echo met Diego’s shocked gaze.

“I-I’m sorry,” Diego whispered.

Mael cleared his throat. “Tempest works with me, too, by the way. She’s my deputy.”

“Ahh,” Echo said, noting the swift change in subject.

“Ravage, too,” Tempest said. “He only works when Mael or I take a day off.”

“So he’s back on the island covering?” Echo asked.

“Noooo,Rav had plans today,” Tempest said. “We’re technically on swim patrol according to the sign we put on the door.” She tapped on the map with her forefinger. “And speaking of work, let’s get to it. What parts have you already searched?”

He pointed toward where the X lay on his grandfather’s map. “Here, but I was too afraid to use much echolocation that night. I might’ve swam right over it for all I know. I think we should start fresh.”

“Okay, then,” Tempest said. She looked past Echo. “Is Diego coming down, too?”

“No, he’s going to help us navigate,” Echo said. “I have an earpiece, and he has a radio. He’ll track our movements and use the maps to help guide us.”

Diego nodded at Echo’s side, pointing at the map. “I’d suggest the three of you moving in a line, sweeping from this corner to the other. Spin and make another pass. Move down until you’ve covered it all.”

“We need to take it slow and really look foranythingout of the ordinary,” Echo said.

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