Page 56 of Adrift in Iceland
‘This isBrimfaxi. We have a fin whale sighting,’ he broadcast over the radio to the other tour boats, giving their location.
‘Received,’ said one boat. ‘Great sighting, but we’re heading in. The weather is turning in the next thirty minutes.’
Leifur checked his screen and could see from the radar that the other boat was right. He was reluctant to leave too soon, but he had to think of the safety of the guests. It would take twenty minutes to get back to the harbour, so he reckoned they could stay out for another ten with no risk other than a rougher voyage back than they’d had on the way. Besides, he couldn’t turn the engines on yet while they were surrounded by whales.
Fifteen minutes later, Leifur gathered from Astrid’s commentary that the whales were heading away from the boat and rather than follow them, which he would do in normal circumstances, he headed back to shore. Astrid looked up to the wheelhouse, questioning him, then she switched the mic off and headed up to see him.
‘We have to turn back,’ he said as soon as she opened the door to the wheelhouse.
‘The weather?’
‘Yes, it’s going to deteriorate, and we might not make it back before the worst of it hits.’
‘Okay. I’ll explain to everyone.’
The rain pelted down more heavily, and most of the guests retreated below deck for the ride back to Reykjavik. For Leifur, he was less concerned about the rough seas and more concerned with how bad it would be if they all got sick and left terrible reviews.
Thankfully, they made it back to the harbour just as the wind picked up, so the relatively sheltered waters gave them some respite from the waves.
Once they’d docked and Eva and Astrid had tied off the ropes, he headed down to see the guests got off the boat safely.
‘It was wonderful!’ One couple said to him, their own waterproofs hardly a match for the rain that was beating down on them but smiling with joy, nevertheless.
‘Thank you! What a fantastic tour,’ someone else said.
‘Can you believe they all enjoyed it?’ Leifur said to Astrid and Eva when they were sitting in the galley with cups of coffee before they had to gear up for the next tour.
‘It makes it more of an adventure,’ said Eva.
‘You didn’t look as if that’s what you thought,’ said Astrid. ‘Are you feeling okay now?’
‘I was so busy giving out the seasickness tablets that I forgot to take one myself until it was too late,’ she said. ‘I’ll be okay for the next tour.’
‘I need to call the office because I’m not sure we should go out until this weather’s passed. We might be okay for the evening sailing, but the next one might be a bit dicey.’ He pulled his phone out and made the call. In the end, they decided the best course of action was to cancel the rest of the day’s sailings to give guests more certainty rather thanwaiting until the last minute.
‘So that’s it?’ said Eva. ‘We have the rest of the day off?’
‘Yes,’ said Leifur, looking at Astrid and knowing she was thinking the same as him; that their day off started now.
Once they’d locked up the boat, Astrid and Leifur made a run for his truck. They were wearing waterproofs, but the rain and wind were so fierce that it stung if a raindrop hit your face.
‘I didn’t think about this happening,’ said Leifur. ‘I thought I’d have to manage with one day off a week but actually we might have to cancel sailings.’
‘You used to go out whatever the weather when you fished?’
He nodded. ‘Probably plenty of times when it would have been safer not to, but if you don’t fish, you don’t get paid.’
‘Can you believe we saw a fin whale? That’s incredible. I know they’re rare, and I never thought we’d see one at all, let alone in the first week.’ Her eyes were bright, and his heart melted.
‘It’s amazing,’ he said, squeezing her thigh with his hand, then leaving it there.
She put her hand on top of his. ‘And now we get to spend the rest of the day watching a storm from the comfort of your cottage.’
‘That’s not all we’re going to do.’
‘I hope not. I feel like it’s the first chance we’ve had to be properly together without it being to do with work, or just overnight at my house.’
‘It is.’ Then he remembered he hadn’t had a chance to get his house ready. The last night he’d spent at home, he’d been in a fug of anxiety and had thought he’d do it the following night when he’d need to distract himself from the fact that Astrid wanted another night apart and then that didn’t happen. ‘My house isn’t ready for visitors, Astrid. I never didget around to that.’
