The next morning I rowed our little boat out to the island. I had spoken to Lana last night, but she had quite a few meetings today, so we postponed her meeting She-wa until later this week. I went by myself so I wouldn’t give She-wa’s den away. I still wore the mana-vet tunic. When I got to that island, Roqe and three other manatees that I didn’t recognize were guarding the entrance.
“Good morning!” I greeted them.
“Good morning, Jone,” Roqe answered. His friends held back, staring at me, too star-struck to utter a chirp. I waved at them, and they fell back a bit, queasy that The Jone had acknowledged them.
“You go right in,” Roqe said to me. “She waiting for you.”
“Thank you. Can I hide my boat here?”
“We will push it under the branches so no one will see it.”
“Thank you, Roqe. I’l
