Blum saw this desire in her face and smiled. It wasn’t a nice smile. Now he knew a second thing she wanted.

And watching him, something about the phrase itself began to bother her, woman researcher. It caught in her ear, sounding awkward.

She realized the phrase didn’t use an adjective and a noun (female researcher). Instead Blum had put two nouns together (woman researcher). The term sounded unnatural this way and perhaps that was the point. A lizard-donkey, a dog-mosquito, a woman-researcher: some chimera that should never be.

She said—I’ll do the best I can.

—You have a little over a week before the funder arrives.

She said—Not much time.

He nodded—If you fail and the guy is not impressed, then I’ll have to give them other results quickly. I’ll have to catch up on my brain research.

Her face reacted to this threat. There was a flicker of pleasure in his expression. Bit by bit, he was finding the right rewards and punishments to make her perform.

She said—Get me a second pool so I can work with one of the dolphins intensively.

* * *

The next morning, an above-ground pool was delivered, a hard plastic shell and diesel motor dropped off on the lawn by the side of the house. Blum had purchased a fairly small pool, just 15 feet wide and 3 feet deep. Perhaps he hadn’t bothered to look at the actual measurements.

Tibbet and Eh began to rig a diesel motor and a hose to pump water from the sea into the pool. Tibbet seemed in a bad mood, slamming tools about like an angry child. He would not look at Cora when she spoke to him, wouldn’t respond to any of her suggestions (as though he was the one who was deaf). Last week Blum had said no to Tibbet’s request to build a wall in the lagoon to create a separate smaller lagoon as a second testing facility. He said Tibbet was going through his share of the research money faster than he was coming up with results and that he needed to change that ratio. Now Blum was buying equipment for her, for some girl who had never gone to college.

Once the men had the motor working and brought the hose up to fill the pool, she pointed out the pool might be better placed a few feet to the right where the ground was flatter and there was more shade. Tibbet and Eh ignored her.

To get them to move the pool onto level ground, she had to suggest the idea to Blum.

By the afternoon, the pool was filled and ready for use. Tibbet asked Blum which dolphin should be placed inside it.

Cora said—Kat is the smartest and most vocal. She’s the one who imitated us before.

Tibbet continued to regard Blum, as though she had not spoken.

Blum looked from her to Tibbet and then back. It was clear he enjoyed this position. She felt pity for his children. He said—How about Kat?