Treading Water Read Free

her chart.
    I whisper, “You can do it.” The duckling just blinks. Then it dips its bill into the water and drinks. Yes!
    There is a knock at the door, and Dr. Mac’s granddaughter Zoe walks in.
    â€œHiya, Brenna. Hiya, Gran. What’s in the box?” Zoe asks. Before we’ve answered, Zoe is peering in. “Ohh, so cute,” she squeals.
    â€œCute and sick,” I say.
    â€œPerhaps not sick,” Dr. Mac says. “They may just be dehydrated and hungry. Let’s get another bowl of water ready.”
    â€œThey were abandoned at the high school,” I explain to Zoe. “At least we think they were abandoned. No mother in sight.” I stir a quarter teaspoon of sugar into the tiny bowl.
    â€œWhy don’t we just get one of the cat bowls for them?” Zoe asks, touching the adorable tiny webbed feet of one duckling. “We wouldn’t have to refill so often. I could go grab one for you.”
    â€œThat would be dangerous for these ducklings.” Dr. Mac says. “They might get into the bowl and try to swim.”
    â€œSo?” she asks. “They’re ducks. Maybe they’d feel better with a swim.”
    â€œThey could drown,” I explain. I run my finger along the biggest one’s back. “See how they don’t have any feathers yet? It’s just downy fluff. Not water repellent. If the bowl was bigger, they could get in and they’d get waterlogged. They might not be able to get out, and they’d drown right in their bowl.”
    â€œOh, wow. That’s terrible. But I know I’ve seen little ducklings swimming before. Maybe not in real life but in the movies or on TV,” Zoe says. She scratches her head as if she’s trying to come up with the movie’s title.
    Zoe knows her movies and TV shows. Her mom is an actress, and Zoe has spent a lot of time around actors in New York City and in Hollywood. Now her mom is filming in Canada, which is why Zoe—once again—is living with her grandmother and cousin, Maggie. Maggie, Zoe, and Dr. Mac live in the house attached at the back of the clinic.
    It’s fun having Zoe around, even when she is going on and on about fashion or cute guys.
    Dr. Mac swaps the water bowls out. The ducklings drink, but not as fast as they did with the first bowl. She says, “I’m not an expert on ducklings. We’ll have to do some research. But I imagine the presence of the mother duck keeps ducklings safe. But we have no mother duck. Brenna will have to fill that role.”
    Dr. Mac smiles at me, and I nod. I’m happy to help.
    Dr. Mac continues, “Brenna, I imagine your family has handled abandoned ducks before?”
    â€œGrown ducks, yes. But I can’t remember us taking care of ducklings before. I don’t have experience with them.”
    â€œWant to call your mom or dad for us?” she asks.
    Before I can call home, Nick from the Outdoor Club is at the door with Zoe’s cousin, Maggie. Nick holds a box. Maggie stares into it, her brow furrowed.
    Beside me, I hear Zoe quietly say, “Ooh, cute.” She is talking about Nick, of course. Zoe never misses a chance to flirt with a good-looking guy.
    â€œHey, Brenna,” he says. “We found one more. It was hiding underneath one of the cars. It doesn’t look so good. A couple of us did a thorough search under the rest of the cars. This is it. No more baby ducks. No mother.”
    Dr. Mac crosses to the door. Zoe is right beside her and manages to get between Nick and Maggie. Maggie looks at me and shrugs. We know Zoe, after all.
    â€œOh dear,” Dr. Mac says. She takes the duckling from the box and lays it on the exam table. It is folded over onto its side. Its legs are pulled up under it, and its webbed feet look like claws. Even though the other ducklings look weak, none of them looks this bad.
    Dr. Mac examines this duckling just like she did the others. All of us gather around the