“I see no people near the jail,” Bones commented. “There might really be none, or they might beinside and not have seen the smoke yet, or all be across the hill fighting the fire already. I agree; it will be safest to protect the jail even at some risk to the raft. It would take little to unroof that structure.”

Without further gesture the streamlined form plunged back into the water, and a moment later the tow lines drew taut again.

Inside the tent, Danna was looking hopefully at her parents. She understood most of the gesturespeech, but had evidently missed some of what had just been said. Catching her father’s eye, she picked up her own breathing kit and made an inquiring gesture. The parents looked at each other and nodded. Dana’s happy grin disappeared behind her mask.

Kahvi and her husband resumed rowing, but both kept more attention on the child than on their goal for the next few minutes. Danna had been carefully brought up, but they would not have allowed her to get dressed for outdoors unsupervised any more than either of them would have allowed the other to do so.

The little one finished donning the acid-tight shorts, halter, and face mask. She slung the oxygen and absorber cartridges between her narrow shoulders, stood up, and turned slowly around for inspection.

Not until both parents had nodded approval did she step to the space where a float had been omitted from the deck structure, and slip into the water Both parents counted subvocally, but long before the twelve seconds which would have justified action had passed, the five-year-old’s head showed through the other opening in the deck.

She slid out of the water as smoothly as Bones; she had been swimming since before she could walk.

“Did Bones say it was a real fire?” The child was speaking as soon as her head was out of water. She used more words and fewer gestures than her parents, since her voice penetrated the mask better.