Author's Notes: Hi, readers. Here's chapter twenty-six of "Ride the Wind II: Justice Unbound." I'm glad it took just five days to get out. The results of the DNA test will come very soon. Stay tuned for chapter twenty-seven.

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Chapter 26: Surprise Call

The early morning sun beamed its rays on the Hanks rental house the next day. A strong wind blew through the trees, causing their leaves to rustle loudly. Some branches looked about ready to break off. A young woman jogged past the house. She stopped in front of the next one. She stretched her arms above her head. She did the same behind her back. She resumed jogging and yawned.

Randolph sipped black coffee from a mug while sitting at the first bar stool in the kitchen. He was looking through a picture album. His IPhone lay nearby. He stared at a picture of Max and Isabella surfacing together with Blackberry coming up behind them at the top of the fifth page. In the background were Willy and Nikki doing a bow together. He put his coffee down.

Randolph propped his head up with his elbow. He had woken up early and was unable to go back to sleep. He decided to get up and fix himself some coffee. He thought looking through a picture album would be a good idea. It was the one thing that brought him peace of mind in this uncertain situation about Lilli and Isabella's disappearance.

His thoughts shifted to Lilli. He wondered how she did last night and if any trainers were assigned to watch her. He believed it was possible she spent time calling out to the nearby bay because orcas were communicating with each other. If she had, he had no doubt she was doing it out of loneliness due to being without a companion of her species. He took comfort in the fact that she wasn't completely alone, thanks to Jane and Izzy.

He snapped out of his thoughts when he heard Bryan Adams's Cuts Like a Knife playing. He looked over at his IPhone and picked it up. He turned it on, seeing the number of 360-555-8809. He raised an eyebrow as he didn't recognize it. He hoped it wasn't a prank call because he hated getting them. Then again, it was possible someone dialed the wrong number by accident.

The ringtone stopped after the fifth play. He cleared his throat and swiped the screen, which brought him to the first page. An orca calling sounded a second later. That indicated the caller left a voicemail. He became curious and touched the voicemail app. He saw the message was ten seconds long. He pressed the play button.

"Randolph, it is Brenda Taylor. I need you to call me back immediately. I have to tell you something. Please, give me a call as soon as you get this message," Brenda said urgently. "Bye."

Randolph gasped in much surprise. He never expected Brenda to call him this morning or any other time. He had little doubt she searched Google for his name and found his phone number and his occupation of orca researcher at the Orca Research Institute. He deleted the voicemail before exiting the app. He showed determination.

He swiped to the second page and touched the contacts app. It brought up a list of his contacts. He swiped to the call logs in which he found Brenda's number. He focused his attention on it for thirty seconds. He touched the phone symbol and put it to his ear. He listened to three rings before a click came. He ran his tongue all over the inside of his mouth.

"Hello?" Brenda asked.

"Hey, Brenda. It's Randolph," Randolph answered and grabbed his coffee to take a long sip. He put it down. "How are you doing this morning?"

"I am doing fine," Brenda admitted. "I am having my first cup of coffee. What about you?"

"I am doing fine and having coffee too. It is black due to my diabetes," Randolph said, running his finger along the rim of his mug. "I am also looking through a picture album of Southern Resident orcas."

"Oh, really?" Brenda wondered with much curiosity.

"Yeah," Randolph said, nodding slowly. "It contains some deceased Southern Residents such as Ruffles. He was also known as J1."

"I see," Brenda said in much awe. She yawned in a loud manner. "How did that orca get his name?"

"If you look at pictures of his dorsal, you will see it looks like a Ruffles chip. He fathered several offspring in J, K, and L-Pod," Randolph explained.

"If Ruffles was part of J-Pod, wouldn't that raise concerns about inbreeding?" Brenda said seriously.

"We are concerned about that, but it is possible that Ruffles came from another pod. If he did, then the concerns aren't as bad," Randolph pointed out.

"Oh," Brenda whispered.

Randolph couldn't help but smile. He was glad that Brenda had become curious about the Southern Resident orcas. He wondered if she had any questions about Willy's life in J-Pod. He propped his head up with his elbow.

"So, what did you want to tell me?" he wondered.

"I don't know how to say this, but—" she started.

"What?" Randolph responded in much concern. He bit his lip before licking it and the other one. "What did you want to tell me?"

"I managed to get a sample of Lilli's blood last night," Brenda said confidently.

Randolph became very shock. "You're kidding, right?"

"I wish I was, Randolph, but I am not," Brenda admitted truthfully. "I decided to pay a visit to the aquatic theater. I wanted to see Lilli. I found Charles and Mark on their break outside. They said Lilli was in one of her moods. She started calling out to the bay before they went on their break."

"Willy acted in a similar manner. We thought he was just calling to orcas because he was lonely. Then Jesse found out the truth," Randolph replied.

"Dial told me about Willy's moods. I wondered if he did what Lilli was doing," Brenda said honestly. "She probably has been feeling lonely without a companion of her own species."

"I wouldn't be surprised," Randolph said very thoughtfully.

"Anyway, I went inside and saw her at the tower calling out to the nearby bay. I even heard distant calls coming from there. I started to wonder if you, Jesse, and Dwight were telling the truth," Brenda explained.

"That is good," Randolph said in relief. "It is nice when someone begins to wonder if an explanation could be valid."

Brenda blew softly. "I brought a syringe and tube with me just in case. Both were in my waist pack. I had to act quickly before Charles and Mark came back in from their break. I had Lilli roll upside down. I rubbed her fluke until I felt a vein. I stuck the syringe in and filled it with blood. I put it in the tube and capped it. I put my stuff away before my friends could see me."

Randolph couldn't help but smile. He was so thrilled that Brenda had managed to get a blood sample from Lilli. He understood her being careful because she didn't want her friends becoming suspicious of her if they saw her taking blood before Lilli's actual medical examination. He grabbed his coffee, picking it up to take a long sip.

Just then, Jesse walked into the kitchen while letting out a small yawn. He went to the cabinet next to the sink to get a glass. He approached the refrigerator. He caught Randolph on his IPhone in the corner of his eye. Randolph looked toward him. He mouthed 'I am talking to Brenda right now.' He shifted his attention back to his IPhone.

Jesse showed surprise. He couldn't believe that Randolph was talking to Brenda, especially this early in the morning. He thought she would be getting ready to go to work. He was determined to hear what his friend had to say. He turned back to the refrigerator. He opened it, grabbing the orange juice. He proceeded to fill his glass.

"Do you think we could meet at the Kenworth Café this morning? I don't have to be at work until eight o'clock. I can give you the blood sample, so you can have it tested," Brenda said hopefully.

"Sure," Randolph responded eagerly. He looked toward Jesse, who finished filling his glass and put the juice back in the refrigerator. He observed him closing it and coming to the second stool to sit down. "I will run it and Isabella's blood sample down to the National Marine Mammal Laboratory. We should have the results by tomorrow morning."

"All right," Brenda agreed. "I should warn you ahead of time that this DNA could prove Lilli isn't Isabella at all."

"I know. Of course, the truth needs to be known. We don't know what your boss could be up to next," Randolph commented.

"I have to say I wish he would show care toward the animals whenever he sees them. He is always sneering at them," Brenda said, sadness lining her voice.

"He always sneered at Willy whenever he was around him. He did the same to the other animals," Randolph said with a heavy sigh. "It made Rae and me feel very uneasy."

"I don't blame you at all," Brenda murmured.

"I am so fortunate I don't work at Northwest Adventure Park anymore. I focus on researching wild orcas," Randolph sad with a small smile. "I wouldn't trade it for any other job."

"I will give you credit for researching orcas in their native habitat," Brenda complimented in a warm voice. "It's not easy doing something like that."

"No, it's not," Randolph agreed. "Sometimes, days pass before we see any orcas. It doesn't matter if they are resident or transient."

"I see," Brenda whispered gently. She yawned in a loud manner. "Anyway, I will see you at the Kenworth Café."

"You too," Randolph responded. "Bye."

Randolph heard a click and removed his IPhone from his ear. He turned it off as Jesse sipped his juice. He eyed him putting it down.

"So, you are meeting Brenda to get Lilli's blood sample," Jesse whispered happily.

"Yep," Randolph said, sighing contently. "I was really surprised she called me. I thought she would be getting ready for work."

"Me too," Jesse agreed. "She took a big risk getting that sample."

"Something tells me you would've sneaked into the aquatic theater and gotten the sample yourself. That is if the trainers assigned to watch Lilli, Jane, and Izzy were on break," Randolph suggested.

"You bet I would have," Jesse admitted. "I don't know if I would've called Lilli Isabella, though."

"It is possible Lilli would've responded to Isabella," Randolph responded, a small smile forming on his face. "I mean, she did act like she recognized us."

"I can't wait to find out the results," Jesse said in much excitement. "I want to know if Lilli is Isabella so badly."

"I want to know just as badly as you do. So do the others," Randolph said and stroked his chin. "Once we have confirmation that Lilli is Isabella, the next order of business will be convincing Brenda to help us gather evidence against Dial."

"That won't be very easy," Jesse murmured in uncertainty. "Once we convince her to help us, we should talk to the police about the DNA test."

"Something tells me they will help us," Randolph said hopefully.

"I agree," Jesse said with a slow nod. "You should go meet Brenda right now. We can't wait for the test any longer."

"If Nadine, Nancy, and Elvis wake up and wonder where I am, let them know I went to meet Brenda," Randolph said seriously.

Jesse patted his mentor's shoulder. "Of course. Just watch out for traffic."

"I will," Randolph said, taking a deep breath. "I can't help but feel nervous about getting the blood sample. I don't want anyone overhearing us talking about it." He swallowed hard.

"Who would?" Jesse wondered. "Just keep the conversation short. Then you won't have anything to worry about."

"Yeah," Randolph said. "Keep an eye on your phone. You never know when Nadine's parents will call and tell you when they are coming to see Nancy."

"Sure," Jesse replied with a wink.

Randolph touched the young man's shoulder. "See you in a little while."

Randolph grabbed his coffee and drank the rest of it. He stood up to take the mug to the sink and lay it there. He headed into the living room and grabbed his keys from the glass coffee table. The room happened to be medium-sized. It contained blue walls, two pine nightstands, and a couch. Two armchairs were off in the corners. The TV sat across from the couch in an entertainment center. A DVD player sat on top of it. Tan carpet covered the entire floor.

Randolph headed for the front door and unlocked it. He opened it and stepped outside. He locked it before closing it behind him. He approached his van, getting in. He buckled his seatbelt and adjusted the shoulder part. He started the engine. He backed out of the driveway. He proceeded to go down the street. Whitney Houston's Run to You played on the radio.