Chapter 7 — Reef Keeper

The next morning, when Khue and Thao were at the wharf preparing their gear, Nguyen appeared at the appointed time, wearing a specialized diving suit for fisheries surveillance, and carrying an underwater camera to record evidence according to professional standards. Khue and Thao carried the coral nursery frames onto the boat, their skillful movements clearly showing their many years of experience working with the sea.

"Which area are you planning to lower the frame in?" Nguyen asked as the boat started to leave the dock.

"The area east of the reef, where the parent coral is still healthy." Khue replied, spreading out the map of the reef area, pointing to the marked points. "We'll lower the first three frames here, about fifty meters from the blast hole, far enough away to avoid risk if another explosion occurs nearby."

Nguyen nodded, looking at the map with expert eyes. "I think the frame should be lowered further from the blast hole, at least a hundred meters. If dynamite fishing is still active in this area, we should not bet the project's efforts on a location too close to risk."

"You're right." Khue admitted and adjusted the location on the map according to his suggestions. She felt somewhat relieved to have another person knowledgeable in the field making decisions together, different from the feeling of shouldering all responsibilities alone that she had become accustomed to during her years of research.

The boat arrived at Da Bac reef area when the sun was high in the sky, the sunlight shined through the clear water, creating shimmering streaks of light dancing on the sand. All three people put on diving suits, checked their equipment one last time, and then took turns diving into the water.

Nguyen swam next to Khue, observing her with both curious and admiring eyes when he saw her controlling her underwater movements skillfully and confidently, not inferior to the professional divers he had worked with. There was something in the way Khue moved underwater, cautious but not timid, that made him immediately realize that this was not a scientist who only knew theories.

They began the work of lowering the coral nursery frames to the seabed, anchoring each frame tightly to iron stakes already placed in the coral sand. The work requires smooth coordination between three people: Thao balances the frame, Khue adjusts the tilt angle so that the light can fully reach the coral branches, and Nguyen uses his strength to fix the anchor poles securely to the rock floor.

After nearly an hour of working underwater, the first three nursery frames were successfully placed, young coral branches clinging tightly to the frames, swaying gently with the water as if welcoming a new life. Khue stood silently looking at the fruits of her labor, a feeling of satisfaction welling up in her heart, mixed with silent pride for her father, who had instilled in her a love for the sea since her childhood days.

After completing the installation, the three swam toward the area with the explosion hole so that Nguyen could personally survey and record video as official evidence. When approaching the scene, Nguyen slowed down, observed every detail carefully, and held a camera to record the entire destroyed area.

He stopped in front of a large piece of debris, bent down and picked it up to examine it carefully. It was a small, irregularly shaped piece of metal that appeared to be a fragment of some industrial material rather than a natural fragment of rock or coral. He signaled Khue to come closer and show her.

Khue picked up the piece of metal and turned it around to observe. It is shaped like a small piece of bent pipe, with a few unclear embossed characters remaining on the surface due to corrosion by sea water. She carefully put the metal piece into a specialized mesh bag to bring ashore for analysis.

Continuing to swim further south, near the boundary of the construction area of Kinh Duong Bay resort, the three discovered another worrying thing: a streak of water that was much more turbid than the surrounding area, spreading like a gray cloud on the seabed, covering the nearby coral reefs with a thin layer, giving them a dull color instead of their inherent bright color.

Nguyen swam into the middle of the turbid water, gently stirred with his hand, a layer of fine gray dust scattered around him like smoke. He signaled Khue and Thao to take water and sediment samples in this area for later composition analysis.

When the three rose to the surface, everyone carried a heavy mood. They climbed into the boat, took off their diving equipment, and sat in silence for a long time before someone spoke up.

"That murky water stain is definitely sediment from the construction work next to the resort." Nguyen said, his voice serious. "If they discharge waste directly into the sea without treatment, this sediment will stick to the coral, preventing the photosynthesis of symbiotic algae, causing the coral to gradually weaken and die, even if there is no other direct impact."

"So are the mine explosion and this waste discharge related?" Khue asked, even though in her heart she already had a hunch about the answer.

"I don't dare to say for sure without specific evidence." Nguyen replied, cautiously in the spirit of science. "But in terms of geographical location, both are within the direct influence of the resort's construction area. This is not an easy coincidence to ignore."

On the boat back to the wharf, Khue told Nguyen about what Mrs. Bay Xuyen had told her - about the strange geological survey team that appeared before her father disappeared, about the possible connection between that survey team and the current resort. Nguyen listened attentively, his face gradually becoming tense.

"I also heard my father mention that, although it wasn't clear." Nguyen said, recalling Mr. Suu's strange attitude last night. "My father seemed to know something, but he refused to say it. He just told me to be careful, talking about this is not simple."

"Do you think..." Khue hesitated, not sure if she should say the thoughts that were forming in her head or not. "Do you think your father knows what happened to my father?"

The question made Nguyen pause. He looked at Khue. In her eyes, there was clearly a pain that had been suppressed for a long time, now starting to find a way out through every word. He felt a deep sympathy, not only because of his work responsibilities, but also because of an emotional connection that was gradually forming between the two of them.

"I don't know for sure." Nguyen answered honestly. "But I promise you, if my father knows anything, I will find a way for him to tell. You deserve to know the truth about what happened to your father."

That sincere promise made Khue feel a warmth spreading in her heart, dispelling some of the loneliness she had carried with her for the past twelve years. For the first time since returning to the island, she felt she no longer had to face the heavy mysteries surrounding her father's death alone.

That evening, after preliminary analysis of the metal fragment collected, Nguyen discovered that it was a piece of industrial PVC pipe, a type often used in construction wastewater drainage systems, not a material directly related to fishing explosives as he initially predicted. This discovery opens up a new direction of speculation: there may be an underground discharge pipe from the resort, running along the seabed near the coral reef area, and this broken pipe fragment is just a part broken during the installation process or due to impact.

"If it is true that there is an underground discharge pipe, we need to find its entire path." Nguyen told Khue on the phone that night, his voice full of determination. "This can be important evidence to prove that the resort is seriously violating environmental regulations."

"But tracking an underwater pipeline is not simple, and it will certainly be dangerous if we are discovered." Khue said, somewhat worried.

"We will be careful, take it step by step, gather enough evidence before making anything public." Nguyen reassured. "I will make a preliminary report to superiors at the Provincial Conservation Area Management Board, proposing an official inspection of Kinh Duong Bay resort."

After the call, Khue sat alone in her old house, opened her laptop and recorded all the day's events in a separate file, which she began to call in her heart "investigation file". She looked at the map of the Da Bac Reef area on the screen, where she had marked the location of the blast hole, the murky water stain, and now, a big question mark about the unidentified underground discharge pipe.

She remembered Nguyen's determined eyes when he said he would find a way to make his father tell the truth, and remembered his sincere promise to her. There is something in Nguyen that makes her feel strangely secure, as if after many years of carrying the burden of her father's death alone, she finally found someone willing to shoulder the burden with her.

Outside, the night sea still whispers regular waves, carrying both secrets and hopes, waiting for the day to be exposed to the light.