~
“Sssh, Marina, wake up. You’re dreaming.”
I was standing in my room, struggling to free myself. Ethan had me in a bear hug, arms pinned to my sides. I was heaving with exertion, caught up in the in the heat of the battle, sweating with fury. By the time I came fully awake I was spent, and I went limp, slumping onto him. He set me on the edge of the bed and turned the lights on.
“I’m awake,” I said weakly. He brushed the hair out of my face, looking closely into my eyes.
“Hey,” he said, smiling encouragingly. “You’re strong when you’re asleep.”
“What did I do?” I panted.
“You tried to get out … you tried hard.”
“I’m sorry,” I gasped. “I’m sorry.”
His blue eyes studied mine. “You were talking to them. You sounded angry. I couldn’t understand …”
I covered my face with my hands. “Why is this happening to me?”
He embraced me. “Don’t worry, we’ll find out,” he said grimly. He tucked me into bed and turned out the lights. He settled down next to me on top of the covers. “Sleep,” he said, throwing his arm across me. “I won’t let you go.” I focused on the sound of his breathing and drifted off to a dreamless sleep.
The sun streaming through the window woke me up, and I rolled over to see Ethan’s sleeping face. His arm was still draped across me, and I studied him for a few minutes, my heart swelling with gratitude. I reached up to gently trace the scar on his temple. It had healed nicely and hair was starting to grow in and cover it. His eyes opened and crinkled at me.
“Good morning,” he whispered.
“When did you get the stitches out?” I asked.
“Last Saturday.” He thought for a moment and added, “I have a confession.”
“What?”
He looked a little sheepish. “That day, I was working in the yard and I saw … I looked in your window. You were sleeping with the desk against the door. I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I thought you were afraid of someone coming in.”
“That worked for a while,” I said.
He exhaled loudly, as if he’d been holding his breath. “Thank God I was here to stop you. Do you remember the dream?”
I thought about the ring of mermaids. If he didn’t like hearing about two, he was really going to hate this.
“I was surrounded by them. Dozens of them. I was fighting to get away.”
“You sure were.” He leaned over and kissed my forehead. “Keep fighting.”
“I wonder why–I mean, how can I find out …” I had to know what they had planned for me.
“Marina, you need to talk to your father. You need to ask him about it.”
“Yeah, I know. My mom has always been a sore spot with him.”
He nodded. “I know how that goes.”
We were both quiet for a minute. I looked over at him with a little smile. “I have a confession too.”
He smiled back. “What’s that?”
I pressed my lips together, remembering. “I kissed you first … when you were out cold in the hospital.”
He smiled at me incredulously. “I thought that was a dream.” He reached over and stroked my cheek, tracing the outlines of my lips with his thumb. “Just my luck, not to wake up.”
There was a sharp rap on the door and Cruz’s voice called out, “Marina, Mom made breakfast for us–come out before she leaves for the studio.”
I got the message and jumped out of bed, landing on my feet with a small whimper. I pulled my socks up over my bandages and walked as nonchalantly as possible to the kitchen.
“Good morning!” Abby beamed as she stood at the stove. “You look like you got some sleep.”
“Thanks, I did,” I smiled back. Cruz caught my eye and raised his eyebrows at me. I ignored him. “Did you have a good time last night?” I asked her.
“I had a blast! The boats are so beautiful at night.” She said dreamily. I poured myself some coffee, but declined the tofu scramble. When Abby left for work I headed back to my room. Ethan was stretched out on my bed, his arms behind his head. The cat had climbed onto his chest and was nudging his chin.
“The coast is clear. She’s off to work,” I said.
“I’m jealous of this cat,” he said.
I sat down and petted Charlie, laughing as his little toes curled up with delight. “He’s spoiled, huh?”
“I’ll say.” He sat up, putting the cat aside and scooting over to kiss my ear. “He gets to stay with you every night.”
I looked down, embarrassed. “I’m sorry about last night.”
“I’m not! Thank God I was here to stop you.”
I took his hand and squeezed it. “Thank you.”
He leaned closer and started kissing on my neck, making me giggle and writhe away. I stood up and backed away with a grin.
“Come and get your coffee and tofu,” I teased him, and darted for the door. He yawned, and I realized that I had kept him up most of the night.
I paused. “Do you need some more sleep?”
“No,” he said, stretching. “I got some rest, after you tried to go through me.”
He followed me out to the kitchen where Cruz was having his cereal. I poured him some coffee and he started to tell Cruz about my latest sleepwalking attempt. I excused myself to go get dressed.
I logged onto my computer and found a message from my dad about winning the prize. He wrote that he was loath to leave his work, but was going to have to attend the presentation ceremony. He wanted to know if Abby and Cruz would come with me to Norway in December. I started to write him back, but I thought about what Ethan said. I gathered up my courage, took a deep breath, and decided to call instead.
It was late in Afghanistan but he picked up, saying he’d been meaning to phone, but had been fielding congratulatory calls all day and night. I told him that I was proud of him, and he told me how his research was going.
“Um, Dad … We need to talk …”
Gathering up my courage, I told him about Cruz finding out about his father, and said I needed to ask him some things about my mother. He changed the subject, asking me questions about Abby and Cruz and school. My stomach was churning, but I persisted, telling him I really needed to know more about Adria. He was suddenly unable to talk, and said he’d get back to me later. He hung up abruptly, leaving me sitting in stunned silence.
I was frozen there for a moment, thinking. I was disappointed in him, and angry at myself for not having the courage to just tell him what I had found out. I got dressed and headed back out to the kitchen. Cruz and Ethan were eating cereal and actively discussing various forms of restraint.
“How about a straitjacket?” I heard Cruz say as I came in and sat down.
“Very funny,” I said sourly.
“How about we surfboard leash you to the bed?” Ethan asked seriously, looking up at me.
I shrugged. “That might work, but if I can move furniture in my sleep I could probably get it off in my sleep.”
“Duct tape!” added Cruz. “Handcuffs! You’d need a key to get loose!”
“Are you insane?” I asked him.
“If the shoe fits …” Cruz cocked his head at me.
“Have you seen her shoes?” asked Ethan with raised eyebrows. We all started to laugh. My whole life was starting to feel like a black comedy. I sat down next to Ethan and he moved his leg over to press it into mine.
“I just called my dad,” I blurted out. They both looked at me expectantly. I told Cruz about the Nobel Prize and he was appropriately impressed. “He wants you and Abby to come with me to Oslo for the award ceremony in December.”
Cruz was excited about the trip. “Awesome! I’ve never been anywhere!”
“Did you ask him?” Ethan took my hand.
“I–I started to and he blew me off.” I looked down sadly. “He suddenly couldn’t talk.”
“Don’t feel bad, Marina,” commiserated Cruz. “Our parents are just
as screwed up as we are.”
We all shared another laugh, because each one of us had our own demons to grapple with, and we could all find some dark humor in our different situations.
Cruz changed the subject. “I think we need a trip up to see Evie!” He turned to Ethan. “You should meet this lady–she’s awesome! And Marina didn’t even tell me that she’s totally famous! She’s like fashion royalty! I have to deliver her dress.”
He launched into the tale of our trip to the city. He rhapsodized about Evie’s fabulous apartment and amazing wardrobe. When he got to the part about the fortune teller encouraging him to claim his inheritance, Ethan caught my eyes, looking at me intensely.
“Marina made fun of her, but I think she’s the real deal. I mean, she totally knew about my father leaving me something. It was spooky,” Cruz said, wide-eyed.
“I’ll call Evie when she gets back,” I told Cruz, wanting him to stop. There was no point in fretting about Fatima and Lue’s sacrificial predictions. Especially now that I suspected that I was the offering they had in mind.
“Can you give me a ride to work today?” Cruz asked.
“You can have the car if you take Ethan home first,” I said. Cruz went to get changed.
Ethan put his arms around me when Cruz left the room. “Are you trying to get rid of me?” he asked.
“No,” I said defensively, “but there’s no point in you being stranded here all day.”
He looked at me seriously. “I think there’s definitely a point. Look what happened last night! Don’t you think it’s escalating?”
I had to admit it was. Every day my dreams were getting stronger and creepier. I was starting to feel an impending sense of doom, as ridiculous as it sounded to even think it.
“You can’t just drop everything to watch me,” I said disapprovingly.
“Humor me,” he said. “We’ll have Cruz drop us at my place. I’m not working today. I can bring you home later.”
“OK, fine, if you’re sure,” I said. “I’ll just be a few minutes.”
I was starting to feel like a burden. I didn’t want Ethan’s pity, I wanted to go out surfing with him. I wanted my normal life back. I wished I’d never seen Lorelei and never found out about the aquatic side of my family. I limped down the hall to tell Cruz about the change of plans. I managed to bathe while keeping my feet dry, and slipped into jeans and a pair of soft sheepskin boots that were roomy enough to keep the pressure off my bandages.
Cruz dropped us off and Ethan insisted on carrying me up to his apartment, sneaking a kiss in on the way up the stairs. We had just settled down on the couch, holding hands and talking about anything but mermaids, when we were both startled by a knock on the door. Ethan went to get it, and I could hear Long’s voice ask if he was up for some surfing. I felt a twinge of guilt, knowing that there was a contest coming up and Ethan was eager to get back to the waves. I was starting to feel like a real drag on him, and I hated it.
I came up behind him, shocking Long with my sudden appearance. “You should go–you can drop me off at home on the way. I want you to go. You have to get back on that horse, right?”
Ethan turned to look at me, calculating. “Only if you come too, and promise to stay on the beach.”
Long just stared. He’d kept his distance from me ever since Shayla’s near drowning, and I got the feeling he thought I was some kind of witch.
“Long, you remember Marina.” Ethan gestured to me. Long nodded, avoiding eye contact. I got the impression Ethan thought it was very amusing.
“Why don’t you just take me home?” I said, dreading the thought of facing all the surfer girls.
“No can do,” he said annoyingly. “We agreed, remember?” Now Long was really confused.
“Fine,” I said, not wanting to argue the point in front of Long.
“I’ll meet you guys there,” said Ethan. Long took off quickly, like he couldn’t get out of my presence fast enough.
I groaned. “They all think I’m some kinda freak.”
Ethan laughed and put his arms around me. “You’re my kinda freak,” he said, and kissed me until I didn’t care anymore.
We went to the beach on the far side of the pier, parking on the bluff. Ethan made me wait in the truck while he hauled his gear down to the sand, returning to carry me.
“Doctor’s orders,” he said, but I made him promise to put me down at the sand so everyone didn’t see me being hauled around like an invalid. When we got to the place on the pavement where I had cut myself I tried not to look. The glass had been swept away, but the dark stains on the cement made me shudder. Ethan looked down and back at me with shocked eyes. You could clearly tell where I had stood, sat on the curb and even see the blackened dried blood footprints leading to the trash can.
“It’s always worse than you make it out to be,” he said grimly.
“Call me an optimist,” I said, looking around. “Now put me down.”
We approached the little group of surfers. The guys greeted Ethan and nodded at me. They all knew about what had happened with Shayla, and viewed me with a strange mixture of suspicion and respect.
There was a group of girls that hung out and watched; I was ashamed to be in their ranks. I sighed in frustration, wishing that my feet were healed so I could be alone with Ethan, playing joyfully in the waves. It probably wouldn’t be such a good idea now that I knew the mermaids wanted me. Ethan took a blanket out of his bag and spread it out on the sand for me to sit on.
He stripped down to put on his wetsuit, and I could see all the girls watching him. I couldn’t blame them, because he was hard not to look at, but I felt a twinge of jealousy anyway.
He dropped to his knees and looked me in the eyes. “Are you going to be alright?”
“Go surf,” I told him. “And be careful.”
“Promise not to go anywhere near the pier? Or the water?” he asked with serious eyes.
“Don’t worry about me! I’ll stay on the beach.” I smiled wryly. “I’m pretty sure they can’t flop themselves onto the sand to get me.”
We both laughed at the thought, and Ethan took my face between his hands and kissed me. I blushed, embarrassed with all the people around, watching him head out into the ocean with his surfboard. I looked over to see the girls staring at me with their mouths hanging open.
I wished I’d thought to bring a book.
I focused all my attention on the surfers. The waves at this beach were much bigger than where I’d had my surfing lesson, and there were some spectacular rides. I fought an overpowering urge to be out there, rising and falling with the ocean swells. I saw a girl surfing that looked like Shayla, and she was really good. I felt another twinge of jealousy and wished even more that I could be out on the sea with them. I could imagine how it felt and smelled and tasted. I closed my eyes and visualized the water rushing by.
My daydreams were interrupted by the sounds of giggles and I looked up to see one of the girls mimicking me, to the great amusement of the rest. Heather was the only one I knew, but I recognized a few others from school. I tried my best to ignore them. I focused on watching Ethan surf and was impressed by his obvious skill. He was clearly better than everyone else; I could see why they all treated him with respect.
I could hear the girls making fun of my boots, and had to admit they were out of place on a beach. I wished I could put my toes in the sand, or better yet, the sea. I couldn’t stop thinking about surfing. My mouth went dry and I started to feel lightheaded. I rubbed my eyes to clear the fog, eliciting a fresh round of laughter from the girls. I gritted my teeth, realizing I had to get out of there before I lost control and snapped at them.
I decided to walk down the beach a little bit. My feet still hurt, but if I walked slowly it wasn’t too bad. I got far enough away to where I couldn’t hear them, but I could still keep an eye on Ethan. I was focused, watching his every move, when I heard a little cry. It sounded like an infant, and I looked down to see the most adorabl
e baby sea lion. It looked up at me with its liquid eyes, and let out another plaintive bawl.
“Do you want your mother?” I asked it, looking around.
It wailed again, a heartbreaking sound that made me want to scoop it up and cradle it. There were no other sea lions on the sand, but I could make out some shiny black heads bobbing in the surf. I bent to pick it up and it cried again, exposing its sharp little teeth. I decided against touching it, and tried to usher it back into the water, waving my arms and shooing it towards the surf.
The little guy started moving, humping his way across the dry sand towards where the foamy waves began. I heard another, louder bark and looked up to see several large sea lions had circled around behind me, cutting me off from the beach. They hissed and showed their teeth menacingly.
At first I thought they were defending their baby, but I turned to see the little one had disappeared into the sea. More, bigger sea lions appeared to join their ranks, advancing on me.
I was being herded.
I tried screaming at them, waving my arms, but they kept creeping towards me. Within a minute they were in a semicircle two deep, making it impossible for me to run past them to get back to land. All I could see were flashing teeth; their barks drowned out the roar of the surf. I knew with a terrible certainty that the mermaids had put them up to this. I remembered Lorelei commanding them and felt the sting of betrayal.
My courage rose along with my anger and I stood my ground, kicking at them. Now they started shoving me, throwing their massive bulk into my legs and knocking me down onto the sand. Each time I stood up I was a little closer to the surf. Soon my boots were wet and the waves were crashing in knee deep. I remembered what Ethan said and kept fighting, kicking hard and trying to stay on my feet.
I looked up to see the group of girls standing, watching. No one made a move to help me. Thanks a lot, I thought, battling on to my last breath. I expected to feel the ice-cold grip of a mermaid dragging me under any second. I kept facing land, kicking at the snarling faces the best I could. I felt a hand on my arm and I twisted around with a cry, struggling to escape.
“Marina!” yelled Ethan. He used his surfboard as a shield, putting it between us and the snapping jaws. Long and Shayla joined in, and once I was blocked from their view, the sea lions melted away into the ocean, leaving the four of us standing on the beach. I doubled over, hands on my knees, gasping to catch my breath.
“Thanks!” I panted. I looked up at Ethan. “They almost had me in the water.”
“I gotta get you out of here.” He sounded panicked. He picked me up and carried me to the blanket. He stripped out of his wetsuit quickly, and while he was changing I turned to Long and Shayla. They were standing off to the side with a few other surfers, murmuring among themselves.
“Thanks,” I said, mortified. “Thanks for helping.”
Shayla looked shocked. “What happened? I’ve never seen them act that way.”
I looked into their suspicious eyes. “There was a seal pup on the beach. They must have been protecting it.”
Shayla looked skeptical and Long hung back, his suspicions having just been confirmed. I looked down, wishing I hadn’t let Ethan talk me into coming. My feet throbbed with pain, and now they were soaking wet. The girls started back in with their snickering, but the rest of the surfers were quiet. They knew enough about the animals to realize that something truly weird had just occurred.
Ethan changed and packed up his gear, stony-faced. He lifted me up without a word and carried me in silence to his truck, putting me down on the seat. He must be really tired of this, I thought.
“Don’t be angry,” I said, afraid of the look on his face. “I stayed on the beach …”
“Why didn’t you just stay with everyone else?” he asked, his eyes pained.
“I only walked a little ways–I could still see you.” I looked down. “I didn’t want to get into it with those girls.” I started to feel stupid. “They just wouldn’t shut up.”
“Why didn’t you back off when the sea lions came at you?” he asked.
“They used bait,” I said, shaking my head at the thought. “There was a tiny little pup all alone, crying on the beach. I was trying to help it get back to the water and they circled around behind me. The little one took off, and the big ones started pushing me.”
“You should have left it alone,” he said sternly.
“Have you never seen a seal pup?” I asked him sarcastically. Our eyes met and he burst into relieved laughter.
“Can you and your bleeding heart manage to stay here while I go get my stuff?” he asked.
“Don’t worry, that trick won’t work on me twice,” I said.
When he left, I rolled up my jeans and took my soaked boots off. The dressings on my feet were wet, and some blood was starting to seep through in a few spots. I remembered how hard I was kicking and noticed fresh bruises starting to bloom on my shins and calves. My thighs were sore too; I was pretty sure their big bony heads had done a number on them as well.
Ethan got back, and I hustled to pull down my pant legs. He got in and looked at me.
“Let’s see the feet.” He motioned for me to put my feet up on his lap. The damage was done; there was no point trying to hide it. His lips tightened when he saw the blood.
“It looks worse ’cause it’s wet,” I said in a vain attempt to soothe.
He cast me a skeptical look, and peeled up my pant legs. “You’re gonna be one big bruise,” he moaned. “I was right there, and it still happened.”
“There’s no way to have seen that coming.” My voice shook a little. “I just can’t believe Lorelei would do that to me.” Now that my anger had faded I was left with only hurt feelings. I guess I was starting to think of her as a sister, albeit an annoying little one.
I pulled my legs back and asked him to take me home to change. When we pulled up, I was relieved to see that no one was there. Ethan helped me to my room and sat me on the bed. His face was hard and serious, and he wasn’t talking much.
I was nervous, thinking he was probably regretting getting involved in this whole mess. He went in the yard to wash out his wetsuit, and I peeked out to see him rinsing himself off with the hose. Once again, I found myself unable to look away. He was so beautiful my breath caught in my throat, and I blushed in spite of the fact there was no one around.
I changed into some dry pants. When he came back he had his duffel with him, and he pulled out a bag full of first aid supplies.
“I thought I was thinking ahead,” he said ruefully. He sat on the bed and started to unwrap the bandages on my feet. He looked relieved. “The stitches are still in. Just ripped a little.”
“I can do that,” I said.
He ignored me, and continued to change the bandages on my feet. When he finished, I slipped on a pair of socks to hide the evidence. I felt terrible for ruining his day of surfing, wondering how much longer he would put up with me.
“They feel much better,” I lied. “Thanks.” He still seemed quiet and reserved, worrying me. I looked over at him. “I’m really sorry. I didn’t think anything like that would happen.”
“I didn’t, either.” He looked grim. “I was wrong.”
I put my hand on his arm. “Don’t worry about it.” I wanted him to lighten up. “It’ll be okay. I’m lucky, remember?”
He took me by surprise, lunging over to hug me tightly, burying his face on my neck. His voice was muffled. “I could never forgive myself if I let anything happen to you.” I stroked his back and felt him shiver a little. We sat there in a close embrace for a while, until our hands started roaming over each other on their own accord. He clenched his jaw, stood up with determination and pulled me to my feet.
“We better get out of here. Let’s go get something to eat.”
He took me to a little Mexican restaurant in town with small private booths. We snuggled together, hungry for the comfort of each other’s touch. We were having a hard time keeping our
lips apart when a group of girls from high school came in and sat across from us. I straightened up a bit, embarrassed by their curious stares.
“How are your legs feeling?” he asked me after we ate.
“A little stiff.” I rubbed my thigh. “But I’ll be all right.”
“Those sea lions–they were huge! You were fighting them like crazy,” he said with admiration. “Weren’t you afraid they were gonna bite?”
I thought about it a second. “I was too angry to be afraid. They can’t force me into going with them. I’d rather get bit than be dragged away without my permission–asleep or awake. Lue told me that for a sacrifice to work it must be given freely. Once I know what they want, I’m going to decide what I have to do.” I silently hoped that Lue was right about that whole sacrifice thing.
“Marina–” His voice cracked and he looked like he wanted to say something, but he just kissed me. There was an eruption of giggles from the nearby table and we pulled apart.
“I liked watching you today. You’re a really great surfer,” I told him, asking him about the surfing competitions he’d been in. We sat and talked until it got late, and then reluctantly left. I had another long night ahead of me, and though I didn’t want to admit it, I was afraid.
When we got home Abby’s car was sitting in the driveway along with the Jag. I looked at Ethan. “I’ll be okay tonight. You work early tomorrow, you need to go home and get some sleep.”
He leaned over to me. “No way.” He kissed my ear, moving his lips to brush my cheek. “I’m not leaving. I’ll park around the corner and you can come and get me when Abby’s in bed.”
I hesitated. “Won’t your dad miss you?”
“He thinks I’m at Long’s tonight. Are you going to make me sleep on the porch?” he asked, and kissed me again, leaving my head spinning.
“I don’t know if this is such a good idea …”
He whispered in my ear, “I’m not leaving, and I promise not to take advantage of the situation.”
He was missing the point. I knew I could trust him; it was me I wasn’t so sure about.
I sighed and went in the house. No one was around, so I went down the hall to Cruz’s room and knocked. He called me in and I asked about Abby. He told me she decided to turn in early.
“So, Marina,” he asked with a smirk, “where’s your bodyguard?”
I had to admit he was waiting outside.
“I hope you kids are being careful,” Cruz said, mocking me.
“Nothing’s going on!” I protested, turning bright red. “He’s just afraid I’m going to get hurt again.”
“Whatever you say,” he laughed as I closed the door on him.
I opened the front door and stepped out to find Ethan on the porch.
“She’s in bed,” I whispered. He wrapped his warm arms around me, and I melted into him.
“Promise me, no more kissing once we go in,” he said, teasing me.
“Deal,” I said, and made the last one count.
~
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
THE STORM