Back on deck, as Connor toweled himself dry, he asked when they would reach Hell Bay.
João smiled at him. “You’re just itching to dive, aren’t you? Don’t worry, we’ll get there soon enough. In the meantime, there are plenty of ways to entertain yourself.…”
Connor grinned. In contrast to his time on The Diablo, a day on The Lorelei was blissfully free of chores. He was free to while away the hours perfecting his bluejack technique, working on his tan, grazing on delicious snacks, and chatting about everything and nothing with Jez, Lika, and João.
Bart didn’t join them. He spent the whole day with Kally. Whenever Connor caught a glimpse of them, they were talking or laughing together, like old friends. Or more than friends. Connor wondered how they had so much to say to each other, but he supposed it was nothing more profound than the chitchat he was exchanging with the others.
Flynn sailed the boat smoothly across the ocean—so smoothly that, most of the time, Connor was hardly aware it was even moving. And yet, at last the sun gave way to dusk, and the dusk to star-pierced darkness. Everyone gathered for dinner, and afterward, João strummed his guitar and Lika, Teahan, and Diani sang shanties for their pirate guests. Connor watched as Bart took Kally’s hand and held it in his own. When the song was over, the pirates clapped.
Jez and Connor went over to congratulate João.
“Nice playing, man,” said Jez.
João smiled at them. “Hey, do either of you play? No? I can teach you a few chords, if you like.”
A short while later, Bart and Kally came over to join them. Bart put his hands on Connor’s and Jez’s shoulders.
“Guys,” he said, “there’s something I need to talk to you both about.”
“We’ll let you three have a private chat,” Kally said, indicating to João that he should follow her. Reluctantly, he put down his guitar, and the two of them wheeled away, leaving the Three Buccaneers alone.
Chapter Seven
Rift
“What is it?” asked Connor.
“It’s pretty simple, really,” said Bart. “I’m thinking that when you guys hook up with The Diablo tomorrow, I’m gonna stay here on The Lorelei.”
Jez’s jaw dropped. “You’re what?”
Connor frowned. He could understand the temptation to remain on the dive-boat—especially given Bart’s obvious bond with Kally—but even so…
“This is so sudden,” he said. “I mean, all your life you wanted to be a pirate. That’s what you told me, remember? My first night on The Diablo?”
Bart nodded. “I remember, buddy. Of course I do. But things change. People change. I’m not the kind of person who draws up lists of ‘pros’ and ‘cons’ before making a decision. I feel it in my gut. And right now, my gut is telling me to stay here with Kally and the others.”
“You can’t do this!” At last, Jez was able to string a sentence together. “Connor’s right—your whole life has been geared toward your becoming a pirate. Eight—eight years—ago, we joined The Diablo. Are you going to throw all that away because of Miss Wonderwheels and a gut instinct?”
Bart gave Jez a dark look. “Don’t call her that,” he said. “And don’t think for a moment that this was an easy decision. We’ve been talking about it all day. If I could split myself in two, I’d be a happy man. One Bart could go back with you to The Diablo. The other could stay here and help out Kally and Flynn.”
“Help out?” Jez was incredulous. “What do you mean, help out?”
“Flynn’s getting old,” said Bart. “He’s done an amazing job looking after the fishtails, but every day he’s losing strength. There’s only so long he can go on as captain of The Lorelei. And, as independent as the fishtails are, they need someone to assist them. They can’t survive on their own.”
“Wow!” said Jez, shaking his head. “She’s certainly worked her sorcery on you!”
“Sorcery?”
“How else do you explain it? You stepped onto this ship not twenty-four hours ago as a rational pirate, and suddenly you’re ready to give everything up for her!”
“It’s not just about Kally.”
“Come on, Bart,” said Jez. “I’ve known you way too long for you to pretend this is about a higher purpose. We all know you go weak in the presence of beauty. And Kally is beautiful. There’s no doubt about that.” He shook his head once more. “But she’s a beautiful mermaid.”
“They’re fishtails,” said Bart, surprisingly calmly.
“Call them what you want,” said Jez, “fishtails…kulullu…naiad…nixes.…It doesn’t matter what you call them. It all comes down to the same thing. They’re half human and half fish, and they lure sailors to their deaths.”
“Even if that was true,” said Bart, “she isn’t luring me to my death. I’m not talking about dying. I’m talking about living—here, on The Lorelei.”
Jez shrugged. “That isn’t a life. Not for you. It’s a living death.”
As the pirates’ words grew louder and more heated, Connor noticed that the fishtails had stopped what they were doing and wheeled their chairs along the deck. Suddenly, they were all around them. He exchanged an uneasy glance with João.
Bart and Jez stood in deadlock, their words and emotions spent.
Suddenly, Jez realized that he was surrounded. He looked around in anger. “Bloody mermaids!” he cried, pushing through the wheelchairs and marching angrily to the other end of the deck.
Kally wheeled over to Bart. He looked at her sadly, then back toward Jez.
“He’ll come around,” she said, squeezing his hand. “He just needs some time to warm to the idea. I promise, by the time we get to Calle del Marinero tomorrow, he’ll have changed his mind. You’ll see.”
Connor looked along the deck. Jez was right up by the bow. He could go no farther without jumping overboard. And, in the middle of the open ocean, that wouldn’t be a smart option.
Connor glanced back at Bart. Could this really be the end of the Three Buccaneers? It might feel right in Bart’s gut, but Connor’s gut told another story. Something was wrong on The Lorelei.
Once more, he saw Grace’s face. He heard her warning. Danger. Underwater. Well, now he knew what that meant, didn’t he? The danger was Kally and the others. They had lured Bart away from his friends, away from his pirate family. Connor didn’t want to be forced into choosing sides, but he had to go and comfort Jez.
Bart had Kally now. Jez was on his own.
Chapter Eight
The Shark
Two hundred fathoms below the surface of the ocean, Sidorio—the renegade Vampirate—takes his rest. It’s a place as far removed from light as you can find on this planet. Darkness pervades his being here, seeping into his ears and nose and eye sockets as intently as the water. Just as he likes it. Light can be such a menace. Others cling to the light, fear the dark. He smiles. How they would loathe it here.
And yet, many creatures prosper in this place. He is watching some of them right now—a school of hagfish. They feast on a chunk of whale meat, helpfully discarded by a predator above. The hagfish barely merit the name “fish.” No sleek shape for them. No glittering scales. They are more like thick worms—ill-formed creatures. All they are good for is feasting on the dead flesh of this world—flesh they don’t even have the ability to kill for themselves. Why, they don’t even have teeth, Sidorio thinks, running his tongue over his own golden fangs.
But what hagfish lack in aesthetics, they make up for in gumption. They may not have teeth, but they suck flesh from bones at a pace that can make you nauseous to watch. They may look vile, but they are ruthlessly efficient. It’s a combination Sidorio admires.
Now he watches as a new visitor arrives in these inky depths: a hammerhead shark. On paper, not much prettier than a hagfish, but, thinks Sidorio, personality goes a long way. Sleek and knowing, the shark swims above the hagfish. The scavengers continue feasting until the very last moment. Then they take their leave. No point in messing with a shark.
Sidorio watches as the creature dives in and takes a bite of the whale flesh. Perhaps it isn’t to her taste. Perhaps she was only proving a point. She leaves the rest of the carcass uneaten and swims on. The hagfish return to their business of sucking and chomping. It is what they know. What they are.
The shark comes toward Sidorio. He immediately recognizes in her the arrogance of the few creatures who straddle both the dark waters below and the bright waters above. Sidorio reaches out a hand and she swims in, nuzzling it. Then she retreats back a touch, raising herself in the water. They are eye-to-eye now. Equals. Yes, thinks Sidorio, you’re right. We two are the same. We know both darkness and light. We can make our choices.
He looks into her eyes and sees that she is in a playful mood. She swims up higher. He follows. It is as if she is calling him. As if, higher in these waters, there may be some sport to be had. Sidorio swims strongly in her wake. It is time to leave the dark waters behind him for a time.
He is in the mood for some sport.
Chapter Nine
Hell Bay
The waters of Hell Bay looked tranquil in the early-morning sunshine. We must have sailed through the night to get here, thought Connor. Did Flynn never sleep? No wonder he looked so frail.
In spite of its name, it was a beautiful spot. Glancing around, Connor felt a deep sense of calm. Suddenly, out of the placid waters sprang a pair of dolphins. Connor watched with delight as they swam along, leaping in and out of the water. There could be few better sights to wake up to than this.
But as the dolphins swam away, the events of the previous night flooded back. He glanced down and saw Jez, still tossing and turning in his sleep. On his other side was an empty space. Bart had not joined them on the sleeping deck last night. It’s happening already, thought Connor. We haven’t even left yet, but already Bart’s cutting the ties.
Looking up, he could see the fishtails asleep on the deck, their chairs brought together and reclined in the center. Bart was lying on a bench, not far from Kally. Seeing this, Connor made a decision. They had to seize the moment.
“Wake up, Jez!” he whispered, nudging his friend.
“Whaaat?”
“Wake up!” Connor hissed once more. “And try not to make too much noise.”
Jez opened his eyes, blinking in the light. “What time is it?” he asked.
“It doesn’t matter,” said Connor urgently. “The fishtails are asleep. This is our last chance to talk to Bart alone, to make him see sense.”
Jez nodded. Clearly the memory of last night was fresh in his mind, too.
“Wait here!” said Connor. “I’ll get him to come over.”
He set off barefoot along the deck, trying not to make a sound. In a few paces, he was standing right beside the cluster of fishtails.
Gently but firmly, he reached out his hand to Bart.
Even before Connor touched him, Bart’s eyes opened, and his face greeted Connor with a familiar smile.
“Can we talk?” Connor whispered. “Over there?”
Bart nodded. “Sure, buddy,” he said quietly.
He raised himself upright and together they walked back to the bow of The Lorelei. Jez held up his hand and he and Bart silently high-fived each other.
“I’m sorry, man,” said Jez, “for all those things I said last night.”
“Me, too,” agreed Bart. “I’ve been going over them all night. Didn’t get a wink of sleep. I never meant to hurt you guys—you’re my best friends. You know that, don’t you?”
Jez and Connor nodded.
“That’s why we want to be sure you’ve really thought through this decision,” said Jez.
“I have,” said Bart, but there was something in the tone of his voice that made Connor think his mind wasn’t quite as made up as his words suggested.
“How about we go back to The Diablo—” began Jez, but Bart immediately started shaking his head.
“Wait,” said Jez. “Please. Just hear me out! How about we go back to The Diablo and talk to Captain Wrathe about this?”
“Captain Wrathe?” said Bart.
“I’m sure he’d have some good ideas of ways to help these guys out,” said Jez. “Don’t you agree, Connor?”
Connor imagined the scene. Bart telling Molucco Wrathe that after eight years in his service he’d decided to break the binding articles that every pirate has to take in order to look after a ship of fishtails. He could imagine the interesting shades of red that Molucco’s face would turn as he considered Bart’s proposal—and then instantly rejected it.
“I think it’s a really good idea to talk things through with Molucco,” said Connor, nodding calmly. “He’s not just our captain, Bart. Why, I’ve heard him say that he looks on you as the son he never had.”
“Really?” Bart said, clearly surprised at this information. “Molucco said that?”
“Yes.” Connor nodded. He felt really bad telling the lie, or at least exaggerating the truth. But he’d stop at nothing to save Bart.
“Maybe I have been a little hasty,” said Bart. “But you know me, guys! Sometimes my heart rules my head.”
Seeing that they were gaining ground, Jez gripped his friend’s shoulder. “There’s nothing wrong with that, man. We’re all guilty of it sometimes. And Kally’s a beautiful girl. I can see how she’d spin your world around.”
Bart turned and looked back at her. Connor followed his gaze. He noticed with a shiver that the fishtails were waking up. Their time was running out. Even if they were successful in changing Bart’s mind, he had an uneasy feeling that it wouldn’t end there.
“These guys need me,” said Bart.
Jez twisted Bart’s face back toward them. “No,” he said gently. “They need someone. And we can help them find that someone. You’re destined for greater things. For a ship of your own, a pirate ship…”
“Besides,” said Connor, “we need you. Jez and me. Your friends. Your pirate family. Molucco and Cate. Can you imagine how upset Cate would be if she heard you’d gone away and not even said good-bye?”
“Cate…” said Bart, his face showing the impact of the name. Connor silently congratulated himself on this masterstroke, but there was no time to be complacent. Kally was upright in her chair now and looking over at them. Perhaps it was simply the way the light fell on her face, but Connor thought he saw a flicker of anger there. She turned, helping João with his chair, whispering something to him. Now they both looked over at the three pirates.
Connor turned back to Bart. There was no more he could say. Ultimately, it was Bart’s decision.
“Don’t worry, buddy,” said Bart. “I know what I need to do.”
Chapter Ten
In Deep
“Wow!” Connor said, spotting a shoal of silvery fish swimming just below the ocean’s surface. “The water’s so clear here,” he said. “I bet the diving is great!”
João laughed. “You’ll find out soon enough! Think you’re ready?”
“You bet!” Connor said, beaming down at him. He couldn’t contain his excitement any longer. Even from the side of the boat, he could see the wealth of colorful sea life waiting there for him. Sitting in his wetsuit, the sun beating down on him, Connor couldn’t believe how well things had turned out. The Three Buccaneers were together again! The fishtails seemed to have taken Bart’s change of heart in good spirits. Even Kally had said that she was cool with it. And Flynn had laughed and said that he wasn’t ready to give up his captaincy just yet. It had all been a storm in a teacup—a storm brought about by the exhilaration of shore leave, perhaps, and the strange magic of The Lorelei and its crew.
“I can’t wait to get down there,” said Jez, coming to sit beside Connor, dressed in his wetsuit. “Should be pretty special, huh?”
Connor nodded. He was raring to go. They’d been working on their breathing all morning, and he felt ready. It was called pranayama, and it was designed to slow your heart rate before your descent. The slower your pulse, the
farther down you were able to dive.
Bart came to join them. Kally wheeled her chair up alongside him.
“Kalypso!” Flynn cried from the stern. “Can you come up here for a moment?”
Kally shrugged and turned her chair around. “No rest for the wicked!” she said, giving Bart a friendly punch before whizzing off up the deck.
“She seems to have taken it really well,” Jez said, zipping up his suit.
“We had a good talk,” Bart said. “We’ll definitely keep in touch.”
He sat down with his friends. Together, they prepared themselves for the dive. As Connor followed João’s precise instructions from the water, he could already feel his pulse starting to slow. His body was perfectly calm, though he was aware that deep in his core he was excited and fully adrenalized. The dive at Hell Bay was such a cool way to finish their weekend!
He sat beside Jez and Bart, their flippered feet dangling over the edge of the boat. Beneath them in the water, two of the fishtails—Loic and Musimu—had swum down to the ocean floor to fix a weighted line.
“How deep is it?” Bart asked as Loic surfaced.
“You don’t need to know that,” Loic replied, smiling. “This isn’t about going deep. It’s about discovering the water in a new way—discovering yourself in a new way.”
“He’s right,” said João. “The most important thing is to keep your body and mind relaxed at all times. Don’t push yourself to swim down too fast. Take it nice and slow to maximize your oxygen supply. Just follow the rope. We’ll be close by.” João nodded his head. “Okay, one at a time—first Connor, then Jez, then Bart.”
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