Real Mermaids 2 - Don't Hold Their Breath

by Helene Boudreau

  Yeah, but don’t worry. I’ll figure out a way to get your legs back—both of you guys. But I wasn’t so sure. Yes, I could just crawl out of the water and become human again, but how was I going to get Luke and Serena back on their own two feet?

  I slapped the side of The Lady Sea Dragon’s hull to get Cori’s attention, hoping no one else would notice.

  “You made it back,” Cori whispered as she hung over the side of the boat. “Is Luke with you? And Serena?” She grabbed a bucket and dunked it into the water pretending she was about to swab the deck or something.

  “Yes, and we could really use your help.”

  “Okay, but make it quick. Lainey’s up on the dock talking to the Coast Guard people,” she whispered.

  I dunked underwater to catch my breath and racked my brain to try to come up with a plan.

  “Get the water-skiing tow rope ready off the stern,” I said quickly as I resurfaced. “Toss me one of those little orange buoys that were on the bench seat. And get rid of Lainey.”

  “Gladly,” Cori said, handing me a buoy.

  I forced the buoy underwater then dove to rejoin Serena and Luke under the hull just as the lock’s gate began to creak open to let the Martin’s boat sail through to Talisman Lake. A few familiar mers peeked around the big metal barrier, no doubt hoping for a welcoming rush of salty water to pep them up after a long wait in freshwater. I swam out into the lake with Luke as nonchalantly as possible, fighting against the pressure of the buoy against my stomach as it forced itself upward.

  Hi, guys! I waved with my free hand, trying to look friendly.

  I’m not exactly sure that my gesture was received in the spirit it was intended, because all of a sudden, the underwater realm was filled with ear-piercing screams.

  Aieeaieee!

  Serena’s face lit up. Mother! Father!

  Medora zipped past all the other mers and screeched cries of relief as Serena emerged from the lock. She swam to embrace her daughter. Finalin, on the other hand, was less than enthusiastic.

  You! He pointed and shot me a menacing look. He was still as ugly and scary as last time, except now—thanks to a few Mermish lessons—I could understand what he was saying. Thankfully, Serena and Medora had him in a family hug, buying Luke and me some time to duck, dodge, and dash around the school of mers.

  Just keep swimming, just keep swimming, just keep swimming, swimming, swimming, I chanted under my breath to Luke while everyone enjoyed their little reunion. Just because it turned out that Finalin and Medora weren’t murderers didn’t mean they weren’t capable of seriously maiming us.

  Gladly, Luke whispered back. That dude looks like a mob boss.

  Pretty close.

  I shot a glance into the lake to see if I could spot The Lady Sea Dragon. The boat had almost reached a point about two hundred feet away, but it looked like it was slowing down. Cori stood at the stern, scanning the water.

  I kept the buoy tucked under my stomach, waiting for the perfect time to signal Cori, but it kept pushing me upward, making it hard to swim. We’d only made it about a hundred feet past the lock before the metal gate swung shut. Like it or not, we were stuck in the lake, but if we could just put enough distance between us and the pod of mers…

  Glurp!

  Our luck ran out when the bright orange buoy slipped out of my grasp and shot up through the water. It popped out from the water’s surface, landing back with a splash.

  Get her! And him! Finalin motioned for his henchmen, the same ones who were at his beck and call back when I’d been in the lake with Mom. They snapped to attention and began to swim our way.

  Swim for the boat, Luke called out, grabbing my arm. By that time, Cori had seen my buoy signal and was shouting for Trey. He steered the boat around and headed in our direction while she tossed the water-skiing tow bar into the water.

  But something held me back. Serena!

  Serena glanced our way, then looked from her mother to her father. Quicker than mermishly possible, she swam to the henchmen, grabbed their weapons, and tossed them aside, then whizzed toward us.

  Go, go, go! Luke and I kept swimming for the boat as Serena raced to catch up.

  I was the first to grab the towrope and held it out for Luke as he approached. Serena was still a dozen feet or so away, but I had to get the boat heading out into the lake and away from Finalin and Medora. I popped my head out just long enough to yell to Cori, hoping no one would see.

  “Get us to my Gran’s in Dundee.” The Martin’s house was too close to town. Gran’s would be remote enough for us to do what we had to do—if we could get there.

  Trey got the boat turned around, nearly ripping off my arm in the process. Serena had almost caught up, but so had the two henchmen, closely followed by Finalin and Medora. Medora had just gotten her daughter back. It didn’t look like she was giving up without a fight.

  But neither was I.

  Come on, Serena, I called. You can do it!

  It would have been so easy to leave her there with her family, to get Luke and me to safety. But despite her dognapping tendencies, Serena was kind of growing on me. Finally, she reached out and grabbed the bar of the towrope.

  Hold on tight!

  Cori was watching through the water, and I saw her signal to Trey to put the pedal to the metal. All of our necks snapped back with the sheer speed of the boat.

  We flipped over to our backs so the rush of water from the propellers wouldn’t suffocate us, but I wished I hadn’t looked back, because Finalin, Medora, and the mer-goons were gaining on us. I could barely speak against the force of current from the moving boat.

  Bf-faster-fff! I rang.

  Our high-speed chase continued past the point and well into Talisman Lake. The farther away from the locks we traveled, the fresher and thinner the water felt, and the harder it was to breathe. Thankfully, that meant the mer-goons had fallen away, but Finalin and Medora were still in hot pursuit thanks to years of getting used to the freshwater. Serena looked like she was making out okay too, but Luke’s mouth was opening and shutting like that goldfish I’d won at the Port Toulouse Fair when I was six.

  But Mom had survived being trapped under the Becker’s dock in the freshest part of the lake for three weeks. We could do this. We had to!

  Bff-just concentr-ff-ate, I rang out to Luke at my side. Fff-we just need to outrun them-fff.

  Luke turned and smiled at my joke about running, then closed his eyes to zone out and concentrate on his breathing. I wished I could close my eyes, but Finalin was at my tail, hand out to grasp it. Medora was just a few feet behind, calling out to her daughter.

  Serena! What is this? What have you done?

  But Serena ignored her and reached her tail over to swat her father’s hand away when he reached out to grab me. The force of her hit was enough to send him hurtling backward. He righted himself and continued to chase us, but try as he might, our boat was too fast for him to catch up.

  Soon, Medora gave up too, and I watched her disappear into the darkness of the water as we sailed farther and farther away.

  My heart rate finally settled to a semi-normal rate once we reached a group of islands about half an hour later. Trey had to slow the boat to about half speed because the channels of water between the islands were narrower and shallower than the open lake. My arms ached and my fingers had gone numb around the tow bar, but reaching the islands meant we were almost at Gran’s cottage.

  By then, Serena had let go of the tow bar and was swimming alongside the boat and keeping up easily, unaffected by the freshwater, probably because she’d lived in the lake her whole life. Luke and I, on the other hand, were panting for breath like we’d just run some of Mr. Higgins’s calisthenics drills on Sports Day.

  Almost there, I rang to Luke. He looked my way and managed a weak smile, but his eyes were unfocused and his eyelids drooped. Are you okay?

  Luke nodded but a tremor shook through his body. One of his hands dropped from the tow bar, then the
other, and I watched in horror as he drifted away as the boat sailed on.

  My face broke the surface of the water. “Stop!”

  Cori was at the side of the boat in an instant. She called out for Trey and I heard the engine power down. “What? What is it?” Cori asked, leaning over the stern.

  “Luke.” I couldn’t help it; I took a huge breath of air to keep from suffocating. It burned through to my lungs but gave me the relief I’d been craving since the water changed from salty to fresh. “He let go.”

  By then, I was breathing air in big hungry gulps. I tried diving back in to go find Luke but resurfaced hacking a mouthful of water. Serena swam around my tail and looked up at me through the water. Her eyes searched mine, trying to figure out what was going on.

  Luke! I pointed behind the boat. She understood and took off in his direction.

  “He can’t hold on anymore,” I said to Cori between gasps as I swam back to the boat. I couldn’t last any longer either. The fresh air felt like a million pinpricks deep inside my lungs but it also felt good, like soothing aloe vera on a sunburn.

  “Holy crab cakes. That really is a tail.” Cori crouched over the side of the boat and got her first good look at me sporting fins. “That is the freakiest thing I’ve ever seen. Can I touch it?”

  “Have at it,” I said between gulps. “But don’t get too close. I’ve been known to puke.”

  Cori ran her hand along my tail, which was now prickling with heat. I held onto the side of the boat and searched the water to see if I could spot Serena or Luke. As much as I wished I could just dive into the water to find them, it was too late. I was changing back.

  Finally, after what seemed like forever, Serena appeared with Luke in her arms. I put my hand to his chest. Unconscious but still breathing. I turned to Cori.

  “My grandmother’s cottage is just up ahead. We need to get him there.” I tried to ignore the searing pain coming from my tail, but I could tell it had already begun to split. It burned like ten thousand hair straighteners.

  Serena, can you carry Luke to the boat shed? I rang to her and pointed to my Gran’s about a hundred yards away. She nodded.

  “What can I do?” Cori asked, looking desperate.

  I took a deep breath, relieved that the pain in my legs was subsiding, but for once, the thought of legs didn’t fill me with its usual glee.

  “Pass me my shorts?”

  •••

  Trey bumped the boat against the dock, and Cori and I jumped out to tie it off to Gran’s dock. A quick look up at the cottage showed an empty driveway, which was good since it meant Gran wasn’t home but bad since Dad hadn’t arrived with the Merlin 3000 yet. Cori had called and told him where to meet us. I needed a way to keep Luke safe and hidden in the meantime. I remembered how I’d kept Mom in the rowboat full of water inside the boat shed. No one would see him in there. Why reinvent the wheel?

  “Meet you in the boat shed.” I pointed and found the boat shed’s key under the rubber mat. Trey jumped in the water to help Serena with Luke. Once inside, I opened the garage door to let them in, then pressed the boat-lift button to lower the rowboat down from the rafters.

  Trey held onto Luke in the chest-deep water.

  “Where’s Serena?” I asked.

  “She took off toward that island back there.” Trey pointed to the Becker’s cottage.

  “Why would she do that?” I wondered out loud as I climbed into the rowboat, now settled in the lake. I pulled the plug to let the water in.

  “Maybe to steal another dog?” Trey joked but his face was tense and his hands shook. “So, what do we do now?”

  “Wait a sec until I can get this thing flooded, then we can pull him inside.” I helped the process along by dumping water into the boat from the lake with the plastic bailer.

  Cori buzzed around the boat shed, looking jumpy and wound up. “What can I do? Give me something to do!”

  I remembered how Mom had felt so much better after I’d added bath salts to the lake water, although Luke didn’t seem like the spa type.

  “Can you run up to my grandmother’s cottage? Get the box of salt from the cupboard above the microwave. The key is under the garden gnome by the door.”

  “I’m on it,” Cori said before disappearing out the door.

  “Best to keep that girl busy. How is he doing?” I asked, turning to Trey. The rowboat was now three quarters full and I searched underwater to plug the hole.

  “Not good.”

  I reached out to grab Luke’s arms underwater. “Here, help me get him in here.”

  It took a little maneuvering to keep from tipping over, but Trey helped keep the boat steady as I pulled Luke over the stern.

  “What do we do now?” Trey said once Luke was safely inside the boatful of water.

  “Well, hopefully my dad got the Merlin 3000 working again. Then everyone can get back on their own two feet.”

  Karma is a crazy thing because just as the words left my mouth, Trey’s arms flew up and he stumbled back into the water.

  “Trey! Are you okay?” I jumped onto the boat shed’s side dock and pressed the button to raise the rowboat out of the way so Trey could get his balance. But Trey hadn’t lost his footing. Something had him. Something hairy-armed and ugly.

  Finalin! I rang through the air, hoping the sound made it through the water to him. The splashing stopped and the bubbles cleared so I could see him properly. It was the same scruffy pockmarked face, now filled with hate and betrayal. He held Trey around the waist, leaving him to sputter for breath at the water’s surface.

  Where is she? Where is my daughter? Finalin screeched.

  I don’t know! She was with us but she left. I considered jumping in to help Trey but what if Medora was lurking just outside the boat shed door? She could pull me under as well. Then what would happen to Luke?

  Just let him go! I pleaded.

  No! Make Serena a Webbed One. I know you can. Then I let go. He pulled Trey under again as I watched in horror. Trey flailed underwater, struggling for air.

  “Okay, okay!” I yelled, forgetting my mermaid voice. I can do it. I’ll do it!

  Finally, Finalin let Trey resurface. He coughed and gasped for breath.

  Just then, Serena swam into the boat shed.

  No.

  Finalin glanced from Serena to me. Yes, Serena. This is your chance. Your chance to be free.

  No! Serena said more forcefully. You made me leave home once before, but I belong here with you, with mother. She held out her hand and motioned past the frame of the garage door. Medora swam into view and drifted to her daughter’s side.

  You betray me? After all we’ve sacrificed? Finalin screeched. His face flamed red and he tightened his grip on Trey. I will not have it. My daughter will not suffer as we’ve suffered.

  Finalin looked at me fiercely and pulled Trey under again. This time I couldn’t help it. I ran around the narrow dock skirting the inside of the boathouse and launched myself into the air, cannonballing into the water behind him. Who did this guy think he was?

  I said, let go of him!

  I grasped onto Finalin in a piggyback and pulled at his arms, his hair, anything I could to get him to let go of Trey. Finalin thrashed and bucked like a wrestling crocodile, forcing me underwater. The back of my throat burned with the rush of lake water flooding my nostrils, setting off a big red panic button in my brain. What had I done? Did I really think I could take on a fully grown mer-maniac?

  All of a sudden, I heard a WHACK and Finalin’s body went limp. I let go and grabbed onto Trey to help him to his feet as Medora and Serena swam to Finalin’s side.

  “Whoa! What the heck?” Trey stood and caught his breath, then scrambled onto the dock. “That guy is crazy!”

  “Not as crazy as I am.” Cori stepped out of the shadows, brandishing an oar and a smug look.

  “Nice shot!” I held out my hands for Cori and Trey to help me onto the dock before Medora decided I should take Trey’s place. But
Medora didn’t look like she was out to get anyone. Finalin’s eyes fluttered a bit and Medora looked back at me with a slight smile. She whispered something to Serena, then disappeared out the boat shed door with Finalin in tow.

  Sorry about that. I crouched down on the dock while Cori and Trey poured the box of salt into the rowboat and checked on Luke.

  Don’t worry. He has a hard head. Serena turned to where Medora had just disappeared, then smiled at me. Tshank shoe, she said in English.

  No, thank you. But are you sure about this? About staying here, I mean? I asked. The rest of the mer-world considers Talisman Lake a prison, you know.

  A prison, yes, but home for me. Serena scanned the lake and nodded. For now.

  Okay, but if you ever change your mind about this… I checked to make sure Medora and Finalin weren’t nearby and felt for the chain around my neck with the toe ring pendant. Perfect. I hopped back into the water and waded over to Serena, then placed the chain around her neck as she held her long hair out of the way. This will be our signal.

  Serena looked up at me through the water and held the toe ring between two fingers. I searched around the boathouse dock and spotted a loose metal spike from one of the spars. Hang it from there. I mean, if ever you want to become human again.

  Serena nodded and dropped the pendant to her chest. Then she swam to the lake’s bottom and found a sharp rock and looked like she was cutting long strands of her hair.

  What are you doing? I asked, horrified.

  She ignored me and weaved her hair into an intricate rope-like braid, then swam back to me and tied the braid around my wrist like a bracelet.

  Like a friendship bracelet. I remembered making something similar during summer camp.

  Friend. Serena touched my arm, then looked up at Trey and Cori before turning tail and disappearing out of the boathouse and into the lake.

  Just then, Eddie and Dad stumbled into the boathouse. Dad’s hair looked like he’d been through a wind tunnel and his glasses were perched precariously at the tip of his nose.

  “Sorry it took so long! We had to go to three computer stores and the traffic to Dundee was nuts. There are some really crazy people out there!”