I looked up, “Go get help!” I bellowed at Jamie.
Heather was squatting on the ground, sobbing incomprehensibly. I looked down into Shayla’s terrified eyes and remembered how it felt to know that you were going to die. Without thinking, I kicked off my shoes and dove in. The familiar shock of cold water cleared my head. If I could just get a hold of her I planned to drag her away from the treacherous currents and swim in for shore away from the pier.
I groped in the foamy surf until I found an arm and started to try and swim away from the shipwreck. Desperate hands clawed at my clothes and grabbed me by the shoulders. I could feel her weight force me under as she tried to pull herself up on me. I remembered reading about how drowning people often go into a panic, taking their would-be rescuers down with them.
Nice job, I thought to myself, as I struggled to get free from her death grip. I kicked furiously, not ready to die. All I could think about was Ethan. I managed to break the surface and catch a breath. Then I saw her face, and I was overcome with relief as Lorelei plucked me away from Shayla and swam a short distance away.
“Thanks! ” I gasped, catching my breath as she held my body up, looking into my eyes searchingly. “I came to see you! I need to talk–” She looked at my bleeding lip with alarm and started to swim away, taking me with her.
“No! ” I cried, “We need to take that girl to shore! ” I hoped she would listen to me this time.
She nodded, and holding me by the waist we flew through the foam. She grabbed Shayla’s wrist and pulled her along. I thought fast as she powered us to shore.
“Lorelei– meet me here tomorrow. I have a wet suit now, I can stay in the water longer! ” She looked confused, “Tomorrow? What is tomorrow? ” It occurred on me that she had no concept of time. I tried to think of how to explain it to her.
I pointed up, “The next time the sun comes, alright? ” she nodded, her eyes lighting up.
“One sleep! ” she said with a brilliant smile, and dropped us off at the water’s edge. I scrambled to my feet, looking around for witnesses, “See you tomorrow. ” I dragged Shayla by the arms as far up the beach as I could and collapsed in the sand. I looked back to see Lorelei had disappeared.
Shayla’s eyes were rolling in her head. I turned her onto her side and pounded on her back.
She began spewing salt water with alcohol fumes. I looked up to see Jamie frantically rushing up to us with a couple of the surfer boys in tow. I recognized Long from the farmers market.
Shayla was retching and coughing now but at least she was breathing. Jamie started telling them what had happened, and they both looked at me in awe. Heather staggered to the beach behind them, fell to her knees and began to vomit.
I was cold, wet and barefoot as I stood up and straightened my clothes. I touched my lip and saw fresh blood on my hand. No one said a word as I turned on my heel and walked over the sand to the stairs. I got myself home as fast as I could on bare feet. Relieved to see Abby was still at work, I knocked on the door to be let in, dripping and cold.
Based on Cruz’s shocked expression, I must have looked pretty bad. He wrapped me in a beach towel as I explained what had happened.
“This is all because of your insane obsession with that mermaid. You’ve got to stop going out to see her,” he begged me.
“She had nothing to do with it!” I insisted, “She saved my life again, and I’m going to meet her tomorrow after school,” I looked at him sternly, “Either with or without you.” At that moment Abby walked in, singing to herself. She stopped in her tracks when she laid eyes on me, and rushed over to my side, her face filled with horror.
“You should see the other guy,” I joked. Even Cruz didn’t laugh at that one. I held an ice pack to the side of my face as I recounted the whole story of what happened, with just a little judicious editing. Abby was outraged and wanted to call the police, but I calmed her down.
“Karma is a powerful thing,” she fumed, “I suppose that girl will get what’s coming to her eventually.”
I thought about my role in goading her and felt a little ashamed.
“I’ll be fine Aunt Abby... All I want right now is a hot shower,” I took my towel and headed to the bathroom.
I took a good long look at my face in the mirror. My swollen lip had stopped bleeding and it looked like the cut would close up pretty well. It hurt when I ran my tongue along the inside my mouth where it had gotten mashed. I was going to have a good sized bruise along my cheekbone.
I would live, and I was going to get a chance to find out the truth. It hurt to smile but I did, for I was finally going to have a talk with Lorelei in privacy.
It was worth it.
As we pulled up to the school Friday morning, I took a deep breath and turned to Cruz,
“Here goes nothing.”
Abby wanted me to stay home but I refused. I wasn’t about to give anyone the satisfaction of thinking I was cowering at home, afraid to show my face. I parked the car and looked up to see Ethan’s blue truck pull into the space next to us. I got out, and when he saw me the pleasant look on his face dissolved.
He came close, horrified eyes inspecting my face. He groaned, “Tell me what happened.”
“It’s no big deal,” I said.
“Shayla jumped her at the pier,” Cruz piped up. Ethan’s face hardened and his eyes grew cold.
“It’s okay,” I said, “I’m fine.” I’d never seen him really angry before, and it was a little alarming. Looking around, he spotted the group of surfers that hung out near the parking lot. I could see that Shayla wasn’t among them, and I wondered if she had fully recovered. Ethan headed over towards them, fists clenched.
“Uh-oh...” Cruz said as we started walking to class. I looked over see Long and Ethan talking animatedly. Heather and Jamie were in the crowd and I saw Ethan turn their way. It looked like he was having words with them too, and I could hear his raised voice from across the parking lot.
“Let’s get out of here,” I said, mortified. As usual, I was the subject of whispered speculations and curious stares all day long. Heather and Jamie approached me between classes and apologized, handing me a paper sack. I looked in to see the shoes I’d discarded before I jumped in after Shayla and felt a little flush of guilt, remembering my attempts to provoke them.
They wanted to let me know that Shayla was sorry too, and that she’d be alright. I accepted their apology, telling them I just wanted to forget the whole thing.
I truly did, for all I could think of was what I had planned for after school.
Cruz spent most of the day trying to convince me not to meet Lorelei. He didn’t know that I wanted– no– needed to find out about my mother. I was adamant. By lunchtime he had given up and agreed to accompany me. Megan was shocked, both at my bruised face and my after school plans.
“Mermaids are clearly unpredictable,” she said, dismayed, “You don’t know what you’re getting yourself into.”
“I’ll be out of the water on my surfboard, and wearing a wetsuit,” I explained calmly, “What could possibly go wrong?”
“Um, she could accidentally kill you?”
We had to stop talking when Ethan approached and pulled up a chair next to mine.
“What,” he paused, looking at me seriously, “were you thinking?”
“I wasn’t thinking,” I replied evenly.
“I hear that!” snorted Megan.
“You should never have gone in after her– you’re lucky she didn’t drown you!” Ethan said.
I smiled facetiously, “I have been said to be lucky.”
“It’s not funny! Especially after what she did,” his jaw clenched at the thought. He must have heard the whole tale from the surfer crowd. “That was really brave. You saved her life,” he said, looking at me in admiration.
I looked down, ashamed.
“It was no big deal, besides, everybody else was too drunk to do anything,” I felt a flush of guilt, because I knew that I didn’t deserve any
praise for saving Shayla. He was right about her nearly drowning me. I looked up at him with pained eyes, “Can we just drop it please?” He shook his head and smiled at me, “Marina, you are one strange girl.” Cruz chimed in, “You don’t know the half of it!” They all laughed for their own reasons while I twisted in the wind, forced to take the credit for something I didn’t do.
The rest of the day literally crawled by. I kept looking at the classroom clock, eager to get to the beach. I wanted Cruz’s help to get down with my gear and be there with my clothes when I got out of the water, so I kept reassuring him it would be fine. I was certain Lorelei wouldn’t hurt me, desperate to know the truth about my mother.
When we got to the parking lot Shayla was standing there waiting by the Porsche. She looked meek and contrite, and I knew instantly she was there to apologize. Ethan and Cruz stepped forward as if to protect me, but I waved them away from us. She needed a chance to speak her piece.
“Go now!” I snapped at them, eager to get the school day over with. I walked up to Shayla, looking her in the eye.
“I’m sorry about yesterday,” she said, her voice filled with shame. She dropped her head as if awaiting a blow, “You must hate my guts. I don’t know why you did it. I don’t deserve to be alive.”
“Please– Please– Just forget about it,” I pleaded, “Everyone needs a little help sometimes.” I was thinking about Lorelei.
Shayla looked down at me incredulously, “I was wrong about you.”
“Yeah, well, we all mess up. Let’s put it all behind us and start over.” She shuffled her feet a little, “I owe you a purse,” she said.
“Don’t worry about it,” I held up my hand, “Seriously– not necessary.”
“Thanks for being so cool about it,” she said, lifting her head to look at me curiously, “You know... Ethan really likes you.” She met my eyes intensely, “He’s not as tough as he looks– just don’t play around with his feelings.” She turned to leave with her head down again.
“Shayla?”
“What?” she asked, turning back suspiciously.
“Lay off Cruz and Megan, okay?”
She looked taken aback, “Sure.”
She walked away and Ethan rushed over, searching my eyes for a clue as to what had transpired between me and Shayla.
“Are you still up to go surfing tomorrow?” he asked.
“Absolutely! First thing tomorrow,” I smiled even though it hurt my cheek.
“See you then,” he said, watching as I climbed into the Porsche.
I looked over at Cruz, slowly walking towards us, “Come on!” I called out, “Chop- chop!” Cruz rolled his eyes at me as he slid into the passenger seat, “Can we re-think your after school plans?”
“Not a chance!” I said as we pulled out. I looked back to see Ethan standing by his truck, eyes glued to us as we drove away. I waved goodbye.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
BUOY
When we finally arrived home I scrambled to slip into my swimsuit and pack my wetsuit, my hands clumsy with impatient energy. I made sure to include the gloves, boots and hood, remembering how my hands and feet got numb while surfing. Rushing Cruz out the door, I carried my bag while Cruz toted my surfboard down to the beach, dragging his feet. I marched my reluctant cousin across the sand to the waterline and looked around. There were a few beachcombers and someone throwing a stick in the water for an enthusiastic black lab. I left my things with Cruz and raced up the steps to the pier.
I flew down the weathered wooden planks and onto the wrecked ship. When I got to the fence I could see sea lions on the concrete chunks below and a thrill of excitement made my heart pound in my throat. I waited a few minutes for a strolling couple to clear the ship before I called out for her.
She appeared right away, her hair shining like a new penny in the sunlight.
“You came! ” she cried joyously.
“I’m going to get on my board and meet you out there, ” I said, pointing to a spot in the water clear of the ship and pier.
She nodded, and I turned and ran off the pier, bounding down the stairs and racing back across the sand to where Cruz was waiting on the beach. I know he was hoping that Lorelei wouldn’t be there, and his face fell when he saw the look in my eyes. I stripped off my clothes and hurriedly donned my wetsuit, this time adding booties and tucking the cap in the back. Cruz zipped me up.
“I don’t think I’ll be more than an hour, okay?” He nodded apprehensively, looking scared.
I grabbed my board and ran into the surf with it, duck diving under the waves the way Ethan had shown me. I paddled out to the area I had indicated and sat up on the board. She rose from the water immediately and we exchanged smiles. She held her head and shoulders out of the water, and I could see her powerful tail swish to and fro beneath her.
“What happened to your face? ” she asked me.
“It’s nothing, an accident, ” I said, reflexively touching my lip. “Lorelei, I need to know about my mother. ”
“Yes, ” she said, “Our sister. ”
“You mean that my mother is your sister? ”
“We are all sisters, ” she said.
“That makes you my aunt...”
“Aunt? ” she sounded puzzled.
“Yes, aunt– my mother’s sister is my aunt. ”
Her beautiful face registered no understanding. Maybe she was wrong about my mother.
Maybe I just happened to look like her. Maybe...
“Adria is my sister, ” she said. I nearly fell off of my surfboard when she spoke her name.
“Adria...” I was stunned, my head spinning.
“Where is Adria? ” she asked, “We miss her.” My god, I thought, she doesn’t know...what do I say?
“Lorelei,” I said gently, “She died just after I was born.”
“Died, ” she said with a little shake in her musical voice, “She is no more? ” Her face fell, and I knew she understood.
“No, ” I said somberly.
Her singsong voice took on a mournful timbre, “She left us for a human man. She saw him and said goodbye to us. After a while… she didn’t come back. ”
“I never even knew her, ” I paused for a moment, hot tears stinging my eyes. “What was she like? ”
“She was one of us, but she was different.”
“How? ” I asked, my head still reeling from the shock.
She smiled her wild gleeful smile, recovering from her moment of sorrow, “She liked to watch the people.” She looked over at the cement ship, “Pretty ladies used to dance and the sounds used to come from there. Adria watched them all the time. She was very sad when they stopped coming. ”
I thought about Stella dancing to the big bands. How could my mother have seen her, and then my father so many years later? That would make her over a hundred years old. It simply wasn’t possible; Lorelei must be confused.
I thought about my father, and wondered how he could have met my mother. I suppose he might have seen her the same way I saw Lorelei, but it was hard to imagine what would have brought him out to the boat– he never went to the beach if he could avoid it.
“What did she say about my father? ” I asked.
“She said she must leave us to be with him, ” she frowned, “She said she wanted some things she could only have if she left her sisters.”
“What things? ”
“Come with me to my hiding place! ”
She grabbed the edge of the board and began to propel it through the water. I laid down flat and held on for dear life. Turning back to look at the coastline, I saw Cruz’s tiny figure recede. I had taken this trip before, but mostly underwater and in a state of shock. We finally arrived at the remote spot.
We had learned about sea mounted weather stations in science class, so now I knew what it was. The buoy was anchored to the ocean floor and transmitting information about temperature, wind speed and wave action. It looked like a flying saucer, a floating disk with a small tower
attached and an equal amount of bulk below the surface.
I imagined the meteorologists taking readings from this one. I wondered what they would make of it, ridiculously festooned with the debris of human life. In my research, there were tales of mermaids fascinated with people, collecting random objects. Guess they got that one right.
I looked around and could see nothing but ocean. I wondered how far out we went, two, maybe three miles? I doubted I could paddle it.
“Lorelei, ” I said nervously, “You will take me back soon, right? ”
“Look! ” she cried, holding up the bag Shayla had dropped in the water.
“My bag? ” Was that what she brought me here to see? She put it back on the buoy. “What about my mother? ” I asked.
“I have her favorite thing, ” she said, swimming around to the other side. She danced back, bobbing and twirling in the water. She held up the old weathered baby doll. Tears sprang to my eyes again. So she had wanted a baby.
“Lorelei, how many sisters do you have? ”
“Many,” she laughed and it sounded like musical bells, “Too many to count. And now I have you for a sister too. ”
“I’m your niece.”
“Niece? ” She seemed puzzled again, and then twirled and darted back around the buoy. I had the sensation I was dealing with a child, a capricious child. She popped back up, brandishing a bottle of blue window cleaner. This was starting to get surreal.
“Lorelei, How old are you? Lorelei? ” How could she be my aunt when she looked no older than me? She dove under the board and surfaced on the other side. “How did my mother leave...
did she grow legs? ”
“It is not allowed, ” she frowned, knitting her lovely brow together, “But she would not listen. ” She started frolicking around again.
“Lorelei! ” I tried to get her attention but she was back at the buoy. “Lorelei! ” She popped up on the opposite side of the surfboard, grinning, “I saw your human, ” she said.
Derrolyn Anderson - [Marinas Tales #1] - Between The Land And The Sea Page 15