Brellitine Grever and The Sea of Gelled (The Brell Trilogy Book 1)

by Ruhi Jain

She was cut off by the entrance of Figgie, who ushered them all out of the hall to work. Brell quickly disappeared with Erene before Natalie could find her and make more trouble. When they reached the guest rooms, Erene whispered in wonder.

  “You actually stood up to Natalie!”

  Brell shrugged, pulse pounding in her head as she took steadying breaths.

  “No one says anything to Natalie, and so she bullies everyone into doing what she wants them to do.”

  Three mermaids came up to them.

  “What are you guys doing here?” Erene exclaimed.

  They all looked rather alike; curly brown hair, pale skin and pert noses. The only differentiating factor was the length of their hair. One had a brown bob cut, the other had medium length hair, while the third had long hair pulled back in a ponytail.

  The short-haired girl started, “We just had to —”

  “Had to tell Susan —”

  “— that what she did was amazing.” The long-haired mermaid finished.

  “Susan, this is Jane, Iyra and Kless, the triplets,” Erene introduced them. “They are just a month older than me.”

  “Um… thanks?” Brell said.

  “You’re my idol.” Iyra said. The sound of someone moving came from the passage.

  “Figgie shouldn’t catch us here!” Kless whispered. “Bye!”

  They departed as quickly as they came.

  “That was …” Brell shook her head, then looked at Erene, mind back on the task at hand. “You’ll have to show me how to prepare these rooms.”

  Erene, with a proud smile on her face, showed Brell how to clean the bathroom, the bed, and the floor. She also told her how to arrange the curtains, which direction to lay the flowers on the pillow, and even how to roll the hand towels in a compact cylindrical shape.

  As she was cleaning, Brell couldn’t help but admire the decorations. The room contained a hand carved, wooden four poster bed with sheer curtains, a bulky sofa and two chairs, both having red felt cushions and gold lining. A rather oversized dressing table with an obnoxiously tall mirror adorned the left side. The portrait of a school of colourful fish was hung above the bed, and marble in shades varying from cream to brown made up the interiors of the bathroom.

  While they were cleaning the washbasin in one of the rooms, Brell asked Erene, “Why is everyone so afraid of Natalie?”

  Erene sighed. “All you’ve seen now is just her really good side.” Brell looked at her incredulously. “You don’t know her other side. She’s really mean and strong enough that once she broke the jaw of a girl who refused to clean Natalie’s apron for her. She has one other friend, Stiny, and they terrorise everyone.”

  “For example …” asked Brell, now second guessing the way she stood up to her.

  “Just last week, they filled Dorothy’s drawer with slime. Her uniforms got dirty and she couldn’t go to work that day. Figgie cut Dorothy’s wages.”

  Brell’s jaw dropped, and she leaned in. “Why would they do such a thing?”

  “Because Dorothy wouldn’t give Natalie her dinner. The reason was silly, but the consequences …” Erene trailed off. “The worst part is that she is related to Ol’ Thomas in some complicated mess of aunts, uncles and brothers. Anyway, whenever she has a complaint, she goes to him. And that’s just the start.”

  After they had finished the guest rooms, Erene yawned.

  “This would be the first time that I’m actually getting to sleep in the afternoon. What are you going to do Susan?”

  “I’m not going in my room. You know, Natalie.” Brell left it there and swam Erene to her room. She wasn’t lying. No, she was not going to her room. There was something else on her mind.

  Chapter 16: Trouble

  “Miss Nigella?” Brell straightened her apron. Figgie turned, and Brell had to swim back a little to avoid an embarrassing collision. She was wearing large black spectacles and put them away the moment she saw Brell.

  “What do you want, Susan?”

  “Ma’am, my partner Erene and I have finished our work for today, except for cleaning the dishes after dinner.”

  “So?”

  “I was wondering if I could clean some rooms, you know, since I have some free time.” Brell said quickly. She crossed her fingers behind her back, praying that Figgie would give her the west side.

  Figgie’s impossibly large forehead puckered into a frown. “You would be the first servant to volunteer her free time for cleaning. Very well,” she scanned the brown folder that she always carried against her bosom. “The fifth floor rooms of the west side need cleaning,”

  Her heart almost burst with relief and happiness. Brell picked up the supplies she needed from the supply closet and swam all the way to the west side. There was only one thought on her mind: Timmy, I’ll find you.

  The west side of the castle was lavishly decorated with different types of wood. Ebony, mahogany, teak and even rosewood were used in the furniture, which was inlaid with intricate mother of pearl designs. She wondered what magic prevented them from rotting under water. Rich red and gold tapestries hung at each wall and the ribbed vault ceiling was supported by colossal columns. Small golden statues of mermaids and mermen decorated the west passageway which expanded into a larger area that had the floor inlaid with a beautiful glass and pearl mosaic. The large glass windows were gilded with gold and bordered by plush maroon curtains that let sunlight in so that everything shone. Peering through them, she saw a rather neat garden with a pebbled footpath running down the middle. The side of the white marble wall that protected the castle was also visible in the background.

  Brell started cleaning the first room, searching for signs that she was heading in the right direction. It looked very similar in layout to the previous guest rooms she had cleaned with Erene, but it had a different colour scheme.

  The moment she entered the room, she knew that Timmy could never be in it. It was too open and everything was out for display. Zeldae would put him in an off-limits area. Then again, she couldn’t resist calling out for him.

  “Timmy? Timmy? Are you here?” She whispered in a low voice.

  She felt like she was back in the forest, searching for him and he was nowhere. Silence was her only answer.

  Warm air spilt from her eyes, and fell onto the floor. How bizarre was this? Here she was in a room, far away at the west side of the castle, with tons of water over her head and she was calling out for her brother who most probably wasn’t even there? She felt like a stranded person. The Seas were not her home, but neither was the land. With a small shock she realised how far away she was from safety and, more importantly, her brother. She sat right there on the ground while sobs silently ripped through her. After a few moments, she shook her head, gulping in water, and scrubbed her hands over her face. She had to keep moving.

  The next few rooms also showed no results. Even then, she inspected every nook and cranny just in case there happened to be a trapdoor or some hidden passage. She found none.

  By the time she had cleaned all the allotted rooms, her hair had escaped from the ponytail, her apron was crumpled and her tail seemed to have lost its ability to help her swim. Worse, Timmy was nowhere to be seen.

  She was cleaning her apron when Figgie swam up.

  “Did you clean everything?” she asked, her voice dense with suspicion.

  “Yes.”

  Figgie’s eyes narrowed and she checked all the rooms. When she finally reappeared, the only thing she said was, “Miss Morris, you may go.”

  Brell gladly departed and headed back to her room. Fortunately, Natalie wasn’t there.

  “Oh Susan, I had such a good nap.” Erene yawned when they met at the hall for dinner. “But I’ll still sleep like a log tonight. I’m so tired. “

  Brell nodded and stirred her soup. Her hands and head were aching painfully. “We still have to clean the dishes tonight,” Erene reminded her.

  She nodded again and before she knew it, she had fallen asleep, her head rest
ing on the hard surface of the table.

  *

  A warm hand gently shook her shoulder. She mumbled something and shrugged the hand off.

  “Brell? Honey?” A very familiar voice whispered. Brell gasped and swung around, looking into the tired blue eyes of her mother. Worry and anxiety had etched permanent wrinkles next to them. Her wavy black hair was left loose, blowing around her face just like she remembered.

  “Mom?” She whispered and reached out to touch her extended hand. Warmth flooded her, enveloping her and making her feel blissful. Her exhaustion simply melted away.

  “Brell, why are you in the sea? You should be up, on land, with Lucy. You are not supposed to be here, my love.”

  “Oh, Mom!” She couldn’t get herself to explain her predicament. “I miss you so much. I wish I could tell—”

  *

  A cold hand shook her shoulder, yanking her out of her dream. She realised that it wasn’t her mother next to her. The feeling of joy disappeared and was replaced by the chilliness of the cold water around her.

  “Brell,” Erene said. “Wake up! We have to work.”

  Brell groaned and sat up. Her soup was as cold as ice, but she glugged it down all the same. The memory of her mother was so painful that she almost choked.

  “Where is everyone?” She looked around at the deserted hall, where just a couple of other mermaids were cleaning up. “How long was I asleep?”

  “I think half an hour or so.”

  After what seemed like forever, the dishes were done and the hall was sparkling, she said goodbye to Erene. Going back to her room, she flung herself onto her bed.

  “Well, well, well. Look what the octopus dragged in,” Natalie’s voice sneered.

  Brell leapt up, suddenly alert. Natalie and another girl she assumed was Stiny closed in on her. Stiny was tall and thin as a stick. She had a tiny, bent nose and thinning blonde hair.

  “Natalie, can we please not do this?”

  Natalie lumbered forward, and she saw a black gel-like substance in her hand.

  “Why not? You’re not afraid, are you?” Natalie spat. Stiny giggled.

  “Natalie,” Brell said slowly, warily. The room seemed to be getting darker. “What is in your hand?”

  “Do it Nat!” Stiny urged her on.

  Brell looked at both of them, realizing too late their motives for cornering her.

  Natalie flung the black goo straight at Brell. It spattered across her face, covering her eyes, nose and mouth — she couldn’t breathe. A split second later, she could feel the goo become stiff and harden into a plastic-like substance.

  “Gah!” she gurgled and her hands automatically tried to yank it off. It started to burn painfully. Her hands fumbled uselessly: it just wouldn’t leave her face! It was stuck to it like superglue. She tried to rip it apart but it just became tighter.

  “Callum, help!”

  Immediately, his familiar voice rang through her head.

  “What happened?”

  As quickly as she could, she sent a replay of the past five seconds to his mind.

  “Do exactly what I say. If you struggle, it will only become tighter. Breathe out of your nose and mouth alternatively till your water runs out. Then, using your palm, press the bump caused by the water. It will expand and loosen the Houp. You then just peel it off.” He said all that so quickly that she had trouble catching his words.

  She breathed out just like he said and when she pressed the bump, she could feel the black thing’s grip loosening. Ripping it away with a gasp, she started to breathe again. Natalie and Stiny had disappeared, leaving her alone in the darkness.

  “Are you alright?” Callum asked.

  “Yes, I think so.” Crashing heavily onto her bed, she rubbed her hands over her sticky face.

  “What happened?”

  “It was another servant, Natalie.” Brell explained, trying to stop her tail from quivering like a jellyfish. “I stood up to her during lunch, and since then, she hates my guts. Even told me — Oh! Callum, you have to tell Meaken that Erene is fine. I’ve met her!” Brell opened up her mind and let all the memories that she had with Erene flood into Callum’s mind. The way Erene talked, how she got excited when Lenny’s Ball gown appeared and her positive vibe that was simply contagious.

  Before she knew it, before she could even control it, all the bitterness, struggle and pain she had to cope with to find Timmy and every single feeling that she had tried so hard to suppress, now just spilled into Callum’s mind. The thoughts literally flowed like a gushing river and she couldn’t stop it. As her feelings poured into his head, she could also see them play out in front of her

  The scenes were blurred, jumbled and hazy because of their sheer number… but she could differentiate one from the other. Memories that she didn’t even know existed, presented themselves before Callum’s mind and hers — Timmy, wearing a light green shirt that their mother had just bought, hopping up and down with joy because he had something new that wasn’t a hand-me-down; Timmy, sobbing at their mother’s disappearance, clinging to Brell’s black skirt; Timmy, trying so hard to please their aunt by doing all the chores he could. Her heart ached as she remembered him trying to pull the weeds out the day before he was taken, looking over his shoulder, afraid.

  All of a sudden the memories grew dark and she saw the whole journey she had made so far in just a minute — meeting Callum in the woods, sacrificing her legs for a tail to save Timmy, waiting in Bucklebow Inn, getting to know that Callum was a prince, realising that she had to become a servant if she had to find Timmy!

  The thoughts became a little sweeter… meeting Lukas and seeing her brother’s cap on the ebony floor.

  They turned dark again: meeting Salamandar, her first confrontation with Natalie, and all the work she had to do in order to find Timmy.

  She concentrated and tried to control her thoughts. It was as hard as trying to keep balance in a turbulent river, like trying to cage an angry monster. Finally — at last — she could force them in. Her mind grew still. For a moment, none of them spoke.

  “That was…” His strained voice shattered the silence. “Overwhelming.”

  She couldn’t reply for a moment; she was still trying to get over the shock of what she had just seen. “Those thoughts were never meant to come out. I have to learn how to manage them.”

  “It will come to you… soon. Don’t worry.”

  She nodded, but realised he couldn’t see her.

  “Yes.” She thought. Still, she couldn’t deny the aching feeling in her chest that screamed worry.

  “I understand you’re protective of him. If all goes the way it should, he will be fine.”

  “He will always remember this place — even when he is safe — and it will haunt him. I don’t want that for him, Callum. He’s just a little boy! Why was he dragged into all of this?”

  There was silence at the other end for a minute. “Brell, what’s happened has happened. The good thing is that at least we are doing something about it. Do you have any new clues?”

  “None.” She felt a deep sadness.

  “Keep at it. I need to go. Sorry.”

  She sighed and curled into a ball. Those scenes… she hated reliving them. They had been like a sharp tipped knife that had cut a tear right across her heart.

  *

  Luckily, Natalie wasn’t there when Brell awoke. She made sure her bracelet was intact and that the pouch of money was secured to her apron. The latter couldn’t be left in the room with Natalie around. As she stepped out of D-5, she noticed a wooden clock at the end of the corridor, which was hung up near the ceiling. Time: 8:15am. Of course Natalie wasn’t there in the room! Brell was late for work, which started at 7:30am!

  The moment she entered the hall, her heart sank. It was empty! Someone poked her from behind.

  “Take this,” Erene said, quietly handing Brell a cold bowl of soup. “Don’t worry, I removed the fish chunks.” She grinned. “How are you a vegetarian?” Ere
ne asked as she watched her swallow the soup hastily. “Isn’t that just like eating a side dish, and not the meal itself?”

  Brell shrugged. “It’s just the way I’ve chosen to live. And so far, I’m happy.”

  They finished their work fast that day and she asked Figgie if she could clean extra rooms again. Figgie agreed.

  This time as she was cleaning the third floor, she was surprised to find one door locked. They were usually left open, but this one was an exception. It was like all the other doors, decorated with a gold seaweed design, but it was locked! Figgie had told her she should have no trouble cleaning as no one was currently living at the west side. She pushed against it, hoping it would open. Nope.

  When Figgie came to inspect the rooms, Brell said. “Ma’am, if I may be so bold as to ask, why is this door locked?”

  “Miss Morris, that is none of your concern.” She remarked sharply, and swam away.

  Of course, this immediately piqued Brell’s interest. What was so important that it was hidden behind a locked door that no one would talk about? After work she slumbered into her room, her eyelids feeling as heavy as rocks. She halted at the entrance, blinking blearily. Where was her bed? Two beds — the ones belonging to Natalie and Stiny — were the only ones in the room.

  “Look dirt bag,” Natalie yawned. “This room belongs to just us, you’ll just have to sleep in the closet.”

  “No.”

  “Excuse me?”

  “I said no!” She yelled. Boiling anger and rage filled every cell of her body, surprising her. They had no right to treat her this way. “I’m done with you poking your nose in my business.”

  Natalie waved her hand dismissively. “Please, you’re heating this room up with your ego. Just go and cool off somewhere and let us sleep.”

  Brell was tired of this. She was exhausted from working, and the last thing she wanted was to deal with Natalie. It was not as if Natalie was Aunt Lucy; she had no debt towards her. If she could spit fire at her, she would. Like a volcano on the verge of eruption, she literally felt like destroying something. Anything.

  Suddenly, the drawer in which Natalie kept her stuff shattered, spraying shards of wood in every direction and spilling her stack of uniforms on the floor, along with some other rather embarrassing objects. Natalie began screaming hysterically, yelling “Its Delps! Delps!” and she jumped onto Stiny, who buckled under her weight and almost collapsed.