by Lysa Daley
“Hello,” I said pressing the answer call button on my phone, allowing the Bluetooth to connect with my earbuds.
“Hey Lacey, I got your message.” He sounded rushed.
“Great, I need to—”
“But part of it got cut off.”
“Listen, do not meet with Serena! She’s the one who’s been —”
“What? You’re breaking up,” Stryker said.
Cell reception in the canyons was notoriously inconsistent. The rushing wind from the open road certainly wasn’t helping either.
“Don’t meet with Serena, the hotel sales girl, alone!”
“Yeah, I’m meeting with Serena,” he said, and I knew that he hadn’t heard me.
“No!”
“Where you at?”
“I’m on my way to you.”
“Listen, I gotta jump. I’m hanging out with this awesome chick from a band.”
“Stryker! Listen to me!” I quickly tried to explain, but I heard familiar click of the call disconnecting.
Damn it! I’d lost him. He hadn’t heard my warning. It would be my fault if something happened to him.
Sam was doing his best to get us to the beach as fast as he could. We zoomed past cars, zigzagging through traffic. Testing my courage, the motorcycle leaned so much from one side to the other that I thought we might tip over.
Still, swallowing my fear, I called out, “Doesn’t this thing go any faster?”
Sam didn’t reply. Instead, he downshifted and the bike rocketed off.
A handful of cars sat scattered in the Seahorse Inn parking lot. Stryker’s black Range Rover was parked alone on the edge of the sandy beach. I saw Serena’s blue Mercedes in the center of the lot.
Sam parked the motorcycle next to the Range Rover and put his hand on the hood.
“The engine’s cold,” he said. “He's been here for a while.”
“Let's go check inside,” I said as we headed to the Inn. The gift shop was closed. A metal screen covered the dark interior.
“They could be anywhere by now,” Sam said.
From where I stood, I had a clear view out the bank of windows in the cafe/bar. The only people on the beach were a man and woman walking toward the pier. I instantly recognized Stryker’s black leather jacket, along with Serena’s long red flowing hair.
“There they are.” We hurried to a door that led to the outside patio then down to the beach.
Had my phone call to Stryker made her suspicious? Is that why she was leading him away?
“Stryker!” I called as Sam and I hurried toward the couple. They didn’t respond or change their pace.
“They can’t hear us,” Sam replied.
“Stryker!” I tried again.
“What's that sound?” Sam asked in a dreamy voice. “Is it music?”
It was singing. Serena was using her siren’s song to lure Stryker toward the sea. I glanced at Sam. Even from a distance, the enchanted song was affecting him to. I stopped and grabbed Sam's arm.
“Put your earphones in and turn on music. Really loud music.”
“Why?” he asked.
“She's controlling him with her singing. It can hypnotize a man. You don't want her getting in your head too.”
“Why doesn’t it work on you?”
“Because I’m a girl,” I said.
Sam nodded gravely and complied, sticking the earbuds in his ears. I heard the thumping beat of music coming from them.
“Turn it up,” I said, wanting to make sure it was loud enough to block Serena’s song.
“What?” he replied, and I let it go because if he couldn’t hear me next to him, then he couldn’t hear her.
Stryker and Serena were heading towards the end of the pier. I knew I couldn’t let her get him in the water. If she did, he’d be gone.
“Stryker!” I jogged down the long narrow pier on the wide weathered planks.
He didn’t respond, but Serena, who was holding his arm, turned toward us. Her eyes flashed with fury. Only a few feet from the pier’s end, she gestured for him to climb on the railing.
“What’s she doing?” Sam asked, removing one earbud as Stryker pulled himself up on the railing.
“He’s going to jump off.” I tried one last time to call to him. “Stryker! No!”
But he leapt off the side, plummeting from view. A second later, Serena also jumped.
I stopped. It took Sam a couple steps before he stopped too. “C’mon. They’re getting away.”
Defeated, I replied, “Once a siren has her victim in the water, she can pull him down to the depths. By now, they’re already gone. ”
But then the deep-throated whirl of a motor rumbled to life as a sleek motorboat zoomed away from the pier.
“No, they’re not,” Sam replied. “They’re right there.”
They hadn’t jumped into the water. She had a boat waiting for them below the pier. As the boat sped away, I spotted a dark-haired man, one of her selkies, steering it north.
“I bet I know where they’re going,” I said. “She’s taking him to the cove.”
“The cove with the ghouls?” Sam asked.
“It’s a remote area of the beach a few miles north,” I said, having explained my previous encounter to him on the ride over. “If we hurry, we might be able to get there on your motorcycle.”
“That’ll take too long.” Sam grabbed my hand and pulled me toward a wide set of stairs twenty yards back on the edge of the pier. “We need to get down to the water.”
I wasn’t sure what he had in mind until Sam approached a couple teenagers bobbing in the water on a Jet Ski. From his back pocket, he pulled out his badge.
“Sorry guys.” He flashed them his shield. “But I need to commandeer this Jet Ski in the name of the LAPD.”
“Ha, right.” The boys laughed, presumably thinking it was a joke, but Sam wasn’t smiling.
“I’m not kidding,” he said firmly. “You don’t want to hinder an official investigation, do you?”
The smiles faded from the boys’ faces as they handed over the Jet Ski.
“Of course, officer,” said one of the boys. “Um, do you know when it’ll be back because my mom will kill me if I don’t bring it home?”
Using his official voice, Sam replied, “I can’t give you that information at this time.”
The boys nodded then reluctantly slunk up the beach to watch us.
“Official investigation?” I asked.
“I didn’t say whose official investigation,” he replied. “Get on.”
“You have your badge with you?” I asked as I climbed on. “You just left the hospital today.”
“Of course I have my badge.” He flashed the inside of his jacket where I also saw a revolver-shaped bulge. “I have my gun, too. Never leave home without them.”
As he started the Jet Ski motor, I asked, “Have you ever driven one of these?”
“Nope, but it’s basically just a motorcycle on water. How hard can it be?”
Before I could reply, he twisted the throttle, and we jackrabbited forward, following the path of the speed boat.
Because of our small size, we were faster. Not fast enough to catch up to the boat, but it didn’t take long before we could see it in the distance. Even though they had a pretty good head start, I wasn’t worried because I knew where they were going.
The ride across the water’s top was a whole lot rougher on the Jet Ski than it had been on the motorcycle. The constant up-and-down bouncing made me feel seasick.
Something else was making me feel nauseous too. I knew I couldn't put Sam in danger again. And we were currently speeding headfirst into danger. He’d just gotten out of the hospital today. I knew what I had to do.
I tapped Sam on the shoulder and yelled to be heard. “Slow down for a second.”
He throttled back. “Everything okay?”
“Sam, I have to tell you something. See that beach up there?” I pointed half a mile up the coast. He turned his head
and nodded. “When we get close, I want you to pull in to call for backup. Then get out of here. You can’t let Stroud catch you.”
“What? No, I’m coming with you.”
“He’ll wipe your memory,” I argued. “You can’t be there when Stroud and his team show up.”
He quietly considered what I’d just said. “I’m not leaving you alone.”
I could hesitate any longer.
“Listen, what I'm about to do is going to freak you out. I can explain later; but for now, go call Stroud and tell them that we’re at the beach where the ghouls were found.” I pulled my feet up onto the seat.
“What are you doing?”
I secured my messenger bag across my body. I could feel the gun and my old magic wand inside.
“I’ll follow them. From a safe distance.” And then I stood up, and concentrated. “I promise I’ll explain later.”
“Explain what?” he asked as I transformed into a bird.
Chapter Twenty-Four
My little sandpiper wings lifted me into the air. Down below, Sam’s face twisted in shock as I flew up and onward. I had just completely blown his human mind.
“No way!” His jaw dropped and he stared at me with wide eyes. He must’ve watched me fly for a moment because it was a good thirty seconds before I heard the sound of the Jet Ski engine roar back to life
With the wind at my back, I flew north with ease and speed. As I approached the familiar cove, I expected to see Serena and Stryker, but there was no sign of either of them. The speedboat sat empty and idle on the beach as if it has been abandoned.
Where had everyone gone?
A feeling of deja vu crept in. The sun would set soon. Maybe twenty minutes. Maybe sooner. A growing sense of dread filled me. I didn’t want a repeat of what had happened last time I was in this cove. I flew up to see if they had gone around the bluffs to the beaches on the either side. They weren’t there, either. They couldn’t have just vanished?
I circled back around to the cove and landed on a small rocky outcropping high up on the bluff where I felt safe. After a moment, a pair of seals emerged in the water directly below me, barking to each other.
Serena surfaced in her siren form. She gracefully swam over to the same rock where she’d ripped the heart out of Mr. Saperstein. Pulling herself up on the rock, and not bothering to change out of her siren form, she looked like a sea queen on a throne. Calmly, she began to sing as sweetly as if she were singing a baby to sleep.
The seals disappeared below the waves, and I feared they were going to retrieve Stryker from somewhere beneath the water. Just like Jason Saperstein. But where? The mermen had searched this spot and hadn’t found any sort of holding area.
From where I sat, I saw that Sam had pulled onto the beach to the south. On foot, he was making his way up to the road. I felt a little wave of relief knowing that he wasn’t going to get mixed up with this dark magic.
The sun continued to sink. Time was running out. I couldn’t wait until the cavalry arrived. If something was going to be done, it was up to me. And me alone.
I left my safe perch high above the waves and glided down to the water’s surface, coming in for a smooth landing. I could’ve either waited up here, or tried to go below the waves. Something told me that I needed to act fast and see if I could figure out what was happening below the surface.
But that meant I had to face my fear of the water.
I would have to turn into something aquatic. Before I even did anything, I started to shake I was so terrified. I racked my brains, trying to think of something that was a sort of compromise, something only partially aquatic.
Finally, inspiration struck.
I concentrated, shifting from a bird to a medium-sized green sea turtle. Floating above the surface, I easily bobbed along with my head out of the water. My flipper-like turtle legs pushed me through the water.
After a moment, a feeling of tranquility came over me. My fear of the water vanished. I’d inherited a sort of turtle-like zen. They were wise and gentle creatures. Somehow being in the water felt like the most natural thing in the world.
As I got my bearings, I dipped my head into the salty sea, and for the first time in my life, I got a clear vision of the spectacular beauty of the underwater kingdom, nearly overwhelming me. In the distance, I saw the edge of a huge, flowing kelp forest. Colorful fish and other sea life swam past, going about their business.
I had to keep moving. I summoned my courage and dove toward the ocean floor twenty meters down. I quickly discovered that turtles moved faster beneath the surface than above it. Nearing the bottom, I spotted seals coming and going from an area between two large rocks — one sitting slighting in front of the other as if to block some sort of entrance.
Upon closer inspection, the two large rocks blocked the entry to an opening, out of which a third selkie appeared, beckoning the other two away. This couldn’t be good. Serena must’ve needed them up on the surface.
After they kicked their way to the surface, I used the opportunity to glide casually into the cave. I did my best to look like an innocent little sea turtle, who just happened to wander in foraging for food.
Instead of darkness, rays of an odd harsh light filtered down from above. My air bubbles rose up. I swam higher to investigate, my head breaking the surface into fresh air.
There was a hidden cave.
This must’ve been where Serena’s been keeping the missing men. I pulled my turtle body part way onto the jagged rocks and paused, searching the quiet and empty cave. I crawled the rest of the way out of the water and tried to stay hidden near the rocks.
I transformed back to my human form. Unlike the calm turtle, my human fear came racing back. I was forty feet underwater, and those creepy selkies could come back at any second. I had to work fast.
I followed the light around a narrow curve in the cave that opened into an expansive space. The walls were lined with iron bars and wood frames, similar to oversized lobster traps. I counted half a dozen. Unlike a jail cell, these enclosures were long and low, not tall enough for a grown man to stand up in, but long and low enough for someone to lie down and sleep.
Were these actual underwater traps? What would they capture?
“Hello?” croaked a shaky voice.
“Who’s there?” I jumped. Cautiously, I moved down the line of cages until I found a small, gray face inside one of the traps. “Mr. Morty! Is that you?”
“Who’s there?” He studied my face, not clearly recognizing me. “You? Is it my new girl?”
“Yes, it’s me, sir. Lacey McCray,” I jiggled the locked cage door. When it wouldn’t budge, I remembered that I finally had my wand with me. I pulled it out ready to use it. “Stand back, Mr. Morty.
“Don’t! The door’s enchanted,” he blurted. “The whole cage will explode and roll up into a fireball if you use magic on the door.” He gestured behind him to the burned out remnants of another cage, with one side completely gone.
“Who did that?” I asked.
Another voice spoke up in the darkness. “His stupid brother.”
Startled, I whipped around to see a shadowy figure hunched in the dark cage directly across from Mr. Morty.
“Don’t call my brother stupid,” Mr. Morty firmly objected. “He was twice the man you could ever dream of being, necromancer.”
The man crept forward into a small pool of light, and I immediately knew who he was. Even in the gloom of the cave, Boris Bulgakov looked deathly pale and pasty white, like an albino getting over the flu.
“There’s a warrant out for your arrest as a necromancer, Mr. Bulgakov,” I said.
“Like I care.” He smirked weakly. “At this point, a nice stay at Blackthorn sounds better than being held captive by that singing sea-bitch.”
“Don’t listen to him,” Mr. Morty warned me. “He provided the siren with an illegal pack of ghouls. He’s helping her.”
“Ha! For all the good it did me,” he replied. “I’m a priso
ner here, same as you, aren’t I now?”
“She just finally realized that you can’t be trusted.” Mr. Morty shook his head in disgust and turned to me. “Lacey, don’t try to use magic to open the locks. My brother, a much more powerful wizard than me, tried to use his magic to unlock the cage, but they’re protected by an incendiary spell. Whole thing will erupt into a fireball.”
“Was your brother okay?” I asked, wincing at the blackened cage.
“Those vile seal-men pulled him out. Not before he suffered a few burns. But then they took him away not long after I arrived. Maybe two days ago,” he explained. “I’d hoped that he’d escaped and was home by now. Did he help you find me?”
I shook my head. “No, I followed the siren here.”
I didn’t have the heart to say more even though I knew his brother was not safe and sound at home. He was still missing. Two days ago had been the first day the full moon. It was likely that he’d been Serena’s first victim this month.
“Do you know where he is?” he asked
“I’m sorry but I don’t,” I said.
“I do. The dwarf is dead,” the necromancer insisted.
“You don’t know that!” Mr. Morty exploded. “And we’re elven. Not dwarves.”
“Whatever,” he replied. “A dead elf is as dead as a dead dwarf.”
I turned to the necromancer. “Maybe you could butt out for a minute. You’re not really being helpful.”
“Listen, lady, it’s a free country. If I want to talk, then I’ll —”
“Quiescis,” I commanded as energy shot from the tip of my wand toward the necromancer.
He froze mid-sentence. His whole body went rigid. I’d only meant to shut him up, but I’d also frozen him in place. I really needed to practice a bit more.
“Nice job, Ms. McCray,” Mr. Morty said, pointing at my wand. “You’re quiet powerful with that little wand.”
“Thanks, but I’m actually a little rusty.” I slipped my white birch wand back into my bag. “Either way, he won’t stay quiet for long. Unfortunately.”
“You must go. Before they return.” Mr. Morty stood hunched over because of the low cage and limped toward me.