by E. G. Foley
Jake had paid the captain of the fishing boat extra because he felt bad for having to subject him to the oubliette spell, making him forget what he had seen. When they had left him at the docks, the man had smiled and waved goodbye to them. “So glad you enjoyed our little trip around the islands,” he had called.
Maddox was pretty well banged up; Liliana was hanging on Dani for having saved her life; Sapphira and Isabelle seem to have reached a truce after their shared ordeal; and Jake was beyond embarrassed that his true feelings for Dani should have come out in such spectacular fashion in front of everyone—including her.
Surely everybody knew now exactly how much he cared for her, and there was certainly no more hiding it from himself, either.
He was almost too mortified even to look in her direction, though at the same time, he could not stop glancing at her. He asked her if she was all right, and she said she was. Then he just shut up again for fear of saying something stupid. He suddenly had the precarious feeling that one false move could mess up everything between them.
If only Red were there. With all his heart, Jake longed to jump on his Gryphon and fly away from all these confusing emotions.
At length, he left the others in the ship’s big cabin and went outside onto the deck. Leaning his elbows on the ship’s rails, he stared down at the water and kept to himself for a while.
For a quarter-hour, he watched the sunset, letting the wind ripple through his hair, and trying to calm down after this too-intense day. It soothed his mind, gazing at the rolling waves breaking rhythmically against the big ship’s hull.
He was a bit taken aback, however, when he spotted the shipwreck ghosts floating around just beneath the water’s surface, fish swimming through them here and there. Pale, wispy, bluish-white figures were wafting about underwater. Ghosts dressed in their best traveling costumes whooshed by busily beneath the surface and upon it, as though not quite realizing they were dead. He could hear them complaining to each other, asking what was holding up their journey.
Thankfully, though, none of them noticed him as the packet ship steamed by, for he was in no mood to talk to spirits. The ethereal figures whooshed aside as the steamer plowed on right through them.
Before long, the ferry had left the site of the old shipwreck behind.
Some people looking over the rails nearby hadn’t seen the ghosts, but they began pointing at the water and exclaiming that they’d spotted a large, striped barracuda hunting near the surface.
Jake had heard they could be nasty, so he peered down until he caught a glimpse of the long, impressive fish.
“I think he’s following the ship!” a boy nearby said to his parents with a laugh.
As more bored passengers started coming over to look, Jake moved back from the rails and went to sit by himself on a bench by the bulkhead where the life rings hung.
Pondering the shipwreck ghosts again, he thought of Sapphira choosing her dress from the old lost luggage strewn about the seabed.
It was odd to think of how smitten with her he had been that day, and after. That Jake seemed like someone else.
Someone deluded.
Oh, the mermaid was pretty, of course, but after this afternoon, there was no further question as to where his heart truly lay.
He saw now in hindsight that his infatuation with Sapphira for the past few days had been pure illusion, a passing fancy that had more to do with his own ego than anything to do with her. He barely even knew the real Sapphira, which proved it had been nothing but sea magic all along, just as Nixie had warned.
What he shared with Dani, on the other hand, well, now, that was as real as breathing…
She came out to check on him right about then, as she was wont to do. His bizarre behavior must have worried her. Absurdly, his heart lurched when she sat down beside him.
She studied him suspiciously.
“What?” he muttered, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye and praying he wasn’t blushing, but he feared he was.
“What’s wrong with you?” Dani asked bluntly.
“Huh? Nothing.”
She stared at him. “So you’re all right, then?”
“Of course.” He huffed and kept his head down, avoiding eye contact in terror that she’d see right into his heart. She knew him better than anyone, after all. And he would die if she laughed at him.
“I’m just a little irked,” he said. He had to say something, after all, and this was at least a half-truth. “We didn’t learn much of anything about the orb. We didn’t find the treasure. You nearly got killed—all of us nearly got killed—and now the orb is broken. Leave it to Jake to make a muck of everything.”
“Oh, don’t say that—” she started.
“Please,” he interrupted, glancing at her. “You’re always making excuses for me. Seeing me as better than I am. I really think…one of these days, you’re going to wake up and realize what an idiot I am. Then you’ll walk out on me.”
Her eyebrows rose slowly at his heartfelt tone; he wondered if she realized this was probably his greatest fear.
And for a lad who had a cult of evil sorcerers out to kill him, that was saying something.
She stared at him for a second, then snorted with a low, uncertain laugh, color slowly filling her cheeks. “Don’t be silly, ye glocky bloomin’ mumper. I’ve always known you were an idiot, Jake, and I’m still here, aren’t I?”
He chortled in relief at her sassy reply and looked askance at her, gratefully.
She flashed a grin and punched him in the arm. “And look on the bright side—”
“Ow.”
“At least you got to ride a dolphin.”
“Aye. That part was good.” Jake stared down at his feet, but now he couldn’t wipe the smile off his face. He shook his head to himself, mystified, but gripped the edges of the bench where he sat with both hands for fear that if he let go, he’d catch her up in the biggest hug the world had ever seen.
She was just so dear to him in that moment with her dauntless optimism, the glass forever half-full.
He really didn’t know how he would’ve survived without her.
Ride a dolphin, indeed.
Thankfully, he got a hold of himself before he did something really daft, and looked away with a wry nod.
She studied him intently. “You sure you’re all right, Jake?”
“Yep.”
“Very well, then. I’ll leave you to your thoughts, since it’s clear you’ve got something on your mind.” She stood up. “Just wanted to look in on you…after all that.”
“Thanks. But you’re the one who nearly died.” He flicked a fierce glance up at her from beneath his lashes, vowing to himself that nobody out there would ever harm one hair on her head.
“That was close,” she admitted. Nodding, Dani folded her arms across her chest and gazed at the sunset for a moment, then turned to him again. “But, as usual, you didn’t let that happen, Jake. So thanks once again for saving my life.”
He smiled tenderly at her. “Anytime.”
Dani smiled back, still looking slightly confused. Pivoting slowly, she headed back toward the doorway to the ship’s cabin.
“Dani?” he said abruptly. “Can I tell you something?”
“Sure. What?” She spun around, staring at him.
Jake stood up on legs that prickled beneath him with crazed nervousness over his still-murky intent. For once in his life, he went to her instead of always the other way around.
He cleared his throat, then forced himself to walk toward her, gazing at her as he went. Blimey, when did the carrot get so pretty?
In truth, he was frequently startled these days at how much of a young lady she seemed, now that she was nearly twelve. Maybe Miss Helena’s lessons on deportment were finally starting to work. She was still a little dusty from their battle on Nisáki, her knees and hands scraped from her falls on the rocks, like the ragamuffin she used to be back in the rookery.
But her emerald eyes
glowed when she looked at him and her auburn hair blew about her shoulders in the sea breeze, and Jake supposed with a knot in his stomach that, pretty soon, boys of all sorts would be clamoring for her attention.
His pulse thumped with the reverberating force of Davy Jones’s cannons as he shuffled over to her, hands in pockets. He glanced about and saw that, thankfully, the other passengers were far enough away not to overhear them, especially over the steam engine’s noise.
Dani tilted her head up to gaze at him. “What is it?”
Though the evening was pleasant and cool, Jake’s cheeks burned. “You scared me back there,” he forced out. “I thought you were gonna die.”
“Me too. How did you do that, anyway?” she asked, lowering her voice and glancing around furtively. “Have you been practicing? Because you were brilliant.”
“No, Dani, you were,” Jake answered softly, staring into her eyes. “You don’t even like Sapphira, and yet you nearly gave your life for her and her sister.”
Her mouth tilted wryly. “It probably wasn’t very smart of me.”
He shook his head with complete sincerity. “It was heroic. Like, Derek Stone and Tex heroic.”
“Really?” A sweet shade of pink blossomed in her cheeks, fading into her freckles.
Jake nodded, and a shudder ran through him at the memory of nearly seeing her get squished. “As to how I did it…” He shook his head. “I’m not entirely sure myself. I guess the thought of that thing taking you away from me…”
She furrowed her brow, studying him.
He felt his face grow red hot, and faltered. “It’s just that I got a glimpse for a moment there of how life would be if you weren’t with me, and I can’t have that, Dani O’Dell!” he said awkwardly. “Not now. Not ever. Savvy?” With all the courage he possessed, heart slamming in his chest, he reached out and carefully clasped her fingers.
Dani looked down at their joined hands and then gaped at him with such astonishment she looked like she could’ve fallen overboard. “What are ye tryin’ to say, Jake?”
“Oh, I have no idea!” Suddenly losing his nerve, he pulled his hand back and darted for cover behind his usual bluster. The words burst from him before he had any conscious forethought of what to say. “Only that I do wish you’d stop searching everywhere to find a special talent, because it’s ridiculous! You just being you, Dani—” He faltered. “That’s as magical as it gets.”
Her eyes popped open wide, and then Jake paled, realizing how perfectly doltish he sounded.
He froze for a second, offered a hapless little smile, and then completely lost his nerve. With that, the would-be Lightrider fled from the startled young girl, bolting off down the deck like a pickpocket into a crowded street.
He was rather ashamed of that, actually, considering he had stood his ground in battling all sorts of monsters and even a Norse god.
But this was different.
Dani stayed behind with her mouth hanging open while Jake ran for his life.
Chest heaving, he ducked around the corner, out of sight behind one of the ship’s great, tall smokestacks. Blast it, he was as bad as that Gryphon of his, fleeing from the pelicans.
He raked a trembling hand through his hair and winced to know he had humiliated himself well and truly now. But it didn’t matter.
He was routed. Totally out of his element.
He stared into space, wrestling with his terror of abandonment. He knew his parents had not left him of their own accord, but when something cut this close to the heart, fear didn’t listen to reason.
Love, in short, was the scariest thing he’d ever faced, and the most powerful. After all, if it could explode rock monsters into dust…what might it do to him?
# # #
Well, that was utterly bizarre, Dani thought, both astonished and delighted by Jake’s sweet words about her. They gave her a warm glow inside, but she stood there, confused, gazing down the deck in the direction he’d sprinted off for no apparent reason.
Maybe he hit his head in that rockslide, she thought, because he sure wasn’t acting normal.
Well, he might’ve been scared into realizing how much she actually contributed to their group, even though she didn’t have any magical abilities. But she was not about to read anything into it. It almost seemed like he was trying to say…
But no! Impossible. Her heart beat faster, but she didn’t dare let herself believe he might’ve finally noticed her as a girl and maybe even returned her feelings a bit. Having her hopes dashed would hurt too much if she was wrong.
Knowing Jake, this rush of feeling would be forgotten by tomorrow and he’d be on to the next thing, the next adventure or challenge or crisis.
Still puzzled, Dani shook her head to herself and turned to rejoin the others inside. But she stole one last, curious glance over her shoulder; all she saw down the deck was a handsome blond head peeking around the corner, then it whisked out of sight instantly.
She chortled to herself as she walked away. Boys are so strange.
# # #
Hours later, far below the waves, Davy Jones sat on the giant clamshell throne of King Nereus, picking his nails with his knife, and waiting for any word of the Atlantean orb.
He felt like he could explode with impatience. He was so sick of waiting! A few merfolk courtiers cowered here and there, but they knew who was in charge now, ever since he and his forces had occupied the city.
King Nereus himself, as well as his proud chief bodyguard, Tyndaris, and the old Professor Pomodori presently occupied unused soul cages nearby.
Jones had ordered them set up in the throne room, where he could keep an eye on his captives. He was beginning to regret that decision, however. Their company was tedious.
“You’ll never get away with this,” King Nereus vowed from behind the bars of his cage for the umpteenth time. “The Assembly of Sea Kings will hear of this, I promise you—”
“And do what?” Jones retorted. “What part of ‘devil of the Seven Seas’ don’t you understand, fish-man? You should have cooperated while you had the chance.”
“His Majesty did cooperate!” the warrior bellowed, trying again, uselessly, to rip apart the bars of the cage.
But thankfully, First Mate Carnahan rushed in just then to save his captain from his boredom. “News, sir! We finally got a lead!”
Jones shot to his feet. “Tell me, Carnahan!” he said to the onetime nasty British sailor whom he’d transmogrified decades ago into a rather impressive half-human thresher shark.
“There was some big commotion on the island of Nisáki a few hours ago, and a barracuda spy of ours just reported in. He saw the boy you’re looking for riding away from the island on a dolphin in service to the crown princess.”
“Sapphira?” the king breathed.
Jones ignored him. “Tell me the fish followed the lad. Did he see which way he went?”
“Aye, sir! The boy got onto a fishing boat. Barracuda followed it to Malta. He nearly lost them there, but he kept swimming back and forth along the quay until he spotted the whole crew of those brats going up the gangplank of the steam packet to Catania!”
“So…they’re somewhere on Sicily. Well, that narrows it down nicely,” Jones said. “Carnahan, redirect all your forces to scour up and down the Ionian Riviera. That cheeky lad had ‘aristocrat’ written all over him—and now he’s playing host to a pair of princesses? They’ll want someplace posh, and if it’s Sicily, then I’d wager on Taormina. Aye, rubbin’ elbows with all the Grand Tourists. And Carnahan?”
“Aye, sir?” The first mate stood at attention.
“Tell the boys to keep an eye out—and hurry up and find these brats! I want my orb. We’ve only got two nights until the full moon. If we need to go ashore to fetch it, timing’s everything.”
“Aye-aye, Cap’n.” The thresher shark man saluted, then hurried off with a swish of his long tail to redirect their search.
CHAPTER 19
Thunderclouds Gathering
It was funny how life could bounce you up and down like a yo-yo. After yesterday’s brush with disaster, the next day was one of the happiest of Jake’s young life.
From the moment he opened his eyes in the morning, the world looked shiny and bright. He jumped out of bed, excited to see Dani.
He put a little more care into dressing for the day and combed his hair, trying to decide before the mirror whether it looked better with the front slicked back or hanging down on his forehead. He wondered if Dani had a preference. Then he raced out of his room to see if she was up yet.
She came out of the girls’ chamber wearing a fetching blue polka-dotted dress, and climbed the few steps onto the rooftop patio at almost the exact same minute he did.
She ran toward him and he ran toward her, and then they stood staring awkwardly at each other, both grinning.
“Good morning,” she said while his heart did a little dance in his chest.
“Morning. H-how are you?” he replied.
“Fine. You?”
“Fine, too.”
They attempted to chitchat like everything was normal, but it wasn’t. Not anymore. An agonizing lag in the conversation dropped upon them probably for the first time since they’d known each other.
For a moment, they just stood there in hopeful silence, not knowing where to look.
This is terrible. I’m making a fool of myself! thought Jake.
“Um…” He knew he had to say something to try to restore some normality between them. “About yesterday—”
“Yes?” Dani asked breathlessly.
“Those things I said on the boat…” He gulped.
“Uh-huh?” Dani nodded at top speed, while the morning sunlight danced like streaks of flame in her red hair.
“It probably came out kind of stupid, but I-I just wanted you to know how much I…uh, appreciate you.”
“Right. Oh, yes, of course—I understand. That’s very nice. Thank you. I appreciate you, too, Jake—and I…appreciate you, um, appreciating me.” She laughed lamely and he joined in.