The House in the Cerulean Sea

by TJ Klune

  The woman’s eyes widened.

  “We’re not,” Linus said hastily. “Talia here has the most beautiful garden that is well cared for. Why, I don’t know that I’ve ever seen something so immaculate.”

  It didn’t appear to do much to calm the woman, though Talia preened. “Thank you, Mr. Baker!” She looked back at the woman. “You can’t tell by the way he dresses, but sometimes, Mr. Baker has good taste.”

  The woman nodded, head jerking up and down. “That’s … nice.” She cleared her throat. “A garden you say? On the island? I thought it was…” She blanched.

  Talia cocked her head. “You thought it was what?”

  “It … uh. Doesn’t matter.” She glanced quickly at Linus before very obviously forcing a smile on her face. “Tell me about your garden, and I’ll see if I can figure what would be right for you.”

  “Oh no,” Lucy groaned. “Now she’ll never stop talking.”

  Talia ignored him as she launched into a very thorough explanation of her garden. In fact, it was so thorough, Linus thought she was going over it inch by inch. And while he secretly agreed with Lucy, he remained focused on the shopkeeper, watching for any sign that she was just humoring Talia in order to get them to leave.

  Though that certainly seemed to be the case at the beginning, the woman began to relax and interrupted Talia, asking questions about pH levels in the soil, and what kinds of flowers and plants she grew. The woman seemed impressed with Talia’s knowledge and what she had created.

  Eventually, she said, “While the B.L. Macks are considered top end, I’ve found they tend to wear down quicker. Someone like you”—she coughed—“who knows what they’re doing, might do better with the Foxfaires. They’re sturdier and don’t cost quite as much. It’s what I use here in the shop and at home.”

  Talia put the spade back on the shelf almost reverently. “Foxfaires? Garden Tools Monthly said they—”

  “Garden Tools Monthly?” the woman scoffed. “Oh, my dear child, Garden Tools Monthly is now the Garden Tools Weekly of the garden tool world. It’s all about the Garden Tools Bi-Monthly. It’s what all serious gardeners read.”

  Talia gasped. “It is?” She glared up at Linus. “Why didn’t I know this? What else has been kept from me?”

  Linus shrugged helplessly. “I have no idea what’s going on.”

  The woman squinted at him. “Are you all right, sir? Are you senile?”

  Linus sighed as Lucy cackled.

  * * *

  The total, after being rung up, was astounding. Linus had never spent so much on gardening tools in his life.

  Talia smiled up at the woman. “Can you excuse me for a moment?”

  The woman nodded.

  Talia turned away from her, smile disappearing. She looked frantic. She grabbed Linus’s hand and tugged on it, pulling him down. “I don’t have enough,” she whispered. “And we can’t push her down and steal it, right? Because that’s wrong.”

  “We absolutely cannot push her down and steal it,” Linus said.

  Lucy rolled his eyes. “I knew you were going to say that.” He frowned and then reached into his pocket. He pulled out a handful of crumpled bills. He held it out to Talia. “Is that enough, you think?”

  Talia shook her head. “No, Lucy. You can’t. Those are for your records.”

  Lucy shrugged. “I know. But not all of them are broken. And the ones that did break were my fault anyway. You can have it.”

  “Put your money away,” Linus said quietly. “Both of you.”

  “But, my tools—”

  He stepped forward to the counter, dropping their hands as he pulled out his own wallet. He smiled weakly at the woman as he handed her his Diners Club Card, something he only used in emergencies. She placed it on top of the imprinter and snapped the handle over for the receipt.

  He heard whispering behind him and glanced back, wanting to make sure that they weren’t actually planning on robbing the garden store. Instead, he found Talia smiling, her eyes wet as Lucy wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

  The woman cleared her throat, and Linus turned back around. She handed him his card and started to bag up the tools. Linus felt Talia step beside him, reaching up to the counter, waving her hands as she couldn’t quite see over it. The woman handed her the bags.

  She hesitated. Then, “This garden of yours. It sounds lovely.”

  “It is,” Talia replied without a trace of ego.

  “Would it—I like to take pictures of the gardens here in Marsyas.” She pointed toward a cork board on the wall with photographs of different gardens. “From the people who shop here. Every garden is different, I think. They reflect the personalities of those who care for them.”

  “There are no dead bodies in our garden,” Lucy said helpfully. “But other than that, it’s pretty much exactly like Talia.”

  “That’s good to hear,” the woman said faintly. She shook her head. “Perhaps—if it’s all right with your Mr. Baker here—perhaps I could come out and see your garden one day? In the spring, when things are blooming? Or sooner, if that would be all right.”

  “Yes,” Talia said, eyes sparkling. “Oh yes. Except, it wouldn’t be Mr. Baker. You’ll need to ask Arthur. But I’m sure he’ll be okay with it. Mr. Baker is here to make sure we aren’t starving or getting beaten or being kept in cages. He goes home soon.”

  Linus turned his head toward the ceiling, asking silently for guidance.

  “Oh,” the woman said. “That’s … good?”

  Lucy nodded. “So good. But Mr. Baker isn’t all bad. I mean, sure, I tried to scare him off the island when he first arrived, but now, I like that he’s alive and not … the other way.”

  Linus sighed.

  “Wonderful,” the woman said weakly. “Lovely to hear. I’ll send word to Arthur when I can make the trip.”

  Talia gave her a dazzling smile. “I hope you’re prepared to be amazed. My garden makes all those ones on your picture wall look like crap.”

  It was time to go. “Thank you,” Linus said stiffly as he grabbed the children by the arms and began to pull them from the store.

  “Bye, plant lady!” Lucy screeched. “See you real soon!”

  They were outside back in the sunlight when Linus was able to breathe again. But before he could speak his mind, he was surprised when his right leg was wrapped tightly in a hug. He looked down to find Talia holding on to him. “Thank you, Mr. Baker,” she said quietly. “That was very nice of you.”

  He hesitated, but then reached down and patted the top of her head through her cap, something he wouldn’t have dared to do even a few days ago. “Think nothing of it.”

  “He’s so wonderful and generous,” Lucy said, spinning in a circle on the sidewalk, arms outstretched for reasons Linus didn’t understand. “And I hope he remembers to do the same for me, so I don’t have to spend my own money and feel left out and have to open a pit to hell and watch this village be swallowed whole. Because that would just be so easy.”

  Linus barely had time to wonder why Lucy’s threats didn’t scare him as much as they once had before they were on their way.

  * * *

  “Far out,” the man in the record store breathed, eyes glazed and bloodshot. He had long hair that fell on his shoulders and he looked as if he could use a bath.

  Which meant, of course, that Lucy was entranced. “Far out,” he agreed. He’d managed to climb onto the countertop, and was sitting in front of the man—“Call me J-Bone, can ya dig?”—on his knees. There was another man in the back of the store, watching them warily.

  “You’re, like…” J-Bone made an explosion noise, spreading his hands wide.

  “Yes,” Lucy said. “That’s me. Boom.”

  J-Bone—Linus distrusted him immediately for having such a name, honestly—looked down at Talia, who was sitting on the floor of the record store, humming as she inspected each of her new tools. “Little dude’s got a beard. And she’s a lady-dude.”

 
“It’s very soft,” Lucy said. “She has all these soaps for it. They smell like flowers and girly stuff.”

  “Righteous,” J-Bone said. “Respect, lady-dude.”

  “This is a trowel,” Talia said. “It’s mine.”

  “Cool.” He turned back to Lucy, who was only inches from his face. “What can I get you, little dude?”

  “I require records,” Lucy announced. “My others were broken after I had a bad dream about getting eaten by spiders, and I need to replace them. Mr. Baker is going to pay for it, so we can spare no expense.”

  J-Bone nodded. “I don’t know what you just said, but I heard records, and records I can do.” He nodded toward the man standing in the back. “Me and Marty can hook you up.”

  “You smell funny,” Lucy said, leaning forward and sniffing deeply. “Like … plants, but not like any that Talia has in her garden.”

  “Oh, yeah,” J-Bone said. “I grow and smoke my own—”

  “That’s quite enough of that,” Linus said. “We don’t need to know anything about your extracurricular activities.”

  “Who’s the square?” J-Bone whispered.

  “Mr. Baker,” Lucy whispered back. “He’s here to make sure I don’t burn anyone alive with the power of my mind and then consume their souls from their smoking carcass.”

  “Rock on, little dude,” J-Bone said, offering a high five which Lucy gladly accepted. “I mean, I hope that doesn’t happen to me, but you do you.” He tossed his hair back over his shoulder. “What are you looking for?”

  “The Big Bopper. Ritchie Valens. Buddy Holly.”

  “Whoa. Old school.”

  “It keeps the spiders in my head away.”

  “I can dig it. You like the King?”

  Lucy scoffed as he bounced on his knees. “Do I like the King? Of course I like the King. I think my real dad met him once.”

  Linus chose not to ask a follow-up question to that one.

  “Real dad, huh?” J-Bone asked, leaning forward on the counter.

  “Yeah.” Lucy’s eyes shifted side to side. “He’s … not around.”

  “Deadbeat?”

  “You could say that. He’s got a lot going on.”

  “Oh, man, I get that. My dad doesn’t think I’m doing anything with my life, you know? Thinks that I should be doing more than the record store.”

  Lucy was scandalized. “But—but the record store is the best place ever!”

  “Right? He wants me to be a personal injury attorney like him.”

  Lucy pulled a face. “My real dad knows a lot of personal injury attorneys. Trust me when I say, you’ll be better off here.”

  “That’s what I think. Ever heard of Santo and Johnny?”

  “‘Sleep Walk’ is my jam, man!” Lucy exclaimed. “But I don’t have that record.”

  “You’re in luck. Because I think I got one copy left in the back. Let’s see if we can find it.”

  Lucy jumped off the counter as J-Bone came around. They began to walk toward the back of the store. “Yo, Marty!” J-Bone said. “Got a little dude looking for some golden oldies. Let’s see if we can help him out.”

  “Righteous,” Lucy exclaimed, staring adoringly up at J-Bone. “Goldie oldies!”

  Marty didn’t speak. He just nodded and turned to walk farther into the store.

  Linus didn’t like how far away they were getting from him. He glanced down at Talia. “I’m going to make sure they’re okay. You all right staying here by yourself?”

  She rolled her eyes. “I am two hundred and sixty-three years old. I’m sure I’ll be fine.”

  “Don’t leave the store.”

  She ignored him, going back to lovingly tracing her new tools with a finger.

  Lucy, J-Bone, and Marty were out of sight. Linus followed where they’d gone. Around the corner near the back of the store was a door that had been shut. Linus tried to open it, but found it locked. He frowned and pressed against it again.

  It didn’t budge.

  From inside came a cry and a loud crash.

  Linus didn’t hesitate. He threw his weight against the door. He heard it crack in its frame. He stepped back and rushed forward, crashing into it with his shoulder.

  The door burst off its hinges, falling onto the ground.

  Linus almost stumbled but managed to catch himself at the last minute.

  Inside, he found Marty slumped against the far wall. J-Bone stood above him, a disgusted look on his face.

  Lucy was flipping through records stacked in a crate.

  “What happened?” Linus demanded.

  Lucy looked up at him and shrugged. “Oh, he started talking about Jesus and God and that I was an abomination or something.” He nodded toward the unconscious Marty. Around his neck hanging on a chain was an ornate silver cross. “He tried to shove that in my face.” Lucy laughed as he shook his head. “What does he think I am, a vampire? That’s silly. I like crosses. They’re just two sticks put together, but they mean so much to so many. I tried making a symbol out of Popsicle sticks that I could sell and get rich, but Arthur said it wasn’t right. Look, Linus! Chuck Berry! Righteous!” He crowed in excitement as he pulled a record up from the crate.

  “So not cool, man,” J-Bone scolded the unconscious Marty. “Like, for real. Music is for everyone.” He nudged Marty’s leg. “Whoa. Total knockout. Little dude, you are hardcore.”

  “So hardcore,” Lucy agreed.

  Linus glanced down at Marty again. He was breathing. He’d probably wake up with a headache and nothing more. Linus thought about giving him another bump on the head with a well-placed kick, but his shoulder hurt, and he had exerted enough energy for the time being. “Did he hurt you?”

  Lucy looked up from the Chuck Berry record. “Why do you sound like that?”

  “Like what?”

  “Like you’re mad. Are you mad at me?” Lucy frowned. “I didn’t do anything, really.”

  “He didn’t,” J-Bone said. “Marty is so fired, you don’t even know.”

  Linus shook his head. “I could never be mad at you. Not for this. If I sound angry, it’s at this … this man, not you.”

  “Oh. Because you like me, huh?”

  Yes. God help him, yes. Very much so. All of them, really. “Something like that.”

  Lucy nodded and went back to the crate. “I found six I wanted. Can I get six?”

  “Six it is.”

  He walked over to Lucy to help him carry the records he’d found before he dropped them. They left Marty on the floor and went back to the front of the shop—

  Only to find Talia’s bag of tools on the floor. But no Talia.

  Linus’s heart was in his throat. He had turned his back for just a second and—

  He saw her standing at the front of the store, looking out the window. There was a little girl outside on the sidewalk, no more than five or six years old. She was smiling, her dark hair in twin braids on her shoulders. She put her hand against the window. Talia did the same. Their hands were the same size and matched perfectly. Talia laughed, and the girl smiled.

  She smiled, that is, until a woman came running up the sidewalk, snatching her away, a horrified look on her face. She held the girl against her, turning the girl’s head against her shoulder. She glared at Talia through the glass. “How dare you?” she snapped. “You leave my daughter alone, you freak!”

  Linus stepped forward angrily. “Now, see here—”

  But the woman spat wetly at the window and then turned and hurried away, the little girl held tightly against her chest.

  “That lady was mean,” Lucy whispered to Linus. “You want me to throw her against the wall like I did Marty? Would that be righteous?”

  “No,” Linus said, pulling Lucy along. “That would not be righteous. The only time you should do that is if you need to defend yourself or others. She was vicious, but she only used words.”

  “Words can hurt too,” Lucy told him.

  “I know. But we must pick and choose
our fights. Just because someone else acts a certain way, doesn’t mean we should respond in kind. It’s what makes us different. It’s what makes us good.”

  “Big man is right,” J-Bone said, coming up behind them. “People suck, but sometimes, they should just drown in their own suckage without our help.”

  Linus was positive that wasn’t what he meant at all. He wasn’t very happy with his new nickname either.

  Talia was still standing at the window. The woman’s spittle dripped down the glass. Talia didn’t seem too upset, but he couldn’t be sure. She looked surprised when Lucy and Linus appeared beside her.

  “That was weird, huh?” she said. She shook her head. “People are strange.”

  “Are you all right?”

  She shrugged. “The girl was nice. She said she liked my beard. It was just the old lady who was a jerk.”

  “She—the woman wasn’t—”

  “I know what she was or wasn’t,” Talia said lightly. “I’ve seen it before. It’s awful, but it’s not anything I’ve haven’t dealt with. But it’s funny, right?”

  Linus didn’t find anything about this to be humorous. “What is?”

  “That there’s so much hope even when it doesn’t seem like it.”

  He was gobsmacked. “How do you mean?”

  “The little girl. She wasn’t scared of me. She was nice. She didn’t care what I looked like. That means she can make up her own mind. Maybe that woman will tell her I’m bad. And maybe she’ll believe it. Or maybe she won’t believe it at all. Arthur told me that in order to change the minds of many, you have to first start with the minds of few. She’s just one person. But so is the lady.” Talia grinned. “Can we go to the graveyard now? I want to try out my spade. What did you get, Lucy?”

  “Chuck Berry,” Lucy said proudly. “I also threw Marty against the wall!”

  “Cracked the plaster and everything!” J-Bone said with a laugh. “It was gnarly.”

  “Wow,” Talia said, suitably impressed. “Is he dead? Do we need to bury him? Let me go get my tools, and we can—”

  “Nah, he’s not dead. I didn’t think that would make Mr. Baker too happy, so I let him keep his insides on his inside.”