by Greg Weisman
Viento consulted her notes and said, “The parents mentioned something about a woman that wanted the kids to swim with her?”
“I don’t know if that’s what she wanted. I mean, she went in the water. And the kids tried to follow Her. But my friend Miranda had brought us lunch, so we made them wait to swim.”
“Miranda?”
“Miranda Guerrero. She’s the daughter of Pablo Guerrero.”
“The Pablo Guerrero?”
“Yeah.”
“Who else was there?”
“My friend Charlie.”
“That’s Charlie Dauphin,” Alonso said, trying to help.
Viento wrote the name down. “Anyone else?”
“Not with us.”
“Anyone else on the beach you recognized?”
“Ramon Hernandez and Linda Wheeler were there for a while. Oh, and Connor Kelty and Conner Ellison. And the lifeguard, Pedro Serrano.”
“Is that it?”
“There were a few tourists there, but I didn’t know them.”
“Can you describe them?”
“Um, there were a couple white girls. Both blonde. Or one was blonde and one strawberry blonde, I guess. They looked like they were about nineteen or twenty. And there were a couple of guys about that age too. Surfers. They both had curly black hair; they might have been brothers. It sounded like they were speaking Italian to each other. But I’m not sure.”
“And that’s it?”
“That’s it. It wasn’t very crowded. No one else was around.”
“Except the woman.”
“Uh, right.”
“Can you describe her?”
Rain swallowed hard. “She was very beautiful. Long black hair, big brown eyes. Skin the color of caramel, like when it’s poured over an apple at Carnivale.”
Mariah raised an eyebrow at the indulgent description.
Rain looked at her feet and said, “Brown skin.”
“How old?”
“I’m not sure. She looked like she was in her late teens. Early twenties, maybe. But I suppose she might have been … older.”
“What was she wearing?”
Up to this point, Rain had attempted to tell the truth, more or less. Now she knew she’d have to fudge a bit more. “Well, she was swimming. So she was wearing … a seaweed green suit.” That specific phrasing made her feel a little better, but even that smidgen of honesty wouldn’t last.
“Had you seen her before?”
“No.”
“Do you have any idea why the kids were so interested in her? Did she talk to them?”
“I don’t think so. Wendy—that’s the Kims’ daughter—she kinda liked to pretend she was grown-up and do grown-up things. If she saw grown-up girls, she’d try to do what they were doing. John and Michael sorta followed her lead.”
“Mr. Kim said the woman was singing.”
“He did? Um, I guess so.”
“You don’t remember her singing?”
“Vaguely,” Rain answered honestly. “I couldn’t tell you which song, though.”
“Anything else?”
There was a lot else, but Rain shook her head.
Deputy Constable Viento closed her notebook. She turned to address Iris and Alonso, informing them she would question Charlie, Conner, Connor, Pedro, Ramon and Linda and try to track down the four tourists and the woman. Rain noticed she hadn’t mentioned Miranda and wondered if Viento had left her out by accident—or if the deputy was intimidated by the Guerrero name and hesitant to question the Sycorax C.E.O.’s daughter.
Rain couldn’t have felt worse. Once again, a part of her wanted to scream out the truth. All of it. IAnd if she really thought it might help the Kimlets, she probably would have. But no one would believe her without the pictures on that camera. So the truth would only freak people out about Rain. Put her under suspicion. She wouldn’t be free to conduct her own search. And ultimately, she felt certain she was still the best chance Wendy, John and Michael had. Even if it was her fault they had been taken in the first place.
This all played out on her face, and Mariah saw it. She hesitated and then put a reassuring hand on Rain’s shoulder, saying, “Rain, this isn’t your fault. You gave us a lot of helpful details, and in any case this might have nothing to do with the kids going missing. You didn’t do anything wrong.”
Rain was not so sure.
Minutes later, up in her room, it took all of ’Bastian’s persuasive power to convince Rain not to sneak out to look for the kids that night. To help assuage her, he put the armband on his wrist and ventured out to find them—though he had no clue where to look, short of walking across the open ocean.
Rain went back downstairs and phoned first Charlie and then Miranda to inform them about the Kimlets and warn them about Viento and the version of the truth Rain had related to the deputy. Charlie was quiet for a long time. Finally, he asked the obvious. “It was the mermaid?”
“I don’t know. But yeah. Probably.”
“Right. Okay. Now what?”
“I don’t know,” she said again. “But we have to find them.”
“Yeah, assuming…” He trailed off, but she knew what he hadn’t said. Assuming Aycayia didn’t drown them.
He said, “We’ll figure it out tomorrow. Get to school early, okay?”
“I will.”
Miranda didn’t take it nearly as calmly. When Rain finished her benumbed explanation, she thought Miranda might cry. Then Rain could hear Miranda gasping for breath. She’s not crying. She’s sobbing! Instantly, Rain felt like sobbing, too.
Miranda choked out, “This is … our … fault…”
“I know.”
“We’ve … gotta … fix it…”
“I know,” Rain said again. “Get to school early. We’ll meet up with Charlie. We’ll figure this out.” She didn’t mention or even allude to drowning.
Miranda said, “Okay,” and hung up the phone without another word. Rain stood in the kitchen, holding the receiver for another few seconds. Then she replaced it on its cradle and slowly walked up the back stairs.
Reluctantly, Rain went to bed. She tossed and turned, unable—and then unwilling—to sleep. She listened for the phone or for the front door, praying that a call would come with an update or that the Kims—all the Kims—would simply return. But there was nothing. In fact, it seemed unnaturally quiet. Rain then decided to wait up for ’Bastian. She knew he’d be back just before dawn, but as the night stretched out, having determined to stay awake, sleep overtook her …
Rain walked along Windward Bar as the coast curved around onto Windward Strand. A dense fog drifted in from the water, but Rain could see Mrs. Kim cut off from the sand by a strange line of dancing crabs and gulls. Suddenly, Rain felt a sense of urgency. She ran into the fog and immediately lost her bearings. She heard music—no, not music: singing. And the song was beautiful. The song was entrancing. She slowed down again to listen, to attempt to make out the words …
But the words hardly seemed to matter. She wandered through the fog, searching for the source of the beautiful song …
It was a single voice, a woman’s voice … and Rain knew this woman, this singer, this Siren, would be beautiful.
Yes. The fog was lifting and there she was. The beautiful Aycayia. Kneeling beside three children. And even from behind, the children looked familiar. Yes, Rain knew these children. Of course she knew them. They were the Kimlets: Wendy, John and Michael. The Lost Girl. The Lost Boys. They were smiling at Aycayia the Beautiful. They were following Her into the water. Mr. Kim and the lifeguard were smiling as they watched them go.
Rain watched the three kids vanish into the surf in pursuit of Aycayia the Beautiful …
In pursuit of Aycayia the Cursed!
Rain remembered her urgency. An urgency rapidly descending into panic! She ran; she ran and dove into the water. The water was clear, but she couldn’t find Aycayia or the Kimlets.
Then she spotted a dolphin. No, not one d
olphin. Six. They swam in a circle, and Rain tried to get past them, but they blocked her path, thwarted her efforts. However, they didn’t try to stop her from seeing what took place within the circle. Aycayia the Cursed was climbing back into her manatee skin. Hiding her beauty within a wrinkled, blubbery mass. The three children treaded water beside Her, rapt. How were they breathing? Were they breathing?
Soon the question was moot. The manatee. Aycayia. Her. She tapped each child gently with her tail. One by one, they were transformed. Wendy became a dolphin. John became a dolphin. Michael became a dolphin. These new dolphins were smaller than Aycayia’s Sisters. They were young pups. They swam around Her and barked happily.
On the far side of the circle, the Sisters gave way. The manatee raced off, and the dolphin pups followed. Again Rain tried to pursue, but the Sisters barred her. Rain had to surface, to breathe. She came up for air to find Mr. and Mrs. Kim, the lifeguard, Mariah Viento, her own parents, Isaac, Callahan, Pablo Guerrero, Miranda, Charlie, Ramon, Linda, Hank, Marina and Renée standing on the shore, staring at her, pointing at her. “This is your fault,” they said in chorus. “You knew she wanted them. You knew…”
Rain felt herself sinking down under the weight of their recriminations. She sank away, drowning in her guilt and the warm, soft water …
She woke with a start, twisted up unmercifully in her warm, soft covers …
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
GUILTED CAGE
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 16
In the morning, the zemi was back on the old Spanish desk. ’Bastian had returned before dawn but had chosen not to wake Rain, who had somehow managed to fall back asleep. She wondered if he’d have news for her at sunset—but she knew it was unlikely, and in any case, she couldn’t afford to wait.
As she descended the back stairs, she heard her parents talking. Alonso was saying, “Is it horrible to feel relieved those kids didn’t go missing on Rain’s watch?”
“A little horrible,” her mother said. “But I know what you mean.”
But it’s all my watch! The ponderous guilt weighing her down like lead, she entered the kitchen with shoulders slumped, asking, “Any news?”
Her mother and father shook their heads. Alonso said, “I’m going to take the Spirit over to Windward to help with the search.”
“Can I go?” Rain asked.
Alonso said, “No,” turning to Iris for confirmation.
Iris concurred. “No, Rain. Everything that can be done is being done. You go to school.”
“Please,” Rain said, “I want to help. I need to help.”
Her mother just repeated, “Everything’s being done. You need to go to school.”
Rain ran a hand through her long hair, pushing it out of her eyes and tucking it behind her ears. She hadn’t braided it this morning. She had started to, but she couldn’t get her fingers to function properly. They wouldn’t work on automatic, and she was overthinking it. Finally, she just gave up. She knew she’d be pushing it out of her face all day, but what choice did she have? She was trapped.
She made a move toward the dining room, but her mother said, “No one’s come down yet. Anyway, I’ve got it covered.” So Rain picked up her backpack and headed for the back door. Iris said, “Rain, have some breakfast.”
Rain didn’t stop. “I’m not hungry.” She closed the door behind her.
Rain, Charlie and Miranda conferred outside school, before the bell. Last night, Deputy Constable Viento had stopped by Charlie’s place and questioned him in front of his mom. (He’d basically repeated Rain’s story.) But as far as Miranda knew, no constables had stopped by the Old Manor.
Rain told them about her dream.
Miranda said, “Is that supposed to be symbolic or something?”
Rain pushed her hair out of her eyes. “I don’t think so. At least, I almost hope not.”
“You hope not?” Miranda asked, incredulous. She turned to Charlie.
He was chewing nervously on the inside of his left cheek. Then he shrugged and said, “What’s the alternative? That the manatee took the kids out and…” He didn’t want to finish, but Miranda still looked confused. “And drowned them,” he said.
Miranda bit her lip and looked away. Tears welled up in her eyes and then tracked down her cheeks.
“Sugar, what’s wrong?”
Renée materialized among the trio and, with a real show of concern, used her thumbs to gently wipe away Miranda’s tears.
Miranda was too stricken to respond. Rain didn’t even want to be on the same planet with Renée right now, let alone explain the Kimlets’ kidnapping to her, but some clarification seemed unavoidable. “There are these kids that have gone missing…”
“I heard about that,” Renée said, still a little mystified. “Tourist kids, right?” As in, Are we really that upset about tourists?
“They were staying at the Nitaino. And the three of us babysat them Sunday.”
“They were so sweet,” Miranda said. Charlie’s eyebrows went up at that generous description of the troublesome Kimlets, but Miranda misinterpreted. “Are so sweet! They are still sweet!”
The bell rang. None of them moved. Rain stared at Renée. “We need a couple minutes. Could you explain to Mrs. B?”
Renée bristled. She didn’t like running errands—or doing favors—for anyone. As Rain had guessed, though, it would be tough to say no and still maintain the illusion that Renée … cared. She turned to Miranda. “I can stay if you want.”
Miranda glanced at Charlie and Rain before turning back to Renée. “No. I … That’s okay. We’ll be in soon. Thanks, Renée.” Miranda took it for granted that Renée would fulfill Rain’s request. As Renée’s mouth twitched slightly, Rain had to suppress a dark laugh.
Renée gave Miranda’s arm a squeeze. “Okay, Sugar. See you inside.” Renée did a quick about-face and walked deliberately toward the school building.
As soon as Renée was inside, Miranda turned to Rain. “How is this happening? How is any of this happening?” She was initiating what Rain felt sure was a well-deserved freakout.
Since the full truth wouldn’t exactly calm her down, Rain put a hand on her shoulder and said, “Look, it’s happening. Does the how matter? We need to focus if we’re going to help Wendy, John and Michael. Do you have your phone?”
Miranda nodded and fetched it out of her backpack.
Rain pushed her troublesome hair out of her eyes and said, “In the dream, she turned them into dolphin pups. And she’s surrounded by a pod of six more dolphins. So search dolphins. And not the science. The legends. The myth. That’s how we’ll solve this.” She sounded way more certain than she felt.
Miranda’s thumbs went to work. She searched and skimmed and finally said, “Sailors believed dolphins bring luck.”
Charlie chimed in, “For the sailors or for the dolphins?”
Taking his question seriously, Miranda said, “They rescue people. So I guess for the sailors. Hmm … the Greek god Dionysus transformed pirates into dolphins.”
“Okay, that’s starting to sound familiar,” Rain said, allowing herself a bit of hope. “How did the pirates get transformed back?”
“They didn’t. They were evil pirates. I don’t think anyone wanted them back.”
So much for hope. “Are you sure? Try another Web site.”
Miranda surfed some more. At one point, she nodded to herself and said, “Dolphins can be shape-shifters. They can become human. But it doesn’t say how.”
Charlie wondered, “The first dolphins, the pod of six, could those be other children the manatee has stolen?”
“No. They’re Aycayia’s Six Sisters.”
“Eye-ka-what now?”
“Aycayia. The Manatee-Woman. That’s her name.”
He stared at her. “You know her name?”
“From a different dream. Aycayia the Cursed was First Witch. She was punished by being transformed into a manatee. Her Six Sisters were transformed into dolphins.”
Miranda stared at her for a few long seconds, then slowly said, “Wow. That, um, fits. This site says dolphin calves are raised by their mother with the help of ‘Aunties.’”
Rain tucked her hair behind her ears. “So Aycayia’s Sisters are helping Her take care of the Kim kids. That’s good, I think.”
So it went past the second bell and beyond. Finally, it became clear that if searching the Internet was somehow sufficient for solving mystic mysteries, everyone would be doing it. So Miranda used her phone for something else. She called Ariel and arranged for her to meet them after school with Pablo Guerrero’s speedboat. They’d search for the Kimlets themselves.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
OFF PUNTA
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 16
The nameless Guerrero speedboat swept out of Próspero Bay with Ariel at the helm and Rain, Charlie and Miranda all scanning the water with borrowed binoculars, looking for … what? The same exact thought echoed in the heads of all three teens: What exactly do we expect to see out here? If Ariel—who had been told only that they were joining the search for the missing tourist children—thought something similar, she kept her own counsel and maintained her standard unknowable poker face. But once Rain pushed the hair out of her eyes, she could see the question clear as day on Charlie and Miranda’s worried expressions and knew her own countenance looked no different. What am I hoping for? That Aycayia and her Six Sisters and her three stolen Kimlets will just swim up to the side of the boat? Well, maybe. They’ve taunted me before. But it was a big ocean, and Rain desperately wished she had something more to go on.
Ariel steered the boat southwest, to circle round San Próspero toward Windward, where the navy, the Coast Guard, the constabulary, the lifeguards, the Kims, Alonso Cacique and other volunteers were all focusing their search. But the Searcher lowered her binoculars to desperately surf her own mental Internet for a better clue to guide them. Sure, Aycayia had taken the kids at Windward, but there was no reason for Her to stay there with them. In fact, with all the activity on the east side of the island, she’d likely avoid the entire area. So where would she bring them now? I need to focus on what I know about Her. There was only one location specifically named in Rain’s dreams of Aycayia: Punta Majagua, where Guanayoa took First Witch and her Sisters. But Rain didn’t know of any Punta Anything on the Ghosts. So why does the name sound familiar?
