by Kristen Day
“That’s right. The shoals are really just mounds of sand built up by the currents of the Atlantic running into the current of the Cape Fear River as it empties into it. They extend at least twenty miles out into the ocean. Hundreds of ships have run aground and sunk. So the Coast Guard built the station and they let us use it as long as we maintain the tower and the inside.”
“The inside?”
“We’re actually on top of the light station. The light tower is over there of course,” he pointed to the tower on the opposite corner, “but the actual station is more like a really big square house. We’re just sitting on the roof. To get back down into the station you go through the tower.”
“Really? I just thought this was a landing pad or a platform.”
“The Sons stay here a lot. Right below us are several living rooms, kitchens, and rooms to sleep in. This is also where the Ball will be held this weekend.”
“Wow.” I gazed up at the stars above, “I love it. It’s so peaceful out here.”
“That’s why I come here so much. Being surrounded by only water, I feel more like myself than anywhere else. But I could always tell something was still missing for me.” He looked at me with a steadiness that increased my heart beat. “Now I know that something,” he leaned closer to me, “was you.”
My entire body warmed at his words. “I change my mind. That was the sweetest thing anyone’s ever said to me.” He caught a stray hair and tucked it behind my ear. In the distance I heard a low melody. It was different from the melody we had heard in the ocean, but similar at the same time.
“Do you hear that?” I asked him.
He tilted his head, listening too, but shook his head. “Nope, I don’t hear anything.”
“It’s a song…” I looked up at him, but instantly became disoriented as the platform below me changed to sheets and a wall stood where Finn was sitting two seconds before. My bedroom.
“No!” I put my head in my hands, “You have got to be kidding me. Ugh!” I fell back, hitting my pillow in a cloud of disappointment. I’d be perfectly happy staying with Finn at the light station until dawn, but obviously my body had other plans. I had to figure out how to control these reveries. I closed my eyes and opened them just as quickly when I realized I was still hearing the melody, only much louder. I felt an odd pull to go to the beach. Fine time for the sea to be calling to me. 2:00am wasn’t really conducive to playing in the waves. But something about this pull was different. I listened carefully to the melody again and concentrated on what the pull felt like. It hit me like a ton of bricks. I launched out of bed, throwing on some yoga pants and a long sleeve t-shirt.
I made it to the beach in record time, somehow not waking anyone up along the way. The breeze off the ocean was still slightly chilly, but my additional clothing did wonders. The sand above the nest was as smooth and flat as earlier, so I got down on my hands and knees and found the nest quickly when I felt the spark of electricity. Right before I began digging, I saw movement. A tiny section of sand shifted ever so slightly, and then moved back the other way. A tiny head the size of my thumb peeked up out of the sand at me. The second it saw me it disappeared. I held my breath, awaiting its reappearance. Then the sand began to move as multiple tiny heads popped out. One made a sound resembling a peep, and their little flippers came to life, as they pulled themselves on top of the sand. They were no bigger than my hand, with beautifully intricate shells. In the shadow of the night, they blended in well, only a couple of shades darker than the sand.
None of them sprinted to the ocean like I was expecting them to. They just shuffled around me, running into each other as well as my legs. Each time one touched me, I felt the same small spark of electricity, only slightly stronger. It almost tickled. Several tried to pull themselves up onto my calves, with no luck. I held out my hand to one in particular and it pushed its way onto my palm. I gently rubbed its shell. It was rough to the touch, but still slightly malleable.
A small spark continued to pulse in my hand, raising the hair on my arms. A strong belonging overwhelmed me as I watched them scurrying in the sand. It was like seeing a beloved relative for the first time in years. I felt surrounded by acceptance and tears sprang to my eyes as I watched the hatchlings began to circle me almost as their elders did in the ocean last week. Wishing to be closer to them, I set down the one in my hand and slowly lowered down on my stomach, giving them time to move out of the way so I didn’t crush any. I rested my chin on my hands and watched as they climbed over each other and tried to climb on me. I picked up another hatchling and put it in my palm. It looked at me briefly and clumsily made its way up my arm to my shoulder. I giggled as it padded up the back of my neck, attempting to hide in my hair. I carefully reached back and placed it back down in the sand. It immediately started crawling over one of its siblings for no apparent reason. Their energy was contagious and I lay like that for a long time just enjoying their company.
Eventually growing tired and remembering classes started back tomorrow, I lifted myself back up onto my knees. As If realizing my departure, the hatchlings began digging back in to their nest. One by one they disappeared, throwing sand over themselves with their flippers.
“Sweet dreams.” I whispered. Somehow in the back of my mind, I knew that when night fell again, they would be strong enough and feel safe enough to make their first monumental journey. And I was going to be there to watch over them as they did.
Chapter 23
Puffy eyed and groggy, I threw on some khaki shorts and a light pink tank top the next morning. During the walk to our first class, Carmen and Willow chatted about the twenty drunken texts Carmen had received from Logan last night. Apparently, the first ten were consisted of begging and apologies, while the last ten were about how she was missing out on the best thing that could have happened to her. As you might expect, Carmen told him to go screw himself.
After bordering on comatose in my first two classes, I drank a Mountain Dew, hoping it would do the trick. After poking myself with a pencil for forty-five minutes to stay awake in third period, we met for the last fifteen minutes to discuss our history paper and I heard a couple more reasons to dislike Logan.
“Either you’re in deep thought or you’re about to pass out,” Maya peered at me from across the table as she sipped her coffee. I looked up from my blank paper.
“I’m just really tired.” I yawned and rubbed my eyes.
“Were you at that party at Rostrum?” Lyric asked, “I heard it was pretty crazy.”
“I was,” Lexi twirled a lock of her strawberry hair and eyed me suspiciously, “and I didn’t see you there. Of course I was too busy fighting Logan off. He was trying to hook up, but he was so drunk he couldn’t even walk.” She blew a bubble with the gum in her mouth and shrugged.
“I thought he was seeing somebody?” Lyric asked.
Lexi leaned forward dramatically, “I heard he broke it off with that girl Carmen because she’s slept with half of the Tritons on campus.”
“That’s not true,” I rubbed my forehead. My head hurt. And Lexi’s gossip wasn’t helping.
“She broke it off with him because he’s an asshole.” Carmen could have slept with the whole school and I wouldn’t have known, but that didn’t matter. I wasn’t going to let her talk crap about my friend.
“He’s a player anyway. You shouldn’t mess with that, girl.” Maya shook her head at Lexi.
“Whatever,” Lexi rolled her eyes, “nobody said I want to marry the kid. What’s wrong with having a little fun?” She licked her lips and I wanted to smack some sense into her, but I settled for tuning her out instead.
Willow and I met Carmen and Phoebe for lunch at the Hole, but all I could do was stare at the piece of pizza in front of me. The sun was beating down on me, draining what little energy I did have. I took a long drink of my water.
“You okay, Stasia?” Carmen asked me, squinting into the sun.
“Yea, I’m good. Just tired.”
“You haven’t ev
en touched your food.” Willow held out her turkey sub, “You want some of my sub?”
“No that’s okay; I just need a minute-“ Willow started swirling in front of me along with everything else.
Where were my sunglasses? The sun was burning the back of my eyelids, so I squeezed them shut a little tighter. The good news was that the sand beneath me was warm and cozy. Maybe I’d just lay here for a while. I’d get up in a minute. Something tickling my foot interrupted my sleepy thoughts. I cracked my eyes open and sat up. A tiny white crab was trying its best to torment my pinky toe. When I leaned forward to get a better look, it disappeared into a small hole where my foot had been. I suppose I’d attack the foot blocking my home too.
Looking around, I realized with consternation that I had no idea where I was. I’d never seen a place more breathtaking. I was perched on a thin beach surrounding a very extensive lagoon. The sand beneath me was stark white and the waves lapping at the shore were a bright, luminous aqua.
Standing up, I brushed the fine, soft sand off my legs and took in the rest of the scenery. The colors were all so vivid, it almost hurt my eyes. Orange, yellow, and red fish darted back in forth in the perfectly clear water. Circling the beach in every direction was lush, dense forest with towering palm trees, massive banana trees, and colorful hibiscus and plumeria trees. Something told me I was on an island, but with the exception of a small wooden kayak down the beach there were no other signs of life.
I meandered toward the water and stopped once I was knee deep. The water was surprisingly warm and a school of tiny silver fish tickled my ankles. I started to dive in, when I realized I was wearing shorts and a tank top. Why didn’t I put on a bathing suit before I came out here? And most importantly, how did I get here in the first place? A scream broke my thoughts and I twisted around to find the source. I ran to the edge of the forest and stopped at the wall of trees, but could see nothing through the thick mass of green. I heard another muffled scream, so I pushed my way through as leaves and branches scraped against my arms and legs. It was immediately ten degrees cooler beneath the canopy and the fragrant smells of sage, oleander, and sweet mint were intoxicating. Huge pink and orange exotic flowers added pops of color in every direction. Coconut palms, avocado pear trees, mimosa trees, and oranges trees were everywhere I looked. At least there was no danger of starving. I stumbled for a few more feet and found myself on a worn, dirt path that continued in both directions. I stopped to listen and heard muffled voices to my left, so I took off in that direction.
The sound of bird calls above me in the trees followed me as I ran. It was actually closer to singing; a harmony of different sounds melting into one beautiful symphony. I caught sight of a couple toucans and parrots with blazing feathers of blue, yellow and red. They reminded me of Phoebe’s dress. Where were my roommates? Were they here too? The path began to widen as a small house came in to view. I stepped off the trail to blend back in with the forest, walking carefully so as not to make any noise. Peeking over the tall leaves of a banana tree, I was surprised at how small the house appeared. I didn’t even know if I’d call it a house. There was only enough space for a door on the front and a skinny window on each side. Made up of a green stone, it was well camouflaged. Its roof was made up of rounded slats of wood.
Loud noises came from within the house and I hesitated, trying to decide what my next move should be. If I barged in ready to save the day, what would I do then? What if they had weapons?
What if it’s just kids playing around? I had no way of knowing from outside. Then I heard a woman yell and another loud thud. I inspected the ground around me for something that could double as a weapon. I heard a loud creak and looked over my shoulder as the door of the house opened. I crouched down and held my breath in anticipation. A woman stepped out and slammed the door behind her. She turned and pulled out a ring of keys, locking it. When I saw her face, my veins turn to ice. Her rich, brown hair was pulled back and she had scratches down the length of her face, but there was no mistaking who it was. Isadora.
She touched her face and winced, mumbling something I couldn’t hear. She passed my hiding place and disappeared into the forest. Still holding my breath, I listened for any other sounds coming from the house. Silence. The lack of noise was almost worse than the alternative. What if someone was dead in there? Did I really want to find a dead body? But if someone’s hurt, I had to help them. I checked to make sure Isadora wasn’t coming back, and then scurried up to the front door. I tried the knob even though I saw her lock it. It didn’t budge. I moved around the side of the house and peered into one of the windows. What I saw inside had me stumbling backwards. Even though the exterior of the house couldn’t be more than five feet wide, it was colossal inside. Was I hallucinating? I peered back in the window and blinked several times making sure my eyes weren’t playing tricks on me. I was looking into a sprawling living room that boasted a large stone fireplace with bookshelves on either side that extended floor to ceiling. A sitting area had been set up facing the fireplace with several plush couches and arm chairs. Behind that a huge desk was flanked by even more shelves filled to the brim with books. A large painting of a woman hung on the side wall. My eyes traveled downward and I saw a figure slumped on the floor. I squinted trying to make out more detail, but the glare of the sun on the window made it impossible to see.
I tried to open the window but it was locked as well. I stalked back in to the forest and picked up a thick branch that was somewhat pointed on the end. Standing back from the window, I swung it into the glass with all of my strength. It created a large jagged hole just big enough for an arm. I gritted my teeth as the sharp edges caught and tore my skin open. I felt around for the latch and pushed it the other way hoping to unlock the window. With blood dripping down my arm, I pulled on the window again and this time it gave easily. I lifted myself up and through the window. Jumping down onto a lavish rug, I ran to the opposite side of the room, hoping the person was still alive. Her long hair and slight build told me it was a woman. Her hands and feet were bound by a piece of rope.
She looked unconscious, so I knelt down beside her and brushed her blonde hair out of her face. I covered my mouth and tried not to scream. Kira. She had blood matted hair and several large cuts and bruises on her face. I held my hand below her nose and felt a light stream of air that told me she was still breathing. A piece of tape covered her mouth.
“Kira!” I patted her face gently trying to wake her “Kira, wake up!” She moaned but didn’t open her eyes or move. I had started to untie the rope around her feet when the world shifted. I fell sideways against the wall and everything went black.
“Give her room; she’s not going to wake up if you’re smothering her!”
“But shouldn’t she be waking up by now?” I recognized Carmen and Phoebe arguing, as I opened my eyes.
“Stasia!” Ignoring their cheers, I threw my legs over the side of my bed and pushed them out of the way. Immediately, the room spun and I had to sit back down.
“Oh, no you don’t. Not again.” Carmen grabbed my shoulders and tried to lay me back down.
I shoved her arms off.
“Kira’s in trouble!” I frantically tried to stand back up, but my body had no energy to fight Carmen. I glanced down at my arms, but didn’t see any sign of scrapes or dripping blood.
“Stasia, calm down. Kira’s fine. I just talked to her on the phone. She’s fine.” Willow told me in a soothing tone one would use to calm a confused child.
“No she’s not, she’s been kidnapped. She was tied up and unconscious!”
“She’s okay, I promise. We just talked to her a couple minutes ago. She’s on her way back from Wilmington. She’s coming to see you tonight.” Phoebe rubbed my arm. Pain swept over me like a dark wave and I closed my eyes. Was it a dream? But I wasn’t sleeping; I was in the Hole-
My eyes flew open and I tried to sit up again, “It was a vision! I blacked out, didn’t I?” I stared at them wildly as they shook
their heads yes and watched me wearily. “See, that’s why she’s fine now. Because it hasn’t happened yet! I have to tell her-“
“Stasia. You have to calm down and rest. You hit your head and back really hard on the pavement when you blacked out. You need to lie down.” Willow instructed, steadily holding my eyes. That would explain the incessant pounding in my head. I lay back on my pillow and closed my eyes again.
“Fine. But you’ll see…you’ll see.” I couldn’t make out what she said next because sleep pulled me under.
Chapter 24
The next time I woke up, a single candle flickered on my dresser but the rest of the room was dark. The deafening silence made me wonder how late it was, but the soothing dancing light of the candle across the wall had me hypnotized. The pounding in my head had died down some, but it felt like it had been stuffed with cotton. I felt the back of my head and found a large knot that hurt to the touch. The slightest movement caused excruciating pain down my neck and the whole left side of my face. I must have fallen backwards off the bench we were sitting on. My back felt like it was one big bruise. The last thing I remembered was Willow’s face spinning and then I woke up on that beach.
I saw movement out of the corner of my eye and sat straight up in bed.
“Hello?” I whispered, my voice scratchy. A figure materialized near the window and my chest tightened with fear. He stepped into the light of the candle.
“Hi,” Finn’s grin was laced with mischief as he sat down on the side of the bed. “How’re you feeling?” He shouldn’t have been allowed to look that good. He was only wearing shorts and a t-shirt, but the way he moved and the confident vibe he carried with him made my heart race.
“I think I got run over by a truck,” I attempted a smile and my cheek throbbed.
“So that’s where the tire marks on your back came from…” he smirked at me. I started to laugh, but pain exploded in my head.
