“When can she come?” I asked.
“She needs to adjust first. Become accustomed to life down here. Then I’ll make sure she comes up to see you.”
“What do I tell her mom? She’s going to wonder what’s going on if she doesn’t hear from Samantha for too long.”
“We’ll handle it. Everything’s going to be fine.”
I nodded. “Please,” I said, “promise me you’ll take care of her.”
“I will,” said Seidon with a smile. “On my honor.”
“And tell her I’m always here for her no matter what.”
“Of course.”
“And tell your people…tell them thank you for saving her life.”
Seidon nodded graciously. “I have something else for you, but you need to keep it in water or it’ll disintegrate.”
“What is it?”
“I’ll need something to put it in.”
“Wait a moment,” Calder said, then hurried to the cabin and returned with a gallon size bucket. He tossed it down to Seidon, who caught it, filled it with sea water, and placed something in it.
“It’s from Samantha. As soon as you’ve finished reading it, destroy it.”
“Okay.”
He propelled himself out of the water and handed Calder the bucket, then landed with a splash. I took the bucket and looked inside. A scroll tied with a weedy-looking string floated at the bottom.
“Goodbye Olivia, Calder,” said Seidon. “We’ll see each other again. Thank you for all you have done. My mother and father thank you, too.”
I waved as Seidon flipped over and disappeared with a flick of his two fins. In the east, the sky began to lighten, casting a gray, misty light over the mainland. I looked into the bucket again. Calder handed me a flashlight with a small smile.
“Thanks,” I said, so happy I could have kissed him.
“I’ll be inside.”
I reached into the bucket and untied the string. It was slimy and prickly at the same time. I unrolled the scroll, which didn’t really feel like paper, more like cloth. The words on it looked like they had been burned onto it instead of written:
My Livvie-le-Skivvie,
By now, you’ve learned I’m not coming back. At least, not right away. I’m really sorry if this makes you sad. You are now and always will be my best friend. But Seidon says it was the only way for me to live through my injuries and keep from drowning. You never told me how bad gunshots hurt! But the merpeople have taken very good care of me down here.
Cordelia said I’m only the third human in known history to have become one of them. She said it’s because of what I did on the boat, pushing Linnaeus in and all. I’m really kind of embarrassed. You did way more than I did! But Olivia, I don’t regret choosing to stay. I will still be able to come home every now and then and I can keep in touch with you, and of course my mom. If I’m completely honest, I think this is what I’ve wanted all along. A new place, new people, a new world even! And I spend a lot of time with Seidon. His parents are kind of scary, but they’re so beautiful and they seem to like me.
This place is amazing! I wish you could see it. There’s too much to put into a letter, but as soon as I can come up for a visit, I’ll tell you all about it.
You’re the best friend anyone could ever have, Liv. Please don’t worry about me and please promise me you’ll be happy. Tell everyone hello and thank you.
Love you to the abyss and back (that’s a mermaid expression!)
Samantha
P.S. Don’t tell my family. I’ll explain everything to them.
I read the letter several times more until I had almost memorized it. I wanted to keep it but Seidon asked me to destroy it, so I brought the letter out of the water. It melted through my hands like hot wax and became little more than liquid pulp.
“Are you all right?” Calder asked from the door. I turned. The first cool, muggy breezes of morning stung my face and chilled my wet head. I smiled.
“Yeah.” I picked up the bucket and dumped the water and the remains of Samantha’s letter overboard. “Or, at least, I will be.”
“In all my years, I have never heard of such a thing,” Eamon said in awe after Calder and I told him what had become of Samantha. We left out the kiss of a merperson part. “If I had thought anyone to be suited to the honor, I would have thought it to be you, Olivia.”
I gave a humorless laugh.
“No, I think everyone is much better off with me staying human.” I glanced at Calder, hoping he wouldn’t notice, but the way he fought a smile told me he knew what I meant. “And anyway, if Samantha hadn’t been wounded, I don’t think they would have taken her to Zydrunas.”
“Well.” Uther sighed. “What do we do now?”
“Natasha may need to get to a hospital,” said Eamon. “She’s too shaken to allow her body to rest and heal.”
“Why don’t you use the medicines you used on me?” I asked.
“I have. They’re supposed to be only for merpeople, but I had no choice. If any of the merpeople find out we used them on you two, they’ll confiscate them and we’ll lose whatever trust we’ve built. But Natasha lost a lot of blood. It takes time to recover from that. And I think she may have some post-traumatic stress keeping her from recovering well.”
Walter stooped into the cabin, looking tense.
“My phone got a signal up in the helm. You need to come see this.”
Eamon, Uther, Calder, and I followed. We hurried up the stepladder leading to the helm and crowded around the cell phone screen.
“They’ve been replaying it all morning,” said Waltr. “Linnaeus’s death is big news. Don’t move the phone too much. I
