03 The Fate Of The Muse - Marina's Tales (21 page)

“What?” I asked Shayla, shaking the water
from my ears.

“I didn’t say anything,” she said, sitting up
to see the photographer waving her in, “Gotta go!”

No sooner did Shayla surf her way back to the
beach, than Kimo and his friend Matt came paddling up. I smiled,
for surfing with Kimo had always been fun; his clowning around
between sets and acrobatics on the surfboard were endlessly
amusing. The three of us spent the next few hours surfing some
beautiful waves, and Matt turned out to be pretty good.

“Seewad Imeen?” Kimo asked him when I paddled
back to join them after the biggest wave of the set. Kimo still
couldn’t get over the uncanny way I had of selecting the best
waves, and I still felt no need to hide my talents from him.

“So how do you know the movie star?” I teased
Kimo as we watched Matt take his turn. Kimo cupped his hands
together and squirted a stream of water at me between his two
palms, making me laugh.

“Workin’ wid him out on his latest flick,” he
said proudly, “It’s called ‘Monster Riders’ an I’m da surfin’
consultant.”

I nearly fell off my board laughing.

I surfed till I was pleasantly tired and
waterlogged, excusing myself to paddle ashore. Kimo followed after
me, calling me over to a blanket he’d spread out in the shade of a
tree growing right along the shoreline. I leaned back on my elbows,
looking up to see clusters of red fruit hanging above us.

“What are those?” I asked.

Kimo smiled, jumping up to pick a couple and
hand me one, “Hawaiian mountain apple,” he said, “Try it.”

I turned the shiny pear-shaped fruit over in
my hand, inspecting it. If Hawaii was Eden, then Kimo was
definitely playing the role of Eve. Ethan wouldn’t like this at
all, I thought. I sat up defiantly. At least I never lied to him
about being with Kimo. I bit into it.

“Good, eh?” he asked.

“Yeah,” I said with a sigh, “Sweet.”

Shayla came running up to us in a hot pink
bikini, holding up a blaring boom box, “You’re not gonna believe
this!” she shrieked. She cranked up the volume and Megan’s sweet
voice rang out, high and clear.

“It’s not you, it’s me-e-e, I’ll always care
for you, can’t you see-e-e…”

Shayla and I jumped up and down, whooping for
joy as the song wrapped up and the radio announcer’s voice came on,
“It’s the hot new song sweeping the charts by Megan MacGowan…
Number one with a bullet!”

“Whas goin’ on?” asked Kimo.

“That’s our friend from Aptos!” Shayla
exclaimed, “She’s totally gonna be famous!”

Kimo looked at me curiously, his black pearl
eyes reflecting the long rays of the sun.

“You’re pomaikai.”

“What?”

“Good Luck,” he said, still watching me
intensely. I flinched involuntarily, and saw that he noticed.

Matt and Gabe walked up to us, “That was some
nice surfing,” Matt said to Shayla seductively. Gabe looked a
little annoyed, and I remembered that he liked Shayla.

“Thanks,” she sputtered out breathlessly.

A photographer’s assistant came trotting up,
“Just once more, okay Shayla? The light is perfect right now!”

“Back to the grind,” Shayla joked, hurrying
away. It seemed as though they were taking a lot more pictures of
her than they were of the other girls.

The guys sat down with us, watching the
models pose for pictures rolling around in the sand and draping
themselves across land-locked surfboards. The surfer boys stood in
the background, holding their boards under their arms and trying to
look nonchalant. I turned my head to see Matt lift his glasses and
scan the beach, looking over the models like they were dishes on a
menu.

A movement in the bushes behind us caught my
eye, “There’s something in there,” I pointed.

Matt rolled his eyes theatrically, looking at
Kimo, “Do you think they followed us here too?”

“Who?” I tensed, alarmed.

“Paparazzi,” said Matt dismissively, “You
know… reporters. They follow me everywhere.”

I looked across the sand at his ferociously
yellow car. He wasn’t exactly trying to keep a low profile.

“Oh yeah, she know all bout dat,” said Kimo,
watching me speculatively, “So… how long you stayin’?”

I looked into the bushes suspiciously,
wondering why Matt didn’t seem too upset about it, “Uhm, I fly out
tomorrow afternoon,” I said.

“Why not stay longa? I can show you all ovah
da place!”

I shook my head no, “I have to get home. Me
and Shayla want to go surfing tomorrow morning before they come to
take us back to the airport… Is there anything bigger than this
around here?”

“You ever been tow-in surfin’?” he asked with
a cocky grin, “Outer reef break– no crowds… Thirty, forty foot
waves. Biggest you’ll evah catch.”

I smiled, thinking of all the times Lorelei
taken my board in the dark of the night. I definitely had some
experience getting towed on my board.

“You’re not thinking of taking her to Piahi?
Jaws? You tryin’ to get her killed?” Gabe exclaimed.

“Marina can handle it,” Kimo said
confidently, “Can’t you?”

My heart was racing, thinking of the blue
wall of water in my surfing dream. It was going to come true after
all, “Yes,” I said firmly, “I’m sure I can.”

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

JAWS

The next morning we met Kimo in the lobby,
following him out to a big black van that was parked in front of
our hotel. The tinted glass windows made it seem a little sinister,
and Shayla peered in suspiciously, her face registering shock when
she saw that Matt was sitting in the passenger seat.

“He’s coming too!” she gasped, gripping my
arm with wide, excited eyes. After we’d gotten back to our room
Shayla had spent most of the evening running down every last movie
Matt had appeared in. That explained why everyone was so mystified
as to why I didn’t know him, for apparently he’d been a celebrity
for quite some time. I just yawned, used to being out of the
loop.

“Honeys,” Kimo opened the side door with a
sweeping gesture. I could see a selection of boards and towels
packed in the back and returned his smile. I sure hoped he wasn’t
exaggerating about the surf.

We drove down the winding little roadway and
Matt turned around to flash a movie star grin at me, “Kimo says you
can surf the big ones better than any chick he’s ever seen.”

I didn’t know how to respond to that so I
just shrugged. He turned his attention to Shayla, and was rewarded
with doe-eyed adoration. I was a little surprised to see the
normally wary Shayla look so smitten, but I’d seen the signs often
enough. I had grown up watching Evie bowl people over with her
charm, after all.

“How’s your Aunt Evie?” Kimo asked as if on
cue, pulling the van off the highway onto a lonely dirt road.

“She’s fine,” I replied, remembering how
quickly Evie had wrapped Kimo around her little finger. I was
afraid I had that effect on him too, only I wasn’t doing it on
purpose.

Shayla launched into a detailed account of
how Evie had flown us to Paris in her new jet and knew all the
fashion designers. I could feel Matt watching me like Kimo always
did, suddenly much more impressed. I turned away to look out the
window, thinking that this little field trip might not have been
such a good idea.

We drove through vast fields of pineapple and
sugarcane, slowly maneuvering around the potholes, and finally
coming up to a sinister looking stretch of road. The sides were
lined with burned out, torn apart old cars, and it felt like some
kind of warning.

“Locals don’ like nobody on dis lan,” Kimo
said, “Cept me and my brahs.”

We continued on through the post-apocalyptic
landscape until we reached the end of the line, finding several
cars at the edge of the cliff, a few spectators looking down with
cameras and binoculars. We parked, and the roar of pounding surf
greeted my ears, sending my heart beating a little faster.

Kimo turned to me, “Les go!”

We climbed out of the van and Gabe came
trotting up, “It’s going off!” he told Kimo, “Kaiko has a ski ready
for you.” He looked at me and Shayla, “Kimo… It’s too big for
them.”

Kimo tossed his head dismissively and we all
walked over to the edge of the cliff to look down. It was hard to
judge the scale of the wave, until a tiny speck that turned out to
be a jet ski appeared on its flank. Rising up like a mountain of
water, curling elegantly down, the wave must have been at least
forty feet tall. I was so excited I could barely breathe.

“Whoa!” gasped Shayla, “I’m not goin’ out on
that!”

Matt puffed up a little, flashing Shayla
another charming smile, “I can handle it.” Gabe gave Kimo a warning
glance, but he was already off, rushing back to the van to unload
the boards. He called me over to show me a board and explain why it
was different; narrower and shorter than usual, with straps to slip
my feet into. He told me how he would take me out past the break,
towing me in to drop me down onto the face of the wave, circling
around to pick me up before the next big one came crashing down on
my head.

It was exactly how I surfed with Lorelei.

Kimo leaned in close to me, “Are you finally
done wit your high school boyfriend?” he asked playfully.

“No, not at all,” I cast him a sour look.

“What, are you gonna get married or sumpin’?”
he said mockingly.

I held his gaze, “As a matter of fact, we
are.”

He started to laugh at my joke, but stopped
when he saw the look in my eye, “He’s one lucky dude,” he said
quietly.

“I’m the lucky one.”

He looked down, shaking his head sadly, and
then up at me with the mischievous twinkle back in his eye, “Leas’
I can surf wit you!”

“Yeah. Now let’s go!” I said urgently. I
couldn’t wait, and I didn’t need any coaching; I knew the routine,
for Lorelei always helped me catch waves that were simply too big
and too fast moving for any human being to paddle out onto. Only we
did it in the dark.

Kimo’s gleaming eyes smiled into mine, and I
could see the same fire in them. For a split second I wondered if
he wasn’t being overly reckless, but I was past the point of
caring.

We all hiked down to the shoreline, where
Kimo introduced us to a group of local guys that waited with the
machines down at the rocky shore. They started excitedly telling
Kimo about the unexpectedly good conditions, describing some
horrific wipeouts. The air crackled with excitement and energy.

Shayla came close, nudging me with her elbow,
“Check that out… Marina, those waves could really mess you up.”

I was poised to jump in, shifting impatiently
from foot to foot as Gabe pulled Kimo aside.

“He doesn’t think you and Matt should go,”
Shayla whispered in my ear, “Are you sure?”

“Yes,” I snapped impatiently. Shayla looked
at me oddly, but I was in no mood to placate her. I felt like I was
going to explode if I didn’t get out into those waves. We watched
couple of guys help a visibly shaken surfer out of the water, white
faced and gasping for breath. Shayla looked at me in alarm, but
nothing was going to dissuade me from my fanatic mission.

Kimo strode up, “Look at you, all fired
up!”

Since Gabe was out of commission, and I’d
never driven a jet ski, Kimo decided to take turns towing me and
Matt, letting Matt drive for him. He attached a rope to the back of
the ski and handed it to me, telling me to hold on. I flung myself
into the water, holding on with one hand, adjusting to the jerky
ride behind the loud, smelly engine. He towed me through the
turbulent white water until we reached the swells of the outer
reef. There were only a couple of other people resting in the water
when Kimo dropped me off, telling me to wait. I sat up on the board
and watched him power away, shivering with anticipation.

“
Why is she so happy?
” a voice in my
head whispered. I spun around, but there was no-one nearby. The
other tow team took off to chase after a huge swell, leaving me
alone.

“
She wants to ride the waves,
” came
the reply in the same voice.

This was no figment of my imagination. I
squeezed my eyes shut to focus and said aloud, “
Sisters? Are you
here?
”

Now the voices were loud and clear, “
She
can talk! She is the one!
”

“
Who are you?
” I cried, “
Where are
you?
”

All at once two identical mermaid heads rose
from the deep blue water, startling me. They were like mirror
images of each other, and I realized that they must be twins. Their
skin was warm golden brown, glowing like honey with light shining
through it. They had the most unusual silvery white hair, so
shimmering and mirror like it reflected the blue sky and water
surrounding us. They looked at me in wonder, their bright,
inquisitive eyes a pale shade of lavender.

I was momentarily stunned, and then returned
their smiles, charmed by two of the most amazing looking creatures
I’d ever laid eyes on. They were exquisite, reminding me of exotic
tropical flowers. It was like stumbling upon a type of orchid you’d
never seen before, but found to be so amazing in form and
coloration that you were surprised it truly existed. They were
bizarre and otherworldly, but almost unbearably beautiful to look
at.

“
Marina!
”

“
H-How do you know my name?
” I
sputtered.

“
We know you from the council.
”

They seemed as surprised to see me as I was
to see them. I’d put the memories of that underwater council behind
me. It was terrible; my forced transformation– the first awful time
when I didn’t quite grasp what was happening to me. I tried to
recall seeing them there, but the blurry memory of that terrible
day was as vague as the details of a bad dream.