SilverMoonLight (SilverMoonSaga Book 1) (28 page)

»Can’t
you decree that Calum is allowed to stay on land?« I didn’t want to give in.

»Would
you really want that?« Ares looked at Calum, who sat behind me.

I
couldn’t bring myself to look at him. When Ares nodded, I knew his answer.

»I’m
sorry,« whispered Ares, looking at me one last time. Then he disappeared into
the waves.

I
didn’t move and Calum held onto me tightly. We sat there on the beach in
silence until the sun finally rose on the horizon. Then he pulled me up out of
the damp sand.

Back
at the house, Amelie was waiting for me.

»Hurry
up, we have to get to school.«

I
went into my bedroom, shoved my things in my bag and wondered how on earth I
was going to be able to concentrate on lessons now. I felt like I was caught
between two worlds. Amelie sat at the bottom of the stairs, holding a mug of
tea in her hand. When she heard me, she stood up so quickly that the hot liquid
splashed onto her hand.

»Damn
it!« she cursed, wiping her hand on her trousers.

I
shook my head. This definitely wasn’t the Amelie I knew and loved. She was
never usually this careless with her clothes; clearly all of this was making
her uneasy too.

As
we rushed into English class, the bell was already ringing to signal the start
of the day.

After
school, I went straight to the parsonage, where I found Calum in the garden
with Sophie. I sat down with them and took one of the cookies laid out on the
table.

»Calum?«
I asked after a while. »What did Ares mean? What is it you still need to tell
me?«

He
remained silent. Sophie and I looked at him expectantly. I wasn’t prepared to
give in this time; I had been thinking about it the entire day. I had to know everything;
only then would I be able to understand him.

Sophie
stood up.

»I’ll
get you a cup of tea.«

She
gave Calum an insistent look. »Tell her everything, Calum. You have to.«

Normally,
she didn’t get involved. For the first time, I got the feeling she knew more
about the shellycoats than she had let on in the last few weeks. Feeling
grateful for her support, I watched her glide off into the kitchen in her
billowing, vibrant kaftan.

»Elin
and I used to be like brothers,« Calum began hesitantly once she had gone into
the house. »When we were kids, we were inseparable. Elin, Amia and I were as
thick as thieves. In our society, as Ares’ foster son, I’m considered equal
with his biological son. Years ago, Ares nominated me as his successor. Since
then, Elin has tried to prevent this by influencing the decision of the Council
in his favor. In theory I wouldn’t have minded relinquishing my place to him,
but Elin wants to wage war on humankind, and I can’t take responsibility for
that. It would destroy our people. During my absence, Elin has managed to
gather a substantial band of supporters around him. Ares barely holds enough
authority now to be able to overpower him, and I should really have gone back
long ago to present myself for election. But I can’t bring myself to leave you,
which means that support for me amongst the clan has been crumbling. They don’t
understand what’s keeping me here. And if they knew, it would only make things
worse.«

His
tone was starting to sound increasingly bitter.

»Why
does Elin hate humans so much?«

»There
are several reasons. The selection of a life partner, made in childhood, is
indisputable and lasts for our whole lives. Unless one of the partners dies,
that is.«

I
still found the idea of partners being selected for them by the elders
horrifying, but I didn’t let on, just nodding instead.

»It’s
okay, you can say you think it’s awful.« He smiled at me. »But most of the time
it works out really well,« he added, almost apologetically.

»So,
when Ares met your mother, he was already betrothed to Egin. When he came back,
he took Egin as his wife, but she knew he didn’t love her. She had seen your
mother at the lake. Egin began to hate him, and this hate was transferred to
Elin. It ate away at him, and over time she persuaded him to kill your mother
if she ever made contact with open water. Amia and I could only watch
helplessly as he retreated into a world of darkness. There was nothing we could
do; he just slipped away from us.«

»But
I thought you didn’t grow up with your biological parents?«

»The
relationship with our parents still stays strong, regardless. Egin died when
Elin was still very young, by our lifespan at least. She was caught by a
fisherman and he tortured her to death. That was too much for Elin, and he
swore to avenge her. Since then, it’s the only thing he’s lived for. He must
have been ambushed your mother. I don’t know how he did it, but the so-called
accident was definitely by his hand.«

I
stared at him, shaking my head in disbelief.

»No,
that can’t be true. She drowned because she didn’t regain consciousness.«

»Emma,
you have to understand how dangerous we are to you. He found her and he killed
her. Dr. Erickson tried to protect her by forbidding her from ever going near
water, but it was no use. Elin simply waited for the right moment.«

»If
you go back, will you unite with Amia?« I found it hard to get the question
across my lips, but now I wanted the whole truth. I had already guessed the
answer before he even uttered it.

»Yes.
If I go back, I will take Amia as my wife.« And as if that wasn’t complicated
enough, he paused, then added: »She’s Elin’s younger sister.«

I
groaned.

»I
will only ever love you,« he whispered in my ear. But that didn’t make it any
easier.

»I
don’t understand how Elin has managed to undermine Ares’ authority. I thought
the wellbeing of the clan was paramount with your people. But this is all about
Elin’s personal vendetta.«

Calum
nodded.

»That’s
right. There’s more to it, though. Our people are dying out, slowly but surely.
More and more of our children are coming into the world crippled, and they
don’t live long. Many don’t even reach adolescence.«

I
looked at him, but he avoided my gaze as he continued to speak: »The seas and
lakes aren’t safe for us anymore. Mankind is destroying our living space. The
water is getting increasingly dirty and our basic food resources—the algae,
tang and seaweed—are contaminated. The noise from ships interferes with our
thought communication and the stench from waste gas is destroying our sense of
smell. We’re gradually losing our sense of orientation too. Our children aren’t
allowed to explore the sea anymore for fear of the huge trawling nets. And
there are many more things beside this which make our lives increasingly
difficult. It’s not just us suffering, but all living beings in the water.
Think back to the whales. These are the arguments Elin uses to incite our
people to wage war against humans, and even I have to admit that he’s very
convincing.«

»Is
there no other way?«

»If
you think of one, then please tell me. We’ve been searching for one for a long
time.« He gave me a sad smile.

I
had never thought at length about these things before. Of course I know that
mankind was responsible for many catastrophes, but I had always hoped that
everything would straighten itself out in time. That we would come to our
senses. After all, what could I do about it? Now, though, I was ashamed of my
thoughts. Hearing Calum speak of how his people were dying out made me sad, and
I couldn’t think of a solution.

Nonetheless,
I ventured a suggestion.

»You
could reveal yourselves to us. If people knew that there are other feeling and
thinking beings besides ourselves, especially ones who are so similar to us,
then something would change.«

»We
just don’t believe that, Emma. Over the years, humans have subjected us to a
great deal of suffering. And not just us, so many other beings too. In essence,
you even treat your own kind badly. In all the years I’ve been living here
amongst you, I’ve seen a lot of shocking things....«

»And
yet you stayed?«

»Yes...because
your world is also unbelievably diverse. It fascinates me. Your music, with all
its sounds and tones. Your books and all the stories they bring to life. And
the people themselves, each one unique. These have been wonderful experiences
for me.«

The
fact that he had suddenly switched to the past tense made me feel uneasy. I bit
my lip and stayed silent.

»But
the number of horrible things, and the fact that you seem incapable of learning
from your mistakes, all of that is very worrying. A great deal would have to
change before we could decide to reveal our existence ....«

Chapter Nineteen

My
cell phone rang, deafeningly loud. I froze, too startled to move.

I
was struggling with my essay on
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
. It was my desired
essay topic, but the tension of the last few days had been so much that I could
barely concentrate. I kept losing my place in the text.

Knowing
that it was Calum calling, I reached out to pick it up.

»Calum?«
I answered.

Silence...

»Calum?
Please say something.«

»It’s
time,« he said in a disarmingly quiet voice. »The invitation to the Council
meeting has come. Emma, they want you to come with me. But you don’t have to,
and I would actually prefer it if you stayed at home. It’s safer for you. We
don’t know what they will decide, and I don’t want to have lured you into the
lion’s den.«

I
was struggling to make sense of his words.

So
Elin had done it. He had brought the matter to the attention of the Great
Council. He must be utterly convinced by what he was hoping to achieve. But
what had Calum just said? For a moment I thought I must be hearing things.

»Calum,
of course I’m going to come with you. There’s no way I’m letting you go alone.
This is as much about me as it is about you.«

I
tried not to sound too indignant. What was he thinking? As if I could sit here
while a decision was being made about my life somewhere else.

»You’re
so stubborn,« he snapped.

»Are
you coming to see me today?« I asked, ignoring his tone.

»I
don’t know.« And with those curt words, he hung up.

I
stared at the phone in my hand. Time has come. It seemed like a lifetime ago
since Elin had seen us together, but at the same time it felt like it was just
yesterday.

Two
weeks until summer solstice. It was hard to imagine that this day would change
our lives forever. I couldn’t begin to comprehend it, and maybe it was better
that way. What would the Council decide? In an attempt to distract myself from
the fear rising within me, I jumped up and ran down to the kitchen. Peter was
standing at the sink, washing up a glass.

I
took a carton of orange juice from the fridge. As I looked around for a glass,
the carton fell to the floor and juice spurted out across the floor.

»Emma,
is everything okay? You seem really agitated.«

»Calum
phoned,« I said, trying to clean up the mess. Peter looked at me expectantly as
I wiped the floor.

»And?«
he asked, when I didn’t continue.

»The
invitation to the Great Council has arrived. They want me to go too. Calum
doesn’t want me to, though, and he’s furious with me for saying I’m going.«

It
was so absurd; here I was in the normality of a Scottish kitchen, squatting on
the floor and wiping up juice, while at the same time discussing the mysterious
Great Council. I started to giggle. But the look on Peter’s face choked the
laughter in my throat. He seemed to see things differently.

His
eyes had widened as he heard what I said. »Do you realize, Emma, that apart
from the Initiates, no human has ever been allowed to present themselves before
the Council?«

»How
do you know all this, Peter? You’re driving me mad.« I frowned and chucked the
cloth into the sink without rinsing it.

»I
do think you should get more involved in Calum’s world, and it’s a big thing
that they’ve invited you. But maybe Calum’s right—maybe it’s better if you
don’t go.«

»But
maybe he’s not right; maybe it’s better if I do,« I said, imitating his
slightly pompous tone.

He
fell silent and I sat down on one of the chairs, unsure how much longer my legs
would carry me. I pulled them up to my chest and wrapped my arms around them,
then buried my face in my knees.

Peter
sat down next to me and laid an arm around my shoulders.

»I’ve
been to see Dr. Erickson a lot recently,« he said apologetically. »He explained
everything to me. I have to learn a great deal if I want to be accepted into
the circle of Initiates. The Great Council will need to approve my election and
I’ll have to pass an exam.« He paused. »I’ll go with you both to the meeting.«