Tangled Tides (The Sea Monster Memoirs) (31 page)

"Can you talk to her any time you want?"

He grinned. "You used to be the one she communicated with all the time."

"What?" I gasped.

"Since you arrived on this island, she's been watching over you. When you were a kid, your mind was open to seeing and hearing her. She began teaching you, trying to prepare you for the Triple Eighteen hullabaloo. Your experiences with her were removed from your memory when they turned you, but who do you think made you a Yellow?"

My eyes bugged. "Liora made me a Yellow? How?"

"She was a Violet. A damn powerful one at that. Smart too. Blessed be, I loved that woman. She could predict my chess moves ten turns in advance." He glanced at the corner of the room again and smiled. "Liora was there when Delmar turned you. She wanted to make sure nothing went wrong. He couldn't see her, of course, and she was a bit offended that you didn't retain anything she taught you about merfolk, but by then she'd already granted you Yellow status."

"Why Yellow?"

"She knew you'd teach others a thing or two about love and loyalty."

I had so many questions, but I worried the answers would bring my uncle more pain. He was already rubbing his knees like they ached worse than usual. "Could you die for telling me all of this?"

"Maybe. But you're eighteen now. You have a home, a new family. You'll be fine. No matter what happens to me."

The thought of losing him—and the fact that he had been sick all these years because of me—bordered on soul-crushing. Too many people had sacrificed themselves for me. I wasn't worth all this pain and heartache. It had to stop. "Treygan can't take my place. I won't allow it. Tell me what I need to do to live with the gorgon sisters."

He laughed his big, full-belly laugh. "You won't allow it, huh?"

"No. I won't. And I don't understand how you ever could. He's your son."

"Yara, you're forgetting I used to be a gorgon. I know how they think. Treygan could never take Medusa's place. The trinity must consist of all females."

My breath caught in my throat. "Then why did you let Treygan believe it for all these years?"

"He never spoke to me about it. Not one word. He never asked me for my opinion or for help. Probably too worried what would happen if I meddled one more time. He, your mother and Indrea came up with that hogwash plan. Liora said it was the first time Treygan had ever felt like he had a purpose. He could finally help someone instead of hurt them. I stayed out of it so I could live long enough to raise you. Meanwhile, Liora prepared you for what needed to be done."

"But I have no idea what needs to be done."

"Yes you do. Deep down you do. You just took the first step, volunteering to take Medusa's place. That's the most important part of the sacrifice."

"What else do I have to do?" Again, his focus shifted to the corner. The room felt warmer and smaller, like there wasn't enough air for both of us. "Why do you keep looking over there?"

"Liora," he said, but it wasn't a reply. He was speaking to her. "I think now is as good a time as any."

I scanned the room frantically for any sign of light, an orb, anything, but it was just my bedroom. No signs of a spirit anywhere.

Uncle Lloyd stood up. "Come on, ladies, we've gotta do this in my room."

W
e stood in front of one of Uncle Lloyd's handcrafted wood panels, a mermaid similar to the one downstairs, carved in even more intricate detail. I had a jumbled flashback of talking to a woman in this same spot, but then it was gone.

"How did I never notice before?" I asked. "The mermaid in all your carvings is Liora."

"You don't remember much about these carvings, do you?"

I shook my head.

"Well, then," he coughed and wheezed, leaning against the portrait. "This might seem farfetched, but bear with us. In a minute she'll look very lifelike. Focus on her eyes." He spoke in a language I didn't recognize and seemed to be reciting a poem as he ran his fingers along the crests and ridges that were the mermaid's hair

"I would ask you if this was a joke, but based on the last couple weeks of my life, my gut says you're dead serious."

"You betcha. Liora is about to show you something that no living soul has ever seen. Remember all you can. Save it not just to your memory, but your soul. This is crucial for surviving the Triple Eighteen. I'll explain the rest when you get back. She's gettin' antsy." He said one final sentence in a choppy, foreign language then stepped away from the portrait.

I took a deep breath and stared at the carved, teak eyes in front of me.

When they turned bright amethyst I gasped. I had seen Uncle Lloyd's wife in photos hung throughout the house, but she looked human. Now she was a breathtaking Violet mermaid: blinking, moving and—if I didn't know better—living.

Clouds passed over her eyes, and my chest was tugged forward before I could deny what was happening.

I
was Liora, standing in front of a waterfall. But unlike my experiences with Treygan, I could separate myself from Liora, even though I was living the experience as her. Just like I did with Otabia.

A shimmering, multi-colored waterfall roared in front of me, the top lost from view. The water whispered poetry.

"All you have to do is pass through it," said an angelic voice.

As hard as it was to pull her focus away from the gorgeous falls, Liora turned to look at the speaker.

The woman glowed bright as the sun. She had flowering vines for hair. Her skin matched the shimmering waterfall with swirling shades of pink, lavender, periwinkle, chartreuse and goldenrod. She smiled, and Liora thought of a pale crescent moon on a summer evening—one of those rare occurrences when the sun and moon are visible in the sky at the same time.

Liora knew she had reached the place between life and death. She knew who the woman was, and what the iridescent wall of water was.

"It is glorious through there," Medusa said. "No pain, no hate, only love and beauty."

Liora looked behind us and saw an angry sky. Red lighting flashed over brown, muddy clouds. Moss-colored waves rose and crashed out of a threatening sea. A seagull shot out of the water, strangled by plastic six-pack rings. He flopped on the ground near her feet, eyes bulging, feathers slick with oil.

Liora's gaze drifted from the stricken bird to her silver belly covered with amethyst hallmarks. A barren feeling washed over her, but she wasn't sure why. Half of her body was mer, the other half human, separated vertically but blending together in a seamless way.

She picked up the seagull and lifted him into the waterfall. It parted like a curtain and the water sucked him through. On the other side his eyes instantly returned to normal and the plastic dissolved. He gave a joyful cry and flew off on strong, healthy wings.

"So simple," Liora said.

"So simple," Medusa repeated.

Standing at the waterfall, Liora didn't see her life flash before her eyes. The people she left behind didn't weigh heavily on her mind. Life and all the people she knew were like a tiny thread brushing against her cheek while the rest of her was wrapped in luxurious, warm blankets of peace, love and happiness. The tiny thread could have easily gone unnoticed, but she felt it, mentally grabbed the end of it and held on tight.

"My baby and husband," Liora said to Medusa. "I can't go yet."

"Others will look after them."

"My son turned me to stone. You cursed him to punish me. He will never live a normal life."

"I do not curse my children. You chose this path. You chose to love a gorgon."

"We have no control over who we love. You of all souls learned that to be true." Liora pointed at the waterfall. "That is your heaven. You had the love and foresight to create an afterlife for all of your children. Let me do my part in making sure my son will be alright."

They both glanced at the raging, angry storm behind us.

Medusa folded her hands in front of her. "I do not have the ability to send you back."

Defeated, Liora spun in circles, alternating visions of the luminous waterfall and the turbulent sea. Light, dark, then light again. She knew there had to be a way to communicate with Lloyd and protect Treygan.

"Angels," she murmured. "Humans have angels. Do we have that also?"

Medusa's crescent moon smile appeared on her glowing face. She walked in front of Liora, turning her back to the waterfall. At first Liora searched Medusa's star-filled eyes, waiting for an answer, but then she saw something behind her. Subtle outlines of faces and bodies flitted through the water. Liora knew they were souls who hadn't entirely passed through to the other side.

"The Inbetween is much harder than life or death," Medusa warned.

"But they do it, don't they? They find a way to communicate and help the living."

"Some do."

"I choose to be an angel," Liora said firmly.

"Are you certain, Liora?"

"Yes. I will find a way to provide a good life for my son if it kills me." She laughed at her ironic last words as a wave swept us into the waterfall.

"O
h, my gosh," I gasped, stumbling on the floor of my uncle's bedroom. My skin felt heavy and foreign to me. The wood panel had returned to normal, but I couldn't stop staring at it.

"I can only imagine." Lloyd sat on his bed and sighed. "Yara, do you want to open the gate?"

"Of course," I said, still shocked by what I experienced.

"You're willing to take Medusa's place?"

Images of a dark grotto surrounded by a red, raging sea terrified me, but everyone would go home. Hundreds of lives would be spared. I nodded.

"If there was a way for you and Treygan to be together in the end, would you be willing to do anything—no matter how scary or crazy it seemed?"

My heart beat so hard it pulsed in my fingers and toes. Could Treygan and I really be together? "Yes. I'll do anything!"

He took a deep breath and looked at the empty space beside him. "Was it enough? Are you sure she'll remember when the time comes?"

He was asking Liora. I couldn't hear her reply, but what did her memory have to do with me opening the gate?

"Alright, then," Uncle Lloyd said. "Listen carefully. Liora has a plan. We raised you to be strong, smart, and to fight for what you want. Let's hope we did a thorough job."