The House in the Cerulean Sea(14)

“I have my ticket,” Linus said. “If you need to see it.”

“If you please. Where are you headed?”

For a moment, Linus couldn’t think. He reached into his coat for his ticket, the large tome in his lap almost falling to the floor. The ticket was slightly crumpled, and he attempted to smooth it out before handing it over. The attendant smiled at him before looking down at the ticket. He whistled lowly. “Marsyas. End of the line.” He punched it with his clicker. “Well, good news, then. Two more stops and you’re there. In fact, if you— Ah yes, look.” He gestured toward the window.

Linus turned his head, and his breath caught in his throat.

It was as if the rain clouds had reached as far as they could. The gray darkness gave way to a bright and wonderful blue like Linus had never seen before. The rain stopped as they passed out of the storm and into the sun. He closed his eyes briefly, feeling the warmth through the glass against his face. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt sunlight. He opened his eyes again, and that’s when he saw it, in the distance.

There was green. Bright and beautiful greens of waving grass, and what appeared to be flowers in pinks and purples and golds. They disappeared into white sand. And beyond the white was cerulean.

He barely noticed when the RULES AND REGULATIONS fell to the floor of the train with a loud thump.

Don’t you wish you were here?

“Is that the ocean?” Linus whispered.

“It is,” the attendant said. “Quite the sight, isn’t it? Though, you act like you’ve never— Say, have you never seen the ocean before?”

Linus shook his head minutely. “Only in pictures. It’s so much bigger than I thought it’d be.”

The attendant laughed. “And that’s only a small portion of it. I reckon you’ll see a bit more when you depart the train. There’s an island near the village. Takes a ferry to get to it, if you’re so inclined. Most aren’t.”

“I am,” Linus said, still staring at the glimpses of the sea.

“And who do we have here?” the attendant asked, bending over Linus toward the crate.

Calliope hissed.

The attendant stood quickly. “I think I’ll leave her be.”

“Probably for the best.”

“Two more stops, sir,” the attendant said, heading for the door at the opposite end of the train car. “Enjoy your visit!”

Linus barely heard him leave.

“It’s really there,” he said quietly. “It’s really, really there. I never thought—” He sighed. “Maybe this won’t be so bad after all.”



* * *



It wasn’t bad.

It was worse.

But Linus didn’t know that right away. The moment he stepped off the train, crate in one hand, luggage in the other, he smelled salt in the air and heard the call of sea birds overhead. A breeze ruffled his hair, and he turned his face toward the sun. He let himself breathe for a moment, basking in the warmth. It wasn’t until the bell on the train rang out and it started chugging away that he looked around.

He stood on a raised platform. There were metal benches in front of him under an overhang. The overhang was painted in blue-and-white stripes. Along the edges of the platform and stretching as far as he could see was beach grass growing atop dunes of sand. He heard what sounded like waves crashing in the distance. He’d never seen anything looking so bright. It was as if this place had never seen a rain cloud.

The train disappeared around a corner, and Linus Baker realized he was completely alone. There was a small cobbled road that disappeared between the dunes, but Linus couldn’t see where it led to. He hoped he wouldn’t have to walk along it, not while carrying his luggage and an angry cat.

“What should we do?” he wondered aloud.

No one responded, which was probably for the best. If someone had responded, he probably would have—

A loud ringing noise startled him from this thoughts. He jerked his head.

There, hanging on the side of the train platform, was a bright orange phone.

“Should I answer it?” he asked Calliope, tilting his head toward the front of the crate.

Calliope turned around completely, presenting him with her rump.

He figured that was the best he was going to get.

He left his luggage where it was and walked toward the phone. He set the crate down in the shade. He stared at the ringing phone for a moment before steeling himself and picking it up.

“Hello?”

“Ah, finally,” a voice said in response. “You’re late.”

“I am?”

“Yes. I’ve called four times in the last hour. Since I couldn’t be sure you’d actually arrive, I didn’t want to make the trip off the island until I was sure you’d be there.”

“You’re calling for Linus Baker, correct?”

She snorted. “Who else would I be calling for?”

He felt relieved. “I’m Linus Baker.”

“Bully for you.”

Linus frowned. “Pardon?”

“I’ll be there in an hour, Mr. Baker.” He heard a whispering in the background. “I’m told you have an envelope you need to open now that you’ve arrived. It would be best if you did so. Things will make more sense if you do.”