Fear the Drowning Deep(7)
“Go eat.” Da handed me the coins. “Then help your mam with the housework.”
“Gura mie ayd.” Distracted, the Manx thank you slipped from my lips.
As Da and Grayse returned to the boat, I assured myself they’d be safe. The morning was giving rise to a rare cloudless day, allowing light to reach deep into the water, which meant Da would be able to spot any dangerous creatures lurking around the dock.
I trudged uphill alone, watching the ground closely—one stray fish hook in my path would keep me out of my beloved woods for weeks—but my thoughts remained with the black fin under the dock.
What fish had fins like that? Could it have been a seal with a deformed tail?
“Morning, Bry!” a lad called.
I glanced up, startled, and found myself gazing into the faces of my two best friends.
“Have you heard the news? Isn’t it awful?” Catreena gushed, latching onto my right arm. Ever since I’d known her—since the day she tripped a beautiful English tourist who’d made me feel as inferior as day-old fish and become my best friend in an instant—Cat had possessed an insatiable appetite for gossip.
“She hasn’t talked about anything else all morning,” Lugh grumbled, moving to my other side and taking my hand. My skin tingled as he laced his fingers with mine. Lately his closeness made me flustered. I tried to focus on Cat’s voice.
“Can you imagine? Drifting through the water, fish nibbling at your toes …” Cat’s dark curls tickled my cheek as she whispered the last few words in my ear. “Her funeral’s in two days. On the cliffs, above the spot where they found her. I heard my mam talking about it last night.”
“Really? What else did she say?” I tried to keep my voice steady, but judging by the slight crease between Lugh’s brows, I hadn’t succeeded. “Did they find any trace of a boat, or … or anything?”
Cat shook her head, her curls bouncing around her shoulders. “Not that I’ve heard. But Nessa Daley didn’t show up to work this morning. She’s never missed a day.”
I stared at Cat as a chill crept up my arms. “Is she ill? I saw her only yesterday, and she looked fine.”
“That’s the thing,” Cat dropped her voice to a whisper and widened her eyes. “No one’s seen her since supper yesterday, not even her new husband. She seems to have vanished in the night.”
The chill in my arms seeped into my chest. I didn’t know Nessa well—not beyond exchanging the occasional hello—but she didn’t strike me as the type to leave town without a word. No one in Port Coire ever just vanished.
“Maybe the sea-witch took her.” Cat shuddered, turning several shades paler. “Maybe old Morag needed her hair or her bones for a spell.”
“Or Nessa finally ran off with that tailor from Peel who’s always visiting. She’s fancied him for ages.” Lugh directed a glare at Cat from over my head. He was easily a foot taller than either of us. “Let it go now. It’s a terrible subject. And no more talk of witches.”
I gripped Lugh’s hand tighter, and he squeezed mine back. Warmth enveloped me, banishing the cold. I hoped that wherever Nessa was, she sent a letter to her poor husband soon. For his peace of mind, and everyone else’s.
“What’re you two doing out here, anyway?” My voice came out breathier than usual. “Looking for Nessa?”
Lugh ran his free hand through his shaggy red hair and grinned. “Looking for you, actually. Mrs. Kissack gave Cat the afternoon off. Want to grab a bite with us?”
“I’d love to.” I reached in my pocket to retrieve the money from Da and my sweaty fingers brushed against the pearl. “My treat.” I showed Cat and Lugh the coins, but the pearl remained my secret for now.
We continued up the path, my friends on either side of me. “What do you fancy today?” Cat asked as we crested the hill.
I considered our options, which were quite few, but Lugh said, “We’ll share a bucket of oysters. Sound tasty, Bry?”
I stuck out my tongue at him.
After supper, a glimpse of one of Mam’s paintings hanging in the hall—a mermaid wearing nothing but tiny silver pearls—reminded me of the treasure still in my pocket. Nessa Daley’s sudden disappearance and the afternoon spent with my friends had driven it far from my mind.
I had changed into clean clothes before supper, so I slipped away from the table to find the pearl.
The dress I’d worn earlier was hanging in my wardrobe beside a few similar ones, but I recognized it by the years-old stain on the bottom. I put my hand in the pocket and grasped the round, smooth object, then hurried to surprise my parents.
They sat on the lumpy sofa in the main room, their heads bent together as they spoke in low voices.
I moved toward them, clutching the pearl and thinking of how I’d share my good news. But the words died on my tongue as I overheard snatches of their conversation.
“… savings are gone. And Grayse will need new clothes soon. We can’t ask Mally to spend more hours at the market,” Mam said.
“Or Liss to wash more dishes at Katleen’s. Her hands look too much like mine already,” Da grunted. “But I tell you, something’s scaring all the damned fish away. I’m not catching half what I used to, nor are the other lads.”