Diary of a Mermaid

Poor Ray

Steven okayed the room switch, but we need to move office equipment out, first. Right now, we are taking the desk down to the basement. And by we, I mean me and Steven. Angel is supervising.

We finally get the desk downstairs and are now moving around the furniture around, trying to make room for the single bed. The side desk has become a nightstand, the file cabinet has become a bookshelf, and the office lamp has become a nightlight. It's got a geeky feel to it, which is really neat. I take a picture of her room and a picture of my room. They're so different, but both are cool.

Once we're done setting up Angels room, we pop downstairs to the kitchen and inspect the fully-stocked pantry. There is a large assortment of snack foods. I take a bag of Lays chips and sit on a barstool. Steven's on the phone with the ALWASS.

"So," I ask when he ends the call. "Now what?"

"Now we wait for Nemmy and Jaclyn to arrive." Steven tells me. "Then we just live our lives."

"No security protocol?" I ask, a little appalled. You'd think there'd be security features. It's a safe house, for goodness sakes!

Steven twists up his face. "Well, there is one." I'm immediately intrigued and follow him closely as he heads to the basement. As we walk down the stairs, he says, "This is for emergencies only. We can't risk anyone seeing it through the windows all around us."

Once in the basement, he kneels on the floor and takes a strong-looking magnet out of a nearly-full filing cabinet. He places the magnet over a silver floor tile. We hear a click and Steven lifts up the magnet, but with the tile attached!

There isn't concrete under the tile like I thought there would be. Under the tile is a secret room. Steven uses the magnet on a few other tiles until there is a hole big enough for a grown man to fit through on the floor. "Down there is the Bunker. It's fully stocked with non-perishable food, a water supply, lanterns, and a few mattresses. If needed, we would be able to live down there for a week." Steven tells us.

He puts the tiles back into place and leads us back upstairs. As I resume my place on the barstool. The phone rings. Steven picks it up.

"Hello? Pause Oh, hi Peter. What's up? Pause What?! Long pause When did you last see him? Pause Have you looked around the house? Pause No, I agree. It's not safe there. You can come here for as long as you need. Pause Of course. I just need to call Jackie so she can escort you here. She's still in Miami. Pause Okay, bye." He hangs up the phone.

"Who was that?" I ask.

"Peter Geneva. Ray's missing."

I drop my chips. "What do you mean missing?"

"He's gone. He went to his room this afternoon. Peter heard a thud coming from the room, but when he went to investigate, Ray wasn't there. They have searched the entire house and now Peter is driving around the neighbourhood."

"Then why do you need to call Jaclyn?" I ask.

"She and Nemmy going to escort Finn and Cathrin over the boarder. They are going to live with us. Their house is no longer safe. Go text your Mom. She deserves to know what's going on."

"This is ridiculous." I hoist myself off the barstool and storm up to my room. I try not to think about where Ray is while I take out my tablet.

I can't believe it. Poor Ray. I just want this all to end. I just want to go home. I miss my life. I want it back.

A thought dons on me. Right now, Ray could be dead.