Cerulean Found

Chapter 51 - Secret Eyes

The next day Josh picks me up after he is done with work and drives us out to Curdle Cay. The drive is pleasant and seems less intense this time, probably because I know what to expect this time.

We pace the time listening to music and chatting. Josh shares stories about his day and tells me some of the interesting guests that they took out on the boat. There were two sisters vacationing with their parents who wouldn't stop asking him to take photos of them as they posed around the boat. I wonder what they looked like? Were they pretty? Were they single? My mind wanders and I begin to think about how many girls Josh must meet in his line of work. It's probably a lot. And they're probably all bikini clad and gorgeous.

I roll my eyes and stare out the window at the island landscape. I know I am starting to become jealous, which I don't like, so I change the subject quickly and begin to tell Josh about the breakfast gram cooked this morning. It's not the most riveting conversation subject, but it's the first thing that pops into my mind. Judging by the huge grin on his face, Josh doesn't seem to mind.

When we arrive at the beach, I'm pleased to see that we are the only ones there. We sit on a towel beneath the shade of a palm tree and begin to silently read Audrey's journal together.

I was tempted to skim the pages earlier in the day as I waited for Josh to pick me up, but ultimately was able to resist the urge. Having a little brother who loves to play definitely has its advantages. Like today, when all he wanted to do was play pirates in his room with me.

As I open the leather bound journal, I begin to wonder what secrets the pages hold. Will we finally learn what happened to Audrey and discover if she ever made it to Mennakenna?

The first few pages we read, Audrey talks at great length about her reasons for wanting to go to Menna. She needs closure. She wants to find out if her mom did indeed catalyst, whatever that means. The next thing I read leaves me completely speechless. Audrey wants to see her mother but from a distance, that way she will not be able to gaze into her eyes. Why wouldn't she want to look into her own mother's eyes? I am so confused.

July 18, 1992

Sabra and I just returned from the Isle of Mennakenna. We didn't see any mermaids at Cerulean Bay, or mom, so we will be heading back in the next day or two. I never in my wildest dreams would have imagined that I would ever set foot on that island. Everyone thinks that it doesn't exist, but I always believed that it was real. I believed because mom did. It was the backdrop to all of her bedtime stories she told me. Seeing it in person was like stepping into a dream.

The island was just as I had pictured but more beautiful, if that is even possible.

The journey to the Isle was not hard. We did everything the Melleiro said to do and it worked perfectly. The island was easy to find, especially with dad's fishing boat and the map Sabra had stolen from the tribe.

We painted a copy of the map onto my bedroom wall that way we would always have it. Sabra then returned the original to the tribe before they ever noticed it was gone. We studied the map so much that it will forever be ingrained into our minds.

Once we arrived on Mennakenna, we climbed up a massive cliff and when we reached the top we found ourselves face to face with a huge circular rock. It was the entry stone that the Melleiro had talked about. We walked through the center of the hole in the rock, like we had been advised to do. I'm still not sure what the point of that was. Sabra said that by walking through the hole you are passing through the doorway to Menna. Only familiar guests use doors and if you don't walk through it, the island will think you are a trespasser.

I stop reading for a moment and gasp. I have seen that very stone before. She has described the exact place I have just dreamt about the night before. How could that be? How could I dream of this place I'd never been to nor had I ever seen?