Scared New World

Chapter 7

I woke with a start, my shoulder protesting. A merman was sitting beside my cot, his face creased in concern as he gently held my hand. Relief flickered across his face as he noticed me. The notepad was already in his hand. Rissa. As he wrote, my eyes flicked over his body, fear washing over me as I noticed the cuts and bruises.

Every muscle protested, but I pushed myself to a sitting position and scribbled on the notepad. What happened? Are you okay?

Jay shook his head, putting a hand on my arm. I'm fine. Are you okay? You had a panic attack and passed out.

Where's David? My heart was pounding as I waited for his answer.

He's fine. He wanted to be here when you woke up, but I told him it would be safer and raise less suspicion if only one of us stayed behind.

The world tilted as I unsteadily rose from the cot. Jay gripped my hand, steadying me. Do you want me to come with you? Somehow, without me even mentioning it, he knew where I needed to go.

I shook my head. No. You stay here in case David comes back early. I'll send word when I get there. The thought of seeing Mom simultaneously comforted and terrified me at the same time.

I took a deep breath, exhaling slowly as I swam out of the room, through the house, and into the open water. It was barely dawn, but there was enough light from the surrounding homes to see where I was going. As I swam, I rehearsed what I would say to Mom. After I told her about Jay and David, I would sit her down and gently tell her about Dad.

As I neared my village, I noticed it was unusually crowded. At this time of the day, most people would still be asleep. My fins prickled as I swam, my eyes scanning for anything amiss. That's when I felt vibrations in the water. All I saw was a flash of brown hair as someone threw herself into my arms. Naia. I could feel her shaking against me as she sobbed.

After a few minutes, she pulled herself together and looked up at me. She looked exhausted, but I could sense another emotion buried deep underneath: fear. What happened? I asked.

She shook her head tearfully. "Rissa, it's Tiger Shark. He kidnapped Meri. It all happened so fast. I—I  didn't even have time to move." I could tell by the look in her eyes that she was edging toward hysteria. Her unspoken words hovered in the water between us: he will kill her if we don't find her.

I put my hands on her shoulders, firmly looking into her eyes. I'll find her, Naia. I promise. Is that what Mom's doing?

She nodded. "She's been out searching for hours. Be careful, Rissa. Please."

I hugged Naia tightly as I swam into the kitchen, filling my bag with plenty of food; enough for me, David, and Jay. My hands trembled at the thought of coming face-to-face with Tiger Shark. I steeled my nerve as I swam out into the open water.

It occurred to me as I was swimming that I'd completely forgotten to send word to Jay that I got here safe. I grabbed paper from my bag and scribbled a hasty note before swimming a few feet ahead, cupping the message and whispering a name onto the paper. A brisk wind suddenly whipped my hair into a frenzy, causing the note to lift into the water and float away. I'd never done that before, but I was confident the message would reach him in time.

I kept my eyes peeled for signs of danger, my body tense. I was so focused on what was in front of and around me that I didn't even notice as someone came up behind me, binding my hands behind my back. Fear left me breathless as I was dragged through the water, my tail swirling the water and making it hard to see. Little did I know, this was nothing compared to what would come.

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