Devil's Rock - Chris Speyer [75]
‘Can she help us?’ he asked.
‘No,’ said Anusha simply.
‘What about Maunder? What does he want?’
‘He wants to live.’
‘And that means . . .’
Anusha hesitated, took a deep breath and said, ‘She says you can keep the bracelet. That it might help you in some way.’
Zaki could hear that Anusha was trying to offer him some hope. ‘But Maunder?’ he persisted.
‘He will try to take over your body.’
‘And if he does?’
‘And if he does, then he will try to kill her. She thinks he wants revenge for what she did to him.’
‘Can she be killed? What about the bracelet? Doesn’t that protect her in some way?’
‘The bracelets let you move from one body to another. Some part of you, like your soul, can even hide in the bracelet. That was where Maunder was when you put the bracelet on in the cave.’
‘And what about me?’ Zaki asked. ‘What happens to me if Maunder does take over my body? Do I become a sort of ghost like her sister and live with the dolphins?’
‘She doesn’t know. But that’s not going to happen, Zaki! We’re going to think of something!’
Why, thought Zaki bitterly, why did I have to put the bracelet on? Why didn’t I leave it alone?
Anusha waited for him to say something. When he remained silent, she said quietly, ‘There’s something else.’
‘What?’
‘She says you have to stay awake.’
‘All the time?’
‘Yes.’
‘That’s not possible.’
‘I know. But every time you go to sleep it gives Maunder a chance to draw strength from your body. He was weak when you put the bracelet on, hardly a human spirit, but he’s strong now. She says, when we sleep our spirits wander. One night Maunder may be strong enough to shut you out.’
Zaki could feel the fear taking hold of him. ‘What else did she say?’
‘She thinks Maunder will win.’
‘Over my dead body!’
‘Maybe not a good choice of phrase?’
‘Yeah, thanks. Maybe not.’
Zaki looked across the water to where Curlew swung at anchor. He felt the now familiar weight of the bracelet in his pocket. The bracelet had let Maunder in – could it be used to get him out?
‘I’m sorry,’ Anusha said.
‘For what?’
‘I thought she might know a way out of this.’
‘It’s not your fault,’ said Zaki but, of course, he had hoped for the same thing.
‘Come on – we’d better get back. Grandad’ll be wondering where we’ve got to.’
They climbed down into the dinghy, hoisted the sails and cast off.
‘What was she like?’ Zaki asked, after they had sailed for some time in silence.
‘A bit scary!’
‘How?’
‘She looks so young – but her eyes – it’s like she’s looking at things all the time that you can’t see.’
g
By the time they had sailed back to Morveren, Anusha had tacking down to a fine art.
‘Fancy crewing for me next time I’m racing?’ Zaki asked.
‘Yeah, any time!’ said Anusha with enthusiasm.
Once they had the dinghy stowed on Morveren’s deck, they hoisted ‘the mermaid’ and it wasn’t long before Grandad’s old launch was put-putting towards them with Jenna standing in the bows, her tail wagging.
Back ashore, Grandad sent them across the road to the cottage while he finished up in the boat shed.
‘Give the ol’ dog ’er dinner. I’ll be over directly.’
Zaki fed Jenna while Anusha had a look around.
‘Zaki! You have to look at this!’ she called from the small front room. When Zaki joined her he found she was examining the framed black and white photograph that always sat on top of Grandad’s television.
‘Who’s this?’
‘My great-grandfather. Why?’
‘Look at what’s behind him.’
The photograph had obviously been taken on the slipway behind the Luxtons’ boat shed. A stocky old gentleman in a cap and a waistcoat, his shirtsleeves rolled up to the elbows, stood with his thumbs tucked into his grubby trouser pockets. The picture was grainy and faded.
Anusha passed the photograph to Zaki.
‘Look at the boat.’
Behind Zaki’s great-grandfather was a boat that was being built or repaired. Of course Zaki had seen the picture heaps of times, but he took it across to the window to examine it in better light.