Emily Windsnap and the Siren's Secret - Liz Kessler [36]
Nerin, the one who’d brought me in, finally let go of me. She brushed my arm where she’d been clutching it. “Of course,” she said gently. “I’m sorry. I was just so surprised. You see, we don’t get visitors here. Never! Not in all the years we’ve —”
One of the other mermaids nudged her. “Rarely,” she corrected her. “Let’s not say never. You’ll give the girl a bad impression.” She reached out and stroked my hair. “And look at the little jewel that’s been washed in now. Girls, let’s say thank you. This may be our salvation.”
“You’re right, Merissa,” Nerin said. She swam around me. “A pretty little siren like this,” she murmured.
“I’m — um, I’m not exactly a siren,” I said nervously.
The mermaid who had been brushing her hair pushed in front of the others and put a spindly arm around me. “Of course you are, dear,” she said. “You mustn’t say things like that. Putting yourself down is a terrible thing to do — especially in one so young and so pretty.” She tilted my chin up. “You listen to your auntie Lorelei,” she said softly. “You are a beautiful young siren. Right?”
“Right, OK,” I said. At that point, I would probably have agreed to anything she said. They were all being so nice! And there was something about them that was so — what was it? Comforting. Peaceful. It made me feel happy, and I wanted to stay here forever. In that moment, I forgot about everything else. All I could think about was being here, with these mermaids, and feeling this warm, peaceful feeling.
“Now, how about a little song?” Lorelei suggested in that same sweet tone of voice, her smile still big and warm and welcoming. The other mermaids froze and looked first at her, then at me.
“A song?” I said, laughing nervously. “What do you mean?”
The other mermaids were around me in a moment, all with the same encouraging smiles on their faces. Lorelei’s arm was still around my shoulders. “A song,” she repeated, a slight edge creeping into her voice. “A beautiful siren song, to welcome you here. We’ll join in.” Her arm still rested lightly on my shoulder.
“You start,” Merissa said sweetly.
I burst out laughing. “You clearly haven’t heard me sing!” I said.
The arm around my shoulder tightened.
“Whatever do you mean?” Lorelei asked, still smiling, although there was definitely something more strained about the smile now. It was beginning to look as though it had been painted on her face, rather than belonging there naturally.
“I — I mean, well, I can’t really sing,” I said. “In fact, my singing voice is terrible.”
The mermaids stared at me, their expressions suddenly dark and full of threat. They seemed closer than they’d been, right up against me, and their faces looked ugly, their smiles false and harsh.
“Terrible?” one of them said. Then she forced a laugh. “You’re being modest.”
I laughed back — only my laugh was more of a nervous cackle. “I’m really not,” I said. “Even my mom makes me stop, and her voice is bad enough!”
The arm around my shoulder became a vice. Lorelei’s fingers dug into my shoulder. “What — do — you — mean?” she whispered hoarsely.
“Oww!” I tried to break free from her grip. My shoulder felt as though a scorpion was biting into it. “I mean I can’t sing!” I said. “I’m not a siren and I can’t sing. If you want beautiful singing, then you need to ask Shona!”
Shona. My chest leaped at the thought of her. Where was she now? How long had I been in here? Was she still waiting for me?
One of the mermaids pushed past Lorelei, picking her hand off my shoulder. She gently took hold of my arm and swam us away from the others.
“Hello, dearie,” she said. “I’m Amara. Now then. Tell me about Shona,” she said softly. “She’s a friend of yours, is she?”
I nodded. “My best friend,” I said, gulping back a rock-shaped tear in my throat.
“And this Shona,” she went on. “She’s a good singer?”
“She’s the best in her school!” I said proudly.