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This obsession must be another symptom, she thought. Whatever my particular mental illness is, it makes me hallucinate fairy-tale creatures and look for things without knowing what they are. Oh, and sleepwalk. Can't forget that. At least I didn't sleepwalk my way out here this time.

Lena's jacket was wet now—she hadn't thought to bring an umbrella. She stood uncertainly for a moment, trying to decide whether or not to return home. She would have to hang her coat somewhere to dry where her parents wouldn't see it. She frowned down the path and kept walking. She would just go as far as the edge of Magic's.

Shivering, Lena came to the park bench viewpoint on the walking path and sank down to rest. She gazed out at the sea. The blackness of the ocean met the blackness of the sky. The regular sweep of light from the Pelican Point Lighthouse whirled in the distance.

Shoulders hunched against the rain, she thought, So this is what craziness feels like. Wandering around outside in the middle of the night, in the rain, looking for something that doesn't exist, and even if it did ... I can't see it now, because of the rain and the dark!

Lena stood up, giving one final look at the sea, then turned her face up to the sky. She closed her eyes as the rain slid down her face like tears, and whispered, "I just wish I knew for sure."

She remained standing, emptying her mind, visualizing the smooth interior of a conch shell. And like a conch shell, her mind filled with the sound of the ocean.

As she stood in stillness, her soul opening like a night-blooming flower, words floated into her mind: "I beheld you, child."

Lena opened her eyes. Where did that come from? She looked around, although she knew that the words were only in her head. "Beheld" was not a word she had ever used in her life. But the sentence had formed in her mind as fully as if it had been spoken in her ear. Heart beating faster, she looked out at the black ocean again. It was as if she had asked for a sign and been given one.

I will look for you again, she thought. I will never give up.

Tears of relief filling her eyes, she turned to walk home.

Before she had gone very far, however, someone stepped out on the dark path, barring her way.

Lena gave a stifled cry.

The figure did not move, just stood immobile. It was a man—she could tell by the size and shape of him.

With a fear that was utterly primal, Lena backed up. I'm so stupid, she thought. I should never have left the house. I'm so, so stupid. Her heart slamming against her ribs, she looked behind her, trying to estimate how far she could run before the man caught her.

"You saw her," came a rough, low voice.

Lena's heart gave an even harder jar.

"I saw her, too," said the man. "A long time ago." He took a step toward her, and Lena could finally see him. He was wearing a long coat, and she realized it was Denny.

Lena didn't know whether to feel relieved or even more terrified. Everyone thought he was harmless. But maybe they just didn't know. Maybe he had attacked girls before, and no one knew. If he was harmless, why was he here on this unlit path in the middle of the night, blocking her way?

Lena's muscles tensed as she prepared to turn and run back the way she had come. If she could outrun him, she would scream as soon as she got close to someone's house.

But at that moment, Denny turned and gazed out at the sea. "I want to see her again," he said.

Without stopping to think, Lena rushed forward, closing the distance between them in a few strides. Before he could move, she was pushing past Denny and racing to safety.

CHAPTER 17

It wasn't until Lena stood panting at the door of her house—safe, alive, far away from Denny—that she registered his words: You saw her. I saw her, too.

Saw who?

But there was only one possible answer.

Denny had seen the mermaid.

Lena leaned against the back door, nearly faint with relief. She's real. Denny saw her. She laughed a little, then sobered. Either that,