Celeste's Arc

Chapter 21 of 23

Slate's breath came in shallow gulps. Celeste knelt over him in the shallows and knew she could not carry him. Blood soaked his side. Every time she lifted him he cried out. Nyrimia floated close, her indigo hair spread on the water, her chartreuse eyes fixed on the cat. "The lagoon lies deep in the cave," the mermaid said. "I cannot leave the water. You cannot carry him across the sand without hurting him worse." Celeste stared at the stretch of dry beach ahead. Too far. Too rough. Then she saw it, half buried near the tideline. A broad plank of driftwood, flat and wide, its edges worn smooth by years of surf. She dug it free with both hands and dragged it to the water. It floated. She turned back to Slate. "Hold still," she whispered. She slid her arms beneath him, slow, and eased him onto the wet wood. He hissed, then went quiet. She pushed the plank into the shallows until it bobbed free of the sand. Slate rode it like a raft, his paws twitching. Nyrimia gripped the far edge with her webbed fingers. "Good. I will guide him. Keep his head above the water." She looked at Celeste. "But first, gather the glass. The spell left it on the sand. Do not leave it. That song is not gone. It only rests in those pieces." Celeste followed her gaze. Scattered across the pink sand lay the sea glass, pale green and blue and frosted white, all that remained of the wraith. She hurried up the beach and scooped the smooth stones into her palms. They were warm. She did not ask why. Her bindle lay where she had dropped it in the sand. She untied the sailcloth bundle from her bamboo stave and spread it flat. Into it she packed the sea glass, the purple shell horn, and the small pearl Nyrimia had given her in the cave. She knotted the cloth tight and tied it back to the end of the stave. She waded in beside the plank. One hand steadied Slate. The other held the stave over her shoulder, the bundle swinging behind her. The water rose past her knees, then her waist. Slate's green eyes cracked open. "A raft," he rasped. "Now she uses her head." "Save your breath," Celeste said. Her voice shook, but she smiled. Nyrimia pulled from the front. Celeste pushed from behind. Together they steered the driftwood past the surf, toward the dark mouth of the cliff cave where the lagoon waited. The current took hold and drew them in. The beach shrank behind them. Ahead, deep in the cave, the turquoise water glowed faint and clear. Slate was moving. He was still breathing. And everything Celeste needed to open the tunnel now hung safe from the stave on her back.