‘Are you OK?’ Sam asked the dolphins.
The three turned their heads, swam away from the pier and out to the open water, then they turned and swam back. Hazel’s nose pointed out to sea.
‘We know. We have to follow the little ones,’ Sam said.
Bladder shuddered. From the water behind Wilfred, a large cod raised its head. As it did, its eyes turned black and silver and it headed towards the song. Three other cod took off after it. A pair of seals gave high barks, pursuing them. At first trying to herd them back, and then following them underwater where Sam could no longer see them.
Amira hooted urgently at Sam.
‘We’ve just got to get some things.’
Hazel pointed a fin at Wilfred’s back.
‘He’ll freeze if he gets in the water with just pyjamas,’ Bladder replied. ‘We’re waiting for the flying dust brush to return with some stuff.’
Amira cocked her head, doglike.
‘I mean Daniel, that angel.’
Amira focused on Bladder. She nodded, but she circled below them, agitating the water.
Sam stared at the waves. He didn’t like the prospect of going out to deep sea. Bladder was right, he didn’t know what was out there, and though it boiled with the fish beneath him, out there it looked flat and empty and lonely all the way to the horizon.
He’d learned about horizons; beyond them the world went on forever.
Sam felt a bit of sick hit the back of his throat. He could breathe underwater, but he couldn’t swim. In fact, he would sink to the bottom like a rock. If he followed the creatures he could end up walking the seabed forever, and it would be wet and dark.
Daniel returned with Sam’s clothes and two large bags of food.
‘Did you get the food from my house too?’ Sam asked.
‘We have other sources for that. We couldn’t go scrounging around in your kitchen. Your family is awake.’
‘Are they all right?’
Daniel smiled. ‘They’re fine. A little worried about you. Yonah left them four feathers. One each for Nick, Michelle, Richard and Beatrice so they can feel at peace in the middle of all this chaos. A quick whisper that you’re safe and sound and they settled.’
‘Heading out to meet up with who knows what,’ Bladder grumped. ‘Yeah, very safe and sound.’
‘What about the rest of our pack?’ Bladder asked.
‘Wheedle, Spigot and Nugget are fine.’
The hackles on Bladder’s back settled a little.
‘Nugget’s been a little teary and Wheedle wanted to come down to help you, but we insisted he needed to watch the house,’ Daniel went on. He yanked out a padded rain jacket and a pair of wellies from between the feathers near his left arm.
Bladder’s expression darkened again. ‘What kind of storage system do you have under them wings?’ he asked. ‘I’m always amazed by what you pull out. You got a fridge in there?’
Sam pulled on his jacket and relaxed into the warmth that gathered near his body. He looked at his hands; they were going pink again. What a relief!
Daniel seemed keen to appease Bladder. ‘We could put more wardings up at the house, just to be safe.’
‘Not that the ones you’ve put on have done any good,’ Bladder said.
Sam cringed when he saw Daniel’s mournful face. He knew how long and hard Daniel had worked on the wardings. ‘They weren’t meant to lock you inside,’ Daniel said. ‘No one would find you if they came looking for the house. It was just meant to …’
Bladder winced. ‘You know what a mean temper I have, don’t take it to heart. Everyone knows you’re doing what you can.’
Sam and Yonah shared a glance. Bladder was apologising again.
‘Bladder, are you feeling all right?’ Sam asked.
‘Heartburn, dodgy tummy. Yes, absolutely fine!’ Bladder snapped.
‘Come on, everyone. We don’t have time for this. We need a boat and Sam needs food and water,’ Daniel said. ‘Who knows how long we’ll be out there.’
‘We? You’re coming too?’ Sam asked.
‘You can’t go alone,’ Daniel replied.
‘Who said he would be alone?’ Bladder asked. ‘Perfectly good gargoyle here.’
Yonah gave a cooing laugh.
‘You can’t come, Bladder, you’re too heavy – you’ll weigh down the craft, slow Sam down,’ Daniel said. ‘The boat might even sink.’
‘Then we’re gonna need a bigger boat.’
‘It’s not …’
‘And ballast, every good sailor needs ballast,’ Bladder retorted. ‘Whatever! He’s not going without me.’
Sam was sure Daniel was right, but thinking Bladder would be along with him did make him feel better. ‘Anyway, why don’t we decide when we find a boat,’ Sam said. ‘We don’t know what’s available.
‘We will find Sam a boat,’ Daniel said. His wings slumped. ‘One big enough for you both.’
‘What do I do?’ Bladder asked.
‘Apart from argue? Maybe find him some wet weather gear. There’s a place for fishing gear along the beach. We don’t need you heading back to the street and scaring people.’
‘Don’t worry about that. They’re going crazy up there. I’m more scared of them than they’ll ever be of me.’
‘I want Yonah to stay behind and watch my family,’ Sam said.
Yonah tweeted and shook her tiny white head.
‘If she stays and something happens, she can come and find you so you can help them,’ Sam said to the angel.
Daniel gave a considered nod. ‘All right.’
Yonah’s feathers prickled.
‘Besides, you’ll be able to have a bit more time with Spigot,’ Bladder said, then sniggered.
Daniel stood. ‘Half an hour,’ he said.
‘What do I do?’ Sam asked.
‘You stay here and figure out anything these last few fishies can tell you. And tell them to stop looking so delicious,’ Bladder said. ‘They make my tummy rumbly. What’s in that bag Feathers brought? Any sandwiches?’
Sam wondered when Bladder had started seeing anything without sugar as worth eating.
‘Now let’s get you some waterproofs.’ The stone lion thumped off down the wooden surface of the pier.
Sam tried to talk with the shifters again, but got no more useful information out of them. Their eyes were still human, as were most of the bigger sea creatures’. The whiting had all fled, as had the herring. The larger cod and trout remained. Sam remembered seeing toddlers turn into whiting. Little children had become larger fish. The older teens were the bigger animals. It had something to do with age. The longer someone had been human, the later they were becoming full sea creatures, although there were some exceptions.
‘I am coming. We just need a boat,’ Sam told the dolphins.
They calmed a bit, although all those eyes looked worried when the seals returned alone. Sam gathered that the cod had got away from them and disappeared into the sea. The remaining creatures looked at each other nervously.
A few of them pushed forward. They stared at him.
‘Do I know you?’ Sam asked.
The shark nodded.
‘From school?’
Sam listed friends from class. No response. Then he looked at the shark’s size; it was bigger than the dolphins, so older? He listed Nick’s friends’ names: Sophia, Millie, Blake. Three of the sea lions nodded. Others barked at him too as he guessed his way through other older students. It seemed they just wanted to hear their names. He comforted them, promised them he would do his best to get them back to themselves soon.
Daniel came gliding into the middle of them, his feet landing solidly on the water. He pulled a large tin dinghy behind him with Bladder plopped in the middle, a set of waterproof overalls beside him. The boat settled into the water deeply, but not as deeply as the half a tonne of stone lion should have made it go. Daniel had painted glowing blessings along the side of the boat, taking some of the weight with a miracle.
Bladder had his foot in his mouth. He spat it out when he saw Sam.
‘Blasted angel dropped me in the boat; just dropped me. I hit a seat and my leg broke off.’ Bladder glared at Daniel. ‘That hurt!’
‘Sorry,’ Daniel replied as Bladder put his shoulder to his leg and the parts sizzled together. He flexed his paw to make sure it worked.
‘Made of rock. Breakable. Remember? I’ve been broken several times now. I don’t know how long I can take it. One more and …’ Bladder gagged and rolled his eyes to show them what might happen if he broke one more time.
In the nook of the prow – if a dinghy can be said to have a prow – sat a large plastic keg with a tap. Water, Sam guessed.
Bladder curled into a U-shape and pressed a big cushion against his belly. Daniel flitted up to Sam and chucked down the food bags.
‘Oi! Are you aiming at me?’ Bladder asked.
Daniel smiled, picked up Sam and hovered with him for a moment. The sea lions and dolphins gasped. Sam realised even magicked children couldn’t see Daniel. Except Wilfred, who watched with bright eyes.
‘Bye, Yonah,’ Sam said. ‘Go home to Spigot and tell him everything, then he can tell Wheedle. Look after everyone for me.’
Daniel lowered Sam into the boat, leaning him against Bladder and the cushion.
‘Blanket over there when you need it, Sam,’ Bladder said.
Daniel threw out ropes with hoops knotted into them. Wilfred watched the angel and came dashing forward as the rope hit the water, sliding his lithe body through it. Amira and Hazel took the other two.
Daniel reached into the water and touched Wilfred’s head. The dolphin gave a happy yap. ‘Two days at the most,’ the angel said.
‘Two days for what?’ Sam asked.
‘Till the dolphins change completely,’ Daniel whispered.
‘How can you tell?’ Bladder retorted.
‘Angels can tell how long a human has left. Although that usually means … you know …’
‘Death!’ Bladder said.
‘This will feel something like it,’ Daniel replied. ‘It is a form of losing your body.’
‘We’ll stop it,’ Sam said.
‘If we can,’ Daniel added. ‘The song is very powerful. It’s hard to tell what it’s doing to them.’
Sam studied the water. He had thought it looked lonely, but now he knew he was wrong. It teemed with life. Sea lions and seals skipped beside him. The shark and whale calf moved the water before the boat, creating a wake that helped the dolphins swim faster. The fish swam behind like a long silver tail. Daniel sat at the stern, his great wings open in a white sail that caught all the breeze as the boat glided along. Bladder licked Sam with his rough tongue as the cold wind blew over them, but Sam was in a knot of warmth. The nose of the boat cut through the sharpest of the wind.
It was only once they were far out that Sam realised how noisy the land was: the sound of cars and strained voices faded. The echoes of wind moving between buildings became distant. The air crooned gently over the water, and only splashing and the occasional voice of a sea creature replied to it. Away from the distracting shore it became a melody. He was sure the sea lions were humming, but softly, softly underneath it all, he could hear the sirens’ song. It was new, and he did not like it any more than the one from the previous night (had it really only been last night?). This one didn’t cause him any pain and he could even make out its message. It was a calling, a gentle summons filled with longing and frustration.
It grew louder as they travelled out.
Sam woke to a clear night sky, and the boat had stopped. Maybe those two things had woken him. He could no longer see any land, nor the reflected glow of street lights. The moon was a thoughtful slim smile in the air above, the sky was clear, which made it much colder. He was fine in his coat, but when he reached out, his fingers told him how cold the air had become. The water lapped at the boat, and he heard the constant splash of living creatures breaching the surface. He leaned over the side to see the shark’s blue eyes watching him.
‘Have we arrived somewhere important?’ Sam asked.
The shark struggled to move its head side to side, its whole body swaying against it, and it hit a few fish on either side with its movement. As it swayed, Sam heard its tummy gurgle. ‘You’re hungry?’
The shark opened and closed its mouth.
‘Can’t imagine something that shape and size can nod.’ Daniel whispered, and Sam understood why. The serenity of the ocean made it hard to speak. That, and the fact Bladder was still in stone form and dormant.
‘If that means “yes”, do it again,’ Sam said.
The shark opened its terrifying mouth. It would have been impossible to count its teeth. Sam looked through the groceries. The awful, artificial sound of opening a plastic bag broke the holy quiet. Bladder was awake in seconds.
‘Food? Now?’ he asked, one paw rubbing at his eyes.
‘The shark’s hungry.’ Sam stared at Bladder. ‘And you’re not.’
‘Gargoyles don’t need to eat. As much as I might like your choccies, I can go without.’
The shark’s tummy rumbled again.
Sam didn’t know what children-turned-fish-creatures ate, so he opened a packet of crisps. ‘These?’
The shark moved closer, blanketed by a school of sleeping shapes hidden in the water. Sam poured the whole bag into the shark’s mouth. It gnashed, and crumbs flew across the water. Tiny, round mouths appeared, kissing the water’s surface, sucking down the particles of crisps.
‘They’re all hungry,’ Sam said.
‘How long until they eat each other, do you think?’ Bladder asked.
Sam stared at the moving water. Tens of thousands of them under there. Knowing their fellow fish were humans, they couldn’t possibly eat each other. Could they?
Sam remembered the whiting, their eyes becoming fishlike, the tiny creatures forgetting what they had once been.
‘Why have we stopped?’
The shark put its head to one side; a clumsy action, but when it closed its eyes, Sam understood. ‘The dolphins are asleep?’
The shark did its manic version of ‘yes’, then settled into the waves.
‘It’s eerie, isn’t it?’ Bladder asked.
‘What?’
‘Well, the first time the song stopped they all rushed back to shore. This time, some have and some haven’t.’
‘Maybe it’s not hypnotising them all?’
‘Or it’s hypnotising them to do something different.’
The song had changed too. It was a lullaby.
‘I think it’s telling them to slow us down,’ Bladder said. ‘Why’s it doing that?’
Sam didn’t know. He was tired too. He didn’t think their timing had anything to do with the song. He hoped it didn’t. He heard a loud tear; Bladder opening a packet of crisps.
‘You need something to eat,’ the gargoyle said.
‘Maybe I should give the fish some too.’
Sam found himself looking down the throat of the shark again. It had to be the most terrifying way of communicating he’d ever seen.
Sam opened another packet of crisps and threw them on to the waves. The few watching, wakeful fish nibbled at them. Sam took a few mouthfuls for himself and scattered the rest.
A bright light grew above the boat as if the moon were getting bigger, but it was only Yonah landing on Daniel’s shoulder. She pecked at Daniel’s ear.
Sam sat up, startled. ‘Is my family OK?’
‘The pack?’ Bladder added.
Yonah pulled on the angel’s ear.
‘You’re required somewhere else, Daniel,’ Bladder said. ‘Go.’
‘Are you sure?’ the angel asked.
‘Now, Daniel! Nothing going on here!’
‘We’ll return to make sure you are all right,’ Daniel said.
‘Well, thank you very much,’ Bladder said. ‘But I don’t remember a birdman being available last time Sam needed help. Or the time before that. Come to think of it, what use are you generally?’
Daniel pushed his hair away from his hurt eyes.
‘He means we’ll be fine until you get back,’ Sam said.
Yonah pecked the angel this time, and started hopping from one foot to the other.
‘Go! Go!’ Sam and Bladder yelled together. The water splashed. Their yells had woken a few more fish.
Daniel fluttered out of the boat, following Yonah, but he kept looking over his shoulder to see Sam drifting away. Then he was gone.
Daniel had not been gone long when the sky lightened behind them, and Sam noticed the nasty sound again. Uncomfortable and high-pitched.
The dolphins began dragging the little boat through the water.
‘They’re pulling me towards the song, aren’t they? It’s louder now.’
‘What do you think it means?’ Bladder asked.
‘Means?’ Sam asked.
‘They all mean something. If it’s sirens, the book said they sing people to their deaths. Obviously, these sea creatures aren’t going to drown, but I’m guessing this song means something to them. Look at them. So, who do the sirens plan on killing?’
The sea creatures were moving, but they didn’t look any more awake than they had before. Their eyes were glazed, their expressions blank and unblinking like they had been on their walk into the water.
Sam gulped. He didn’t know what was going on either.
Wheedle lay on the roof of the Kavanaghs’ house, staring at the sliver of the crescent moon smiling at him. His eyes felt like gravel. Nugget cried. Nugget had started crying when Sam left, and Wheedle hadn’t slept or turned to stone since. Despite the fact she was weeping, Nugget’s eyes were shut; she was asleep, her little tummy rising and falling in rhythm with the breeze. Bladder was right – not solidifying and spending quality hours in stone form was taking its toll, but a stone Wheedle was no comfort to Nugget, who slept human-style. Wheedle stared at a dark sky salted with white stars. Something was wrong.
Yonah had left a while before. She’d danced along the rim of the roof before taking off without saying goodbye. Spigot had hidden his head under his wing. Wheedle felt for him, but was too tired to be much use to the stone eagle.
About ten minutes after the dove left, Wheedle had been hit by a pungent and wild smell: fairy dust, and a lot of it. Spigot pulled his head out and squawked at the road. Wheedle cuddled Nugget to his chest with gentle hoofs, patted her as she wailed some more, then trotted over to sit next to Spigot.
The streets were empty, and Wheedle knew there should be no monsters around (unless they were gargoyles), because Daniel had put up all the necessary protections, but the gargoyle stared at every tree nonetheless, trying to detect movement, any unnatural rustling of leaves. What had spooked Yonah? Where was the smell coming from?
He couldn’t see anything. A squirrel gnawed at a nut in the tree opposite, its heart burring like a machine. A few nightbirds dived at small creatures scurrying in the shadows between grass and hedge, but nothing large was on the move. The hearts of the sleepers inside the houses thumped slow and steady.
Wheedle realised this was odd. So many children had gone missing that day; more than a few lights should be on and he should have been able to hear the erratic heartbeats of uneasy sleepers tossing in nightmare.
Inside the Kavanagh house it was quiet. They didn’t seem to have noticed Sam wasn’t home where he should be. That angel had put some heavy juju on them so Richard, Michelle, Nick and Beatrice slept.
Wheedle saw something drifting between houses. It looked like mist, then it swirled in the light of lamps. It was fairy dust, drawn to the glow like moths.
‘I don’t like this, Spigot,’ Wheedle said.
The bird shook his head; neither did he. He leaned against Wheedle’s leg and the bull felt Yonah’s borrowed peace settle him. ‘That dove is rubbing off on you,’ Wheedle whispered.
Spigot turned away. Wheedle winced. It hadn’t been a criticism.
Nugget stared up at him, shifted between his hoofs, wept in his ear and shuddered. She didn’t have the vocabulary to explain what frightened her.
Wheedle lay back down on the roof and closed his eyes but could not get back to sleep.
The noise of the angel soaring towards them through the dawning sky disturbed Nugget, making her cry louder. Wheedle felt foggier than before. Broken sleep wasn’t good for anyone, especially a gargoyle who needed something deeper. The stone bull groaned.
Nugget yeeped as the angel hovered overhead, spreading noon-bright light across the rooftops. The quieter, quicker flap of Yonah followed, and soon both white beings sat next to the gargoyles. Nugget shuffled towards Daniel and the angel picked her up. Instantly, she fell asleep in his hand, sucking on one talon. Wheedle could have cried. What am I doing wrong?
‘Has anything happened since Yonah left?’ Daniel asked.
‘Nothing,’ Wheedle replied.
Yonah chirruped something while Nugget dozed.
‘That’s good. Yonah came and got me because she said she saw fairy dust last night. Has it gone now?’ Daniel peered across the street.
‘Where’s Sam?’ Wheedle asked.
‘Still at sea.’
‘You what? You left him there alone?’
Daniel blinked. ‘Yonah seemed to think this problem needed tending to more urgently.’
‘You shouldn’t have left Sam to come back.’
Yonah cocked her head. Even Wheedle got the tone of her look. Really? the gesture said.
‘Is he all right?’ Wheedle asked.
‘He was fine. They were asleep on a calm sea.’ Daniel turned and studied the gargoyle’s face. ‘You look awful, Wheedle.’
‘Tell me about it.’ Wheedle wondered when Sam would get back. He’d have to ask Sam about Beatrice. Nugget behaved more like a human baby than a new gargoyle. Maybe that was why she seemed better around Sam. Or maybe she just loved Sam more. Wheedle understood that.
‘Yonah flew over Brighton before she got to me. She said that while this street is silent the rest of the town is more … disturbed. People upset about their missing children, as one would expect. The Kavanaghs slept through? Sam’s not back. That should make them a bit edgy, even with Yonah’s feathers.’
‘I thought it was odd too.’ Wheedle smelt the air. In the freshness of a good, ordinary wind the scent of fairy dust had faded, but it wasn’t entirely gone. Wheedle listened for the Kavanaghs’ heartbeats. They slept on, as did everyone on the street, but sleepers stirred inside houses on the corners and further away. ‘The dust knows this is Sam’s place somehow, doesn’t it?’
‘It looks like Yonah’s right, the Kavanaghs do need help. Sam will be very angry if we don’t offer assistance. Maybe the wardings need to be a bit more personal.’ Daniel stood and, as if the roof wasn’t even there, he plummeted through it into the house. Wheedle jumped, but he was glad to see Daniel’s ability to move through solid things was back in full force.
Daniel returned, his head rising out before the rest of him came through the the tiles, then his feet were flat on their surface again.
‘Where’s the dust from, do you think?’ Wheedle asked. ‘Titania? Maggie? Other monsters?’
‘Who can say?’
‘Well, despite what she says to Sam, I think this is Maggie’s doing. There’s more here than she’s lettin’ on and Maggie’s smarter than anyone gives her credit for. Mustn’t underestimate her, I say.’
Daniel nodded. ‘You’re no doubt right. If so, then she’s obviously figured out there is something guarding Sam and his family, so she’s looking for ways around it.’
‘She won’t find one, right?’ Wheedle asked. ‘You’ll stop her, won’t you?’
Daniel swung his head sadly. ‘As much as is within my power. There are a few things that we can do to improve Sam’s chances, but after that, it’s up to him.’
‘Like what?’ Wheedle asked. ‘You should go get Sam back. You should get Bladder.’
‘They have an important job to do right now, and my job is to provide Sam all the assistance he needs. Your job is to watch over this family.’ Daniel pointed down through the roof, to where the Kavanaghs slept. ‘Just let me know what happens. They should be OK now. Even when they’re out of doors, the big monsters won’t want anything to do with them.’
Daniel put Nugget on the tiles. She woke straight away and wailed. Wheedle sighed. Then Yonah and Daniel left again. The gravel on Nugget’s surface where she’d lain in the angel’s hand looked pitted with holes. Wheedle wondered if it hurt.
Finally, the sky lightened near the horizon. Before anyone woke up, Wheedle decided to travel from rooftop to rooftop, Nugget sitting on his head and holding on to his horns.
They listened to everything. The area was full of people behaving oddly. For a start, it was Tuesday and everyone was wandering around like it was Saturday. No one went to work or school. Wheedle heard the constant buzz of telephones and sad, angry voices talking to people a long way away. The smell of fairy dust had travelled a great distance – Wheedle scented it coming from multiple directions, and it gathered in the Kavanaghs’ street.
Wheedle and Nugget went back towards it. The stone bull stopped on the footpath and looked up to study the protective sigils. Not one would protect them from the dust. Supernatural creatures, yes; monsters, yes; maybe even fairies themselves; but dust was not a creature, and the only other angelic sigil that might do something was just a general blessing, hardly specific enough to help. It only added power to the others.
Daniel was right; whoever was doing this was clever. Or desperate. If monsters couldn’t find Sam, then maybe the dust could, and someone had used a lot of it. Wheedle shuddered at the thought of how many fairies had been hunted and how many had sacrificed wings to the collection.
Morning came and crayoned the sky pink and red and orange. Sam had never seen such a sunrise; there were no clouds to obscure the vibrancy. It was beautiful, but Daniel was gone.
The boat pitched side to side.
‘Hey, settle. You’re going to throw us out,’ Bladder called to the sea creatures.
The fish squirmed around the boat, and the dolphins tried swimming faster.
‘I don’t think it’s them,’ Sam said. ‘Look out there.’
The waves grew in the distance too. Ahead of them, billowing water cruised in the direction of the boat. There was no change in the wind when the water began heaving, and the shock of the cold Atlantic water sprayed over Sam and chilled him. The water tossed about. A large wave came at them and forced the boat backwards, dragging the dolphins with it. As it passed, the dolphins had to right themselves and try swimming forwards again.
The sky overhead appeared still and calm.
The swell built to storm waves and yet there was no storm. The sky showed no change; if anything it was turning a muted soft blue, as beautiful as a winter sky can be.
Sam wrapped his arms around Bladder and eyed the sky. ‘Where’s the clouds? Should be something up there.’
‘Don’t like this,’ Bladder said, and pushed his claws into the bottom of the boat, feeling for something to hold on to. Sam held tighter to the gargoyle’s neck.
The waves built quick and ferocious, and Sam pulled a waterproof poncho out of its bag, covering himself and Bladder as the water rode up and down, sometimes slapping the boat on to the surface of the water with a skull-vibrating shudder. The boy and gargoyle took turns screaming.
The smaller fish and the shark disappeared into the depths and the dolphins tried to pull the boat along, but the swell jerked them about and they jolted back as they fought the waves. They were causing a lot of shaking. As Sam struggled to the front of the boat and waved at the dolphins, a cold upsurge of water slapped his face.
‘Let go! Let go of them!’ Sam screamed at the water. Waves grabbed the dolphins and hauled them backwards, out of their ropes. Wilfred, Amira and Hazel protested in high squeaks.
The trio stared at him, terrified. Then an upsurge butted between the sea creatures and Sam, throwing the dolphins one way and the boat the other.
Another roller of freezing water pushed Sam backwards into the boat and into Bladder’s paws. The gargoyle threw the poncho over Sam and held him.
The waves blatted. Bladder screamed. Under cover, near Sam’s ear, he said, ‘Can sirens do this kinda magic? It’s a trap, and we got sucked into it.’
Bladder pinned the boy down and created a tent that filled quickly with the damp, warm smell of boy and drains. It was not a great smell, but it kept the force of the wind waves away from them, and Bladder’s weight kept them from capsizing.
Sam’s biggest worry was not that he would drown. He knew water wouldn’t kill him. But he would sink to the bottom and it would be dark down there, even darker than The Hole. At least The Hole was lit by sallow light. He peeked out from the cover. Where was the sea taking them?
‘Where are we?’ Sam asked.
Bladder clenched his claws on the braces of the boat. ‘Let’s worry about that when the waves have stopped.’
‘Why did Daniel have to leave?’ Sam asked.
The waves continued churning, faster than before, pulling at the heavy vessel.
Then it all stopped.
Sam lifted his head. He heard the water lapping at the boat. He could hear his own heart beating wildly, but no other. There was no sign of the sea creatures who had pulled them – his shifter friends had gone – and there was no angel to fly him and Bladder away from here if another storm appeared and …
‘No land anywhere,’ Bladder said, as if completing Sam’s thought. The gargoyle looked up. ‘What’s that?’ he asked.
Sam could hear the distant movement of life under them, fish turning fins and maybe something bigger, another shark or a seal. It was getting closer. ‘Maybe the dolphins have managed to follow us,’ he said.
‘No, not that. Singing. Beautiful singing,’ Bladder said.
Bladder and Sam exchanged a glance. They were both thinking the same thing: sirens.
Bladder growled in the direction of the noise. Sam guessed it hurt the gargoyle’s ears. It hurt Sam’s.
Bladder roared. He opened his mouth and Sam could see a red flash from inside. Maybe his heart burned. Bladder always complained it did.
Waves hit the side of the boat and Sam looked up. He heard a tail hit the water.
‘It’s the dolphins. They’ve found us,’ Sam said.
‘Could be. Or could be sirens.’
Sam scrambled to the side of the boat, hoping to see the faces of three friendly grey-backed dolphins. Instead, he saw a woman’s face. A beautiful face.
Her bright orange hair trailed in the water behind her, wrapped through with pearls and ribbons of seaweed. She reached a hand towards him.
A large wave smacked him into the sea.