“I was on the way to Martyn’s, and I saw him in the waves. He was shouting for help,” Liss said, apparently taking no notice of my struggle to push the boat back into the water.
“I swam out to rescue him because it looked like something was trying to pull him under. And when I got to the spot where the water turns from green to blue, he vanished.” Her eyes were unfocused, her breathing labored. “The serpent grabbed me, and that’s when it—”
I thought she might faint, but she pressed her lips together and drew a breath through her nose. When she continued her story, her voice was steady. “It broke my leg. Then it dragged me to that awful cave. And even though it took me underwater, I could still breathe.” She closed her fist around the small bone on the end of her necklace. “This thing is really magic, isn’t it?”
I forced a smile, hoping to comfort her. “It must be. Pray you never need it again.” As I eased the boat back into the misty sea, water continued to rise in the hull. It crept partway up my calves, demanding not to be ignored.
“See that bucket?” I jerked my head toward it, unable to take my hands from the paddles as the waves surged higher. “I need you to dump those crabs in the ocean and start scooping the water out of the boat.”
“I can’t reach it.” Liss’s eyes shone with tears.
Of course she couldn’t, not with her broken leg. I hooked my right leg around the bucket, drawing it closer, then kicked it toward Liss. “How about now?”
The sound of angry pincers, followed by a gigantic splash, was a welcome reply, signaling that Liss had grabbed the bucket at last.
The farther from the shallows I paddled, the faster the wind rushed around us. Water crashed against the prow, sending a furious spray into our faces. It was all I could do to keep from losing one of the paddles, but at least I put a safe distance between us and the rocky shore.
“What are you doing?” Liss shouted over the clamor. Even with the storm hushing her words, the panic in her voice was clear. “I want to go home!”
“We have to find Da first! He’s out here searching for you!”
Our boat listed hard to the left, wooden sides creaking in protest. If we came any closer to tipping, I would have to release the paddles to help Liss. In the water, we would be easy prey for the serpent. He wouldn’t have gone far.
As we tilted farther, something bounced out of the boat and dropped into the water with a loud splash. The sound chilled my blood.
“Liss!” I gasped. She clutched the boat sides and gazed at me with wide eyes.
The waves shifted, and the boat righted itself as abruptly as it had tilted. Liss whimpered, and I thanked the stars neither of us had fallen in. Drawing a shaky breath, I guided us between two massive swells.
“Give a shout if you see Da.”
“I’ll try.” After a moment’s pause, she added, “I’m so scared, Bry.”
Manannán’s mist rolled with our boat, following us out to sea. It gave me an idea. “How about a song?”
Liss nodded, pressing her lips together as though holding in a cry.
“It was not with his sword he kept the Isle, neither with arrows or bow. But when he would see ships sailing, he would cover it round with a fog. He would set a man, standing on a hill, appear as if he were a hundred. And thus did wild Manannán protect—”
“Bridey, do you see that?” Liss pointed at something over my shoulder.
Without raising the lantern, which I’d left by Liss, I couldn’t see much of anything. “No. But do you have any idea what fell when we tipped?”
Liss didn’t reply. With a break in the waves, I turned to see her wiping strands of golden hair from her forehead and frowning. She held the lantern aloft, and I followed her gaze to the distant figure of a burly man in a large boat, riding the crest of a tall wave.
“Da?” Liss muttered.
I paddled toward him as quickly as my exhausted arms would allow.
“Da!” Liss cried again, her voice rising.
“Over here!” I shouted. If I didn’t stop paddling, we would reach his boat in a few minutes’ time.
When we were no more than a stone’s throw away, Da’s features came into focus. His worn cap, his favorite patched shirt, his broad smile. He beckoned us closer.
“We’re coming!” I called. “Liss is hurt!”
Da’s smile widened as we approached. He seemed perfectly calm. And his clothes and hair were completely dry.
I stilled the paddles.
“What’s wrong?” Liss demanded. “Why did you stop?”
Da continued to beam at us.
“That’s not him,” I murmured. “The serpent is making us see things.”
I turned the boat for shore, but a dark, scaly wall blocked the way.
“He’s gone. Da just vanished, like Martyn. He’s gone!” A scream ripped from Liss’s throat. She must have spotted the massive obstacle in our path.
The serpent’s middle was as wide as the spread arms of a grown man. Its body was covered in thick scales like plate armor. Ebony spikes ran the length of the monster’s spine. Its body writhed with the waves, but its head remained hidden.