Caleb McCallister and the Sword of Light

Chapter 2

Her song was like nothing I'd ever heard before. I started to point the girl out to Scott, but I changed my mind. It was selfish and I didn't care. I didn't want him to see her. She was the most beautiful girl I'd ever seen, and I didn't want to share her with anyone.

She was older than me. Maybe late teens. She bobbed in the water as she drifted closer, and her long curly dark hair shimmered in the sunlight. All the while, she sang to me with an enchanting voice.

Her perfectly symmetrical face was framed by high cheekbones and full lips that were curved into a slight smile. Despite her otherworldly beauty, her emerald-green eyes sparkled with a mischievous energy that drew me to her. I couldn't have turned away if I'd wanted to. I sucked in a breath when I realized she wasn't wearing a bathing suit. I wondered if anyone else was seeing what I saw. No. Not really. I didn't care what anyone else was seeing. I didn't care what anyone else was doing. As far as I was concerned, she was the only other person in the entire world.

Scott kept talking, but I could barely hear him. His words were muffled—like I was underwater. And suddenly I was. I found myself thrashing about in Boston Harbor with no idea how I got there.

Everything was dark and murky as I kicked toward the surface. It was mid-October, and the water was bitterly cold. My mind raced like I'd been ripped out of a peaceful dream and dropped into a nightmare. I sucked in some air and saw Scott leaning over the railing. He reached out, but I wasn't even close to the dock.

How did I fall so far away?

Before I could swim back, something wrapped around my ankle and yanked me down again. I choked on the water and kicked with my free leg. I fought the growing panic and tried to make sense of what was happening. It had to be one of the bay sharks Donovan warned us about.

No, no, no, this is not happening.

I kicked, anxiously trying to get away. My foot connected with something, and I pounded until the grip slipped to my ankle. I wrenched my foot free of my shoe and clawed my way back to the surface, hoping to escape whatever it was. My heart thumped from the lack of air and my mounting fear. When my head crashed above the water, I gasped and swallowed more water.

I didn't know what was down there, but I knew I needed to get back to the island. The thought barely registered before I was pulled down again. I took a deep breath and scrunched my eyes shut. My chest was on fire, but my limbs all seemed to be intact. At least it wasn't a shark, so I chanced a look around. The girl I'd heard singing gripped the front of my hoodie. Even in the darkness all around me, I could see her clearly—as if she was softly glowing. She hugged me tight, and my fear dissolved. I felt safe in her arms. Her long hair floated around her face, and she looked like an angel. Everything was calm, and the fact that angels didn't have huge fishtails barely even registered.

I was fading off to sleep when a blast of water slammed into me like the Mattapan Trolley. I was knocked from her grasp and immediately struggled to get back to her and the peacefulness I felt in her arms. I needed air, but I needed her more. As I paddled closer, she reached out to me, and I knew we were supposed to be together.

As hard as I tried, I couldn't make it back to her. It felt like a firehose pushed me even further away. The girl's face contorted into a mask of horror. Her eyes narrowed into dark slits. Her jaw unhinged in a silent scream, revealing jagged yellow teeth. I recoiled and paddled frantically. I suddenly realized I was gonna drown. My chest was about to explode. I grew dizzy and sluggish, but a strong gush of water lifted me higher. I broke the surface, gasped for air, and coughed up water and bile. The salt and acid stung my throat, but the rest of my body was numb.

Something splashed out of the water right next to me, and as much as I hated to admit it, I screamed. A seal slipped in and out of the water as it swam circles around me.