The Siren Song - Book 2 of the Legends of Henge Series

Chapter 31

Anvi Patel

Things went to shit pretty quickly. Harper had made most of the plans, discovering that Atlantis had shifted locations just last summer to Lake Superior.

Of course, I felt like I already knew that.

I could feel my oxygen slipping away at the sight of the glittering surface.

I'm fine... I'm- I'm gonna be fine...

The water glittered more brightly as I gripped the side of the boat so tightly my knuckles turned white.

The water... can't hurt me... They executed my kidnapper... Drowning...

"Anvi?" Harper said sharply next to me, but all I could see was the water gently lapping the side of the boat. She grabbed my wrist but I pulled away violently.

"Don't touch me," I hissed.

"Anvi, it's going to be okay," Harper insisted, reaching out to me.

Water... Wat...

"Stop," I shouted, leaning farther away from her. I felt my balance shift and the boat rocked violently.

"You're just panicking," Harper continued, glancing at the others. "It'll pass, don't worry."

"Stop," I insisted, lunging back away from Harper.

The cold surprised me when I flipped over the side. My body went stiff like I was undergoing rigor mortis.

Drowning...

***

To my horror, when I came to, I was not safely tucked under a blanket on a shoreline. I wasn't even on the boat again.

I was far, far below the surface of the lake, looking up at an angular green face. "Hi," he greeted, smiling softly with his voice echoing strangely underwater.

I screamed, unsure of how it was heard so clearly. The green face shushed me quickly. "It's alright. My name is Mako. I've met you before but... obviously, it wasn't the best situation."

"Where am I?" I asked, though I knew the answer.

"On the outskirts of Atlantis." I shivered, closing my mouth and shaking my head. My eyelids fluttered shut.

Wake up... wake up...

It had to be a dream. It looked just like my hallucinations.

"If you're wondering how you're breathing," Mako continued talking. "I saw you in the water and recognized you. I swam as fast as I could and gave you that." I opened one eye to see what he was pointing at.

There was a black cord around my neck with a porous rock. "It holds enough oxygen for eighteen hours. Then, you have to bring it up to the surface for six hours to recharge it. We can give you each multiple while you're staying for the investigation."

I clutched my head between my knees, watching a sliver of iridescent green scales. "Your friends are probably wondering where you are..." Mako admitted. "I'll bring you back up."

I felt a cold scaly hand wrap around my wrist carefully. I jerked away instinctively. "Anvi, I know what you went through. I'm the one who stopped him. You need to trust me."

I nodded but I wasn't certain I wouldn't pull away again. This time, however, Mako simply held out his hand for me to grab ahold of. I slowly stretched my arm and wrapped my fingers around his.

I barely had time to react before Mako's powerful fishtail had brought me halfway to the surface again. When my head broke, I took in a few gasping breaths. It felt like I needed to, though I'd had no shortage of air underneath the waves.