Demons of the Ocean Read Online Free PDF Page B

heart clasped between two hands with a crown above. But this one was just slightly different. The hands clasped not a heart, but a skull."Who are you?" she asked, shivering. "Where am I?"The boy frowned again and shook his head. Wasn't he able to understand her? But he had spoken English to her, hadn't he?"Who are you?" she asked again. This time she heard how she sounded. "Hooooraaaruuu." Her breath was weak, her mouth and tongue parched."Here. Drink."He took a leather flask from his pocket and dripped water gently over her lips. It felt good, though icy cold. She parted her lips and tried her best to catch the water. It took a moment for her mouth to start functioning properly again. She was so focused on drinking that she scarcely noticed as the boy cupped her head and slipped his bundled-up jacket under her as an impromptu pillow. But when she finished the mouthful of water and let her head fall back, she felt more comfortable than before.The softness beneath her head and neck contrasted with the hard surface that met the rest of her body. She was lying on a rough wooden floor. Twisting her head slightly, she could see a patch of red-painted floorboard on either side of her. But beyond that, in every direction, her vision was limited by a thick mist.Her head twisted back to the boy, whose face appeared to be floating in the mist."Who are you?" she asked once more.This time, she could tell he understood."The name's Lorcan," he said. "Lorcan Furey."
    "Lorcan," she repeated. It wasn't a name she had ever heard before."Here, drink some more."He offered the flask to her lips
     again and she took another gulp."Where am I?"The boy smiled. "Isn't that obvious, missy? You're at sea."Although she couldn't see beyond him, as he spoke the words, she felt the ship lurch in the waves and heard the crash of the ocean below."How did I get here?"
    "Don't you remember?" he said. "There's been a storm."As he said the word storm, her whole body reacted. Suddenly, she was back there in the heart of it, the mast cracking above her, the saltwater drenching her already-soaked body once again."Found you floating in the water, like a fish," Lorcan said.
    "Yes." Now she realized that he was wet through, too, his hair and shirt slicked tight to his skin. His face was pale, almost as pale as the mist."Didn't get to you a moment too soon," Lorcan said. "You were on your way down to meet the mermaids."
    "What about Connor? When can I see him?"Lorcan looked at her sadly. In that terrible moment, she understood."You only rescued me."He nodded."Let's go back for him. It's not too late. You remember where you found me? He must be near. You must have seen the boat."He shook his head. "There was no boat. Just you, flapping about in the waves like a salmon in the Shannon."Yes. She remembered the feeling of the water. So cold. So numbing. And then the memory ran out, like a dream that ends too soon. She desperately tried to summon up more, to go back. Her head ached from the effort."A boat can't disappear," she said. "It just can't."
    "In a storm like this, even a ship the size of ours can disappear," Lorcan said. "The ocean can be a wicked brut when he wants."
    "But my brother, Connor! We're twins. We're everything to one another. I can't go on without him."Her heart began to pound. She felt the rhythm build like a bomb getting ready to explode inside her.
    "Twins, you say?"Lorcan's eyes were intense."Midshipman Furey."Grace heard the other voice, but could not make out through the mist who was speaking. The voice was only a whisper, yet it resounded clearly in her head.Lorcan turned away from Grace."Yes, Captain."There was a pause and Grace heard two heavy footsteps echo across the ship's boards."Midshipman Furey, you must go inside. The mist cannot last much longer."There were a further two steps.Lorcan seemed to be in a trance. Maybe the ice-cold water was numbing his bones now, too. Perhaps the effort of rescuing her was catching up with him. Like her,