And yet, it had been a magnificent evening—exactly what I needed. The quiet calm, the escape from reality, however brief. I’d slept on Silas deeply, and when I’d woken a short time later, I’d felt energized and rested. Probably why I couldn’t fall back to sleep in my own bed now.
I made the decision to slip out of Wisteria Cottage seconds before the clock struck midnight. The moon was so bright it was almost blinding, like here on The Isle we were just a little bit closer to it than anywhere else on earth. The sky above was like looking at a LightBrite—pinpricks of starlight through a velvety black cloth.
I needed a breath of fresh air, a stroll, something to do to stave off my restlessness. I couldn’t lay for hours on end and let my mind wander. I was getting in my head too much already, contemplating things like the curse and Eloise’s tick bite—and also dragons.
I thought about the man who had brought me here, and the way his touch made me feel. About my life back home. About Simon and my parents—would I grow to miss them and the normalcy of my life in New York, or would that part of my life fade away like a lost memory? Wherewasmy home?
I shoved my hands into the pockets of an easy pinafore dress I found in the closet at Wisteria Cottage as I shuffled outside. The night was so warm I didn’t even need a sweater.
I strolled south, away from the darkness of The Forest and the curse. I had the dagger from Silas tucked into the sheath he’d given me at my waist. The circlet ring glittered on my finger as if infused by the magic of the island. It was one of the last vestiges present from my life in New York. My hair fell wild and free over my shoulders.
I passed through a small town as I walked, clusters of little homes spiraling away from a center square. There was clearly a market street, with closed-up stalls and shops, signs hocking all sorts of wares. Everything from self-propelled broomsticks to enchanted candles to a tea shop promising healing elixirs.
I was pretty sure the broomsticks were for kids. But only about 30% sure.
As I passed through the sleepy town, I stumbled upon a second bridge. This had to be the Lower Bridge. Silas had told me there were two bridges on this island that linked the East and the West sides. The Upper Bridge near Wisteria Cottage led directly into The Forest. Most islanders chose to use the Lower Bridge, as it was much safer.
My feet clicked against the wooden boards as I moved from the East to the West. I stalled halfway across and glanced down at the waters swirling beneath my feet. Koi flitted by, larger than any fish I’d ever seen before. One in particular, a smaller, pearly-white koi, had black stripes down its body.
I wasn’t sure if my eyes were playing tricks on me, but it looked like the markings of the curse. It made me think of Irina. Of the siren. Of Eloise, playing in the woods. The siren’s claims echoed in the back of my mind:Something evil in the waters…
As I studied the fish, it ducked behind a swarm of other fish and then vanished.
I felt unsettled as I carried on, hands in my pocket. I palmed my dagger with one hand, removing it from thethick leather sheath that Silas had given me. The whole thing was attached to a small travel belt I could wrap around my waist to carry my weapon discreetly. The only sharp tool I’d ever expected to wield was a scalpel, and here I was, the new owner of a weapon that had been colored with the blood of a fallen mermaid just hours before.
Once my feet returned to solid ground, I felt decidedly calmer. I set out to explore the east side of The Isle, loosely heading in search of the bungalow. Lily Locke, the Mixologist, had invited me to come by and see the workshop where she mixed her famous potions and served the islanders out of a small shop. Even though I wouldn’t knock on her door in the middle of the night, I could at least figure out where she lived and come back during daylight hours.
I hiked up the easternmost shore, a beach slathered in sand as ghostly white as the one by Wisteria Cottage. Silver moonlight danced over the ground, so bright it was like the sand itself glowed. I slipped off my sandals and carried them in my other hand, letting my toes sink into the coolness of the natural earth.
Going barefoot was never something I would do voluntarily in New York. Even the thought of it made me nauseous. Walking barefoot around the city was so low on my priority list it sat just a few notches above licking public toilet seats.
But on the island, going barefoot made me feel grounded and alive. Confident, like my feet belonged here. Like the very island welcomed my presence.
Maybe it was all in my head.Maybe it was magic.
Gradually, I followed a path away from the beach, trying to recall the exact location that Lily had described. I was pretty sure I was getting close; I had to stumble across it sooner or later. Anytime now, I should be arriving outside of the bungalow that Lily called home.
The longer I walked, however, the more uneasiness churned in my gut. The beach faded into the background. Green foliage appeared on either side of me in shaggy masses. It wasn’t the dark and foreboding thickness of The Forest, but instead an intriguing mix of plants—fruiting, flowering, and quite possibly flesh-eating.
I’d stumbled into a garden of sorts. As beautiful as it was, I sensed danger behind the oversized leaves and tempting berries. I was pretty certain snake-like leaves had tried to nip at my ankle, and a lily-of-the-valley scent made my head woozy and my thoughts foggy.
The more I wound my way through this enchanted, curious garden, the more lost I became. My heart raced. I was trying to deny the fact that I was hopelessly, completely twisted, but it was getting pretty hard to convince myself otherwise.
How could I have been so stupid? I knew what Silas would say, that I should have never wandered around alone at night. The fact that I was proving him right really grinded my gears. I hadn’t intended on getting lost; I also hadn’t anticipated finding a malicious garden with no exit in sight.
A rush of adrenaline plowed through me when I saw a moving shadow. There was no sound associated with it, only a slight twitch beneath a palm tree. If I hadn’t been so on edge, I never would’ve noticed it in the first place.
I backed beneath the leaf of a plant that changed colors before my eyes. I could’ve sworn the leaves were yellow seconds ago, but now they were a bright pink that did nothing to hide the paleness of my skin, a shade that seemed almost luminescent in the moonlight.
The magic inside me began to simmer and froth before I could tamp it down. Nerves coiled in my stomach, and the edges of power banded around me in a web of protection. My hands began to glow. My body prickled—warmly, like someone was pouring liquid gold down my back. It dripped over me, through me—inside and out—until I was on fire with it.
When a golden halo enveloped my entire figure, I stepped forward and did what felt right. I put my hands out and let the magic rush through me, out of me, toward whatever threat lay in darkness.
The magic came out in awhoosh. It emerged fast and furious, a golden light shooting through the darkness like a bullet. The magic ropes wound thin, metallic strands around a figure lurking not ten paces away. Small, glowing lassos working for me.
“Goodness gracious, girl!” A woman’s voice sounded. “You’re even more powerful than they said. I didn’t know it was possible.”
I squinted, stepping out from behind the formerly pink leaf that was definitely now a shade of teal that made me blink.
