Chapter 13 The Kiss of the Deep.
Cold. That’s the first thing. Cold so bloody sharp it feels alive, slicing through my clothes, crawling up my skin, clawing down my throat. The second thing is panic. Oh yes, now I'm panicking. I’m sinking fast—weightless but heavy at the same time, limbs flailing uselessly. The surface is already a blurred smear of moonlight above me. I open my mouth to scream, which is stupid because all that does is invite the sea inside. Salt burns my tongue, my chest, everything. Oh, brilliant, Bella. Excellent plan. Jump into the ocean at midnight because you heard a pretty song. What could possibly go wrong? The pressure builds behind my ribs. My brain fires a thousand insults at myself: You absolute idiot. You survived a tower, a curse, a bear shifter in the woods, freezing half a boat, and now you’re going to drown because you wanted to make friends. Something bumps my shoulder. I twist and see Gilfred, the poor little idiot, is clinging to my shirt with all four feet, eyes wide, tail thrashing. His bubbles look like tiny pearls escaping his mouth.
“I’m sorry,” I try to say, but it’s just another rush of water.
Darkness folds tighter around us. The song that pulled me here softens, stretching through the deep like silk, and the shadows ahead start to shimmer. Light moves through the water, bright and fluid, forming the shape of… her. The siren.
She’s the kind of beautiful that doesn’t make sense down here—skin pale as moonlight, hair drifting like ribbons of silver, eyes glowing faintly blue. Her lips move, the melody spilling out, but I can’t hear it properly anymore. It’s more a feeling than a sound, something that hums through the bones of my chest. I should be terrified, but the panic is fading, replaced by a strange calm. My lungs are burning out of air, black stars flickering at the edges of my vision as she glides closer. Her tail pushes her effortlessly through the water with graceful movements that make the water obey her. I reach for her without meaning to. I really hope you’re friendly, I think weakly because this is not how I wanted to go. Her hand touches my cheek—cold, smooth, and weightless—and then her lips meet mine. It’s not what I expected. To be kissed when I'm near death, by a siren nonetheless. What a way to get your first kiss. It’s not even a kiss in the way I’ve ever imagined one might be. It’s warmth flooding into me, a pulse of light that surges straight through my lungs. I gasp, and instead of choking, I breathe. Water rushes in and out like air, cool and effortless. The pain in my chest vanishes. I draw another breath, and it’s easy. Too easy.
She pulls back, watching me with that faint, knowing smile that says I told you so without ever saying a word. Gilfred, meanwhile, is still glued to my shirt, tiny bubbles streaming from his nose. He lets out a pitiful squeak.
“Oh, right,” I manage, voice muffled by the water. It’s strange, my words come out as vibrations, and she understands them anyway. “My friend—he can’t breathe.”
Her gaze softens. She floats closer and presses a gentle kiss to his tiny head. A shimmer spreads across his scales, and a heartbeat later he exhales a bubble, then another, in long, relaxed breaths. He blinks up at me like what the actual hell just happened, then lets out a furious chirp that probably translates to you, absolute lunatic.
I grin, dizzy with relief. “Okay. She didn’t kill us. That’s a good start.”
The siren laughs, a sound I can feel rather than hear. She reaches out, her fingers brushing mine. Her skin is colder than the sea around us, but her touch is light, almost shy. She slips Gilfred into her other palm like he’s a precious thing, and he glares up at her but doesn’t fight it. I take her offered hand. Her grip is cool, and secure. This is fine, I tell myself. Everything’s fine. A mythical creature has kissed you, you’re breathing underwater, and your pet lizard now has gills. Totally normal day. The siren's lips curve, like she heard that thought. Then the current around us shifts.
The water seems to bend to her will. It coils around my legs, pulling us forward faster than swimming could ever manage. Her tale moves us through the water, pulling me along with her. The world turns into streaks of light, coral glowing faintly below, shoals of silver fish scattering in ribbons of motion. We’re flying through the sea. My hair streams behind me like a banner, and every breath tastes like salt and something sweet, something not of this world. She doesn’t let go of my hand, but she keeps glancing at me, her expression unreadable but not cruel. Maybe she really is a friend. Gilfred, cradled in her other hand, looks anything but convinced. He presses his little head into her thumb as if trying to stay as far away from the rest of her as possible.
“Don’t give me that look,” I whisper to him, bubbles spinning from my lips. “I’ll apologise later, promise.”
The light ahead grows brighter, a soft turquoise glow bleeding through the darkness, illuminating shapes in the distance. Towers of coral, the faint curve of an archway, movement too large to name. She squeezes my fingers once, a gentle reassurance. I squeeze back, because what else can I do? It wouldn’t be a great start to a friendship if I were to refuse. And then somewhere far below, deeper than I’ve ever imagined the sea could go, a shadow stirs. The water vibrates with a different sound; it's lower, darker. The siren's smile fades. She glances over her shoulder, eyes wide, the faint shimmer of fear crossing her features before she turns back to me.
She mouths one word.
Swim.
So I do, kind of...I never learnt how to swim, and she's holding my hand in one of hers, so all I can really do is kick my feet frantically and hope that it's somehow helping our forward motion through whatever darkness is coming for us. Come on, Bella, no need to die now.