Secrets of the Deep (25 page)

They all eyed Archie’s strange, tulip-shaped gun warily.

Even Jones looked perplexed, and perhaps a little amused now that he had seen they were just kids. “Hoy, you three. Brats. Explain yourselves,” he ordered, glancing from Jake to his friends. “What are you doing in my seas? You think you’re clever with your little taunts? You have any idea what I could do to you?”

“Uhh,” said Jake.

“Ever seen a feeding frenzy?” Jones asked, arching a brow.

Jake flung off a pulsation of dread. “Please! Let my companions go. I’m the only one who said those things. Your quarrel is with me!”

Jones stared at him in astonishment, then laughed. “Well, aren’t you a fine one! Why not. Aye, indulge the boy.” He gestured to his henchman. “We don’t get many like this down here. Aye, this is new. Let her go, Lebrec.”

Squid Head released Dani, to Jake’s relief. At once, she edged over to Archie’s side, since, fortunately, none of the shark men looked keen to risk finding out if he’d been lying about a more dangerous setting on his fantastical weapon.

The captain folded his arms across his chest and awaited Jake’s explanation.

“It is true, we are landers,” he admitted, using Sapphira’s term in hopes of sounding savvy about the underwater world. “We got hold of some magic and just came down on a lark to look around.”

“Oh, really?”

Jake nodded. “We wanted to see what it was like down here. It’s very nice, your realm,” he offered.

“Thank you,” said Jones with a skeptical stare.

“So, is it true, then? You really are the legendary Captain Davy Jones?”

“I am. You doubt it?”

“No, sir. It’s just—you’re so famous up on land. We’ve all heard about you in school. I
am
sorry I said those things,” Jake said, penitently hanging his head. “The truth is, I was just trying to get your attention—so you wouldn’t leave. That was the only stuff that came to mind.”

“You wanted my attention?” Jones snorted and looked at his henchmen, who laughed. “Most try to avoid it.”

“Not us, sir,” Jake said earnestly, hoping the man was buying the innocent kid routine. “We wanted to meet you, you see—me and my friends. I mean, there are
songs
about you in our world! And books and stories, too. Actually I was kind of wondering—if it’s not too much trouble—could we have your autograph? Otherwise the kids at school will never believe we really met you.”

Jones scrutinized him, and Jake feared for a moment that he was doomed for lying, but apparently the lure of being asked for his autograph was irresistible. “Very well.” Jones snapped his fingers, and one of his henchmen bustled over, handing him a shark-tooth pen and a scallop shell.

“I will grant you this favor,” Jones said, etching his signature on the inside of the shell. “I’m not a monster, after all.” He eyed his men discreetly with a look that seemed to say,
Like them.
“I don’t enjoy terrifying children—unless it’s absolutely necessary,” he added.

Jake supposed the pirate was thinking of Princess Liliana with that remark. Well, it was good to know he had something of a conscience left, anyway.

“Here.” The Lord of the Locker finished scratching his name on the smooth, flat inside of the shell, then handed it to Jake, who beamed.

“Oh, thank ye, sir! Thank you very much. I can’t wait to show this to all my friends at school.” He put it in his pocket.

“Humph. Very well, then. You’re free to look around a while longer, but you three stay out of trouble while you’re in my realm. You are guests here; don’t forget. Lucky for you, you’re too young for my collection, and I admire youngsters with a bit of pluck. Was a bit of a scamp m’self when I was your age. Mind you,” he added, gesturing at both Jake and Archie, “if we should ever meet when you get older, I’m not making any promises. You drown at sea, I’ll be seein’ you again. Count on it.”

“Not plannin’ on it, sir,” Jake assured him.

Jones’s lips quirked. “They never do,” he said dryly, then he left with his men, who again mumbled their doubts about his show of mercy.

Jake got the feeling this was rare.

Jones waved off his men’s complaints as they followed him away. “Ah, they’re just children. Come on, we’ve wasted enough time here. We’ve got work to do.”

“Goodbye, sir!” Jake called sweetly, but Davy Jones ignored him. Dani and Archie looked a little dazed as they joined him.

“Talked your way out of that one, I’ll say,” Archie mumbled.

“That was close,” Dani breathed.

Jake glanced at both of them. “You two all right?”

They nodded.

“Good. Let’s get out of here. Everybody’s staring at us.”

Trying to look as casual as possible, he and his friends swam down the street in the direction opposite that to which Davy Jones and his henchmen had gone.

But Archie glanced worriedly over his shoulder. “Jake, this is bad. You heard him. Jones and his crew are heading back to the
Flying Dutchman
now. Nixie and the others might still be out there! We haven’t heard Izzy’s signal yet.”

Jake shook his head grimly. “I know, Arch. But what are we to do? I’m afraid we’ve bought them as much time as we could with that stunt. I don’t care to chance another. For now, we need to get out of sight. I don’t trust these fish folk. They’re lookin’ at us funny.”

Jake beckoned them around the corner, out of sight of the crowd, when suddenly, one long, thin note echoed to them from the distance.

“The Triton Trumpet!” Dani exclaimed.

“That signal meant they got the princess! Let’s go!” Archie said eagerly.

But before they got too excited about their friends’ success, Isabelle also sent them the two short notes that called out a warning of trouble headed their way.

Uh-oh.
Jake glanced toward the sound. “C’mon, let’s get to the Keyhole. Archie, which way’s north?”

Archie consulted his compass, then pointed. “That way.”

They ducked in between two ramshackle buildings and headed for the dark open ocean beyond the limits of town.

Who knew what dangers might lurk in those midnight waters ahead? But whatever was behind them wasn’t much better.

He could only assume that Liliana’s rescue had already been discovered by Jones’s crew. If that was the case, then the pirates’ forces were likely in pursuit even now.

For the next fifteen minutes or so, nobody spoke as they swam for their lives, constantly watching for the Keyhole in the indigo twilight of the sea. No one said it aloud, but Jake knew all three were terrified of getting lost out here.

Again and again, Archie checked his compass to keep them on course; Dani provided light, opening up her satchel with the sea candle inside just enough for him to read the needle without attracting the notice of the shark men, who were probably somewhere in the darkness behind them, giving chase.

“Hey—there they are!” Jake suddenly pointed.

In the navy-blue distance ahead and above them to their right, he could just make out four silhouettes racing through the water. It was Maddox’s team: two mermaids, one bigger, one smaller, two web-footed humans, and a seahorse.

“Nixie,” Archie said in relief.

“Look, there’s Izzy and the dolphins, too!” Dani had been scanning to their left.

Breathing a sigh of relief, they hurried on, keen to reunite the whole gang safely once more. Though hundreds of yards still separated the three teams, they were all racing in the same direction.

Ten minutes later, Jake could see the unusual rock formation looming in the distance. The Keyhole was unmistakable, rising from the sea mound just as Sapphira had described it: a towerlike column of stone with a hollowed-out ring of rock on top.

It wasn’t long before they all gathered around it, panting and congratulating each other. Maddox quickly freed his hand from Sapphira’s hold, but not fast enough: Isabelle’s eyes narrowed while the dolphins circled around them.

Still, they couldn’t linger long—just a short break to catch their breath. Everyone looked a little worn out, but the mood was jovial, since they’d obviously succeeded in their mission.

“Everybody, this is my sister, Princess Liliana.” Beaming, Sapphira put her arm around her shoulders.

“People, we have company!” Nixie warned in a stern voice, staring in the direction from which they had come.

“Already?” Sapphira swirled around, a look of dread stealing over her delicate face. “I don’t understand… How did they find us so soon? We had a decent head start.”

She glanced around at all of them, at a loss—and then abruptly pointed. “Maddox! You’re bleeding!”

“Am I? Oh.” He looked down at his arm, then shrugged. “One of the stingrays must’ve grazed me. Doesn’t hurt.”

“No—that’s how Jones’s shark men are tracking us!” she exclaimed. “Blood in the water—they can follow the scent for miles.” She shook her head, looking dazed. “We’ll never lose them now, and we’re many miles from land. We’re doomed.”

“Go,” Jake told the others automatically. “I’ll hold them back with my telekinesis for as long as I can.”

“No, no, you have no chance,” Sapphira said impatiently, waving him off. “We need to hide.”

“Where?” Isabelle asked in a taut voice.

“I know a place!” Liliana piped up. “It’s not far.”

Sapphira looked at her in question. “Surely you don’t mean—”

“The Seaweed Forest!” Liliana nodded eagerly, blond braids bouncing. “They won’t dare go near it for fear of the Colony!”

“Colony of what?” Jake asked.

“Friends,” Lil insisted. “Plus, the path through the forest is a shortcut home.”

But Sapphira didn’t look convinced.

“They’re coming,” Nixie reported. “What are we doing, people?”

“Sapphira, c’mon!” Liliana urged, pulling on her wrist. “The forest isn’t far. It’s just beyond that rise!”

“How do you even know that?” the elder mermaid demanded.

Her little sister floundered. “That doesn’t matter right now! The point is, his crew won’t risk going in there, even if they do smell blood.”

“Where’s he going?” Nixie asked as Maddox muttered something under his breath and suddenly swam away.

“St. Trinian, get back here!” Jake fairly roared.

“I won’t risk you all!” Maddox answered. “Find a place to hide and I’ll draw them off. I’m the one they’re tracking.”

“Maddox, no!” Isabelle cried. “You can’t go off alone! Are you mad?”

“She’s right. It’s too dangerous,” Sapphira agreed.

“Pardon, but we need a plan
now
!” Archie barked, losing patience. “They’ll be upon us in a moment! What about this forest Lil mentioned?”

“Fine!” Sapphira snapped. “Follow me. I just hope we don’t regret it.”

“Why would we?” Maddox asked, returning with obvious reluctance.

But instead of answering, Sapphira swam away with yet another order. “Stop talking! They’ll hear us.”

Once more, much to Jake’s frustration, they had no choice but to follow the slippery mermaid, though he wasn’t even sure at that point if they could trust her in the least. He was just relieved that Maddox had come back, or, Jake was sure, they’d have never seen him again.

Sapphira dove through the looplike rock formation atop the Keyhole, descending to its base. The rest hurried after her, swimming once more in a school. From there, they glided alongside a long, hulking hedgerow of corals, using them for cover.

Upon clearing the rise Liliana had pointed to, the Seaweed Forest came into view.

It was a dark, mysterious place.

Tall, tree-sized sea plants waved tendrils in the cold salt current.

As they swam up to the edge of the forest, a narrow path opened before them. Jake frowned when he saw that even Sapphira, bold as she was, looked a little afraid of the place.

“What is it?” he murmured, but she brushed him off again, refusing to tell him what she knew.

“No time! Jones’s shark men won’t follow us in there—that’s all that matters. Everyone, hurry! Into the woods! Quickly! And whatever you do, don’t stray from the path.” She waved them in, and Liliana led the way with a swish of her arms and a flick of her bright pink tail.

One by one, they went gliding into the deep, dark undersea forest.

CHAPTER 13

The Colony

A
s they swam into the placid darkness of the Seaweed Forest, everything waved back and forth slowly in the current. With Sapphira bringing up the rear, they followed Liliana deeper into the eerie tangle, weaving among the swaying, vinelike fronds.

She seemed to know her way.

Despite the tension that hung over the whole group, knowing the shark men were only minutes behind them, they gazed at their surroundings in fascination.

His eyes adjusting to the murky shadows, Jake stared up at the spore clusters that hung around the center stalks of the giant plants, like bunches of translucent coconuts.

Air bladders helped the dark green leaves to float up toward what little light penetrated these depths.

They pressed on, but when they heard rough shouts from well behind them, they all glanced back in alarm.

Jake’s jaw tightened.
They’ve found us.
And no wonder, with Maddox leaving them a blood trail the shark men could easily follow.

He was just glad his friend wasn’t more seriously hurt.

Through the long, slimy branches and fingerlike leaves of the plant life, he spotted some of Jones’s minions swimming back and forth along the edge of the Seaweed Forest. They peered in as best they could, but did not venture onto the path, as if they did not dare.

They certainly seem to be afraid of something in here,
Jake thought uneasily, glancing at the pair of royal siblings.

“Hurry! Don’t let them see us,” Liliana whispered.

Sapphira swam forward up the line to join her sister at the front. “Stay down!” She beckoned to Nixie and Archie, who were gliding at a slightly higher elevation among the fronds.