The Mermaid by Christina Henry

Author:Christina Henry
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Titan Books

CHAPTER 7

PANDEMONIUM AT CONCERT HALL! Many people injured in quest to see Feejee Mermaid.’ ‘UNBELIEVABLE BUT TRUE—We have seen the Mermaid!’ ‘MERMAID IN NEW YORK—One woman killed—All the details.’”

Barnum read each successive headline aloud with increasing relish. The fact that he was enjoying this and nobody else seemed to didn’t appear to register at all.

“You are a success,” he said. Levi could practically see the coins falling in Barnum’s eyes. “We can charge anything for people to see you—anything at all. The whole Eastern Seaboard is going to flock to New York to see you.”

“A woman was killed,” Amelia said dully.

Levi thought she looked like a piece of tarnished silver. The shine was off her, and her grey eyes were muted.

“Yes, that was unfortunate,” Barnum said. He didn’t sound like he thought it was unfortunate at all. “But the show was a sensation. People won’t be able to get enough of you! All the tickets for tomorrow’s presentation have already sold out.”

“I’m not doing any more presentations,” Amelia said.

Levi thought it would come to this. When they’d finally managed to clear the crowd out of the hall (with the help of several city constables), he and Barnum had been unable to rouse her from her isolation in the tank no matter how hard they knocked and yelled.

Finally Levi had stripped down to his underclothing and climbed into the tank. Barnum certainly wouldn’t do it. The water was salty and slightly stale, and up close he found himself fascinated by the silver pattern of scales all over her.

He touched her shoulder, and it was as if she was roused suddenly from a deep sleep. Her right arm slashed out, those very dangerous claws barely missing his stomach. Levi was certain that if she’d touched him, his guts would have spilled out on the floor of the tank.

It was then, strangely, that he truly understood that she was not of the land but of the sea. The woman was temporary. The mermaid was who she really was.

After a moment the reflexive defense lowered, her eyes focused, and he knew she saw him. She looked around, bewildered, and Levi wished he dared touch one of the floating tendrils of her hair. He wished he dared take her in his arms and tell her it was all going to be fine.

But he was not of the sea. He didn’t even like the ocean. He was a mundane creature who needed to breathe the air, and so he pointed upward so she would understand his intentions and kicked awkwardly up to the surface, trailing all his wishes behind him and hoping she couldn’t see them there in the water.

Now Barnum gloated over the evening headlines and Amelia sat there, a piece of glass that might shatter at any moment. Levi thought then that he could hate Barnum. Oh yes, he could hate him very easily. The least Barnum could do was notice the feelings of those around him.

Well, what did I expect? Levi thought. He never noticed when Charity was miserable, and he’d never noticed when Joice Heth was, either.

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