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Sea of Memories

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Episode 2. Let us in

Jude heard the sound

_Tap. Tap. Tap._

It came from under the boat. From the wood of the hull.

He lay still. He did not move. He did not breathe.

The sea made no sound. There were no waves. The water was flat and black. Like glass.

_Tap. Tap. Tap._

It was not the boat. The boat did not make that sound. This was new. This was on purpose.

Jude’s skin went cold. Fish did not tap. The sea did not tap.

_Tap. Tap. Tap._

“Who is there?” His voice broke. It was not loud. It was small and weak.

No one said a word.

The tapping did not stop.

Then the voice came.

It was soft. It was close. It was in his head and in the boat at the same time.

“Jude. Let us in.”

Jude’s heart beat hard. It hurt his chest. _Boom. Boom. Boom._

_Let us in._

Us. Not one. More than one.

The tapping got loud. _TOK. TOK. TOK._ Now it was a hand. A fist. The boat shook with each hit. Water in the bottom of the boat moved. It touched his feet.

Jude could not breathe. His chest was tight. His throat was closed.

Then he felt heat on his leg.

He had peed his pants.

He felt sick. He felt shame. He was seventeen. He had worked on boats since he was nine. He had helped his uncle in a storm. He did not pee his pants.

But he did now. Because something was under the boat. And it knew his name.

_TOK. TOK. TOK._

The wood by his knee made a sharp sound. A crack. A small line ran out from the hole in the boat.

That sound woke him up.

He thought of Ma. He thought of the twins. He saw them. Ma by the stove. The twins in bed. If he died here, no one would help them. No one would bring in food. No one would pay for the house.

He could not die like this.

He moved fast. His hands shook. He picked up the harpoon. It was old. It was his grandpa’s. The wood was smooth. The end was sharp.

He took a rope. He tied it to the harpoon. His hands would not work right. The knot was bad. But it would have to do.

He had to look. He had to know what was there.

The sea was calm. Too calm. He had never seen it like this. No wind. No waves. It was like a lake at night. Black and still.

But the sea was not the problem.

The problem was under the boat.

Jude went to the hole. His wrist hurt. He had broken it when the big wave hit. He did not care. He put the harpoon down through the hole. The sharp end went into the black water.

He waited.

For a long time, nothing happened.

He thought, _Am I mad? Did I hit my head? Is this a dream?_

Then the rope pulled tight.

It did not just pull. It jerked. Hard.

Jude flew off the floor. His chest hit the side of the boat. All the air went out of him. He heard a crack in his wrist. He felt a sharp pain in his back. Wood had cut him.

He fell to the floor. His face hit the wood. He tasted blood. His own blood.

The harpoon was gone. The rope was gone. It slid through the hole fast.

Then he heard a new sound.

It was a wet sound. A sliding sound. Like hands pulling a body up the bottom of the boat.

Jude did not think. He moved. He pulled his body across the floor. His wrist hurt bad. He went under his old fishing net. It smelled like fish and salt. He hid under it. He made his body small.

Something came up through the hole.

Water came in fast. But that was not the worst sound.

The worst sound was its breath.

It was wet. It was loud. It did not sound like a man. It did not sound like any thing that should breathe air.

Jude looked through the net. He used one eye.

He saw teeth first.

So many teeth. They were sharp like glass. They were in rows. The mouth opened wide. Like a shark. It shut. It opened. It shut.

Fins were on its arms. The fins moved in and out. Slow. Its body had scales. They were black and green. They were wet. It stood on two legs. But the legs were wrong. They had too many bends.

It was as tall as a man. But it was not a man.

Its hands had long claws. The claws were black. They were curved. They made a click sound on the wood.

The thing put its head up. It had slits for a nose. The slits opened wide.

It was smelling.

It smelled his blood. The blood from his back. The blood on his shirt.

It took a step. The boat went down on one side. It took one more step. The claws cut the wood.

It came to the net.

Jude closed his eyes. He could not look. He thought of Ma. He thought of the twins. _I am sorry_, he thought. _I am sorry._

A claw touched the net. It was close to his face.

He waited for it to cut him. He waited for the teeth.

But then the boat shook.

A new thing came up through the hole. Fast. It hit the first thing. The hit was hard. Jude flew back. His head hit the side of the boat. He saw bright spots.

He made his eye open.

The new thing looked more like a man. That made it worse.

It had arms. It had legs. It had a head. But its skin was blue. Like a man who had been in the water too long. Its hair moved around its head. But there was no water. The hair moved like it was still in the sea.

And its teeth.

Its teeth were long and thin. Like needles. Its mouth was full of them. When it opened its mouth, the mouth went from one side of its face to the other.

It made no sound. Not one that Jude could hear. But his head hurt. A high sound was in his brain. It made his nose bleed.

The first thing with the fins made a sound too. It was not a sound. It was a deep hum. It made the water in the boat jump.

The two things fought.

Claws hit claws. Teeth bit down. The new thing was fast. It got past the fins. It bit the first thing in the neck.

Black blood shot out. The blood was thick. It hit the boat. It hit the net. It hit Jude’s face. The blood was cold. So cold it burned his skin.

The first thing moved wild. It had a tail. The tail hit the side of the boat. It made a new hole. The hole was big. Water came in fast.

The new thing did not stop. It tore and bit. The sounds were wet. They were loud. Like someone stepping on crabs.

Jude turned his head. He threw up. He tasted sick and salt.

The fight was over fast.

Then it was quiet.

Jude heard only his own heart. He heard his own breath. He heard water coming in.

He lay still. He counted to ten. Then to twenty. Then to eighty.

Then he moved.

He pushed the net off. The net was wet and heavy. It had blood on it.

What he saw was bad.

There was meat all over. Bits of scales. Bits of skin. A fin was on the floor. It still moved. The head of the first thing was by his foot. The jaw opened and closed. Then it stopped. The eyes were white.

The new thing was gone. Most of the first thing was gone too. Eaten. All that was left was parts. And blood. So much blood. It was black. It sat on top of the water in the boat. It shined like oil.

Jude could not think. It was too much.

He threw up again. But nothing came out. His throat hurt.

He fell back against the boat. He shook. His wrist was on fire. His back felt cut open.

“I am so lucky,” he said. His voice was not his own. “I am so lucky this time.”

_This time._

The words hit him.

What if they came back? What if there were more?

He cried. It was a loud, hard cry. He put his face in his hands. His hands smelled like blood and salt and deep water.

“How did I get here?” he said. “Is this a dream? Please let this be a dream.”

He was alone. He was hurt. He thought he would die here.

Then light hit his face.

It was bright. It was white.