Page 76 of Oceansong
Realization stung her face. The flashing red light she saw when they left the sanctuary.
Her palms grew sweaty, and her head spun.
It was a camera, and damn her for not stopping to investigate. If she had, she would have seen it, could have gotten rid of the memory card before divers retrieved the footage.
Nick held her gaze for a moment longer, his expression impassive.
She waited for him to say something, to out her in front of everyone in typical gloating Nick fashion.
He said nothing to her and returned to his conversation with the group gathered before him.
An hour passed, and lowering her head, Angie turned away from him and nudged Mia, handing her salmon to Bàba. The fresh air around her had become stifling, and she needed to be anywhere but here. “Let’s get another drink, and then go for a walk?”
Mia nodded and waved to Nick, who blew her a kiss in return, and Angie led her to the house and pushed the door open.
Once inside, Angie washed her hands and reached for a pair of wine glasses, and poured two glasses of demi-sec champagne and offered one to Mia.
“No thanks, Angie. I’ll stick to this.” Mia pointed to her can of black cherry-flavored seltzer, which she’d retrieved from the fridge. “I’m pregnant. Found out a week ago. Came as a surprise to Nick and I.”
Angie’s grip loosened on the champagne bottle, stopping short of dropping it. All thoughts of Nick finding the fish fled her mind as a deluge of emotion burst in her: worry for Mia’s stress and health and fear about bringing in a new baby during a time when they warred with a race they once deemed mythical. But excitement for a new niece or nephew to dote on overshadowed all.
“Congratulations! Guess I’m having two tonight.” Angie clasped her hands together as they strolled outside. “When did you find out?”
Mia put a hand over her belly. “Last week. I’m almost two months along. I’ll tell Bàba when he’s not so stressed.”
“Or you could help him de-stress by telling him.” Angie took a sip of her champagne, the sweet, cold bubbles racing down her throat.
“True.” Mia grinned. “I’ll tell him tomorrow morning. He’s not working, right?”
“No, I think he actually took a day off. Or at least the morning. I had to talk him into it before he practically killed himself from the stress and lack of sleep.”
They kept walking, away from the party and onto a wide swath of open land facing the single rough road bisecting the region. In the distance and out of sight, the roar of the shore drifted to them.
“Still sticking with the Titanic theme for the new kid?” She smirked.
“I’ve thought about this,” Mia said, after another sip of seltzer. “Definitely Jack, if it’s a boy. Or Margaret if it’s a girl. There’s lots of characters to choose from.”
“I love both those names. And look, the lights are out!” They stopped at a cliff’s edge, taking in the sight.
The Aurora Borealis lit up the night sky with soft violets, sea greens, and deep blues, sweeping across the horizon like mesmerizing, undulating drapes, shimmering as rainbow paint on a pitch-black canvas. Below, it illuminated the nearby ocean and canopies of fellow villagers’ homes and the boreal forest in the distance with muted colors.
“This never gets old.” Mia piped up after a moment of silence. “Remember when we were little girls and we’d lay outside and stare at them? Back when you were still in your mermaid-hunting phase? You’d bring all those mermaid books from the library with you.”
That elicited a laugh from Angie. Now, not only had she found them, she’d become much too close to their prince. Again, her cheeks warmed.
“Yup, I remember.” A wide grin stretched over Angie’s face, and then fell as quickly as it appeared. “Is everything okay with you and Nick? You haven’t seemed too happy lately.”
“He’s like a completely different man. One I don’t recognize,” Mia said. Her lips moved as if she were about to say more, but then she pressed them shut and looked to the ground. “I miss how we were. He used to prioritizeus, and we were happy.” When she looked up again, her eyes were red, and Angie put an arm around her. “I know he has his moments and isn’t always easy to get along with. But he tries.”
Angie started to refute her last sentence, but stopped herself. It wouldn’t accomplish anything other than make Mia feel worse. “I’m sorry he’s acting like that.”
“Thanks.” Mia wrapped her arms around herself. “But, that’s mine and Nick’s problem to deal with. You have enough on your plate.” They began walking again. “I know you don’t like him, but I appreciate you listening to me vent.”
“Of course.” The champagne had loosened her inhibitions, and Angie blurted out her next words. “He’s never been nice to me, and he’s even worse now that he’s one of my bosses.”
“I know he’s a lot sometimes,” Mia admitted. “But he’s my husband. Has always been there for me.” Then she added, “You went to Wasilla and then Seattle after high school, and then Mama left us a few years later. Bàba went into overdrive at the docks with her gone. Nick was all I had for a while.”
Angie bristled. She knew Mia hadn’t meant it that way, but guilt jabbed her core.
