Page 38 of A Sea of Secrets
I followed him through the city, his steps slowing as he reached a familiar sandstone archway. The Tritosa rock pools were a sacred place, a calm in the chaos of the city. I stopped calling, respecting the place we were in, and followed him down the narrow path, passing Tritosans kneeling beside the water. Some of them placed gifts at the feet of little statues, others watched the creatures that dwelled within.
The pools were so colourful and full of life. At least, they were supposed to be. Upon closer inspection, I saw the water here was also cloudy. I frowned at the sight. What was happening to our beautiful waters?
I followed still and we reached an all-too-familiar rock pool. I stood back, watching as my dad crouched before it. My mother’s name was engraved in the memorial stone that sat in the very centre. She wasn’t buried here, but this was the spot we came to be closest to her.
Tritosans cremated their dead, scattering the ashes out to sea so that they could be one with the ocean. Sort of like a return to home. The rock pools, on the other hand, were a memorial purely for the living.
“Dad?” I asked, my voice just above a whisper. I made to reach out, only for my wrist to be gripped gently and held back.
“He won’t hear you,” Zach, my older brother, said at my side. A frown was partially hidden beneath his scruffy blond beard.
“He might.”
Another arm wrapped around my waist, and I found Zara on my other side, leaning into me. “It’s too hard for him. We remind him of what he lost.”
“Let it go,” Zach insisted, squeezing my wrist in comfort.
I shook my head. “No, there’s still hope. He sent that letter warning me. He wouldn’t have done that if he didn’t care.” I called out to my dad again, no longer caring about disturbing the peace of the rock pools. This time, he actually turned. He looked right at me, his blue eyes red-rimmed. No, not at me, through me.
I was invisible to him.
I always had been.
“Look at me,” I shouted at him as my siblings gripped my sides. “See me!”
“Zane…” Zuri began, joining my other siblings beside me, but I ignored her as anger rose in my gut, twisting around like eels fighting over scraps.
“If I could just get him to focus,” I snapped, tugging at the hold my siblings had on me. “He sent the letter…”
“Did he?” Zeke asked, stepping in front of me. My brother looked down at me, his eyes soft and searching. Patient. “Think, Zane.”
I closed my eyes, trying to recall the letter and the warning written in my father’s hand. There had been something strange about it, but that had been part of the code. A clue to what he really meant… hadn’t it?
“You?” I shook my head, opening my eyes to what was right in front of me.
“Us,” Zion replied, Zariah at his side.
All my siblings stood around me, blocking my view of Dad. They were all here with their dirty blond hair and tanned skin, some with eyes that matched mine, others with similar noses or cheekbones.
“He cares,” I said to myself, holding onto the lie like it was a life raft. I tugged myself from their hold, pushing past them to look down at my dad.
“For fuck’s sake! See that I am here! That I am a good son and worth your time. I’ve done everything you’ve asked. I put my life on the line and joined the trials to make you proud.” My shoulders sagged, my heart hammering in my chest. “The least you could do is see me.”
It was useless. It was like talking to a surfboard. A waste of time.
My dad only acknowledged me when it suited him, which was rare. He was a busy dude, running an entire city after all, yet I was his son. Didn’t that mean something? I wanted him to notice me; to be proud of me; to think I was worth his time.
That I was enough.
I couldn’t remember a time when he’d shown any interest in what I was doing beyond scolding me for something.
Why?
I turned around, finding Ace standing behind me, his gaze narrowed on my dad. My siblings had vanished, replaced by Starfish, Ace, Kayden, and Noah. They were all here.
“It’s his problem. I don’t need him, I’ve got my pod.”
“And we’re never letting you go,” Fallon said, reaching out a hand. I took it instantly, letting her tug me towards them.
