Blood in the Water

I woke up to a knock on the door. My mom answered it and gasped. “Aw, thank you,” she said before closing the door. She placed a covered plate on a desk.

I raised an eyebrow. “What is it?” I asked with a yawn.

“Josh gave us a plate of cookies, and there’s a note attached.”

I smiled and stepped down the ladder to read the note.

“Hey, Seeley Fam!

Thanks for being so awesome and energetic at trivia. Enjoy the cruise!

- Josh [Fun Squad]”

“That’s so sweet,” my mom said.

“Yeah,” I replied. My sisters woke up.

“We’re going to eat breakfast in the Mardi Gras Dining Room. Are you still going to Ensenada with Dad?” my mom asked.

We nodded.

“Okay. I’ll stay with Drew.”

We got dressed. I wore a black shirt with light blue jeans and some black flip-flops. I put my mermaid necklace on and slipped my stone into my pocket.

We went to the Mardi Gras Dining Room to eat breakfast. I ordered French toast, and it was delicious.

After that, my dad disembarked the ship with me, Elena and Brooke. We were in Ensenada, Mexico.

“We’re just going to walk around and haggle,” my dad said with a smile.

“What does ‘haggle’ mean?” I asked.

“It’s basically bargaining. That’s how I got this hat,” he said, gesturing to the hat he was wearing. He got it on his second cruise.

“What are we trying to get?” Elena asked.

“We’ll see. This will be fun! I get to spend time with my beautiful daughters,” my dad said, hugging us. I giggled and nodded.

“Wow, the killer actually wants to show her face?”

I raised an eyebrow. Who had said that? I looked around, seeing a trio of boys around my age staring at me and whispering to each other.

I rolled my eyes and kept walking. This was going to be a fun day. Those boys weren’t going to ruin it.

--- ~~~ ---

Around two hours later, we went back to the Carnival Inspiration. We all got sunglasses. I got earrings. Brooke got a leather wallet pouch. We had also bought other things, but it was really fun to haggle.

I grabbed a notebook out of my backpack once we returned to the cabin. I walked to the library, seeing Kelly on one of the couches. I smiled and waved at her. She waved back.

I sat on the couch. “So, how has your day been?” I asked.

“It’s been good,” she replied.

I heard voices behind me and looked at the entrance. The trio of boys walked in.

“Hello, killer,” one of them said. I stiffened. The boy’s black hair shone in the minimal light.

“Maybe she’ll kill you next if you aggravate her enough,” another boy said with a laugh.

“Ooh, then we could prove it!” the last boy said. I looked at Kelly.

“I’m Flint, by the way,” the boy who had spoken first said. He gestured to the other boys. “Reese and Noah are my friends.”

“Leave her alone.”

Kelly and I watched as two girls entered the library. The newcomers glared at Flint. “How about you stop accusing everyone of being the murderer?”

“I’ll think about it, Rose.”

Rose’s dark green eyes narrowed. “Then think quicker.”

“Yeah. Leave her alone!” the other girl said. She had platinum blond hair styled in a high ponytail.

“Fine, Ivy, I will.” Flint looked at me. “For now.”

Flint rolled his blue eyes before leaving with the other boys. Rose and Ivy looked at us and smiled.

“Thank you,” I said.

“Don’t mention it.” Rose tossed her red waves of hair over her shoulders before walking away. Ivy waved and walked away as well.

“That was strange,” Kelly said once they were out of earshot. I nodded.

“Do you want to join me for lunch?” I asked.

“Sure!”

We stepped toward the Brasserie Bar and Grill. We got Reubens with corned beef from the deli.

“So, what’s your plan? We have to fight off Dark Tail and convince almost everyone on board that you aren’t a murderer,” Kelly said between bites.

“When you put it like that, I have no idea,” I said with a sigh.

“We’ll figure it out with the group, okay?”

I nodded. How was I supposed to do this? Even with my friends by my side and magical powers, I didn’t know what to do.

“Cassie? Are you alright?” someone behind me asked. I turned, seeing Jane.

“I- I’m okay,” I said.

“Ni and I wanted to meet with you before dinner.”

“Really? Why?”

Jane moved closer to me to whisper her next words. “Ni knows who Dark Tail is, and she knows who he’s planning on inhabiting. We have to tell you before it’s too late.”

My eyes widened. Ni and Jane knew about Dark Tail, and they knew who he was? “Where will this meeting take place?”

Jane moved away. “There’s an empty Grand Suite. Upper Deck, Cabin U70. It’s right by the stairs. We’ll see you in one hour.”

I smiled. “Sounds great. See you soon.”

Jane refilled our waters before going to another table. Kelly looked at me. “What was that about?” she asked, raising an eyebrow. She took a sip of her water.

“Ni and Jane are going to tell me who Dark Tail is and who he’s planning on inhabiting,” I said.

Kelly almost spat her water out in surprise. She swallowed it and smiled. “That’s awesome! I know where that cabin is, so I can walk you over there.”

“Thanks,” I said. “I’m going to tell the group to meet in the library before then. I’ll go back and tell you guys the names afterward,” I said, texting the group.

“Alright. Hopefully, everything will go well. You never know what could happen. What if Dark Tail storms in? The prophecy said that four crew members would be killed, and Ni and Jane could be next!”

I gulped. “That wouldn’t be good,” I said, looking at Kelly. “Maybe you should come with me.”

“Are you sure? Wouldn’t you want to go with one of your siblings or Josh?” she asked.

I shook my head. “Nope. I feel like we make a good team, Kelly.”

Kelly smiled. “Okay. Let’s go to the library after we finish eating.”

We ate our sandwiches and walked back to the library. I could hear people whispering as I passed by, and I watched people point at me. Kelly put her arm around me and shot dagger-like glares at them.

We sat on the library couches and waited for the group to arrive.

--- ~~~ ---

“Why do you think Cass wants us to meet her in the library?” Andrew asked as he played ping-pong with Johnnie.

“I don’t know, but it’s probably important,” Johnnie said.

“Yeah, you’re right.”

The boys stopped and headed to the library. Andy, Kenny, Brandon, Nick, Joshua, and Josh were right behind them.

--- ~~~ ---

Jenny saw the text and looked at Elena and the other girls. “We need to go to the library.”

The girls stopped what they were doing and headed upstairs.

--- ~~~ ---

“Hi, guys. I have something important to tell you,” I said once the group was in the library.

Kelly took a deep breath. “People have been getting very suspicious about the murders. They all seem to believe that Cassie is the killer. Of course, we know that she’s being framed, but we can’t prove anything without evidence.”

“Ni and Jane are going to meet with me. Kelly’s coming along as well. We’re going to discuss who Dark Tail is and who he’s going to inhabit.”

“What?!” Andrew exclaimed.

“Jane told me that Ni knows Dark Tail’s identity. Kelly’s coming with me because Dark Tail might try to kill them and capture me.”

“What if he kills them before they get a chance to tell you anything?” Kelsey asked.

“I hope that doesn’t happen,” I said with a shiver.

“What time are you meeting them?” Josh asked.

“At noon, Jane said that they would meet me in an hour. So, at 1:00, I’m meeting them.”

“Cassie, you have five minutes,” Nick said.

“Oh. Well, we’ll see you soon!” Kelly said, walking away with me.

The killer was listening again. He didn’t mean to reveal his identity to Ni, but he had to keep her silent.

He waited before following the girls to the Upper Deck.

--- ~~~ ---

I knocked on the door to cabin U70. Ni answered and smiled at us.

“Come on in, girls!”

We walked inside. I looked around in shock. This cabin was really nice.

Jane was sitting on a bed. Ni sat next to her. Kelly and I sat on a couch.

“Okay. Are you two ready?” Jane asked.

“Ready as we’ll ever be,” I said with a smile.

“Good! Now, before I start this story, I need to tell you something. You know the name meanings in the prophecy?” Ni said.

Kelly and I nodded.

“Well, there are five. The prophecy says that four people will be inhabited, but there are five name meanings.”

“Wait, does that mean that one of the meanings is the name of Dark Tail?” Kelly asked. Ni nodded.

“The names are in no particular order. At first, I thought that it could be anyone. I got proof last night.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“He was wearing the amulet, and I watched him put another one in a pouch.”

My eyes widened. Kelly gasped.

“Who is it?” we asked.

“It’s-”

There was a knock on the door.

Ni and Jane looked at us. “Hide,” Ni said. Kelly and I gulped and hid behind the couch, pulling out our stones.

We watched as Ni and Jane stood and walked over to the door.

Ni opened it, and I saw a figure wearing all black. A mask was over his face, only revealing dark hair, red eyes and a cruel smirk. He wore an amulet with a black and red crystal. A silver snake was coiled around it.

Dark Tail was there.

Our worst fear had come true.

--- ~~~ ---