Burnies’s statement stunned her.
“You... you knew my birth parents?” She was reeling at this information.
Burnie ignored her, continuing to speak to Cosimo, eyes narrowed and spiteful. “Have you forgotten what you did? What you stole from her? From her people?”
“Uncle Burnie!” Her voice cracked. “You don’t understand. What are you talking about? This is all a mistake. My parents found me. I was a foundling, was I not?”
“You most certainly were not. I know your people,” Burnie said softly. “And I’ve been your terrestrial guardian since they entrusted you to me. They sent you away because of a war. And there was an amulet they sent with you as well, an amulet set with a powerful stone that belongs to your tribe. It’s waiting for you in a safe place now.”
“The stone in my bassinet,” Goldie whispered as she fumbled with her shoelaces. It was as if her fingers forgot how to tie them.
The memory of her uncle fit together perfectly with her vision of the night before. He must have been the one who’d placed her on the beach for her parents to find.
Burnie turned his accusing eyes to Cosimo even though was still speaking to her.
“Your father had but one wish, to keep you and the stone that this vampire corrupted with his curse safe and hidden until the time came to redeem it.” He scowled at their intertwined fingers. “I fear I have failed most miserably at my mission.”
Cosimo’s face reflected genuine anguish and self loathing. “I didn’t know what it was, nor was I aware of the curse I was creating! Do you think, for even one moment, that I wanted to become this?”
“What you wanted is immaterial,” Burnie snapped, speaking to Cosimo as if he were a much younger and more foolish man. “I cannot change the fact that your curse is bound to this mermaid’s destiny. She lives an unnatural life in exile because of the wars incited by your actions. And now you’ve enchanted a camera and encouraged her to expose herself as she really is in this film? Do you have any idea of the danger you’re putting her in? Is it your intention to feed off her misery, too?”
“Misery? The enchantment I placed on that camera virtually ensures that her film will be a hit.” Cosimo retorted. “Why wouldn’t you want that for your niece?”
“Because that kind of attention is far too risky. She never should have taken this role to begin with!” Burnie pulled a film canister from his coat. “Fortunately, I’ve brought the earlier cut. Less convincing, less... revealing. I’ll be switching it out with the final reel.”
“You can’t do that!” she protested. “My transformation scene is the heart of the film. We worked for months to make this movie a sensation! I am not ashamed of what I am!”
“Your safety is far more important than your art,” Burnie insisted. “We all have roles to play, assigned by the fates. This is not your time to reveal yourself, Ondalune. The war beneath the waves still rages. Your people need you to stay alive and hidden.”
She was furious, rebelliously refusing to accept her uncle’s argument. “I should get to choose my own fate! If I want to make movies and explore the world with Cosimo?—”
“You have no idea what you’re saying,” Burnie cut her off. “His curse and your destiny are forever intertwined because of his actions. If you go with him now, neither of you will survive to correct this imbalance.”
The final memory struck Goldie with physical force as she made her way up the steep path toward the road that would lead her home.
The Casino was stiflingly hot that night. The theater was packed for the premiere. Women in evening gowns fanned themselves to keep from fainting during the screening. But as the second reel was loaded, many of the guests excused themselves. Even the director himself needed to step outside to get some air. Ondalune wasn’t lucky enough to step out into the night with them. She was miserably immobile, stitched into her mermaid costume, trapped on top of a giant papier-mâché shell.
Only a handful of people remained for the final scene. If they found the footage of her sitting atop the same unconvincing shell, and waving her hands to mimic swimming through a crepe paper ocean unconvincing, they were polite enough to keep it to themselves.
Afterward, at the reception, and after she’d been cut out of the stifling costume, the orchestra began to play a Cole Porter song that they both loved, “You do Something to Me.”
Cosimo led her onto the dance floor where they’d spent so many happy, carefree nights. He held her close, his body cool against the oppressive heat.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered against her hair. “I never meant to hurt you.”
“We can still leave tonight,” she insisted. “Burnie doesn’t understand everything. He doesn’t feel the way we feel.”
“I think perhaps he understands more than we do,” Cosimo said sadly. “I promise, someday I will find a way to put an end to the curse I created, once and for all. You will not have to live a half-life in hiding anymore.”
“I don’t want promises. I want you,” she argued, but he didn’t answer. He only held her tighter as they danced.
After the song ended, they stepped out on the balcony because she was complaining about the heat. Cosimo produced an exquisite hand fan from his pocket. “This fan is no ordinary fan,” he explained. “It’s a magic fan. I cast a spell on it, so it can cool you, and make you feel better, almost instantly.”
“You are what makes me feel better. I don’t need you to fan me. The ocean breeze is enough.”
He was still so melancholy, though. She didn’t argue with him as he opened the fan.
The cooling sensation was immediate and delicious, but it brought with it a strange heaviness as if she were falling asleep. Her thoughts began to cloud and grow confused. Memories seemed to slip in and out of focus, the sequence of events no longer making any sense.
