Stories - 'The Merman'

 

Joe Cone                                                                                                                                                           1300 words

   Saybrook,

         Conn.

                          THE  MERMAN.

 

Pretty Judith Mertin, paint box in one hand and easel and sketching stool in the other, left the hotel at three o’clock in the afternoon. She told her friends she was going to paint “Hagar Ledge,” and didn’t want to be disturbed. Basil Trench, journalist and golfer, looked longingly after Judith, but with him her wish was law, and he remained behind.

“Hagar Ledge,” and its surroundings, jutted boldly out into the Atlantic. There was a high surf rolling in, and Judith was happy. It was an ideal afternoon to paint. Soon she was lost to view from the hotel, and the gaiety on the wide veranda went on.

Judith had not long been seated when an unusual noise caused her to look up. But a few feet away from her sat a man. His dark, curling locks were wet with sea. His dark eyes shone brilliantly, and a fine set of white teeth lurked behind a welcoming smile. With a graceful movement he tossed a handful of pearls into her lap. Amazed, she stared at him. His head and shoulders, white and bare, protruded above the rocks on which he sat. The remainder of his body was invisible. She was about to rise and flee when he raised his hand in protest.

“O maiden of the land,” he said, his tones rich and pleading, “go not from me. We are alone; the world, which you pretend to love and do not, is off yonder. Listen for a moment; we may become friends.”

She felt herself melting ’neath his spell. His shing eyes penetrated the utmost depth of her soul. All the romance of her nature was awakening. His strength and beauty captivated her. The longing of her artist’s soul was becoming appeased. The brush and palette dropped from her hands. She waited. He moved a bit nearer and touched her hand. It was cold.

“Maiden of the land,” he murmured, “I love you. You are young, free and love the beautiful. Your soul longs for its mate. The world you are living in gives nothing. In my realm is everything. Such gems you never touched. Such pictures you never beheld. Such purity you never witnessed. Such love you never knew. Come with me for a season. I am not one of you; I am a merman. My castle is under the sea. Wealth is there, and you will be a Princess amongst Pearls.”

With a graceful leap he was beside her. His arm encircled her waist. His eyes locked into hers and she became dizzy.

”My friends,” she whispered, weakly.

“You friends will lose you but for a season,’ he replied. “We will return. I am a merman by compulsion. A fate hangs over me. It can be raised. I am the last of my kind. It is said that if I can bring a flower from the land, willingly, to become Queen of my Realm, then I may go with her to her own domain, and be as other men forever after. But there must be sacrifice. The Queen of my Heart must brave the dangers of the deep. She must give herself to my keeping; must be willing to leave all and with me plunge to the depths of the ocean.”

“If I were sure,” she murmured.

“Nothing is surer,” he pleaded. “They will miss you for a day, two days, a week. But what os that to the joy afterward? You will be rich; you will be loved; you will be worshipped. You can paint to satisfy your soul, for you will have seen wonders that no artist of the land has ever seen. Queen of my Heart, Princess of the Pearl, will you go?”

She was fairly in his power now. She drew closer to him. The sea had calmed, and looked inviting. It beat the rocks no more. His kiss felt cold, but it refreshed her throbbing temples.

“May I not leave a message? she pleaded; “May I not tell them at home?”

“The sacrifice,” he urged.

His clasp grew closer, and she felt herself slipping, slipping down into the green, gray sea.

The waters closed over them. Strange lights passed before her vision. The tinkle of bells fell upon her ear. She heard far-away voices chanting a requiem. Then the sky darkened, and the voice of thunder spoke. Lightning flashed. The yell of a thousand demons filled her ears. At last the waters opened and she was sitting upon a shelving rock. The merman was close beside her, stroking her face and offering words of cheer. Her head ached, and she lay within his arms and fell asleep.

When Judith Merton awoke a wonderful sight met her gaze. The walls of the oceanic cavern were studded with Shining pearls. Everything was dazzling white. Lounging places, bedded with dainty sea-moss, were cut here and there. Rare plate, taken from sunken vessels, ornamented the smooth, white tables. Sea shells, of wondrous hue, filled every niche. Pearls, pearls everywhere.

“Well done, Princess amongst Pearls,” he whispered. “You are Queen of my Realm. All that is mine is yours. As soon as you are fit for the hourney we shall return. When we reach your land I shall be a merman no longer. The amercement will be met. O Maid of the Land, you are brave! You have made the sacrifice. Love and joy shall be yours till the star of our lives has set. Partake of the pearls, the gems of the sea. Keep fresh in your mind the beauties of my realm that you may transfer them to your canvases, by and by.”

The disappearance of Judith Merton was the wonder and lament of the season. The sorrowing friends lingered by the sea, unwilling to believe that it would give up the living or the dead. Basil Trench searched the cliffs and the eddies incessantly. The easel, the paints and the sketching stool were found and treasured. The most expert detective service of the country was put upon the case.

Trench finally gave up in despair and went home. Relatives were to spend their final day at the spot where Judith was last seen standing before her easel. When about half way to “Hagar Ledge” they espied a man and woman coming in their direction. As they drew nearer lines about the woman became familiar. In another moment Judith Merton, alive and well, was in the loving embrace of her friends.

“This gentleman,” she said sweetly, as soon as she could find herself released, “is Captain Merman, who rescued me from the sea. I have promised him my hand.”

 

                                                             JOE CONE.

 

(undated)

 

 

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