Caught in the Undertow (Coral Book 2) by King, Matt

of his former home. “What you’re seeing is real, but it’s not here. It’s another place, separated from this one.” “Why can I see it?” the girl asked, a question so direct and fundamental that Ethan found himself searching for the simplest explanation. “There’s a kind of... curtain between different worlds,” he said, using metaphor where scientific explanation would be too complex. “That curtain is getting thinner, so sometimes you can see through it. Kira—the fox lady—is helping us make the curtain stronger again.” The young mer-girl considered this, then asked, “Did you come through the curtain?” “I did,” Ethan admitted. “By accident. I was studying the ocean in my world when I passed through.” “Do you want to go back?” The question was asked with the innocent directness that only children seem capable of. Ethan paused, struck by how rarely he asked himself that question anymore. In his early days here, the desire to return to Earth had been constant, overwhelming. Now... “I’ve found things worth staying for,” he said finally, thinking of Meri’s compassion, Nerin’s strength, and the purpose he’d found in this underwater world. “But I’d like to fix the curtain so that no one gets pulled through by accident, in either direction.” The child nodded, seemingly satisfied with this answer. “The other place is too bright. Too dry. I don’t like it there.” “I understand,” Ethan said with a smile. “I felt the same way about this place at first—too dark, too wet. But you get used to dif