Jake
Jake wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible after realizing he’d probably tripped some sort of alarm when he kicked that door in.
“What’s wrong?” Ariel asked. “Why’d we have to leave so fast? I think I’m getting sick.”
He tossed a file onto her lap. “Ariel, it’s all fake.”
“Huh?” She opened the file.
“It’s all fake. You’re not a mermaid, you’re a human.”
“What are you talking about?” She started looking through the files.
Jake laughed. “It’s all a freaking joke. You’re just a person. You’re a regular person stuffed into a synthetic mermaid tail.”
Though she was seeing the same thing he did, he could tell she was having trouble. She threw the file back at him, sending the papers flying all over the car. “Is this some sort of joke?”
“Yes, Ariel, it’s all a joke. It’s a huge lie.”
“I don’t believe you.”
“You saw it, it’s right there.”
“That doesn’t prove anything. It’s just pictures of my tail.”
“What? What more proof do you need?”
He glanced away from the road to see the look on her face. It held a twisted expression of unimaginable confusion and grief. It was the look of finding out your entire existence was a lie.
“Ariel, I know this is hard.”
She picked up a few pieces of the file and started shuffling through the papers again. “You don’t know anything.”
He pulled off the road and drove toward the water, pulling onto the sand under the pier. “You’re right, I don’t know how you feel. I can’t even imagine.”
She started to cry. “I don’t even know what to say.”
“I don’t either. But they’re liars, and murderers, and probably kidnappers.”
She looked up from the papers. “Kidnappers?”
“Yes, Ariel. If you’re not a mermaid, that means you had a mother, and a father. And who the hell knows who these people are or how they got you, or what their game is. But rest assured, I’m going to find out.”
She pulled the blanket off her tail and touched her skin. “I’m a monster.” The few tears in her eyes burst forth a huge flow.
“Hey, you’re not a monster. Why would you say that?”
“When I was a little girl I read a book called Frankenstein. I loved that book. I read so many different versions. Every one I could find. I’m a monster, just like the monster in the books.”
“No, you’re not.”
She punched her tail. “I was cooked up in a lab. I’m a freak.” She punched herself over and over until Jake reached across the seat and stopped her.
He held her shaking wrist. “Ariel, look at me.” She reluctantly met his eyes. “You’re not a monster, you’re not a freak. You’re a human being and you know what that means.”
She shook her head. “No, I don’t.”
“It means you don’t have to die.”
She searched the dashboard of the car and placed her hand on her belly. “My baby.”
“Yes, your baby.”
She looked at him. “But if I’m just a person, how did I become pregnant?”
“He must have done that in the lab too.”
“I feel sick. I don’t even know who I am.”
Jake thought out loud. “I wonder what your name is.”
“Huh?”
He looked at her. Her giant blue eyes looked so sad and glassy. “Your real name. It’s probably not Ariel.”
She leaned back into the seat. “Everything about me is a lie. It shouldn’t surprise me that my name is fake too.” She shrugged. “Who am I?”
“I don’t know.” He sighed. “But we need a plan. I have to get Ashley back somehow.”
“What’re you going to do?”
“Not me. We.”
“What can I do?”
He met her eyes. “I only have one thing they want.”
Ariel shook her head. “No, I can’t go back there. If I go back, they’re going to kill me. They’re going to steal my baby and kill me.”
He reached out and took her hand. “I’m not going to let that happen.”
She sighed. “Please don’t.”
“But you’re going to have to trust me.”
She nodded slowly. “I do, I trust you.”
“Okay then…now let me come up with a plan.”