Listen to the Water | FULL SERIES | Wattys 2022 Shortlist | ✔

(36) Conspiracy

The two Kels take me down the rock's side into deeper water, far enough that our lights have probably moved out of sight of any of the lookouts around the Sandsinger camp. I've kept my hands lit to see either Kel's signs in the dark water, but as we pause on a ledge, the woman gestures towards them. "Turn them off."

I do, but I can't help but glance towards Keshko. Their whole tail glows green, even more prominent down here than it was when I noticed it before. The glow covers the pale patches between their brown chain-link patterning, evenly distributed enough to make me wonder if they can turn it off at all. From what I can see of their face, they're disgruntled enough to prove my suspicion. It's the most expression I think I've ever seen them yet.

When my lights are out, we strike out on a very different path. The shark-Kel woman takes me sideways, circling the great trunk of the rock formation. She keeps a sharp eye on the water above us. Keshko hugs the contours of the wall as they follow, sticking to places where the rocks will hide them from above. By the time we stop again, the glow of their tail has dimmed slightly, despite the fact that my eyes have sensitized to the darkness. I wonder if it's touched by the sun.

The place we've stopped is a natural shelf on the side of the formation. Keshko lurks around the shark-Kel woman as they both train their eyes on our surroundings, tense and still. I grip my dagger until my knuckles ache. The feeling that we're doing something illegal intensifies with every passing moment. Much as this looks and feels like a regular patrol stop, the glances Keshko keeps shooting at the rock behind us speak otherwise.

The woman beckons me again. When I look behind me to check where Keshko is, I find the water empty. We're face to face with a crack in the rock before I can ask where they went. On the woman's direction, I slither inside. Keshko has their back to the wall beside the doorway, watching out it as we come in. Only when the coast is confirmed clear does the woman tap my hands again. I light them. Together with Keshko's still-glowing tail, it's just enough to see each other by.

"Perfect," the woman signs. "You're a dancer like Makeba, correct?"

I nod.

"We should stay quiet anyway," signs Keshko, their eyes darting to the water outside. "I don't know if"—new name—"came this way." I expect them to pepper me with questions next, but they spin straight to the shark-woman. "Do you think it was—?"

Their hands are a distressed flurry, rendering the name illegible. The woman—whose name I realize I still don't know—holds up a hand to pause them.

"Slow down," she signs. She turns to me again. "I'm Ruka." She surprises me by spelling it out, and smiles at my surprise. It's a tight, strained expression. "Makeba and I have worked together for a long time."

She doesn't ask for my name, and I don't suppose she would have to. It probably circulated like wildfire after I first showed up with Taiki.

Keshko gives their name, too. I can't tell if they're uncomfortable because I'm here, or just uncomfortable in general. They confirm the former a moment later, turning to Ruka and signing right in front of me, "Are you sure you want her here?"

"It's that or talk to Taiki."

Keshko slumps back, visibly unhappy. I'm not sure how to feel about that response: whether they don't want to talk to Taiki because the topic would be too distressing for him, or because they trust me more. I doubt it's trust. Otherwise, Keshko wouldn't have asked if it had to be me.

Ruka turns back to her fellow Sandsinger. "It probably is Arcas," she signs, spelling it out for my benefit. "What do we know by way of identification?"

Keshko's hands twist together, then wander over the rock beside them, plucking anxiously at the algae. "She has a scar on her tail," they sign at last. "And she's smaller than most of the other females in that family. I don't know if any others know that song, either. Nightcatchers are only found around the islands."