Welcome to Stories from Among the Stars.

You're listening to The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Clune, narrated by Daniel Henning.

14. Merle stood on the ferry, gaping.

Linus leaned out the open window from the front passenger seat.

Are you going to lower the gate?

Merle didn't move.

Useless man, Linus muttered.

I don't know why we're supposed to trust him in charge of a large boat.

I'm surprised he hasn't killed anyone yet.

Are we going to crash and think in the ocean and maybe die? Jansy asked. That would be neat.

Linus sighed. He really needed to learn to censor himself better. He turned around to look at the back

of the van. Six children stared at him with varying degrees of interest at the

idea of sinking in the ocean and dying. Lucy and Chauncey more so than the others. Zoe,

sitting in the third row, arched an eyebrow at him, indicating, without so much as a single word,

that this was his mess, and he might as well own up to it. He hoped he wouldn't live to regret this.

Chances were pretty high he would.

We're not going to sink into the ocean and die, Linus said as patiently as possible.

It's merely an expression used by adults,

and therefore children such as yourselves shouldn't say anything like it.

Arthur snorted from the driver's seat, but Linus ignored him.

He was on very strange ground with Arthur since the night in his bedroom,

where once he'd had no problem in speaking his mind to the master of the house,

...