  The search for a suitable pillow material took both girls quite far from home - not so unlike the contents of Lisha's plan. But instead of helping like she had promised or even pretending to help, she was deep in thought as she swam alongside her sister whose eyes were sweeping the sea bed all around her. As the search remained fruitless, Rohna's frustration kept increasing, until she couldn't bear it anymore and had to say what was on her mind.
      "Come on, Lisha. You're not even helping me in any way!"
      "Oh. Okay. What was it you were looking for again?", Lisha asked halfheartedly.
      "Something to use as a pillow! How could you have forgotten?"
      "Mind your tongue, young lady," was the sharp retort from her sister. Perhaps Rohna had, for a moment there, forgotten who she was talking to, but that scolding was enough to remind her and she promptly fell silent.
      The

  Joey was alone at home, sat in his sitting room, going through documents he had gotten from Ben's house. Everything from birth certificate to passports and old letters, he was scrutinizing them in search of something catchy that might be useful in the search for his friend's kidnappers. Whatever he finds, he would forward it to the PI for closer observation and investigation.
      So far, the case was stagnant and there had been very few useful clues, all of which had turned up nothing. It did not help that there were neither known witnesses nor street cameras in Ben's area, so they had absolutely nothing about the abductors, except for shoe prints that were practically untraceable due to the utter strangeness. He was looking admiringly at a ten-year old postcard that Ben's then girlfriend had sent him from Paris when he heard a knock on the door. He wondered who it was. He had very f

  Lisha waited till her mother had left her chambers before darting into it. Maana had taken Lina and two of the younger mermaids to go on what Lina termed a hunting expedition. They would, for the next few days, consistently hunt and gather a certain species of highly nutritious sea snails, which were currently in season. To avoid quarrels and mischievous acts, Lisha had long since been banned from such activities and she was nothing short of glad. Spending hours everyday gathering snails was not her idea of a fun activity. Scheming was a lot more rewarding and fulfilling. In her mother's absence, she was free to do whatever she liked and that included talking to Rana whom she found seated at the far end of their mother's chambers, looking straight ahead like someone in a trance, with Braana's head resting on her shoulder. Lisha swam over to the pair and flicked her fingers at her little sister.
      "Braana, kindly make yourself unavailable. I'd like to talk to Rana alone."
      But to her annoyance, the little mermaid only turned to look at Rana for approval.
      "It's okay, Braana," Rana nodded.
      So she had to leave, but not without a statement. Making sure to brush her tail against Lisha, she swam out of the chambers with her fastest strokes ever. Fortunately, Lisha did not deem it worthwhile to chase her. She simply shook her head and went to sit beside her older sister.
      "What is it, Lisha?", Rana sighed. "I'm in no mood for insults right now."
      "No no no. I have no such intention. I just came to be with you, you know. I understand your pain and I'd like to comfort you."
      "Okay, dear sister. Thank you very much. So what exactly do you want from me?"
      Lisha sighed with a sad shake of her head and a melancholy swish of her caudal fin.
      "I see you don't believe that I have your best interests at heart. I know I may be annoying sometimes, but I'm really a good person deep down in my soul. And I care for you.. a lot. More than anyone else can ever hope to."
      "Thank you, dear."
      "You're welcome."
      There was silence for a while, but not for long. Just as Rana had expected, Lisha was too restless to remain quiet for too long. The longer the silence lasts, the more likely she would be to speak her mind.
      "So how are you feeling now?", she asked.
      "I can't say I'm fine, but I'll be fine.. hopefully."
      "Don't worry, Ben would be found very soon."
      "I hope so too," Rana sighed. "If only I were there to help in looking for him."
      "But Mother would not hear of it, right?"
      "Right."
      "Hmm. Mother," Lisha sighed. "Always tough, isn't she? But at least, she didn't give you any trouble when you chose to get married to a land man. She just wants the best for us, I guess."
      "Hmm."
      Another bout of silence and then suddenly, "Say Rana, why don't you just sneak out to the land whenever Mother's not around? Not today, tomorrow maybe."
      "Hmm mn," Rana disapproved with an emphatic shake of her head and a loud slap of her tail on the rock she was sitting on, "that will be..."
      "She doesn't have to know that you snuck off to the land. You just have to return whenever you can and I'll be here to cover for you. What do you think?", she asked, smiling proudly at her own genius.
      Rana stared at her in surprise for a while. Then she shook her head, "Two things. One, why do you care? Two, what do I have to do or give in return?"
      "Come on, Rana. I'm your sister for crying out loud! What's family for, if not to stand by one another in times of trouble and difficulty."
      "Okay. So by agreeing to your plan, I'm not binding myself to any unspoken agreement of any sort. Is that right?"
      "Perfectly right," Lisha nodded, with a calmness and niceness uncommon to her. "No strings of any sort attached."
      "Okay then. I'm grateful, Lisha. Hopefully, this new you has come to stay and will never be replaced."
      Lisha only smiled in response. But suddenly, in a surprise move, she reached out to hug her sister - something she had never done before! Rana was shocked, but allowed herself to be held in her sister's embrace. When the hug was finally broken, Lisha excused herself.
      "I think I should leave you, so you can have some rest," she said and then swam off.
      Rana stared at her retreating figure in surprise. Was this the same Lisha she had known all her life or was someone else impersonating her?
      After the talk with Rana, Lisha was trying her best to not look suspicious, but that was easier said than done. That little devil, Braana, was already looking at her in a funny manner. If not that she wanted so much to match her recent behavior with positive actions, a spanking would have been in order for that little brat. She turned away from her and bit down on her finger in an effort to keep calm. But as soon as she saw Rohna head for the exit, she darted after her.
      "Where are you going, Rohn?"
      "I know you're older than I am, but I've told you time and again that I do not like that kind of name. You might decide to slap me a..."
      "I'm sorry, Rohna. It skipped my mind."
      A shocked Rohna turned around to stare at her in open-mouthed surprise.
      "So where are you headed?", Lisha asked again, ignoring the stare.
      "Um.. I'm going to find something to use as a pillow. Braana and Reena got the old one broken."
      "Great. S..."
      "I've already asked permission from Rana," Rohna quickly added.
      "Nice," Lisha approved with a nod. "Can I come along, so I can help you?"
      "You.. you want to help me?"
      "Of course. Or is that a bad thing?"
      "No, not really. It's just.. Okay, let's go."

The search for a suitable pillow material took both girls quite far from home - not so unlike the contents of Lisha's plan. But instead of helping like she had promised or even pretending to help, she was deep in thought as she swam alongside her sister whose eyes were sweeping the sea bed all around her. As the search remained fruitless, Rohna's frustration kept increasing, until she couldn't bear it anymore and had to say what was on her mind.
      "Come on, Lisha. You're not even helping me in any way!"
      "Oh. Okay. What was it you were looking for again?", Lisha asked halfheartedly.
      "Something to use as a pillow! How could you have forgotten?"
      "Mind your tongue, young lady," was the sharp retort from her sister. Perhaps Rohna had, for a moment there, forgotten who she was talking to, but that scolding was enough to remind her and she promptly fell silent.
      The search went on for a few more minutes, with only Rohna searching. Then suddenly, Lisha veered of

Chapter TEN