When We Believed in Mermaids: A Novel

Kit returns to her apartment and naps until it is time to go out with Javier. When he arrives, Kit is so overwhelmed with memories that she begins to cry. She tells him she found her sister, but insists she needs to eat before she tells him the story. They go to a restaurant and Kit tells him about seeing Mari, and this leads to a conversation about her family. Kit explains about her family restaurant, Eden, and how she was home alone with her father the day of the earthquake. The conversation moves on to Javier’s marriage to Miguel’s sister. He explains that they were very happy early in their marriage and that they shared great passion, but the relationship soured when she wanted to settle down and he wanted to build his music career.

Mari and Kit meet the following morning in Half Moon Bay. Kit is angry at first, but Mari asks her to put her anger aside for the moment. They discuss their mother and the fact that she decided to get sober when Josie “died,” just as Mari had done. They exchange a few memories, and Kit continues to make comments that expose her anger as they drive up to Sapphire House. Once there, Mari gives Kit a tour and tells her how she met Simon 11 years before while surfing and about her work as a house flipper. Mari insists she has a good life now, but Kit calls her out for creating in reality the fantasy the two of them once shared. Kit then expresses her anger at Mari for “killing” Josie and leaving Kit and her mother to grieve. Mari says that Kit hated Josie because she stole from her when they last saw each other, but Kit denies it.

Mari describes the day Josie “died,” explaining that Josie needed to go to the bathroom while on the train and got lost looking for it because she was high. After the bomb went off, Josie returned to where her friends were sitting and searched for her backpack, but found her friend, Amy’s, backpack instead. She left the train and walked to Paris, taking passage on a freighter headed to New Zealand using Amy’s identification. On the trip, Josie went through withdrawal and was sober upon arriving in New Zealand. She took another identity, that of Mari Sanders, and decided to start fresh. She admits Simon doesn’t know anything about her past. However, Mari asks Kit to come to her home for dinner that night. Kit agrees after Mari says she can bring a guest.

As Mari drives home, she thinks about the past again. She recalls the day of the fight between Dylan and her father, and then the call they received several days later informing them that Dylan had been in a motorcycle accident. At the hospital, the doctor pointed out old injuries on Dylan’s x-rays, clearly indicating abuse and attempting to identify the assailant. However, Josie/Mari’s mother lied about how long Dylan had lived with them and indicated that she had no information on his past. Dylan was badly injured and required months of recovery. Dylan moved back into their home. Although Josie, Kit, and their mother nursed Dylan daily, he refused to speak and appeared depressed. Josie began reading to him every day. While Dylan was still recovering, Kit went to a camp for future doctors and their parents went to a restaurant conference for two weeks. While alone with Dylan, Josie convinced him to get out of bed by taking his pain medication away. Once he was out of bed, they invited friends over on several occasions. One night, they went to the beach and were drinking as well as taking drugs. During this time, Josie, who was underage, and Dylan had sex.

Kit walks before returning to her apartment, thinking about all that has happened. She recalls her mother attempting to become the attentive mother she’d never been after becoming sober. Kit resisted her mother’s attention for a while, but eventually saw that she could trust her mother. She realizes she must tell her mother the truth about Josie/Mari. Kit also thinks about Javier and his insistence that their relationship is not just a holiday fling. She knows she is capable of falling for him, but she resists it because she is afraid of the trauma that comes with a committed relationship.

Kit and Javier go to Mari’s house where they are instantly set upon by Sarah who is very excited to see Kit again. Sarah takes Kit out to show Kit her experiments. It begins to rain while they are outside, so Kit leaves her shoes on the porch before reentering the house. Mari confesses to missing Kit deeply.

Dinner is pleasant, but Simon senses some awkwardness. Sarah notices the tattoos her mother and Kit share, then points out that she and Kit have the same toes. Mari sends the children upstairs, and Simon questions why Sarah looks like Kit. Mari admits they are siblings. Kit tries to leave, but Simon insists on knowing the truth. Mari confesses she actually grew up in Santa Cruz, California, rather than Canada, and that her family believed she was dead. Kit and Javier leave. Simon accuses Mari of lying to him, and he hates liars. Mari tells Simon that she’ll leave to give him time to calm down, and then she wants to tell him the whole story.

Mari texts Kit and arranges for them to go surfing the following morning. Javier takes Kit to the Spanish restaurant to watch him sing. Kit sees the way women respond to Javier while he’s singing, and she is touched by his lyrics in a love song. They go back to Kit’s apartment and are intimate. Afterward, Kit tells Javier how her first love, James, had a girlfriend when they met whom he broke up with to be with Kit. The girl began harassing Kit. Josie heard about the harassment and fought the girl, breaking her nose. As a result, James broke up with Kit and went back to his former girlfriend. Javier understands that Kit got her heart broken too soon after losing her father and Dylan, and this is why she is afraid of commitment. However, he assures her that he cares deeply for her, and he believes they are meant to be together.