Chapter 1
Most stories begin with the introductions of the characters and setting of the book, this book is no different. This story follows a seventeen year old boy by the name of Max Mariner. His physical appearance consisted of shaggy black hair, ocean blue eyes, and a monotone facial expression almost constantly displayed. Today his outfit consisted of his signature, warm, yellow beanie, a tattered, or as he preferred to call it, "well-loved", grey shirt, and fishing waders on. He was an American boy now growing up on an island that, while still being small, was the largest of an archipelago. It had to be no bigger than 15 square miles. It was called Snakehead Island due to it "leading" the rest of the smaller, uninhabited islands. The island's primary population was Scottish as the archipelago was located not to far from Scotland, however it had a small mosaic of people from different cultures and backgrounds. The island was also a popular tourist location, famous for it's rolling hills and striking seaside cliffs toward the north, and the stone beaches toward the south. The west side of the island consisted of a public beach that stretched on for almost a mile. It was a popular fishing spot as well as swimming. It also included a singular strip of town with three restaurants, one pharmacy/doctor's office, one vacant venue, which the community used to host island-wide events, one all grades school, the service center where Max worked, and a grocery store. On the east side was the residential area which consisted of two neighborhoods. However, Max did not reside in the neighborhoods, instead he lived alone in a dark oak cabin on the water. His only family on the island was his grandfather who worked in the lighthouse up in the cliffs of the north. His parents were originally from the island, but moved to America shortly before they had Max. Max grew up in America until he was 7 then his family decided to take an extended vacation to visit his grandfather on Snakehead. His parents eventually wanted to continue their vacation to other countries, but Max preferred to stay on the island as he enjoyed the island and getting to work with his grandfather. His parents allowed him to stay since he had his grandfather on the island to watch over him and he still emails his parents about their travels to this day. After officially moving to the island, Max did not re-enroll in school, instead he worked with his grandfather in the lighthouse until he got his job at the service center at fourteen where he gave fishing and nature tours showing the best spots to observe the diverse nature of the island. This foggy morning he was off to the bodega (which was one of the restaurants on the island) to get his usual breakfast. When he arrived he heard the familiar ding of the bell above the door and the even more familiar face of the girl at the counter. He strolled up and greeted the girl managing the register.
"Morning, Leslie" he said in his usual, flat voice.
"Ay mornin', the usual?" Leslie inquired. She spoke in a thick Scottish accent. Her messy auburn hair falling in thick waves around her face. It almost looked like she had let her hair dry without brushing it after a swim in the ocean.
Max nodded as Leslie pulled a Lemon poppy seed muffin out of the pastry case and poured him a cup of coffee with a splash of creamer in it. Max dug in his pocket for a small wad of singles and some change. She passed the items over and he dumped the due amount on the counter and left. This was the usual exchange of events between the two. Most residents of the island considered them to be best friends since they interacted the most on a regular schedule, however they never considered themselves more than acquaintances since they never hung outside of this daily interaction. As he left the building, he was soon greeted by a golden retriever. Who had cheerfully wandered up to him and began following him on his short treck to the service center. There was a large abundance of strays on the island as many of them had wandered on to the tourist ferries from the mainland. Most of them were cats, but there were a few dogs on the island as well. He practically owned the dog at this point, he named him Cooper, he occasionally fed him, and even let him into his house for shelter in harsh weather. He waved the dog away once arriving at the service center and was immediately greeted by his obnoxious co-worker, Kobe. As the regular day in the service center played out, Max grew more and more eager for the end of his shift where he could begin his favorite free time activity, which was documenting the aquatic life of the island which he had been doing for years. As soon as his shift ended, he flew out of the building to head home to gather his tackle box, fishing rod, notebook, and digital camera. Cooper accompanied him as he strolled down to the beach. He stood on the rocky shore, complete with a thick blanket of fog, preparing his line. As he was about to cast off, he heard a woman's voice from further down the shore. He turned his head expecting to see a woman possibly swimming or walking. He only saw fog.
"Come here" the voice spoke again. It sounded eerie, almost ethereal.
He found himself drifting towards the disembodied voice as if his own curiosity was dragging him across the stone shore. Cooper followed, cocking his head at the voice.
