Chapter 5: The Water Woman

Yannick slept quietly next to Coraline. His breath was soothed.

She went out for some fresh air. His bare feet tread the sand and slipped them into the cool water of the sea.

Someone was walking on the beach, along the water.

She was a woman with long red hair and a blue dress that fell to the ground. This woman approached in the pale light of the moon. She was a beautiful woman.

Coraline wanted to move. But his body wouldn't answer him. The woman approached her, closer and closer, until she felt the breath of this beautiful woman on her skin. Fear rose in Coraline's throat. She wanted to scream but no sound came out of her mouth.

This woman's eyes scanned her and shone with an unreal gleam. She slipped around Coraline's neck a medallion held by a gold chain.

Then the woman came closer again, until Yannick came running holding a flashlight.

Yannick shook her and pulled her inside, screaming: "Dahut came to get you. It was the witch Dahut... ». His eyes were like crazy, they came out of his sockets.

He hugged her, and the young man's panicked heart calmed down.

Coraline let herself be carried until they returned.

Once inside, she asked him who Dahut was. He refused to answer and held her against him until she fell asleep.

The next day, Yannick took her for a walk in town where she entered the bar-tabac named "la bonne marée". She bought the local newspaper there. What she discovered there was incredible.

An article recounted the events of the previous days.

The first death was in the news: "A biologist drowns in Tuesday's storm during a fishing trip."

While the second had received a more imposing text in which we learned that this person was none other than Richard Forscoph, a wealthy owner of several buildings along the coast. He was known to have financed many rescues of ships that sank during antiquity. The journalist announced that a red-haired woman unknown to the people of the village had been seen in his company and that it was probably the last person to have been in contact with Mr. Forscoph. They reportedly left together after having a drink in one of the seaside bars.

In the bar-tabac in which she bought her newspaper, two bigoudenes of a certain age were discussing about the young woman seen with Mr. Forscoph. "I'm sure it was Ahès who came to get that one. He loved women and power too much. Almost all the girls in the village had to give in to his advances in order to work in the area. And then, this black mask is the signature of the cursed creature. ». The other lady replied that it was just a legend and ended the discussion a little abruptly.

Yannick had been looking for fresh bread at the bakery during the time she had taken to buy her newspaper. On his return, he announced, a little embarrassed, that they were both invited to lunch at his mother's house who lived in Plozevet.

"Uh," said Coraline, who didn't know what to say, "how does she know I'm here?"

"I called him to hear from him, it's a habit I've been into for several years, in fact since my father passed away. She asked me if the beach house was free at the moment and I let slip that you live there for now. She insisted on inviting you to eat this lunchtime. I'm really sorry. I could never lie to him. »

Yannick was worried about Coraline's reaction.

She was already heading to a florist she had seen when she arrived. His choice fell on a hydrangea. A plant that should resist the Breton climate.

Arrived in front of the house, Coraline raved in front of the wrought iron gate mixing volutes and counter-volutes. Yannick got out of the car to open it in a nostalgic and almost musical squeak. His footsteps made the gravel of the path creak. He returned to the car and moved it into a wide driveway that made it easy to park.

A slender little lady opened the door of this little white house with a slate roof and jumped out of the building. The vehicle stopped and even before Yannick had turned the key to turn off the engine, this little lady had opened Coraline's door and jumped on her neck screaming in her ears.

"It's been so long since my little son chick told me about his Belgian writer. He didn't lie to me. You are beautiful. I already knew you from the press and your books. My library is filled with your books. »

Coraline was stunned not by the fact that this little lady was a fan, but by the revelation about her host. As for Yannick, he was more embarrassed than anything else and his head sank between his shoulders as his cheekbones became colored.

"Coraline," he said, "I present to you the woman who gave birth to me. As you can see, she's been one of your fans since I told her about you. »

The lady replied: "Please call me Marie-Thérèse."

It was a small one-story house. She brought them into the living room which was connected to the dining room. The room was beautifully decorated and low ceiling, blue and white earthenware and with marine accessories hung scattered on the walls. The coffee table was built with a driftwood base and an old bar covered with a glass plate made up the flat part of the table.

The meal was excellent and traditional. Yannick disappeared for a few moments. Coraline took the opportunity to ask a few questions discreetly: "Marie-Thérèse, have you heard the rumors about Ahès' return? Who is this? »

The little lady burst out laughing. "It's just an old legend, my dear. The old legend of the city of Ys. »

Yannick returned to these words in the room and intervened: "Mom, why are you talking to her about this?"

"She questioned me and I answered her. There is no harm in talking about ancient legends. She resumed nonchalantly.

"Dahut came to get her, Mom! I intervened just in time, otherwise she would have taken it with her. »

Marie-Thérèse approached her son tenderly and stroked his cheek with great tenderness. Yannick seemed frightened. "My little one, you've spent too much time keeping your head dipped in books; Legends remain legends. And then, Dahut always attacked men. And Coraline from what I could see is far from looking like a male being. You know better than I do, so please tell Coraline Dahut's story. »

Yannick turned to Coraline: "In the 4th century AD, lived Gradlon, nicknamed Gradlon the Great, Gradlon Meur, future King of Cornouaille. A pagan king, Gradlon fell in love with a fairy woman, Malgven, queen of the North. Gradlon killed her husband, he took Malgven, the gold of the fairy woman's husband and his horse Morvac'h ("horse of the seas" in Breton). They both set off on the oceans.

During their journey, the two lovers conceived a girl: Dahut or Ahès. Unfortunately Malgven died, Gradlon then returned with his daughter to his kingdom of Cornouaille and converted to Christianity on the advice of Saint Guénolé.

Gradlon could not refuse anything to his daughter, he made her build on the waves, the wonderful and proud city of Ys. The city was protected by a lock system. The place became a place of lust, feasts, games and dances. Every day, Princess Dahut, according to the versions, had a new lover. In the evening, she put a black mask on his face, he stayed with her until morning. As soon as the lark's song was heard, the mask tightened on the throat of the young lover and suffocated the lover of the night. A rider then took the body on his horse to throw it into the ocean.

According to legends, he threw them beyond the Baie des Trépassé (hence its name) near the Pointe du Raz. All the conquests of Dahut died in the morning and were thrown into the sea. One version of this legend says that it was because she was engaged to the sea and offered her lovers to her fiancé.

One day, in the guise of a mysterious prince dressed in red, the devil appeared at the gates of the city.Seduced by this prince, Dahut entrusted him with the key that commanded the locks, safeguards of the city against the waves. The demon immediately opened these doors. In a short time, the city and the inhabitants were swallowed up. Only Gradlon mounted on his horse Morvac'h and Guénolé managed to escape, the latter having forced the king to abandon his daughter to the deadly waves. Dahut, whose drowning appeased the divine wrath, changed - it is said - into a siren.

This princess by changing shape also changed her name and is now called Morgane who is still determined today to lose the sailors...

The king, who was heartbroken to have lost his daughter, then settled at the bottom of the Odet estuary and founded his new capital at the confluence of the rivers: Quimper.

At the end of his reign, Gradlon decided to end his life at the Abbey of Landévennec founded by his friend Saint Guénolé. An equestrian statue was then erected between the arrows of the cathedral representing Gradlon on his horse Morvac'h watching over Quimper his capital, statue turned especially towards Ys and his lost daughter. »

The atmosphere between the couple had become very heavy. Only Marie-Thérèse continued to act as if nothing had happened and did the dishes while chatting in turn with her son and Coraline. At the end of the meal, before letting them go, the little lady kissed Coraline on both cheeks and made her promise to come and see her again.

Since the altercation at Yannick's mother's house, they had not spoken a word to each other, well not directly. Driving Coraline back, Yannick was very tense. As he said goodbye, his heart sank. They were both tortured souls, he understood that. Coraline was bruised, but stubborn.

Arriving at the bottom of the hut, Yannick still broke the silence:

"I'll pick you up tomorrow. Pay attention to yourself and do not approach the water. Even if you don't believe it, do it for me. All right? ", he placed a kiss on Coraline's forehead and she let herself do it.

She nodded silently and climbed the stairs while being slowed down by the weight of sadness.

She locked her door and threw herself on the bed. Sleep did not want her. Coraline turned on her laptop and began to write down events since her arrival to put things in order.

When she raised her head, it was pitch black. Coraline often talked to herself when she was writing her previous novels. Her thoughts seemed much clearer to her when she acted in this way. She ends her thoughts with two questions: "What connects a fisherman and a landowner? Why don't we find this red-haired woman we saw with this Mr. Forscoph? ». No answer came to him, no idea, nothing except the sound of the waves.

She went to observe the beach behind the window and walked away without even taking a look at the place of her meeting with the witch.

The anguish devoured her and went to her head. To counter this feeling, she swallowed a powerful sleeping pill and sank into the arms of the handsome Morphé.