Mermaid

**There’s always more beneath the surface.**

Once, Hope Payne was a mermaid, performing at the local theme park and captivating audiences young and old.

Today, she’s married to a pragmatic marine biologist who has filled the pool in their backyard with flounder for a special study. Before he begins, the fish vanish—echoing a loss Hope alone can understand. She senses there’s something underwater, something alive and hungry for more, but is she in too deep to ever resurface?

*New York Times* bestselling author Jodi Picoult’s “Mermaid” is a spellbinding short story about the sacrifice it takes to swim again.