The Sirens Chapter 10: Lucy’s Nightmare and the Naiad Revelation
⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.
Summary
Lucy wakes from a nightmare that brought Jess’s disturbing painting to life—white eyes, grimy limbs, and the texture of fear. Seeking answers, she picks up Jess’s phone, which buzzed with a text from gallerist Rebecca Waters. Desperate to understand her sister’s disappearance, Lucy guesses Jess’s passcode: her own birthday. The phone unlocks. She reads an email chain about Jess’s upcoming exhibition “The Sirens,” scheduled for 22 February 2019 at the Rookery in Batemans Bay. Relieved the exhibition is still nine days away, Lucy decides to wait until Saturday before acting. Still curious, she scrolls through Jess’s camera roll and finds a photo of a stone cairn commemorating the 1801 sinking of the convict ship Naiad. The image triggers a jolt of recognition: Lucy dreamed of the Naiad two nights ago, before she saw any of Jess’s paintings. Haunted by the shared dream, she searches for Jess’s diary but instead finds an old school backpack in a forgotten cupboard. Inside is a padlocked journal with a broken clasp. The chapter ends as Lucy opens the first page.
Key Events
- Lucy wakes from a vivid nightmare about Jess’s painting of the Naiad.
- A late-night text from gallerist Rebecca Waters alerts Lucy to Jess’s phone.
- Lucy unlocks the phone using Jess’s passcode: Lucy’s own birthday (20 09 99).
- She reads emails confirming Jess’s upcoming exhibition “The Sirens” on 22 February 2019.
- Lucy decides not to worry until Saturday, rationalising Jess may have needed a break.
- She finds a photo of a Naiad memorial cairn on Jess’s camera roll.
- Lucy realises she dreamed of the Naiad before ever seeing Jess’s paintings.
- A search for Jess’s diary uncovers an old school backpack hidden in the eaves cupboard.
- Inside the backpack she finds a padlocked journal with a broken clasp and opens it.
Character Development
Lucy – Lucy’s guilt about invading Jess’s privacy is palpable, yet her need to know her sister outweighs her scruples. The discovery that Jess used Lucy’s birthday as a passcode reveals a depth of affection Lucy hadn’t fully appreciated. Her realisation that she dreamed of the Naiad before encountering Jess’s work unsettles her sense of reality and hints at a psychic or inherited connection. Lucy’s search for a journal mirrors her quest to understand the secret, possibly traumatic life Jess has hidden behind a “protective force field.”
Jess (absent) – Although not present, Jess is developed through the traces she leaves: a phone secured with her sister’s birthday, a spare Tinder profile, and a series of paintings inspired by a shipwreck she likely also dreamed about. The distance she has maintained from Lucy is recontextualised as possible self-protection or shame, rather than indifference.
Dora Maar – Jess’s cat appears as a comfort object for Lucy, and her name (shared with a surrealist photographer) subtly reinforces the novel’s themes of art, memory, and feminine power.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
- Shared Dreams / Psychic Connection – Lucy dreams of the Naiad before she knows about the shipwreck, and Jess’s paintings mirror the same imagery. This suggests a supernatural or familial bond that transcends ordinary explanation.
- Surveillance and Secrets – Lucy’s decision to unlock Jess’s phone and scroll through her apps dramatises the tension between love and privacy. The phone becomes a metaphor for the “veil” Jess has drawn over her life.
- The Naiad Shipwreck – The convict ship’s loss of approximately 100 lives serves as a historical echo of suffering, possibly linked to the family’s past or to Jess’s artistic inspiration. The mermaid figurehead connects to the title “The Sirens.”
- Art as Revelation – Jess’s paintings are not merely decorative; they are windows into her subconscious and, as Lucy discovers, into events Lucy herself dreams about.
- Mother-Daughter Echoes – The Birdwatch Magazine collection and the mother’s handwriting on Jess’s schoolbag subtly tie the present mystery to family history.
Why This Chapter Matters
Chapter 10 is the turning point where Lucy moves from passive worry to active investigation. The unlocking of Jess’s phone provides concrete information about Jess’s whereabouts (or lack thereof) and the upcoming exhibition. More importantly, the shared dream of the Naiad introduces the novel’s supernatural or inherited-memory plotline, suggesting that the sisters are linked in ways Lucy never imagined. The discovery of the old journal promises future revelations about Jess’s past and perhaps the source of her sleepwalking and emotional distance. This chapter deepens the mystery while raising the stakes: if Lucy is dreaming Jess’s dreams, what else might she inherit?
Study Questions & Answers
1. Why does Lucy decide not to warn the gallery or call the police immediately after reading Jess’s emails?
Lucy reasons that the exhibition is still nine days away (22 February) and that Jess may have simply needed a break before the big day, as Melody suggested. She gives herself until Saturday to see if Jess returns.
2. What evidence in this chapter suggests that Jess and Lucy share a dream or psychic bond?
Lucy recalls that her nightmare about the Naiad occurred two nights ago at the motel, before she ever saw Jess’s paintings downstairs. The painting of the women facing the sea matches details from her dream, indicating a shared unconscious experience.
3. What does Jess’s choice of phone passcode reveal about her relationship with Lucy?
Jess used Lucy’s birthday (20/09/99) as the passcode, which means she thinks of Lucy multiple times a day when unlocking her phone. Lucy feels a surge of emotion at this discovery, realising that Jess likely loves her more than she had allowed herself to believe.