She decides to look for Mehra

After some inner struggle her curiosity got the better of her and Lillian decided to try and find Mehra. She had heard about mermaids, but had never seen one (almost no one had). She was curious and decided that this was a good opportunity to meet one. But finding Mehra based only on the rumors about her would not be easy.

The lake where the mermaid was supposed to live was not very far and so Lillian decided to walk. She could buy a horse, but to do so just for one trip would be a waste of time and money, plus she would have to leave it once she reached the lake, which meant someone could “mistake” it for his/her own horse and take it. That particular danger also ruled out hiring a horse, and hiring a carriage to drive her there was out of the question – she didn’t want anyone to know where she was going.

After two long and very boring hours, during which nothing happened, Lillian finally reached the lake. She was quite surprised (but also very happy) to find several unguarded boats that she could use to go into the lake. After examining all of them she chose the one that seemed to be in best condition and was about to take it. But then she reconsidered and decided to leave her clothes on the shore – since Mehra lived in the water Lillian could end up in the water as well, and the last thing she wanted or needed was to walk for two hours wearing wet clothes. So she found a suitable spot and hid her clothes and jewelry, then got in the boat and started paddling.