Wet: Undercurrent

by Renquist, Zenobia

The electricity in the room intensified.

  As one, Hotsuma, Lulu, and Masato all screamed in pain. Hotsuma felt himself losing consciousness. This was it. This was the end. He was going back to his watery tomb to be a slave to the Mizuno family for the rest of time. His only regret was that Lulu was coming with him.

  Chapter Six

  Lulu rubbed her shoulder when it started throbbing. She’d been sitting at her computer too long.

  “You okay, Lulu?”

  She smiled at Stan’s worried look. Her boss was a sweet guy. He’d been beside himself trying to do anything and everything for her since she’d returned to him with a gunshot wound. A wound that could have been so much worse if not for Hotsuma’s powers extending to her. The bullet that had passed through her shoulder close to her chest had missed all bones and arteries -- a flesh wound. The doctors and nurses told her over and over how lucky she had been. Their words were meant to comfort but, like Stan’s concern, only made the pain in her shoulder worse.

  “I’m fine. Just a little sore.”

  “Go home. I told you to take more time off.”

  “I’m fine, Stan. Really.”

  “Any news about that robber you stopped?”

  “Nope.” She returned her gaze to her computer. She hated lying to her boss but that was the story she had to tell. The Mizunos had stepped in to clean up the aftermath of the spell. Instead of cleaning up her dead body, they’d had to pay for her medical bills and provide her hush money and a cover story.

  Lulu had valiantly stopped a thief from stealing one of the Mizuno family’s prized treasures, taking a bullet for her trouble. The thief got away, and the gun he used had been registered to Masato so there was no way to find the man. And of course her memory was too fuzzy to recall what he looked like.

  All of it was a nice little gift-wrapped file for the police cold case cabinet. The Mizunos wanted to forget and so did Lulu. She wanted to forget, but four months later she still couldn’t.

  She could never forget waking up cold, wet, and naked with Masato half draped over her body and several hotel employees along with men in business suits bustling around the scene. Lulu lost track of the priest and Hotsuma in all the confusion of being packed off to the hospital.

  Once the doctors let her have visitors, the Mizuno family lawyer stopped by with a substantial check, a non-disclosure agreement, and their version of what had happened. Lulu managed to take it all in stride until they informed her she was barred from ever setting foot in Onsen again.

  That made sense. She was the only one who could free Hotsuma now that he was bound again. She assumed the binding had worked, or else barring her from Onsen made no sense. The Mizunos didn’t want her showing up and trying to free him again.

  “Lulu?”

  “Huh?” She looked at Stan. “I’m sorry. Did you say something?”

  He placed his hand on her uninjured shoulder. “Did you talk to a therapist, like I suggested? Getting shot is a big deal. You need to talk to someone.”

  “I’m fine.” And she couldn’t talk to anyone. Therapy wouldn’t do her any good if she couldn’t tell the truth. And say she did tell the truth -- the therapist would recommend Lulu be locked up in a psychiatric ward for the rest of her days. Water spirits, ageman, barrier spells -- Lulu wouldn’t believe any of it either if it hadn’t happened to her.

  She forced herself to smile and look cheerful. “I’m totally fine, Stan. As soon as I finish up this report, I’ll head home. Promise.”

  “Good. I want you rested.” He patted her shoulder and then walked away. Before he entered his office, he turned back and said, “Oh, hey, I almost forgot why I came out here. The board members are loving the idea of giving the hotel a more Russian feel. They are already budgeting money to make renovations to add more saunas as well as procuring some Russian art to hang around the place.”

  “That’s great.”

  He gave her a thumbs up. “Onsen may be known for its hot springs, but Voda is going to be on the map for our many and varied saunas. We’ll beat them yet.”

  “Yup.”

  “Just wanted to let you know the board appreciates you as much as I do. Back to work I go.”

  She waved and kept her smile in place until Stan closed the door. Beat Onsen? Voda never would. Not so long as Hotsuma resided in a secret room at the end of an invisible hallway. No one could compete with the power of a mystical good luck charm that guaranteed results.

  The throbbing in her shoulder intensified. Thinking about Hotsuma always made it hurt worse. She decided to focus on her work. One more report, and she could end her work day. Not that she was in any hurry to go home. At home was where she relived her last day with Hotsuma, trying to figure out if there was anything she could have done differently.

  She could have let Masato drown. She could have finished breaking the wards instead of indulging in sex. She could have ignored her curiosity and left that invisible hallway alone. She could have not been born with these stupid powers in the first place.

  When Lulu asked about the family history, her grandmother had mailed out Lulu’s great grandfather’s diary. Nash Swade had kept a log of all his clients and what he’d done for them as well as a family history of who had inherited the power.

  The last page spoke of Nash’s regret of not passing the power to his son because he knew the family would suffer financial loss without it. He hadn’t been wrong. Lulu’s family wasn’t poor, but it had taken two generations to reform their spending habits. By the time they did, most of the family wealth had been squandered, and the family split apart due to financial strife.

  Lulu had no plans to tell anyone that she had the power. She’d excused her curiosity about Nash as idle gossip amongst some of the older folks that she wanted to verify. She didn’t want them depending on her, not like that. In fact, after all that had happened, she wanted to forget she even had the power.

  She typed in the last of the report, saved it, and followed the procedure to send it off to the next cog in the company machine. Her work day had ended.

  Going home filled her with as much dread as coming to work. At work, she had to deal with everyone’s concern and congratulations for being a hero. At home, she had to face the truth and the pain it always caused her.

  She sighed and resigned herself to the inevitable as she left. The late afternoon sun blinded her when she exited the office building. When her vision cleared, she almost ran back inside.

  “Hello, Lulu.”

  “Masato.” She said his name like the curse it was. He was the last man she wanted to see.

  He lounged against the side of his limo with his hands stuffed in the pockets of his light gray, three-piece suit. “You look well.”

  “No thanks to you.” She tightened her grip on her purse and walked away from him. To her annoyance, he followed her. “Go away.”

  “We need to talk.”

  “We have nothing to talk about.”

  “I think we do.”

  “Thinking isn’t your strong point, then.” She locked her gaze on her car, refusing to waver from that path. Just a few more steps, and she could leave him behind. If he followed her home, she would call the cops.

  What the hell was he doing there, anyway? The Mizunos had a quiet restraining order against her. She wasn’t supposed to go near them, and they would stay away from her. What game was Masato playing now?

  “Lulu.”

  “Drop dead.”

  “Did that once already. I didn’t enjoy it.”

  “Well, it didn’t take. Try again.” She sidestepped a pothole full of water and reached for her car door. Her fingers bumped against a wall of water that sprung up, separating her from the car. She stared at it, not believing it was there.

  “Lulu.”

  Her heartbeat thundered in her ears as she faced Masato.

  He pulled his shades low on his nose and stared at her over the rims. His eyes, which should have been dark brown, glowed crystal blue. “We need t
o talk.”

  She whispered, “Okay.”

  There was a soft splash behind her. She startled and turned to see the water in the pothole swishing around. Her heartbeat sped up when Masato cupped her elbow and guided her back to his waiting limo. She let him usher her inside and waited while he got in after her.

  “Home,” Masato said before rolling up the dividing window.

  The car pulled into traffic while they stared at each other. Lulu’s image reflected in Masato’s shades. She was glad she looked as confused and scared as she felt. “What’s going on, Masato? Why are your eyes like that? How did you do that with the water?”

  He pulled off his shades with a tired sigh. “I wish you would stop calling me Masato. I have to put up with it enough from everyone else. I don’t want to deal with it from you too.”

  Lulu’s eyes went wide. “I don’t understand.”

  He moved to her side so he could take her hand in his and kiss her open palm. “The family calls me Masato. You can call me Hotsuma.”

  Tears stung her eyes and she blinked quickly to hold them back. “What?”

  He cupped her cheek and smiled. “I know you’re confused. I was too when I woke up in Masato’s body.”

  “You’re in Masato’s body. Where’s Masato?”

  “He’s in here too. He’s dormant, though.”

  “So a split personality?”

  “No. He can’t do anything but sit there.”

  “How can you be sure?”

  Hotsuma moved his hand to her shoulder, the one where she’d been shot, and slipped her blouse aside. Being exposed to the air-conditioned air of the limo made her shiver, but the feel of his lips pressed against her bare shoulder turned her body hot.

  “Hotsuma?”

  “Your blood.” He kissed her shoulder again before sitting back and meeting her gaze. “The priest performed the binding spell just as he was paid to, but so many things interfered and warped the spell that the outcome wasn’t what he expected. For one thing, you didn’t die. You forcefully breaking the last of the barrier sent power into your body that you passed to Masato when you resuscitated him. You also passed it to me when we kissed. Couple that with your blood mixing in the water and Masato holding the chalice that originally bound me and…” He trailed off with a shrug. “It’s confusing and convoluted as hell, but the end result is me in Masato’s body. It turns out my power can be passed to another, but I have to come with it.”

  “So you still have control of water?”

  “You saw that for yourself already.”

  “And you’re still an ageman?”

  He nodded. “That’s the only reason the family isn’t trying to exorcise me and get Masato back. They aren’t sure we can be separated without destroying my power. Your blood did bind us, after all.”

  “So the family knows who you are? But you said they call you Masato.”

  “Yes, the family knows, and they have to call me Masato. It would look weird if they didn’t. They can call me whatever they want. I’m only concerned with what you call me.”

  “Hotsuma!” Lulu threw her arms around his neck and held him tight. Happy tears coursed down her cheeks. “I thought you were locked away, that we would never see each other again.”

  “I thought the same.” He squeezed her tight. “I’m sorry it took so long. The family had to come to terms with me as the new head. That involved a lot of flying back and forth from here to Japan. Once things settled, I came to get you.”

  She leaned back. “Get me for what?”

  “That depends on how you answer a simple question.”

  Lulu held her breath.

  “Were you setting me free so I could use my powers at Voda?”

  That wasn’t what she had expected him to ask. “Huh?”

  “I saw the emails, Lulu.”

  “What emails? What are you talking about?”

  “The emails between you and your boss while you were at Onsen.”

  Lulu started to shake her head and then stopped as she realized what he was talking about. “I sent those emails before I even knew about you. Yeah, I went to Onsen to gather information, but I didn’t find anything worthwhile. I was enjoying my vacation when I stumbled across you.”

  “You told your boss you found something weird and would report back.”

  “Yeah, and if you noticed while rifling through my mail, I never emailed him after that.” She pulled out of his arms and fixed her blouse. The warm and fuzzy feelings of a moment ago had turned cold. “I can’t believe you would ask me that.”

  “I can’t believe you think I wouldn’t. You suggested I go to Voda, Lulu. Onsen’s top rival. What am I supposed to think?”

  “Yes, I work for Voda. Yes, I went to Onsen with ulterior motives. But those have nothing to do with why I invited you to move to Voda. And, if you remember, in that same conversation, I also told you to negotiate with Masato so you could remain free and stay at Onsen.”

  Silence fell between them.

  Lulu rubbed her shoulder when it started to ache. A constant reminder of everything that had happened. The flesh had healed but it felt like the pain would never go away.

  Hotsuma said, “People have only ever wanted me for my powers, Lulu. How did you think I would view your invitation to Voda?”

  She stared at him. “You’re really asking that? Seriously?” A humorless laugh left her mouth. “Oh, my God, I am such an idiot. I should have never said anything. I should have kept my mouth shut and minded my own damn business. Here I was thinking you wanted to be someplace with a lot of water, and Voda was the first place that came to mind since I work there. Why in my craziest imaginings would I ever believe you would want to be near me? What would be the point once you were free?”

  “Lulu --”

  “Stop the fucking car!” She had to push the talk button and repeat her demand so the driver could hear her.

  The driver pulled over and Lulu jumped out, headed back toward Voda and her car. She’d been stupid to go with him. So Hotsuma was alive and free. Who cared? That had nothing to do with her. She’d played her part.

  “Lulu, wait.” Hotsuma jogged after her.

  When he caught her arm, she yanked free of his hold. “Drop dead.”

  “We’ve already had this conversation.”

  “Fine. Go fuck yourself. You can control water, which means you shouldn’t have any issues doing it. Have fun.” She started walking again but stopped and returned to Hotsuma so she could stab her finger against his chest. “You have some fucking nerve pissing and moaning about people using you. The last time I checked, you were the one using me. You sought me out. You dragged me back. I didn’t know you from a leaky faucet, and suddenly I became your best fucking friend when you found out I could break that stupid barrier.”

  She turned away and started walking again before Hotsuma could see her crying. Until she said it aloud, she had denied that their relationship had been about anything other than what she could do for him -- break him out of prison, get him laid after a few centuries without, even get him a shiny new body… well, shiny, slightly used body.

  How had their happy reunion become this?

  Tears blinded her, and she had to stop walking before she tripped over something. It would ruin the effect of her storming off in righteous indignation if she fell. Standing a few feet away with her hands over her face and crying also ruined the effect but she didn’t care.

  Hotsuma’s strong arms circled her from behind and pulled her back against his chest. “I’m sorry.”

  “Fuck you.”

  “I deserve that.”

  “You deserve a swift kick in the nuts, now that you have them.”

  He cleared his throat. “Okay. I deserve the feeling behind that if not the action itself.”

  Despite her upset, a small laugh escaped her lips. “I’m pissed at you. Stop making me laugh.”

  He loosened his hold and walked around to her front. Taking her hands in his, he met her
gaze and gave her a small smile. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry I dragged you into all this. I’m sorry for accusing you of using me. I’m very sorry you got shot. Most of all, I’m sorry for asking the wrong question when I should have been asking you to marry me.”

  “I can’t.”

  “Can’t? Not won’t? Why can’t you?”

  “Your family told me to stay away from you.”

  He made a thinking noise while he nodded. “Yes, there is that. However, they didn’t say anything about me staying away from you.”

  “They won’t like it.”

  “Ask me if I care. I’m through living my life for them. They have use of my power. That’s all they get. I have a life again, and I plan to live it with the woman I love.” He kissed her knuckles. “I do love you, Lulu. Say yes.”

  “I still can’t.”

  “Why not?”

  She tried to hold onto her upset expression but her lips curved into a grin anyway. “I refuse to accept a marriage proposal that doesn’t come with a ring.”

  “Easily satisfied.” He released her hands so he could pat his coat pockets and then pull out a small velvet box. “This is the other reason it took me so long to come get you.”

  “What?”

  He opened the box, revealing a large, black pearl set in a gold band shaped like curving bamboo. “The ocean is a vast space and it took me a while, even with my control of water, to locate the perfect black pearl that would complement my black pearl.”

  “You remembered.” She’d told him the meaning of her name in passing to lighten the mood. Things had been so tense at that time that she’d doubted he even registered her words. The ring in front of her said otherwise.

  How much did she love this man in that moment when he remembered such a minute detail as the meaning of her name?

  “Everything about you is important to me, Lulu. Not because you set me free. Not because your powers gave me this body. You, Lulu Swade, are important, and I love you. Please say yes.” His earnest gaze, which had reverted back to brown, showed his sincerity. “I’ll beg if you want.” He went to one knee with the box held up to her. “Please.”

  Another small left laugh left her lips. This one was more from nervousness than amusement. He was actually proposing. She was going to say yes. The pain she always felt wasn’t from her healed wound but the ache of being away from Hotsuma, of knowing he was trapped and she would never see him again. Her shoulder had stopped throbbing the second he said he loved her.