The sun dipped below the horizon, darkening the skies to a rich indigo. It was the gloaming, the magical minutes between sunset and darkness when time felt strangely suspended; my favorite time to be out on the sea. I leaned over and took Ethan’s hand, unbearably happy because for once I wasn’t the only person here to experience it.
I scanned the water for Nerissa, and Lorelei dove under to search for her. A few minutes passed, and I was starting to get a little fearful, but all at once both of their beautiful faces rose from the depths. Nerissa reeled back when she saw Ethan, keeping her distance even as recognition dawned in her sparkling emerald eyes. Her hair fanned out all around her in the darkening water, glossy and black as an oil slick.
Ethan gasped, shocked at the change in her appearance.
“Why did you bring your person?” she asked me, her eyes darting back and forth between us nervously, “It is forbidden.”
“We came to warn you about the bad people,” I said urgently, “Do you remember how they took you? Well, they want to come and take Nixie too! You must leave this place and go somewhere far away.”
She listened, but a familiar skepticism rose in her eyes. I was reminded of the time when Lorelei dismissed my vision, ignoring my warnings of her imminent capture.
“Don’t worry, I already told Nixie to never go close to any boat,” she said vehemently, “They will never catch me again.”
“They want Nixie,” I warned her in the most serious of tones, “And they will come here to look for her. You must go to a different place.”
“No, this is the best place to be,” she replied confidently. “All of our friends will warn us if the bad ones come.” She gestured gracefully all around, and a seal surfaced next to her as if to punctuate her point.
It made sense, I thought, thinking about the the fur seals, dolphins and sea lions that frequented these waters. They were wary and cautious creatures, and I’d already seen how far they’d go to protect the mermaids that they loved. The birds alone were an excellent alarm system.
“See?” said Nerissa, who had apparently been reading my thoughts, “You know that I am right.”
“Maybe…”
I couldn’t help thinking what Barbara said about how they were closing in on Nixie, and I racked my brain for the exact words I’d used in describing her location to Evie. I’d gone over my surfing gear with a fine toothed comb, so I knew that I wasn’t being tracked. Still, I was suddenly afraid, with a haunting feeling that I might be missing something.
“Where is Nixie?” I said in a panicked voice, scanning the water frantically.
“What’s wrong?” Ethan asked.
“I don’t know… It’s just–” At that precise moment a pair of sea lions came zipping through the water towards us, towing a giggly little mermaid with her baby arms wrapped around their necks.
“Whee!” she cried with glee, “Marina!”
Once again I was shocked at the growth she’d managed in the short time since I’d last been out to see her. The sea lions saw our surfboards and melted away into the sea, leaving Nixie hovering in the water a few feet from us. Her olive green eyes flew open wide when she saw Ethan.
“Eeek!” she shrieked in terror, flying into Nerissa’s arms, burying her face in her shoulder.
“It’s alright,” Nerissa crooned soothingly into her tiny shell of an ear. “This one is good. This one does what Marina tells it to do.”
Nixie peeked back up at Ethan, and dove underwater, surfacing behind him. She circled us, studying Ethan from every conceivable angle, and when her curiosity was finally satisfied she launched herself onto my board, wiggling onto my lap and taking my face in her cherub hands.
“This one is why you won’t swim with us,” she said gravely, surprising me with her insight.
I smiled bashfully and nodded, and Nixie turned her head to cast a dimpled smile at Ethan.
His eyes met mine, his eyebrows raised, “Whoa,” was all he could manage.
Nixie looked back at me, “Now let’s go wave riding!”
I looked at Ethan hopefully, “Are you up for a surf?”
He swallowed hard and nodded yes, still speechless.
The mermaids towed us out to the wave break, and as the sky darkened a perfect moon rose on the horizon, casting its glowing light on the mysterious night waves. The mermaids began to glow too, luminous and wraithlike under the water as they twirled all around and beneath us.
“Are you okay?” I asked Ethan, worried by his silence.
“Yeah,” he said, his voice husky, “This is… It’s just so…”
I reached out and squeezed his hand. I knew what he meant, for there were simply no words that were adequate to describe the otherworldly experience. I don’t think I’d ever felt happier than right at that moment, sharing all the beautiful things I’d been privileged to see with the one I loved.
“Watch this,” I said, lying down on my board as Lorelei took me out to deposit me onto the biggest wave of the set. I surfed with abandon by the light of the moon, getting retrieved at the base of each wave and swiftly towed back to where Ethan sat watching.
“It’s fun… You should try it,” I told him with a smile.
He nodded again, and I could see the whites of his wide eyes in the dark.
“Will you take him out on one?” I asked Lorelei, sensing a beautiful set coming towards us like a slow train. She nodded, grabbing his board and towing him out to the perfect spot.
“Be careful with him,” I called out to her, watching as Ethan popped up and rode a beautiful wave in his own expert way. The moonlight cast its magical spell, and I held my breath until I saw Lorelei retrieve Ethan and tow him back to me.
He was exhilarated, sitting up next to me excitedly “I’ve never surfed in the dark before! That was intense!”
I giggled with joy, for I knew exactly how he felt. He suddenly got quiet, leaning over to give me a salty kiss. I met him halfway, and we rocked in the sea, our arms locked tightly around one another. His lips were warm on mine, the exact opposite of the frigid sea and dark night that surrounded us. All I could think about was how much I loved him; I knew that I’d feel this way always.
Lorelei popped up in front of us, “You’re just like Adria,” she said with distaste, leaping out of the water like a dolphin, and splashing us with an expertly aimed swish of her tail. She went back to tumbling in the water alongside Nixie.
“What did she say?” Ethan asked.
“Nevermind,” I said, “There’s another good set coming.”
Nixie started joining me as I surfed, lying flat at the nose of my surfboard with her arms stretched out ahead of her. She laughed, giddy with delight, as I cut back and forth across the waves like a ship with its own little mermaid figurehead. I watched Ethan surfing, dancing with the sea in the silvery moonlight, and I shivered with happiness. I wished it could last forever.
The fog rolled in, obscuring the moon and making it hard to see anything more than a few feet away. Ethan drew closer to me, and I sensed him wanting to stay in contact more and more.
“Aren’t you thirsty?” he finally asked, and I realized that we’d been out here for hours, and it was getting late.
I was grateful that he was there. When I surfed with mermaids, I became oblivious to my body’s signals, and would keep going, surfing again and again until I was literally too weak to stand. They never tried to stop me, ignorant of the fact that no human could compete with the stamina of a mermaid.
Ethan hadn’t complained once, and it made me love him even more.
“Let’s go home,” I said.
After a swift tow back to Aptos, I thanked Lorelei, warning her to be extra cautious. Ethan and I paddled back to the deserted beach in silence, slipping out of our suits and packing our bags in the foggy darkness. He handed me a bottle of water out of his bag, insisting that I go first, then polishing it off. He bent down to take our bags and his board and we walked up the stairs in complete silence. When we got back to Abby’s th
e lights were out and Dutch’s car was still in the driveway.
“Where’s your truck?”
He pointed to where he’d parked it a little ways down the street.
“Are you alright?” I asked. He seemed dazed, and he moved slowly, like he was in shock. I started thinking the whole thing might be too much for him to accept, and his silence must be a sign that he was freaked out by the experience. I suppose it’s only fair, I thought. After all, hearing about it and seeing it were two different things.
“I don’t think I’m gonna be able to sleep tonight,” he said. He didn’t sound happy.
My heart sank, for as beautiful and magical as I found night-surfing with mermaids to be, it hadn’t occurred to me until now that Ethan might see it very differently. My profound supernatural experience might be his dangerous freak show. Tonight was the ultimate reality check; fair warning to get away from me while he still could.
“What are you doing tomorrow?” I asked quietly, wondering if I should tell him about the meeting I had planned with Evie.
“I have to work,” he stopped himself, adding, “But maybe I can get started late…”
“Oh… Well… You should try and get some rest then.”
He just stood there silently, watching me. I realized that I’d probably mistaken his shock for awe, and falsely assumed that wordlessly sharing moonlit surfing felt as intimate to him as it did to me. I realized then, just how much I’d really wanted him to accept that half of my family.
“I’ll walk you to your truck,” I said, setting my bag on the porch.
He moved down the dark street slowly, like he was thinking about what to say. His silence made me increasingly nervous, and my stomach tightened up. He put his things in the back of his truck and turned to face me.
“Are you okay?” I asked again, only getting a nod in return.
I leaned in for a quick hug and was surprised to be seized in a sudden ferocious embrace. He pulled me as close as he could, his breath warm in my ear.
“Thank you,” he whispered harshly, “Thank you for showing me,” he stopped to catch his breath, “That was the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen… ever done in my life.”
“Really?” I asked, looking up at him, “I was starting to think–”
He cut me off with a passionate kiss that left me panting, finishing off sweetly, brushing his lips across my cheek to whisper to me again, “I don’t see how I can get by without you tonight.”
I laid my head on his chest with a sigh, relieved. Something inside of me surrendered.
“Wait here,” I said, untangling myself from him and rushing back to Abby’s. I crept in, silently packing a large bag.
“You win,” I said under my breath as I slipped back out, locking the door behind me.
Ethan was leaning against his truck in the misty moonlight, and when he saw me coming back with my bag he smiled from his head to his feet.
“Let’s go home,” I said.
CHAPTER TWENTYEIGHT
RESOLVE
We sat down to coffee the next morning, smiling shyly at each other. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it, but now that I’d agreed to share the apartment with him, something had changed between us. We skirted around each other gingerly, uncertain as to how we should behave. Everything felt new and awkward, and I kept catching Ethan watching me when I wasn’t looking. It was more than a little bit alarming.
I poured some milk in my coffee and looked up to meet his eyes again, “You know, if we’re going to do this, you have to let me pay the rent too.”
He shook his head no, “I can manage.”
I reached for my purse, pulling out the fat envelope of cash that I’d been hauling around, slapping it down on the table, “I want you to focus on school. I insist.”
He looked surprised at the amount, studying me with his brows knit together.
“It’s mine,” I said defiantly, “And it’s just been piling up… Susan’s gallery owes me another two thousand already.”
“I don’t want your money,” he said proudly.
“I thought we were supposed to be getting married… Doesn’t that make it our money?”
“We’re not married yet,” he said.
“Ethan… just take it, okay?” I paused, finally bitterly voicing one of the things that had been making me uneasy, “It’s like people are just throwing money at me… The paintings are only selling so well because of the whole… you know… muse thing.”
His eyes softened, “Don’t be ridiculous!” he said, “Your paintings are awesome. Everybody really likes them.”
I cast him a cynical look, for no matter how nice he tried to be, I knew that everything I did was colored by the strange powers I’d never asked for.
He smiled grudgingly, “You shouldn’t look a gift horse in the mouth.”
“You and your horses,” I said sarcastically. He just grinned at me.
I snorted in irritation, unfolding the paper and snapping it open. What I saw made me forget all about how bull-headed Ethan was being about money.
“Four Dead In Tragic House Fire” the headline screamed, and I felt sick to my stomach as I read the grim details.
“What would your dad think if he found out you were paying my rent?” Ethan kept protesting, but I was no longer listening to him.
The story went on to say that the bodies were burned beyond recognition, and that dental records were being used to identify them. The lone female victim was identified as recently elected Congresswoman Watson, victim of a home invasion robbery at her family’s lavish beach house. Several weapons were recovered at the scene, but an exact cause of death would never be known.
The three men were presumed to be the suspects, and I didn’t doubt that they’d find long criminal records for each of them. I shuddered with revulsion when I remembered the cold, dead glint in their hardened eyes. If a completely emotionless, sociopathic nature was what it took to be immune to muse powers, then how did you explain Ethan?
“If I were him–” Ethan stopped when he saw the look on my face.
I handed him the paper and he read it, frowning. He finally put it down and reached across the table for my hand, “Maybe that’ll teach Edwards to leave you alone now.”
I sighed, “He’ll never give up on Nixie.”
“But she’ll be okay, right? I mean, you warned her mother…”
“Sister,” I said absentmindedly, thinking about what Evie would make of Nathan Edward’s evil plans.
“What?”
“Nevermind,” I said.
“I hate it when you do that,” he replied.
“Do you know what I hate?” I asked with an exasperated look, pushing the cash towards him.
He looked at it, thinking, “We’ll see,” he said in a conciliatory tone.
My phone rang in Ethan’s room and I got up to answer it; it was Cruz. Brad had spoken to his father, telling him that he that we had unwittingly stumbled into a robbery. Since none of us could prove anything against the Edwards family, both Cruz and Brad pretended to know nothing, and truthfully, there was no reason for Cruz to know any more than he already did.
The guys were going to lunch with Evie today too, and Cruz asked me what I was going to wear, excited about taking Brad to meet his benefactor. I was surprised to find Cruz as resilient as the mermaids, seemingly unaffected by his ordeal. I suppose love really did conquer all.
I felt like I was a million years older, with the weight of the entire world bearing down on my shoulders. I told Cruz I’d be on my way up to the city soon, hanging up the phone with a sigh.
Ethan appeared in the doorway, “Who was that?”
“Cruz,” I told him. “I guess him and Brad are going to Evie’s too.”
Ethan made a sour face, “I’m curious to see what Evie thinks about Brad. They should keep an eye on him.”
“They?”
“Evie and Boris. You should tell her everything you know about his father. They can help watch over yo
u too.”
I cringed, for it was annoying, the thought that I needed to be “watched over” like a child. I was on the verge of adulthood and being made to feel more helpless than ever. My father would be home soon, and I wondered how much he needed to know. As much as I missed him, the last thing I wanted was him hovering over me too.
Ethan bent down and kissed my cheek, “There’s a lot of work at Lue’s today. I have to get going.”
“Me too,” I said glumly, looking at the clock on the wall. I grudgingly got up to go.
Ethan pulled up at Abby’s, killing the engine and scooting over on the seat. He wrapped himself around me with a happy look on his face, “I can’t wait until my Dad clears out for good, so we can start moving your stuff in.”
“I’ll have to leave some things here… to keep up appearances,” I said with a twinge of guilt.
He smiled slyly, “How will you get by without all your clothes?”
I opened the door, slipping out of his arms and turning to glare at him, “Am I going to have to put up with your sarcasm every day?”
“Yes,” he said, smiling even bigger. He pulled me back by my fingertips and kissed me goodbye, “Call me when you get back?”
“Okay, I’ll see you later,”
Evie would expect me to dress for lunch, so I rummaged through my rack of clothes, finally settling on a stunning new dress that I’d never worn, biting the tags off with my teeth. An image of Lorelei biting a writhing fish popped into my mind, and I grimaced. I smoothed my hair and put on some make-up, admiring the way the silver threads in the dress looked a bit like scales. Did everything in the world have to remind me of mermaids?
I slipped on a pretty pair of silver sandals and set out to deal with Evie. As much as I wished I could avoid the whole topic, I was curious to hear her plans for dealing with Edwards and Olivia. Evie always had a plan.
The drive to San Francisco was over too soon, and I pulled up to Evie’s building to find the garage attended by a strange man. I tensed up, instantly on guard. I lowered the window a tiny crack, locking the doors as he approached me. He was tall, with close cropped hair and eyes covered with mirrored lenses. He wasn’t nearly as wide as Boris, but he had the same sort of stance. Ramrod straight spine, coupled with an economy of movement; it was a military bearing.
03 The Fate Of The Muse - Marina's Tales Page 29
