She was trapped.
Nowhere to go.
No one to save her.
Wait, would Rowan try to rescue her? Having gotten lost once again in her thoughts, she didn’t see the danger before it was too late.
Nick wrapped his beefy fingers around her arm, yanking her out of the water. When he released her on the side of the pool, she could see the red imprint left behind from his brutish grip. She knew it would eventually bloom into a bruise.
“I asked you a question.” Nick’s eyes blazed with anger and perhaps a little craziness.
“Sick. I told you I was sick!” she cried out, her voice mingling with his in the cavernous building with its high ceilings and tiled floors.
Her eyes bored into his, willing him to feel the hate radiating from them. His gaze remained stoic and impassive, then lowered to take in the state of her tail splayed out across the small squares of the floor.
“What the…” He grabbed her arm again, tugging her body farther from the pool. He dropped to his knees on the wet ground and got a closer look at the transformation happening. “What are you?”
“Soon, I’ll be human like you, that’s what.” She couldn’t hide the satisfaction from her voice. She didn’t want the change to happen, but she knew this was the one thing he didn’t want to hear.
“No, you’re lying. Change back to a mermaid.” Nick swiped a hand roughly down his face.
Her voice shook. “I… I can’t.”
“The hell you can’t, bitch! You’ve changed this much. Change back!” His control slipped. Looking her up and down, she could see the wheels turning in his head.
“Get back in the water,” he commanded. “Maybe the news lady won’t notice what your tail looks like.” He gave her backside a harsh kick with his boot, urging her compliance. “Go on. Get!”
Pain shot up her spine and she cried out, even as she scooted to the edge, trying to avoid another assault. When she slid into the water, her skin protested. There was something wrong with the water. The sharp, unnatural smell eluded her until now, invading her senses and making her nausea rise up.
“Quit your blubbering.” Nick sneered as he passed by her to answer the knock at the door.
Death seemed a quicker escape and it couldn’t come soon enough.
Nick pulled the door open wide, faint rays of dusk filtering through. In walked a woman in footwear tilted at an odd angle. She waited to see if she’d fall, but she walked with an expert grace, a man with an odd black contraption on his shoulder stepped in right behind her.
“Mermaid, get over here.” He pointed to the edge of the pool by his feet, calling her as if she were some sort of pet or slave. Slavery in her kingdom got abolished decades ago. Fearing the repercussions, she used her arms to paddle across the pool, only faltering once.
“She’s a mermaid? She isn’t what I’d expect them to look like. Is she sick? And why is she topless? Is there something she can cover herself with?” asked the woman, her companion swung the machine around to face Meriya, the end of it shiny, reflecting her appearance.
Drawing back on a gasp, she realized she looked even worse than the last time she studied her reflection. Her eyes sunk in, her hair limp and greasy, and her skin looked like she’d aged considerably.
“They’re not like humans, ma’am.” Nick’s demeanor did a three-sixty, coming out smooth and sure. “This is what a mermaid looks like.”
“Oh my,” she exclaimed pulling out her notepad. “I have a few questions for you, then I’ll interview her.” Nick gave Meriya a sharp look while the newswoman rooted around in her purse for something.
“I’ll answer whatever questions you have,” he practically cooed.
Her search was victorious as she pulled out a pen and poised it over the paper. “You said it was you and another man who should get credit for finding her. I didn’t catch his name.”
“His name’s Rowan, Rowan Ashby.”
Could it be possible Rowan was involved in this little charade? He did refuse to take her back to the ocean, but he seemed to genuinely care about her well-being. Was it all an act to keep her complacent?
Nodding, she jotted down the info. “And when did you and Mr. Ashby discover this creature?” Her brown eyes ignored Nick as he answered, sweeping over her, judging. The look could almost be considered skeptical despite the fascination in her voice. Maybe she didn’t believe Nick despite the proof in front of her eyes?
“Um, about a week or so ago. We were out on Rowan’s boat when her head surfaced.” Nick was full of fish poo, but he continued to spin his tale. Telling how they’d used a rope and a net to get her onboard their vessel.
Her thoughts were all over the place, trying to decide if Rowan had sold her out or if Nick was lying.
“Interesting. Does she have a name?”
“Ask her yourself. She speaks English, but watch out, she’s feisty.”
The woman crouched down, her hand reaching back behind her, fingers wiggling. The man who accompanied her pulled an oddly-shaped stick out of his black bag and placed it in her outstretched hand.
The woman waved the stick in her face. “Do you have a name?”
“Meriya,” she answered timidly.
“I don’t think the mic picked you up. Speak louder, honey.”
Meriya’s lips smoothed into a thin line. “My name,” she said loudly, “is Meriya. Do you have a name?”
The woman’s eyes widened. “Why, I’m Candice Tanner from WBNT,” she scoffed, offended for some reason. “You don’t recognize me?”
“Sorry, I don’t get out much,” Meriya quipped, indicating the pool with one arm while her other arm struggled to maintain a grip on the edge. She no longer could keep herself afloat with her tail.
Candice missed her sarcasm, instead, diving right into her next question. “How old are you?” The mic continued to hover near her face.
What did you do when faced with humans who didn’t understand you?
Lie.
“I’m two hundred and twenty-five. My birthday is in a couple weeks.”
Her mouth literally fell open, but she recovered quickly. “Are there more of you out there?” Her head tilted toward the open door, indicating the ocean Meriya yearned to return to.
“Sadly, no. I’m the last one. Humans have been polluting our water, poisoning us.” That last part wasn’t a lie. They needed to know the damage they caused.
“Aww, that’s sad.” But she didn’t sound sad. She sounded excited at the possibility of telling this story to others and getting recognition for it.
Meriya didn’t understand Candice’s role in the human world, but she was starting to catch on. Nick called her the news lady. Within her village, two people helped spread news of the kingdom around.
“Moving on. Do you mind if we see your tail?” She shuffled forward, eager to see all of her.
Time for this lady to freak out. She’d already been formulating a plan in her head before she asked. “Sure.”
Nick took a step back, blanching. Meriya figured Nick wasn’t expecting Meriya to sound so eager. She tried to hoist herself up but slipped, her strength at an all-time low. Her second attempt to get out of the pool and onto the cool tiles proved successful. The floor felt so good against her fever ravaged body.
Candice, with no regard to her pants, knelt down in the puddle Meriya created and reached out to touch her scales. “Can you feel that?”
“Yes, they’re very sensitive.” She pulled the rest of what remained of her tail out of the water, splashing Candice in the process.
She yelped, falling back onto her backside, raising the mic in the air to save it from the water.
“Oh my god!” She screamed, laying eyes on the toes, which managed to morph into a pair of feet. Meriya mourned the loss of her fins, discovering a split down the middle of her tail, preparing itself to become two legs. She bit her lip and held back a sob. She wouldn’t cry in front of this woman, not like she could produce any tears at this point anyway.
<
br /> Nick’s face went completely white.
“Is this a joke? She’s not even a believable mermaid. Her feet are sticking out of the bottom of the costume.” Candice rose indignantly, trying in vain to wipe the water off her pants. “We’re done here.”
“No! Wait! I can explain. She’s only sick.” Nick held up his hands, motioning for her to calm down.
“I think I’ve seen enough.” She pointed toward the door. “Let’s go, Shawn.” As she reached the door, a man came barreling in, nearly knocking her into the pool.
He managed to grab ahold of Candice before she lost her footing. Meriya knew those shoes were too dangerous to walk in. “Sorry about that, ma’am.”
She huffed, straightening her attire. “Who the hell are you?”
Rowan’s brow creased. “I’m Rowan.” His gaze darted around to the other two men in the room. “Why do you have a news reporter here?” His fury seemed barely contained and Meriya wondered how she ever doubted him.
Nick’s smile looked forced. “Rowan, you know Candice from WBNT. She was only here interviewing Meriya.”
“Okay, this is cozy and all, but the two of you need to try better. That,” Candice swung her arm wide, pointing at Meriya, “is a sad excuse for a mermaid costume. Call me when you find something real.”
Before Nick or Rowan could respond, she dashed out the door with Shawn on her heels.
27
Rowan took way too long to figure out where Nick could have taken Meriya. With the help of his uncle, they’d narrowed it down to two abandoned pool houses or Nick’s house. Because, honestly, they thought he’d be cocky enough to use his own pool. He wished he’d been right because it took them hours to figure out other places to look.
His uncle waited out in the car as Rowan approached the rundown pool building. He still wasn’t sure if his uncle believed him or not, but he took one look at Rowan’s face and panicked voice and asked what he could do to help.
“Nick,” Rowan seethed. “What the hell…”
Reaching behind him, he shut the door to ensure the reporter wouldn’t slip in unnoticed, though he doubted she’d be back, one could never be too cautious.
“Man, I… I didn’t mean any harm.” Nick held his hands up in defense.
“No? Cause from where I’m standing, it sure does.” Rowan took a step toward Nick.
In sync, as if they were going to dance, Nick took a step back, holding his hands up in defense. “I don’t get it. All your life you’ve been screaming from the rooftops about mermaids and how they existed.” Nick visibly swallowed, collecting his thoughts. “Then you finally get one and you keep her hidden. What gives?”
Rowan jabbed a finger accusingly at him. “That gave you no right to kidnap her and try to exploit her on television.”
Step.
“It didn’t give you the right to trespass on my property when I told you that you were no longer welcome.” Rowan’s face hardened.
Step.
“It sure as hell didn’t give you the right to treat her the way you have.” Rowan spared a glance at Meriya and the bruise blossoming on her arm but quickly put Nick back in his sights. He didn’t trust him to keep his hands to himself when his attention was diverted.
Nick stared at Rowan, speechless. An emotion Rowan couldn’t read passed over Nick’s face. Nick dropped his hands to his side and squared his shoulders. “I’m your best friend… was your best friend,” he corrected, a finger thrust in Meriya’s direction. “This thing over here nearly killed me and you are still taking its side?”
“Yes, yes I am. She has more compassion and humanity than you ever will.” As his eyes looked over at Meriya he took in a frightening sight. The tips of her fins were gone, and in their place were toes at the end of what looked to be the beginning of feet. Her tail started to divide as well. He couldn't believe what he saw.
Nick’s lips flattened as he sized Rowan up. “She could have made us rich.”
“What you did is still wrong. There isn’t enough money in the world to make me feel good about causing harm to another creature, human or otherwise.” Rowan’s body shook with rage. “She has more humanity in her little finger than you do in your whole being.”
“Well, you sure have taken care of her. Look at her face! And… and… her tail is gone. I mean, like it’s fallen off and she can’t swim anymore. What’s wrong with her?”
Growling, Rowan balled his hands into fists. “She’s sick, you fucking douchebag. I left for less than an hour to go pick up medicine, my truck breaks down, and then I get home to find she’s gone.” He didn’t raise his voice. Which, in hindsight, was his best move, because Nick didn’t catch on to Rowan’s fury.
With all of the slow steps he took toward Nick, the more the gap between them closed. With lightning precision and a rage he didn’t realize he possessed, he pulled his arm back and pushed all of his anger right into Nick’s face, via his fist.
Nick barely managed to register what happened before Rowan’s knuckles connected with Nick’s nose, an audible crunch echoing through the room as the cartilage crushed beneath the force of impact. The man crumpled over like a rockslide, colliding with the pool water and sinking.
Meriya screamed and scrambled away from the splash Nick created.
Rowan stood there, staring at the ripples fading across the pool, chest rising and falling in quick successions.
“Rowan?” Meriya asked meekly.
Her weak words snapped him out of his blind rage, bringing him back to the present.
“Meriya, we have to get you out of here before he comes around. Though, I hope the bastard drowns.” He held out his hand to her. “C’mon.”
Clinging to Rowan’s arm as best she could, he lifted her out and set her on the edge. “You’re going to have to help me here. I’m going to pick you up, but wrap your arms around me so I don’t drop you.”
Rowan squatted down and wrapped one arm behind her back and positioned the other under what was left of her tail. “You ready?”
“Uh huh,” she replied, wrapping her arms around his neck and clinging to his chest. He struggled to lift her up from the wet floor, slipping several times before he righted himself with her in his arms.
“You don’t seem as heavy as the first time,” he grunted, making his way outside. As he staggered to the car in the dark, he was thankful his uncle turned the headlights of the car on, providing him a beacon. He plastered her against him, her head resting on his shoulder, and a gentle sigh fanned out across his neck.
She tensed in his arms. “Rowan, you have a scar on your forehead.”
“Y-yeah,” he stuttered, remembering how he’d received the scar. “Um, I got injured in a boating accident.”
“Oh,” she replied, falling silent.
Uncle Terrance shot out of the car and raced to the back door, opening it. “Here, slide her in the back.” He didn’t seem surprised to see Meriya. Rowan wished he could ask him what he thought, but that conversation could be saved for another day.
He eased her down onto the seat. “Go ahead and scoot across and get your… tail inside.” He’d seen her tail when he’d picked her up, or lack thereof. His heart dropped into his stomach, seeing those two feet and ten tiny toes jutting out from where her fins should have been. She’d been right about the myth of mermaids turning into humans.
“Okay.” She swallowed down the fear he saw rising in her eyes, shuffling her body in order to get all of herself inside.
Rowan shut the door, raced around to the passenger side, and slid inside as his uncle turned the key to fire up the engine.
“Where to now?” Uncle Terrance queried.
“To the nearest beach, fast!” Rowan started to doubt whether she’d reach the ocean in time. Her face was gaunt, her eyes almost vacant. Was this part of the change or was she truly sick? He’d find out soon enough.
28
Relief washed over her like a cool ocean wave. He was taking her back to the ocean, back to Her. She�
�d be able to fix this.
During their escape, Meriya tilted her eyes upward, taking in his face in the headlights, wondering if this was the last time she’d see him. Then she’d noticed a scar running along his temple. She’d resisted the urge to unwrap an arm and run her finger across it, a memory flashed across her vision.
Rowan as a little boy, laying on the sand where she’d placed him, an angry gash bleeding across his forehead. She bottled up her surprise. There was no time to bring this up when she was in a race for her life. They were on their way to the ocean, but would she ever get a chance to question him about it?”
“We’re almost there,” said the stranger driving. She didn’t know who he was, but Rowan obviously trusted him.
Rowan twisted in his seat to look into the back. “You really are turning into a human, aren’t you?” His eyes focused on where her tail used to be, seeing feet instead of fins.
“Yes, I think that’s why I’m running the fever, but She can help me. She has to!” Meriya’s eyes were wide, her words coming out at a frantic pace.
“She?” Rowan kept forgetting about Meriya’s connection to Her.
“The Ocean. She’s been looking for me. She’ll know what to do to turn me back into a mermaid.” Her words should have sounded confident, but they still held a hint of fear. She hugged her arms to herself and lowered her chin to her chest.
“I sure hope so, for your sake.” Rowan turned around, staring out the window.
Soon, the scenery changed, bringing sandy beaches bathed in twilight. Rowan’s disappointed response was the last thing on her mind. The rush of waves could be heard from the car and her excitement kicked up a steady rhythm through her heart.
“Let me check things out first before I lift you out of the car. We don’t need any more surprises tonight.” Rowan eased the door open and stood, scanning the area. He stepped around the car and went to look up and down the beach.
Meriya’s door opened on a protesting squeak and Rowan winced. “Good news is, I don’t see anyone around.”
All she could muster was a nod as his strong arms once again lifted her into the air and her body pressed tightly against his. She became aware of the ridges of his muscles, of the way they tensed and held her in place. He’d said it was a struggle to carry her, but to her, he made it seem effortless.
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