Evergreen (Mer Tales, Book 2)

by Pandos, Brenda

  “How are you doing?” I whispered.

  She formed a small nervous smile, avoiding the question. “How are we going to get out?”

  “I’m not sure yet.”

  Jax flipped his fin on the deck as if to work off tension. “Sorry about the hand, Ash. Thought the basswipe was a kiss-and-release kinda reptile, not a complete hammerhead.” He shrugged apologetically. “Turns out he wanted to pass her off as Gladdy. They do look identical. The resemblance almost blew my fins right off.”

  “It’s because she’s royalty,” Galadriel said in a commanding voice.

  A hush fell over everyone. Ash watched with wide questioning eyes.

  “Royalty?” I asked, incredulous. “How is that even possible? Ash was born and raised in Tahoe. I know her parents. The walls of her house are covered in pictures of her growing up.”

  Galadriel perched her hands on her hips. “Explaining that is the easy part. What I don’t get is how you couldn’t smell the Sasquatch earlier.”

  I shot Galadriel a smirk. “Apparently you couldn’t either. Or do you like being dragged around by your hair?”

  Ash rubbed her scalp while Galadriel gave me a stern look. “I was upstream looking for Jax, invertebrate, but that doesn’t excuse the rest of you.”

  “Smell? Smell what?” Jax asked. “Does Alaster have sulfurous farts?”

  She wrinkled her nose and shook her head in exasperation. “You both must have broken olfactory nares. You should have picked up his stench.”

  Ash nodded her head. “I smell him.”

  “See?” Galadriel smiled, finally happy.

  “He reeks like rotten fish,” Ash added.

  I sniffed my nose along the water. All I picked up was the sweet honeysuckle of Ash’s skin. “I don’t smell anything other than Ash.” I squeezed her tighter. She remained stiff, but leaned into me.

  “Figures. You’re sniff-blind. Happens frequently in merman, but that doesn’t matter now. We have to get out of here.” She tensed her shoulders.

  Confusion remained written on Ash’s face. “You still haven’t explained how I’m royalty.”

  Galadriel elevated a brow. “The mark on your hip proves you’re my full-blooded sister.”

  “That’s what everyone keeps telling me, but how is that possible?” Ash asked.

  “Yeah,” Jax chimed in. “I know the Queen has a ton of girls, but she’s not in the habit of losing her merlings.”

  Galadriel took in a deep breath and flipped her fin around so it fell gracefully into the water alongside the pool and paused, collecting her thoughts. “By the time I was eight, my mom had given birth to ten girls, infuriating my father, the prince at the time, because without a son, his father wouldn’t let him take over the throne. I’d overheard him threatening Mom he’d take another mate if she didn’t give him a boy.

  “So when the time of delivery came, I hid and watched our nursemaid deliver another girl. Mom was beside herself and so was I. I thought I’d lose my mother to Bone Island, but the nursemaid took the merling away and Mom shut herself alone in her room. No announcement was made of the birth. A few days later the nursemaid returned. And miraculously, Azor was born.”

  “You’re kidding me,” I said, flabbergasted. “And the girl?”

  “I think you know the answer to that. It isn’t a coincidence that Ash looks like me. And let me guess, today’s your birthday, right?”

  Ash nodded in astonishment.

  “So is Azor’s,” Galadriel said with a perched brow.

  “Could this be true?” Ash’s bottom lip quivered as she clasped onto Galadriel’s outstretched hand. “Me? A mermaid all along?”

  Galadriel pulled Ash into a hug and smoothed her hair. “Yes. I watched your birth.”

  I scowled, angered over the deception. “Then who are Azor’s parents?”

  Galadriel’s chest heaved. “Most likely Ash’s human parents and they were persuaded to accept Ash as their own.”

  I pounded my fist into the water. “So Azor isn’t even royalty. After all this. And the King—”

  Galadriel turned up the corner of her lip. “His kingdom is built on lies.”

  “Does the King even know?”

  She shrugged. “I doubt it. My nursemaid disappeared shortly after that. But it was a foolish move, because when the truth comes out, and it will eventually, heaven help them all. My mother can’t hide the fact Tatiana will not have the mark of royalty.”

  The Queen was driven by fear over something she had no control over and this proved there wasn’t anything she wouldn’t do for her family. I instantly worried for Tatchi’s safety as I scrubbed my hand through my hair. My conversation with Galadriel from earlier in the beach house suddenly sunk in. Her desire to promise to Jax had to wait all because of a lie. She actually did have secrets—bigger than I could even imagine.

  But it now made sense why Ash had the mark.

  “Is this why I swim fast?” Ash asked, breaking the tension. “The school took my blood. I wonder what they’ll find.”

  I pulled her into my arms. “You were still human, then.”

  Ash looked to me with sadness behind her eyes. “I feel so lost now. What are we going to do?”

  I exhaled hard. “First we need to get out of here, after that, we’ll take it one step at a time.”

  A stream of morning light trickled through the window and filtered into the water. I felt myself switch without thinking about it. I quickly pulled out my shorts from my shoulder pack. Ash’s face contorted as she looked down at herself. Her fin shifted on its own, too. She wiggled her toes. “It is going to hurt again later, when I switch back?”

  “No,” I said and kissed her temple.

  Jax pulled on his mer-skirt, but Ferdinand stood buck-naked by the bar.

  “Do you mind, Ferd?” Galadriel asked and turned her head, but motioned to his groin.

  Ferdinand smiled slightly and jumped out to get a towel.

  “I don’t get how he listens to you.” I said.

  “It’s not all the time.” Galadriel looked into Jax’s eyes. “Must be a wavelength thing.”

  “That it is,” Jax added. “He got my sorry fin off of Bone Island, and then when I went back to Natatoria to find Gladdy and got locked up, Ferd busted me out and led me here. He’s a good kid.”

  Ferd moved back to the bar and placed the red Solo cups in a line compulsively, like he always needed something to put in order during downtime.

  “But, when he came to the beach house the last time, he was practically dead?” I asked Jax. “How the heck did you get out?”

  Jax smirked. “Everyone knows Lake Tahoe is a dead end… and Alaster. He’s the worst gatekeeper ever. But when Ferd busted me out of jail and I tried to escape through the Bermuda gate, he made me come to Tahoe, and I had no choice but to follow him. But I’m so glad I did.” He hugged on Galadriel tighter.

  “No choice?” I asked.

  “Dude screams like a girl and drags you wherever he thinks you should go, unless you can get away.”

  But instead of envisioning Ferd throwing a fit, I thought of Azor’s palace next to the prison, and my sister living there.

  “Tatiana?” I asked anxiously. “Did you see her?”

  “I saw her briefly when the King’s guards locked me up, but after that.” Jax looked down. “Ferd broke me out through the sharks. He’s one wild and crazy merman, I tell ya. Maybe the sharks sense he’ll tear them up if they get too close.”

  “So, now what?” Ash asked nervously. “I don’t want to be here if Alaster is coming back.”

  I noted her anxiety.

  “Time to lob a girl through the window,” Jax said as he hopped onto the deck. “Who’s volunteering?”

  “Shut your trap and lift me.” Galadriel reached up her arms to him. He hoisted her on his shoulders with ease, but she couldn’t reach the window ledge. Even on Ferdinand’s shoulders, she wasn’t tall enough.

  Then suddenly, a deep boom rumbled the hous
e, knocking everyone to the floor. I shook my head, unable to hear for a moment as dust and dirt crackled down on our heads. A net fell from the ceiling, missing my leg.

  “What was that?” Jax asked.

  Another, louder boom made everyone scurry to the pool.

  “Mother of Pearl!” Galadriel yelped. “What is that?”

  “Alaster,” I growled. “When I get out of here, there’s no telling what I’m going to do to that sea serpent, especially if he ruins my house, too. Let’s get the weapons.”

  “Sure thing, boss!” Jax leapt out of the pool.

  “Wait!” Ash pointed to the nets strung along the ceiling.

  “Good idea.” I scanned their position. “If we hide around the room and lure the guards under, I can use Alaster’s nets to capture them. And for the others, we can use the javelins.”

  Jax tossed everyone a javelin except Ash because of her hand. I sang to Colin because he was human now, and told him to stay hidden with Ferdinand. Ash cowered behind me as I crouched down by the hatch within reach of the net-release mechanisms. Ferd and Colin hid by the bar, and Jax and Galadriel ducked behind the stack of loungers. I clapped twice to cut the lights. Tension mounted. I scanned the dark room, my eyes roaming from the door to the hatch, waiting for the ambush. Ash clung to my waist, trembling.

  “Are you scared?” I whispered.

  “Yes.”

  “It’s okay. I’ll get us out. Stick close to me.”

  “Okay.” Though she agreed, something in her voice told me she didn’t believe me. The lack of faith stabbed me. I had to gain her trust back and prove I could protect her, once and for all.

  Upstairs, something slid against the floor. The door opened.

  “It’s over, Princess!” Alaster barked, followed by laughter.

  Gasoline rushed down the stairs like a waterfall. He lit a match and the stair case ignited in flames.

  Ash shrieked.

  “Into the pool!” I yelled.

  We all dove in and phased into our tails so we could splash the staircase. Eventually, the flames went out, but the doorway and beyond was a ring of fire.

  “There’s no need to panic,” I said, not only to myself, but everyone else as the fear gripped my mind. “The bonefish thinks fire is our kryptonite but he doesn’t know about firemen.”

  “Firemen?” Jax asked, his eyes bulging.

  “Men who put fires out—with water.” Ash touched Jax’s arm gently. “My dad’s one. They’ll come right away, but we’ll still need to avoid the smoke.”

  “Oh,” he said relieved, curiosity piqued, “and they know to come?”

  “Yes,” Ash said, “on land, we’re trained to report fires.”

  Galadriel snuggled up next to Jax. “They’re quite brave, or so I’ve read. We haven’t anything to worry about.”

  Ash’s anxiety didn’t lessen, though. It was obvious the fire wasn’t her only concern.

  “You okay?” I tried to comfort her with my arms.

  “Colin’s out there in the smoke.”

  “Oh, right.” At this point, Colin was the least of my worries.

  Ferdinand swam back and forth, and wrung his hands. If he forgot his towel, he’d be streaking until he found another strip of cloth.

  I gave the group my most convincing smile. “If all else fails, Jax and I will persuade the humans. We don’t have a choice but to wait it out.”

  Galadriel gave a wink, oblivious to the danger we faced. She reveled anytime I broke down and resorted to persuasion. This time I felt justified. This is why mermen had the power to begin with—to protect the mers’ secret identity.

  Knowing my house burned above me, when there was nothing I could do about it, infuriated me—all the memories, our furniture, my life as I knew it, destroyed. By Uncle Alaster of all people. There goes my idea of living here until Ash finished high school. What would we do now?

  Sirens finally grew closer. Time for the game plan.

  “We’ll need to leave as soon as we get out of here. Alaster will most likely have an army for our capture. We’ll have to persuade someone to drive us or get our hands on a car. If the whole house doesn’t burn down, we’ve got cash hidden. We’ll make a run for the Pacific. It’s only a three hour trip.”

  Sadness filled Ash’s eyes as she looked away. I squeezed her hand, accidentally touching her knuckle stumps. She cringed. “I’m sorry.”

  “It’s not your fault,” she said softly.

  “This isn’t how I expected everything to play out.”

  “We should go home,” Galadriel interrupted. She held her shoulders high, regal almost. She took Jax’s hand.

  “Home, as in Florida?” I asked.

  She flapped her lips. “Natatoria, of course.”

  I raised my right eyebrow. “Really?”

  “I can no longer sit back and allow my people to be treated like this. Not only the fraud from switching babies, but kidnapping, unassisted conversions, hijacked promisings, and attempted murder, for what? Royal placement? Absurd. I must see my mother, father, Azor and Alaster are punished for their crimes. As eldest daughter, I will take the throne and tell the truth.”

  “Become the Queen?” I turned to Galadriel in surprise. “Wow. I didn’t think you had it in you.”

  “After everything, I have no choice.”

  Ash reached out with her good hand to me and squeezed hard.

  “I will do my part as well, for Tatchi and my Queen,” she whispered in my ear.

  I choked back my emotions. I’d never expected Ash to want to change into a mer, let alone fight our fight, and she didn’t even know the half of the history behind the King and my dad. I’d never been more proud of her before this moment.

  I drew her into a hug. “I guess we’ll be going home, then.” I wasn’t sure if I should be happy, sad, or worried—but to finally get vengeance for everything Alaster and Azor had done put a smile on my face.

  “I’ll need help with my parents,” Ash said softly in my ear, “oh, and Colin. He’ll need a family, too.”

  She tried to remain brave, but I knew this had to be rough on her.

  “Sure—or I can look for some essence upstairs.”

  Galadriel glared and shook her head. “No.”

  I creased my forehead.

  “He’s lucky to be alive. We’ll leave it at that.”

  I lifted my hand. “Whatever you say, Queen.”

  Keeping Colin human was a better idea anyway, quiet and docile. And who knew how he’d react once he had fins again. We didn’t need a merman with amnesia tagging along, especially when we stormed the castle. With a little persuasion, the Lanskis would take him in, no problem.

  “Is that all?” I asked.

  “I think so.” Ash forced a smile.

  “This is mighty brave of you,” I said. “Are you sure you’re ready for this?”

  “No,” she said, fear behind her voice. “But I want to be with you.”

  “The Lanskis will always be your family.” I squeezed her hand.

  “I know.” She squeezed back.

  I popped my head above the water and took in a whiff of smoke by accident. Colin had put the towel up to his nose, but was coughing just the same. Ferdinand leapt to his feet. He grabbed Colin, threw him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, and charged up the stairs through the burning doorway.

  “No, Ferd!” Jax yelled and jumped up onto the deck.

  The smoke poured through the open door like a chimney as we joined Jax on the deck, covering our noses with our hands.

  “Now what?” Ash shrieked, clinging to my arm. “Do we run for it?”

  Fire rimmed the door jam like a flaming hoop of death. Just watching the flames made me ache for water as badly as when Alaster chained me to the wall and left me to dry.

  Masked aliens in yellow appeared. Stuck in mer survival mode, my brain took a second to register they were firemen. They charged down and hoisted Galadriel and Jax over their shoulders. I moved out of the w
ay for them to take Ash first. She fought and cried for me as she disappeared out of sight.

  I wanted to follow, but the smoke coated my lungs and the fire licked the walls. I contemplated waiting in the water when my head began to pound and sleepiness took over. I slumped down, content to close my eyes, if only for a second.

  41

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