by Amber Garr
I rolled my eyes. “No.” But maybe I should. Would having their memories erased really be the right thing to do? Although bringing them back with me into what certainly was going to be a war, really didn’t seem like the best idea either.
“Our ride will be here in an hour,” Graham continued. “We should collect what we can and let the clean-up crew handle the rest.”
I nodded in agreement as he trudged up the stairs towards his room. I didn’t really want to pack when all of these people around me had just lost their lives. Something about it seemed wrong. It wasn’t fair that I lived and they didn’t. It’s wasn’t fair that my friend Lily had been killed simply because she was a mermaid. So much death.
I slid to the floor, momentarily frozen with grief. I thought of my parents, especially my mother. The way Lucian had snapped her neck so coldly and methodically…it ripped my heart out. I began to cry and once the tears started, I couldn’t stop them if I tried. Thankfully, everyone left me alone and gave me the privacy I needed. I cried for my parents, my friend, Jeremiah, and all of the protectors that lost their lives tonight.
At some point the tears stopped and I forced myself to collect my belongings for the trip back home. My cell phone was buzzing with messages, but I didn’t want to talk to anyone else right now. I just needed a little more time before I dealt with the world.
“Are you ready?” Graham’s soft voice asked from my opened door.
“Almost.”
He stepped inside and sat on my bed, watching me as I packed up the final pieces of clothes. “They are going to fly us to the airport and then we’ll start home.”
“Where are you going?”
“To Seattle for now,” he replied and something in me felt relieved. I was attracted to Graham and tonight’s experiences only made that stronger. But I was glad that he wasn’t going to California where Brendan would eventually be. Plus, I needed to stay away from Graham Forrester.
“For now?”
“Until they decide their next move.” He sighed and looked out the bedroom door. “I’m going to tell them that we have to meet with Lucian.”
I was surprised. “You are?”
“Yes. I think that you were right before. If it stops more deaths, then we should at least meet with him and hear him out.”
I stood there in shock for a little bit. “Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me yet,” he huffed. “I’m also going to tell them that you should be there as well. After all, he’s personally requested your presence.”
“Do you know why that is?”
He shook his head. “No idea. Perhaps you’ve intrigued him, too?” His eyes sparkled when he looked up at me and I quickly averted my gaze back to my suitcase.
“I’m really not that special.”
“Some would beg to differ,” he replied nonchalantly. I had nothing more to say to that comment and after several moments of silence, he stood. “They should be here soon, so I will see you downstairs, okay tart?”
“Yeah.” Even his nickname for me couldn’t elicit a reaction. I was numb right now and getting out of this house was probably the best for all of us.
Just before sunrise, a helicopter landed in the front yard. The clean-up crew had arrived along with our ride to the airport.
When I panicked in a plane, I was being silly. My fear of airplanes was nothing compared to my newly discovered fear of being in a helicopter. It felt like a roller coaster, only we were several thousand feet in the air. When I saw the skyscrapers and metropolis of Washington, D.C. in the distance, my heart calmed down because I knew that we were almost there.
Two private jets were waiting for us courtesy of the Council and Graham’s insistence that we needed privacy in order to conduct our business. At the hanger, Graham pulled me aside just as I was about to board.
“Is is alright if I call you?” I arched my brows at him. “I might need you to help convince the Council that our plan will work.”
“Our plan?”
“Meeting with Lucian,” he waved his hand around. “They may not totally believe me and might want to speak with you to confirm.” I nodded in understanding.
“Yes, that will be fine.”
“Good.” He shifted nervously on his feet and looked at the plane behind me.
“Is there something else?” I asked.
He smiled and I melted again. “No. Just be safe, okay tart. I will see you again soon.”
He bent down and kissed me full on the lips before pulling away and jogging towards his plane on the other side of the hanger. I stood there following him with my gaze. His lips were just as soft as I imagined. I sighed with disappointment. Perhaps in another life we would be better suited for each other. But now just wasn’t the time.
I tried to convince myself of that for the entire five hour plane ride back to my home. Keeping my mind occupied, I called my sister to tell her that I was on my way. She wasn’t up yet since it was only early dawn on the east coast. I left her a message and called our driver so that he would know when to pick me up.
The night had been so devastating both physically and mentally, I was surprised when I fell asleep somewhere over Ohio. When we landed, I made the introductions to my new companions and Jeffery, my driver, smiled and welcomed them to the family. I was happy to see that they would be all right, but I really didn’t know if I could say that about the rest of us. There was so much work to do when I got to the house. So many calls to make. So much training to accomplish. The thought of it made my mind spin and I reluctantly tried to enjoy the last few moments of peace I suspected I would have for a long time.
Thirteen
When we arrived, my sister came barreling out of the house and nearly fell into my arms. At first I thought that something was wrong, but then I noticed the smile on her face.
“Marisol, what’s going on?”
“You have to come and see!” She was so excited and it was really the first time that I’d seen her like that since before my parents died. Well, really, I never saw her happy. She was such an angry teenager.
She pulled me through the front door, past the kitchen, and over to the edge of the deck. Daniel was standing there and greeted me with a hug and a smile that matched my sister’s. “Okay you two, what’s going on?”
“Look!” Marisol cried and pointed down towards the beach. When I followed her gaze, I was overwhelmed with what I saw. Our beachfront property had been turned into a training ground. Several dozen protectors were sparring with others dressed in regular attire. I was about to ask who they were, when one of them caught my eye.
“Is that Julian?”
Daniel laughed. “Oh yeah. That’s him.” I turned to look at my friend who seemed to have gotten over his fear of the selkie. “What? Sure he captured us, but then he saved us. Plus, just look at him.” Julian was sparring with one of the biggest protectors I had ever seen. And Daniel was totally ogling him. I elbowed my friend in the side.
“Close your mouth.” I said and Marisol giggled. “Geez, Daniel. He’s old enough to be your father.”
“Or my sugar-daddy.”
“Gross. Enough.” But I couldn’t hide my smile. I looked at Marisol. “And what’s got you so happy?”
She grinned and pointed again. “Julian didn’t come by himself. Look at all of the selkies he brought.”
“Marisol’s been eyeing that young one down there. He seems to be equally enamored with her,” Daniel added, but I wasn’t listening. Because if Julian brought other selkies, than that would mean…
“Brendan,” I whispered just as I spotted him flip Palmer over his back and pin him to the ground. As though he heard me, he looked up and met my eyes. I couldn’t breathe. My heart stuttered and I sucked in a breath. He was shirtless and sweaty. His dark hair was hanging loose around his face. And even from the distance, I could see those green eyes that meant the world to me. “He came.”
This time Daniel elbowed me. “He did. And he’s been waiting for you to g
et back.” I looked at my friend with hope.
“He has?”
“Yes,” Marisol cut in and then sighed. “I didn’t get it before, but now I do.”
“What?” I wrinkled my face. “What are you talking about?”
“She means love,” Daniel teased and Marisol glared. “Your sister has had a change of heart since Quinlan appeared. Or maybe I should say that she finally grew a heart.” He jumped away just in time to avoid Marisol’s slap.
“Who’s Quinlan?” I asked.
“The red headed guy. I asked Julian if he was even allowed to be up past curfew, but he assured me that he was eighteen and quite capable of handling himself,” Daniel answered.
“Marisol, he’s eighteen! That’s too old for you.”
“It’s three and a half years. The same as you and Brendan.” She did have a point. Who was I to tell her not to follow her heart?
“Just…be careful, okay?” She huffed and crossed her arms in defiance. I was about to say more, but then I noticed Brendan walking towards the stairs that led up to the deck. He was coming this way.
“Come on, Mars. Let’s go down on the beach and watch these sweaty boys beat each other senseless.” Daniel wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her away, while she berated him for using that nickname. I didn’t know what happened over the last few days, but I was grateful that Daniel bonded with her.
They passed Brendan on the stairs and he smiled politely. That smile. My entire body was shaking before he got to me.
“You’re back,” he said.
I nodded, not quite able to say anything. He took another step towards me and held out his arms. I rushed to him and wrapped myself around his body.
“You came,” I whispered and started to cry.
He kissed the top of my head and squeezed a little tighter. “I told you I would. When Julian made the decision to back your clan, I knew that this had to be it.”
I looked up at him in confusion. “This was Julian’s doing?”
“Yes. He put a call out to all selkies and asked for their assistance. It’s not typical amongst our kind but Julian’s…different.”
“What do you mean?”
“He’s kind of like an alpha of sorts.”
“Like wolves?”
“Something like that. He’s a good man. So when he asks for a favor, most are obliged to give it to him.”
“Hmm.” I rested my head back against his glistening chest. “And you decided to join us too?”
“I decided to try and get my life back here.” He pushed me away slightly so that he could look into my eyes. “I wasn’t supposed to be in Seattle. I told you that it just didn’t feel right.”
“And now you’re here.”
“Yes.”
“How does that feel?”
He laughed and kissed me quickly on the mouth. That brief moment of contact sent a wave of shivers tingling through to my toes. “Good, now that you’re home.”
Home. This could be it. I had a second chance of the life I’d always wanted with Brendan, here, in my home. Our home.
“Will you stay here?” I was almost afraid to ask, but his smile helped me relax.
“I planned on it.” He bent forward and kissed me again. Only this time it wasn’t so quick and it wasn’t so chaste. Someone cleared their throat.
“Eviana, you’re needed inside.” I turned to see Kain standing in the doorway with his arms crossed and a strained look on his face. I swallowed and looked up at Brendan.
“I think that I’m going to be tied up the rest of the day, but can we talk at dinner?”
His green eyes stared straight into my soul and if I didn’t know any better, I would have thought that they held a hint of something other than excitement.
“Of course. I have much more training scheduled for today anyway.” With one last kiss on the forehead, he nodded to Kain and bounded down the stairs. I watched him the entire way with so much longing, and happiness, and a thousand other emotions that I thought I would explode. Kain made another noise.
“I’m coming,” I grumbled. Walking towards him, I noticed that he looked really bad. “What’s wrong with you?”
He snorted. “Come on. I’ll explain at the meeting.”
“What meeting?”
“The one with our advisors. You guys weren’t the only ones attacked last night.”
“What?” But he wouldn’t answer me, so instead I chased after him through the house and to the conference room where we held all of the important events and meetings. Maybe I should have returned some of his phone calls on the plane. Now I was walking into something that I was completely unprepared for. Most of these merfolk were just waiting for a reason to get rid of me, and not having a plan at a time like this would give them the excuse they needed.
Kain pushed through the double door entrance and proceeded to walk to the far side of the room where he picked up his cell phone and punched in a number. The rest of the area was filled with a dozen powerful members of our clans, all of whom were pacing, screaming into their phones, or a combination of both. My top advisor and uncle, Andre, sauntered up beside me.
“I’m glad to see that you’re okay.” The look on his face told me that he was actually being sincere.
“Thank you.” Turning my attention back to the room, I asked, “Can you please fill me in? What else happened?”
“It seems as though Lucian coordinated several attacks last night. First, there was yours. Then he broke a dam along the Mississippi and flooded one of the major organic farms owned by the McCormick clan, and then early this morning he launched a financial attack.”
“A financial attack?”
He nodded. “It started in Europe while our markets were closed so by the time the exchange opened this morning, almost half of our money was gone.” I looked at my uncle with confusion. “Lucian crashed the stock market and most of our larger investments have been reduced to nothing.”
“How is that possible?”
“Apparently, he’s been working on this for a while. Three major European banks closed their doors today, causing their American branches to crumble. All of them are contributors to our fund.” He ran his hands over his face and through the few pieces of hair he had left. “This was no coincidence.”
“No, it doesn’t appear to be,” I said.
With so few merfolk left in the world, a trust fund of sorts was set up in each country to aid in times of emergencies, like when we needed to cover up our existence. I remember hearing a story as a child about an aquarium that claimed they’d captured a mermaid, which of course sent a panic through all of the clans. Someone had, in fact, been captured and it took a small fortune to straighten out that mess. I’d also heard that Hollywood made a movie based on that incident.
As I scanned the room to see those who were much older and wiser, lose control, I realized that now was the time for me to show everyone that I was meant to lead my clan. Mr. Wallace, Kain’s second-in-command, walked up to him and started pointing at a bunch of papers while waving his hands around. I could see the tension in Kain’s shoulders, but when he turned to face me, I noticed that he maintained his composure on the outside. He waved me over and I excused myself from Andre’s side.
“What do you think?” I whispered to my counterpart.
“It’s a mess. We need to get everyone in their seats and focused.” He sighed and rubbed his neck. “Were you able to speak to Graham?”
At the mention of his name, my heart squeezed. I was beginning to hate that I reacted that way and I hoped that Kain hadn’t noticed. “Yes, and we’re both in agreement that we should honor Lucian’s request for a meeting.”
Kain lifted his eyebrows and looked down at me. “Really? The Council has agreed to that?”
“Well no, not yet. But Graham was going to convince them.” Kain snorted. “And I’m going to go, too.”
Instead of freaking out like I expected, he only stared at me some more. He was studying my r
eaction as I waited for his. Finally, he took a deep breath. “Okay. Now we just need to convince them.” He waved his hand around the room and I inwardly cringed. It was time to show what I was worth.
Kain cleared his throat and began to speak. “Everyone. Please take your seats so that we can get started. We have much to discuss.”
Two hours later, we were finally getting around to the attack at Jeremiah’s house. I told them what happened and how Graham had fought off the ratchets with his water control. They were stunned into silence as I told my tale. When I finished, I worried that I may have said too much.
“Master Forrester has that kind of power?” my uncle asked in awe.
“Didn’t one of Lucian’s followers just sink a cruise ship?” an older female from Kain’s clan asked.
“Yes, they did. They killed most of the Shannon clan,” Mr. Wallace confirmed. My stomach twisted with pain. They had murdered Lily and her family.
Suddenly, the room went quiet and everyone turned to stare at me. I didn’t understand why I was a subject of their scrutiny. “What?” I finally yelled.
“Wasn’t Master Forester on the east coast with you?”
“Yes.”
Another round of silence. Why were looking at me that way? Finally, it hit me. “No!” I swallowed hard and forced my body to calm down and speak like an adult. “No. Graham would never do something like that. He couldn’t have. He loathes Lucian. Plus, he’s a Council member.”
“And apparently a very powerful one,” my uncle added. I glared at him.
“Was he with you the whole time?” one of my female advisors asked.
“Yes.” I tried not to blush thinking about some of the time we spent together. “Well, most of the time. I didn’t keep tabs on him when I was working with Jeremiah.” I didn’t think it would be a good idea to tell them about his nights away. No one said anything. “Come on! Graham would not do that. He’s on our side!” I walked around to the head of the table and rested my hands on the back of an empty chair. “In fact, he’s speaking to the Council on our behalf right now, trying to convince them that ignoring Lucian will only mean more murders.”
