Damarian (A Merman's Kiss Novel) (5 page)

Cassie Price remains on the floor, unmoving. But I know she has not perished from shock because she breathes heavily and mutters, “It can’t be.” I worry she may have been injured when she collapsed to the floor, and just as I am ready to say her name, she moves. She intakes a deep breath and positions herself on her knees, crawling toward the edge of the pool. She stares at my face and does not venture toward my tail.

Now that she is aware of my true identity, will she harm me? I cannot imagine she would, for she was very kind when she saved me, but I know nothing of the ways of humans. Perhaps she believes she owns me, for she saved my life.

I leap in the air and jump into the water. There is nowhere to escape. I scale the entire length of this pool, but I cannot find an exit. I am confined here, at her mercy. I must make her see reason, make her understand that I mean her no harm. That all I wish is to return to my home.

When I am once again at her location, I break the surface. She releases a frightened yelp and backs away.

“I am sorry, Cassie Price,” I say, attempting to seem friendly and non-hostile. “I did not intend to startle you.”

She merely gapes at me.

I ask her not to be alarmed, and it seems to placate her, for she moves closer to me. Her mouth moves for a few moments before she sputters, “Who…you’re a mermaid. I mean, a merman.”

She is shocked, yes, but she is intrigued. Perhaps too intrigued. Will she keep me prisoner here?

“Yes,” I answer.

“Mermaids don’t exist.”

“Not to humans, no.”

She will tell all the humans. They will invade the sea in search for more. They will kill the Sentinels and destroy the colonies. My siblings will not grow up in the lovely world I have grown up in.

“I won’t tell anyone,” she says.

My eyes flit to her face. “You will not?”

She shakes her head. I look into her eyes. They are sincere.

“Thank you.”

She folds her legs underneath her body and studies me, just as I study her. “You saved me when I wiped out yesterday morning and left me on the boulder.”

I remember the incident quite clearly. She awoke when I took her hand and looked into my eyes. But she did not see my true form.

I nod.

“Why?” she asks.

The honest truth is that I do not know the answer. My king has told me that humans are malevolent creatures, but I could not have let her die, could I? “Children of the sea are not to engage the humans,” I say.

She appears more confused, more curious.

“You were beautiful.” The words escape my mouth before I can stop them. Her eyes find mine and her expression changes. She still appears confused, but there is something else there as well. Softness. “On the water,” I continue. “I watched the water swallow you. I was certain you would die.” The memory plays in my head, how concentrated she was in her thoughts that she did not notice the massive wave heading in her direction. How it washed over her, and the stiff feeling I felt in my stomach when she did not emerge. “I could not allow that to happen.”

“And this morning? Why were you unconscious on the beach?”

The events that occurred between Princess Flora and me also enter my head. And then my conversation with Father. They wish for the mating to take place tomorrow morning—no, it is
now
tomorrow morning. If I were not here on land, I would be mated to the princess. She and I would take the throne. I would be king.

Cassie Price stares at me, patiently awaiting an answer. “The storm,” I say. “I should not have been swimming.”

“And you got hurt?”

The sea is quite violent, and I knew it was dangerous to swim too close to the surface. But I could not silence the thoughts in my head. I did not care for my safety. I needed to flee. The last I remember is the blackness. I must have been injured in the water.

“I do not remember,” I tell her. “I was swimming away…”

“From what?”

From the life I do not want. The life I have not chosen for myself. The life that would benefit every single child of the sea. Every one but myself.

She seems to understand that this is a topic I do not wish to discuss because she asks her next question. “So…what happened before? With the rash on your neck and the wailing. You needed to be in water? Salt water.”

“This is my first time as a human. I do not know.” Nor do I know of any child of the sea who has been on land. Except…I have heard talks quite a few moons ago, of an Emerald being banished to land. I was not certain if I believed it as true, for I could not imagine it possible for a child of the sea to grow legs and live on land. But now that I have been on land and have transformed to a human, perhaps the Emerald had indeed been banished to land.

When my focus has returned to Cassie Price, I discover her examining my face. Then my chest. Her eyes move to my neck. She shifts closer and stretches her hand. “Can I?”

Is it wise to trust this human? She has been kind to me and has not shown an ounce of hostility. She is most likely only curious about me. I have been observing the humans for quite some time and have always been intrigued by them. If it was her intention to harm me, she would have done so by now.

I nod.

Her fingers gently grab my chin, and she tilts my head to the side. A surprised noise leaves her mouth at the discovery of my gills. “They were red before.”

Her face is quite close to mine. Her skin appears so smooth, just as smooth as the female children of the sea. And she is beautiful, so, so beautiful. Princess Flora had been this close to me before, but the feelings that pass through my body did not pass through it when she touched me. It is a feeling I cannot describe, though it is one I am enjoying very much.

My hand lifts to her face and I run my fingers over the skin. Yes, it is quite as soft as I imagined, and warm. I am not accustomed to touching beings with such high temperatures. She places her hand over mine and lowers it from her face. She studies my hand, observing how much it differs from hers.

My hand now moves to her hair. “You bind your hair.”

She laughs softly. It is an exquisite sound. “It’s easier to surf that way.”

“Surf. Is that what you were doing yesterday?”

She nods.

The memory of her sailing on the sea and the massive wave swallowing her once again passes through my mind. “Is it quite dangerous?” I ask.

“Sometimes.”

“Then why do you engage in such an activity?”

She laughs again, and I am almost ashamed to admit how much I enjoy it. “Hey, you gotta live a little, right?”

For reasons I cannot fathom, her words cause me to smile. “Father would not agree.” I do not remember the last time Father told me to just be and enjoy myself. It was always about the crown, how I needed to impress the royal family. Nor do I remember the last time Father had partaken in a joyous activity. The only moments I have witnessed a fraction of enjoyment from him is when he spends time with Zarya. She can put a smile on anyone’s face.

How much I miss her and the rest of my family.

“Are there a lot of you?” Cassie Price asks.

I am prepared to inform her of my family, but my mouth closes. She is a kind human and she has rescued me from a perilous fate, but I must not risk the safety of the children of the sea.

She must realize this, for she nods and apologizes.

Her eyes lower to my tail. It has not been in the sun often, for I must keep it hidden at all times. But now the sun shines on it through clear openings on the walls, creating crystals in the water. I have never thought my tail as beautiful because it is part of me and every single Sapphire in my clan. And it is identical to my siblings for we are of the same blood. But as I observe it now, I realize how wonderful it looks. Perhaps it is intended to be out in the sun. Perhaps many moons ago, before the humans had the means to invade our waters, we allowed the sun to shine on our tails. Grandfather told me many tales when I was a fry, of how he was able to leap in the air without the fear of being spotted by a human. It seems the more freedom the humans receive, the more they take from us. Many times the Sentinels warn us not to leave the colony because humans are spotted too close to our home.

Cassie Price is still staring at my tail. Her face grows red. “Sorry for staring,” she mumbles.

“It is all right. I am fascinated by human legs.”

“Can I…?”

I know she wishes me no harm—she is merely curious about me, just as I am about her. I nod.

She leaps into the pool, and I lift my tail for her. She stretches a hesitant hand to my tail and quickly pulls it away. As if she is afraid. I cannot help the disappointment entering my body.

“May I?” I ask, referring to her legs.

She lifts her body onto the edge of the pool and offers me her leg. My hand is also hesitant when I wrap it around the muscle that protrudes out of it. I slide my hand lower, until I reach the fingers of her legs. I look at her to ascertain she is all right with my touching, and then I softly pinch one of the fingers. Then the next, and the next. I bend one. I use both hands to part them. “Peculiar to have fingers on your legs.”

“I guess it’s to help us walk.”

I take her hand and part two of her fingers, touching the pace between them. “Very peculiar.”

I am so engrossed by the wonder of her being that I nearly jump at the loud ringing. I drop her hand. “What is that noise?”

“Noise?”

“Ringing.”

She appears confused. Does she not hear it? Of course, human ears are not as acute as the ears of children of the sea.

She says, “It’s probably the phone.”

“Phone?”

Cassie Price informs me that this phone is used for communication. She attempts to explain it to me, but she must figure it futile, for she stops. I suppose since humans cannot hear as well as us—and I am certain they cannot sense one another as we do—they require means to communicate far distances.

The ringing does not conclude. “It is incessant.”

She realizes the being who is attempting to communicate with her must be important because she leaves to check on it. I dive into the water, enjoying the freedom to leap in the air. I hear the words she says to the being who is communicating with her through the “phone.” I stop my swim and raise my eyes to the ceiling. I focus my hearing on Cassie Price. She talks as though a person is in the area with her.

It appears she is conversing with her uncle, and he does not sound pleased with her behavior. It is not polite to eavesdrop, therefore I shut out her words and concentrate on my swim. Here in this pool, I do not have to worry whether a human will spot me. I do not need to worry if Father is expecting me home. I do not have to worry about humans invading the sea, or their vessels and nets. I feel a liberation I have never felt in my life.

But this is not home. This water is not the sea and does not provide me with the nutrients I require to survive. It is imperative that I return home. But returning home means I am to mate with Princess Flora. I shake my head. No one has the power to force me to mate with her, not until I am prepared. I must make Father understand that I need time. The princess has taken a liking to me. It is my wish to take a liking to her as well, before we are mated. My duty is to take the throne—it is something I cannot flee from.

I hear Cassie Price return to the pool and sit on the edge of it. I feel…happy that she is here with me again. I race toward her and splash her with water. “Hello.”

She smiles. “Did I thank you for saving me?”

“Have I thanked
you
for saving
me
?”

She smiles again, her cheeks growing red. It must be the feeling of embarrassment. Her gaze is focused on her toes that barely touch the water.

I put my hand under her chin and raise her head so our eyes lock. “You are kind for helping me. My king has taught us not to trust humans. You destroy our home by throwing waste into the sea. You injure whales and other creatures by trapping them in your nets. If one of us were to be discovered, we will all be hunted.” My hand moves to her cheek. “I watched you struggling in the sea. Such a helpless creature. I could not believe what my king has told me. You did not seem menacing or dangerous. I could not have allowed you to die.” I touch some loose hair that has escaped the confinement and tuck it behind her ear. “Any other human would have exposed me. I am very grateful to you.”

“Thanks for saving me. Another merperson might have let me drown.”

We are both silent.

Though I wish to remain here and spend more time with this kind human, I cannot. “I will need to return to the sea,” I say.

Perhaps it is only my imagination, but it seems she is upset. Before I have a chance to question her, she says, “Okay.”

I admit I feel upset that she did not wish me to…what, exactly? If she wished for me to stay, would I? It would be quite tempting.

“How do you turn back into a human?” she asks.

“I am not certain.”