Descending (The Rising Series) (9 page)

Gretchen didn’t even touch her food for a full fifteen minutes after it was set in front of her. She just couldn’t take her eyes off Kyros. He had the strangest eating habits. He asked for only raw fish—dismissing the suggestion he might like his sushi with rice and seaweed. He
demanded and got thick slices of assorted, raw fish fillets, which he practically inhaled.
Where the heck did he put twenty pounds of fish?

“
What ever happened with Hal?” Sara asked.

Gretchen sighed. “He turned out to be no different than any other man I’ve dated.”

“Really? I thought he
was
different. You know… sensitive, caring, a good listener.”

“Yeah,
well, apparently I wasn’t the only one he was sensitive and caring toward.”

“
How did you find out?”

“I came home
early from work.”

“And they were…” Sara let that statement fall away. “In
your
apartment?”

“Oh yeah, in my
bed
.”

Gretchen could feel Kyros’s eyes on her. She shifted in her seat.

“I’m
so sorry,” Sara said.

“Yeah, well. I’m just glad I found out what kind of man he was before I made any commitments to him.” Gretchen pushed herself away from the table. “I don’t know about you
, but I’m stuffed.”

“Me too,” Sara said.

Kyros didn’t say anything, but he
had
to be full. Didn’t he?

The breeze blew through Gretchen’s hair as they left the
restaurant, and it had a chill that cut through her—raising goose bumps on her skin. She moved several feet behind Kyros, letting his bulk block the wind. Perhaps he was useful for
something
on the shopping trip.

The sun hung low in the
sky, and the orange and purple clouds dripped color over the waves. The scent of the sea filled her nose. It was interesting how the salty ocean breeze could smell different, unique from the Hawaiian scent she was used to. Yet the familiarity of it tugged at her consciousness and twisted her insides. She narrowed her eyes and peered out to the harbor. Boats nestled among the waves, preparing to rest for the night. Everything seemed calm.

Sara stretched her arms, as if working out stiffness from too much exercise.

“Are your arms sore?” Gretchen asked.

“Oh, um yeah
. I haven’t wheeled around so much in a long time.”

“Do you
—?” Sara’s gasp interrupted her. Her friend bolted out of her wheelchair and raced toward Gretchen. Sara slammed into her, sending her flying back. Gretchen wasn’t sure what surprised her most, seeing her best friend running on legs, or Sara pushing her hard into a wall. A loud crack pierced Gretchen’s ear as her head hit the wooden slats. Gretchen staggered away from the wall. Pain pounded against her skull as the image of the restaurant and sidewalk swam in her vision. When everything finally settled into place, she honed in on Sara’s face—a mixture of shock and pain darkened her blue eyes. Crimson red bloomed like a flower under her right breast, soaking Sara’s white blouse. Then her legs—the legs Gretchen had never seen before—collapsed under her. Kyros caught Sara before she hit the pavement.

Shouts thundered in
Gretchen’s ear as the whole area erupted in chaos. Giant men rushed in from all sides. Gretchen recognized them—they were Xanthus’s friends. All of them, it seemed. Gretchen lost sight of Sara behind the wall of men.

“Sara,” she shouted, searching for her. When she didn’t answer, Gretchen shouted again
, her heart pounding against her chest.

Strong arms surrounded her, dragging her inside the building.
She fought against them, desperate to reach her friend. “Let go,” she screamed. “She needs me!”

“Gretchen,” a deep, warm voice spoke in her ear—Kyros’s voice. “You can’t see her now. She’s hurt
. Straton is taking care of her. He’s a doctor of sorts. She’s in good hands.”

“Did someone shoot her? Was that what the sound was?”

“Yes.”

“But they weren’t trying to shoot
her
, were they?” she asked, sagging back against his chest. “She pushed me out of the way. How did she know?” Gretchen sobbed, tears streaming down her cheeks. “If anything happens to her, if she dies because of me…” She couldn’t finish the thought. Her mind couldn’t even go there.

Kyros
turned her to face him and pulled her into his chest. “Straton is doing everything he can.” She didn’t resist, but wrapped her arms around him, accepting the comfort he offered.

“Did someone call 911?” she asked.

Sirens in the background answered the question for her.

The next hour passed in a blur. Gretchen sat cold
and shaking in a hospital waiting room. Her mind was filled so thick with emotion that individual thoughts found it difficult to penetrate. She looked down at her hands. Someone must have given her coffee. She held an empty Styrofoam cup.

Gretchen could hear thundering steps approaching the door just before Xanthus exploded through it.

“Hades,” Kyros whispered, lifting his arm from around her shoulders. “This is not going to be pretty.”

Gretchen looked over to him in a daze. She hadn’t even realized his arm had been around her. The anger radiating off Xanthus was impossible to miss. Kyros stood to meet his angry glare.

Xanthus made a beeline for Kyros, grabbed him by his shirt, and slammed him up against the wall. “Tell me she’s going to live!”

Gretchen could hear a nurse call for security. One of Xanthus’s friends responded to the nurse’s concern and seemed to be trying to calm her.

Kyros absorbed the blow and the anger. “She is
,” Kyros said. “The doctors say she’ll be fine. Nothing vital was hit. She’s expected to make a full recovery.”

Xanthus loosened his
grip, and his shoulders sagged. “What happened?”

“Someone tried to shoot Gretchen. Sara pushed her out of the way and caught the bullet. As far as we could figure, the shooter
came from a boat in the harbor.”

“But Sara’s going to be
all right? She’ll sustain no permanent damage?” Xanthus asked.

“She
’s going to be fine.”

Xanthus sighed, his breathing haggard. “How much longer until I can see her?”

“They said it will be at least another hour,” Kyros said.

Xanthus sank into a chair.
“She was shot,” he said again, as if trying to wrap his mind around the situation. “Someone shot her. Who could have done this?”

Gretchen stood. Her legs wobbled a bit
. She felt weak. “Xanthus, I’m sorry. This is my fault…” Her voice caught, thick with emotion.

“Do you know who did this?” Xanthus asked
, his voice laced with anger.

Kyros put out his hand to hold her back. She could feel the warmth of his body as he stepped behind her.

She shook her head. “No.”

“What about Hal?” Xanthus asked.

She blew out a quick breath. “No way. He hates guns. This doesn’t make sense. Who would want to kill me?”

“Could it be she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time?” Kyros asked Xanthus.

Xanthus pursed his lips. “Could be.”

“Until we find out for sure,” Xanthus said, “I want Sara guarded at all times. I’m having trouble getting a hold of her father
. I’ve a feeling when he finds out, he’ll want her close to him and I’ll need to stay with my wife.”

“What about Gretchen?” Kyros asked.

Xanthus looked at her. “Until we know any different, we’ll assume she was the target. You and the others will take turns guarding her, and I’ll have Drakōn hunt down the shooter.”

“Just make sure he doesn’t kill him too quickly,” Kyros said. “We need information.”

Gretchen’s eyes widened as she turned back to Kyros. “Nobody’s going to be killing anybody.”

Kyros raised his eyebrow as his eyes darted between Gretchen and Xanthus. “Right.”

She turned to face him straight on. “No. Really. No one is killing anyone. What kind of people are you?”

He gave her a hard look that chilled her
to the bone. “You don’t want to know.”

She believed him.

Sara had sacrificed herself for someone she cared about, and she’d nearly lost her life doing it. The thought made Kyros’s head hurt. He padded down the hallway, through the darkness. The entire house slept. Well, except for Drakōn. Who knows where his investigation would take him? But Kyros knew his friend wouldn’t rest until he found the person responsible.

Stepping
into the library, he switched on the light and sat down at the desk. He pulled the ancient book out of the drawer he’d placed it in.

He flipped open the pages, reading the headings. He paused when he came to “The
Mer: Myths and Fallacies.” Maybe he could find some answers there.

“Myth #1: The song of the
Mer proceeds death.

“The
Truth: While this is often true, death is not necessarily imminent. The song of the Mer is used to control its victims. Oft times the hearer is not killed immediately. If motives of Mer are benign, the song may be used merely to entertain. The Mer may influence the hearer to perform various acts, depending on his or her whims. If the motives are more sinister, the Mer may convince the hearer to drown or kill themselves in various ways. Some Mer have been known to create elaborate plots to kill and/or injure others (see the story of Aella).

“
Myth #2: The Mer are born of the sea.

“The
Truth: While the Mer are descended from Triton and thusly sea creatures, they are almost always also descended from humans. At birth, Triton would erase the memories of the humans, and take the babe to live with him in his kingdom. Other descendants of Mer may come from unions between Triton’s offspring and other creatures, including humans. This has been known to lead to unwanted births. Humans giving birth to children born from these unions were quick to kill them—driven by superstition. The Mer were often as eager to rid themselves of any baby born too human—ones born with legs or without gills.”

Kyros skimmed over a few pages until he came to the subject he’d been searching for.

“Myth #7: The Mer are not capable of compassion.

“The
Truth: This is perhaps one of the greatest fallacies among Dagonians. The Mer are just as capable of showing empathy and kindness as any Dagonian. But, because of the power they wield when they are cruel or vicious, they can wreak much more damage than other creatures, including a Dagonian. Thus, the cruel acts of the Mer overshadow any kind acts they may perform.”

Kyros frowned. Was he wrong? Was his thinking based on ignorant stereotypes?

Perhaps.

He continued to read on for a couple of hours before his back
protested. The hours of reading were mind changing and enlightening, but his body wasn’t adapting to the toll gravity took on it. Standing, he stretched. He could use a good swim before he returned to bed.

He strolled into the pool room and stripped. Diving into the salty water never felt better. It slicked over his body like a lover’s caress. He braced himself for the pain of the transformation from human to Dagonian. H
e growled as his skin tore open, his muscles morphing and tying his legs together, forming his fin. It always hurt like Hades, but it was worth it. When the pain subsided, he began his swim. He circled around, his powerful tail driving him forward. He swam as fast as he could in such a tight space. Diving down and skirting the bottom of the deep end. He swam back up, leaping out of the water, only to dive back down into the surface.

When he had swam enough to satisfy him
self, he slowed his pace and circled leisurely. At last he surfaced, finding himself face to face with Gretchen. She raised an eyebrow. “Out for a late-night dip?”

Kyros plastered his tail against the side of the pool. Had she seen it? He searched her face for surprise or shock. She looked tired, her eyes shadowed
. Her brown eyes stood out, dark against her pale face. But she seemed composed.