Droplets (DROPLETS Trilogy Book 1) (4 page)

     “Who are you?” Dad shouted above the rain.

     The merman did not answer but continued to look at me with those eyes that pierced my soul; I shuttered in my father’s arms. After not being answered Dad tried again, “Who are you? What do you want?”

     For a while, the merman continued to stare, but then he unlocked his gaze from mine and looked at my father. The rain rushed like a river down his chest as he spoke in a powerful and dangerous voice.

     “I want her.”

4. Change

Time stood still.  No one spoke. No one moved. The seconds ticked by.

     “
I said
, I want her.” The merman spoke slowly as if we could not understand him.

     “No,” was the firm reply from Dad. His voice was calm, but a deep anger was hidden beneath it.

     Silently, he unwrapped his arms from around my body and stepped in front of me, never taking his eyes off the merman.  Afraid of what would happen, I peeked around his back.

     The merman’s gaze was still upon me. His eyes were intense, the cool grey reflecting the dark clouded sky above. They seemed to have no depth, like the vast ocean surrounding us.

     He spoke again, “No matter what you do, you cannot take her from me. I want her and she will be mine.”

     To emphasize his words, the merman crossed his large arms over his chest. The overall size of him was incredible. He was taller than my brothers, and his arms were swollen with toned, powerful muscles.

     “What do you want with her?” Sean asked protectively.

     “She will be mine.” The merman repeated this phrase again causing a shiver of cold fear to trickle down my spine. He meant what he said and a feeling of doom hung over me.

     My mind could not grasp his meaning.
What could he want me for?
I was human and he was this mystical creature who lived in the ocean, yet here he miraculously stood before me.
Why would he pick me?
He had never met nor seen me before today, but then… I gasped, as realization hit me.

     He was the murmuring noise last night. He was the one who had heard me singing, and had sung along. I suddenly remembered the odd feeling I’d had when it seemed as though eyes were watching me. I stared back at the merman, the silent wonder burning in my gaze.

     His cold dark eyes answered my question. I was right. He had been there last night listening to me sing; he had watched me as I stood looking out over the ocean.

      “You can’t be serious!” My father’s voice was beyond outrage as he shouted above the pouring rain. “I don’t even know who you are,” he looked the merman up and down, “or what you are.”

     “I am a merman.” The statement was short and to the point. Dad stared at him in disbelief, his eyes blinking rapidly.

     “If you’re what you say, how can you expect my sister to live with you? She is human,” Derek laughed in disbelief. 

     A slow smile crept over the merman’s face and those behind him joined in on what must have been an inside joke. The blonde one flexed his jaw and licked his lips as though anticipating what was to come. With a shudder I looked away from him.   

     With a chuckle the merman spoke, “There are ways of changing that little detail.” A great crash of thunder struck, placing emphasis on his words. “She will not remain human after this night. Tonight I will change her. In fact in a matter of minutes we can both leave.”

     I hardly heard what else was said. A great whirling rush filled my head and clogged my ears. Everything went fuzzy. 
What did he mean? That I would become a mermaid?
I didn’t want to be one, I wanted to go home and get away from all of this danger and fear.

     Dad couldn’t find his voice. He continued to open his mouth to try and say something, but nothing came out. It was Sean who spoke above the sharp whipping wind.

     “You won’t take her! You will have to kill me before you ever get the chance to take her.” His voice was filled with disgust.

     “Maybe we can just count on that happening,” the merman said as he finally took his eyes off of me and turned his piercing gaze onto Sean. The other mermen straightened their posture; the evil blonde one dropped his arms to his sides, his muscles flexing as though he was ready to attack at any moment.

     “Believe me: you, your brother, and father would be no match for me. I would hardly even call it a
scuffle
.” The merman spoke these words with a defiant sneer on his face. It was obvious he liked the idea of a fight, and that he wanted one. Regardless of the four mermen behind the leader, however, Derek was about to challenge him.

     My brothers had always protected me, but they had never come to blows over my safety. But even if they had fought, those fights would have been different than this; they would have been against other humans. There was no telling what kind of strength or power this merman and his group could display. Remembering the incredible speed the merman had had in the water suddenly filled me with fear. This could not turn into a fight, or else my brothers’ lives would be taken.  I was pulled from my thoughts by Derek’s voice.

     “We won’t give her to you freely. You’ll have to kill us before you get to her.” As he said this, he balled his hands into tight fists at his sides.

     “As I already said, that would be no problem. But please, do hurry up and make your decision. This ship will not hold against these waves much longer, and then we will all go down. Or at least you will.” A hardness spread over his lips, “Marina and I will be perfectly safe.”

    
Marina? Who was she?
He had looked at me when he said the strange name, but why had he meant to call me that? It made me feel like an object rather than a person who could hear and feel.

     “So that’s it then,” Dad had finally found his voice. “We’re just supposed to hand her over to you and then drown.”

     My breath caught at the look on Dad’s face. He appeared ten years older than what he had been yesterday. I knew I had to figure out some way to get us out of this, but I didn’t know what to do. 

     “No, that is not what will happen,” the merman’s harsh voice rose above the roar of the storm. I could tell that he was used to ordering others around.

     “I can see your sons, easy match that they would be for me, are not going to give up the idea of a fight. So I will give you three options. Either you die trying to fight me and I take Marina; you drown and I take Marina; or you give her to me and try to survive after we leave.” His voice was calm and smooth as he proposed the death of my family.

     Dad did not reply, but instead pushed me farther behind his body as though he was ready for an attack. Derek and Sean moved to place themselves between the assembly of mermen and me. They were going to try and protect me even if it meant certain death.

     My mind began to spin; I could not let this happen. Not while there was still breath in my body. The merman had given three options, two of which resulted in the deaths of my brothers and father. But the last one had not.

     I gazed back at the merman. His eyes were focused on Derek with a merciless black look of hatred—his deadly thoughts were written upon his face. I watched as his muscles twitched, waiting for Derek to make the first move. The mermen before me widened their stances, their faces filled with anticipation. Disgusted, I knew they were going to kill the people I loved most and they would do it before my very eyes.

     “Stop!” I shouted at them. Quick as a flash the leader’s gaze snapped to mine. I stepped out from behind Dad; he laid a restraining hand on my shoulder and shook his head.

     For a moment I looked at his face and saw the sadness there. Yet I could not let it stop me. I reached up and pulled his hand away from my shoulder. Giving it a slight squeeze, I let it go and turned back to the ever-staring mermen.

     “I will go with you, but only if you let my brothers and father live.” My family protested, but I ignored them.

     “I already said that was an option,” the leader retorted back at me.

     “No, you said you would let them
try
and survive on their own. I want you to make sure they live.” I watched his features, waiting for him to consent. “I know you have the strength and power to keep them alive. Please do this, please, and I will go with you freely.” Tears filled my eyes as I begged, “Please, it’s all that I ask.”

     My voice grew strangled, as it reached a higher pitch. His eyes glazed for a moment and he blinked. Shaking his head, he peered even harder at me through the rain, his head cocked to the side. There was a confirmation in his eyes as though he had finally found what he was searching for.  

     Finally he spoke, “Very well. I will see it done.” His eyes lifted from mine and found Dad. “I will keep you and your sons alive as long as you never speak a word of this to any human or try to search for us. After this night she will be mine and no longer your concern. Understood?” He didn’t wait for an answer.  “Come.”

     The merman spun around and walked to the door that led below deck, but not before he raised a stilling hand to the other mermen, commanding them to stay. Afraid, we followed, passing the mermen who glared at us. My one boot clunked on the deck as I gripped Dad’s coat desperately.

      Inside, we walked down the hall toward the kitchen and found the merman waiting for us. He looked entirely out of place, a mystical being in this ordinary room. I stopped walking and stood across the room from him. My brothers and father followed suit, sticking close to my sides.

     The merman’s arms were folded across his chest once again, and the rain water from outside slipped off his body into a puddle on the floor. He seemed to dry so quickly; as soon as the water left his flesh it was as though he had never been wet. The water did not penetrate his skin the way it did for us. We were soaked to the bone, our clothes dripping all over the floor. The only hints of him having been wet were his pants and hair. His dark shoulder length hair was only slightly damp and the black pants were just as wet as the clothes that stuck to my body.

     I glanced up and saw his gaze was fastened on me once more. I moved uncomfortably, fidgeting with my soaked jacket. The very thought of him taking me away tonight was so repulsive and unreal that I could not believe it. Yet, there he was right in front of me with a look of impatience on his face.

     He spoke and the words were heavy upon my ears, “I have to make sure before this is done. You are eighteen, are you not?” I became curious, but didn’t dare to voice my wonderment.

     “No,” I shook my head. “Seventeen,” I said in a barely audible voice as I looked at the floor.

     A deep silence stretched after my softly spoken words, the only sound being the pounding waves and pouring rain. Gathering my courage, I looked up at him. A look of stunned surprise was upon his face, but it turned to anger quickly.

     “That cannot be true! You look at least nineteen.” The merman gave me an accusing glare, “You’re lying.”

     “She’s seventeen.” Derek spoke so harshly I barely recognized his voice.

     “Are you really?” The merman raised an eyebrow, and looked at me so violently that I almost lied just to please him. 

     “Yes,” I said trying to show him it was the truth with one simple word.

     A frustrated sigh escaped his lips and he raised a large hand to rub the side of his face. He mumbled under his breath but I could not make out the words. The hand came down and his head rose. He took a steadying breath and spoke, “that changes things.”

     “How so?” I could hear the same little glimmer of hope, which was beginning to build inside me, in my father’s voice.

     “She will not go with me tonight,” he sighed again in frustration. “It appears I was mistaken about her age.”

     “So you will not take her?” Sean blurted.

     “Not yet, if that’s what you mean.” The tiny bubble of hope which had been building within me shattered. My fate lay before me, forever tied to this dangerous creature.

     “Her age does not cancel her fate, it merely prolongs it. She will be mine, eventually.” The merman gave me a questioning look. “When is your eighteenth birthday?”

     “August third,
”
I spoke quietly. This made his scowl deepen as he comprehended how long it would be until I turned eighteen.

     “Until then I will allow you to live with your family. After that day you will be mine.” The words seemed to form chains around my wrists, binding me to an unavoidable doom. “However, even now when you go home you will not be the same.”

     Of course I wouldn’t be the same. How could he think I would be? Before this I’d had no knowledge of fairytale creatures existing, and now I was being thrust into their world.

     “What do you mean?” Dad asked, trying to contain his anger.

     “There will be a change within her. A change she can either except or hate, it does not matter to me for it will happen regardless.” As he spoke, he took a step closer to me. He beckoned me with his hand to cover the rest of the space between us.

     Dad sucked in his breath. I pitied him along with my brothers. They were as powerless in this situation as I was. There was nothing we could do to change the odds in our favor. The merman had complete and total control over us.

     Gathering the rest of my strength, I obediently stepped as close to him as I dared. He was now an arm’s length away from me. My body shivered, whether from fear or the cold I did not know. With a graceful move he stepped forward, bringing us closer.

     Involuntarily; I shifted to the side and then moved back a few paces. My racing heart escalated as he followed, I could not look at this creature without complete fear filling my body. My subconscious picked up on the loud voices of my family, but I was too focused on the merman to understand them. The creature paid the words no mind, until he jerked and with a sharp movement held his hand up in a warning. Derek was caught in mid-step, his eyes on fire as he glared. Again, pity for my family washed over me.