Evergreen (Mer Tales, Book 2) (21 page)

A searing ache tore at the sides of my neck. Surprisingly, the water gushed in. I shrieked, but only pulled in another hungry thick breath. Again, the water rushed across the raw skin on my neck, bypassing my lungs. Relief filled me. I could breathe underwater. My limbs jolted to life and I touched the flaps of skin protruding from the sides of my neck. Was I becoming a mermaid?

I attempted to kick my feet to swim to the surface when my muscles seized. I cried out and arched my back to stop the biting sting. I twisted and turned. Nothing helped. Then heat began to radiate under my skin, growing warmer by the second. I tried kicking again when something tore down the sides of my legs with a scorching hot burn. I sucked in another gulp of the cool water, hoping to stop the pain.

Hot. My body was in an oven, cooking to death. Hot, so hot. Yes, please. Stop. Anything but this. Instead, the fire stoked under my skin and boiled all around me.

My legs itched uncontrollably. I reached down to scratch the skin. My nail beds sliced open and something sharp protruded out, ripping open my flesh. I screamed, but I couldn’t see what I’d done. My eyeballs felt like they were turning inside out, then my ears crackled with a horrific deafening pop. I thrashed in a circle, hoping the rush of water would cool the burn. The bones in my legs crunched and pulled apart with loud pops. I tried to bend my knees; my legs wouldn’t respond. Another seizure hit, snapping my legs together like magnets. I yanked to keep them from fusing. Knives carved their way under my flesh anyway, ripping through me with a vengeance. Something yanked hard against my body, stretching me like taffy. I writhed, unable to stop myself from screaming continually as the fire chewed its way over my skin like a piranha.

Fin never warned me about the pain. Though I’d secretly wanted to be a mermaid, this would have been the deal breaker. I couldn’t endure this. I didn’t care if I’d never see him again, feel his kisses on my lips, fall asleep in his arms.

I wanted to die.

Now.

Please, dear God. Let me die!

But it wouldn’t stop. The pain continued on, ripping and tearing me, forming me into something inhuman. I hated Alaster. I wanted to scratch his eyes out with my new claws. If I survived, he’d experience my wrath like no other.

Another seizure tore at my body. Would this happen every sunset? I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t live with this pain daily.

I keep screaming, crying, begging—I’d give my very soul for peace, but the burning wouldn’t stop. When? When would it end?

Fin, please help me!

:::

FIN

Thursday evening, April 21
^st

Someone slapped me across my face. I moved to retaliate, but my arms hung like deadweights chained above my head.

“Wake up, pretty boy.” Uncle Alaster’s voice sent daggers of rage into my blood stream.

I shook my head. My body was on fire.

“It’s no fun if you don’t stay awake and watch.” His fish breath revolted my stomach.

But my eyes wouldn’t stay open. Something dripped on my lips; I ran my tongue along the chapped skin, licking up a few drops of essence.

The sudden infusion cleared my head. “Where’s Ash?”

Uncle Alaster’s lip pushed up to the side. He looked over at the pool. A small dark figure thrashed around under the water.

“You’re full of surprises, Nephew. How could you leave your sweet little honey all alone? No wonder Colin was having such trouble persuading her.”

I sat upright. “What did you do?”

“Finished what you started.”

A small green fin flipped above the surface of the water—thin and fragile. He’d changed her. She was suffering.

“You son of a bass! When I get out of here—”

“I’d like to see you try—” He dangled a silver key in front of me. “Such poetic justice. My brother provideth, and I taketh away.” He leaned forward and whispered. “But in a few hours, you’ll be dead—either by the poison or by exposure. I wish I could stay and watch your princess try her hardest to save you, but I already know what will happen. Don’t worry, Fin. After you die, we’ll take excellent care of her,” he said with a sardonic laugh.

I struggled against the chains and growled. “You’re nothing but pure evil.”

“Too bad my good-for-nothing brother and his beta-wench didn’t come with you. I’ve had so much fun rigging this place for our happy reunion. Won’t your dried carcass be a nice welcome home present?”

I exhaled out of clenched teeth. “You can go to hell.”

“Not before you,” he laughed. “Come on, Colin. I’m sick of the whining and we can’t do anything until the bait dies. Let’s give them their last few hours alone.”

Colin shot me a mournful look as they disappeared down the porthole. The sound of metal gears rubbing together signaled they’d locked the hatch shut.

“Ash.” My lips cracked open and bled. “Ash!”

I took labored breaths in time. I ached for water, my strength diminishing with every second. The incisions on my fin bled from where the barbs cut me, tinged with a weird green glow. Ferdinand had similar wounds when he returned from Natatoria. Uncle Alaster had only given me enough essence to basically bring me around and torture me longer—nothing substantial enough to heal anything.

“Ash, please surface,” I said before I closed my eyes. The thought she’d watch me die gripped me. We only had one hope.

“Galadriel,” I whispered.

:::

ASH

Friday, early morning, April 22nd

The pain finally stopped. I opened my eyes; everything underwater was crystal clear and vibrant. Where my legs used to be, an elegant green fin fluttered in the water, sweet and delicate like butterfly wings. I brought my hand to my mouth. My arms were covered in a fine layer of iridescent scales, soft to the touch. I flitted my tail and zoomed across the pool, faster than I’d ever swam. A squeal escaped my lips. After all the pain, I had a tail. A TAIL! More beautiful than I could imagine.

I tried extending the claws I felt earlier from under my nail beds, but no matter what I tried, nothing would pop out. They’d come in handy, especially when I scratched out Alaster’s eyes for what he did to me.
Alaster.

I breeched the surface of the water to find him. Neither he nor Colin were in the room, but Fin lay lifeless—his fin grey and dull—chained to the wall. He was barely breathing.

“No!” I flipped my tail and flew out of the water, landing next to his body. “Please, no!”

I brushed my hand over his taut face. He sucked in a small breath. I pulled on the chains. They wouldn’t budge.

“Water,” he croaked out.

I wiggled my hips to get back into the pool and splashed him with my hands.

Frantic, I looked around. They didn’t have a hose down here? How’d they fill the pool? Near the soda fountain was a stack of cups. I swam over and filled two. Most of the water spilled by the time I maneuvered myself back to Fin. I tried to get him to drink and he allowed half to pass his lips. His tail finally twitched.

“Come on. Fight!”

The soggy towel from earlier caught my eye. I strained my arm to grab it, and laid it over his tail. After another labored trip to the pool, I splashed more to drench the towel, but he didn’t respond. My arms began to ache.

What did Fin say about being out of the water? How long could we survive? I looked up at the darkened windows along the edge of the ceiling. How long did we have until morning?

A silver ring protruded from the cinderblock and held Fin’s chains in place. If I could pull it from the wall, or break away the stone, maybe I could get him free. The javelin could work as a tool.

“Fin, I’m going to break you free. Hang on. Please!”

I held the javelin over my head and chipped away at the stone. Chip, chip, chip. The ring loosened a tiny bit.

I jumped back into the water and splashed him, this time with my tail, before chipping away at the cement again. Chip, chip, chip.

“Hang on.”

I splashed again, my energy evaporating. But even with all the effort, the ring barely moved. There was no way I could get him free anytime soon.

“Ugh. God, please!” I pulled on the chain, in desperation; mentally and physically exhausted.

Fin grunted the same time the metal hatch door behind me creaked.

Forgetting I was a mermaid, I tried to run for the javelin on the floor and fell over. Colin popped out of the hatch first.

I shrieked as I circled my fingers around the javelin’s shaft. Colin slid over with ease and pushed me into the pool before I could get a firm grip.

When I reemerged, Colin had his arm cocked back with the javelin pointed at Fin.

“No!” With a flip of my tail, my body launched from the pool. I clung to his back, suspended for a moment, my tail swishing around on the ground beneath me, before he shook me free. I fell on the floor in a flippered heap.

“Stop it, Ash, or I’ll hit him.” He rammed the spear blade into the chain several times. Finally, a link busted open, releasing Fin’s wrists. He crumbled onto the floor. I put my hands on Fin’s chest.

“Move out of the way!” Colin barked as he elbowed me aside.

He reached under Fin’s arms and pulled his limp body into the water with a plop. I clawed forward and dove in after them. Together we sank to the bottom.

 “Please.” I brushed my lips over his. “Wake up.”

Fin’s gills moved slowly as he pulled water into his mouth. Colin rested next to us on the pool floor and watched with a twisted frown. I held Fin’s face gently and blew water into his mouth from mine. He couldn’t leave me. Not now.

“He needs essence,” Colin said; the sound was as clear as if we were out of the water.

I turned to Colin and glowered. “You did this!” I tried to slap him. My claws popped out from under my nail beds, surprising me, and I swiped his face.

He turned his cheek, but didn’t retaliate. Blood spurted into the water momentarily, before the wounds healed.

“You can hate me all you want later, but we need to get somewhere safe until morning. My Dad is coming back!”

I hung onto Fin as he floated in the water, unconscious. “I don’t understand. Why are you helping us now?”

“I didn’t agree to this, Ash. To murder. I only wanted to be promised to a princess.” He looked away. “I had no idea you and Fin were—it doesn’t matter anymore anyway. Let’s go.”

I breeched the surface and Colin hoisted Fin out of the pool onto the deck.

“Look who escaped!” Alaster appeared at the porthole. He grasped a woman by her red hair—a mermaid. “What are you doing?”

Colin startled, then studied the girl his dad held, confusion clear on his face. “Who’s that?”

Alaster pinched his eyes into slits and did a double take as well. The mermaid thrashed under his grip, hissing.

“Put me down, you bottom feeder!” she demanded. “You don’t treat royalty this way, you hear me?”

Alaster threw her onto the floor and grabbed a javelin from the wall, pointing it at her.

“Twins?” he breathed in disbelief.

“You’ll endure the full extent of the law for kidnapping me,” the mermaid seethed. “You’ll be taking a one way trip to Bone Island!”

Alaster didn’t pay attention. He glowered at me. “This whole time I thought
you
were the lost princess.”

The girl looked at me as well, squinting her eyes in curiosity.

Alaster pointed the javelin at Galadriel. “Show me your hip.”

She reluctantly turned after he threatened to stab her. We had matching marks.

“How is this possible?” Alaster said, and nudged her with the blunt end of the javelin. “Who are you?”

“Princess Galadriel. Who else would I be?”

“Galadriel?” He studied her, then turned to me in confusion. “Then who are you?”

“Can’t you see? She’s a princess, too,” Colin said offhandedly. “They both have the mark.”

Could this really be true after all? I lifted the hem of my tattered dress and ran my hand over the raised iridescent mark above where my scales started. A princess? How did I end up on land then? Were my parents of royal mer blood? Did they leave the colony and escape?

Alaster’s brow shot up. “Hmmm…” He eyed the two of us lustfully. “Two princesses.”

Fin struggled to breathe as Alaster ran his finger over the tip of the blade, contemplating something. We were running out of time. Fin needed to be in the water, at least.

I held out my hand, ready to push him back in, when—quick as a flash—Alaster bumped me aside and slung Fin’s limp body across the floor. He hit the base of the stairs.

“Fin stays out of the water!”

I picked up the fallen javelin and aimed it at Alaster’s heart. A vial of the blue liquid hung from his belt. That was what Colin said Fin needed. I charged Alaster determined to stop him and take the blue liquid.

Alaster grabbed my arm and twirled me around, pinning my neck against his chest. He ripped the javelin from my hand. “Feisty little princess.” He laughed and gestured to Colin. “Get Galadriel. We’re going.”

“No, Father. This isn’t right. Fin doesn’t need to die.”

Alaster scowled. “Are you defying me?”

“It’s time to let your jealousy over Uncle Jack go. We’ve got what we want. Fin will be punished for his crimes in Natatoria. I don’t want his death on my conscience.”

Alaster’s chest heaved. “You’re not going to be the only one on the royal court, Colin. I will make the decisions around here.”

I struggled in Alaster’s arm and yanked on the vial chained to his belt. The chain snapped, knocking the vial to the ground. He didn’t notice
,
too busy arguing with Colin. But how was I going to get it to Fin?

Colin protectively moved in front of Galadriel. “Don’t do this, Father.”

“Do what? Claim my destiny? Give my rotten brother the life of misery he deserves? I was stupid to assume you could handle the power. You’re not even royalty yet and you’re ordering me around. I’m the one who deserves the praise. I found the princess. Both of them!”

Colin stretched his arm for a javelin on the wall, but Alaster launched the one in his hand first, hitting Colin in the side. Galadriel shrieked and caught him as he flopped onto her, blood pouring from the wound.

“Father?” he said, terror and confusion in his eyes.

“You’re as worthless as your mother.”

Alaster held me tighter against his body. I gasped as tears spilled over my cheeks. The blood pooled on the deck under Colin.

“You’re a monster,” Galadriel screamed as she pressed her hand over the wound. “This will not be tolerated!”

“Oh, yeah?” He fastened his arm around my waist and pulled me toward the porthole. “I don’t need your approval, Princess. And since I don’t need the both of you, I’ll take my chances with the compliant one.”

Alaster’s nostrils flared before he took another javelin off the wall and flung it at Galadriel, hitting her tail. She cried out and fell on top of Colin, blood spilling everywhere.

“No!” I screamed as Alaster dropped me down the hole and pushed my head under the water. He sealed the hatch behind him as I beat on his chest.

“Shut up and come with me.” He fisted my hair and pulled me into the belly of the lake.

I shrieked and held onto his hand to stop the pain radiating over my scalp. “I won’t go with you! You can’t make me!”

He got within inches of my face. “You will go with me and be happy about it. And once we’re promised, you’ll happily do everything I say or something might happen to that sweet sister of yours. Lucy is it?”

“You wouldn’t.”

“I would.”

I lifted my hand and showed him my tattoo. “But I’m promised to Fin.”

He gritted his teeth and then smiled, flashing a gold tooth. “Not for long, love.”

He swam off, still holding me by the hair. I watched the opening of the tunnel until it disappeared from sight, unsure where he was taking me.