Authors: Rosanna Leo
Elsie raced into the water, crying, but Angus held her back. “If you touch our daughter,” he swore, “I’ll squeeze the last putrid breath from your body.”
Mack fought to keep the wave in front of Beth, but it was difficult. He could swear something was working against him. It should be easy to drag Beth back to shore, but she seemed able to overcome and swim through each swell of cold water pounding her body. It must be due to the finman’s abilities; he possessed remarkable powers. A sweat broke out on Mack’s brow. His temple throbbed with the intensity of a mallet hitting an anvil. Still, he stared after his mate and did all he could to keep her safe and out of the finman’s foul clutches.
All at once, the black sky split open and lightning shot toward Beth.
“No!”
Mack realized afterward the anguished scream was his.
The lightning forked toward her, hauled her dripping out of the sea, and carried her to the finman. As she reached the beast, the finman made Morgan levitate. The baby once again sailed through the sky, landing safely in Angus’ arms, but screaming her head off as if offended she now reeked of finman. Angus enfolded Elsie in his arms, and the parents kissed the babe until she quieted.
As the finman grasped Beth, she turned toward Mack. Her eyes were haunted, and her face was red from exertion. She mouthed the words, “I’m sorry.”
The finman held her in his finny arms, laughed once more, and threw her into his waiting kayak. The bedeviled vessel tore away from them, dragging Beth screaming and writhing into the depths of the black sea.
Mack could have turned to stone. His throat became as dry as parchment, and his spirit felt just as brittle. He couldn’t string his thoughts together. And he was certain his heart was slowing down, dragging him into a numbing obscurity that terrified him.
My mate. Beth, my love
.
His agony mutated into a searing, blind fury, and the need to harm and kill seized him. He turned to his family, his body shaking with a penetrating cold that had nothing to do with the damned mist. “I’m going to Hildaland. I’m going after her.”
Edan, Jamie, Drummond, and Breannan stepped forward and replied as a determined unit, “We’re coming.”
Mack didn’t waste another second. He glanced at Angus to make sure the baby was okay. She was. He turned to the sea. He and his brothers stripped quickly and stepped into the frigid waves. They wrapped their pelts around them and adjusted their weapons over their bodies with belts. They charged into the waves. As he shifted into his seal self, swimming deeper and deeper, Mack vowed to find Beth or die trying.
* * * *
It didn’t take them long to swim to Mermaid’s Mound, which was in reality a large, flat rock perfect for sunning oneself. Mack and his brothers had raced many a time as young selkies. Speed wasn’t an issue for any of them, and yet tonight they were all determined to break records.
As soon as they reached the craggy rock in the middle of the sea, one that would not register on any human charts or maps, they divested themselves of their skins and stowed them in a deep crevice in the rock. They soon heard the sound of water splashing on the far end of the rock. Bracing themselves, the men waited as three mermaids propped their heavenly bodies up on the rock.
In another time, Mack would have enjoyed the view. No sane man could have looked away. The maids all sported long, dark locks that shimmered almost green when wet. Top models would have carved up their own faces in an attempt to achieve the magnificent bone structure of the mermaids. And their bodies were rounded and lush, as perfect as they could be. Their tails, although off-putting, were beautiful with golden scales that shimmered, even at night. The gilded scales inched up their torsos and delicately circled plump breasts that would corrupt a saint.
He stared through uninterested eyes. None of it mattered. He only had eyes for Beth.
“Damn,” Jamie uttered. “It’s been years since I’ve had a mermaid.”
One of the fishy lasses spoke in a musical voice meant to seduce. “Shall we correct your oversight tonight, selkie?” She smiled at Jamie, and her green eyes twinkled with mischief as she eyed his boner.
One of the other mermaids gestured toward Edan and let out a laugh that sounded like wind chimes. “I like the one with the ginger hair.”
Drummond griped, “It’s always about the hair with Edan.”
Edan grinned. “Don’t hate me because I’m beautiful.”
“Enough foolishness,” Mack declared, already tired of the game. He addressed the mermaids, one of whom was flapping her tail toward Breannan, splashing him with promiscuous grace. “Ladies, we’re on a mission and need to use the Mound.”
The first mermaid beckoned to him with a graceful finger. “You can use my mound, selkie.” She nodded at Jamie. “You and your brother.”
“Christ Almighty,” Jamie muttered under his breath, clearly fighting a major case of sexual temptation.
“As enticing as the offer is,” Mack continued, “that’s not what we’re here for. My mate has been taken to Hildaland, and I need to get her back.”
All three mermaids gasped in horror. Every supernatural creature in the region was aware of the depraved finmen. Still, their fingers were possessive clamps on their rock, their eyes narrowed in suspicion.
Mack reached for the necklaces he’d borrowed from his mother. He’d stowed them in his quiver, and when he pulled them out, they sparkled in the moonlight. The fish maidens sighed in rapture. The one who’d been eyeing Edan tore her gaze away and reached for one of the necklaces. “So lovely! I like the one with the pearl!”
“And they will be yours if you let us use the Mound.”
The mermaids hesitated, clearly torn, their flashing eyes locked on the jewelry. Mack fingered a large emerald on one of the necklaces. “A green emerald to match beautiful green eyes.”
“Me,” one of them shouted. “Give it to me!”
“No, me,” said another.
“How about this, ladies,” Mack said. “I’ll toss them into the water and let you decide which you prefer. And we’ll use the rock. Deal?”
The mermaids nodded. “Deal.”
Mack tossed the necklaces, making sure to throw them far away. With a giggle, the mermaids plunged into the deeps and swam after the baubles. He watched them pushing and shoving at each other to get to the sinking jewels until they disappeared.
“Mental note,” Jamie said. “Clear my schedule for some serious mermaid time in the near future.”
Free to work, the men positioned themselves in the center of the large rock. Mack took one of his arrows and scored the tip across his palm, cutting into his skin. It stung like a bugger, but he didn’t flinch. He wasn’t going to moan about his small pains when Beth could be suffering somewhere.
If he touches her
… The idea the finman might force himself on her was repugnant. It made his skin crawl.
Edan elbowed him. “Don’t go there. Concentrate on the task at hand.”
Edan, always the levelheaded one. Mack looked at him and the other brothers. “Thank you. For everything.”
“Never mind that,” Jamie urged. “Spill your blood, man, so we can get off this bewitched boulder.”
Mack let his blood drip onto the rock. Within seconds a flickering mauve light appeared, emanating from the Mound. And with it five black cloaks out of nowhere. On the garments was a note. It was from Ingrid, the realtor/witch. Fancy that. Mack read it.
You’ll need these on Hildaland. Be careful
.
Each man slid into a cloak and concealed his weapons.
“How do I look as a finshit?” Jamie joked as he pulled the dark hood over his strawberry-blond locks. “Better than they do, I’d wager.”
Breannan thumped him. “Only you would check your looks at a moment like this.”
“Quiet, you two,” Drummond urged. He nodded at the mauve light on the Mound. “The magic’s working.”
They all watched as the small illumination spread, casting a glow on the nearest waves. The light lengthened and seemed to point in a northeasterly direction, fanning out into the distance. Within moments another island appeared on the horizon where there hadn’t been one before. Hildaland.
Mack’s lip curled as he glared at the finman island. From a distance, it appeared to be nothing more than a rock formation, and yet he knew it was a home to death and ruination. And Beth was there. He felt it in his heart.
“Let’s go,” he muttered, motioning to his brothers. “I don’t want her there a second more than she has to be.”
With that, they all dived into the water once again and swam as men to Hildaland.
* * * *
As the finman yanked her out of his kayak onto a rocky shore, the first thing Beth noticed was the stench. It seemed the entire island was drenched in the odor of decay, new and old. It seemed to permeate the very soil, choking out any vegetation. Covering her mouth and nose as he tied up his little boat, she made her second observation. The entire island was littered with skeletons. There were so many human bones they were ground into the gravel beneath her feet.
How many women had been lured here through the ages? How many women had had the misfortune of this being their last sight?
As the finman cursed over the knot he was tying, Beth shot a quick glance around. There were no buildings, no flowers or trees. Nothing that would make the place welcoming in any way. And perhaps the dark creatures preferred it that way. Maybe it had developed this way because of the dismal acts perpetrated on these shores.
She looked for other fin people but couldn’t see any. And then she noticed the opening to a large cave about fifty feet ahead. It was the only sign that anyone lived there at all. Mack said there were others. Did they all live in caves?
Beth heard a skitter of noise and then realized it was just her erratic breathing.
Steady. You can do this. Do it for Mack
. She shoved her hand in her jeans pocket, thanking God she’d worn a baggier pair, and touched the tip of the small dagger there. The weapon Ingrid had given her looked dainty and almost feminine compared to Mack’s arrows, but it was enough to do the trick.
“Prick your finger, lass,” Ingrid had counseled. “And make it good. Hildaland is a dank, wretched place. Even your selkie man will need help there. Let the blood from your finger drip onto the ground as you walk. Machar will catch your scent and will follow you.”
“Why can’t we tell Mack about the plan?” Beth had asked Ingrid.
“Because,” Ingrid had replied, “your man’s temper runs hot where you are concerned. The more he knows, the more you are all in danger. He’ll be tempted to strike too soon, and the finman will unleash his wrath on the family. If you want to keep them from harm on that beach,
you
must carry out the plan and trust that Machar will follow.”
She did trust Machar and would do anything to keep him and the other Kirks safe. She’d grown to love the whole lot of them in a miniscule space of time. She just had to watch her step now and time things properly so she could return to them.
Please, God, let me return
.
While the finman’s eyes were averted, she ran her finger over the sharp blade in her pocket, letting it slice her, biting back a cry as she did so. She gingerly extracted her hand from her pocket, held it in front of her, and squeezed her finger so that the blood pooled and dripped onto the ground.
The finman slid up behind her and caressed her wet arm with his slippery mess of a hand. She wasn’t even sure it was a hand. “You are cold and wet, woman,” he whispered, chilling her further. “Soon you’ll have no need for this attire. Or any attire.” He dragged her by the arm, pulling her toward the mouth of the cave.
“Why are you doing this?” she sputtered, tripping on the rocks under her feet.
He turned his orange eyes on her. They glowed at her from under his hood, twin points of cruel fluorescence set in an unfeeling face. He didn’t have a response, and she understood why. He did it because he could, just as Mack had warned. The finman didn’t care for her or what he’d taken from her. He just did whatever suited his agenda.
She tried another tack, hoping to distract him before he absconded with her into that dark cave. She dreaded going in there and dug in her heels to buy some time. “How did this begin anyway? You told Mack you saw me first, but I never saw you before that day on the water.”
He turned to her and laughed. Before the unfeeling laughter died away, he’d shifted shapes, leaving Luke standing in front of her. Only the image of her son had glaring, orange eyes. Beth brought her hand to her mouth, so sick of heart she thought she might spew right there.
In Luke’s high voice, the finman spoke. “Did you forget I can change shapes to suit my will?” There was a flicker of light, an alteration in the atmosphere around them, and he shifted again. Luke disappeared and another figure appeared. Beth stared, aghast. Mack had said the finman might take the shape of someone she knew, perhaps even a trusted friend. She’d wondered lately if he might have been masquerading as her neighbor, Gerald, but she’d never expected this.
The figure before her was that of David Waters, a colleague of her late husband’s. David was a tech on
What’s In Your Attic?
Over a year ago, David had gone through a heartbreaking divorce from his wife of twenty years. Beth and Frank had had him over a lot, had helped him through the emotional carnage. It was devastating to learn that the finman had used David’s grief as a vehicle for getting close to Beth. When she thought of all the times she’d held his hand, it was enough to make her puke. And David had been stalwart during Frank and Luke’s joint funeral, always standing at Beth’s side. Had he been real at all, or just a sham, made-up character?
The figure of David shifted back into that of the finman. He shrugged his shoulders. “There is no David Waters, woman. Just me.” He took a few steps toward the cave entrance and she followed, numb. “Every few years, I like to spend time in a human guise. You showed such sympathy to me, I decided to reward you by making you the breeder of my spawn.”
“You call destroying my family a
reward
?”